Chapter 9:

"You think you can ignore me?"

Naruto frowned.

"Have you forgotten about me? How could you?"

It was hot. Like steam shooting from a furnace. It came at him like puffs of air.

"I'm still here, Naruto. Don't think you've gotten rid of me, boy."

Naruto turned around to face the Nine-Tailed Fox. Just was as big as ever. The heat coming from his mouth as he growled his words warmed Naruto's cheeks as if he were standing by an open fire.

"Cursed or not, the seal is still in place. I'm not going anywhere."

"I know that." Naruto knew the curse wouldn't effect the seal or the beast living within his body. Everyone else was concerned about it but Naruto was confident that nothing would happen. Though it was a bit strange for the fox to suddenly start talking to him now. Usually their conversations weren't random. He spoke when he had reason to.

"It seems your friends are in a bit of a pinch." The beast started to cackle. "You couldn't stop them from being cursed, could you? That is a pity. But if you had my power, you could do it. Couldn't you? I'm aware of what you're going through, Naruto. Make no mistake about that. I know everything that happens to you and your weak human body."

"What's your point?" Naruto asked.

"Aren't you curious what would happen of you combined my powers with that of your curse?"

"I can't use both at once."

"Not your ninja abilities, but I'm talking about my power. Kitsune may be different, but I'm still a fox and so are they. And their power depends on the number of tails they possess. I would be a god in their eyes. You could surpass them all with me."

Naruto didn't think combining the Nine-Tails' power with fox magic was possible. Then again he never bothered to try. Such a thing sounded too dangerous. Naruto had only trained himself to discover the limitations of switching from fox and human form. But only fox and human. He never tapped into the red chakra of the Nine-Tailed Fox.

It was already established that his fox traits would appear if he got emotional. Like his tail appearing or his ears. That was small compared to what happened with the red chakra. When Naruto was furious, displaying a lot more emotion than with his kitsune form, he would tap into the red chakra. When that happened, sure he got more powerful, but he would also lose control. There was no way he was going to play around with that.

"Come on," tempted the Nine-Tails. "Remove the seal. See what sort of power you can attain with your curse and my power. Go on. Remove it. Your enemy will not stand a chance."

"No way," said Naruto. "I didn't remove the seal before and I'm not going to now."

The giant pair of red eyes narrowed angrily. The beast snarled at him.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but there's no way I'm doing that."

"Aren't you curious to see what would happen?" asked the beast, once again tempting him. "Even in the slightest?"

"It's not worth it."

It wasn't. Yamato warned him about the power of that red chakra and what it could do. He was the one who told him that in his fury Naruto had injured Sakura. After that Naruto was too afraid to use that power again. Not unless he could control it. Yamato told him that he was better off using his own power and not to rely on the beast's. He had trained to use that power with the Toad Sage but it was difficult and dangerous. Even he told Naruto to be careful.

With that sort of training, it was highly supervised. What the Nine-Tails was suggesting was something not only dangerous but reckless. He was basically telling Naruto to remove the seal and see what happened. Naruto wasn't that desperate or that foolish.

"Not for training and not for curiosity," Naruto told him. "I'm handling this my way. I don't need to remove the seal and I don't want to."

The beast snarled at him in annoyance. Naruto wasn't going to be tricked. "Fine. Be that way. Just remember that I am still here. If things get out of hand, I'll be there to take care of things. Remember that. Curse or no curse, the seal remains in place and I remain with you. Being a kitsune doesn't change that."

He knew what the Nine-Tails was trying to say. First and foremost that if Naruto got too emotional, if he couldn't handle the situation like in the past, the beast would take over like before. The curse didn't change that. He could still take control of Naruto's body and go on a rampage. The curse didn't do anything to the Nine-Tails. Just to Naruto's physical form. Other than the fact that he could turn into a kitsune and use fox magic, nothing changed. The same rules were in place and the dangers remained the same.

He didn't want to think about what could happen if things got out of control. If the beast's power could be amplified because of the kitsune curse. This was something he couldn't mess around with. Naruto wasn't going to take any chances or experiment. He had to do this in the way he had decided. The beast wasn't going to change his mind.

"You can't pressure me and you can't scare me," Naruto told him. "I'm doing this my way."

The beast scoffed. "Once again using someone else's power to do so. If it's not my power it's that of a kitsune. When do you ever use your own power? Always borrowing. Pathetic, you are."

It was Naruto's turn to scoff. "It was a gift given to me by a friend. He hoped it would protect me. Give me an advantage. I would be foolish not to take it. And besides, I can't do it alone. Never could. I've always needed help from someone else and there's no shame in that. It helped me get stronger. You say using kitsune powers is cheating. But is it cheating that I had to learn jutsu from a teacher? That I had to be taught? I wasn't born knowing. I had to be taught. I got stronger through training. Is that cheating? Jutsu or fox magic, someone who cares about me wants me to learn this stuff so I can get stronger. They want to help me. I don't think that's pathetic. I think that's how people get better."

The Nine-Tails growled and shrank back behind his bars. "You can go on and on about this but I don't want to hear it. You've made your point. I could say a few things back about how wrong you are but that would only encourage you to talk. I'm done with this conversation. If you're not going to let me out then I see no point in continuing. Do as you wish. Just remember what I said. I will be there if you can't handle it. So stay on your toes."

Naruto smirked and nodded back. "Thanks for the concern. But I can handle it."

The giant fox smirked back. "Can you?"


Naruto opened his eyes. It was just before dawn and the insects were still chirping and buzzing about in the woods, only they were a lot quieter now. Naruto lifted his head and looked around at his friends. Neji was still wearing Naruto's jacket and Sakura was still asleep under her blanket and Shino was still in his sleeping bag. Right where he left them. He looked down at Shikamaru who was asleep on his body, tail pulled over his shoulders.

Something in Naruto told him to move. There was no danger. He just had to move. Something in him was driving him to go into the woods. To hunt. He wanted to provide his friends with a meal. It must have been a combination of his own personality and his fox instincts. He had a desire to help them in any way that he could. Especially during this difficult time. He had to make things a little easier for them.

Very slowly, Naruto started to ease his way out from under Shikamaru. Feeling Naruto move out from under him and his own body starting to shift, Shikamaru moaned. Naruto stopped. He didn't want to wake him. After a moment, Naruto wedged his hand under Shikamaru's head and gently lifted him up, moving his own body out from under him. Then he slowly lowered Shikamaru's head down onto Neji's bag which he had pulled from beside the tree. Holding his breath, Naruto waited for Shikamaru to settle into his new position and crept away. Shikamaru did not wake up.

Once he was safe to do so, Naruto shifted into his full fox form and scurried into the woods. He turned back only once to look at his friends, then left their campsite.

He knew how to hunt. The kitsune showed him how to do it in his fox form. It was a part of his training. He had shown much improvement during his time in the mountain with his fox friends. It was fun. He enjoyed it. He wanted to hunt. Not only was it fun and would provide his friends with food, but it was a good way to blow off some steam. His cursed friends weren't the only ones who were frustrated. He had a few things he wanted to work out, too.


An hour later, the rest of the team started to get up and pack away their things. Sakura went to check on Neji. As she went to touch him, she noticed the jacket draped over his shoulders. It belonged to Naruto. She looked around the campsite but couldn't find him. She wanted to ask Neji if he had seen him but stopped herself knowing he wouldn't appreciate being asked if he had 'seen' anyone.

"Neji?"

He lifted his head. "Yeah?"

"Are you up?"

"I am now. What time is it?"

"It's dawn."

Neji opened his eyes and glanced around. Everything was still in total darkness. There was no point in keeping them open. He closed them again with a heavy sigh. "What does it look like?"

"Hm?"

"The sky," he said. "What does it look like? Does it look like rain? Is it sunny? What?"

"Oh. Uh..." Sakura looked at the sky. "It's... getting brighter. It's still early so..." Sakura trailed off. Neji couldn't see any of this. The whole world was hidden from him. Though Neji remained stoic most of the time, she could read the sadness on his face. He was trying not to let it show. He was always good at hiding how he really felt inside. A true ninja could not show emotion.

In this case, for Neji, it was next to impossible.

Sakura stood up and went over to Shikamaru. "Shikamaru," she called gently.

Moaning, he curled into a ball. "Five more minutes," he said sleepily.

Seeing no harm in letting him rest for a little longer, Sakura left him alone.

She looked around once more for Naruto but there was no sign of him. "Shino, have you seen Naruto?"

Shino, having just finished packing away his sleeping bag, shrugged. "No. I could send out some of my bugs to find..." Shino stopped. "Oh." He looked down sadly. "I had forgotten."

He was still struggling with this, too. Just like Neji, he was trying not to let it show.

Sakura felt bad for them. There must have been something she could do. There wasn't. She couldn't remove their curses. The only way to do that was to stop the kitsune who cast it. Which meant going after Mikale.

Maybe if she went alone..? No that would have been foolish. She wasn't cursed yet so she would have been an easy target. She saw what happened when Kiba went off to try to stop the kitsune. Going off alone was a terrible idea. Which meant she would have to wait until the others decided what move to make next.

"Guys!"

Off in the distance, they heard Naruto's voice.

"Naruto?" Sakura turned her body, trying to locate her teammate.

"Guys!" Naruto appeared between the trees carrying something in his mouth. "I brought breakfast. Now we don't have to eat through all our rations."

"What is that in your mouth?" Sakura gulped.

"Rabbit." He happily dropped it on the ground next to Neji's leg.

Neji flinched hearing something hit the ground beside him. "Please tell me whatever you dropped next to me isn't dead."

"Sorry, Neji." Naruto picked it up in his human hand. "I couldn't stay still so I went out and hunted it down. We just have to cook it and eat it."

"Sounds like a bit for work," said Sakura. "But... thanks for getting it anyway." She had to thank him for going out into the woods on his own to get food for them without having to be told. She had to be considerate and show some gratitude.

"It will make a decent breakfast," said Shino. "And we should have something in us when we going over our next course of action."

Once the rabbit was skinned and cooked, everyone gathered around to sample a taste while they went over the plan.

"We've already been over what we know. There's no point in repeating it. We know we're cursed and that the enemy is injured. We know the risks if we go after the enemy and if we go home. We know what could happen in either case. It seems like a no-win situation. No matter what we do, something could go wrong. We know this. What we have to figure out now is what we're going to do. Are we going to continue with the mission as we are now, or are we going back to the village?"

Naruto didn't want to go back. They had unfinished business here. They had to deal with the fox. They were so close. "I say we continue. We know he's hurt and in the area. It makes more sense to keep going."

"But Naruto more than half of us are cursed," pointed out Sakura. "We've been weakened."

"I can't see anything," grumbled Neji. "How am I supposed to fight when I can't see?"

"And I can't come up with any plans," said Shikamaru. "I can't think the way I used to."

"Yeah, but you're not stupid. You still know stuff."

"But we don't know the extent of this curse!" snapped Shikamaru. "And I'd rather not find out in the heat of battle, Naruto. All we know about my curse so far is that I can't come up with any strategies. That for which I was called a genius is gone."

"At least you can think like a normal person."

"Even a normal person can think ahead of someone or at least come up with some sort of plan and see to some extent the results of their actions. I can't."

"So in other words if you throw a rock at a window, you wouldn't know if the window will break or not? Is that what you're saying?"

"I don't know! Maybe!" Shikamaru hid behind his arms as he brought his head to his bent knees. His curse was so overwhelming. His mind was a jumble. Most of the time he felt like he was in a fog. He felt so simple. That he couldn't do anything and that someone had to call the shots for him. He was just along for the ride. Like a toddler dependent on its mother.

"We have to be considerate of the ones that have been cursed, Naruto," said Sakura. "Remember that Shino can't use his bugs anymore so his jutsu is limited. And with Neji and Shikamaru... Everyone has been weakened."

"Except for you. Sakura, you never got cursed."

"Which makes her a target," said Neji. "She can still be cursed. And if the fox does manage to curse her she may either become an object or be cursed like us. She could have something important taken away from her. We need Sakura's mind, her strength and her medical knowledge. If any of those things are taken away..."

"Which is why we should go back to the Leaf Village."

"No!" Naruto's ears and tail popped out again along with claws. "He's here in this area. We know he's close by and hurt. This is a good time to act and get him. We can end this. Once he's defeated your curses will be lifted."

"But we already talked about the dangers with doing that. He is an animal after all. When animals are scared or injured, they're going to fight for their lives. His attack may be worse than before. Plus with everyone's curse, we're at a disadvantage. Naruto, it doesn't make sense. We could be walking into a trap. In fact, given what we know, we may as well be. We're doomed to fail."

"No, we're not!" Naruto transformed into his hybrid form. "I'm telling you that this is our only chance! We can do this!"

"Sakura has a point, Naruto," said Shino. "We're at a disadvantage. It may be for the best that we cut our losses and go home."

"And fail the mission? And go home in defeat?"

"It's better that than going in as we are now and getting ourselves killed!"

"But if we go back to the village then his injuries will heal and the attacks will continue! Like the fire illusion he cast before! More of that will go on! And even if we go home, you guys are still going to be cursed! It makes more sense to finish the job and get everyone fixed up!"

Naruto had a point. Going home wouldn't change the fact that their curses would remain. The curse would be broken if the fox was defeated. That was the fact of the matter.

"And if we do go home, they might send more ninja out to take care of this and they could get cursed, too. I don't want more people to end up cursed because of this fox," Naruto continued. "If we stay with the mission and go on, no one else has to get cursed. And since you guys are already cursed, you can't get cursed again. That's a plus."

"He has a point," said Neji. "The next team to be dispatched would end up cursed as well."

"Plus Naruto is the only one who can see through the kitsune's illusions and track his scent."

"He could just go with the other team... But they could still end up cursed. We can't since that ship has sailed."

The group was silent.

"So what do we do?"

Naruto shifted back into his human form but kept the tail. He looked from one worried face to the next, waiting.

"Greater good. Taking risks." Shino sighed. "What do you think?"

Sakura spoke first. "I think we should do as Naruto says. He knows these kitsune better than any of us here."

"And I want this curse lifted as soon as possible," said Neji. "I say we stay on the mission. Against my better judgment."

"We've been in it this long. I guess I'm in, too," said Shikamaru. "I say we keep going."

"Alright," said Shino with a heavy sigh. "We'll continue with the mission." Though he did sigh heavily, there was a bit of excitement in his voice. He must have secretly wanted to continue with the mission as well.

Naruto was so pleased. He transformed into a kitsune and started jumping with joy.

"Naruto!"

"What?"

"Control yourself."

He changed back into a human.

"Alright. Since we've established that we're continuing with the mission knowing what we know, what's the plan?" asked Neji. "With all our handicaps, what should we do? What's the best way to handle this?"

Once again, silence fell. They had agreed to continue with the mission but they didn't have a plan of action. How could they fight when one person couldn't see, one couldn't use his jutsu, and one who was no longer a genius strategist? Not to mention how one kept switching from human to fox occasionally beyond his control.


While everyone tried to think of a plan, Naruto wandered into the forest to find better use of his time. He didn't feel like sticking around with the others while they tried in vain to come up with a strategy. He found it boring and he was feeling restless. He would much rather go foraging in the forest.

As he passed a fallen log, he noticed a cluster of creamy white mushrooms spreading out from a tree like Chinese fans. Naruto gave them a curious sniff. The mushrooms were a light beige-cream color with a tiny tint of yellow on the edges. These were edible. Very young and fresh.

In the beginning of his ninja training, Naruto was unable to tell which plants growing in the wild were edible or not. Once or twice he got sick from making such a mistake. After some experience and training with the Toad Sage, Naruto was able to tell the difference. After training with the kitsune, his ability to spot the difference had improved exponentially. He was able to tell what plants were good to eat on sight and by scent. He even knew the certain properties of different plants. The kitsune taught him which plants could help treat injuries and stomach aches. He owed them a lot. His training wasn't just fox magic but everything that went along with being a fox. Including hunting and foraging. It came in handy many times. Not just when he was a fox but on missions as a ninja as well.

Naruto climbed up onto the fallen log to reach the mushrooms growing on the tree. He stood on his hind legs and tried to reach them with his paws but all he felt was the rough bark under his paw pads. He tried climbing up the trunk the way the kitsune had taught him but his paws slide off the surface as if it had been waxed. The log wobbled under his weight. Finally he jumped and grabbed onto the mushrooms with his teeth. He ripped a section off, separating the flesh from the bark. His tugging disturbed a spider which raced out of the mushroom's white folds. Naruto stopped to watch it crawl on its delicate spindly legs across the trunk and disappear into a peel of bark.

Running and hiding, trying to get somewhere safe. Was that what they were reduced to? Naruto tried to shake that thought from his mind but it wouldn't leave him.

He didn't want the enemy to cause such feelings in his friends or in himself. His friends were actually thinking of going home where it was safe. They were so close to the kitsune. He was injured. If they went home and dispatched a new team to go after the kitsune, that meant more time was being wasted. Time the kitsune could use to recover. The new team wouldn't know where they last spotted the kitsune and they wouldn't stand a chance if the kitsune either cursed them or used an illusion. Naruto and his friends had seen what the kitsune could do first hand and a new team would have to find out on their own. Naruto understood why his friends were nervous about going after the enemy in this state, but he was positive that continuing was the best thing to do. They had to finish the job. They had to resolve this.

Naruto gathered up the mushrooms into a pile and tried to think how he was going to carry them back. That's when he remembered that he could change back into a human and carry them back that way. It took him a moment to realize that he was still a human.

A moment.

Naruto frowned. For a short time, he actually forgot that he was a human being and not a kitsune. Why?

It was very peaceful out here in the forest. Though he was all alone he didn't feel lonely. Not when he remembered all the good times he had with his kitsune friends in the forest and in the mountain. Exploring, hunting, racing... It was fun. Great fun. He couldn't put his feelings into words. He just felt alive. He loved spending time with them. He found hunting fun. Racing with his friends was fun. Even when they were in danger, seeing everyone band together to help each other out was fantastic. They beat the enemy together. Their illusions, their training, their voices... He missed them. He cared for them.

When he was with them, he didn't see them as kitsune. He saw them as friends. He looked at them no differently than he would his human friends. To him there was no difference. Friends were friends.

He wanted to see them again. He wanted to see Ryosuke. He missed him so much. He looked up to him in a similar way he did Kakashi. Why wouldn't he? Ryosuke did teach him how to be a kitsune. He was the leader. They were friends.

Naruto really wanted to be with the leader of the mountain kitsune again.

He started to feel lonely again.

At one time the forest was alive with kitsune, running and laughing together. He missed that.

The people he was with now were too upset to laugh or play with him. They didn't want to race. They wanted to go home. They wanted to pout. How could he relate to them?

"Ah!" Naruto shook his head and tried to put that thought out of his mind. He knew he was a human under a curse. He knew that. He understood that. And yet...

He was starting to relate more with the kitsune than his own kind. No, he was both. While he was under this curse, he was both human and kitsune. Still, he was starting to feel as if...

He had to get back to his friends. His human friends.


When Naruto returned to the campsite in his human form carrying the mushrooms, he found everyone in a worse mood than when he left. Some were arguing and others were sitting silently with a sour look on their faces. Then when one argument ended another one began with someone else.

"What is going on?" Naruto asked.

"We can't come up with any plans!" Shikamaru cried. "We don't know what to do and things are getting worse!"

"Worse than this?"

"I need help for everything!" Neji complained. "I can't find my bag without help. I tried to get a drink of water and I almost drink one of Sakura's medicine bottles. I hate this! I can't do anything on my own! I'm totally helpless!"

"And I'm tired of being in a fog! I want to be able to think the way I used to. I feel so stupid! Is this what it's like for other people? I've never felt like this before. I hate it!"

"My jutsu was what I-"

"Everyone's stressed out and scared!"

"My physical strength is decent but as I've stated, I'm not as powerful as Rock Lee. I could-"

"I want this curse broken already! But we can't unless we defeat the fox and I don't see how we can!"

"I can't see at all!"

Naruto was feeling overwhelmed, too. His stressed caused his fox tail to appear again. He hated seeing his friends like this. He had to do something to help. Maybe if he changed the subject.

He held out the mushrooms in his hands. "I brought back more food."

Shikamaru slapped them out of his hands. "You don't get it! Can't you tell that we're all under a lot of stressed and we're not in a good way?"

"Yeah, I can. I just thought-"

"I don't expect you to understand what we're going through, Naruto! What hell this is for us! You didn't have something important taken away from you!"

Naruto frowned. "Hey, I'm cursed, too, you know."

"But with your curse, you gained," said Neji. "We lost something."

"He's right," said Shikamaru. "You gained the powers of a kitsune. You're stronger now because of it. You have an advantage. We don't. You gained fox magic. You didn't lose anything."

Naruto's ears appeared and so did his claws as his rage started to build. "How do you know?!" he snapped. "Maybe I lost something, too!"

"Your ability to maintain form, maybe. That's a minor thing compared to-"

"I meant my humanity!" Naruto barked. "Maybe I'm losing that! But how would you know being obsessed with your problems?!"

Everyone grew quiet.

Shikamaru no longer looked angry, but worried. "What?"

Naruto's rage started to subside. Now he felt fear and sorrow. "When I was in the forest gathering food... I felt at peace. Like I was where I belonged. I felt at home in the forest. I find hunting fun. I like being a fox. I enjoy it. And that's what has me worried. I'm worried I might be starting to lose the part of me that's human. Even in the forest, when I was gathering those mushrooms, I was wondering how I would bring them back. I forgot that I could turn back into a human and carry them. It took me a second to remember. That's when I got scared."

"But you remembered, didn't you? It just took you a second."

Naruto shook his head. "It's not just that. Lately I've been... I..." Naruto tried to calm himself down. His claws were digging into the palms of his hands. "It's been easier for me to relate to the kitsune than to you guys. You've become my human friends and not just my friends. I labeled you. You different. I'm different. And..." Naruto sniffled. "I'm starting to feel like a stranger in my own skin."

No one had stopped to consider Naruto's condition. Sakura was so concerned about the seal being broken and not about what Naruto must have been going through on the inside. Naruto was under a curse after all. He was cursed.

"At first I thought this curse was a blessing because of what it allowed me. Now I'm remembering that it is still a curse." Naruto lowered his head. "I don't want to feel that way. That I can't relate to my friends anymore. That I have more in common with an animal than a human, the thing I was born as."

Shikamaru was sorry he reacted the way that he did. He was so concerned about himself he forgot about everyone else. This curse was overwhelming to him. It made him act in a way he normally wouldn't.

"When you felt that way, you were a kitsune, weren't you?" asked Shino.

"Y- yeah..."

"Then it's no problem. You were in a different form so of course you would feel that way. It's natural."

Shino did make him feel a little better by saying that, but Naruto was still concerned.

"I'm sorry, Naruto," Shikamaru said quietly. "I overreacted."

"I get it. It's ok."

"Let's all calm down," Shino tried to keep the peace. "We're all upset. That's a given. We can't start turning on each other. I say we take a break and chill. Just stay calm and stay at camp for a while."

Everyone agreed and tried to remain calm.

Naruto couldn't stay silent. He had some things he needed to get off his chest. "Before when I was first cursed, the kitsune had to train me. Not just in fox magic but everything else. When I was hunting with them, I was doing really bad because I kept trying to catch mice with my paws. I couldn't grab them like that. Ryosuke told me to use my teeth because they would be my hands now. That was how a kitsune would grab. So I did and my hunting got way better. I had to remind myself when I went hunting with them to do what they did and use my teeth and not my paws." Naruto sighed. "But when I was in the forest just now, I didn't have that problem. I didn't have to remind myself of that. I actually had to remind myself to use human techniques. Like turning back into a human to carry things. It's the opposite. So I'm worried that I might be losing the part of me that's human."

Even if Shino said that it was the form Naruto was in that was calling his judgments, Naruto wasn't convinced. He still felt like something was wrong with him.

"Even the parts of me that feel normal and come naturally. I'm starting to wonder who they're natural for. The human me or the fox me? Either way it feels normal, but what kind of normal? I don't think I can tell because it feels right. I've started to notice things like that. It's not often so I have to wonder if it's happening all the time and I'm not aware of it. Like hunting. To me it's normal for me to use my teeth. But that's normal for a fox and not a human. But it feels right. So I..."

Sakura put a hand on Naruto's shoulder to comfort him. "It's ok. You'll be fine. Don't worry about it."

"I am worried."

"I know you are but you don't have to be. You can't be losing your humanity."

Naruto sniffled but he wasn't crying. "Can I really be two things at once? Or do I have to pick? What if one is stronger than the other? I like being a human and I like being a fox. I can't choose. I know I'm a human but..."

"You can be both, Naruto. You don't have to be one or the other. Seki just gave you fox powers, right? You're still you. You're still concerned about us and yourself and you have feelings and you're you. You haven't changed. Definitely not on the inside. The important parts of you haven't changed. So don't worry about it."

That did make him feel a little better. Both could exist. He had both human and animal friends. So why would he have to pick being just one or the other? He didn't discriminate when it came to the company he kept. He was friends with anyone who wanted to be. He liked both humans and animals. Just because he was a kitsune didn't mean he had to exclusively be with kitsune and get rid of his human friends. Even when he was human he was still friends with the kitsune and they were friends with him. This curse didn't change him. Not the part of him that mattered.

Maybe he was worrying about nothing.


We got to see a little of the Nine-Tails in this chapter. Don't worry. He'll be back.

Please review ^-^