Note: This is the longest chapter I have ever written for any of my stories. Everything here takes place while Naruto is fifteen years old. I suggest using the restroom before you start reading, as well as maybe grabbing a drink and a snack. This will be more than a five minute read. Much more. Enjoy!
Fifteen
Five months later, southern Rice Field Country...
Naruto let out a grunt as he was pushed backwards, his feet digging into the ground behind him in order to keep his body from toppling over. His current sparring partner certainly had no desire to pull any punches, even when he was obviously caught off guard.
He was granted no reprieve either; the moment Naruto steadied himself his opponent quickly lashed out with a brutal series of swipes, staggering him until he tried to move backwards again, only to find himself backed up against a tree.
"That's three. You have lost. Again."
The blond shinobi let out a sigh as he rubbed his throbbing forearms, sliding down along the side of the trunk until he was sitting on the soft dirt at the base of the tree. "Every time I think I see an opening, you catch it and hit me. I don't know what I'm doing wrong."
Kyuubi stared down at Naruto with its bright red eyes, frowning. "It's called baiting, and you always fall for it. I have won our last thirty six spars. I was expecting you to best me, or at least come close in one of them by now. Not using your Shadow Clones should not cripple you to this degree."
"You've been keeping track?" Naruto's voice was a mix between embarrassment and indignation. "If I could use the clones I would have won by now."
"Of course. I know how you are when it comes to competition, even if you don't like to admit it. You have changed since you were younger... but not that much. As for the clones, there may come a time when you will not have the opportunity to use them, and will need to rely on your own body. That is what I am trying to teach you. Besides, the clones are only as skilled as their creator."
Naruto stared at Kyuubi's typically expressionless face for a moment before closing his eyes and nodding. He heard the bijuu snort, then begin to walk away, the grass rustling under its feet. It was odd for him to still think of the Kyuubi as an 'it', but the bijuu was still strangely determined about not being classified by human gender terms. Then again, its current look was so androgynous that it was hard to decide on what gender to use, anyway.
Kyuubi's human face reminded Naruto of Haku in a way, as it could be classified as either male or female, more likely female if you couldn't see the rest of the body that was attached to it. Kyuubi's build was rather lithe, and seemed to be able to bend in ways that Naruto knew would likely break or severely strain his own bones and muscles if he tried; having a form that was made entirely of chakra likely came with the bonus of not being inhibited by such things.
The spars they had been doing lately were only possible because of Naruto's growing skill in fuuinjutsu - even Jiraiya had been astounded with the progress, though he chalked up much of the blond's success to the constant use of Shadow Clones. They had come in handy for things other than fuuinjutsu practice as well; every other shinobi discipline that Jiraiya was trying to pound into his skull was moving forward at a rapid pace. After taking 'time off' from training to work exclusively on fuuinjutsu for a while, Jiraiya told him that they were quickly catching up to where he planned on being by this time in his training.
His fuuinjutsu now allowed him to send a marginal amount of Kyuubi's chakra into his own clone - the one Kyuubi inhabited whenever Naruto summoned it. At first the bijuu appeared agitated about being summoned on a near daily basis, but eventually became accustomed to it, and even seemed to expect and even anticipate the summons after a few months.
Naruto had noticed some other changes about the Kyuubi as well. While it never pulled punches in spars, "Feeling this pain will not only make you stronger, but you will likely also want to avoid feeling it again," it still seemd to genuinely care for Naruto's well being in an odd way. Not just because if he died, Kyuubi apparently 'died' as well, but as they interacted more and more it seemed as though Kyuubi would often be analyzing him. Perhaps he was looking into it too much, and it really was nothing more than the bijuu trying to make him a stronger 'jinchuuriki'.
"Are you quite done examining my behavior?"
Naruto quickly sat upright, his eyes opening to see Kyuubi frowning at him from the opposite side of their clearing.
"I was broadcasting?"
"Very loudly."
"Oops. I didn't know I was."
He heard Kyuubi snort once again, this time in his mind. "Obviously. Come, follow me. There is something here you may be interested to see."
Offering a mental nod, Naruto quickly hopped up towards his feet and jogged towards the other side of the clearing where Kyuubi began swiftly moving through the trees. The mental connection they shared was yet another thing he had added into his special summon, courtesy of direction from the Kyuubi. When he originally asked why, the bijuu had surprised him, saying there were some things that it may have to tell Naruto which others didn't need to know, including Jiraiya. Naruto wasn't sure if he should have considered it as a symbol of trust or pragmatism, but it still did a good job of making him feel special.
It didn't take long for the blond to reach an opening in the trees, or more accurately the end of the treeline; the line itself was easily visible once he was able to look around more. Kyuubi was standing up at the top of a little hill not to far away, beckoning for him to come closer. Doing as instructed, he swiflty moved over or around the few smaller trees, shrubs, and rocks in his way to the top of the hill.
He wasn't expecting the hill to suddenly stop, however, and if it wasn't for Kyuubi sticking an arm out, he might have barreled right over the edge of the cliff. It was a breathtaking sight, looking out over the edge... it was easily a hundred meter drop, probably bigger. It was obviously not a natural valley, the sides of it were a bit too smooth, and down below there was no river running through the middle of it. There were no trees, either, from what he could see - it was all tall grasses or bushes. There was another cliff on the other side of the clearing, which was about forty meters away, though it was barely half the height of the one they were on.
"Wow! It doesn't look natural, bit it's still cool!"
"Hmm." Kyuubi's voice came across fairly monotone, as usual, but there seemed to be a hint of pride to it when the bijuu spoke, "It is not natural, because I made it."
Naruto's head shifted around so fast, he probably came close to breaking his own neck. "What? Why?"
As if prepared for this question, the redhead began talking right away. "It was here, long ago, that I fought and fatally injured the host of the Hachibi. Kumogakure located me and wished to capture me for their own purposes, and brought a fairly large force along with the Hachibi Jinchuuriki to do it. They failed, obviously, and lost the life of their host once they extracted the Hachibi from him, since I crippled said host beyond redemption. Unfortunately... since my location was revealed I knew it was only a matter of time before others would come. One did."
"Who?"
Kyuubi was silent for a moment, and Naruto pouted, figuring it was one of those things that he wouldn't get the answer to yet. Sighing and turning to look out over the valley again, he was surprised to hear the Kyuubi speak in a more subdued voice, which was highly unusual.
"His name is Uchiha Madara."
"U-Uchiha? Like Sasuke and Itachi?"
"Correct."
"Was it just him or did Konoha forces come with him?"
Kyuubi chuckled, another thing it did rarely, but it had been doing more often over the past few months. "He had already exiled himself from Konoha a while beforehand, from what I knew. He came alone, and subdued me alone."
Naruto just stared, incredulous, at what Kyuubi was saying. There was someone able to subdue the most powerful of all the bijuu alone? He had a hard enough time just handling three tails!
Kyuubi noticed Naruto's discomfort as it nodded and turned to go back down the hill. "This is why you are training, Naruto. People like Madara are ones you will have to face, likely sooner than we may realize if what Itachi said had any merit. Come, it's time for more training. The Sage should be back soon as well."
Naruto followed behind the bijuu silently. Jiraiya had told him more about the people of that organization... Akatsuki. Things would definitely get worse before they ever got better, that was for certain.
Six weeks later, Iron Country border post with Lightning Country...
Jiraiya chuckled as he left the border post of Lightning Country, the stiff Jounin guards making him glad most of Konoha's forces didn't act like they constantly had a stick shoved up their asses. Cloud was known for their tightly structured military, however, so it didn't really surprise him... much. The fact that one of the Densetsu no Sannin was in their backyard for a while likely also had them tense.
The Sage grumbled and rubbed his arms underneath his cloak as a breeze kicked up. It was already cold in Iron Country, as was the norm for this particluar area. Unfortunately it was starting to snow, and while not a bad sign, it was certainly an inconvenient one if there was a lot of accumulation.
"Finished already?"
Jumping up slightly, Jiraiya whirled around to see a woman standing not too far away from him. A woman that looked rather familiar due to the length of her hair, its deep red color with black ends and her bright, almost glowing red eyes. The facial features were bordering on what Jiraiya would have considered regal – strong jawline, dainty nose, pouty lips, thin eyebrows... it was as far as he had ever been concerned, the 'works'. If he didn't know who it really was, he would have been smitten.
"K... Kyuubi?"
"Good, so I am still recognizable."
Jiraiya nodded slowly, his eyes going up and down over the Kyuubi's new form several times. It was definitely more womanly than before, by far. The bijuu had apparently decided to update its outfit as well in such a way that nicely complemented its full hourglass figure. Not to mention the subtle emphasis placed on its... chest. Very nice...
"If you're ogling me that much, it means I was correct in my decision. Now, lets get back to camp before the snow gets heavier."
The Sage nodded, noting that his mouth was suddenly a bit dry. Kyuubi's new form was giving him ideas, however, and he casually reached into one of his vest pockets to grab his pencil and notebook.
"What are you doing?"
"Uh... taking notes."
"About?"
Jiraiya briefly contemplated telling a lie, but he was unsure exactly how the Kyuubi would interpret what he was going to say. Or what it would do to him when it found out he lied. So he decided to go with the simple truth.
"Seeing you in that form gave me inspiration for my book."
Kyuubi was silent, but Jiriaya refused to turn and look at the bijuu, mostly out of fear for the look it may have been giving him. Even though it was cold outside, he could feel sweat starting to form on his brow.
"Human literature. It has been a while since I've paid attention to any. Naruto doesn't really read much other than textbooks and technique scrolls, so I ignore most of it."
Strangely, Jiraiya didn't feel any calmer. "Well... my literature is known to cover a rather unique field in the book world. Some drama... some humor... and some, uhm, sex."
The silence dragged on for what felt like an eternity.
"I suppose I did well by choosing this form, then. If you're willing to write about it in such a manner, at least I know I will be able to get your attention when it is needed. Perhaps I should read your work when it is finished."
Jiraiya gulped and nodded slowly, thinking it might be best to change the subject now. "Ah, what about Naruto? Has he seen you yet?"
"No."
"Really? I thought you'd show him first."
Kyuubi chuckled. Jiraiya found himself enjoying that sound... and just realized that the bijuu's voice hadn't really changed a whole lot from its previous form, but it most certainly had a more feminine tone to it now.
"I know as an adult human you would understand your species' traits better than Naruto. If this form will grab your attention, then it will certainly hold his. It has been something I've been pondering about for several weeks as I sparred with him."
Jiraiya looked at Kyuubi, shocked. "You did this for Naruto?"
The redhead looked back at Jiraiya as they walked, and nodded, expression serious. "Yes. I don't think he has had enough experience fighting human females. I took this form so that he could get that required experience. Even though shinobi are supposed to ignore the gender of their opponent, I know for a fact that does not happen."
The older white haired man nodded, understanding completely. Some opponents he had faced in the past were definitely lookers, and the only reason he didn't look for too long was because Tsunade was on his team. He had plenty to look at any time he wanted to... usually. There were a few incidents that he wasn't terribly keen about remembering.
The two of them continued walking in silence for a while longer, the only noise being the crunch of their feet on freshly fallen snow, and the occasional scritching noise as Jiraiya scribbled a few notes here and there. Unfortunately he found his desire to write using the Kyuubi lacking, especially after hearing the bijuu tell him that it would read it after he was done.
The fact that it actually seemed interested in what he wrote surprised him, but not as much as he was expecting it to. While the redhead had so far been close to emotionless, there were a few moments where it seemed like it wanted to behave differently, as if it was catching itself. The only reason he caught these moments were because of his profession, and he was an expert at understanding body language. Perhaps it would be something to ask later, sometime before they headed back to Konoha.
"I have a question for you, Sage."
Surprised, Jiraiya turned his head to look at the Kyuubi, who was still staring straight ahead, though its arms were folded under its now generous chest. Jiraiya found that he had to forcefully tear his eyes away and stare straight ahead again.
"Yes?"
There was another few seconds of drawn out silence before the bijuu spoke. "I know this may seem random, but what is your reasoning for not telling Naruto about his parentage?"
Jiraiya stopped short, his face having gone slack. As if it was expecting this, Kyuubi had stopped walking at nearly the same time, watching him intently. "I'm actually surprised you didn't tell him a long time ago. Our reason for not telling him was for his own protection. He'd have more than Akatsuki after him if word about who his parents were got out. When he was younger, he wasn't exactly known for being quiet."
Kyuubi nodded, then looked up towards the snowing sky. "I see, though it was the circumstances he was placed under that made him that way."
"I know, believe me do I know." Jiraiya sighed, shaking his head, "I was planning on telling him before we went back to Konoha. Are you okay with that?"
He wasn't sure, but he could have sworn that he heard the Kyuubi inhale sharply. It was a long moment before the bijuu lowered its gaze, piercing him with bright red eyes. "As far as I am concerned, my only responsibility is making sure that he is adequate enough in combat so that he doesn't get himself killed. For everything else, you may do as you wish."
Jiraiya had a feeling there was more to it than what Kyuubi was saying, as what it had just told him made a lot more questions pop into his mind - foremost being why it was worried about Naruto staying alive in the first place.
"Should I just tell him when we get back to the inn, then?"
Kyuubi hummed before replying, "That may be prudent. Get it out of the way now. I'm certain he will have some venting to do. I would not be surprised if he gets... angry."
"Wouldn't that benefit you?"
"No. Angering Naruto benefits no one, least of all myself. It just makes him easier to subdue if he cannot fight properly."
"I was always led to believe your chakra was led by anger."
Kyuubi glanced at Jiraiya briefly, before answering, "One thing that has always interested me about humanity is that you must affix a label to that which you either fear or cannot understand. My chakra is simply the focused primal energies of nature, nothing more. It is on such a grand scale and so powerful that I have been told it feels dark, heavy, and oppressing to those who do not understand the source. Hence why my bretheren and I have been classified as demons, though we are nothing of the sort."
Once again, Jiraiya found himself completely stupified. All this time, the bijuu were believed to be harbingers of doom, their chakra powerful enough to burn anyone who touched it... and it was simply an error in judgement and understanding?
"Why didn't you or any of the other bijuu try to clarify? You allowed us to believe you were all monsters!"
"Does it really matter? Who would have believed us? We were simply content to live out a solitary existence, as was our guidance from the Sage of Six Paths. Unfortunately, however, it was not long before his teachings were bastardized and we were hunted down. But that is a story for another time; we should get to Naruto, he is getting antsy."
"How do- oh, yeah. That mental thing you two do."
"Yes. He has asked me where we are at least five times since I informed him that we met up."
Jiraiya found himself chuckling, even though he was once again surprised that Kyuubi was apparently able to handle two simultaneous conversations. "Very well. I guess we should move faster then?"
Nodding, his companion said nothing but immediately took off down the path at a decent clip, kicking up snow behind it. Sighing, the Sage steeled himself for the conversation that he knew was to come.
Thirty minutes later; an inn within a small hamlet, Iron Country...
"Welcome ba... back?"
Both Kyuubi and Jiraiya nodded to Naruto as they entered their large room. Jiraiya was breathing heavily and red in the face, likely from both exertion and the cold outside, whereas Kyuubi looked completely normal. Other than the fact that it now apparently looked like a human woman.
"K-Kyuubi? Why... do you look like... um... that?"
Naruto knew he had to be blushing and nervous, even though he shouldn't. He kept forcing his eyes to drift away from Kyuubi, as it was very attractive in its current form, making him feel strangely uncomfortable.
The bijuu must have easily picked up on his discomfort, as it snorted and stalked over towards the window in their room, looking outside.
"I look like this for the exact reason you're acting like a fool now. You need to be prepared to encounter other humans of all kinds, and that includes the females of your species. What will happen the moment an enemy kunoichi tries to seduce you?"
Naruto's eyes became saucers. "You're – You're going to s-s-seduce me?"
"Do not be ridiculous!" Kyuubi growled and brought a hand up, rubbing it's face in a show of irritation. "Perhaps this is working a bit too well. Explain, Sage."
Jiraiya blinked as Naruto promptly whirled to look at his sensei, face openly curious. "Naruto, you have plenty of experience fighting shinobi, but you haven't fought any kunoichi yet, have you?"
The blond slowly shook his head, "Not really... unless you count Sakura-chan and Tsunade-baachan."
Jiraiya waved a hand and scowled slightly. "No, they don't count. I already know that you pull punches with your teammate, and as you are now Tsunade could still beat you easily if she actually tried."
He gestured towards the window, "That's where Kyuubi comes in. You were already blushing as soon as you saw her - I mean, it. Because of-"
The man was going to continue explaining, but the bijuu cut him off, "No... it would probably be best if you referred to me as a female, for the forseeable future anyway."
Naruto looked mildly surprised at this revelation, but Jiraiya's eyes narrowed in curiosity. "Are you sure? I thought you didn't have a gender?"
"I don't." Kyuubi turned away from the window and looked back and forth between the both of them before continuing, "However, it is within my understanding that we will start coming in contact with your human civilization more frequently as we approach the return date. I do not believe it would be wise to continue referring to myself as 'it' and 'Kyuubi', therefore I will need an identity and gender established."
Jiraiya nodded, rubbing his chin as he started to grin. "Yeah, it would make sense. Besides, it's not going to go well in Konoha if Naruto starts calling you Kyuubi within the middle of the village. Being in a female form will also help him become accustomed to being near and fighting with a powerful kunoichi."
Jiraiya's grin slowly morphed into a leer, "Besides, you're the most attractive woman I've laid my eyes on in a while."
Naruto obviously wasn't sure if he should blush or pale, but for him to remain speechless as long as he had was a feat unto itself. Kyuubi, on the other hand, was just staring at Jiraiya blankly, though one of its eyebrows had shot skyward.
"From what I know of human females, I would either be blushing right now or calling you a pervert. Whether you would consider it to be luck or the lack thereof, I am choosing to do neither."
Jiraiya chuckled and shook his head, then focused on Naruto. "Well kid, I think you should do the honors of giving her a name."
The blond's mouth opened and closed a few times as he looked back and forth between Kyuubi and Jiraiya, both of whom were staring at him expectantly.
"Um... how about... Kitsune?"
Jiraiya facefaulted, though Kyuubi closed its eyes and actually seemed to consider it for a moment.
"Naruto! That's not hiding what Kyuubi is at all! It will be completely obvious!"
Kyuubi held up a hand before Naruto could retort, if he was going to. Both males focused on the newly realized female of the group. "In my wanderings, I have heard of human females with the name Kitsune before. It also pays homage to the full form I was given... so I have no argument against it."
Naruto smiled and cheered while Jiraiya sighed and shrugged. "If that's what you want I won't argue. But I think it will be obvious to some."
It was the newly-named Kitsune's turn to shrug. "So be it."
There was a moment of silence as the trio digested the new information. Kitsune seemed to be about to turn around once again, but stopped when Jiraiya spoke up.
"Speaking of our civilization, Kitsune... I think Naruto is going to have to instruct you on how to act a little more human."
Kitsune's eyes narrowed. "Why?"
"Because otherwise you'll stick out like a social outcast if anyone tries to talk to you. Don't worry, I'll drag you around to some bars with me, and you can also run around with Naruto a bit too."
Both of the other occupants seemed to be staring at him, Naruto with incredulity, and Kyuubi with resigned acceptance.
"Upon further consideration... I believe it would also be more appropriate if I imitated a form closer to Naruto's actual age. Having used this form before, I know it will garner attention... though likely not the type we will need right now."
"A younger form? Go ahead, go ahead!" Jiraiya rubbed his hands together and cackled with glee as he stared at Kitsune, completely forgetting that Naruto was still in the room as well. Kitsune gave him an odd look before closing her eyes, and with a burst of red chakra her form immediately changed, as did her attire.
"Woohoo! Perfect girlfriend material for Naruto!"
"Ero-sennin!" Naruto stared at his sensei, completely aghast, before turning back to look at Kitsune – and promptly going red in the face. The new Kitsune was nearly as impressive as her older counterpart, though her hair was now much shorter, only going down just below her shoulders. Naruto was sitting crosslegged on the ground so they couldn't compare how tall she was to him, but since she looked to be about his age they were proabably about the same height now as well.
Her figure had slimmed slightly too, though her bust size appeared unchanged. It was hard to tell without staring too much, however, as her attire was another large adjustment compared to the formal attire she had been donning previously. It was now a good imitation of Naruto's, minus the Konoha forehead protector. The vest wasn't green either, but was instead a very deep red. In another gesture of similarity, instead of an orange piece of cloth around her left bicep, she had a bright red one.
"What's the matter, Naruto, is she a little too hot for you to handle?"
Naruto waved his arms about in a panic. "No, it's just weird! I'm used to Kyuubi being a big fox!"
"Kitsune."
The blond turned to gape at the girl who had corrected him, only to catch himself staring at her before turning away and blushing even more. She was every bit as pretty as she was in her older form, but now it would be even more distracting since she was obviously closer to his age. He was so shaken up that he didn't even think twice about her correcting him to use her new name.
"Ohoho! As much as he will like to deny it, I think little Naruto-kun has a new crush!"
Naruto settled for growling and levelling a glare at his sensei, who simply chortled as he poked fun at his student. It wasn't until Kitsune spoke again that the teasing session ended.
"Perhaps you should talk to him about what we discussed earlier, Sage?"
Jiraiya's teasing effort promptly died, along with any enthusiasm that he had been displaying. The sudden change was easily picked up on by the blond, who began tossing worried glances between the other two in the room.
"What's going on?"
"Naruto... it's..." Jiraiya let out a long sigh as he moved to sit in one of the chairs in the room. "I know you've asked me this before, but I refused to talk about it before now. It's about your parents."
The jinchuuriki tossed a quizzical glance towards Kitsune, who was standing still with her head tilted forward slightly, eyes closed. Noticing that, he immediately focused on Jiraiya with his full attention.
"You're going to tell me now?" The pure excitement in his voice as he bounced a little from where he was sitting was very obvious.
"Yes, I am. But before I do, I want you to understand that there were reasons why you weren't told before now. The first of which is that at least now you're able to protect yourself well enough when alone, and even better when Kitsune helps you."
Naruto simply nodded, hanging on every word. Jiraiya leaned forward in his chair, placing his forearms on his knees as he stared at his latest student. "You've known for a while now that what we teach the children in the Academy is that the Kyuubi was killed by the Yondaime Hokage; that is a lie which we've already talked about several times before."
A snort from Kitsune filled in the brief silence between Jiraiya's statements.
"Another secret that has been kept from the entire village and the majority of its shinobi population is that the Yondaime Hokage, Namikaze Minato, was in fact your father."
Naruto stared at his sensei in shock for barely a second before promptly looking down at his hands, which opened and closed a few times. Jiraiya paused, willing to let Naruto come to terms with what he had just been told, mentally preparing himself for any outbursts. Letting his eyes briefly wander towards Kitsune, he noticed that she was watching Naruto intently as well.
"I see..." The blond's voice was but a murmur, growing louder as he continued talking, "What about my mother?"
Jiraiya took a deep breath before continuing, "She was from the former Whirlpool Country, she came to live in Konoha as a young girl, about a decade before her home was devastated by the Third Shinobi War. Her name was Uzumaki Kushina."
Naruto nodded as he absorbed the information. There was a long pause where no one spoke or moved, but the blond finally looked up again, and asked the question Jiraiya knew would come, the one he dreaded.
"I know my father died using the technique to seal Kyu... Kitsune inside of me. What happened to my mother?"
Jiraiya cringed internally, he hadn't actually been there but had been given the entire blow by blow account courtesy of Sarutobi-sensei. With Kitsune actually being right there, it would be a lot harder for him to say this than if she was still the fox that-
"I killed them."
Both of the males in the room focused quickly on Kitsune, who simply stared emotionlessly right back at Naruto. Jiraiya scowled slightly, Kitsune obviously wasn't sympathetic in the least, if she even knew what the word meant. Naruto on the other hand; his expressions were constantly flickering from shock, to outrage, to sadness, or some attempted combination of two or all of them. After a few cycles of this they eventually evened out, though it wasn't hard to see that he was forcefully reigning himself in.
Without another word, he promptly shot up to his feet and moved swiftly towards the door, yanking it open, but quietly closing it behind him. Even when he was agitated or in obvious pain, he was considerate of any others who may have been at the inn.
Rubbing his eyes briefly, Jiraiya sighed as he stood up, "Well, that went better than I thought it would. I was expecting him to go ballistic. I guess I should go find him and attempt to perform some sort of damage cont-"
"No."
Kitsunes interruption was sharp, and Jiraiya looked over his shoulder towards her. "What?"
"You know as well as I do that the first question out of his mouth will be 'Why?'. Do you know why I did it?"
"I don't. But you could always tell me. I have to say that I've been curious."
"I will explain my reasoning to you after I tell Naruto. They were his parents, after all."
Sighing yet again, Jiraiya shook his head this time as he turned to face Kitsune. "Just... try to be nice. If it's something you can do, I mean."
"We shall see." As Kitsune started to walk around him, he asked a question.
"I know this seems random, but if you need to say anything about me, it might help if you call me Ero-sennin. I'm sure it will get him to smile, at least."
Tossing him a glare and a low growl, Kitsune continued towards the door, yanking it open much like Naruto did, and slamming it behind her, apparently not caring about any others at the inn.
"What? I thought it would be a good idea..." It wasn't until much later that he realized Kitsune showed signs of both worry and agitation. Perhaps there really was more to her than anyone knew.
Ten minutes later, copse of trees near the hamlet...
Kitsune observed the snowflakes as they fell to the ground, tracking Naruto via the imprints his footwear left in the minor accumulation so far. The few humans she had encountered as she followed Naruto's footsteps had shot her odd looks, most likely confused as to how she could walk around out here in the cold without more weather protection.
They didn't know that she was merely residing in a chakra construct that could easily desensitize itself to thinks like temperature, much like her original fox form. She didn't need to do much adjusting, however, as the clones of Naruto were nearly immune to temperature, only detecting extremes. Until the time came where Naruto could form a clone using only her chakra, she would likely be numb to quite a few things that would normally affect others, since his chakra always had to act as the 'shell'.
It wasn't long at all before she came across the blond, sitting still and hunched over on top of a rather large boulder that was easily a meter taller than her current human teenager body. She had to stop and ajust herself mentally for a second, it was disconcerting having to look up at him, even if he was sitting on top of something. When talking to Naruto in his mindscape she was still generally always looking down, and even her adult human form was taller. This was the very first time she had ever looked up at him.
Setting that thought aside, Kitsune didn't bother making any extra noise as she approached, as her feet made enough noise in the snow. Not only that, but their mental connection acted as something of a homing beacon. Naruto had suppressed his chakra to a great degree, but no matter how hard he tried to hide, she would always be able to find him, as could any summon he called upon. It was the one unavoidable similarity between all summoning techniques, that the chakra of the summoner and summoned be linked. As a result, he would be able to feel her approach from a mile away, if he so wished.
The moment she stopped and stood still, Naruto managed to grind out a single word, his strain obvious.
"Why?"
There it was, exactly as she had told the Sa... Ero-Sennin. Calling him such would likely take some getting used to. "Why did I kill your parents? I have an answer for you, but it requires you to listen to a bit of a story. Are you willing?"
She heard him sigh, and felt the stirrings of the human emotion of amusement as he turned a glare on her. "I don't have a choice, do I?"
"I can tell you the answer, but you won't appreciate it unless I explain everything. It will also explain why I didn't tell you of this sooner."
The glare slowly withered, and resignation took hold. Nodding slowly, he turned away from her. Walking closer, Kitsune moved around the boulder Naruto was perched on until she stood directly in front of and below him. She continued to simply stand there until he looked directly at her, puzzled blue eyes meeting serious bright red.
"I will begin by telling you that according to your human calendar, I am just over one hundred and sixty three years old."
If Naruto was at all surprised or intruiged by this revelation, he did not show it other than a minor twitch of his eyebrow. The blond continued staring blankly at Kitsune as she resumed her monologue.
"I also have what is referred to as an eidetic memory; that is, I can remember everything I have experienced in perfect clarity, from the first day I existed. Of the nine bijuu, I was the last one created by the Sage of Six Paths, and also the most powerful. I do not know why we were created with such an obvious power gap, but then the Sage of Six Paths did many things I still fail to understand.
"My brethren and I were spread throughout the lands, though within the first thirty years I began hearing tales of the capture of the Ichibi and Nibi. I know that others were somehow captured as well, at the time I did not comprehend how they figured out how to subdue and control us. The first among us, the Ichibi, was always known for being insane, so I believe it could not have been difficult to capture it."
Kitsune held up one of her hands and watched as snowflakes began to slowly melt in the palm of her hand. While shadow clones did not generate heat like a human body would, chakra flow itself generated a small amount of heat. Kitsune's chakra, the pure primal energy of nature, was therefore warmer than a human's by default. Naruto had commented in the past during their spars that some of her impacts felt like they burned, and it only got worse as they figured out how to get more of her chakra into his clones.
"I existed in solitude for nearly one hundred years, every so often mingling with the humans in smaller villages when I needed information. By traveling from place to place over time, I learned much about the children and disciples of the Sage of Six Paths, but most of it was not what you would refer to as good. I began to understand human emotions as I interacted with them, and realized that I found myself... loathing your species. It was perhaps the first emotion of humanity that I was able to grasp easily, simply because the examples of it were plentiful."
Kitsune had since looked back up to where Naruto sat on the boulder, occasionally shifting, but granting her his full attention. The last sentence she spoke raised his hackles a bit, however, and he seemed ready to interrupt until Kitsune held a hand up to stop him before he started.
"Let me finish, Naruto! When I'm done, you can ask all the questions and make all the comments that you wish."
The blond's mouth snapped shut, and he glared again, not that it had any effect on Kitsune. Slowly he settled back down and let out a low grumble, but nodded to her nonetheless.
"I am nothing more than an accumulated force of nature, the environment itself is what gives me my power. The Sage of Six Paths realized that this power needed a focus and gave us an intelligence. We were originally one mind, but with all that power even one mind could not control it. So therefore what was once one was split up into nine, of which I was the last, as I said before.
"Knowing that I was created from a part of nature itself, I began to view humanity as nothing more than a virus. Always using and taking more and more, rarely appreciating or giving back. Granted, there are several among your number who are appreciative, but they are a very small minority. Once humans realized that the bijuu, as we were named, could be used as a means to power... things only got worse.
"When the stories became more widespread I gradually separated myself from your human civilization around eighty years ago. I discovered that there was a clan of shinobi, descended from my creator, who had the ability to suppress the chakra of a bijuu. They called themselves the Senju, and it was they who had been assisting in the capture of my fellow brethren."
Recognition immediately clicked in Naruto's eyes as his back went rigid. Kitsune allowed herself a small grin, knowing that Naruto was once again hanging on her every word.
"They had since formed a military alliance with the second clan which descended from the first Sage, the Uchiha. Together they could capture and control any of us, but alone could not do both. We were too powerful for an Uchiha to control us for long, but with our powers suppressed by a Senju, they could control us indefinitely. These abilities combined gave them an unprecedented amount of power at the time, which they used to broker alliances and helped form what you refer to as the Five Great Nations today.
"I did not know it at the time, but found out later that they had originally planned on giving out two each of the bijuu to the other large nations that formed as a way to guarantee balance. The Great Shinobi War had taken many lives, and there were many who didn't want to see another like it. The Uchiha wanted to keep the power to themselves, but the Senju wanted to spread the power as a balancing force. The Senju ideals won in the end, and three of the Great Nations got two of the bijuu.
"As the weakest of the Great Nations, Wind Country only got one. The last went to Fire Country's first declared ally, and strongest minor nation, Waterfall. The other nations knew that they could not use their bijuu against the combined Senju and Uchiha clans, so therefore Fire Country was to be avoided. Not only that, but Fire had agreed to keep me for themselves, if they ever managed to find me."
Kitsune hummed for a moment as she brushed the accumulated snow off of her shoulders and out of her hair. It had started falling faster as she was talking, and the ground had since become completely covered in white where the terrain was flat. There were still patches of green and brown around the trunks of a few of the larger evergreen trees.
"Do you remember the valley I showed you before, and our discussion?
Naruto had started brushing the snow off of himself as well, but stopped to look at Kitsune when she asked the question. "Yeah, why?"
"Because even though Cloud came for me with one of their jinchuuriki, they never would have found me if I hadn't been betrayed by a human I once... I guess I could say... trusted."
Knowing that Naruto would inevitably have questions, Kitsune once again held up a hand and began speaking right away, "His name was Takeru, and he stumbled upon me by chance since he was a hunter. Naturally he was curious about what he thought was a human, alone in a forest. Unfortunately I had just left a village and was still in my older female form that you witnessed earlier, so like most other human males of early age, he became smitten right away. The purpose of that form was to gain information, and I already had all I needed."
Kitsune sighed and closed her eyes, looking up towards the sky, allowing snowflakes to fall on her face. "I would have killed him right then and there and no one would have known, but as a hunter he had a certain appreciation and fondness for nature that I was able to bear witness to. I decided that I would give him a chance to live.
"He attempted to visit me many times after that, but only for a few of those visits did I make my presence known. To this day I don't understand why I did it, but one day I approached him in a smaller fox form to see his reaction. Nothing seemed amiss, at first. But after that day I never saw him again. I did not think much of it at the time.
"About a month after that I felt the presence of the Hachibi and went to investigate. He was forced to attack me but was struggling against his container, apparently they did not get along. I managed to win that fight rather easily as a result, otherwise it would have dragged out much longer. I also understood through the Hachibi's words that I had been sold out, so I knew right away who did it."
Naruto managed to insert a quick question, "Was he there?"
The redhead nodded. "They forced him to come to show them the location where I had been. It was my own fault for not moving away, but I still did not understand the human concept of betrayal. Apparently, I had a bounty in Kumo, and Takeru wanted it."
"Do you know what happened to him?"
Kitsune opened her eyes and looked at Naruto, feeling the melted water from the snow run down her face. She tossed him a grin, "I killed him, along with a large chunk of the Kumo nin. I even ate two of their stronger ones... though they were tougher than even I realized. Something protected them from my own chakra, and I was forced to... regurgitate them."
Naruto looked queasy and somewhat startled, but otherwise chose not to comment. Kitsune stood casually, letting her arms rest at her sides as she looked up at Naruto. He held her gaze for barely a moment before blushing a little and turning away, missing the bijuu's little smirk.
"It wasn't long before they retreated, and I remained where I was, convinced that I had scared off anyone else. Unfortunately I underestimated you humans, something I have been actively taking steps to avoid ever since. The first to come to me after Kumo was none other than Uchiha Madara. I did not know how the Uchiha had managed to control my bretheren before, but it became clear barely moments into our fight, if you could really even call it such.
"He used his Sharingan, and at that moment I knew something was wrong. I had become a slave to my own body. I knew things were happening, but I was not in control, and no matter how much I fought I could not get it back. He immediately set us on a course for Konoha, which took very little time for me going full speed. In a few hours, we had reached the area that is now called the Valley of the End."
Kitsune sighed, looking at her hands once again.
"Senju Hashirama came to meet with Uchiha Madara for whatever reason, at the time I did not know or care, I simply wanted my body returned to my control. They began talking at first, but it did not take long for them to begin fighting. To this very day I do not know why Madara used me, as everything I did was suppressed by Hashirama. Perhaps I was just a distraction for some other plan.
"Regardless of the reason, it would seem that Madara ultimately failed at his self appointed task to attack and destroy Konoha, and I was sealed away for the very first time."
Kitsune did not know what expression was on her face, but facing those memories was something that she did not like in the least, and it must have shown. Naruto must have been completely caught up in her story, as he had quickly moved down from the boulder, and now stood in front of her with a concerned frown.
"W-What was it like?"
Sighing and turning away, Kitsune slowly walked around the clearing, thinking about how to best explain it. "It was like nothing I had ever experienced before. Complete darkness, with no concept of time, and no control over a body. I simply... was, and wasn't at the same time. There would be moments of light and understanding when my... my container," Kitsune nearly spat the word, "...decided to come to me, asking for information. Otherwise, I was alone. It wasn't until later that I knew I had been kept in the dark for close to sixty years."
"I'm sorry."
Kitsune whirled around, at first staring incredulously at her latest container, but then changing it into a mild glare. "What do you have to be sorry for? None of this was your doing. Your desire to offer some fashion of atonement for your predescessor is neither wanted nor needed."
Naruto visibly flinched as if struck, and Kitsune found herself re-examining her words. Taking a deep breath, she shook her head, slightly wet hair prickling her cheeks as it swayed back and forth.
"Perhaps that came out wrong. I did not mean to rebuke you in such a manner. However, remembering nothing but constant darkness for such a long period of time is a horrible experience for any being, especially one that can remember every detail of such nothingness."
The blond nodded, his own hair matted down slightly from the snow melting in it. His outfit was getting wet as well, especially along his arms and shoulders. He made no effort to return indoors, however, so Kitsune did not say anything about it.
"So you were sealed in someone else before they sealed you in me, then?"
"I was sealed twice before I was sealed in you. The first time was into a woman named Uzumaki Mito, who was the wife of Senju Hashirama. She was present at the battle, because in case Hashirama failed, she would at least be able to seal me away. She still did the sealing regardless, though I didn't find out until later that she was too old to be able to use a bijuu's power, so she never became a true jinchuuriki. She had to completely separate her chakra from mine, otherwise mine would over stress her chakra coils and slowly kill her inside out.
"That was why as she aged, they had another container prepared for me, one who was much younger and would be able to merge with my chakra and use it. She became the second container, and her name was Uzumaki Kushina."
Naruto gasped and muttered out 'mother', to which Kitsune nodded. She was very well aware that the blond seemed to close himself off to the outside world for a time. She mused about the potential scenario where he retreated to his mindscape like he usually did when troubled, and sometimes talked to her, only to realize that she was in fact already outside.
Deciding he had enough time to ponder the scenario, Kitsune faked clearing her throat and continued talking, "It was much different the second time, as your mother was very close to your father from the first time we met. Your father was brilliant, for a human, and I was able to learn much through the things he told your mother, as I was no longer locked away and once again aware of the outside world.
"Then one day I was listening in on a conversation and realized I had a chance to be free. The seal that contained me was weak during childbirth... namely yours. I knew it was a long shot, but I still had to try. I did not want to be used like a tool any longer."
Naruto's face had been a mixture of emotions as Kitsune talked, obviously happy to hear about his parents, even briefly, but apparently pained when hearing about her imprisonment from this point of view.
"It was on your birthday, however, that Uchiha Madara returned. Somehow he knew when the seal would be at its weakest as well, and used that to his advantage. I am not aware about what happened on the outside, but I do know I felt a chance to be free... only for Madara to appear and take control of me, yet again."
Kitsune began to get angry, thinking about what happened back then. Once again she lost control of her body and most of her mind, being forced to do things against her will. She heard Naruto let out a startled noise, and looked at him, only to see him flinch and take a step backwards. A flicker of dark red in her peripheral made Kitsune look down at her arms, seeing her own reddish chakra dancing about them. Realizing what was happening, she immediately closed her eyes briefly and took a deep breath. The act worked for calming humans, so she believed that it should work for her as well.
"W-We can... stop talking about this if it's upsetting you." As brave as he tried to sound, Naruto's voice was still wavering.
"No, it's fine. I was just thinking about that day and it began to upset me. I usually try not to think about it, I already spent several years doing... what do you humans call it? Sulking, I think... I did that when I was sealed in you."
"I see." Naruto looked away, nervously scratching the back of his head. "Well, uhm... maybe we should stop for now and get back inside. I'm getting pretty wet and I don't want to catch a cold or anything, so should we go?"
"You want to know why I killed them though, don't you?"
The blond's eyes went wide for a second before he gave her a faint smile, and dropped his gaze to the ground. "Nah, that's okay. I'm sure you had your reasons. Besides, even if I don't have them anymore, I still have you, right?"
Kitsune found herself blinking several times as she stared at the young human... Naruto... in front of her. Even for someone as old as she, he managed to say things that caught her completely off guard. The redhead supposed she should feel some sort of gratitude towards the boy for his opinion of her, even if he was technically her jail cell. Unlike the previous two, at least he had made attempts at giving her some form of freedom.
How generous he would remain after she told him the full story, she didn't know. At worst she would be confined to the cage in his mindscape again for the rest of his life, unless he managed to forgive her. Regardless of the result, it would be best to get everything out now, so there will be no complications later.
"Yes, you do... but I'm still going to tell you why anyway. Your father had somehow defeated Madara or scared him off... I don't know which, but all I can remember is that I was free for a brief moment before your mother made an attempt at keeping me pinned so that I couldn't get away. If she had let me go, I would have simply left... but I never got the chance to.
"She started dying the moment I was removed from her, anyway. My chakra was a part of your mother's chakra system, and without it she would not be able to live much longer. Your father made an attempt to seal me into you, but as you know the only way to seal something is to have an equal or greater amount of chakra than the thing you are sealing has. I knew he had no means to do that, but he went further than I ever expected a human to. He called upon the shinigami to take half of my power and seal it into him right then and there.
"I felt it as soon as I lost a lot of power. I knew that I had perhaps one chance left to be free, and in order to do that, I had to destroy the thing they were going to seal me into. Therefore, I tried to kill you."
Kitsune watched as Naruto's expression changed from shock to anger, and finally to sadness. His mouth had opened and quickly closed several times in a row, as if he wanted to say something, but was unable to find the words.
"Since you and I are both still here now, I think it's obvious that I didn't succeed with that plan. Your parents saved your life, at the cost of their own. They still would have died anyway without me doing anything, but I did hasten their demise. I simply wished to be free."
The two of them stood in silence for a while, neither moving. Kitsune kept her red eyes focused on Naruto, who simply had his fists clenched and was staring a hole in the ground. Noticing his shoulders had an accumulation of snow again, Kitsune glanced at then brushed off her own.
"I don't know if you'll be able to forgive what I did or understand my actions, but regardless of that we should probably head back indoors. It is snowing even more heavily than before, and I agree that the last thing you need to keep you from training is a cold."
Kitsune's footsteps crunched louder in the snow as she started walking back towards the inn. The moment she started to step past Naruto, however, his hand reached out and settled heavily on her shoulder. The redhead stopped, looking curiously at the hand, then backwards over her shoulder to where Naruto still remained.
"Thank you."
Kitsune's eyes opened a slight bit wider as she digested those two words. They likely symbolized that Naruto appreciated something she did, but considering what she had just finished explaining, exactly what the thanks were for was hard to figure out.
"I just told you that I was responsible for the deaths of your parents, and you're thanking me?"
The hand on her shoulder squeezed slightly, and she felt herself holding back a comment to remind him that these clones still weren't all that durable yet.
"No... I don't like that my parents died, or that you tried to kill me. But after hearing how long you were kept alone and then locked away, I think I can understand a little bit. I should be angry that because of you that I never got to know the love of parents like all the-"
"You're wrong."
Naruto's grip slipped off of Kitsune's shoulder as he stared at her in shock, "W-What?"
"About your parents not loving you... I witnessed enough of your mother and father to understand what it means to say one is in love, even if I fail to comprehend why one would love another. It probably has to be the most confusing emotion you humans have, yet your parents said it over and over to you as an infant before they died."
Naruto's face adopted an expression that Kitsune found impossible to interpret, but one of his hands quickly moved up to rub at his eyes, and she was fairly certain he started sniffling. Interesting, this was the first time he had cried for a reason other than pain in several years.
It was impossible to miss Naruto's shivering as he rubbed at his eyes, so in a decidedly human gesture, Kitsune moved back towards him and grabbed at his other forearm. Naruto looked surprised until the redhead started dragging him back in the direction of the inn.
"Come. I can see you're cold, and the last thing I need is you complaining about your training while sick."
Both of them trudged through the snow with loud crunching noises, and Kitsune found herself wondering why she felt like grinning when Naruto mumured another thank you.
Three months later, Konoha...
"Whoa! Naruto, is that you? Who's the babe?"
Naruto's head turned to the left, only to see Izumo and Kotetsu grinning at him like the idiots they were. He tossed them a grin and a wave of his own, then held a finger to his lips, gesturing for them to be quiet. Hearing them laugh, he looked over to his right, where Kitsune was walking next to him.
In the last few months since telling him about his parents and her past, Kitsune had gradually become re-acclimated to human civilization. She grumbled about how stupid they were from time to time, but for the most part Naruto found her interactions with most other people amusing. She still continued wearing a wardrobe that was a near copy of his, but had recently decided to start placing her shoulder-length hair in a pony tail, which strangely seemed to make her look even younger.
Like now. She was almost cute, the way she was shooting a mild glare in the direction of the check-in booth. Naruto might have laughed if he didn't know that she was likely the strongest being in existence that he knew of.
"You aren't going to defend poor Kitsune-chan's honor, Naruto?"
The blond in question shrugged as he looked over his shoulder at Jiraiya. "They were just complimenting her, in their own sort of way. Besides if I tried to defend her again she may just haul off and hit me like that time in Tanzaku. I was nursing that bump on my head for days."
Jiraiya guffawed in laughter at the memory, and Naruto tried to avoid having his gaze linger on Kitsune as he faced forward once again. For some reason she was very aggressive when it came to the concepts of pride and honor. That was likely because they were some of the first true feelings that she truly understood humanity's label for.
As they gradually increased their distance from the main gates, Naruto looked around at the various shops on the street they were traveling down towards the central building, towards where the administration building was located. Not much had changed in the last three years, which was both a good and a bad thing. It wouldn't take him long to get familiar again with where everything was, but it would likely make it a bit harder to find things that actually were new.
Spying a large pole up ahead, Naruto gestured towards it, "I'm going to run up that and get a good look around, alright?"
Jiraiya nodded and Kitsune let out a humming noise. Taking this as a sign of approval, Naruto took off at a jog, then adjusted himself and ran up along the side of the large pole. Upon reaching the top, he inhaled a large breath and took a look around. There really wasn't anything noticeable that had changed at all. They had finished fixing up the section of the outer wall which had been destroyed by one of Orochimaru's snake summons. Other than that, they had carved the latest Hokage's face into the mountain, and that seemed to be it.
"Naruto. Your harpy of a teammate approaches, as does your Hokage."
"Hey! Sakura-chan isn't a harpy!"
"We shall see if she has changed. I won't hold my breath."
Naruto looked around below, and sure enough Sakura and Tsunade were walking down the path towards them. They had likely been alerted of the arrival of Jiraiya and his student. There was no extra security either, so Jiraiya had probably mentioned Kitsune to Tsunade at some point in one of his letters. Naruto had a feeling that she was still being watched, just in case.
Hearing voices coming from below him, Naruto looked for a good landing spot between the groups and jumped. Three seconds later he landed in a crouch and heard Sakura gasp his name. Slowly standing up, he turned back around to see Tsunade appraising him as Sakura simply stared at him, mouth slightly agape.
Naruto raised a hand and gave them both a big smile. "Hey Tsunade-baachan! Sakura-chan!"
Tsunade immediately scowled, while Sakura actually blushed a little and smiled. Naruto heard Kitsune mumble something behind him that he didn't quite catch, but it was likely that Jiraiya caught it since the man started laughing lightly.
"Hi, Naruto! Welcome back. We missed you."
"Ah, really?" Naruto grinned and scratched at the back of his neck. "How have you guys been? Anything interesting happen?"
Sakura's eyes lit up and she looked about to say something, but Tsunade beat her to it. "Oh, there has been plenty, but this is not the place to talk about it. Let's go back to my office, we can talk there."
She worded it like a friendly suggestion, but the look on her face spoke otherwise. Sakura looked a little upset about being interrupted, but nevertheless nodded with everyone else and fell into step next to Naruto as they headed towards the administration building.
The walk to the building wasn't a long one, and the two reunited teammates had passed the time with idle chitchat. Naruto mentioned a few of his new skills, while Sakura related some of Tsunade's scary ideas of training. Once they entered the building they encountered Shizune near the entrance, barking out orders to some of the staff. After another round of greetings, they all headed up towards the Hokage's office, steeling themselves for the discussion that was likely to come.
Tsunade looked around her office as she sat down in her chair. Jiraiya had taken up his typical position whenever he visited, half sitting on a window ledge off to one side of the room. Shizune moved up next to the desk, opposite from where Jiraiya was. Naruto, meanwhile, had shifted to stand in front of her desk, with Sakura standing next to him and Kitsune on his other side, about a step back.
Watching the interaction between the two during the walk had been interesting, Sakura was cordial at best towards Kitsune, while the disguised bijuu did a fine job of pretending the other girl didn't exist. Whenever Naruto tried to get them to interact, it was brief at best before Sakura started talking about something else, or Kitsune simply stopped responding. The worst part was the old pervert who was walking next to her; he was listening to the two teenagers and bijuu talking, and she had to put up with his giggles as he was likely thinking about some scenario or another. At least he didn't pull out that notepad of his, otherwise she would have clobbered him.
"Alright, now that we are all here, let me first say... welcome back."
"It's good to be home, baachan!"
Tsunade let that particular comment slide, unable to be upset after having not seen Naruto for nearly three years. She did find it rather amusing watching Sakura lightly hit him on the arm and telling him not to call her that, but then was startled as Kitsune glared at the pink haired girl and let out a low growl. She intervened quickly in order to keep Sakura from potentially escalating matters... the poor girl would have no idea what she was getting into. Tsunade had only told her apprentice that Naruto and Jiraiya had picked up another traveling companion, but not how or who it was.
"Settle down you three. Sakura, if I haven't ever been able to get Naruto to stop calling me that, I doubt you have much of a shot now."
"Ah... sorry, Master."
"It's fine. Now, how should I say this..." Tsunade's voice trailed off as her eyes drifted over to the redhead, who apparently knew it was her turn to be addressed. The Hokage felt a shiver go down her spine as the bright red eyes focused on her. "It is... interesting to meet you, Kyuubi."
Tsunade heard gasps come from Sakura and Shizune, both of whom took an involuntary step backwards. Naruto was frowning as he took in their reactions, but kept his mouth shut. That meant they had likely talked about potential reactions before coming here. The Hokage found herself being pleased with that thought, especially with Naruto who actually didn't voice his opinions right away for a change.
"I could say the same, Hokage. I have no doubt that while I am here I will have many more... interesting acquaintances. We have decided, however, that it would be more prudent if I was called Kitsune, rather than Kyuubi."
"That makes sense." Tsunade shot an amused glance towards her first apprentice, "Surprised, Shizune?"
As if shaking herself from a stupor, Shizune shook herself and then looked towards the blond Hokage. "Tsunade-sama... is it really?"
Getting a serious nod from her Hokage caused Shizune's expression to mellow out, and she looked nervously back at the girl calling herself Kitsune. She introduced herself in a shaking voice, and was surprised when Kitsune actually quirked a smile and let out a small chuckle.
"There is no need for you or anyone here to fear me. Except perhaps the harpy, though I haven't decided her fate, yet."
"Kitsune!"
"What?" Kitsune seemed unperturbed by Naruto's outburst, and merely glanced at him. "You know my thoughts."
Naruto, though not angry, still appeared upset. "We've been over this already!"
"Yes, and my position has not budged, did you forget? A few months of being nice to you does not make up for years of previous ignorance, insults, and ridicule. I may not be human, but even I can understand that."
"But we were still young and... ugh." Naruto rubbed at his forehead, and turned to Sakura, offering her a strained smile. "I'm sorry Sakura-chan, Kitsune has gotten really protective of me lately, and I don't think that-"
"Just lately? How long have we been talking? How many of your injuries has my chakra helped heal?"
Naruto turned back to face Kitsune again, putting his hands up in a placating manner. As he began trying to explain himself to the bijuu, Tsunade couldn't help but feeling slightly amused at the interaction. Both Naruto and Kitsune did talk to each other like friends who had known each other for a long time. Sakura, meanwhile, was trying to defend herself from Kitsunes blatant put-downs, no matter how truthful they might be, and keep herself visible to Naruto. For what reason, Tsunade could only begin to guess.
Looking at Jiraiya, the Hokage noted that he was watching the goings on with a small smile of his own. It only took her looking at him to gain his attention, and she asked the unspoken question by raising both her eyebrows and gesturing towards the threesome with her head.
He offered a warmer smile and a shrug, which likely meant this type of byplay was normal, only now Sakura was entered into the equation. Taking the situation at face value, Tsunade turned back to the arguing group, and cleared her throat. All three of them immediately quieted themselves and stared at her, expectantly.
"I'm glad to see the three of you are getting along so well," Tsunade stated dryly. "I do need to get a bit of information, though, mostly in regards to Kitsune. Sakura and Naruto, you are both dismissed... Shizune, take them to meet up with Kakashi, like we planned earlier."
"Yes, Tsunade-sama. Please come with me, you two." Without another word, Shizune started for the door. The Hokage watched as Naruto shared a look with Kitsune before nodding to her, then turning to follow. Sakura did not move until Naruto did, and not before frowning at the bijuu. Once the door closed, the redhead spoke up immediately.
"I can tell the question you have by the look on your face. Yes, Naruto and I can communicate mentally."
Both of Tsunade's eyebrows lifted again for a brief moment before she grinned. "Huh, I bet that's convenient."
"Yes, especially when we talk about Ero-Sennin."
That comment caught Tsunade by complete surprise, to the point where she almost comically fell out of her chair. It took several moments of her staring at the top of her desk to regain her bearings, and then she began to doubt her sanity upon looking up to see a small smile on Kitsune's face.
"What the hell is going on? Jiraiya?"
The Sage chuckled as he scratched at his head. "I told the brat to help Kitsune get used to acting human. I didn't know that he'd teach her how to tell jokes and prank people too."
Tsunade rubbed at her forehead and let out a deep sigh. One Naruto was enough... still... to think that he could teach, or even manipulate a bijuu of all things in such a way...
"Joking aside, I guess I should get started with the serious part of the discussion by asking if there are any large limitations that I should be aware of with how you manage to inhabit a shadow clone. Jiraiya has explained a little about how it works, but just an overall summary from you should work."
Kitsune looked down at the floor for a second before looking back up and staring at Tsunade with her piercing red eyes. "At first it was nothing more than my consciousness inside a shadow clone shell created using Naruto's chakra. Over time we've been adjusting his summoning technique that he created to allow him to summon me with at least some of my chakra. Right now it isn't much, but it's enough for me to maintain a henge for at least a full day. Every time he summons me he manages to pull out a little more of my chakra each time."
"Can he summon you with, say..." Tsunade waved her hand idly as she searched for the right words, "A tails' worth of your chakra?"
"The tails are merely a representation of how powerful each bijuu is in comparison to each other. I have no accurate scale to judge how much power there is per tail. I can tell you that I do not have enough of my own chakra to form a full cloak around this clone, however I can enhance it's capabilities somewhat... such as making it durable enough to spar."
"I see." Tsunade paused for a moment, leaning forward, her elbows perched on her desk as she pressed her fingertips together. "Do you think you are capable of running missions?"
"Hime, you aren't-"
"Quiet, Jiraiya. I wasn't talking to you."
Kitsune's eyes had narrowed as she looked at the Hokage. Her head tilted to the side in a show of curiosity, causing Tsunade to wonder where exactly she had picked up that trait from. "I would say it depends on the kind of mission. The village still follows the standard D through S assignments, I presume?"
Tsunade simply nodded.
"I see. I should be able to accomplish D Rank missions with no difficulty, much like any newly minted Genin would. Likewise for C Ranks, so long as we don't face other shinobi. Facing a competent enemy shinobi or kunoichi, I likely wouldn't be more than a distraction at best. That likely places anything B Ranked or above out of the question, at least until the summoning seal is improved or changed to allow me the use of more of my chakra."
"Very well. If you're ever in need of something to do, come see me about an assigment. Next time you use the henge, give yourself a headband."
"I do not see why you want to do this... but very well."
The Hokage leaned back in her chair, grinning. "I have a couple reasons. First, knowledge of your presence is limited. If it ever gets out, I'll be able to prove that you have in fact been helping the village since you got here. Besides that, it will also give you an income of your own... not that I know what you'd use money for, but think of it as a buffer for Naruto, should you come up with no other ideas.
"My second reason relates to your travels and experiences. It's been made clear in Jiraiya's writings to me that you have limited experience in regards to interaction with humans. Taking low ranked missions will let you do things on your own for a bit."
Tsunade leaned forward again, staring at Kitsune with a serious expression. The bijuu stared back, unflinchingly. "As for the why... I trust Naruto. That's it. Naruto trusts you, therefore my trust will extend to you as well. The more you do to help him and us, the better your defense gets should any... issues... arise."
Kitsune nodded, "I understand. Is there anything else?"
"No, that's it, unless you have any other questions."
"I have none at this time. What about you, Sage?"
Jiraiya looked a little startled as the attention in the room suddenly shifted to him. "W-What? What about me?"
"You've looked like you wanted to say something for a while now."
The hermit shrugged and waved off the comment. "I had no idea Tsunade-hime was going to do what she did... it caught me a little off guard, that's all. But her plan has merit, so I'm fine."
Tsunade looked cross for a moment, grumbling out a 'Of course it does.', which got a chuckle from Jiraiya.
"Very well. I will be with Naruto, he's telling me that he has a test coming up."
Jiraiya looked from Kitsune to Tsunade, "A test?"
The blond nodded. "Yes, it's to test his potential, alongside Sakura. They will be working with Kakashi in the future, and I wanted him to examine their teamwork. It will likely be starting soon, so we should get moving if we don't want to miss it."
A burst of smoke was all that was left of Kitsune as she dispelled when Tsunade finished speaking, leaving the Hokage to stare blankly at Jiraiya, who was opening a nearby window.
"She returns to the seal, just like that?"
Jiraiya grinned, "Yep! Just like that."
"Hm. Convenient. The next few months should prove to be interesting."
"I'll say. Hey, what abo- whoa, whoa! What are you doing Hime?"
Jiraiya had to quickly move his hands as the window he was opening quickly slammed shut, rattling the glass and nearly severing a few of his fingers. Tsunade simply glared at him, brow twitching as she pointed to the door. "I still need to talk to you. I am not leaving through the window. Understood?"
The white haired man held up his hands in a surrenduring gesture as he slowly backpedaled towards the door, Tsunade stalking after him. "O-Of course Hime! Anything for you!"
"Hm. Damn right. Lets go."
Nine days later, after rescuing the Godaime Kazekage Gaara...
"I thought I might find you up here. Is there a reason why you have been avoiding me?"
Naruto looked over his shoulder at Kitsune, who was still standing a couple meters back from where he sat on top of the Yondaime's head. "I've been avoiding everyone. I just needed to think for a bit on my own. Besides, you always know where I am anyway, in case you really needed to find me."
Kitsune hummed for a moment, then took a few steps forward to stand next to him. "Thinking about the situation with the Ichibi's Jinchuuriki?"
"Gaara."
Kitsune glanced down at the teen. "What was that?"
"His name is Gaara. Not Ichibi's Jinchuuriki." Naruto repeated what Kitsune called Gaara in a sarcastic tone which was not at all lost on the bijuu.
"Very well. While you see the human for what he is, when I look at him I cannot help but see another bijuu like myself. But I will call him Gaara from now on, since he is in fact no longer a container."
Naruto went rigid for a moment before settling back down, something that Kitsune watched with idle curiosity. He was doing one of those human things that could be so irritating, by closing himself off so he could attempt to deal with whatever issues he had on his own. Unfortunately, that typically made him a pain to deal with for days at a time.
"I do not understand why you are acting this way. He is alive now, is he not?"
Naruto let out a sigh. "Yeah, but he was dead. I thought I'd never see him again. It wasn't fair, after all he'd been through, and finally being recognized... to just have Akatsuki take it all away because he contained something that was put in him before he was even born. If it wasn't for Granny Chiyo..."
Naruto trailed off, and for once Kitsune found herself without anything to say. Something caused Naruto to form a strong connection with the other jinchuuriki, and it was likely because they were treated the same when they were younger; with fear, ignorance, and disdain. This current episode of his might go on for a while, and there was one way to get him out of a funk this serious that she had learned over time. "Would you like to go get some ramen?"
Naruto quickly looked up at Kitsune, incredulous. "W-What? But you don't need to eat..."
Kitsune shrugged, looking back out over the village. "True. But I can still taste the food, and I have to admit it does not taste as bad as I had imagined. If you wish, when we go, you can... call it one of those date things." Kitsune waved one of her hands in a circle before finishing her sentence, consciously using the human mannerism to display indifference.
Naruto stared at Kitsune open mouthed for barely a moment before frowning, "You don't even know what a date really means, do you?"
"I do know what the word means, but I do not understand the purpose behind it. Why give a name to something that you can do with another human at any time? You used to go with the harp- Haruno when it was as a member of a team after your graduation, but she would not go with you when you asked her to go as a date."
"She'd go with me now if I asked," the blond attempted to state matter-of-factly, though his expression gave a different opinion... one of uncertainty.
"Perhaps. But what would be the point? From what you and I know of her, she might say yes, but would likely add some sort of catch to it. Unlike her, at least your mother was straightforward when dealing with your father." The last sentence was only mumbled by Kitsune, which caused Naruto to grin slightly. Even if she didn't really intend to cheer him up, just being here and talking to him was making him feel better already.
"You're probably right. Besides, I told her that I would not ask her on dates anymore. Since I graduated, I haven't gone back on my word once, and I don't plan on starting now."
The blond looked up at Kitsune again, who was looking back at him now with a small smile... he couldn't tell, but she looked either happy or proud. It disappeared shortly after he looked up at her, however, and she spoke again before he could ask what she was thinking.
"Good for you. Now, do you want that ramen or not?"
Naruto chuckled as he rose to his feet, "I guess, but I don't have my money on me, so we have to stop by my apartment."
"Our apartment. Also, I offered, so I will pay."
"Our apar- Wait... you'll pay? How? You're just in a clone!" Naruto's incredulity was completely obvious, both via the tone of his voice and his expression.
Kitsune nodded. "I know. But my chakra can regenerate itself naturally while I'm in your clone, as I have discovered. I cannot increase the amount I have, but it can be restored to the original amount you put in it. Haven't you thought it odd that you haven't had to re-summon me?"
The blond's eyes remained wide at first, and slowly narrowed as he spoke, "Now that you mention it, yeah... it has been a few days. I... well, I haven't really been thinking about much other than... you know."
"I know very well, especially since I've been trying to tell you about it and you have been going out of your way to avoid everyone, myself included. I was willing to indulge your desire for a little while, but it has quickly grown old."
"Sorry," Naruto murmured, finally letting his eyes fall closed as his posture slumped.
This time Kitsune sighed, shaking her head. "It doesn't matter any longer. If it became a large problem I would have dispelled and done my best to give you cramps."
"You can do that?"
Kitsune turned to see Naruto looking a little pale. "I do not know. I have never tried. Your mother used to complain about cramps once a month or so and would sometimes blame me for them, so I thought it was perhaps an unintentional side effect of my chakra going through her system. It was something I noticed, but never really paid much attention to."
Naruto quickly looked away from Kitsune, muttering, "No, I don't think it was your chakra. That is something that all girls... and, err... women, have to deal with once they hit a certain age. At least that's what Ero-Sennin said. He's usually pretty accurate when it comes to things about them."
"Hmm." Kitsune hummed for a moment before returning to their previous conversation, "As for me paying for the ramen we are going to get, it was something I discussed briefly with your Hokage. While I am not an official shinobi of this village, I am still fully capable of acting as such. I have at least all of your capabilities, plus my own, not that I would need to use them here. She has however allowed me to do some of your village's D Rank missions so that I may understand things better."
Naruto had since looked back at Kitsune again, not quite believing what he was hearing her say. "But... when did all this happen? You didn't tell me."
Kitsune's face went strangely blank as she looked back at him. "What were we just talking about? Who was the one who was avoiding everyone?"
"Oh. Yeah..." Naruto's embarrassment was obvious, if the tone of his voice and slight flush of his cheeks was any indication.
As they finally began making their way down the monument wall, Naruto began to think a little more about Kitsune's situation with his clones. "So how long do you think you can stay in that clone then?"
Kitsune just shrugged. "This is an entirely new situation for me, so I cannot say. I can remain in this form indefinitely, because my chakra is regenerating faster than I'm using it to maintain this henge. Your chakra, however, which acts as the shell of this clone; it will eventually run out and I will likely be dispelled against my will when that time comes."
"So then the more chakra I put into the clone, the longer it will last?"
"That seems to be the most likely scenario," Kitsune nodded. "Though I cannot say if my chakra erodes yours while in this clone, at least not yet. I have not remained in the clone for very long after using my chakra when we've sparred previously."
Naruto thought about it for a moment before tossing out a suggestion, "Should I make you a new one now, so we can test it?"
"That is not necessary. We can wait until you wish to spar again. I admit I am curious to see how much longer this one might last."
They continued in silence until they reached the bottom of the wall, then started a casual walk towards Naruto's favorite place to dine in the village, Ichiraku Ramen. As they walked by other people, Naruto chuckled internally how some people seemed to be giving him curious looks, as if they were trying to remember something about him - either who he was or who he might have been related to. Most people had been doing double-takes, as he was no longer wearing his orange outfit... it was widely considered to be his defining characteristic before he left on his training trip.
The other glances were sent to his companion... many of which were wide-eyed, some with accompanying blushes or jealous scowls. A lot of the looks would change when they noticed that the two of them were walking together, and were wearing nearly identical outfits. Most of them were surprise, with a few grins and other more discreet displays. If Jiraiya were around, he'd be having a field day.
Naruto couldn't help but chuckle and toss Kitsune a brief smirk. "It seems you have a few... admirers."
"I'm used to it, you know I've traveled through human villages before. The attention wouldn't last if they knew who I was."
"You never know. If they know you didn't attack the village under your own control, I'm sure a lot of them would think differently, or at least give you a second chance."
Kitsune snorted. "If that is what you believe, so be it. You know my opinion."
"Do you really hate us all that much?" Naruto spoke quietly, but he knew Kitsune heard him the moment she stopped walking alongside him. Her sudden stop caught him slightly off guard, causing the blond to trip over his own feet as he tried to turn around and keep walking at the same time. He started to chortle lightly, slowly stopping as he saw her staring at him seriously with her bright red eyes.
When she continued to maintain her silence, Naruto's somewhat curious stare turned morphed into a frowning one. Right after the change, Kitsune closed her eyes and sighed, and let her head tilt forward until she could have been staring at the ground if her eyes were open.
"The simple answer is that no, I do not hate all humans. I'm finding myself feeling neutral towards more and more of them as time goes by. My initial impression was colored by the Sage of Six Paths, who instructed us bijuu to avoid humans as best we could. I'm sure you understand why by now."
Naruto nodded solemnly as Kitsune raised her head to look at him, eyes open again. "I've never interacted with humanity on this scale before. Previously I would avoid them at all times unless I traveled through a village to get information about what was going on in the world. From an outside perspective, there didn't seem to be any redeeming qualities about any humans I met. I've kept that mindset for my entire life.
"Then... you freed me. Just like that, everything I had believed before was shattered, and you have caused me to begin examining humankind more closely. I have come to understand after much consideration that yes, there are humans out there that are just as I believed all of humanity was like, but there are other humans who do not fit into any pre-defined mold that I had imagined in my life before now."
Kitsune continued staring straight at Naruto, who simply stared right back. "Does this answer your question?"
The blond nodded slowly. "So that means you actually do like it when I summon you?"
"Like it? As in appreciate it and want it to happen more? I would have to say... yes."
"You didn't seem to want me to at first."
"I've already explained that when you first started doing it I had none of my own chakra. It was even worse than being behind that blasted cage. But once you found a way to bring some of my chakra with me, I began to... to..." Kitsunes mouth opened and closed a few times, as if searching for the appropriate word, "Anticipate it. I looked forward to being summoned. I still do. Does that... make sense? It is a foreign concept to me, as the only other time I believe I ever looked forward to something was when I had a small chance to escape your mother."
"Yeah, it makes sense. I'm glad you're happy." Naruto had one of his big grins on display, with one hand behind his head. He purposefully ignored the comment about his mother, his parents were still a bit of a touchy subject between them, even after all this time. It was done and over with, he just didn't want to think about it if he didn't need to.
"Thank you."
"Huh?" Naruto stopped grinning, only to stare in shock as Kitsune leaned forward slightly in a small bow towards him. While the words used stopped most of his motor functions, the fact that the most powerful of the bijuu was actually bowing to him nearly put him in cardiac arrest. It wasn't exactly something that was easy for Naruto to wrap his head around – at all.
"It is the first time I have ever said those words. It is also the first time that I can claim I have ever been able to recognize what this feeling you call 'happiness' is. I was fully expecting to live behind that cage until I was two hundred years old... or even older. You managed to stop that from happening and are still trying to make my situation even better, so I thank you."
Naruto's mouth was agape and he had clearly started blushing, not used to any sort of praise from Kitsune ever since he had known her. It took everything he had to force words out of his mouth, "You helped me out all the time when I was younger, and you still do. It... it was the least I could do."
"Be that as it may, you are the only one who has bothered to make an attempt with any of the bijuu, to the best of my knowledge. Perhaps... perhaps we could try to pass it along to my other brethren, if possible? They might be behind different kinds of containment seals, but the technique itself should still work with a few adjustments."
The blond looked carefully at his companion. It was odd, he had never really seen Kitsune appear so eager for something before. Her eyes were wide and she was even leaning forward a bit. A part of Naruto was wondering if Kitsune even realized just how human she looked right now.
"I can ask Ero-Sennin to see if he has any contacts that know the locations of other Jinchuuriki, I guess? It would be a start..."
"Yes! Good idea!" Kitsune seemed strangely enthusiastic, leaving Naruto stunned. His once again slack-jawed expression must have snapped Kitsune back to her usual self, since the redhead almost immediately mellowed out and folded her arms over her chest, looking away.
"What an odd feeling. It seems once I understand the meaning behind an emotion, I can express it without even consciously trying. I will have to think about that. But first... I still owe you that ramen. Come with me, and close your mouth - unless you're trying to catch insects in it."
Naruto was only vaguely aware of his mouth clicking shut as Kitsune grabbed his arm and started dragging him towards Ichiraku. This was scary... Kitsune was quickly starting to turn into another Sakura.
Five days later, Heaven and Earth Bridge...
"It's Orochimaru!"
Naruto tensed, noticing the new figure appearing from the other side of the bridge just as Sakura hissed out the all too familiar name. They had come here based on some information that a now-deceased member of Akatsuki named Sasori had given them. After returning from rescuing Gaara, Sakura had reported that the man she fought had given her a meeting location for one of his spies, who would likely have information that Konoha would be very interested in obtaining. When Sakura asked why he was telling her this, he simply stated that it was a gift for defeating him. The information was relative to an old thorn in his side, but Konoha would likely benefit if they acted on it as well.
Their new squad leader, Yamato, had gone out disguised as Sasori to meet with this spy. Naruto and Sakura both tensed in their hiding place when Kabuto revealed himself; both believed that with Kabuto around, his master was not far away.
Unfortunately for them, they were right..
"Argh!" Naruto's fists clenched and released rapidly as he looked over the bush they were positioned behind, "Should we ignore waiting for the signal and go back up Yamato-taichou?"
Sakura shook her head, a grimace on her face. "No, we wait. I don't like it either, but he may still get away..."
The girl spoke too soon however, as Kabuto made a show of protecting Yamato, only to turn and destroy the disguise shortly thereafter. It was barely another few seconds before Yamato was motioning for them to come out from hiding.
The two of them plus their newest member, Sai, all sprung from their spot, landing in front of Yamato. Surprise was written all over Kabuto's face, while Orochimaru appeared to be more amused than anything else - if his small chuckles were any indication.
"My my, isn't this such a nice surprise, Kabuto? I think our good friends from the Leaf must have finished off my old partner since they are meeting us here disguised as him."
"Hm. I guess the Leaf is good for something after all, Orochimaru-sama?" Kabuto's voice was dripping with sarcasm, and a grin slowly appeared as he pushed his glasses up on the bridge of his nose.
"Indeed... I must say, I'm surprised to see you here Naruto-kun. Dearest Tsunade doesn't keep you on a leash like other villages do with their Jinchuuriki?"
Naruto visibly flinched and glared at the word Orochimaru decided to use, "Baachan knows better than to do that."
"I see. Well, good for you, I guess?" Orochimaru paused for a moment, his eyes wandering behind the trio to the man standing behind them. "I see they are making use of my other gift as well."
Naruto and Sakura shared a confused glance at that, then looked at Sai, who simply looked back at them with his typically expressionless face. They didn't get a chance to say anything of their own as Kabuto asked the question in their stead, "What do you mean, Orochimaru-sama?"
The snake summoner chuckled again, then casually pointed towards Yamato. "My little Mokuton experiment, standing there in the back. I was trying to recreate the bloodline of the Shodai Hokage, but I had believed all of my experiments were failures. It would seem that one of them made it, however. How fortunate."
Naruto, Sai, and Sakura all looked over their shoulders at Yamato, who simply gave them a brief nod, his expression unusually grave compared to anything they had seen before.
Several moments passed where no one said anything further, until Orochimaru spoke again, amused as always.
"Well, it would seem we are at an impasse. I was fully expecting one of you to start screaming about how you would be trying to get Sasuke-kun away from me."
Naruto was going to retort, only to be stopped by Sakura's dark chuckle. He looked over at her, slightly surprised.
"Sasuke-kun will do whatever he wants. If it wasn't for Naruto, he wouldn't be with you now anyway."
Orochimaru's eyes immediately narrowed. "Explain."
Sakura jerked a thumb towards her blond teammate, "Naruto beat Sasuke-kun at the Valley of the End when they fought. He could have brought Sasuke-kun back if he wanted to, but he let him go for reasons that I agree with. Kakashi-sensei was there too, and agreed as well. If we really cared that much about him being with you, he wouldn't be."
It was hard to read Orochimaru's expression, but he didn't look pleased - though he didn't look angry either. "Very interesting. Sasuke-kun neglected to mention that little tidbit when he found me. Perhaps I should increase the level of his training. Though if Naruto-kun was able to beat him those years ago..."
Orochimaru's snake-eyes focused on the blond of the group, and Naruto felt a shiver run down his spine. "I would assume that you have gotten even stronger since then, especially if it's true that you were running about and training with Jiraiya for several years. I'm very curious to see your strength. What do you say, think you can take me on?"
Naruto frowned slightly. "I already know I can't beat Ero-Sennin or Tsunade-baachan, so I doubt I could beat you. But..."
The blond began to smile, then slowly began to draw upon Kitsune's chakra. "I am curious as to just how far I can go."
Naruto heard Orochimaru begin to laugh again, while both Sakura and Yamato began calling his name. Kabuto was staring at him curiously... as was Sai, though he could only begin to guess what was going through the other boys head.
"What are you doing? You can't handle the amount of chakra you'd need from me to be able to take him down!" Kitsune's voice rang clearly through his head, making him wince. This was yet another workaround they had found regarding the Shiki Fuujin. Previously Kitsune would have to be summoned in order for them to communicate mentally, but now he could 'summon' her awareness into his body if she was willing to leave her chakra behind the seal. It essentially let her be aware of everything that was happening in real time, though she could do nothing other than talk to him.
"I know. I'm not trying to take him down... I just want to see how far I can go. It's been a while since I've attempted."
"Tch... whatever. Just don't lose your mind to my chakra."
"I'll try to keep it down to four tails. Any more than that and I can't say I'll keep control."
Kitsune didn't respond, as she likely moved her awareness back behind the seal to control her own chakra. He immediately turned to stare at Sakura, who was giving him a worried look. Kitsune's chakra had already begun whipping around him, and without looking over his shoulder he knew that he had already pulled upon at least three tails worth. A fourth tail was not far behind, as he could feel the wild chakra pushing down upon his consciousness. It wanted him to give it a directive and then let it take over, which was exactly what had happened the last time he had done this with Jiraiya.
"Sakura-chan... you and the others should get back. I'm going to try to keep control, but it will be very dangerous for you to be here."
"What? But Naruto, this is dangerous! I can back you up! You'll need-"
"Sakura!"
The girl flinched back as Naruto shouted her name, then immediately grunted and rubbed at his forehead. "Please, Sakura-chan, just go. It's hard enough for me to maintain this state without losing control. If something happened to you... to any of you... I would lose control, and put everyone else at risk. Please."
Even though she was frowning and her fists were clenched, the pink haired girl took a step forward again and stared at him seriously. "Good luck, Naruto."
"Thanks. Hopefully I won't need it."
As soon as their exchange was done, she took off back towards the end of the bridge where they had arrived, Sai and Yamato both looking back at him but following her shortly thereafter.
"Kabuto... perhaps you should depart as well. I don't need my best agent to be put at risk needlessly."
"Yes, Orochimaru-sama." Kabuto disappeared in a flash, and Naruto didn't pay attention or really care where the spy went.
"So Naruto-kun, how do you want to start th-"
Naruto already knew what the man was likely going to finish saying before he did, and quickly took the initiative, literally flying across the short length of bridge that separated them and smashed a chakra-laden fist into the snake summoner's face. The blow was more than enough to send the pale-skinned man flying off into the distance. His first objective was to get Orochimaru away from everyone else - and now that task was complete. Taking a deep breath, he finally allowed the fourth tail of Kitsune's chakra to settle upon him.
The blond grunted and held his head in his hands for a moment, the chakra was powerful and even at this stage he could barely keep his wits about him. Naruto was calm, but Kitsune's chakra was anything but. The pressure was weighing down on him so much that he noticed his feet were leaving indents on the bridge. At the same time, however, the chakra caused an odd dichotomy; the added weight in general made it harder to move, yet once he actually was able to focus on the simple action of movement, the very same chakra reinforced his muscles and made any movement much easier. The wild chakra did anything he wanted, so long as he was able to maintain his wits.
Realizing that he still had to go after Orochimaru, lest the man come back here, he quickly tore through the forest, kicking up all manner of debris in his wake. The best chance he would have at winning this match was taking his opponent out early, even if it did seem to be an impossible task. This would likely be his only chance to test and see how strong he was when compared to people of Orochimaru's caliber. Sparring Tsunade and Jiraiya was fun, sure... but they would pull punches. Orochimaru definitely wouldn't.
Upon reaching a small clearing that had been created courtesy of the snake summoner smashing through everything in the area, the blond came to an abrupt stop and looked around. Orochimaru was sitting patiently on the trunk of one of the larger trees in the area, smiling at him.
"That wasn't very nice, Naruto-kun. I hadn't finished talking. But since you're so eager, I won't hold back either."
Immediately two of the felled trees next to him burst into smoke, only to be replaced by snakes. They both opened their mouths wide and went for him, only to be stopped short as red hands of chakra reached out from the cloak surrounding him, grabbed the snakes, and squeezed. Two more bursts of smoke later, and the snakes had dispelled.
"It is impressive for you to have come so far at such a young age. But I believe you can't go further yet, otherwise you probably would have. Am I right?"
Naruto had to forcibly hold his agressiveness in check, he knew Orochimaru was goading him on, and with enough pushes like this he would lose control of Kitsune's chakra.
"Hmm... I must be. It's amusing to watch your face go through so many different expressions as you try to control that chakra. I've never had the opportunity to experiment with a jinchuuriki before since they are always so well guarded, but I cannot imagine a bijuu being easy to control."
"I don't control anything! I work together with my bijuu! I've been training, but... but-ugh..."
Naruto collapsed forwards, feeling the chakra starting to overwhelm him. There were so many things about Orochimaru that just plain pissed him off, and it was even worse because he knew what the man was trying to do. Yet he still fell for it. Naruto's vision started turning red, then black around the edges as Kitsune's volatile chakra quickly utilized his anger at the snake and despair over losing control to take over... to do what he couldn't.
Mindscape...
Naruto snapped awake, sitting up quickly. He didn't remember laying down... but realized what was going on as he looked around. Somehow he had been forced into his mind, Kitsune's cage was directly facing him.
"Ugh... what's going on?"
An all too familiar rumbling noise filled the room, though it definitely didn't sound as deep as it used to. He was going to ask more, until he noticed that the red chakra was floating around the room, on top of the water-like substance. Either that, or the substance had become the chakra. It was hard to tell. The only thing he knew is that it was slowly climbing up his body.
Jumping to his feet and letting out a yelp, he tried to forcefully wipe if off, but the chakra only stuck to him and proceeded to spread from his hands now.
"Kitsune? What's... what's going on? What is your chakra doing?"
"You pulled upon too much. I warned that you weren't ready for this. Now it will follow your desires before you arrived here."
Naruto vaugely noted that the voice, while still deep, definitely had a feminine sound to it, compared to previously. Unfortunately he didn't get time to consider it further as the chakra began rapidly expanding on his body.
"But can't it be stopped?" Naruto was thrashing about wildly, but the chakra was almost covering him completely now, and quickly moving up his chest and neck.
"No. It cannot."
"Why? Kitsune? Kitsune!" With a splashing noise, Naruto's body fell backwards as he succumbed to unonsciousness.
Unknown...
The blond groaned as he slowly became aware again. His entire body felt like it was on fire, and it didn't take long for him to remember why. If he was becoming aware again, that meant the chakra he had foolishly pulled upon had likely run its course.
Suddenly there was a cool feeling that began in his chest and gradually started to work its way over the rest of his body, removing the burning sensation. Getting curious, he started to lean forward and open his eyes, only for a warm hand to press over his eyes and pull his head back down. Only then did he notice that his head was slightly elevated.
"Wh-wha-" Naruto tried to talk, only to let out a series of hacking coughs. His throat was very dry, but considering the way the rest of his body felt he wasn't surprised. After a moment of consideration he realized that he was in his mindscape still, he couldn't hear or smell anything that would symbolize actually being awake.
"Be silent and wait, Naruto. You are being healed. Let your teammate finish, and do not talk until it is done."
The surprise got Naruto to be silent more than anything else. He hadn't given any thought to who the hand had belonged to. The voice was definitely Kitsune's though, somehow she managed to get in her human form outside of the cage; unless he was for some reason inside of it... not being able to see or talk kept him from knowing.
Since he was still in his mind, though, that meant on the outside Sakura was healing him, which meant she was still alright. That was good news. Hopefully he won the fight.
The cool sensation had spread through pretty much all of his body by now, getting rid of what he assumed were burns from using Kitsune's chakra. Once it was done, Kitsune lifted her hand, and he was finally able to open his eyes, only to see her leaning forward over him, a strange expression of concern on her features. Her bright red eyes were looking over him curiously, and he couldn't really remember ever seeing her like this.
"How are you feeling?"
The question surprised him, mostly because he'd never heard it before. Usually she just scoffed at him or talked about his injuries as if they were nothing.
"Much better than I was a minute ago. You said Sakura-chan was...?"
"Healing you, yes. She foolishly tried to intervene in the fight when you got knocked back across the bridge, but I managed to keep my chakra from harming her. Barely."
Naruto's eyes closed and he let out a sigh. "Thanks. I was too weak, again."
Kitsune eyed him over another time before shaking her head and replying, "You just don't have enough experience in using my chakra. We will need to find a way to enable you to practice without alerting everyone within miles. Other than that, you'll need to learn to accept who you are before you can fully master using my chakra."
"Accept... who I am? What do you mean?"
"All of those human emotions and feelings you suppress. You may not realize it, but I can hear your true desires in some situations, like I did when you went to fight Orochimaru. You wanted to kill him, even if you were just telling yourself it was just to test your own strength."
Kitsune let out a small sigh before continuing, "Until you understand and accept the way you feel about yourself and your life, my chakra will always be conflicted within you. I'm sure you've noticed how well it works when you get angry-"
"Yeah, I've been trying to stop that."
"Well don't. There is a difference between controlling your anger and letting your anger control you. I'm sure you know which one has been happening more often."
Naruto grunted as he braced his arms on the ground, then slowly pushed himself forward. He opened his eyes as he sat up, turning slightly to look at Kitsune. She was kneeling on the ground, and he felt a butterfly sensation in his gut upon realizing that his head had been resting on her lap. The moment he turned around more fully, she nodded at him, then began fading from view.
"Hey! Where are you going?"
"Back behind the cage. Your awareness is returning so I can no longer manipulate the seal to any degree. I could only bring my awareness out here, but all my chakra is still behind the cage. I simply used your chakra to create this form."
Naruto was surprised, the emotion coloring his voice. "You can use my chakra?"
"Only to a limited extent." Kitsune's human image disappeared, and the voice resumed after a small break, once again louder and deeper throughout the entire area, though Naruto could still clearly hear Kitsune's human voice mixed in. "I know my own chakra can not go beyond the seal, but I did not know if my awareness could without you coherent enough to summon me. I found out that I could draw upon a small amount of your chakra to give myself a clone of sorts here in your mind. Apparently your subconsious would allow me to while you were unconscious, but once you began to awaken, my hold on your chakra began to slip away, until I lost it."
"I could try to give it back!" Naruto had since moved to his feet, and was stumbling towards the large bars.
Kitsune chuckled, though it didn't sound nearly as menacing as it used to. "Let's stick to doing one thing at a time, shall we? We'll continue work on modifying the summons, and training you to use my chakra as well. For now, however, you should try to wake up soon. I believe your team may be getting ready to take desperate measures."
Naruto stopped moving and looked up, peering through the bars, though not seeing anything behind them. Letting out another sigh, he nodded slowly and concentrated. "Right, we'll talk more later."
As the blond flickered from existence, Kitsune chuckled again. "Indeed. I'll be waiting."
Five weeks later, newly created training area just outside Konoha's walls...
Naruto fell backward onto the soft grass, exhausted and dripping wet from head to toe. As he closed his eyes and calmed his breathing, someone stood in such a way to block the sun from his face. Curious, he opened his eyes again to see Kitsune looking down towards him before she tossed a towel over his head.
"Hey!"
"You should dry off a bit, that water was not warm."
"It wasn't that bad. Sheesh." Following directions anyway, the boy sat up and proceeded to dry himself off. Wiping down his exposed upper body first, he placed the towel over his head to rub his hair, but paused first when he noticed Kitsune staring at him still.
"What?"
Kitsune's eyes narrowed, and she offered a barely perceptible shrug. "I was looking at you and trying to understand what a female human would find to be desireable about a male."
Naruto felt a blush rising to his face. Kitsune was checking him out? It was flattering, if not a little... strange, coming from her. He tried to say something but ended up stuttering out nothing discernable, though Kitsune ignored it and continued talking anyway.
"I understand a small amount, considering what I learned through watching your mother - though she was already focused on your father before I was sealed in her, so it is still difficult for me to interpret what other females look for. But with so many human pairs that I have seen in this village alone, it is not that difficult a process, is it?"
Naruto opened his mouth to reply, only for a giggling noise to interrupt him. Both he and Kitsune turned to look at Kakashi, who was leaning against a nearby tree stump, orange book in hand. Yamato was sitting nearby on the ground as well, eyes closed in a meditative posture.
Kakashi had easily accepted Kitsune's presence, much to his relief. Thinking back, however, he recalled that his sensei was one of the most laid back people around... when not being attacked or threatened, anyway. His reaction shouldn't have come as much of a surprise.
Yamato was a new team leader to Naruto, and the blond had purposefully not told the man about Kitsune being able to appear in the shadow clone until after they got back from meeting Orochimaru and Kabuto. It wasn't because he didn't trust the man, but it was more because he didn't quite trust their other new team member - Sai. He also thought that Tsunade might have mentioned it since he would be leading their team in Kakashi's absence, but Yamato's reaction upon their return when they met was very amusing to both Naruto and Sakura. They had both burst out laughing when their captain simply pointed and stared, open mouthed and shaking, not saying a word. Kitsune, meanwhile, simply returned the stare with an eye roll followed by a very small smile, perhaps amused or exasperated in her own unique way.
As for Sai... both Naruto and Sakura had a feeling that Yamato knew something about the boy, but he wasn't telling them, and insisted that they ask the Hokage if they really wanted to know. He had apparently gone to investigate the fight between Naruto and Orochimaru - against Yamato's orders to remain where they were and on standby - and Sakura believed he had gotten caught up in one of the large blasts that filled the area. Their captain had hinted that Sai was not dead, and had a wood clone following the teen, but other than that did not elaborate. He offered them the option of going after the boy, and Naruto was planning to accept.
Sakura, however, quickly intervened, saying that getting Naruto back to Konoha to make sure there were no side effects after what happened took precedence. The blond wanted to argue, but she stopped him, saying that it was her duty as a medic nin to make sure he was in good health, and that she'd rather take care of an injured friend and teammate and make sure he was okay, rather than go try and hunt one down that went against Yamato's explicit orders to stand down. Their captain almost immediately agreed with her, and they returned to the village, their newest teammate's whereabouts unknown.
A light bonk on his head made him flinch, and he craned his head to look up at Kitsune as she gave him a slight glare.
"You used to complain that I didn't talk enough, yet now that I do talk you have decided to ignore me?"
The blond paled, "What? No! I'm sorry, I just... I was just thinking back about the bridge, and we don't know what happened to Sai still."
Kitsune stared at him for a moment, then offered another one of her imperceptible shrugs. "So? He understood even less about emotions than I did. Neither of us like him. At all. We've discussed this."
"I know, I know... it's just... oh, nevermind. What were you saying before?"
Kitsune growled before answering, "I was asking if it was truly a difficult process for humans to find a partner, considering how many of them I've seen in this village alone."
"A partner? You mean like on a team?"
"No. A companion, or a... mate."
Naruto was stunned once again, but managed to keep his face impassive somehow. This was probably one of the very last conversations he ever expected to have with the bijuu, as she had always previously displayed nothing more than a passing interest in any humans, with few exceptions.
"It... can be hard sometimes. I know there are some that are part of clans so they don't get a choice, or sometimes they can be required to have more than one, uh... mate. But for everyone else, it usually happens where you are with or around someone for a long time and just start liking them more and more."
"You weren't with Haruno for very long before you started chasing after her."
That comment brought Naruto up short, remembering back to when he used to constantly nag Sakura about dates.
"Sakura-chan was... like me. She wanted acknowlegement, like I did. I tried to give it to her, but, as you know... she didn't want it from me." Naruto sighed and shook his head. "So it doesn't always work out. But if you want to know what girls look for in a guy, you should probably go talk with Sakura-chan. She could probably tell you what girls look for, since I obviously have no idea."
Kitsune's face morphed into an expression that could be best described as having tasted something repulsive, but it didn't last long. "I cannot think of anything better, so we will go with that. Anyway, you've rested long enough, it's time to practice drawing upon my chakra now."
Naruto groaned as he rubbed his forehead, slowly climbing back to his feet. "Ugh, slave driver."
"You know it. I'll go grab the Mokuton user, you prepare yourself."
The blond sighed as he looked up at the sky. When the hell was lunch?
The next morning...
"Where are we going?"
Sakura turned her head slightly so that she could look at her current companion out of the corner of her eye. "We're going to pick up Ino at her family flower shop before we meet up with a few others at the park."
"Ino... she's the... Yamanaka?"
"Yeah, why?"
Kitsune idly scratched at the side of her chin, "I can remember dozens of women named Ino that I've heard of or met briefly over the course of my life, I was just trying to remember that she was the most recent."
"You can remember them all? That's... pretty amazing." Sakura usually kept herself tone-neutral when talking to Kitsune, but she couldn't help but express some small amount of awe at Kitsune's memory capabilities.
"It can be a boon... or a curse, depending on your perspective. I never forget anything I experience, as if it happened yesterday."
Sakura wasn't quite sure what to say to that, as she could imagine it being exactly as Kitsune said. Something horrible may happen that she'd be able to remember in perfect clarity for the rest of her life. She couldn't help but shiver just thinking about it.
The rest of the short trip to the flower shop passed with silence between them. The pink haired girl still was not certain what to make of the bijuu walking next to her. Other than being incredibly blunt about things, and sometimes downright rude when she talked to people other than Naruto, Jiraiya, Tsunade, and a small list of others, Kitsune was known for being quiet and observant. Though, if anyone came across her sparring Naruto, they'd think she was incredibly strong.
Things between them were still cool at best, apparently she had done a good job of ruining her image in the eyes of Kitsune when she used to ignore or turn away Naruto constantly in the Academy. While she had apologized to both Kitsune and Naruto for acting that way, she did state that she was still a very young girl at the time. Naruto forgave her easily, as he always did... but Kitsune was still chilly towards her. Until today, apparently.
Naruto and Kitsune had shown up at her doorstep this morning, with the blond begging her to go out and about with Kitsune and tell her all about the 'girl things' that he had no idea how to explain. He didn't stick around to clarify what he was saying either, as he had promptly shot off like a rocket the moment he finished talking, leaving Sakura there dumbfounded as Kitsune stared at her impassively. It took forever for her to understand just what it was that Kitsune wanted... or needed to talk about.
Deciding it was best if she had a group opinion about the questions Kitsune was tossing at her, she offered to get a group of them together to talk about things. After thinking about it for nearly a full minute, Kitsune eventually agreed.
The ringing door chime brought Sakura's thoughts back into focus as she stepped through the doorway into the store. She had walked the path to Ino's so many times before, she could do it blindfolded if she needed to.
"Good morning! Welco- oh, hey Sakura. I got your message."
"So can you come out for a little bit, then?"
She noticed as Ino's eyes flashed over to the redhead who had just walked in the door behind her, then back. "Sure, let me just go in the back and let my mom know I'm going out."
Sakura nodded as the blond haired girl turned around and disappeared behind a curtain. She wasn't sure what the glance towards Kitsune meant, if anything at all... though most people were cautious around the relatively new 'unknown'. After all, she had just randomly shown up with Naruto the same day he returned to the village, and was usually only ever seen around him. In the rare occasion that she was spotted alone, she was usually doing a mission and only spoke in brief sentences, if she even said anything at all.
"Okay! I'm ready to go. I'll have to be back by mid-afternoon though, I hope that's okay?"
"It's fine. What I have to ask shouldn't take that long." That Kitsune answered was surprising to both Ino and Sakura, the two of them turned to look at the redhead who appeared to be focused on some roses.
"I... I see. Alright then, let's go."
As the three of them left the shop and began walking down one of the many roads in the village towards the park they were meeting at, Ino began chatting with Sakura about some of the latest village gossip. While the pink haired girl didn't have much of a desire to know every little thing that went on in the village, she did have to admit that some things Ino knew about were rather amusing. There was even moments where she could have sworn she saw Kitsune's lips twitch upwards, though the bijuu did not comment on anything she may have heard.
The park Sakura had selected to have this discussion at was not a very busy one early in the morning, and wasn't very far from Ino's house either. Barely five minutes later they arrived at the designated clearing, only for them to immediately spot Tenten and Hinata chatting comfortably in the shade of one of the many trees scattered about the area.
"Hey Tenten, Hinata!" Ino waved her hand over her head as she shouted at the other two girls, who both quickly looked up and smiled. Tenten waved back, while Hinata quickly dipped her head forward a little.
As they approached, Tenten focused on Sakura, "So what's so urgent that you needed to talk to us first thing this morning. I wanted to sleep in today!"
"Ah, I'm sorry! This might sound a little strange, but I wanted some other opinions on some questions Kitsune has been asking me. You've all met her at least once before, right?"
All of the girls nodded, though Hinata was looking at the redhead curiously. "Yes, though I've only seen her in passing, as she was... usually with Naruto-kun."
Kitsune turned a red-eyed gaze towards the Hyuuga heiress. "Well that would make sense, considering what I am."
Hinata's eyes shot wide open, and her face quickly turned bright red. Tenten simply grunted out a 'Huh?' while Ino's screech probably woke up anyone else who may have still been sleeping nearby.
"What? Considering what you are? Ohhhh this might be good, what are you to Naruto, huh? A secret mistress? A hidden wife? I have to admit, I'm envious of your looks, though I don't really know what you found that made that goof a keeper."
At first Kitsune looked annoyed, but it slowly shifted towards a smirk as she listened to Ino ramble on. "Nothing quite so fancy as that." Kitsune turned her head to stare at Sakura. "Perhaps you should tell them about me? I don't think they'd believe it coming from me."
Sakura frowned, "Did Naruto say it was okay? I mean, that law is still in effect, isn't it?"
"He gave permission. He plans on telling the males of his generation while you're here with me, though he believes some of them already know, much like you did."
"I see." Sakura closed her eyes and took a deep breath, then opened them again and looked at Ino, Tenten, and Hinata in turn before continuing, "What I say here cannot be repeated by any of you at any time, ever, unless the law is lifted or Naruto says it's okay. Got it?"
They all nodded, Hinata's and Tenten's were slow to come, curiosity etched across their features. Ino was slow to respond as well, though she was frowning slightly as she gazed at the redhead.
"Kitsune... is the Kyuubi in human form."
The other girls were surprised, certainly, though they quickly adopted looks of understanding, as if some puzzle pieces were quickly falling into place. None of them made any shocked outbursts or even seemed scared in any way.
"No comments or screams? I'm surprised."
All of the girls looked at Sakura, including Kitsune. Ino and Hinata looked like they were going to say something, but they both stopped themselves. It was Tenten who decided to explain.
"I think it's one of the best -worst- kept secrets in Konoha. No one can talk about it openly because of the law, but at this point everyone knows Naruto has a second source of chakra, especially after the exams. Eventually things start to fall into place if you just pay attention. As for me, I got confirmation from Neji. He wouldn't say anything directly about it, but the law didn't say anything about not confirming a well thought out guess."
"I-It was the same for me. After talking with Neji-niisan about his fight with Naruto-kun during the Chuunin Exam, I went to our clan archives and did some research on secondary chakra sources. I noticed that the day of the Kyuubi's defeat was also Naruto-kun's birthday, so I went and asked my father about it. He confirmed that Naruto-kun was a Jinchuuriki."
As Hinata finished speaking, everyone turned to Ino, expecting her to offer her story next. She just let out a light chuckle and shrugged slightly. "Nothing that exciting about how I found out. Shikamaru figured it out on his own and told Chouji and I. We both got confirmation from our parents. The end."
As soon as she finished, the blond girl rounded on Kitsune, pointing a finger at the bijuu and grinning wider. "Now, what's this about you and Naruto, huh? Something interesting going on between you two?"
"Probably not in the manner you are thinking." Kitsune folded her arms over her chest as she returned the blond girl's grin. "My question merely pertains to human males in general, Naruto is just the best example that I can understand since I know him better than any other. Any explanation with him as the subject would enable me to understand your explanations better. There are many things about human social patterns that I am still unfamiliar with."
Ino nodded slowly and adopted a thoughtful pose, rubbing her chin. "I see. Ask away! The great Ino-sama shall be happy to answer your questions on this day!"
Sakura groaned and rubbed her forehead, annoyed at Ino's antics at a time like this. Luckily, Kitsune seemed to ignore it, and went about asking her question anyway.
"What exactly is it that human females look for in males? As I was telling Naruto yesterday, I see plenty of pairs all throughout the village, so it cannot be that hard to find a mate, can it?"
All of the girls - other than Sakura, who already knew the question - simply stared at Kitsune in mute shock. Ino's previous thoughtful pose seemed to just disappear as she went rigid, and much the same could be said for Tenten and Hinata, who had turned their heads to look at each other, as if they weren't sure about what they heard.
"W-Wait a minute!" Ino held a hand up, as if that would keep anyone else from talking. "What brought this on, anyway? Did you just randomly start thinking about this or something?"
Kitsune just shrugged noncommitally. "I've been watching Naruto train recently, and even my mind is prone to wandering. When I think back, if I compare him to other males that I've seen during my life, I would have to consider him... how should I say it? Handsome? Attractive? I know the meaning behind the words but I'm still unfamiliar with how to determine if a person exemplifies those properties. From what I can gather, Naruto's general demeanor and physique matches up with what human females tend to strive for in a partner. Unless all of you disagree?"
Sakura was looking down at the ground, while Ino was staring at Kitsune like she had two, or even three heads. Tenten had begun tapping her chin with her forefinger and apparently in deep thought, though unlike her, Hinata had turned beet red and was looking everywhere else but towards their group.
"Well..." Ino's dragged out the word until everyone focused on her again, "I wouldn't say that girls aren't... attracted to Naruto. I mean, I'll admit that he's kinda cute, but I don't really know him well enough to be attracted to him more. He was away training for three years, and I've only seen him briefly a few dozen times or so since he got back months ago. He's probably nothing like I remember him being in school. Does that make sense?"
Kitsune nodded, but said nothing, waiting for other opinions. Tenten decided to speak up shortly after Ino finished.
"I think he's pretty good looking, yeah. If I got to know him better I could easily see myself falling for him, after the few times we've sparred and I've helped him with kunai training. He's always busy, though, and I haven't seen him much since he got back because I've been busy too. But unless he seeks me out for some reason, we'll probably just stay friends. I'm fine with that." She finished her comments with a shrug, and the other girls all seemed to nod, fully accepting of her explanation.
Ino, Kitsune, and now Tenten turned to look at Hinata and Sakura, who seemed to be unsure about what to say. Sakura opened and closed her mouth a few times, though Hinata began to speak before she could actually say anything.
"I-I've liked Naruto-kun... for a long time." Hinata's shoulders sagged, as if she was in the process of explaining some heavy burden. "Unfortunately... he isn't a member of a clan, and as my clan is right now they will not allow me, the heiress, to marry someone who isn't in a clan themselves. So until my father decides to step down, I... I..." Hinata choked back a sob, and both Ino and Sakura moved closer, resting a hand on each of the girls shoulders.
"It's okay Hinata, we understand. You don't have to continue." Hinata nodded, wiping at her eyes as she gave Ino a watery smile.
"Unfortunately I do not understand. Why can you not simply say how you feel?"
"Ah, she could say it," Sakura began to explain, "But she wouldn't be able to enter into a relationship with him because of her clan's rules right now. Essentially she's saying that if she were to start something now, they may reduce her status or even kick her out of her clan... her family. When she becomes the Matriarch, however, she would be free to pursue whoever she wants, but there is no guarantee that Naruto will still be available. Am I right, Hinata?"
The somewhat sullen girl let out a heavy sigh before she nodded. "You a-are correct."
"Hmm." Kitsune walked up a little closer and looked carefully at Hinata. The other girl let out a little 'eep' as she was being inspected, and fidgeted slightly, but Sakura and Ino's hands on her shoulders kept her from backing away.
"May I ask... what is it that attracts you to Naruto?"
It didn't take long for Hinata to blush, and continue getting redder. Her mouth opened and closed a few times as her eyes darted around everywhere, though before she could say anything some interesting thoughts must have popped into her head since she fainted dead away. Both Sakura and Ino let out startled shouts of surprise, then had to quickly adjust in order to hold the girl and set her down gently before she landed in a heap.
"I can't believe she still hasn't grown out of that."
"What?" Sakura looked over at Tenten, who seemed more amused than worried.
"Neji used to complain about this from time to time. Whenever Naruto ever came up in their conversations, she'd turn into a wreck. He doesn't know how to break her from that either, and he doesn't want to think she's a... well, a secret pervert or anything."
Sakura blushed as she looked at the dark haired girl on the ground once again. Hinata? But now that she thought about it more...
"As interesting as this conversation is, Naruto is calling for me. Apparently the Sage has a mission for him; he seems excited to get going, and he believes I will be as well."
Kitsune paused for a moment, taking a deep breath and apparently preparing herself to say something else. Sakura, Ino, and Tenten, however, were simply trying to change gears in their minds as Kitsune had totally changed the subject.
"I... appreciate your explaining to me your opinions on the matter. It has been most enlightening." She paused again, briefly, and looked at them all once more time, even the unconscious Hinata. "When I return, perhaps we can... talk some more. Farewell."
As soon as she finished speaking, she promptly dispelled in a cloud of smoke, similar to the way that Naruto's did, only this time it was tinted with a faint reddish color.
"Most enlightening?" Ino mumbled the words quietly to herself several times. "I can't say I've ever heard someone talk like that before. It sounds so... so..."
"Mature?"
Ino looked at Sakura and shrugged. "I was going to say old-fashioned, but it doesn't matter." Her voice dropped down into a more conspiratiorial tone, "Hey, she didn't get to hear about what you think about Naruto, did she?"
The pink haired teen slowly shook her head. "She already knows, and told me not to bother."
Her best friend looked positively scandalized. "What? Why?"
Sakura looked down at the ground, noticing that Hinata was starting to stir. "Because of how I treated him before. She didn't say never, but she made it very clear that I shouldn't bother right now."
"Someone that doesn't understand attraction was telling you to not be?"
Sakura tossed her friend a wry smile as Hinata began moving again, Tenten was leaning down to help the girl to her feet. "I know. Funny, isn't it? I'll tell you more later, but right now I'm gonna make sure Hinata is okay."
"Sure thing, Forehead." Ino's voice dropped down low enough to be just a mumble, "This I've got to hear."
A/N: There you have it. Everything takes place while Naruto is 15, and next chapter will be when he is 16. You've probably noticed some differences from canon that started last chapter and are continuing this chapter, and to a greater degree. The deviations will continue to a greater degree as Naruto gets older. That's all about this particular chapter, and as always a big thanks to my beta, Denim88, for checking through this monster. (Twenty five thousand words!)
As is my usual side note, I've updated my profile as pertains to those who follow along with my Billy vs Snakeman adventures. Not much to report on for my writing job, though... getting to the point where I can't spoil surprises.
