(Slowly peaks around the corner with a white flag in his hand) Hey guys, (Dodges a thrown pineapple) I'd like to apologize for my slight disappearance. A month ago, I learned that when your computer tells you "WARNING: FAILURE IS IMMINANTE!!", then that means to get your computer checked out right away. So, after my computer blew up, I went out to a Pawn Shop and found a sparkling new one. After twenty minutes of checking it out to see if it works, I bought it. When I hooked it up to the Internet though, a big red screen popped up and said that it had been deactivated due to its theft several days prior. So my computer was arrested.

But now I'm backed up with ideas for this story which hopefully means that I'll be updating more frequently. Its short, but more is on its way...

Chapter 8

Fox

"Y-you have two tails!" Hinata gasped as she covertly wiped the tears from her eyes.

The accused fox gave a proud flick of both tails and said "I always suspected you'd be smarter than that brat. Now I'm sure of it."

"W-what brat?" asked Hinata as she silently compared the medical costs of removing a brain tumor to the pay check she would receive from this mission. Maybe Tsunade would do it for free, because Hinata was fairly sure she needed one removed right about now.

"The Brat, the Kit, the Idiot, Dunce, Demon, Uzumaki; He has just about as many names as I do." said the fox smugly.

"Um..." said Hinata nervously "Please don't make fun of Naruto. He tries very hard."

"I know," the fox sighed before tearing a leg of the cooked bunny.

A minute passed as Hinata watched it devour the meal. Finally, when it was finished, the fox looked at Hinata and asked "Your confused right now, aren't you?"

"A little... Yes." she lied. Hinata actually knew exactly what was going on. The built up stress combined with the explosion and confessions caused her mind to recede into a mild delirium resulting in this hallucination.

"Then allow me to explain," said the fox as it took a seat opposite of Hinata "but after I do, I need to talk to the Brat and you about something important, got it?"

"Y-yes." answered Hinata reluctantly.

"Alright, to start off, I'll tell you my connection with the Brat."

"This is almost too good!" whispered Ako from the passenger seat. In her hands, she held a small Polaroid picture.

"Your realize that they'll kill both of us, don't you?" asked Nobu while flying the helicopter and looking at his own little photo. "Just to get rid of the witnesses."

"I've always told myself that I'll die with a smile," she said though her giggles "and you can bet I'll be smiling when I show her this!" she finished while waving the picture around. On Ako's picture, it showed Kurou asleep in the back seat and Kiko's head laying face down on his lap. She had fallen asleep and fell into the Kurou with her feet curled up on the seat beside her.

Meanwhile, Kurou had slumped over to the side and was lying on Kiko's ass with an arm wrapped around her waist. This is what Nobu's picture consisted of.

If one were to put the two pictures together, it would be obvious that they had just fallen asleep and be worth little in the black mail department. But apart, they looked to be incriminating evidence that equaled a virtual million if the owner threatened to show the other party.

"These are gonna be worthless if the two wake up in that position." pointed out Nobu.

"Just be sure to land softly and we'll move them into a more... dignified pose then." suggested Ako as she took the last sip of her abnormal sized thermos of coffee.

The sun was halfway set when the helicopter softly touched down in Kuro, a small village that bordered the marsh containing the sunken remains of Konaha. Despite the outward appearance, which could pass as a upper third world country, the small town had kept a mildly rich economy due to the ease of which Konoha artifacts were found. The surrounding swamplands, including the ruins, all belong to Kuro; so all archaeologists must check into the town before they enter and before they leave.

Ten years back, the Mayor of Kuro issued a decree which forced all visitors to pay a fee equivalent to the weight gained during the expeditions. Needless to say, the town made quite a bit of money very fast. The only reason it stayed in bad shape was due to the remote location.

After some gentle repositioning, the four prepared the jeep that would take them through the dense trees and swamps to their destination.

"What do you guys think we should bring?" asked Kurou while taking inventory of their supplies.

"Besides basic camping equipment, I have no idea." said Kiko from beside him. "Yuki didn't specify what we're going to do there."

"So it's a standard raid?" wondered Ako, while hitting a flashlight on the dirt ground in order to intimidate it into lighting up "Just plunder anything we can find?"

"Looks like it." agreed Nobu "Maybe he wants us to find something like Tsunade's desk. It would probably lift him out of his pissy mood."

"Well, whatever the reason, I want to get this expedition over with." complained Kurou "There's still that site that we left because of those damn kids, and I want my cut of it!"

"It was there for several hundred years," lectured Nobu "and it will still be waiting there when we finish up here."

"Speaking of kids," chimed in Kiko "I wonder what happened to those two."

"There probably breaking into my house and stilling all my shit." grumbled Kurou under his breath.

Labeling the flashlight as useless, Ako tossed it over her shoulder into the back of the jeep. "Come on guys," she urged "lets get going. I don't have to drive this time and I'd like to get some sleep before we have to set up camp."

"Stop complaining," said Kiko while rubbing the back of her neck "it felt like I slept on a rock the whole ride here."

The laugh that she tried to stop busted through her mouth like a freight train. Between breaths, Ako finally gasped "I... I'll... get the jeep... weighted!"

With a glance behind her, Kiko decided that Ako wasn't laughing at what she had said, but instead laughing at Nobu. Due to the fact that he had tripped behind her and fell into a pile of what appeared to be horse manure.

(AN: I'm sorry about the shortness, but this is what I had written before my computer went down. Please Review!!)