You Can Reclaim Your Crown

Summary: No one paid her much attention, Naruto's landlady, this woman who paid visits to the Uchiha compound with baskets of bread and fruit for the little Uchiha survivor. The woman who sat down to dinner with the Nine Tails Jinchuriki...who had befriended the silent Itachi, the impassive Kakashi...and had enraptured the hearts of Kushina and Minato...no one paid her any attention, until she's forced to act as a Shinobi of the Hidden Leaf Village once again.

Pairing: Kagome/?

Anime/Manga: InuYasha/Naruto

Genre: Romance/Spiritual/Adventure

Rated: M

-x-x-x-

Kagome grinned as she stared at the three in front of her. "It hasn't even been two hours...wow!" She opened her eyes and smirked, "I guess I should keep my eyes on you, Honorable Sand Nin."

"It's you..."

"I thought you were a Citizen!"

Kagome looked away from Kankuro who was eyeing her in apparent surprise. Looking to the oldest of the three, the young lady who was glaring at her. "Did I...say I was a citizen?" She laughed, "well, at the time, I guess I was. I was only inducted into the Shinobi way this morning, just before your First Exam started. So, you weren't wrong to assume..." she turned her back on the three and her eyes looked up at the large scroll on the wall. "Do you mind?"

The blonde glanced up at the scroll and frowned, "what? You want me to read that out loud?"

"Are you not able?" Kagome asked curiously.

A chuckle sounded from behind her and she noted Kankuro stepping forward and placating the female. "If Heaven does not exist, enrich your knowledge, and prepare for the chance. If Earth does not exist, run the fields in search of an advantage. Open the series of Heaven and Earth, and the perilous way shall be redressed. This is namely the secret of "the one that guides"..."

"So what, what is this?"

Again, she turned to the blonde, "they are Chuunin instructions that Old Man Hokage recorded...in this text, Heaven refers to the Human Head, while Earth refers to the Human Body. If "Heaven" does not exist, enrich your knowledge...in other words?"

"If you struggle with knowledge then you should give more attention to studying and learn various logics in preparing for your missions."

"If "Earth" does not exist, run through the fields in search of an advantage."

"So...if we are weak in physical strength, we should train diligently our bodies."

"That's right...this way, when you combine both Heaven and Earth, any perilous mission is the right way. In other words, what can also be called a Rule of Might and safely get you through a Mission."

"What about that missing letter there?" Kankuro asked curiously.

"That letter that's missing...refers to "Chuunin"." She stepped towards the two scrolls on the ground and lifted one, holding it out to show the blank spot in the middle of the summoning circle where "person" used to be. "The letter for "person" that was in the scroll earlier, goes where the missing letter is. You put yourself in that place..."

"..." the female of the team stared up at the text and frowned.

"What was your name?" Kagome asked the female for the second time since she'd met them.

The blonde turned to the woman and after a few moments of staring at her, she finally replied. "...Temari."

"Temari, Kankuro and Gaara of the Sand." She looked each over as she said their names, smiling, she gave into a little laugh, "you three passed with flying colors. I am afraid that the three of you will have to wait until the end of the given time, but you are the first ones to arrive, and that is something to be proud of." She picked up the second scroll and neatly rolled them both up, "I'm excited...I truly look forward to seeing the three of you participate in the Finals."

"What are the finals?" Temari asked as she watched the woman clean up the scrolls.

"You will have to wait to find out," she pocketed the last of the two scrolls and sighed, "now, I should go."

"Wait, you have to go already?"

Kagome glanced over her shoulder at Kankuro and smiled, "yeah...I have to report to Anko...why? You gonna miss me?" She winked, sticking her tongue out a bit in a teasing manner.

"N-no! I was just, what are we supposed to do for five days?"

Temari and Gaara watched Kankuro flush a bit in embarrassment. It was strange to see him like this, and neither new how to react to it. The woman, she was certainly stunning, but she seemed oblivious to his attraction, or maybe she thought it was a little crush. Who really knew?

"...hm...train? You could roam the tower, or sleep. I'm not sure really, travelling in groups, I never had nothing to do, so the prospect of sitting around and doing nothing is kind of foreign to me. I'm sure the three of you will come up with something to keep you occupied. Bye~!" She waved and puffed out of the room.

-x-x-x-

"Really amazing...those three." Kagome sighed, "I can't believe they finished before two hours were up."

Anko frowned, "that is impressive. They beat the previous record by five hours, easily. How did they look?"

Kagome tilted her head a bit, "hm, you mean...with injuries and such? None, they didn't have a scratch on them. No amount of sweat or strain to speak of. In fact, the only thing they were worried about...was how to waste their time for the next five days."

"Hm. Hey, what are your thoughts on those Rookie Nine brats?"

"Brats?" A smile found her, "I think they will be heavy hitters in this Exam. I am biased...I have a lot of faith in a good number of them."

"Besides Naruto?"

"Let's see...Naruto...I know he'll make it through the Chuunin Exam, and Sasuke too. I have faith in Shikamaru and Chouji, along with Sakura...I believe in all of them. I know, they will definitely pass this exam," Kagome made a tight fist, staring down at it as she thought of all the Rookie's contending in the Chuunin Exam.

"You really love these kids," shaking her head, she sighed, "I'm not really a kid person, but...they are the future of Konoha...so, they can't be that bad."

"You don't want children?"

"I see we've gotten past that awkward stage in our relationship," Anko laughed, "asking if I want children..." she leaned back and stared up at the sky. However, where an answer was supposed to be, she gave none.

Kagome watched her for a bit and smiled, leaning back on her hands, she took in the fluffs of clouds that languidly floated over their heads. She knew better than to ask that kind of a question, really, she and Anko weren't that close anyways. The silence was welcoming, and the two basked in it for a good number of odd hours, well into the night. Kagome thought about Shippou, she thought about Naruto, and their great many similarities. How much she loved them, and how much she'd be willing to give up for them...she knew she couldn't do much for Shippou anymore, but she still had Naruto. All that she had, she would throw it away in a heartbeat to keep him safe and happy. How foolish, how reckless...she didn't care. Sasuke was another story all together. She had no doubt that she would do the same for the youngest Uchiha, but at what cost...what if there was a conflict of interest between Naruto and Sasuke. No, not likely to happen. No matter what, those two were brothers, and they would tackle this life together going forward.

"You asked...if I had ever wanted children."

Kagome hadn't expected an answer, so her surprise came off heavily as Anko stared up at the sky and seemed to be thinking about something from a long time ago. "I considered it...loosely, I did. However, I wasn't in the right state of mind back then. I was young, really young, and...really foolish."

"What did you want?"

"A little boy...like I said, I entertained the thought. My sensei...yeah, don't laugh!"

Kagome smiled, but didn't laugh. "Why would I? Have you seen the Sensei's in Konoha? They aren't exactly unattractive...I would be more surprised if some of these students didn't give into such thoughts."

"Well, my Sensei was a little bit...unorthodox, but I admired him, and... adored him. I wanted to make him happy, and so, I followed him foolishly...until I couldn't follow him anymore. He left me...when I couldn't do what he needed."

"I'm sorry..."

"Nah, don't worry about it. That was so many years ago, it's hardly relevant anymore. What about you? Ever want kids?"

"I have kids...I have...Naruto and Sasuke."

"They think of you like a mom?"

"Hm..." Kagome stared wondrously at the moon, "I don't know. However, the way I feel about them...is that of a mother or sister...though, every once in a while, I kind of feel like one of their friends. Covering up for their "less than ideal" antics."

The two laughed, falling into a carefree conversation as they talked about the kids and the Exam. The troubles that were soon to come were carried on the wind with a promise of heartache, but neither were aware.

-x-x-x-

Me: Chapter 23 is up! Hope you guys don't mind, but I won't be focusing on the Exam too much as...one can only rewrite the exam so many times before they get tired of it. Anyways! I will still be grazing it, but I won't go into full detail of it! Love you all, leave me reviews and...SHOP Mr. Beast, if you don't know him, pay his Youtube a visit, Mr. Beast is astronomically Charitable and donates tens of thousands of dollars to homeless shelters all the time! Support him, and his cause! You know I don't normally advertise for others, but...this kind of work means a lot to me, and so he has my full support! Review guys!