So, because I got reviews I instantly started writing this chapter and managed to finish super early? Don't expect this to be a regular thing, but when I said that reviews fuel my writer's soul, I meant it.

So reviews fuel my writer's soul and you should feed it.

The further Kurama was dragged behind Naruto, the more he was proven right that the hatred to Naruto was village wide. This is probably one of the times he would have appreciated if he was wrong, but alas.

With the addition of Kurama though, the hatred wasn't as potent, and adding Iruka almost forced them to ignore him instead of lash out against Naruto.

Regardless of Iruka's suspicions of him, he was still Kurama's favorite person in Konoha. He briefly wondered if he told Iruka that, if it would fix his suspicion on him but decided against it. Maybe if Kurama gave him a flower it might pacify the shinobi, that was a thought for later though.

And again, Kurama was proven right in his deduction in that Naruto didn't live in a nice area. Normally, he was proud of being right, but in this case, being right was just sad.

Something he wouldn't mind being right about though is if Naruto's complex was for shinobi only, that wasn't sad, merely interesting. That also raised some questions, assuming Naruto had been living in this complex for awhile, if it was always like that or became that strictly because of Naruto.

The whole way, Iruka kept just a step behind Kurama, who was basically being dragged by Naruto. The red-head could physically feel Iruka staring and cataloging everything about him as they were walking. Kurama briefly wondered if anyone could spot the seeds in his hair, but probably not.

When they finally got to the building, Naruto let go, and stopped with his commentary. Naruto speaking the whole time stopped it from getting too tense, but it also proved in Kurama's head that Naruto didn't really like the silence. He wondered if Naruto would have been a commentator in his previous dimension.

Naruto had stopped in front of the office front door, a good couple of yards away. Making sure that he wasn't being seen through the window of the office. Naruto bit his lip but offered a falsely cheerful smile to Kurama.

So even his landlord didn't like him? Really made Kurama wonder at the state of Naruto's apartment, especially if something broke. That just kind of firmed his resolve to live here, Naruto might not be able to get a great experience in his own apartment, but Kurama was willing to open up his apartment to the boy.

"The landlord is in there! Iruka-sensei and I will wait out here for you so don't take too long!" Naruto chirped a little tensely while he took a few steps back to be right next to Iruka.

Iruka had angled himself in a way that was slightly defensive of Naruto but wasn't obvious as he gave Kurama a bland smile. Kurama's own smile became warm and he replied, "I'll try not to take so long."

He then turned and walked into the office.

Good news for Kurama, it seemed civilians were allowed in this complex as the landlord was clearly a civilian. Also going by the wall in the back that held extra keys for every apartment meant they weren't super strict. He did note though that some apartments were missing the extra key, which probably meant that shinobi were living in them.

Kurama gave his best customer service smile at the landlord before they got down to business; he did promise not to take too long.

Luckily for Kurama, because of where the complex was located, the price was well within his range if he was careful with finances for a bit. Kurama's smile did become a little strained, though the landlord couldn't tell, when he was offered an apartment next to one of their 'delinquents'.

It didn't take a genius to deduce that he was talking about Naruto; the price was even slightly lower than all the other apartments, as if they struggled to get people to live near him.

Good thing for Kurama though, he got to save even a bit more money while being close to the child he was coming to care as if his own.

Kurama's habit of taking his bag with him literally everywhere came into some good because he could give a down payment now and move in that very night. Looks like he won't be sleeping in a tree tonight, though he might just for the hell of it. Oh that was a thought, he could sleep in trees to mostly freak people out more than out of necessity from now on. Idea for later though.

As soon as he signed the contract and gave the money though, he was handed a key. The landlord also was quick to say that room changes weren't allowed within the first year; meaning he thought that Kurama would protest when he saw who he was next to and wanted to guarantee that there was still a resident there.

Kurama gave a bland smile before inclining his head and leaving the office. Wouldn't do to start a fight with his new landlord, though Kurama did figure he could probably leave something annoying behind, just not right now.

As Kurama was exiting the room, he heard Iruka hissing something to Naruto. He couldn't make out the words, but by Naruto's expression, it was probably about him. Unluckily for Iruka though, Naruto had grown to like Kurama quite quickly and Kurama hadn't done anything against the boy, which just cemented him in Naruto's good graces.

To be fair to Iruka, if the position was switched, he would probably be doing the exact same thing. He also would probably be leaving some special plants behind to watch though. As far as he could tell, shinobi did not have anything even similar to that, so Iruka was at a bit of a disadvantage.

As soon as Iruka spotted Kurama coming over though, he said something last before going quiet. Naruto looked disgruntled but nodded in agreement; probably to be careful around Kurama.

Kurama wondered if he informed Iruka that he was planning on adopting and spoiling Naruto, if that would help any. It probably could, but that would give away the game too early and that wasn't any fun. That and there was a possibility that saying something like that will just increase Iruka's guard.

Speaking of guard, there was his mysterious watcher. Oh, interesting, there is an extra in the area, probably for Naruto. Sensing via chakra was still slightly hard but using demon energy was easier and slightly clearer. He still attempted with chakra first to practice doing so, but his watchers were exceedingly good at hiding their chakra, so it was smarter to use demon energy until he figured out a way around that.

Kurama briefly wondered if seals were still the same. He had picked up sealing quite easily, and it didn't require a lot of chakra which helped immensely when he was first learning. Though, if the hand signs were the same, the sealing was probably super similar. Only difference was new techniques made due to how long it has been, but the fundamentals should be similar.

Going by the thought that sealing is probably the same or really similar, he could probably put some seals around his place now that he has a permanent residence. None of them were really fancy, but he was extremely knowledgeable in the basics so he could experiment and make his own (if he couldn't find any new examples).

Kurama wondered if there was a library. That would be really convenient if there was, but probably anything shinobi like was locked behind having to be a shinobi. He'll figure out something.

Finally though, Kurama was near them and held up the key to show them that he was successful.

Naruto's face immediately lit up and even the little bit of weariness that Iruka had seemed to part on the boy had simply vanished in the light of his joy and excitement of someone being nearby that cared for him.

Because of how closely Kurama was paying attention, he caught the minute scowl on Iruka's face before it smoothed out. He felt a little bad about how this was effecting Iruka, but it was entertaining to watch the man try to combat Kurama. Plus, as long as he didn't harm Naruto, Iruka would probably relax around Kurama (maybe he could inform Iruka that he was Kurama's favorite person in Konoha at that point).

"Yatta!" Naruto shout out while jumping in joy and fist pumping the air.

It took everything in Kurama to not send a smug look or smile at Iruka. He might be playing a game, but he's pretty sure, looking smug at all would push him into unredeemable territory. And as much as he enjoyed this, he didn't want to alienate the man; this was a man that was going to become his ally in the future, maybe even a friend.

He might be a fox demon and enjoy his games, but he was aware enough of when it was too much. It was a delicate balance that he had centuries to perfect (though learning against humans was only a couple of decades at this point). Demons were likely to get violent if you pushed too far, but humans could have a range of emotions and reactions so it was best to not even tempt them.

Kurama entertained the idea of inviting Iruka over once he had at least basic furniture but decided to sit on that thought. It would depend on how their interactions kept going.

Speaking of interactions, would he have an extra guard in this area constantly because it was where Naruto lived? Or would they get rid of his guard and stick with the one that seemed to be permanently on Naruto? Depending on the answers to those questions would determine how much the village was starting to trust him.

Instead, Kurama made eye contact with Iruka and dipped his head a little in acknowledgment. He was letting the shinobi know that Kurama knew that he was being suspicious and he was acknowledging that Iruka might come to watch him. (Might be better to ask his guard instead of watching separately, it'd be a waste of time for Iruka to watch him himself.)

Iruka tilted his head to the side just the tiniest bit, considering. His eyes softened just a fraction and he also nodded his head slightly to show that he understood the message.

Meanwhile, Naruto was talking a mile a minute about how awesome this was and bugging Kurama with where he now lived and when was he moving in.

Kurama let out a small laugh which made Naruto stop, give a sheepish laugh, and rub the back of his head. Naruto really was adorable and Kurama once again didn't understand the animosity against the boy.

"I am on the 3rd floor and I plan to be moving in right now. I tend to keep my stuff on me just in case." Kurama answered and then freely associated.

Iruka's eyes narrowed a little at that information but it didn't make him more suspicious. Naruto on the other hand had gasped in shock and joy and with a shout of "Yatta!" he grabbed Kurama's hand and started dragging him to the stairs to go up to his floor.

Kurama heard an exasperated sigh behind him and had to stifle a chuckle. Poor Iruka honestly, here this man was trying to keep Naruto safe and Naruto was dragging people all over the place.

When they got up to the floor though, Kurama's new apartment was first when going down this hallway. He had to gently tug on Naruto's hand to stop him before the boy flew past his new adobe.

Taking a quick glance to make sure Iruka was right there (he was), Kurama used the key and opened up the door.

Well, this honestly wasn't the worst apartment he's been in, so going by how suddenly he got it, it was acceptable. And it wasn't like this was his true home, this was just a permanent residence for when he's here in the village.

Kurama turned on the light and took a step inside. The door had immediately opened into the kitchen but a hallway was strictly to his right. He immediately went through the hallway, leaving the door open so that both Naruto and Iruka could come in.

On his left seemed to be the door to the bathroom and straight ahead was the bedroom. Peaking inside the bathroom he saw that there was a pretty big shower but immediately moved to the bedroom.

It was actually a good sized bedroom. For the price Kurama was paying, especially with the lowered price by being near Naruto, this was pretty decent.

He took his bag off of himself and laid it next to the door in the bedroom. If he was living here, might as well start to get comfy.

Moving back to the main room, he saw Naruto bouncing around pointing out all the things that was just like his own apartment. Iruka was nodding gamely but also scrutinizing the whole place and his eyes immediately went over to Kurama when he was coming out of the hallway.

"Well as you can see, I don't have much, but soon it'll be presentable to guests." Kurama tried to joke.

Naruto, obviously, laughed a little and seemed to bouncing in place, while Iruka couldn't quite stop himself from flashing a weary smile.

Oh? Looks like Iruka was warming up a little to Kurama, that was nice. He briefly wondered what had calmed down Iruka a bit more; maybe the fact that his apartment was completely baren and he didn't seem to have planned ahead proving his point of genuinely looking? Maybe the facts from Naruto that the apartment was exactly like his?

Either way, a gain for Kurama. Kurama's smile became a little warmer which he flashed over to Iruka.

Iruka was still weary and on guard, but Kurama could clearly see a little bit of tension had left his frame. Plan, 'Get Iruka as an ally and maybe a friend', was going great!

Naruto started babbling about how he should show Kurama his own apartment.

Here, Kurama faltered. Because as much as he wanted to see it, he had a feeling he wouldn't be happy about it and didn't have a place to really retreat to. "Maybe after I furnish my place alright?" Kurama suggested.

Naruto visibly deflated while Iruka shot Kurama a look. "But maybe you can still show Umino-san?" Kurama continued.

Naruto immediately perked up and turned towards Iruka with hopeful eyes. Iruka couldn't help but smile at his student and agree to go look. Naruto's smile was back full force and he was already leaving the apartment; Naruto really didn't delay on anything, did he.

Before both could fully leave though he called out, "You are both free to come visit whenever you feel like, just give me about a week to get some furniture so we aren't sitting on the floor."

Naruto shouted back an agreement, that was a little further away meaning he was already racing to his own apartment. Iruka paused in closing the door behind him.

Kurama was curious what Iruka was going to do or even say at this point. He was still much more weary of Kurama at this point than at the very beginning, but proving his crusade to find an apartment was genuine seemed to help some. Oh, the shinobi was still tense and wasn't really letting Kurama out of his line of sight though.

"It was nice to meet you Minato-san." Iruka finally settled on before leaving and closing the door.

Oh, Kurama has upgraded to names and pleasantries? That was very nice.

He didn't lie to himself that Iruka trusted him or even truly liked him, but at least the man wasn't borderline hostile and more neutral towards the red-head now. It would take a good while for Iruka to even like Kurama, let alone trust him, but this was a nice step forward.

Kurama wondered how much of this ease had occurred because of Naruto and his attitude, and how much was it just actual ease. Ah, that was a problem for later, because before Kurama laid out something to sleep on, he was determined to start growing some of his essential plants.

Even with no table, he carried around some pots, soil, and seeds in his bag. Some he had even picked up from Konoha. But he took out a few pots, a few essential seeds that he either needed immediately or were useful in the long run to have continuous and planted them.

With a little demon energy, he grew the plants to fruition. The plants weren't really happy in how small the pots were, and he had to manually direct the growing roots in a way that it could fit the small pot. But those pots wouldn't be for long; after he bought a bed, he was immediately buying some pots.

Kurama entertained the idea of growing some of his furniture (like the house grown out in the woods by both himself and a young Hashirama before leaving) but figured there wasn't enough space to do that without raising questions. He also vaguely remembered that very few people could effect plants with chakra, so showing he had that ability was probably a bad idea.

Plus it wouldn't do to randomly have furniture with no money trail, especially when he still has watchers.

At least things were looking up a little; after he fully settled and stayed for awhile though, he'd be leaving in search of his other children.