The fox stared at the boy in her paw for a few moments. Thoughts raced furiously through her head. What was happening? Who was this boy? Why was he there? why was he like that? What was she supposed to do?
The blond's breathing was shallow, and the hug on her paw was getting looser and looser.
The fox grimaced slightly, and soon, a sigh escaped her lips as she saw him about to faint.
She wrapped the little boy in one of her tails and lifted him gently into the air, placing him on her back. It had been a long time since she had felt lost and confused like that.
There was no human camp nearby, except for mercenaries, probably. And they were definitely not an option to leave that child.
Especially in such a... deplorable state as that.
Staring at the bloodstained ground once more, the fox starts walking towards the cave she called home.
It would take a while to reach the depths of that cave. Under normal conditions she wouldn't mind taking a few hours to get to her sleeping place, but this situation was rather special, so she decided to hurry a little more.
The cave was surrounded by giant and dangerous creatures, and the deeper she went, the more dangerous these creatures were.
Creatures and animals that she frightened by her mere presence, and considering how deep she "lived", she didn't have to worry about unwanted visitors.
Reaching her "lair", she placed the boy gently on the ground and looked around for a few seconds.
Placing her hand on his body, the fox began to transfer a small amount of her chakra to him, enough to heal him.
She couldn't help but grimace. His condition was as bad as it looked. Adult humans probably couldn't have walked in that state, or forced themselves to.
So for a child, and especially for a human, that was surprising.
What surprised her the most, were the cut wounds on his body. Not accidental cuts, but blade cuts... or rather claw cuts.
She knew claw wounds anywhere. Especially that wound on his back. And that puzzled her somewhat.
As soon as she finished healing him, she stared at him. He was still quite dehydrated and malnourished.
There was water there, but no food. Sighing, the fox turned and walked towards the exit of her small den.
The little blond boy sighed lightly as he realized that he had woken up. Relieved, despite his precarious state. He himself had thought he would be dead by now.
Especially after seeing a being as... menacing as that one, just before he fainted.
His memory was still a little hazy, getting clearer as time went by, but the image of the huge fox never seemed to leave his mind.
He had never seen something so terrifying, so... majestic. The swaying of its nine tails seemed to hypnotize him, even in his memory.
The beautiful red fur, so menacing, so beautiful.
And those crimson eyes, which followed his every step.
Of all the creatures he had met in the forest, this one was by far the most beautiful.
His thoughts were interrupted when he noticed the incessant sound of dripping water not far away.
It was as if a snapping sound had echoed through his mind, and he remembered that he was literally dying of thirst.
The blond boy didn't even realize that all his wounds were healed. He just focused on the sound of the water drops.
The boy didn't even bother with the unknown place, his eyes just focused on a kind of lake further ahead, surrounded by unknown rocks that shone throughout the cave, these same rocks with different colors, one more beautiful than the other, being the only sources of light there.
The lake had two small waterfalls, one coming from some unknown place from above, probably the surface, and one going to some other unknown place downwards.
Quickly, the boy ran to this lake and sank his head into the water, enjoying that refreshing feeling both outside and inside his body.
Naruto only removed his head from the water when he could no longer hold his breath. The blond boy let out a long, relieved sigh after drinking all that water, and closed his eyes somewhat gently for a while.
Soon, he opened them, and stared at his reflection. His face was still a little dirty, still had dried blood in some places.
The wounds that once burned like hell were nothing more than scars. Some had not even left a trace that they had existed.
His mind went fuzzy, and he clenched his eyes slightly.
- You woke up faster than I thought.
An extremely deep and frightening voice came from behind the boy, who felt his whole body tremble and his skin tingle as he heard it.
With a certain fear he turned around, and his eyes immediately widened as he faced the huge fox that was slowly approaching.
Every step taken by this almost divine being was majestic. Every slightest movement of its tails contained a certain magnificence in the boy's eyes that he simply could not look away from.
All the fear he had once felt had disappeared, and gave way to admiration.
The fox was even curious... the boy's blue eyes seemed to glow as he stared at her.
As she approached, the fox bent down, standing right in front of the blond boy.
- I don't know what you're doing here, kid, but I warn you - he interrupted her.
- Beautiful.
The boy whispered without realizing it, but despite the weak tone in which he said it, the fox listened very well, and couldn't help but be surprised.
Of all the words she had ever heard spouted in her direction, "beautiful" was not among them.
She could not even remember the last time she had heard something nice said about her, with pure and sensible intentions.
She and the boy stared at each other for some time. The blond for not being able to look away, and the fox for being extremely... intrigued.
Naruto seemed to realize what he had said, and soon, his cheeks were flushed and he shrank a little, embarrassed.
The fox sighed and stood up, without looking away from the boy.
-... Eat. You were, and still are, in bad shape.
She turned, and with her tail, placed in front of Naruto a large quantity of various fruits, and even some animals that she had hunted
The boy's eyes shone when he saw the enormous amount of fruit at his feet, and it didn't take long before he began to eat, ignoring the animals beside him.
The fox watched him from afar, that feeling in her chest still hadn't disappeared.
Everything about this boy was still a mystery, and intriguing.
He had no experience at all in fighting, that she knew just by feeling his presence. But he had an exceptionally strong body, he proved this by surviving whatever he went through, by moving even with broken bones, and most of all, by healing him. She could feel it.
And he had a huge chakra reserve, surprisingly large... for a child with no experience, of course.
Sighing, the fox closed her eyes somewhat tightly.
Could it be that the boy was a prisoner of mercenaries who had managed to escape? It made sense since there were mercenaries around the area... nah, it didn't seem to be the case.
Nobody would go into that forest without a good reason. A forest as well known and feared as that one didn't attract many tourists.
Especially children who had no chance of surviving there.
"Why did I bother to help him? Humans are not worth it..."
She opened her eyes again, staring at the ground.
"... But it's not fair for me to judge him for the actions of others of his race... argh"
She closed her eyes again, getting stuck in her thoughts, reliving old memories.
"... Hmpf... beautiful is it?"
The fox's thoughts were interrupted as she felt light, timid touches on her paw. And soon, her gaze focused on the boy in front of her.
She had been so immersed in her mind, she didn't even notice when he moved.
- What do you want?
Her tone sounded a bit more... rude, than she had really intended. It was not something she could control.
- I...err...thank you...for the food, and...and for helping me.
He put his arms behind his body, a bit awkwardly, and with some hesitation in his eyes.
The fox stared at him for a while, and rested her head on one of her paws, disguising her feelings.
To be called beautiful, and still be thanked on the same day... she was definitely not used to that, to the point of even finding it strange.
-You don't have to thank me, I -He interrupted her again.
- Yes I do... you didn't have to go get me food... or you could have just left me in that place.
His blue eyes shone in a strange way to the fox's eyes.
-... Hmpf, what makes you think I got this food for you?
Sapphire blue and crimson red looked at each other, both with a certain gleam in their eyes. The fox could tell that his eyes were somehow wise... there was something in his gaze, a cleverness, perhaps... was that the right word?
- Wasn't it?
He asked after a while, and the fox narrowed her eyes. Why was he playing dumb?
-... Don't you... feel afraid of me?
she asked, still not believing what she was feeling.
The boy had not a trace of fear in his body, in his eyes... in anything.
-... At first... yes. But now... why should I? You helped me... if you wanted to kill me, or hurt me, you would have done it already, or you wouldn't have healed me.
- That is childish thinking... I may have healed you simply to hurt you to my liking.
- But you won't do that... you don't want to. Just as you didn't want to kill those men before.
She widened her eyes slightly... did he see that? Maybe she didn't notice him because of his extremely weak presence.
-... Anyway... how did you end up in this place?
She didn't want to ask too many questions, but inside she couldn't contain her curiosity.
The boy squeezed his wrist with some force, and lowered his gaze.
- I... my parents ran into some enemies while we were traveling. They fought, an explosion happened and... I was thrown off that cliff.
The fox narrowed her eyes again... he wasn't telling her everything... but did it matter?
- Hm, hard to believe a brat survived all that... how old?
- Six.
- Even younger than I thought. Well, if this happened yesterday, or the day before, your parents can't be far behind. This forest is cursed, and the locations change frequently. But, you still have a chance to find them.
"However small it may be."
She yawned, not very willing to take the boy to places close to human movement, especially since she couldn't get very far from there, but, she had nothing better to do anyway.
And her inner self wasn't too willing to leave a child in that place either.
- I... I don't know how to get to where we were going. I only know the name. Konoha.
The fox stared at him. That forest was far away from everything, any village, city or whatever. And as she herself had said, the forest changed frequently because it was cursed.
The chances of him alone finding that forest were extremely low.
- Not to mention... I don't know if they will be looking for me... especially after so long.
- It's only been a few days, if your parents love you, they won't give up on you easily.
- It's been a few weeks now.
The fox was surprised, and her eyes narrowed as she watched the boy.
"Weeks? No way this kid could have survived all this on his own."
- Don't play with me boy, I don't like jokes like that.
- But I'm not kidding... at least, from what I can tell, I've been here a little more than thirty days... maybe.
She stared at him for a while... he wasn't lying.
-... Impossible for you to have survived here alone without any experience in battle, so how?
- Like you said, the forest changes... when I got good enough to move, I walked in some random direction, until I found a... strange green fruit.
The fox closed his eyes.
- What did it taste like?
Naruto *fuzzy eyes*- Honey, why do you ask?
The fox sighed.
- Honeyfruit. That explains how you survived after the fall. It is a fruit that heals most of your injuries, strong enough to heal even broken bones. You are lucky, it is a rare fruit, and because of the constant changes in the forest, extremely hard to find.
The boy's eyes widened in surprise.
- Ah, now that makes sense. Well, I kept walking, staying close to the cliff because I wanted to go back to the road, but... I bumped into a snake. A very big snake, it was green and very scary. I ran, as fast as I could, but it was very fast. And that was the first time the forest changed.
The fox laid her head on her two legs, and the boy sat down in front of her. He felt strangely comfortable there.
Perhaps it was because she was the friendliest beast he had encountered since he had woken up.
- The snake disappeared... and I walked again for... days. I drank water from lakes, or puddles of water I found, ate the fruits that came to me... and... and the carcass of some animal at some point.
He bowed his head, feeling like vomiting just imagining that scene again.
- Only after a few days did I realize that the forest was constantly changing. That's when I started to encounter more and more creatures. Bears, tigers, panthers, giant insects, snakes... even things I had never seen before in my life. Many times, this change in the forest saved my life, and other times, it was by sheer luck.
They were silent for a while, until the fox sighed softly.
- Impressive. Perhaps you are the luckiest human I have ever met... - "or simply fierce... your mind seems to be much tougher than your body"
-I was running away from a creature, just before I found you... but I hadn't found food or water for some time. The creature knocked me to the ground with a ranged attack... that's when the forest changed again, and I saw you and those men. I heard you give them the chance to leave, and so I approached.
He stared deep into her eyes, and the fox scratched her head.
- Certainly, very lucky.
-Those men... did they meet you because of the forest too?
- No, they knew where they were going.
The boy arched an eyebrow.
- Knew? How so?
- They had someone who could pass through the distortions of this forest.
- Get through? And how did they do that?
The fox stared at him... curious.
- Ninjas trained in illusions... are able to maintain a barrier that prevents the forest from changing, at least, where they are going through. Stronger ninjas are even able to control these distortions, often, nukenins come to this forest precisely because of this. Many animals here have already adapted, so they are not affected either.
The boy's eyes seemed to glow.
- Oh, so that's why it hasn't changed for me yet? Is it because you are here?
-... Yes.
They were silent again, both trapped in their thoughts.
The boy hugged his legs and rested his head on his knees.
The fox closed her eyes for a while.
- So... what are we going to do?
He broke the silence.
- We?
- I mean... what should I do?
- I... I don't know... what do you want to do?
- Find my parents.
He said for the first time with complete seriousness, and despite the conversation just now, the fox could see the boy's desperate and lost eyes.
It was not for nothing, a child of that age, alone in that place...
- Could you... could you help me?
He asked a bit gracelessly, and the fox gave him a strange look, which made the boy cringe.
- I shouldn't have asked, you've already helped too much... sorry.
- It's not that... taking you out is no problem at all. The point is... I can't leave.
The blond man stared at her, surprised and confused.
- What do you mean?
- I can't go far away from this cave. I have been trapped here for hundreds of years... I am the reason this forest is cursed. My physical body cannot leave here.
- But... you are the nine-tailed fox... who could keep you here?
The fox stared at him this time, also slightly surprised.
- Hm... I didn't know you knew me.
- Everyone knows you, you are in a lot of books... but they always say you are a cruel and merciless demon, who knows nothing but destruction and death... they are wrong. You are not like that.
The fox's eyes sparkled.
What a... intriguing boy... too intriguing for her liking.
- Stop your childish thoughts. I can be all those things you said if I want to be. You don't know me, kid.
- You haven't destroyed anything or killed me in the time I've been here. Besides, in the book they say that you are an irrational monster that annihilates everything it sees. Apparently, the books don't know you either.
Blue and Red faced each other again, in an intensity in which both seemed to even forget the space around them, focusing only on the colors of their eyes, until the fox broke eye contact.
-A man, very powerful, stole the powers of another man, equally powerful, and with some... divine help, trapped me here. Cursing the forest in the process. On one hand, it was actually good, the humans stopped trying to search for my power.
She sighed.
- Anyway, the thing is... I can't get away from here, believe me, I've tried countless times. So, I can't help you, even if I want to.
The boy lowered his head, and his eyes lost focus as they stared at the floor.
A few timid tears streamed down his face.
Since he had arrived there, he hadn't cried... he hadn't had this opportunity.
- What am I going to do now?
He said in a broken voice, choked with tears, hugging his legs tighter and resting his forehead on his knee, hiding his face.
The fox stared at him for a while, feeling, for the first time in a long time, sorry for a human.
Thousands of thoughts ran through her mind, and once again, a sigh escaped her lips.
She was feeling a lot of emotions that day... to the point of being uncomfortable.
Precisely because she had thought those emotions had died a long time ago.
-... Your body is healed, but your mind is tired... rest, boy. We'll talk another time.
The fox got up and walked towards the exit, feeling Naruto's gaze on his back.
- Where are you going?
- Hunting.
She answered simply, feeling the boy's presence stirring.
- Wait, what is your name?
She stopped, and looked over her shoulder at him.
- Just call me what you humans are used to. Don't go away, there are still predators in this cave.
The fox came out of her cave, but she could still hear his yelp.
- Mine is Naruto! Did you hear me?! Naruto!
His voice echoed through the empty cave, and the fox sighed, not even believing the small, involuntary smile that was born on her lips.