Kurama, you have some explaining to do!
"Kurama is your older brother… HOW STUPID DO YOU TAKE US FOR?!" growled Yusuke.
"On a scale of 1 to 10?" said Kyuubi and Naruto in unison.
Hiei and Botan try to hold back their laughs, but fail miserably. Naruto grins and Hiei immediately notices something.
"Kid, has anyone told you that you look like a fox when you grin?" asked Hiei.
"Nii-san says that a lot," admitted Naruto.
"So, Naruto wasn't it?" asked Botan. He nodded and she continued, "Is there any way you could take us to see your older brother?"
"I think so…" said Naruto. He looked at Kyuubi who nodded. Kyuubi went the same set of hand seals; Botan and Hiei were the only ones to be teleported to Konoha.
"HEY! WHAT ABOUT US?!" shouted Yusuke and Kuwabara in unison. (Kyuubi and the others were long since out of hearing range by this time.)
At Naruto and Kurama's apartment…
A cloud of smoke appears in the kitchen, where Kurama was busy fixing breakfast. He turns around quickly and his jaw drops as he realizes who was inside the smoke!
"Hiei?! Botan?! What…how…?!"
"Hello Kurama, we were looking for you!" said Botan cheerfully.
"Naruto, is this Kyuubi's doing?" asked Kurama suspiciously.
"Yup. Uh-oh! With all the excitement I forgot to water the plant!" Naruto said before he grabbed the water jug and dashed into his room to water the mint. This left Kurama all alone with his friends for about five minutes.
"So, Kurama, is Naruto really your younger brother?" asked Botan.
"Not really. I was walking through the woods one day and happened to come across him while he was training. Some drunk attacked him, so I saved him and have been here ever since."
"Who was that fox earlier?" asked Hiei.
"Kyuubi, lord of the forests that surround this village."
"That would explain why he got so mad at Kuwabara…" commented Botan.
"What did he do?"
"That idiot kept calling Kyuubi a stupid fox," replied Hiei.
"That means he's dumber than he looks," said Kurama annoyed.
"And this is a surprise how?" Hiei snorted.
Naruto returned, filled the jug up and put it back where it went. Kurama chuckled when he heard the boy's stomach roar! He placed the food on the table and continued talking to Hiei and Botan until Naruto was finished. Naruto put the dishes in the sink, then he got dressed and rushed to class. (He barely made it on time!)
"So Kurama, does he know about the fact that you're a demon in human form yet?" said Hiei.
"No more than he does about Kyuubi being inside him," replied Kurama.
"Kyuubi? You mean the fox from earlier?!" exclaimed Botan.
"The same. I thought it'd be best if he found that out on his own," said Kurama.
"So what do you plan on doing now? You can't stay here forever you know," said Hiei.
"I'll come back eventually, just not right now. Naruto doesn't have anyone else," said Kurama.
"You know that we can't leave here without taking you with us, right?" said Botan.
"Please tell me you're joking! I just told you that I can't leave right now!" exclaimed Kurama.
"Koenma gave me the order to drag you back if necessary," said Botan sadly.
"And what about Naruto?! You don't expect me to leave him all alone again do you!?"
"I have no choice Kurama! Koenma will never let me return to the spirit world without bringing you back!"
"So what am I supposed to do then? Kyuubi doesn't know a thing about plants! He covers the animals!"
"Why don't you send him to the Demon world then? Send him back to your previous life; I'm sure your other half could teach him until you return," said Hiei reasonably.
"You mean time-travel between worlds?! Are you insane?! There's no way I'd put Naruto through that hell!" replied Kurama, with a look of horror on his face.
"I wouldn't exactly call that hell for an eleven-year-old boy. It will probably seem like an adventure to him," said Kyuubi suddenly.
"KYUUBI! Could you come here a little closer? I'm afraid I didn't quite catch what you said…" said Kurama with a certain look in his eyes. Kyuubi did come closer, only to get a large bump on his head from Kurama's fist!
"OW!! What the hell was THAT for?!" growled Kyuubi angrily.
"That was for bringing them here! What were you thinking?!" retorted Kurama.
"Calm down Kurama. Anyway, Kyuubi has a valid point. Children aren't as easy to scare as adults when it comes to the unexplained." Botan said quickly.
"I know, but still…"
"Look, if anything happens then I'll be there to protect him!" growled Kyuubi annoyed.
Kurama could tell that he was fighting a losing battle. So he decided to cut his losses by saying, "Fine, you win. But only on one condition. Kyuubi, you must NOT reveal yourself in front of my other half in the past unless there are no other options left!"
"YOU THINK I DON'T KNOW THAT?!"
"So all we have to do is wait until Naruto returns!" said Botan happily. (She naïvely thinks that this would solve all the problems!)
Three hours later…
"Nii-san! I'm home!" called Naruto from the kitchen.
"How was class?" said Kurama cheerfully.
"It was awful! Iruka-sensei was yelling at me again! You know, sometimes I wish I could live somewhere else…" Naruto replied, bored.
"Then today's your lucky day kid!" snickered Hiei.
"Nii-san, why are they still here?" asked Naruto quietly.
"Naruto, I have something I need to talk to you about…" said Kurama slowly. Naruto heard the tone of his voice and knew that whatever it was, it wasn't good!
It took over an hour to fully explain the situation, and by that time Naruto was very upset. Kurama tried to cheer him up, but the problem was that he had no idea how! Enter Kyuubi…
"Look at it this way Naruto, if you go back into the past and meet his other half, then you'll learn more about him from this timeline!"
"I know but…" said Naruto sadly.
"Don't you want to get to know Kurama a little better? Besides, Yoko Kurama is a lot better at plants."
"Really?" said Naruto, his eyes starting to cheer up again.
"It's sad but true I'm afraid!" laughed Kurama.
"But what about my classes?"
"We're talking time-travel Naruto! You could go to the past and return an hour after you left!" said Kurama.
"What are we waiting for then?! Let's go!" said Naruto happily.
Naruto/Kyuubi left into the past inside the Demon World where Hiei, Kurama and Kyuubi originally came from. Kurama left the village with a heavy heart. There was only one thought going through his mind as he left the gates…
Please stay safe Naruto…