Kyubed:Shinobi's Revenge on Naruto

by ContraBardus

A young Naruto meets two strange men in the woods, with an even stranger story. After agreeing to special training, he finds the path of the true shinobi a bit different than he, or anyone else in the village expected.

37. Chapter 37

Kyubed: Shinobi's revenge on Naruto

Part 37

Naruto's duty.

OooOOooOO

Uzumaki Naruto was a little annoyed. He had a new forehead protector, the metal was black and not shiny, not just a painted normal one. Instead of the Leaf Symbol, he now had three claw marks in the center place that matched up the the scars on his face. "This is annoying."

Tsunade chuckled as she walked beside him. Sasuke and Sakura were both wearing their ANBU masks. They were moving through the mountains of Lightning Country, the gates of Kumo in the near distance. "It's not so bad."

He wasn't with them, and wasn't wearing an ANBU uniform, Masara, Koruma, and Kira were all dressed as Ninja, with forehead protectors matching his own. They were standing around him with bows on their shoulders. "Why am I doing this again? I'd rather no one knew my face." His scarf was gone, Tsunade had relieved him of it, and he was wearing traditional Ninja garb with no hood with the claws symbol marked on his right breast.

The woman shook her head. "Because you're the face of your kingdom."

The boy frowned at her.

Tsunade gave a small sigh. "Do you have a better idea?"

Naruto looked at her and blinked. "Well...I..." He put up his hands and performed a seal. "Henge..."

The Hokage looked impressed as a large gold nine tailed fox appeared before her. "Well, that's impressive."

The boy narrowed his eyes at her. "I guess it is. Still, why are you doing this to me anyway? I'm never going to hire any ninjas."

Sasuke and Sakura were both confused by what was going on. Naruto had been quiet and looked a bit irate since they left Konoha. She'd forced him to change out of his uniform and his three kitsune friends were with him. Protocol in their duties kept them from speaking up about it and they simply looked on.

Gai was behind them with his team, Ino trailed behind him as well with Yugao and her two teammates, Ayume and her two teammates trailed behind a Jounin Naruto didn't know. He was a man with red hair and a fit build with a scowl on his face. Everyone was looking at the pair as they talked, and all of them were confused.

Maito spoke up. "Hokage, I am curious. What is going on? Uzumaki seems upset, and he's acting strangely. A very odd Henge."

The animal surrounded by three girls glanced back at him. "I got fired. I'm not a Konoha ninja anymore."

Sasuke and Sakura both gasped and turned to look at the Hokage. They were flanking her and almost stopped in their tracks.

She rolled her eyes and put her hands on her hips. "Stop being a brat. You're a king. I can't use you to complete contracts. I told you already, you're not fired. You're still an ANBU as far as the village is concerned."

The fox gave a heavy sigh. "Yeah. I get it. I still don't like it."

Masara looked at him. "Don't be like that, Highness."

Koruma nodded in agreement. "She's right. If something happened to you, the Queen would be upset. The Prince would miss you as well."

The King hung his head. "It's not that. I can take care of myself. I don't need to be protected."

Kira giggled a little. "It's part of being a King, Highness."

Lee frowned and arched his mighty eyebrow. Sakura shivered a little at the sight of it. "King?"

Tsunade nodded. "Yes, he's been crowned King of the Kitsune. They are important allies of Konoha now. He can't hide from everywhere else forever if he's going to be a king." She glanced at the Kitsune trio out of the corner of her eyes. They spoke with her before he left for the festival. He wasn't aware, but they had requested that she help get him used to the idea of being King, and that she help them 'train' him for the role. It put her off a little at first, but it did help that it seemed to irritate him. Konoha did owe them, and they could be very useful as allies.

In the end she'd agreed to help. Part of the deal was him not being sent out on contracts. It was a hard decision, she didn't like giving up one of her best ninja. She also left the condition that he remain a Konoha nin, and would have to train Genin when the time came. She also couldn't stop him from doing what he needed to. He had to be able to act on his own, but still had to remain within the rules for a Konoha ninja. He still represented them in some fashion, especially if he was keeping his team.

Giving him team seven was a compromise on the subject. She couldn't give him missions, but she could give missions to his team. Whether he helped them or not was up to him. The Kitsune were aware of the loophole in the matter. It was Masara who had pointed it out to her, even though she'd already thought about it herself before he had

Any missions given to his team were optional for him to participate in. She had a feeling he would help them out, but it also left Konohagakure's hands clean if something went wrong. She was planning on talking with him about the matter once the exams were over in private. As it was, it was too much fun watching him squirm.

His henge was a bit of a pleasant surprise. Having two identities for himself could prove useful, another matter she was planning on speaking with him about at that point. "You should remain like that. You're right, you are more useful to Konoha if people don't know your face, and it's much more fitting to represent the Kitusne that way I think."

His three guards seemed pleased with that. "She's right, Highness. You don't have to look like a person when you're being our King." Masara smiled at the animal and it looked at him with it's ears back and nodded. "Not that you're not anyway, but..."

Kira blushed. "Yes, he's very handsome that way."

Ino's eyebrow twitched a little. "Handsome?"

"I guess you're right. This could be useful." The animal seemed to perk up a little, but was still clearly annoyed by his position.

Tsunade looked down at the back of the golden fox's head. The Kitsune didn't give any specifics, but she had a feeling that there was more to Naruto's position than the boy was aware. The foxes seemed to imply it, but never said anything about what it was. His henge was unusual looking, and rather flashy. It was not like the boy to do something like that at all. She found herself wondering if his henge's appearance had anything to do with it. The trio of kitsune seemed familiar with it.

She looked at the ninja following her. "I forbid anyone to speak of this. No one must know that Naruto as he appears now is or was a Konohagakure ninja. He is the Fox King, and the Kitsune cannot be too closely tied to Konoha. It is more important than you might think." She found herself wishing it had come up sooner, there were a lot of eyes and ears around them at the moment. Not that she didn't trust them. "The fewer who know about this the better. None of you ever saw this happen, and I suggest you take that very seriously. The Fox King is not Uzumaki Naruto. He cannot be revealed."

The others all looked at her with varying levels of surprise and all of them nodded.

The golden fox was still in a sour mood. His new forehead protector was around his neck like a collar. "I hate politics." He was a little surprised at Tsunade's announcement as well. "After all that pushing to get me to do this you're gonna go and do this now? What's up?" It didn't seem to help his mood much. "Jeez, what am I a superhero? Stupid secret identity and everything..."

She glanced down at him. "I realized the advantages to this little Henge of yours. I'll be giving you another Konoha forehead protector when we return. I suggest wearing it when you are human, and keeping the one around your neck for this form."

The fox nodded. "I guess. Wish you'd brought it up sooner, half the village is standing here. Most of Konoha already knows about it. They announced it to the whole village when they showed up to help during that mess in the last exams."

Koruma blushed a little at that, but didn't speak up.

The woman nodded. "So do I, but there's nothing to be done about it now. I trust them, don't you?"

Naruto glanced over his shoulder and gave a small sigh. "Depends on what you mean by 'trust'. Still, I don't think they'll say anything after what you said. I doubt it will remain a secret forever anyway. Too many people know about it."

After a few moments of walking in silence he noticed his three guards glaring and moving to block someone from moving up beside him. "Leave it alone." They all glanced at him and looked a bit irate with the boy who had walked up to them. It was Hyuuga Neji, and he didn't seem worried about annoying his three guards. "You want something, Neji?"

Neji was looking at him with a confused frown. "Uzumaki? What's this about being a king?"

Lee wasn't very far behind and moved up to his teammate's side. "Such arrogance. Really, Uzumaki. King?"

Ayume snorted as she crossed her arms and looked up at the trees from a short distance away. "What's the big deal anyway?"

The green haired boy with her rolled his eyes. "That loser? I remember him from the academy. How the heck does he figure he's..."

The animal looked back at them with an annoyed glare. "I married their queen, remember?"

Kira nodded. "That's right. He was crowned during the great Kitsune Autumn Festival in Shadow Realm. He's not pretending, he's a real king."

Masara seemed pleased. "Right, whether he likes it or not."

The golden fox seemed about ready to snap at him, but relaxed. "Right. I guess so."

Tsunade looked out of the corner of her eyes at him. "Konoha doesn't intend to tip our hand. However, you may need to know some of the other Country's leaders. You'll need the contacts you can make here. You're not attending as one of my ninja. I'm just getting you in the door, but you need to be speaking with the country's representatives, and I'll introduce you to Raikage. You don't have to make friends, but you should be aware of who they are, and what they look like. As the leader of a nation, you should, even if you do not intend to make relations. It could lead to a mistake that may cause problems for your people. Not looking like yourself may help with that, you look older than you really are that way, and it could help. You've got nine tails, most people will assume you're at least nine hundred years old. I wouldn't recommend mentioning that you're not, that you're new to being King, or that your wife is free. It could give the mistaken impression that Konohagakure is weaker because of it. It would not help any of us, you included, for anyone to learn that Konoha is without it's Jinchuriki."

Naruto frowned up at her in confusion. "What the heck is a Jinchuriki?"

Koruma looked down at him in mild surprise. "You are, or rather you were. It's someone with one of the tailed beasts sealed within them. Humans call them Biiju, and our queen is one of them, and the most powerful. There are others as well. Kumo has two of them. The two tails and the eight tails both reside here in hosts."

Their King got a bit wide eyed. "Huh?"

Masara spoke up as well. "Yeah. That boy Sasuke fought in the exams, Gaara of the Sand, is the host of the one tail."

The golden fox looked at the ground. "That's interesting. They are like I used to be?"

"Sort of." Kira gave a shrug. "It's a little different because of the Fourth's seal, but yeah."

Ino cocked her head. "I'm confused. What's going on?"

Yugao looked down at her and smiled. "It seems the Hokage has taken Uzumaki under her wing. She's helping him with his new position of King of the Kitsune."

The blond girl nodded. "I already knew about that. What's this about not being able to use him? He's an ANBU right? What about us?"

Sakura and Sasuke both took note of the conversation and glanced back.

Tsunade spoke up. "He's an ANBU Captain. I just can't send him on missions. Putting his life in danger by giving him contracts and sending him on S ranked missions would hurt our relations with the Kitsune if he became injured or killed. Don't worry, he'll be fine. It's not as bad as he's making it out to be. He's a Jounin, and an ANBU Captain. He has plenty of room to act on his own."

The gold fox was hanging back and glowering at her while mocking her speaking behind her back. His three guards were stifling chuckles. He was not pleased, but not angry with her either. He didn't like that she was running her mouth and telling anyone within earshot about him. There also wasn't anything he could do to stop her.

The woman turned to frown at him a little, and he looked away with an innocent expression. His guard was doing the same thing, but weren't as good at hiding it as he was.

The other ninja in the group looked both confused and flustered. No one seemed sure what to say or think about it all.

Neji nodded and crossed his arms. "So, seems you're not as cursed as you thought."

The animal snorted. "Are you kidding me? It's awful. I've trained my whole life to do what I was told, be a tool and a servant, and what does it get me? Put in charge. As bad as it sounds, I'd almost take that curse of yours just to be back in a familiar position again. I've got no idea what the hell I'm supposed to do. Tsunade just keeps telling me, 'Oh! You'll be fine! Don't worry! You'll get it!' I've not got a clue, and it's making me nervous as hell just thinking about it."

The boy shook his head and cracked a slight grin. "I see. I still want to fight you. I've not given up yet."

The animal gave a half hearted shrug and looked less than interested. "Yeah. Sasuke says that sometimes too. I don't get that attitude, but hey. I don't really get being King either."

Rock Lee crossed his arms and frowned at the creature. "You should not speak of the Hokage in such a familiar way."

The animal's ears went back. "It was her idea. Well, actually her idea was even worse. She tried to make me call her, Li'l Tsunade. I had to talk her out of it."

Lee's jaw dropped. "That's very inappropriate!"

Naruto nodded. "That's what I said." He looked annoyed again and ahead of them. "I thought I was coming along as a guard. A little notice about this would have been nice."

Tsunade glanced at him. "If I had said something, you would have tried to get out of it."

Kira nodded. "She knows you pretty well, Highness."

The gold fox hung his head. "Shut up would you?"

OooOOooOO

The gates of Kumogakure opened wide and Naruto was still in his henge. He gave a small sigh as the man at the gates regarded him. He was the same ninja who had met the groups of Genin arriving for the first part of the finals.

Tsunade smiled at him. "Hello. I am Tsunade, Hokage of Konohagakure."

The man nodded his head. "We have been waiting for your arrival." He paused and noticed that three of the group was standing around a large gold fox. They weren't wearing Konoha forehead protectors, but had a strange symbol he didn't recognize. "Who are you? What business do you have in Kumo? Speak quickly, or I shall be forced to detain you."

The fox flattened it's ears and growled a little. "They're my guard."

The man snorted and looked at Tsunade. "We weren't expecting you to bring a pet."

Naruto snapped at him. "I'm not a pet." His tails wagged behind him and the man looked confused.

Masara looked annoyed with the man. "This is the King of Shadow Realm."

Koruma seemed a bit amused. "Yes, we're here to watch the finals of the Chunin exams."

Tsunade tugged on her hat. "Yes. I met him a few months ago. He may be interested in hiring shinobi in the future."

The gold fox cocked his head. "Well, maybe someday. Not much use for them at the moment, but you never know." He seemed to realize that it might indeed be useful to do so at some point. He glanced at Tsunade and seemed to realize that he could hire outside help for Konoha or himself if he desired. He was wealthy enough to hire shinobi if he ever needed to on behalf of Shadow Realm. They didn't have a Shinobi village of their own, and the Kitsune, while far from weak, weren't military minded or organized in such a manner.

From what he'd seen, they were skilled archers as a culture, but their strength showed was more in deception and numbers. They were stealthy and sneaky more than strong and powerful. Their illusions were their greatest strength, and while quite powerful on the whole, individually they weren't all that strong from what he knew. They preferred fighting at a distance, or evading trouble. A group of ninja or a clan would pose little threat, but a village of them against them might prove troublesome, never mind a country. He couldn't discount their strength as a group, but they were more suited to a support role and weren't a warrior culture.

The Kumo man frowned at this. He ran his fingers through his shaggy white mop of hair. "I'm not certain I can allow you to enter."

The woman crossed her arms. "I was planning on introducing him to Raikage. I'm sure the delegates will be interested in meeting him as well."

The white haired man nodded and waved for them to follow. "It's on your head, woman."

OooOOooOO

Naruto found himself standing in front of a very large man with bronze skin and a scowl on his face. Tsunade gave a small smile and nodded as she entered his office. Sasuke and Sakura were both outside the door with Kira, Masara, and Koruma standing guard in the hall.

"Raikage, it is good to finally meet you." She bowed her head in greeting.

The man smirked and crossed his arms. "Ah. The new Hokage. I've heard of you of course. Tsunade, the Slug nin, one of Konoha's legendary three. Quite impressive." The last part sounded a little sarcastic.

The gold fox was starting to wonder if transforming was such a good idea. He was getting a little warm indoors, but his coat was perfect for outside. The mountain air was a little chilly, but the interior of the building was kept warm. He let his tongue hang out and found it helped to pant a bit as he sat on the floor and looked between them. He regarded them both as they talked.

The man seemed to be puffing himself up and trying to look impressive. He succeeded pretty well. "I hope you are well. The event doesn't start for a few hours yet. I'll have my assistant show you to a room where you can freshen up before the exam begins." He paused and regarded the rather large animal sitting beside her in his office. "What is this thing?"

Naruto spoke up and flattened his ears. "Thing?"

The man looked surprised. "It speaks? Interesting pet."

The fox growled a little at him. "I am not a pet." His tails wagged in agitation behind him.

Raikage noticed there was more than one, quite a few in fact. "Nine tails? His eyes went a little wide. What the?" He uncrossed his arms a bit.

Tsunade spoke up. "He's a potential client. This is the Fox King, the ruler of Shadow Realm. I met him a few months ago. I asked him to come along so he could see the strength of Konohagakure's ninja."

The large man narrowed his eyes at her. "I see."

The animal nodded. "I don't have much need of ninja at the moment. However, you never know. I'm interested to see how Kumogakure performs as well."

That caught Tsunade off guard a little. She arched her eyebrow and regained her composure.

The large man frowned at her. "This is not your Jinchuriki?"

Tsunade shook her head. "No, this is the husband of Fire Country's Biiju."

An aged voice spoke up as the door to the office closed. "Interesting that he would be with you then. I'd think he'd be rather upset with Konohagakure considering."

The gold fox looked back and noticed a small old man with a large nose looking at him. He was about as tall as he was as a fox and wore a large hat like Raikage and Tsunade.

The largest of the Kage glared at him. "How long have you been there?"

Tsuchikage, the leader of Iwagakure leaned on his cane and smirked at the two younger Kage. "Well, I wasn't expecting the Hokage to be here. Hello. I suppose it is pleasant to meet you."

Tsunade nodded in greeting and looked very serious. "Tsuchikage, a pleasure."

Raikage chuckled. "I'm surprised you showed up. None of your Genin made it."

The old man gave a wheezing chuckle. "I didn't expect it. If I had known the Hokage would be attending I might not have come. They are all first timers this time. So, a kitsune? What brings you?"

Naruto perked his ears up and looked a bit shifty. "It sounded interesting."

Tsunade blushed a bit. "It was a last minute decision. I probably wouldn't have come if not for his Highness. I thought he might find it interesting, and invited him."

Tsuchikage nodded. "I suppose he would. I wasn't aware Shadow Realm had a king."

Raikage frowned at Tsunade. "Yes. Neither was I. If this is an impostor or some kind of joke..."

The old man seemed amused. "You're always so excitable. What does it matter?"

The nine tailed fox lifted his nose and said nothing.

Tsunade gave a small shake of her head. "It doesn't. I'm not the type to joke about it. It seems the Kitsune have become more interested in interacting with humans recently."

Tsuchikage looked at Naruto. "What for?"

"It makes it easier to screw with your kind. Plus, we have a liking for some of your food. It's easier if we don't need to steal it or trick you out of it. We can get more, and have a more steady and reliable supply and we can offer certain, services, if we're so inclined."

Again, Tsunade cocked her eyebrow.

Raikage gave a rough snort. "Such as?"

Naruto cocked his head with his ears perked up. "Are the two of you aware that both Lightning Country and Earth Country have hidden Sound bases within your borders?"

Everyone in the room was looking at him. Even Tsunade seemed surprised at him bringing it up.

He looked away with his ears flattened against his head. "If I like you, I might tell you where."

Raikage bowed up. "If you don't, I'll have a new rug for..."

Tsuchikage narrowed his eyes at the man. "I do hope you realize that you're making threats to a nine tailed fox. I admit I didn't know Shadow Realm had a king, but I suggest you consider the possible consequences if he is being honest. Think carefully before you make threats."

Naruto nodded. "Right." There was no way he could break his Henge until he left. He was very nervous, but did his best to hide it. "I was planning on telling you anyway. I don't care much for them. That jerk Orochimaru threatened my son. He'll kill him if he gets the chance."

The oldest of the group nodded. "I see. Your presence here and interest in our kind makes more sense now. Orochimaru is a powerful ninja."

The gold fox looked at him. "He's got an interest in Fire Country and hates Konohagakure. However, he's been keeping an eye on the two of you as well. I suspect that every Country has at least one small base hidden in it for spying purposes. Fire Country has quite the infestation. Wind Country has a similar problem, but I'm less inclined to help them out considering. They were helping him, and I don't trust them."

Tsunade seemed to relax a little more. "Yes."

Tsuchikage had a bit of a sparkle in his eyes. "Well, then. It is an honor to meet you then."

Tsunade glanced over her shoulder as Raikage's attendant stood by the doorway waiting on her. "I suppose I'll go and freshen up. You boys play nice." Naruto had been digging himself into a hole, but had managed to talk himself out of it without her help. He was quite skilled at being almost honest it seemed. She was a bit nervous about leaving him alone with them, but didn't see the need to hold his hand any longer. She noticed he didn't seem upset with her leaving.

Raikage sat behind his desk. "About these bases?"

The gold fox nodded. "I only know about one. Do you have a map?"

The man opened the drawer to his desk and pulled one out. It was a large map of the world and took up the whole of his desk. The fox looked down at it and pointed with his paw. "Here. Near the border in these mountains. It's an underground tunnel network in this valley. The entrance is a small abandoned shack. Expect a few traps to be set around it. Probably a few early warning perimeter defenses. I'm to understand the area around it is covered in seals that will alert them to intruders." He moved over to Earth Country and tapped his paw down. "Here. On the edge of this desert region. There's a small oasis, the base is hidden underground. Most of them are actually. There's a cave hidden in a large grouping of boulders. It's close to the water, but not right next to it. Within a half kilometer of the site to the north. Defenses are pretty much the same, seals near the entrance, and traps about sixty yards out in every direction. Covered pits mostly."

The old man seemed to consider it. "I see. I shall have my ninja look into it."

Raikage looked very firm and serious. "As will I. How do you know this?"

The golden animal looked at him. "Like I would tell anyone that. What does it matter? I'm a king, and I've got good sources. I've got reason to be interested in Sound's dealings and I've been watching them for a while now."

The two Kage blinked and looked at each other. Neither one seemed entirely satisfied with that answer.

Naruto looked towards the door and narrowed his eyes. "Heh." He was annoyed at Tsunade, and had gotten her attention more than once in the meeting he'd noticed. "Hey. You two guys can keep a secret right? She'll be pretty mad if she finds out about this."

Raikage nodded. "About what?"

Tsuchikage seemed very interested. "Yes. What is it?"

Naruto reached into his fur and slapped five photos onto the desk with his paw. "Pictures of the Fifth Hokage in the bath. Set of five, for three thousand Ryo."

The two men got very wide eyes and looked down at the pictures. Tsunade was quite nude, and sitting on the edge of a large bath pool in various positions that showed off her figure.

Tsuchikage wiped his chin and got very wide eyes. "Ooh!"

Raikage grinned and rubbed his hands together. "Deal."

Naruto chuckled and glanced at the old man. "How about it? She's got a hundred and six centimeter bust. Don't tell me that's not impressive."

The oldest Kage considered it. "Very well. I cannot pass up such an opportunity."

The fox seemed pleased and wagged his tails. "Just don't let her catch you with them."

Tsuchikage he handed over the money with Raikage. The old man glanced at the fox for a moment and peered at hsi photos. "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. You are a Kitsune after all."

Naruto nodded and let his tongue hang out. "Yeah. I'm king of the perverts." He seemed quite pleased with himself.

Any doubt Tsuchikage might have had about the validity of his identity was gone at that statement.

Raikage leaned towards Naruto. "If you ever get the opportunity, I would be willing to pay handsomely for photos like this of Mizukage as well."

The old man narrowed his eyes and nodded. "Yes. Agreed. She's quite beautiful, completely psychotic, but very attractive."

The gold fox nodded. "Really? Huh. I'll see what I can do, but no promises." He looked back and fourth between the two men. "Don't forget, she'll be pretty pissed if she catches you with these. She's got a short temper too."

Tsuchikage closed his eyes and mulled over that information for a moment. "Understood."

Raikage agreed. "Yes. She is no match for me, but I've no intention of provoking her."

OooOOooOO

Naruto growled a little as he looked at the seating. The seats were designed for humans, and he wouldn't fit comfortably into them. "Great." He didn't want to sit on the stairs, though his three guards were standing around him. There wasn't really anyone there yet, and the arena was still empty.

It was a very different set up than the arena in Konoha. It was a large pit, with logs planted into the ground as pillars, and an ankle deep pool of water on the bottom. There was a horizontal suspended log over the top of the pit, with a door on either side that the combatants would enter through. The poles in the ground below varied in height, but none were tall enough to reach the suspended log. The result was a lot of cover at the bottom, lots of footholds above the water, and an open face off to start the match.

He looked about at his trio of guardians and gave a heavy sigh. "Why not?" He closed his eyes and muttered under his breath. "Sexy no Jutsu."

Masara, Koruma, and Kira all blinked as they looked on at the blond girl who appeared before them. She was clothed in a simple kimono and pulled her forehead protector up to her forehead. "That works."

The redhead smirked at the scene. "Hey, that's pretty good, Highness."

The green haired girl nodded. "Yes. Very impressive."

The violet haired girl smiled as they took position around his seat. "You realize we're going to remember you can do this later, right?"

The young blond girl sucked in a quick breath and glanced around. The trio was giving him a rather wicked looking stare. "Hey. Cut it out. I am so not doing that. I'm a guy."

Koruma and Masara nodded. "So are we."

The blond frowned at them. "No dudes. I've got limits, and I'm not willing to negotiate."

Kira giggled. "That's okay. There's lots of fun things we can do even if we're all female."

The other two nodded and looked very pleased. "She's right," agreed the redhead.

Naruto scowled and regretted what he'd done. "Should have just sat on the stairs." He could tell already they weren't going to let it go, and it was already too late to take it back. He also had trouble putting up much resistance once they were nude and knew it. "Crap."

Then, his situation got worse. Other delegates were starting to arrive. The seats were filling up fast, and no one had noticed his transformation.

An older man with fine clothes moved up. "Well, hello. I've not seen you before." He looked to be in his forties and had a balding head with a ponytail tied up and fanned over his head. He opened a fan with a familiar symbol on it. A leaf pointing upright from a branch. "I am Mofune, the ambassador of Tea Country. Are you here with someone?" The man bowed to the blond and grinned at her and what appeared to be three rather attractive kunoichi guards.

"Not really." She looked annoyed, but the man didn't seem to notice. "I suppose it's..." She sucked in a quick breath and got a little wide eyed in disgust as he grabbed her hand and kissed it.

"It's unsettling to see such lovely ladies all alone at such an event. It's a brutal affair." He didn't notice her wipe her hand off on her clothes and glare at him in annoyance. "What is your name?"

The young blond glanced over his shoulder and was distracted. A familiar man with long blond hair and a bow hooked over his shoulder was standing with the man. He was wearing a forehead protector with the Tea Country symbol on it. The man noticed her gaze and turned his eyes away.

Naruto shook her head and looked at the older man. "Huh? Tea Country?"

The ambassador nodded. "Yes. Our nation is quite wealthy. It is a prosperous time indeed. Surely a woman such as yourself can appreciate the finer things in life?"

The young Jounin glanced over at the blond man with him. "A friend of yours?"

The older man frowned a little at his companion. "Yes, this is Kai. He is my bodyguard. A capable man, but his type is rather boring don't you think."

Naruto nodded and looked away again. The old guy was starting to creep her out a little. The last time she saw 'Kai' he was calling himself Tanuki. He gave her a nod and seemed less than interested in the conversation.

"Ah. Mofune. It is good to see you again." A thirty year old man with short cut brown hair in rich clothes with a cape moved up.

The older man narrowed his eyes and gave a fake looking smile. "Yes. It has been a while."

The new man glanced at the four women and noticed they weren't smiling. They also didn't seem upset, but it was clear the blond was being polite and nothing more. "Who is this lovely young flower?" He bowed and took her hand. Naruto's guard did little to block him, but kept position around her. The blond almost jerked her hand away, but suffered through it. "I am Iwaza, representative of River Country."

Yet another man appeared. "How boring." This time he had slicked back black hair and appeared to be in his young twenties. "I'm certain she doesn't wish to speak to such old men." He smiled at her and sniffed on a lily flower. "I am Iroda, of Marsh Country. I never expected to see such beauty at such an event. While I admit the women of Kumo have a certain allure, none of them can mach such flowers as these."

Mofune was clearly annoyed. "Huh. Such a poor land, with little to speak of that is of any worth."

Iroda snorted. "Marsh Country is well known for the passion of it's people, and the romantic prowess of it's men. Tea Contry is known for little more than surly sailors and bar maids."

Naruto gave him a small glare. "You've got something against bar maids?"

The man blinked in surprise. "Of course not. They serve their purpose and see to it that the common man's needs are met, as well as ensure that their lines continue."

Iwaza gave a small sigh and rolled his eyes. "Now, now. I'm sure this lovely young woman is less than interested in hearing about such droll subjects."

A new voice spoke up. "Looks to me like all of you are bugging her. Why don't you lay off?"

The group glanced back and noticed another young man with short brown hair and with a sword on his back. His clothes were neat and expensive, but not as flashy as the others. He had his feet kicked up on top of the seat in front of him and his hands behind his head. He was giving them a cool gaze and scowled.

Kai glanced back at him and nodded.

"Captain Kagome. I see that Valley Country can't afford to send anyone of worth, yet again." Iwaza gave a snort and lifted his nose. "Just a dirty soldier."

The young man smirked. "None of you idiots is getting laid you know. Not with this one."

Mofune snorted. "How crude. To suggest such a thing is an offense. If we weren't the guests of Kumo, I would have Kai gut you."

Naruto hadn't been able to get much of a word in, and his 'guards' weren't inclined to do anything but stand and watch. None of the people around 'her' were a threat. In fact, they were stifling chuckles and doing their best to look both sultry and serious at the same time.

Naruto looked at the newest one to speak up. "Captain Kagome?"

The young man nodded. "That's right. Kagome Izume, Captain of the Royal Guard of Valley Country." He simply nodded and didn't get up.

The young blond nodded. "A soldier then? I can respect that." She glanced at the group surrounding her.

The men frowned at the Captain. Iwaza was the first to speak up. "Yes. A simple man, no sophistication. I'm sure a woman of such culture would find such a man less than interesting."

Mofune looked like he wanted to shove him aside. "Tell us, from where do you hail? I didn't catch your name."

She smiled at him. "I didn't give it. You've all been talking, and it would have been rude to interrupt."

He blushed a bit.

Iwaza narrowed his eyes. "Then tell us, we're very interested."

Iroda nodded as well. "Yes. We've never seen you before. You'd be rather hard to miss. Miss?"

Kai spoke up and surprised Mofune a little. "Yes. I've never seen that symbol before. Forgive me if I speak out of place, but what country does it represent? I am not familiar with it."

Naruto glanced at him and narrowed his eyes a little. "Not at all." He didn't know him, and though he was working against Fire Country in the past, they were not enemies as far as he knew.

Kagome nodded. "Yeah. Where are you from anyway? I've never seen that symbol either, and I've been around a bit." He glanced at the group. "She's married you know. Not that it matters much to any of you."

Iwaza chuckled. "Not at all. Why should it?"

The young blond gave a small shrug. "I'm the ruler of Shadow Realm."

The men around her went very quiet. All of them looked shocked and had gone a little pale.

"S-shadow Realm?" Mofune stuttered.

Masara nodded. "Yes. Highness is the ruler of Kitsune and all of Shadow Realm."

The blond tossed her hair a little and stuck her nose up.

Izume gave a small snort. "Guess she probably doesn't care much either."

Kai narrowed his eyes at the young blond. "I wasn't aware that Shadow Realm had a current ruler."

Kira shrugged at him. "We don't relate much with humans."

Mofune was rubbing his hands together. "Well, If there's anything we can do to make your stay more comfortable?" It was obvious he was getting his hopes up.

Kai looked a little worried about that. He remained silent.

Naruto seemed to notice it. "I'm afraid I don't care much for males. The Captain is correct, and none of you is getting laid. It is nice to meet you all I suppose."

Kagome gave a small snorting laugh as he seemed to relax. "That's interesting. What brings you?"

The young blond looked back at him. "I've got my reasons. I don't really know any of you though. I'd rather keep them to myself." The boxes were almost filled, and she noticed quite a few of the men giving glances towards her and the three Kitsune guards with her. There were other women with some of the delegates.

"What are you lot doing? Hounding this girl?" A new voice spoke up. An aggressive looking and loud woman strolled up to the scene. "Perverts, clear off, the lot of you."

Mofune smiled over his shoulder. "Ah. Representative, Umi. It is pleasant to..."

A pretty woman with gray eyes and aqua colored hair growled at him. She was wearing an expensive looking dress and had her long hair pinned up. "You dried up old pervert. Get lost."

Iwaza moved up to put his arm across her shoulder. "Representative, Umi. You shouldn't be so cold."

The woman slapped his arm away. "You as well. Don't think I don't know what you're doing here." She slapped Iroda's hand away from her rear. "I said clear off."

Kai gave a heavy sigh and stepped between her and Mofune. "You know I can't let you hit him. Even if you do think he deserves it."

The woman calmed a little, she looked to be in her mid twenties. "Yeah. Well, if you want to protect him, tell him to find somewhere else to sit." She gave a heavy sigh and looked at the confused blond girl. Her three friends were all smiling at her. "You. I've not seen you before. Is this your first time? What country are you representing?" She continued to talk as she sat down. "You've got to be firm with those idiots or they won't respect you at all. Nothing but penises with legs. The lot of them."

Naruto cocked 'her' head and just looked on. "Who are you?" The men shuffled off looking annoyed with her.

"I'm Uzumaki Umi, the representative of Whirlpool Country."

"Umi! Good to see you!" Another voice, much more cheerful sounding piped up. A young brunette woman of about twenty three sat down next to the newcomer. She was wearing a tight skirt with fishnet leggings.

"Hello, Mizu. Nice to see you as well."

Naruto was wide eyed as he looked at the blue haired woman. "U-Uzumaki?"

The newest woman looked at her. "Who are you? I've not seen you before. I'm Mizu, representative of Wave Country."

The blond shook it off and glanced at Mizu. "I'm..." He caught himself before he mentioned his name. "...The ruler of Shadow Realm."

Both women looked at her with rather blank expressions.

Kagome was still sitting behind the scene in a relaxed pose. "So, you four are Kitsune then?" He seemed confident and relaxed and was friendly enough without showing too much interest.

Masara nodded. "That's right."

Umi glanced back. "Oh. Another pervert. Hello, Izume."

Mizu blushed and smiled at him. "Captain..."

The man simply lifted his hand and gave a small wave. "Hey. Been a while."

Kira seemed to notice that Naruto was distracted by the blue haired woman. "Uzumaki? I've heard that name before. Do you know anyone from Konohagakure?"

The woman glanced at her and frowned. "No. There's no one...not for a long time."

Masara nodded. "We're older than we look. Her name was Uzumaki Kushina, she was the wife of the Fourth Hokage."

Umi glanced at him. "I see. Yes. She was my sister."

Naruto looked away. "Older...sister?"

The woman frowned at her. "What's it to you? What's your name anyway?"

The young blond girl glanced at her and opened his mouth. "I'm..." He looked towards where the Hokage was sitting. There was a private observation box where she was sitting down next to Raikage opposite Tsuchikage. "..."

Mizu looked confused.

Umi was starting to get annoyed. "Spit it out then. What business of yours is it? Did you know Kushina or something?"

Naruto frowned. "I didn't know her."

Koruma nodded towards Masara. "The two of us are from around that area. We've heard of her, but we didn't know her. We only knew her as the wife of the Fourth."

The woman nodded. "I see. Yes. I'm afraid she left home when I was young. She died shortly after, and didn't stay in contact with the family after she left." She glanced at the blond girl again. "So, what's you're name?"

Naruto was drawing a complete blank. He couldn't think well enough to make one up on the spot and just worked his mouth for a moment.

"Don't have a name, do you?" Kagome spoke up and the group of women glanced back at him.

The blond glanced back at him.

Umi frowned at him. "Of course she does. Who doesn't have a name?"

Masara spoke up. "A lot of our kind don't. We're not human, and we recognize each other by our scent. Names aren't very useful to us. Some of us picked one up from interacting with humans, but we don't use them with our own kind."

Izume chuckled. "Watch out for Umi, she's got some sort of complex about perverts."

Kira blinked. "What for?"

"What kind of girl are you?" growled the blue haired girl.

"Total Sluts," replied the trio with the blond. Their leader rolled her eyes and put her face in her hands.

Mizu blinked and looked at Umi. "You're never going to get married if you keep this up."

She turned red and crossed her arms. "Who says I want to be? I don't need a man!"

Naruto looked uncomfortable and glanced at her. "I guess I can understand that. I don't care much for guys either." He didn't notice Umi look over at 'her' out of the corner of her eye and blush a little.

She noticed him giving her glances and settled into her seat a little more with a smirk forming on her face. "Don't like guys huh?" she thought to herself. "Interesting." Her grin got a bit wider and she let her top open up a little more as she tossed her hair. The young blond was giving her nervous and shy looking glances out of the corner of her eye and didn't seem to notice that she'd seen it. "Very interesting indeed. She's hot."

Izume considered mentioning that the young blond girl wasn't human, and was likely really male, but decided it would be more fun to not say anything. It did give him a moment of pause, it was an unusual thing for a Kitsune to say, even a male one. He'd met a couple in the past in his travels. Wasn't a bad memory either. Considering the looks the Whirlpool Country representative was getting from the blond one, it might do her a bit of good and calm her down. What she didn't know wouldn't hurt her, and the blond Shadow Realm 'girl' seemed to be interested in her.

If she was distracted, he might be able to get some time alone with Mizu. She knew the girl liked him, and Umi was a huge cock block.

The event was starting, and talking petered down in the observation deck.

OooOOooOO

TBC...

Next Time: The Final Exam!

This ended up being a bit bigger than I initially thought. The next chapter will focus on Ino, and the exam itself. Yes, Umi will be providing uncomfortable yet hilarious moments for Naruto later on.