Well, here it is. I hope it makes up for the lateness of the chapter

Also, I have a request. Anyone with what they consider a good costume design for Naruto please let me use some for I'm not very good with costumes. Full credits to the creators of course and I'll besure to mention it! If Not, Then I will stab myself with one thousand rusty spoons!

The group was in a rather tough predicament. Sakura was wearing a large blue cloak with a yellow trim with a black under shirt, blue pointed hat, blue shorts, black gloves, Blue socks that went above her knees and black shoes, trying to get closer to the tornado in front of her, caused by the storm. With Kero on her shoulder, she tried to push closer to the tornado only to be pushed back, "I can't! I can't get any closer!"

Kero, barely hanging onto Sakura's hat, tried to encourage her, "Show'em what ya got!"

Sakura again tried to move closer, barely staying on the ground with her chakra. She was then taken by a surprising gust, stronger then the others. The gust lifted her and Kero off the ground, sending flying through the air. Sakura managed to grab onto a tree before flying any further, hanging on desperately as both Naruto and Li made their way forward. Sakura watched, barely able to make contact with the ground, "Naruto-kun! Li!"

Kero popped his head out from behind the tree, "It's dangerous! Stop it!"

Neither Naruto nor Li listened, as they were glaring at each other during their entire march. Despite the seriousness of the situation, Sakura couldn't help but sweat drop at the two's behavior as they moved closer. Just as the got in front of the tornado, a gust of wind swiped Li's feet out from under him, sending him spiraling into the air. Naruto saw this, using it to his advantage, jumping into the air and onto Li's head.

Using Li's head as a stepping stone, Naruto propelled himself above the tornado as Li fell to the ground. Sakura winced as Li hit the ground near her with a loud *thud* before turning back to the top of the tornado, looking for Naruto.

Naruto was spiraling around the top of the tornado, powering a rasengan in his hand. Naruto waited until he moved near the middle of the tornado, diving in when he got the chance. On his way down, he heard a small screeching sound coming from behind him. Shrugging it off, Naruto thrusted his rasengan forward, only to be surprised when he saw the rasengan. As he fell, he noticed a small shuriken shape inside the rasengan just before hitting the ground. Before Naruto could think about the strange shaped rasengan any further, it exploded on contact with the ground below.

Sakura continued to watch from behind the tree, following the small glow of blue going down the funnel of the tornado. She couldn't help but worry when the glow became brighter before hitting the ground, turning away to shield her eyes from the bright explosion. When the flash subsided, Sakura rushed from behind the tree, seeing Naruto siding on one side of the small crater that was formed, "Naruto-kun! Are you ok?!"

Naruto looked up from his chakra-burnt palm to Sakura in slight pain, "Yeah. Hurry and seal the card away before it starts back up again."

Sakura looked reluctant to leave Naruto unattended after the explosion, but turned to the card, "Return to the guise that you were meant to be in! Clow Card!" She tapped the now small, weak tornado, drawing it into its card shape. She reached for the card as it fell to the card, only to have it fly out of her reach to Naruto.

Naruto snatched the card out of the air with his non-injured hand before holding out to Sakura as she approached along with Kero and Tomoyo, who had stood away from the mess as she filmed. Sakura was surprised when Naruto held out the card even though he did it often. Sakura smiled kindly before pushing Naruto's hand back to him, surprising everyone as she spoke, "No Naruto-kun. I appreciate it, but you always do so much, it doesn't feel right taking the cards from you. You keep it."

Naruto looked back at the card, then Sakura again, "But I don't even know if I can use it…"

Kero quickly interjected before Sakura could say anything, "Well, if chakra is like magic… then you should be able to use the cards with no problem."

Naruto looked back to the card before shrugging, tucking the card into his pocket. He stood back up, walking with Sakura when everyone heard grunting. They turned to see Li peeling himself off the ground, clearly in pain. Naruto and Kero laughed, forcing Sakura to silence Naruto with a stomp to the foot followed by, "Be nice. You promised, remember?"

Naruto nodded, turning his head grumbling before thumping Kero in the head, silencing him as well. Sakura let out a sigh before turning to go help up Li, only to see him standing already.

Li turned to the group, glaring specifically at Naruto before looking to Naruto's pocket, "I see you finally did something right, keeping the card for yourself."

Naruto returned Li's comment with a hard stare as Li turned to Sakura, "You can't handle it after all. It's impossible for you to collect the cards. You have too little power! If he wasn't around you wouldn't--" Li was cut off as he was suddenly sent flying to a tree, pinned by a barrage of kunai by his clothes.

Naruto lower his arms as he shouted, "Shut up you gaki! She would have been fine."

Li struggled against being pinned for a minute before shouting, "Really!? Then why did you have to hurt you hand if she could!?"

Sakura went from looking at the ground to Naruto's hand, noticing the burns hadn't gone away yet. Naruto held his hand up before saying, "Don't worry, it'll be gone by tomorrow like always." Sakura nodded sadly, not really listening as she walked back to the entrance. Both Kero and Tomoyo watched Sakura as she walked, a gasp from both getting Naruto's attention.

Naruto turned from glaring at Li to Sakura just as she slipped on a puddle. Naruto rushed over, catching Sakura as she fell. Kero watched, noticing the speed Naruto had gone, "Why can't he move that fast when a card is active?"

Tomoyo was quick to answer the question Kero had asked himself as she filmed, "Whenever someone you care for is in any kind of danger, there is no limit to what you can do for them."

After Naruto helped Sakura to her feet, the four resumed their walked to the park entrance. As soon as they went through, Tomoyo climbed into the waiting limo with her body guards after an small matter came to their attention, leaving Sakura, Naruto, and Kero to fly back home. The flight was relatively silent as Kero seemed to be riding on Sakura's shoulder thinking and Naruto staring at his chakra burnt hand.

Sakura occasionally glance over her shoulder to Naruto, noticing him stare at his injured hand. Sakura then lowered her head in shame, "Gomen…"

Naruto picked up on her voice easily, looking away from his hand to her, "For what?"

Sakura raised her head, turning it slightly to Naruto, "For your hand. If I was stronger, you wouldn't have had to hurt yourself to stop the STORM card…"

Naruto smiled lightly as he waved his hand, "Don't worry about it. It was the cards fault anyway, not yours." Sakura turned to fully face Naruto, confusion clear on her face as he explained, "When I dived into the tornado, I guess the magic from the card did something to my Rasengan, making it stronger and causing the explosion. I may have a new technique in the making!"

Sakura couldn't help a laugh as Naruto pumped his free arm into the air before turning back to the sky. Naruto then stopped his antics, a look of thought on his face. After a minute, he tapped Kero in the back of his head, getting his attention, "What is it Naruto? I'm busy thinking."

Naruto faked a look of shock, "Really? Did hell just freeze over?" Naruto laughed as Kero became furious, jumping around Sakura's shoulder in anger. Naruto managed to calm down after a few minutes before returning to his original question, "Kero, you said that the cards obey whoever has their name signed on them right?" After receiving a confused nod from Kero, Naruto continued, "So what would happen if both me and Sakura-chan signed them?"

Kero was taken back by the question before quickly crossing his arms, shaking his head, "It might work… Why don't we try it on the STORM card when we get home?" Kero finished, getting Sakura's attention during the conversation.

Sakura was surprised by this piece of information, quickly asking, "So Naruto and I will be able to use the Clow cards I have?"

Kero simply nodded as he turned around, "Like I said it's possible."

Sakura couldn't help a bright smile, "Alright, let's hurry home then!" And with that, Sakura dived to the house, surprising both Naruto and Kero with the speed she was going.

Sakura halted to a quick stop, throwing Kero off her shoulder as Naruto tried to catch himself from slamming into Sakura's back. Naruto quickly jumped off the staff as Sakura returned it to its key state before opening her window. Sakura then noticed Kero wasn't on her shoulder, looking around to see Kero face down on the roof. She quickly apologized, carrying him into her room. Naruto simply followed, holding in a laugh seeing as Kero had suffered enough.

Sakura set Kero on her desk, quickly going to change out of her wet clothes into her night gown. Naruto simply sat down facing the wall, pulling out the STORM card as he waited.

After Sakura hung Tomoyo's costume in her closet above a large pan so as to prevent it from dripping onto her floor, she walked over to the desk. Naruto heard Sakura come near him, taking that as a signal she had finished changing, he stood up, placing the STORM card onto the desk.

Sakura grabbed a pen, signing her name onto the card first before handing it to Naruto, who signed on the small opening below Sakura's. After Naruto finished, everyone stared at the card, waiting for some kind of reaction. After a few minutes, Naruto said, "Nothing's happening…"

Sakura turned to Naruto, her head cocked side ways slightly, "Was something suppose to happen?"

Naruto didn't move his gaze from the card as he shrugged, "I don't know, but I was kind of expecting…" Naruto was cut off as the card started to glow before giving of a shock wave, knocking everyone back onto Sakura's bed. Naruto winced, rubbing the back of his head where he hit the wall as he looked up, "something like that."

The card began to float into the air as another glow came from Sakura's drawer. The drawer opened itself, the Clow book floating out of the drawer next to the card. The cover opened, drawing the card in before giving off an unfamiliar, but gentle voice to Naruto and Sakura, "You who have signed this card." The cover reopened revealing the STORM card, "By doing so, you have chained your fates together for the Final Judgment. Should one of you not wish to be burdened with this responsibility, speak now."

Neither Sakura nor Naruto spoke, both unsure on how to react to the talking book. After a moment of silence, the book continued, "So be it. However, only one can be master of the cards. Name the one who will inherit the cards should you pass the Judgment."

Before the two could speak, Kero quickly shouted, "Sakura!"

Kero, who was trying to get Sakura's attention, had accidently answered the books question. The book gave off a bright flash, "Sakura, should you and the fox one pass the Final Judgment, you will be named master of the cards."

Sakura looked shocked, but before she could say anything, the book floated back to the drawer. Just before the glow vanished, the book said, "It was nice to see you again Kerberos."

Kero became just as shocked as Sakura, freezing on the spot. Naruto simply stared at the book, "… What was that?"

No one answer, both Sakura and Kero still in shock. There was then a knock at Sakura's door, surprising everyone. Kero quickly played plush toy as Naruto changed forms, watching as the door opened to reveal Toya. Sakura, still looking surprised, picked Kero up, putting him on her bed rest before turning to Toya, "O-Onii-chan, what is it?"

Toya simply stared at the toy before turning to Naruto, "I need to talk to you in private."

Naruto nodded, walking out into the hallway then changing back to his human form. He leaned against the wall as Toya shut the door before facing him. Toya's face was completely serious as he spoke, "I'm going to get to the point. Otou wants to know if you would live with us."

Naruto was shocked, falling to the floor. He scanned Toya's face for any sign of deception, only to find none, "Y-You're serious!?"

Toya only nodded, "My Otou asked me a few weeks ago. Don't take it the wrong way, he knows you're an independent person with pride. But every since you revealed your past to him, he can't get it out of his mind."

Naruto sat there for a moment before getting back on his feet, "I-I'll have to think about it. I mean, if I do, then I'll have a lot of explaining to do. Not to mention he'll probably try to enlist me into school, which you need a record that doesn't exist here." Naruto went silent for another moment, "And what about where I would stay? Did he think about any of this?"

Toya only nodded, "Yeah, I made sure before I asked you…"


Flashback:


Toya was sitting across from his Otou, a concerned expression on his face, "Hey, did you think about were Naruto would stay? He'll quickly shoot down the offer if he feels like he's putting someone out and Yuki comes over to much to share my room."

Mr. Kinomoto nodded, "Well, we can always clear out the basement since I don't use many of the books down there… But if I'm right, Sakura-san is probably coming to offer sharing her room."

Toya couldn't help but feel a little uneasy about Naruto officially sharing a room with Sakura, "What about school? As far as I know, Naruto doesn't have any birth records and learned everything on his own." While Toya said this he couldn't help but think, "Not to mention he isn't listed in any government records…"

"Well, I'm sure we can find them somewhere. But why all the questions?" Mr. Kinomoto asked.

Toya simply sipped some of his coffee, "I'm just making sure I have answers for any of Naruto's questions.


End of Flashback:

Toya remained in the spot he was standing in before, watching Naruto think, "You know…" He said, getting Naruto's attention, "I personally thought you would have rejected the offer right away."

Naruto gazed at Toya for a minute before sticking his hand into his pockets, facing the wall, "To be honest, living my life in secrecy is hard. I just want to be accepted. That's all I ever wanted in life… Sure, Sakura-chan, Tomoyo, and you accept me, but I can't let anyone else close to me here… I'm not sure on how a lot of people would react to me if the found out what I am."

Toya couldn't help a hardened stare, "My Otou isn't like that!"

"You Otou may not…" Naruto said, pausing for a minute, "But others are. If they feel threatened or that their family is threatened, they'll try to get rid of the threat by any means necessary. That means they may go through you're family to get to me… It's been done before."

Toya's gaze softened as Naruto pushed off the wall, "Give me some time, I need to think." Naruto grabbed Sakura's door knob as Toya nodded, walking back to his room.

When the door shut, Toya only muttered, "Just what kind of hell did they put him through?" Before walking to his own room.

Sakura was currently trying to decide to listen in on the conversation going on outside or not. Her curiosity getting the better of her, she placed her ear against the door to hear "Y-You're serious!?" from Naruto. She continued to listen, hearing the rest of the conversation. When it became quiet, Sakura took her ear off the door, gazing at the floor, "Naruto-kun… You're still lonely inside, even if you won't admit it…"

Sakura was snapped out of her thoughts as the door opened, showing Naruto walking in. Sakura watched as Naruto sat on her bed, looking down to the floor with a blank face. A moment of silence passed before Sakura asked, "Naruto-kun, are you ok?

Naruto snapped his head up, surprised by Sakura's voice before smiling, "Yeah, I'm fine Sakura-chan."

Although he was smiling, Sakura knew it was the fake smile he used to hide his problems. But before she could say anything, Naruto asked, "I wonder what was up with the book. It's never done anything like that before…"

Sakura nodded, still staring at Naruto, "He's trying to change the subject… I'll talk to him later about it."

Naruto turned to Kero, who was sitting with his back to everyone else on the desk, "Hey Kero, what do you think?"

Sakura turned to Kero as well, seeing him only shake his head but not answer, "Kero-chan." No response, "Kero-chan!" Again, no response. Sakura quickly became annoyed, not liking to be ignored. She moved right next to Kero's head shouting, "KERO-CHAN!!!"

Kero jumped from the sudden booming voice, his ears ringing. Kero sat still for a second to regain his hearing before letting out a frustrated scream, slamming his paw onto the desk three times before turning to Sakura, "What's with all the hollering!? Here I am, trying to figure out what happened with the book and cards!"

Sakura sweat dropped before raising her hands in a defensive manner, "Oh, that's what you were doing? I'm sorry. And what do you think happened?"

Kero quickly forgot his anger, now trying to remember his previous thoughts with a confused look, "What happened…? I forgot…"

Now Sakura became angry, obviously expecting an answer, "OOH! I asked you expecting an answer!"

Naruto watched, looking between the two before responding to Sakura's comment, "Hey, give him a break Sakura-chan. You did startle him when you screamed into his ear."

Sakura calmed down a little, nodding to Naruto's point. Kero, whose pride had kicked in, turned to Naruto, "Stay out of this baka kitsune!"

Naruto simply let the insult slide, having been use to them. Sakura on the other hand, didn't, "Kero-chan! Naruto-kun was only sticking up for you! It's not his fault you forgot your thoughts!"

Kero quickly turned back to Sakura, pointing at her, "Yeah! It's your fault and your moronic voice!"

Sakura was now clenching her fist, "I don't sound moronic!"

A tick mark appeared on Kero's head as he moved closer, "Yes, you DID sound moronic!"

Naruto sweat dropped, watching the two go back and forth before having a stare down. Kyuubi, also seeing the argument, shared Naruto's reaction, "Kit… Shouldn't you do something?"

"I don't think they would listen to me even if I tried right now…" Naruto responded as Sakura and Kero turned from each other, their arms crossed.

Kero was the first of the two to speak, "I need a setting for me to calm down and think. Somewhere I can relax without interruptions."

Sakura, catching on to what Kero was saying, quickly responded, "Naruto-kun and I weren't interrupting!" Kero turned around to argue some more, only to be ignored as Sakura went to cut off the lights. Naruto quickly reverted to fox form, curling up in his spot on Sakura's bed as she crawled in, rolling away from Kero giving a quick "Good night!"

Naruto gave off a light chuckle when he heard Kero say, "And I really did have a great explanation! Sakura is such a moron!" Naruto only chuckle harder when Sakura then threw her alarm clock at Kero.

Sakura had just opened her window after waking up, stretching as the warm sunlight entered the room. Naruto was mimicking Sakura's action, stretching on the bed as Sakura started to talk, "I feel better after a good night's rest. What about you Naruto-kun?" She asked, turning to Naruto.

Naruto gave a nod before scratching himself as Sakura called out for Kero, "I'm not mad anymore, Kero-chan… Come out…" After a minute, Sakura and Naruto became confused when no answer was heard. Sakura started looking around the room, still calling out to Kero, "Kero-chan? Where are you?"

Both Sakura and Naruto heard a faint "Here! Over here!" Sakura blinked in confusion, trying to determine where Kero's voice came from when Naruto pulled her bottom desk drawer open. Kero popped his head out of the drawer with a cheesy smile, "Thanks Naruto."

Sakura looked down at Kero, leaning over to get a better view, "What are you doing over there?" Sakura was stopped when she saw the condition her draw was in. Kero had turned it into his own personal bed room using old food boxes and handkerchiefs.

Kero, completely missing Sakura's upset look for his eyes were closed as he showed off his room, "How is it? I thought of it and made it last night. Pretty good for an overnight job, huh? And if I put in a nice little sofa and a good table…"

Naruto jumped onto the desk chair, getting a good look of Kero's room, "He's right, not bad for an overnight job…"

Sakura, still slightly upset, quickly asked, "And where's my stuff that was in the drawer…?" when Kero finished.

Kero simply turned back to Sakura, "Oh, THAT stuff." Kero then pointed over the side of the drawer to under the desk, "Over there."

Both Sakura and Naruto followed the direction Kero was pointing to see all of Sakura's belongings piled into the corner Sakura quickly went from upset to angry, gritting her teeth together. Naruto quickly recognized the warning sign. "Oh boy…" He thought as he jumped off the chair, putting distance between him and the soon to be beating.

Sakura quickly snatched her drawer from her desk, turning it upside down and dumping out all of Kero's work. Kero tried to hang onto the drawer, only to be flung to the floor. He sat up, watching as Sakura put her drawer back into place, "W-What are you doing!?"

Sakura wasn't paying any attention seeing as she was trying to fix the mess Kero made, "SHEESH! You made a complete mess of the drawer!"

Kero bolted into the air, hovering over Sakura's shoulder, "I labored making my room! This is too cruel!"

Naruto sat on Sakura's bed, sweat dropping the same as last night, "You're the one the wreck her drawer…" Kyuubi nodded in agreement at Naruto's comment before rolling back to sleep.

Sakura quickly turned around to Kero giving off a glare, "YOU'RE the cruel one, Kero-chan!"

Naruto sweat dropped again when he heard Kero shout, "Beast!" Naruto hung his head, shaking it slightly, "And it begins…" Naruto thought, feeling the sense of doom in the air.

Sakura stopped fixing her drawer, giving Kero a full on glare, "What was that!?"

Kyuubi awoke again to the noise, quickly sending Naruto a message, "Kit… Shouldn't you stop this before it goes to far…?"

Naruto gave a nod, standing up only to hear, "If not a beast, a kaiju!"

Naruto sat back down sweat dropping again, "too late…"

"What did you say?!" Sakura shouted back.

Kero moved closer to Sakura's face, "Since you made a complete mess of my room, you're a kaiju! Kaiju Sakura! KAIJU!!!"

Naruto watched as Sakura's facial expression went from mad to furious. He backed away a bit more, talking to Kyuubi, "Hey Kyuubi, one through ten, rate the beating Kero's about to get."

Before Kyuubi could answer, Sakura delivered a rather hard blow to Kero's head, shaking the entire house when her hand met the floor with Kero between them. "Definitely a ten… Kit… you may be having too much influence in Sakura's life."

Naruto sweat dropped, nodding as Sakura then moved the unconscious Kero to her desk before getting dressed for school. Naruto, being smart, simply stayed quiet, following Sakura out the door down the stairs as she stomped through the house, shaking it with each step. The two walked over to the dinning to be greeted by Toya first, who had a small smirk as he ate his food, "Looks like you're a bigger monster than usual…" Toya looked to Sakura at the end, jumping in surprise by Sakura's angry glare.

Sakura didn't respond to Toya's tease, walking to the kitchen. Toya only muttered "kaiju" as she walked by before turning to Naruto. Toya's look said it all, "What did you do?"

Naruto simply shook his head, saying it didn't have anything to do with Sakura's temper. Toya thought for a minute, remembering the suspicious plush toy in Sakura's room. Naruto sweat dropped as Toya looked up to the ceiling where Sakura's room would be.

Sakura had quickly eaten her food, heading out the door with Naruto right behind her. When they reached the cherry blossom walkway, Naruto changed to his human form, jogging next to Sakura. After a few minutes with neither one saying anything, Naruto decided to break the silence, "Sakura-chan, are you ok?"

That's all that was needed to break Sakura's silence, "SHEESH! Why did Kero-chan have to make a mess of my drawer!? Why didn't he just wait and ask me first!? He's just so frustrating sometimes!" Sakura then started taking deep breaths to calm down after her outburst before turning to Naruto, who had jump away a bit to avoid being hit and holding his ears, "Gomen Naruto-kun. I'm just really frustrated."

Naruto was now digging his pinky into his ear, "I can tell…"

Neither one spoke for the rest of the distance, Sakura still being frustrated and Naruto not wanting to lose his hearing. Naruto changed forms when the school gate came into view to avoid attention. He simply followed Sakura to her homeroom, watching as the sat in her desk before facing the window. Naruto jumped onto the desk, curling up on the desk waiting to feel Sakura's fingers run over his head.

Sakura smiled slightly after, knowing that scratching Naruto's ear always seemed to calm her down. Tomoyo then came into the room, smiling when she saw Sakura and Naruto, "Ohaiyo gozaimasu!" Tomoyo then noticed the upset look on Sakura's face, "Sakura-chan, what's wrong?"

"Ohaiyo, Tomoyo-chan" Sakura greeted, then explained the reason for her mood.

"I see…" Tomoyo said as she turned around, facing Sakura after placing her belongings onto her desk, "That's why you're so cross this early in the morning.

"I had to clean up afterwards!" Sakura said now facing Tomoyo, holding her head with her hand. "I had important things in there, too!"

"Oh, my…" Tomoyo said, sympathizing with Sakura.

Naruto simply laid in his spot, relaxing as Sakura stroked his head, telling what she had in the drawer, "I had letters that I got from you in there, Tomoyo-chan."

Tomoyo was quick to cheer up at hearing what was in the drawer, "Oh, my!"

Naruto sweat dropped at Tomoyo's quick mood swing as Sakura faced the window again.


Kero had woken up from his knock shortly after everyone had left. Quickly grabbing one of Sakura's note books and a marker, he started scribbling down insults. He finished with 'Sakura in a moron! A MORON!' leaving a trail onto the desk as well then tossed the marker away, flying to the living room, "Damn… I still feel mad… Dammit…"

Kero flew into the living room, noticing a package on the table. Curious, he landed in front of the wrapped box, "Is this a gift from someone?" Reaching out to open it, he asked himself happily, "Is it food?" Kero caught himself in the act of making a mistake, quickly turning around while crossing his arms, "Oh, no, can't, I'd get scolded by Sakura…" Kero stopped for a second, remembering the fight from that morning, "Wait! I'm mad too!"

Kero quickly ripped off the wrapping paper, tossing the top of the box without reading it. He saw that inside the box where miniature looking bottles. "What are they…?" He asked as he picked one up. He sniffed the top of the bottle-shaped item, quickly smiling, "Chocolate!!" He shouted happily, quickly ripping off the paper that covered the chocolate and biting the top off, "Hey, this is pretty good."

Sakura, after having calm down as the day went by, was sitting on the wall of the pond with Naruto (human form) and Tomoyo next to her, "I know that Kero-chan wants some privacy too, but…"

Naruto lifted his head as Tomoyo responded to Sakura, "I'm sure he meant no harm."

Before Naruto could say anything, Sakura turned to Tomoyo, "B-But Kero called me a kaiju. Kaiju Sakura." Sakura finished, becoming teary eyed at the end.

"Oh, my." Tomoyo said, raising one finger, "If it was a cute kaiju like you, Sakura-chan, I would love it."

Naruto simply sweat dropped, "… Sometimes I worry about her…" Sakura could only nod, sweat dropping as well.

"Sakura-chan! Tomoyo-chan!" The group turned to see Chiharu, Naoko, and Rika approaching. The three girls stop, spotting Naruto next to Sakura and Tomoyo. The three looked at each other before turning back to Sakura and Tomoyo, "Sensei wants us to help clean up the class room!"

Sakura nodded, standing up along with Naruto and Tomoyo. The second Naruto stood up, he felt something tug at his mind. He turned to Sakura, who noticed he had stopped, "Sorry Sakura-chan, but I have to go take care of Gamakichi."

Sakura nodded as she and Tomoyo walked off with the three girls as Naruto headed into the woods. When Naruto was out of sight, Chiharu turned to Sakura, "Hey Sakura-chan… Why is Naruto so cold to everyone?"

Sakura only turned to her friend with a confused look, "What do you mean Chiharu-chan? Naruto-kun isn't cold to everyone."

Chiharu looked nervous as she explained her reason for the question, "I mean he only talks to you, Tomoyo, and sometimes Li … other than that, he doesn't talk to others unless he has too."

Sakura looked to the sky, deep in thought about what Chiharu said while trying to carefully phrase her next sentence, "Naruto-kun… has a hard time opening up to people. He had to hide behind a mask before he moved here. He couldn't truly relate to a lot of people back in his old home."

Chiharu nodded, frowning at the relation that she had judged Naruto so quickly. Both Naoko and Rika held the same look before Sakura quickly waved her hand, "Don't worry about it. Naruto-kun wouldn't want people to be upset about this." The three girls nodded, quickly smiling.

Naruto jumped through the woods, stopping at a small clearing. After checking to make sure no one was around, Naruto bit his thumb then went through a few hand signs, "Kuchiyose no jutsu!"

He slammed his palm onto the ground, causing marking to appear before a puff of smoke. When the smoke cleared, there stood Gamakichi, clearly unhappy. Naruto was surprised, seeing as Gamakichi was usually happy to be summoned, "What's up Gama?"

Gamakichi simply pulled out a letter and tossed it to Naruto, "Here."

Naruto caught the letter, looking at it before turning back to the toad, "Gamakichi, what's going on? This is one of Ero-sennin's emergency message letters. He doesn't send these unless he gets caught in the hot spring or the counsel starts acting up."

Gama only sighed, "That's exactly what's happening…" Gamakichi then dispelled himself.

Naruto stared at the spot where Gamakichi stood before opening the letter. Naruto eyes widened in worry before starting to burn with anger as he read, "Naruto, I'm sorry to have to send you this, but we need your help. The counsel is trying to replace Tsunade for being a 'demon lover' as well as revoke a lot of our shinobi force. Normally the civil counsel has no say in the affairs of shinobi, but they're starting to get the public on their side. If this keeps up, Konoha's enemies will catch wind and use it to their advantage. What I'm asking, Naruto, is that you come back to Konoha for only a while to help settle this matter. I know I'm asking for a lot, but we need you. You're the only one who can set the counsel straight, for special "reasons". I know you will think of a way back, so please. Jiraiya

Naruto only stared at the letter before folding it up, tucking it away in his pocket. He jumped into the trees, getting a good look at the school clock. Seeing the time, Naruto rushed back to the house, knowing Sakura was already on her way there.

The trip to the house was relatively quick, Naruto landing in front of the door just as Sakura came up the street. Sakura smiled when she saw Naruto land, waving while shouting "Naruto-kun!"

Naruto smiled back before suddenly remembering the letter. His smile quickly became a frown as he turned away from Sakura, facing the door. Sakura stopped next to Naruto, opening the door and walking in. Naruto followed, walking into the hall way as Sakura took off her skating gear. Sakura put on her slippers, walking to the living room along with Naruto. Sakura stretched as she walked in before noticing the empty box of chocolate on the table.

Sakura walked over the lid on the box, looking around at the mess, "It's got to be Kero-chan! Making a mess after eating like this!" She looked down at the lid of the box, "This is… chocolate with alcohol in it!" Sakura picked up the lid, "Sheesh! He ate it all!"

"Great…" Sakura looked over to Naruto, who had started picking up the wrappings, "We have a probably drunk Kero wandering around town." Sakura frowned, hearing more dread in Naruto's voice than normal. But before she could ask, Sakura felt a breeze. She turned to see what Naruto met, seeing the window was open with small paw prints leading outside.

Naruto went up to Sakura's room after the mess was cleaned up. Just after he shut the door, Mr. Kinomoto pulled into the driveway. Naruto watched as he walked in, waiting until Sakura's Otou was inside. When he was, Naruto opened the window, crawling onto the roof. He laid back, watching the night sky as the light began to fade and night moved into its place.

Sakura was currently finishing her dinner, setting her bowl and chop sticks down, "Thanks… that was good." Sakura picked up her plates, carrying them to the sink.

Sakura's Otou turned to Sakura as she cleaned her dishes, "Oh, Sakura-san. Do you know what happened to the package that was here? It was chocolate…"

Sakura looked over her shoulder as finished, "C-Chocolate…?"

Her Otou looked up, holding his chin, "Yeah… Chocolate."

Sakura nodded no as she grabbed Naruto's food bowl for when he was in fox form, carrying with her to the stairs. She stopped at the bottom step, turning back to the dinning room, "W-Well, I'm going to bed now. Good night." Sakura said before sighing as she climbed the steps.

Sakura walked into her room, setting the bowl of cooked meat on her desk as she read what Kero had written in her notebook, "Sheesh! Kero-chan is…" Sakura sighed again as she plopped into her chair, "Where did he go? What do you think Naruto-kun? Naruto-kun?"

Sakura looked around the room, seeing Naruto wasn't around. She looked around the room before noticing her window was cracked open. She smiled knowingly as she opened the window, crawling onto the roof. There she saw Naruto sitting higher up. She crawled up next to Naruto, who hadn't even noticed her presence, "Naruto-kun! Here you are!"

Naruto jumped as soon as he heard Sakura's voice. Sakura, seeing Naruto jump, couldn't help but laugh, seeing as it was usually the other way around for them. Naruto didn't smile, only turning back to the night sky. Sakura noticed Naruto's mood, seeing he was clearly troubled, "Naruto-kun, what's wrong?"

Naruto only sighed, turning back to Sakura. He saw the large amount of concern written on her face. With only sigh, he began, "Your Otou invited me to live here…" Sakura nodded, having eavesdropped on that particular conversation as Naruto continued, "And when I summoned Gama, I got this…" Naruto pulled out the letter, handing to Sakura to read.

Sakura unfolded the letter, quickly reading it. As she scanned the letter, began to frown. At the end, she was gripping the letter tightly, tears on the verge of forming. She lowered the letter, along with her head to where you couldn't see her eyes, "So… You're going to go and help them…?"

Naruto only hung his head, "I want to… but I have no way there… I mean, I wouldn't stay there. I would come back right after but…" Naruto suddenly became quiet.

Sakura easily read his expression, "You don't know if you'll be able to leave your friends there again?"

Naruto shook his head, "No, that's not it…" "Because you're far more important to me." Naruto thought to himself. "I would be worried about you if I left…"

Sakura brought her knees up, nodding in understanding. What Naruto then said surprised her, "The only way I'll go is if you come with me. That way, I can make sure nothing happens to you and deal with those old dried-up temes!" Sakura only looked at Naruto with shock as he continued, "But… in order for you to come with me… I would have to reveal myself to your Otou and Toya…"

Sakura nodded again, looking at the sky with Naruto. The two sat there in silence, watching the stars appear when an idea formed in Sakura's head, "The school trip!" Naruto jumped again, surprised by Sakura's outburst as she turned to him, "Remember that voluntary school trip Monday? We can say we're going, but go to Konoha instead!"

Naruto looked at Sakura in shock, seeing her come up with not only a sneaky plan, but a good one. Naruto brought his hand to his chin, "Yeah, the trip is for three days… That's more than enough time… but we still need away to get there…"

"What about Kyuubi-san?" Naruto nodded for a second before smiling. Sakura smiled brightly after, glad to have helped Naruto.

Before she knew it, Naruto had pulled Sakura into a hug, "Thank you Sakura-chan." Sakura could only plush a deep red, since it was usually she who pulled Naruto into hugs and with this one, she could truly feel Naruto's appreciation. Sakura hugged Naruto, slowly closing her eyes as she enjoyed the feeling. Both stayed that way for a while before a chilling wind blow. Feeling Sakura shiver, Naruto gently picked her up, surprising her as he carried her back into the room.

Naruto set her back to her feet, "We'd better get some sleep, something tells me we have a long day tomorrow… And we still have to talk to Kyuubi."

Sakura nodded, going to her dresser and changing to her night clothes before crawling into bed. Naruto changed to his fox form then jumped onto the bed. He curled up in his spot, falling asleep as Sakura wrapped her arm around him, doing the same.


Naruto's mindscape:

Naruto opened his eyes to see the vast forest that was his mind. He tried to get up, only to find something was on top of him. He looked to see Sakura laying on his chest, slowly breathing in a steady rhythm. Naruto lightly place his hand on her shoulder, shaking her slightly, "Sakura-chan."

Sakura's eyes fluttered open. She looked around and realized where she was, and who she was on. In a heart beat Sakura stood up, waving her arm in a panic, "Naruto-kun! G-Gomen."

Naruto pushed himself up, scratching his head slightly, "It's ok." Naruto looked around the forest before turning back to Sakura, "He'll show up any minute."

Kyuubi appear at that moment, stopping in front of the two. He laid down, so as to look at Sakura and Naruto at eye level, "So you want to go back to Konoha kit? That's a little surprising."

Naruto couldn't help a smirk, hearing the amusement in Kyuubi's voice, "Yeah, and by the sounds of it, you're willing to help us. So what's up? Is it because we're going to be causing chaos for the counsel and all those others temes that made us miserable?"

Kyuubi snorted, nearly blowing Sakura and Naruto over before nodding again, "You know all to well kit. There is a way… through the dimensions…"

Sakura and Naruto both held a nervous look as Naruto narrowed his eyes, "Why do I get the feeling I'm not going to like this."

"You're not." Kyuubi said as he stood up, "I'll have to take control of you're body and open a dimension door."

"WHAT!!!" Naruto shouted, surprising Sakura and hurting Kyuubi's ears, "Are you crazy! You saw what the tear did to me! Without you I wouldn't have survived! I'm not about to risk Sakura-chan's life like that!"

"Clam down kit." Kyuubi said to him while rubbing his ears, "I said a door. A tear is unstable, the energies that created it having gone out of control. When you make a door, the energies are stable and going at a constant flow, shaping the tunnel you will use."

Naruto sighed as he sat down, glad to hear Sakura wouldn't be harmed. Kyuubi snorted again, getting Sakura and Naruto's attention, "Sorry kit, but I don't want Sakura to go either."

Naruto didn't seemed surprised, almost as if he was expecting this, "Because you're afraid the counsel will some how capture Sakura-chan and use her against me, right?"

Kyuubi was shocked, seeing Naruto think so far ahead. He only nodded, leaving Naruto to continue, "You don't have to worry, because I won't let anything happen to Sakura-chan. After all, you remember our little chat a few weeks ago?"

Kyuubi smirked, nodding slightly, "Of course, I'm still waiting for "results". You have made progress, but not fast enough."

Sakura only cocked her head slightly, "Results?"

Naruto quickly jumped, waving his hands frantically before calmly saying, "It's nothing. I tell you someday."

Sakura only nodded, still confused, but accepted it. Naruto only chuckled nervously as he sweat dropped before glaring at Kyuubi. Kyuubi was simply smiling through out the entire process before saying, "It's time to go, you two need to sleep."

Both nodded before falling over unconscious, gently breathing as they lay next to each other snuggling closer without knowing it.

Else where, a drunken Kero was currently talking to a cartoon dinosaur statue, completely unaware of it as he floated in front of it, "So, can you see? My real name is Kerberos, and I was guarding the book for a long time. *hic* Even on rainy days – and gusty days… *hic* I had a lot of tough things happen to me." Kero let out a mix between a laugh and cry before continuing, "You're the only one that listens to me, mister…"

Kero then let out a large yawn, crawling onto the statues head, "I'm getting rather sleepy… Hey, mister, do you know anywhere I can sleep?"

Kero looked down to the statues hands, seeing it point to a small dump sight, "Oh, over there?" Kero then noticed the old torn couch at the sight, "Hey, it's a bed! This is great!"

Kero flew over to the couch, waving back to the statue, "Thanks, mister!" Kero pulled the pillow on the couch over him, falling asleep on the spot.


The next morning:

A small, young girl was bringing out the trash, dragging the large bag to the dump sight. When she got there, she dropped the bag, hearing a small snoring noise. She looked over to the couch, seeing a large yellow tail sticking out from under a pillow. She reached over, grabbing the tail and pulling Kero out from under the pillow. Kero, still sleeping off the alcohol, didn't even budge the entire way back to her house.


Inside a house:

Kero was sleeping inside a small carriage, thrashing around in his sleep mumbling, "Sakura, you moron!" Kero then opened his eyes, realizing he wasn't in Sakura's room. Sitting up to look around, he asked himself, "Where am I?"

Kero was stopped when the door opened, revealing the same girl from that morning holding the door and a bowl of milk, "Are you awake?" The girl placed the bowl of milk on the table in front of the carriage as Kero wondered where he was, "It's time for breakfast. What's your name?"

Kero only looked confused as the girl held out a spoon of milk, "Here." This only confused Kero more as the girl smiled brightly, "You don't like milk? You're a cat, right?"

Kero quickly shook his head, his actions coming faster than his thoughts, "Chau…" (No…)

The girl looked surprised as Kero caught his mistake, covering his mouth as he sweat dropped, "Oh, no, I spoke!"

The girl only laughed and clapped, "That's a funny meow!" The girl then got back on her hands and knees, "So your name is Chau-chau!"

Kero looked surprised before turning his head away sadly, "No…"

The girl, taking it the wrong away, cheered more as she clapped, "Your name IS Chau-chau!"

A voice then was heard from outside the room, "Akane, can you help me out here?"

"Yes, Mama!" The girl name Akane said before turning back to Kero, "Wait here a bit, Chau-chau!"

The second Akane left the room, Kero rested on the side of the carriage, "Chau…? No, I said no…"

Sakura and Naruto both woke up early that morning, having had a good night's sleep. Naruto had gone down stairs as Sakura got ready, having come after breakfast to see her staring out her open window. Naruto approached Sakura to hear her talking to herself, "I left the window open all night so he could come back at any time…" Sakura turned back to the room, looking at Naruto, "Kero-chan sure is stubborn…"

"Maybe not…" Sakura only looked surprised as Naruto continued, "Remember, he ate an entire box of alcohol- spiked chocolates. He probably passed out somewhere and hasn't woken up yet."

Sakura nodded, heading down stairs along with Naruto before asking, "But where did he go?" Toya just happened to walk by at that moment, stopping when he heard Sakura's question. Sakura simply shook her head, "No, nothing…" Toya put his hand to his ear, trying to hear what Sakura said. Sakura simply became annoyed, turning to Toya, "I said, nothing!"

"I see…" was all Toya said, patting Sakura's head before ruffling her hair as he left, "I'm on my way!"

Sakura smiled after Toya left, touching the spot where Toya ruffled before heading out to school with Naruto.

Inside Akane's room, Kero was gulping down the milk Akane had left, wiping off the bit off his face, "I was thirsty, so this milk is great!"

Kero stopped, turning to the door when he heard what sounded like a woman say, "Then, I'm going now."

He then heard a "Take care!" before the door opened, revealing Akane again. She noticed the empty milk bowl, "Chau-chau, did you eat well?" She walked up to Kero, sitting on her knees as she petted Kero's head, "Wonderful! Good, good boy!" Akane then stopped petting Kero, getting closer to his face, "While Mama's out working… I Akane, shall stay home with you, Chau-chau!"

"Kero simply stood their, wondering in thought, "So this girl's name it Akane… Such a little girl is staying at home by herself…?"

Akane then noticed something about Kero, quickly showing an annoyed look, "Chau-chau! Your face is a little dirty!"

Kero only grimaced as Akane picked him up and carried him to the sink. She plugged the drain as she turned on the cold water, assign a little dab of soap before sticking Kero into the water. The second Kero touched the water, he began to squirm, not liking the cold water as Akane began to scrub him, "Hold still! I'm making you all clean!"

Kero only continued to squirm, his thoughts only being complaints, "But… this is cold water… At least wash me properly in hot water!"

Kero's silent prayer was answered when Akane took him out of the water. He sighed in relief, only to suddenly be hit with the hot air of a blow dryer. Kero could only still their and take it, seeing as Akane was holding onto his head and he needed to dry anyway.

Kero let out another sigh of relief when Akane switched off the machine, "Hai, all done." Akane then put a cheery expression on her face, "I now, I'll put a ribbon on you, too!"

Kero watched as Akane ran off into another room before facing the mirror again, "Where is this…? I have to hurry and do something… Really…" Kero then looked to his left to see a picture of a slightly younger Akane being held by young man, both clearly happy.

Kero stood up to get a better look, jumping when he heard, "That's my papa. He's in Heaven." Kero turned to Akane in surprise as she continued, "I was told Papa is right now in a place called Heaven. Meanwhile, I'm staying at home…" Akane finished, tying to ribbon around Kero's neck loosely, "Chau-chau, you can stay home with me!" The phone suddenly rang after Akane finished, making run to it quickly, "Hai, hai!" She picked up the receiver, quickly nodding to the voice, "Oh, Mama… Yeah, it's me, Akane… Yeah… Yeah… I understand. Do well with your work. Yeah! Bye!"

Akane hung up the phone, clearly depressed after the call. She quickly put on a cheery smile, remembering Kero. She picked him up, carrying him over to the TV. She put it onto a sitcom about a girl reuniting with her thought to be dead father. Akane began to tear up with both sadness and joy, worrying Kero.

Kero looked between her and the TV nervously before stepping onto the remotes power button, turning off the TV so not to see Akane cry. Akane became surprised when the TV cut off, turning to Kero, "Chau-chau?"

Kero stepped back nervously before jumping onto the TV cabinet, doing an embarrassing dance that involved ballet, butt shaking, and jumping around like a cheer leader. The dance worked, as Akane burst into a fit of laughter as Kero continued to dance. Through out the entire dance, Kero was sweat dropping.

While that was happening, Sakura was walking through the park with Tomoyo, explaining the new situation with Kero. Tomoyo turned to Sakura as they walked through the park, "Kero-chan ran away from home?"

"I'm not sure…" Sakura said, looking to the ground as she answered, "But Kero-chan isn't coming back… Is he mad because I yelled at him so much, then hit him?"

Tomoyo only smiled as she gave her voice of reason, "I'm pretty sure that Kero-chan also regrets having that argument as well. Also, he was nowhere else he can go, so something must have detained him."

Sakura turned to Tomoyo when she finished, "Naruto-kun thinks so too, since Kero-chan was probably drunk from the chocolates he ate."

Tomoyo smiled more before realizing Naruto was missing, "Speaking of Naruto, where did he go? It's extremely rare to see him away from you for long."

Sakura smiled slightly when she heard this before answering Tomoyo, "Naruto-kun went to look for Kero-chan."

Tomoyo nodded, "Then why don't we join him? One person searching the entire city seems hard, even for Naruto."

Sakura nodded to the first part, only to sweat drop at the second, "Yeah, we should help, but Naruto probably isn't searching alone. After all…" Sakura was cut off a hooded figure jumped into a nearby tree, startling her before it jumped away. Sakura's sweat drop doubled as she finished, "Naruto-kun has his own personal search party…"

Tomoyo nodded before turning down the park hearing someone shouting. Sakura followed Tomoyo's gaze to see two police officers run by, one of them shouting into their radio, "We found one of the extremist from the zoo! Requesting back up!"

Both girls sweat dropped, watching the police try an impossible attempt of catching one of Naruto's many clones. Sakura's eye brow was twitching slightly, "I-I thought everyone had forgotten about that…" Tomoyo only nodded in agreement, too shocked for once to say anything.

After both Sakura and Tomoyo went home to get changed, they started searching the middle of town, only to be over whelmed by the size of the search area. Sakura then remembered Naruto was searching too, snapping her fingers when she did, "I got it! I call Naruto-kun!"

Sakura and Tomoyo ran over to the side of a building to avoid the crowd before she closed her eyes, Tomoyo watching, "Naruto-kun."

A few seconds later, she heard Naruto respond, "Hai Sakura-chan."

Sakura let out the breath she was holding, opening her eyes, "Where are you?"

"Following Kero's scent since the police seem to love chasing my clones…" Naruto told her, causing her to sweat drop. At that moment, another clone ran by with a few officers chasing after it.

Sakura's sweat drop doubled as Tomoyo watched with an amused expression. Sakura let out a sigh before asking Naruto, "Where are you now?"

Naruto just happened to walk into an alleyway behind Sakura when he heard this. Naruto smirked, quietly walking up behind Sakura as she called to Naruto, only to be greeted his silence. Naruto was silently laughing to himself when he heard her ask, "Where are you Naruto-kun?"

"Right behind you!" Naruto shouted, causing Sakura to scream jumping a good five feet off the ground. Sakura looked at Naruto annoyed as she tried to catch her lost breath, patting her chest.

Naruto only laughed harder, causing Sakura to glare, "Naruto-kun!"

Naruto started to calm down, waving his hand, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry! But old habits die hard!" Naruto said between breaths. Sakura simply continued to glare placing her hands on her hips. After a few moments Sakura let out a breath, smiling a little as Naruto finished laughing.

Naruto wiped his eyes before tuning to the direction he came, "Kero's sent goes that way. Let's go!"

Sakura nodded, following Naruto as he walked back down the alley. Neither one noticed Tomoyo filming the entire thing.

The three stopped at the small dump sight where Kero had fallen asleep last night. Naruto looked frustrated, taking a few whiffs of the air, "Man, Kero must have slept here. I can't make out his scent anymore over all the trash here…" Naruto looked around the area before sighing, "And this place seems like the only dump sight for a few blocks… We'd better start looking around."

Sakura and Tomoyo nodded, splitting up to search the area. After a few hours of searching, questioning, and all around frustration with no results, the three saw it fit to go home. Sakura opened the door, sad about not finding Kero with Naruto (fox form) coming in behind her, "I'm home…"

The two walked into the kitchen, Sakura being surprised to hear the sound of something cooking, then see was Toya cooking dinner. She then remembered she was in charge of dinner, walking up to him, "I forgot, I was in charge of dinner tonight!"

Toya simply raised his head from looking at the cutting board, "You're in charge of it on Sunday."

Sakura stopped next to Toya, looking up at him with a confused face, "Why did you switch with me?"

"No real reason…" Toya said as he moved a large bowl of food to another counter, "I had something I wanted to eat, too."

Sakura smiled, knowing the real reason Toya had switched with her, "Thank you, Onii-chan!" Toya only "hmphed" as the phone suddenly rang. Sakura quickly turned on heel, running to the phone, "Oh, I'll get it!"

Sakura kneeled at the phone, realizing it was the fax machine. She took the paper with a happy gasp, quickly turning to Naruto with a bright smile. But before she could say anything, Toya popped his head from around the corner, "Who's it from?"

Sakura whipped around, hiding the message from Toya, "A friend! A really close friend!" Naruto wondered what Sakura meant, moving behind her to read the message. He smiled when he saw who sent it as it said "To Sakura. I'm fine. I'll contact you again later."

Sakura quickly rushed up the stairs to her room when Toya went back to the kitchen. She jumped onto her bed, kicking her feet against the bed gently as she dialed her cell phone to call Tomoyo. Naruto, having followed Sakura in, simply laid next to her, hearing every word of the conversation.

When Tomoyo answered her cell, Sakura told her about the contact. Tomoyo was surprised, but clearly happy, "Kero-chan contacted you?"

Sakura nodded to herself, still holding the fax, "Yeah. It was a fax, but it was in Kero's handwriting."

"Do you know where it was sent from?" Tomoyo asked Sakura, opening her laptop as she did. Sakura looked at the fax for an address, but didn't see one until Tomoyo said, "There should be some data about the sender at the top of the fax sheet."

Sakura found the address as Naruto looked over her shoulder, "Let's see… 5, 2, 2…"

Tomoyo was currently typing in each number Sakura told her onto a program she was using. After a few minutes, a map of the city appeared. A red square began to shrink around a small sector, the same area they searched earlier that day, only a more narrow idea of where. Tomoyo smiled at the irony of the situation, "It's still a little vague, but it came from the same area we searched earlier this afternoon."

Sakura nodded, looking out the window to see they still had some daylight left before sunset. She then saw Naruto jump onto her window seal, opening the window before turning back to her, "Let's go!"

Sakura nodded, "Yeah!" She looked back to the phone, "Naruto and I are going to look for Kero-chan right now."

"I'll meet you around there with the address." Tomoyo said over the phone. Sakura nodded to herself before she hung up the phone, running down stairs as Naruto jumped from the window after closing it from the outside, changing forms as he landed.

Sakura came out the door seconds later, summoning her staff as soon as she shut the door, tossing down a card, "Fly!" Sakura and Naruto jumped onto the staff grew wings, taking to the skies.

Kero was currently trying to think, pretending to watch the weather channel after having sent the fax while Akane was taking down the laundry, "But, what am I going to do?" Kero began to subconsciously flap his wings as he continued to think, "I can't leave her alone like this…" Kero started to hover off the ground, completely unaware of it, "But I have to go back to Sakura's soon, too…"

Kero was interrupted by Akane's scream, who had seen Kero hovering as she brought the laundry in, "Chau-chau, you can fly?"

Kero looked down to see he was indeed flying. He screamed in surprise before trying to shrug it off, waving his paw in front of his face nervously. Akane was impressed by Kero's ability to fly, not caring about anything else, "You're amazing, Chau-chau." Akane laid in front of Kero, holding her head with one hand, "I want to fly, too. Then I can see Papa in Heaven…"

Kero turned away sweat dropping slightly, "Even if you fly, you can't see someone who's dead… I know how you want to see him…"

At that moment Akane's wish seemed to come true as everything in the room began to float. Akane was surprised when she herself began to float, but quickly got over it as she started laughing, flapping her arms like a bird. Kero looked shocked to see everything float, "What, what's going on?"

Everything began to move out the window, Akane still happily flapping her arms, "I'm flying! I'm flying!" She looked over her shoulder to Kero, "See, see?" I can fly too!"

Kero quickly realized what was happening when everything expect Akane stopped in midair. He quickly rushed to the edge of the balcony, "No! She's not flying! This is…" Kero trailed off, seeing a faint image of a balloon with wings, "A Clow card!"

Kero's attention was diverted when Akane called to him, "Chau-chau! Come over here!"

Kero warning light went off when the wind picked up, "Oh, no!" He watched as a large gust blew, taking Akane and the card with it to the sky. Kero quickly chased after the screaming girl, shouting her name along the entire way.

This time Akane was waving her arms for a different reason, trying to stop, "Chau-chau! I can't stop!"

Kero heard her, trying a different way of getting her to stop, shouting at the card, "You're the FLOAT card, aren't you!? Give Akane back!"

The card didn't listen as the wind picked up even more, creating more distance between them. Kero only pushed himself harder, trying to desperately catch up to Akane before it was too late, only to tire out. He stopped in midair, having run out of steam, "Oh no, I'm going to fall…"

Kero began his plummet to Earth, falling a few feet before being gently caught in a pair of soft hands, "Kero-chan!"

Sakura and Naruto were flying high above the city, so not to be spotted by anyone on the ground. Both were looking around for a spot to land without being spotted when both felt a familiar presence. Both perked up their heads, looking around before facing each other. Naruto was the first to speak, "Sakura-chan, did you feel…"

Sakura nodded, turning back around to the sky, "The presence of a Clow card!" Naruto nodded, his ears suddenly twitching a loud scream. Sakura noticed Naruto's change of focus, looking over her shoulder, "What is it Naruto-kun?"

"I heard a scream." Naruto said as he pointed to the direction, "Over there… Is that pink thing flying?" Naruto suddenly asked, confusing Sakura. She looked in the direction Naruto was to see something small and pink was indeed flying.

Naruto's ears twitched again, making him tense, "That was Kero. This means he can only be…"

"Chasing a Clow card!" Sakura shouted, getting a nod from Naruto before she took off in the direction Naruto pointed to. After a few seconds, Sakura and Naruto saw Kero chasing after a small girl floating in the air, being taken by the wind.

They flew behind Kero as he tried to catch up to the girl. Sakura noticed Kero trying out, seeing him start to fall. She held out her arms, letting Kero land gently in them "Kero-chan!"

Kero looked up from his landing zone at Sakura and Naruto, "Sakura! Naruto! You two are lifesaver! But why are you here?"

"Tomoyo looked up here the fax came from…" Sakura told him, looking up to Akane after, "Is this because of a card too?"

Kero turned back to Akane, "It's the FLOAT card. It's a mischievous one that floats things without permission! If you don't seal it soon, Akane will…!"

Both Sakura and Naruto got the message, nodding as Sakura flew off to Akane. Naruto got to his feet on the staff, "I got Akane!" Sakura nodded as Naruto jumped off the staff, swinging it out from under her, "Return to the guise that you were meant to be in! CLOW CARD!" The card guise appeared, sucking in FLOAT quickly before it flew over to Sakura.

Sakura reactivated FLY right after sealing FLOAT, sitting on her staff as she caught the card in her hand. She looked up to see Naruto grab a semi-conscious Akane, pulling her close before plummeting to the ground. Sakura held out hand to Naruto after tucking the card away. Naruto held out his hand as well, only for the two of them to be caught off guard by another gust of wind.

The wind blew Sakura back a few feet, just out of arms length for her and Naruto. Naruto only grimaced when he missed Sakura's hand, looking to the quickly approaching ground. Naruto put his hands together, forming the ram seal, "Kage Bunshin no jutsu!"

Ten other Naruto's poofed into existence, all of them turning to the original saying their own choice of words, "What the hell! Why are we falling! Are you stupid?"

Naruto only glared at his pack of clones, "Shut up and henge into something soft before I hit the ground!"

Naruto's clones started up again, not liking the idea, "What about us! Why you!? You are stupid!"

Naruto was quickly becoming ticked off, "If I die, then there's no more of you either!"

All the clones stopped, sweat dropping before forming another hand sign, "Henge!" All the clones then turned into very large pillows, landing in an empty construction zone. The pillow clones piled together, Naruto landing on them in a large eruption of feathers. Shorty after, all the pillow clones disappeared, leaving Naruto sitting on the ground, "That was close."

Naruto looked up to see a large group of passer bys, not a single person questioning what happened. Naruto sweat dropped intensely, "What the hell!? How could no one even notice that!?"

Kero appeared at the moment, landing on Akane's chest as she started to regain her senses. Sakura landed a few feet away, watching as Naruto gently set her on her feet. She looked at Naruto before turning to Kero, who was resting in her arms, "Chau-chau, are you all right?"

Kero simply let out his "meow", showing he was just fine. Akane smiled, turning back to Naruto only to see him looking in the direction of the apartment. Sakura walked to Naruto as Akane mimicked him, asking the question on everyone's mind, "What's the truck there for?"

The four went over to the truck to see a mom like woman walking to the stairs. She turned around when she heard "Mama!" come from Akane.

Sakura and Naruto stopped, keeping their distance as what seemed to be a serious conversation took place.


Next day: In front of Akane's apartment

All of Akane's and her mother's thing's were put into the truck. Her mother got in the passenger side holding the door open for Akane, "Now, Akane-chan…"

Akane nodded sadly, "Yeah Mama. Wait just a minute." She looked to Kero, "Chau-chau…" Akane turned around, running up to Sakura, Naruto, and Tomoyo, who had joined them moments ago, "Onee-chan!" Sakura and Tomoyo bent down to Akane as she stopped in front of them, "Are you really going to take care of Chau-chau?" Sakura nodded, making Akane smile a bit as she held him out, "Take good care of him!"

Sakura took Kero into her arms as Akane began to explain why she couldn't bring him, "I can't be with Chau-chau in my new house."

Sakura only look at Akane sadly, yet kindly, "Whenever you're lonely, you can come visit Kero-chan, no…" Sakura stopped, catching her mistake, "I mean Chau-chau…"

Akane smiled brightly at the proposal, "Yeah. But I'll always be with my Mama now, so I'm not lonely anymore!" She then turned to Naruto, who simply stared gently with his hands in his pockets, "Thank you Onii-chan! For letting me fly!"

Naruto only sweat dropped at Akane's new name for him even though they met only an hour before, "Sure… Just remember, it's our secret."

Akane nodded again, running back to the truck after her mother called her again. The four watched as Akane waved, slowly going out of sight. Kero then let out a breath he had been holding, "Akane's mother is changing jobs so she can be with her."

Sakura looked down at Kero smiling before saying, "Well, let's go home, Kero-chan."

Kero quickly huffed, turning away from Sakura, "I haven't decided that I'm going back to your place, Sakura!"

Tomoyo leaned over Kero smiling at the entire scene, "Are you still a little cross?"

Naruto only smirked, turning away slightly so Kero couldn't see his face, "That's to bad… After Sakura went through all that work for your return home present too."

Sakura quickly glared at Naruto as Kero jumped up and down, "A surprise for me? What is it!?"

Naruto turned back around smiling at Sakura's glare, "You'll have to wait and see."

Kero turned around, grabbing Sakura's shirt and practically dragged her back, "Let's go! Let's go!! LET'S GO!!!"

Naruto only chuckled as he followed as Tomoyo walked away, clearly not wanting to interrupt.


Area jump: Sakura's room

Naruto was currently covering Kero's eyes as Sakura grabbed the handle to her drawer, "Look."

Naruto uncovered Kero's head, letting him get a good look at the drawer he had made a mess of a few days before. Kero flew down to the edge of the drawer, completely surprised, "This is…?" Kero was left speechless as Sakura had remade Kero's room, only a lot better.

"How is it?" Sakura asked, getting Kero's attention, "Is it a little too girlish?"

Kero started to scratch the back of his head nervously as he looked for a good answer, "No… that's not true… I think." Kero then jumped onto the hand-made bed, bouncing on it, "Especially this bed, it's pretty…" Kero was silence as the bed broke apart.

Sakura quickly became teary eyed, staring at Kero, "You broke it! I made it for you, too!"

"It's not on purpose!" Kero said as he leaned over the edge of the drawer again, "Are you sure it wasn't just made poorly?"

Sakura quickly became angry as Kero had said the wrong phrase. Naruto only sweat dropped, shaking his head, "Leave it to Kero to screw up his own defense…"

A tick mark appeared on Sakura's head as she shouted, "You're cruel! You just got fat, Kero-chan!"

Naruto simply stood there, pinching the bridge of his nose, "Here we go again…" Naruto said as Kero and Sakura started to yell at each other.

Naruto lifted his head just in time to hear Kero shout, "You kaiju!"

"Hey, you called me a kaiju again!" Sakura responded, having her own come back, "Like you can speak with your little dots for eyes!"

"What was that, Mega Kaiju Sakura-no-don!" Kero shouted as Naruto turned to the window.

Naruto simply stood there, hearing the entire argument only thinking, "This is going to be an interesting trip."

Well, it's done. Sorry for it being so late. Heh, I bet you didn't half of that coming! What can I say, I had some time to reconsider things from a different perspective.


Notes:

1.) If you're wondering about Kyuubi being so easily convinced about going back to Konoha, it's for revenge, prank revenge anyway.

… No others as far as I can remember


Reviewer's response:

Haru Inuzuka: Thanks. Hope this satisfies

Freohr: Thanks, I thought that would be funny.

Passionate-Eyes: Thank you!

The Hokage: I have an idea of when and how, you'll just have to wait and see.

Dawning Wisdom: Ok, in order 1.) I'm sticking with the anime, mainly due to going back and forth between the anime and manga is hard and I'm more familiar with the anime. 2.) HELL NO! 3.) If you're talking about L33t Horo, than yeah, I know. And I don't really care, since he has six chapters and only fourteen reviews, last time I checked anyway. It's killing itself.

Drake_2: I didn't think of that, but it wouldn't work anyway, since they need the van to change in. I have, but I'm not very good with designs.

BURNING FLAMES OF YOUTH: Well it wasn't this chapter, but it will be soon.

Elemental Dragon Swordman: How's that instead?

Raidentensho: Actually, the LOOP would be a funny chapter to do with Naruto.

xWindScarx10: I know it was weird, but still funny.

Melfice-sama: I know, but like I said to another reader in this section, it's killing itself.

Knyght: funny, but not exactly Sakura's style

Diimmortal: Thanks for the support. I have a few ideas for those episodes.

Chm01: weird but funny


To those I didn't mention, you either flamed (which hasn't happened) or simply left a good comment. So… THANK YOU VERY MUCH!!!!!

Please READ, ENJOY, AND REVIEW!