Natsumi summoned the scroll, then unrolled it and began to look it over again, studying it carefully for a while, but glancing back up as Hasu and Kanna laughed and looked over the book. She let out a short breath, then looked back to the scroll for a while, unable to focus.

"Studying?" Kiri sat beside her with her knees drawn up. She raised a brow at the scroll in the girl's hands. "Are you trying to learn that already?"

Natsumi jumped at her sudden appearance, then sighed and leaned back against the wall.

"Aito said that I should at least be familiar with it, even if I can't do it yet. But it's so complicated." She bit her lip. "How did you learn it?"

"Well…" Kiri looked up. "I was fifteen. It took me a while to master, honestly." She paused and frowned. "It wasn't until after a particular mission that I was able to do it. And then, it felt almost natural to me, to be unseen."

"Natural?" Natsumi repeated back.

Kiri's smile faltered and she looked away, shrugging. "As you already know, I'm not the best at teaching. Aito and Jiro are best at that technique."

Natsumi shuddered slightly and bit her lip.

That's right… I did see him today. She glanced toward the small bag beside her. I still don't understand what he meant by 'the right friends.'

"You saw Jiro before, right?" Kiri's voice lowered and she looked toward the bag. "Did he give you that?"

Natsumi nodded and passed the bag to her. Kiri peered inside and then frowned.

"That's… odd."

"I thought so, too." Natsumi took back the bag and rolled the scroll up. "It doesn't make sense that he would collect the pieces like that."

"Eh…" Kiri rubbed her head. "He's got a weird thing for masks."

"Has no one really seen his face?"

Kiri shook her head. "Not a single soul, as far as I know. Even when he's not on missions, he always wears a mask." She crossed her arms. "I've seen him in over twenty different ones before, but that's been all the times I've happened to see him outside of headquarters. It probably wouldn't come as a surprise if he has a whole room of masks."

"I wonder why he's like that." Natsumi stared at the bag and Kiri shrugged.

"I asked him once, a long time ago. All he said was 'a mask makes me who I am.' I left it at that."

"What a creepy guy." Natsumi mumbled and drew her legs in closer to wrap her arms around them.

"And, don't feel paranoid, but…" Kiri leaned in closer to her. "Ever since we got back from our mission, he's been pretty… chatty. About you."

"About me?" Natsumi bit her lip.

"All he's said was that you've impressed him, but he won't shut up about being intrigued by you." Kiri paused and crossed her arms. "Although, it's weird for him to praise anyone so much. If it was coming from anyone else, I wouldn't have a problem with it. But Jiro being… Jiro… it concerns me a bit."

"It's probably nothing." Natsumi shrugged and averted her eyes.

I guess they don't know about those two assassins, then? It's probably better that way.

"Probably." Kiri stretched, then looked over at Hasu and Kanna before grinning and moving over to sit near them. "Oh, this is my favorite part!"

Natsumi watched them for a moment, then lowered her eyes and pulled her legs in closer.

Orochimaru's here. Oto is dangerous and scheming something. Danzo is interested in Kanna. And now Jiro thinks that I'm so amazing just because I lost control and killed those people.

She bit her lip and closed her eyes as she sighed.

And Naruto is in the middle of a really dangerous place, surrounded by people who would kill him without hesitation, and he won't be back for another few days. I don't know where I'm supposed to begin handling all of this.

"Natsumi." Hasu gently touched Natsumi's shoulder as he sat in a squat beside her, smiling as her eyes opened.

"Hm? Hasu?" She blinked and sat upright.

"You fell asleep." He laughed quietly and she blushed and rubbed her eyes.

"I did? Sorry." She sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

Since when do I just fall asleep like that around people?

"You do not need to feel self-conscious about it. We started to read many different books, and it has gotten late." He glanced over his shoulder, where Kiri was asleep with her head resting on her arms at the table, and Kanna was asleep on the ground with a book still in her hands. He smiled and looked back at her. "She is as much of an avid reader as I am."

"That's great." Natsumi mumbled. "I'm glad that you have a new friend."

He watches her carefully with a small smile, and the sliding door opened. Natsumi's eyes widened slightly and they stood quickly and she bowed her head slightly.

"Lord Third."

"Good evening, Lord Hokage." Hasu smiled and bowed his head.

Hiruzen looked at Kiri, who blinked and sat upright as she rubbed her eyes, though Kanna remained asleep on the ground.

"Hey, old man." Kiri yawned and stretched.

"Good evening to all of you." He clasped his hands behind his back. "I appreciate you coming to visit with Kanna. She will need friends nearer to her age as she begins to heal and adjust to life here."

"It is no trouble." Hasu smiled and looked toward the girl as she slept. "We had a pleasant time."

"It's late now, so I should get you back to that inn." Natsumi rubbed her head and sighed.

"That won't be necessary."

"Lord Third?" Natsumi furrowed her brows and turned to him. "What do you mean?"

"I have already spoken with the guards. I've arranged to have the prince stay here, at my estate as well."

"I would stay here?" Hasu asked after a pause.

"Is there a problem?" Hiruzen looked at the boy, who shook his head.

"No, of course not. I was merely curious as to why."

"In light of recent events, I believe that it would be easier to guard both you and Kanna here if you remain in the same location."

"Guard?" Kiri crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. "Damn. It seems like the old man is finally taking this seriously."

"I understand." Hasu nodded. "Thank you for your concern, Lord Hokage." Hasu paused again, then ran his fingers through his hair. "However, mister Jian at the music shop asked if I could help him out. I would very much like to do it."

"I see." Hiruzen touched his chin in thought. "Very well, you will be permitted to leave the estate for that purpose, but you will have a guard accompanying you, though unseen."

I guess that rules me out. Natsumi crossed her arms and puffed her cheeks. Because I still can't figure out how to do that Jutsu.

"I understand." Hasu glanced at Natsumi from the corner of his eye, who was too lost in thought to notice him. He glanced back to the Hokage and met the man's eyes. "If I may, Lord Hokage, I also have one more request."

"What is it?"

"I would like for Natsumi to spend the night as well, perhaps for the next few nights."

Natsumi blinked, hearing her name, and blushed and quickly turned to him. "W-What? Why?"

Hiruzen raised his brow and Hasu cleared his throat.

"If I am to primarily stay here, she has promised to teach me the basics of Chakra control and self-defense. It would be convenient if she did not have to commute." He paused and glanced toward her with a small smile. "This way, I would be able to dedicate more time to training."

"Hm…" The Hokage thought for a moment and then nodded. "Miss Uzumaki may stay here as a guest for a few days if she wishes."

They turned to look at Natsumi, who bit her lip for a moment.

Well, it's not as if I have anything better to do…

"I don't have a problem with it."

"Then it's settled." Hiruzen nodded and began to turn away. "I'll have another room prepared."

"Thank you, Lord Hokage." Hasu nodded as the man left, and he smiled at Natsumi. "Should we continue the lesson from before?

Natsumi let out a sigh as she settled down onto the futon and drew the covers up to cover the lower half of her face.

I'm having a sleepover at the Sarutobi estate… and I'm not sure why.

She closed her eyes and her body relaxed, though her thoughts continued to flow.

It was kind of awkward, sitting around with Hasu as he read the books about Chakra. He retains everything so quickly from reading alone. He didn't even need my help with anything.

She glanced toward the sliding door, where Hasu slept in the adjoining room.

Why did he even want me to stay here, anyway? He doesn't need me to teach him the information that he's already reading, and there are plenty of guards here that my presence is irrelevant. So… why, then?

She rolled over onto her side and made a face.

I still haven't been able to think of a way to remove this seal from my tongue or to get that snake seal off of Hasu. The Hokage already knows that Orochimaru is here, but not that Oto is a dangerous, borderline traitor. Who knows what she is even planning? And Danzo… I don't know much about him, but he's bad news, too. What would he even do with Kanna if he got her?

Natsumi furrowed her brows and rolled onto her back again.

Just thinking about this gives me a headache. What am I supposed to do?

There was a long, stagnant silence and Natsumi slowly began to close her eyes when Hasu spoke softly from the other side of the door.

"Are you awake?"

She looked toward the door and nodded. "Yeah. Do you need anything?"

"No, nothing in particular." He paused. "I am just unable to fall asleep. Is it the same for you?"

"Yeah…" She bit her lip. "There's a lot on my mind."

"Why did you come here for the night?" Hasu asked quietly from the other side of the door.

"You wanted me to." Natsumi furrowed her brows slightly.

And Lord Third agreed to it so quickly, so I didn't feel that I could have refused.

"I do apologize for how I did not speak to you about it beforehand. You must have felt pressured to stay. That was not my intention."

"It's fine."

"Still, if the idea made you feel uncomfortable, you could have said so." Hasu went quiet for a moment. "Was there a different reason that you agreed to stay here for the night?"

Natsumi let out a deep sigh.

"That's because… all my life, it's only ever been Naruto and I against the world. Every single day, we were together. Even when we were put into separate classes, after causing trouble, we still saw each other a lot." She smiled faintly. "Iruka-sensei and I scolded him a lot for it, but it made me happy when he would sneak out of his class to find me during recess or lunch. I rarely had to be alone." Her smile faded and she gripped the blanket tightly. "Even when I was bullied, he always showed up at the right time to save me. I relied on him for everything."

"In what ways?"

"For protection." She paused again. "I was a weak crybaby. I hated violence, and I didn't even want to be a Shinobi. I was bad at everything, and all that made me an easy target for bullies. But Naruto would always show up, throw some punches for me, and end up getting hurt while he took the blows meant for me."

Natsumi's eyes stung and she closed them hard for a moment.

"I used to be too afraid to sleep alone, too. I was afraid that a monster lived under my bed, so I would always crawl into bed with Naruto, crying and begging him to protect me. I did that during storms, too, but he never laughed at me for being scared. He would hold me close and rub my head, talking to me over the thunder and rain until I fell asleep."

"You have a very caring, wonderful brother." Hasu smiled to himself. "I can see why you are so close to him."

"I rely on him too much." She admitted softly. "I'm not afraid of everything like I used to be, but… I can't even fall asleep at night or sleep soundly without hearing his breathing from the other side of the room. I guess that's partly why I agreed to stay here. It's easier for me to sleep somewhere else than to sleep at home when he's not there."

"I see." He glanced toward the door that separated them. "There is nothing wrong with that. For a long time, I was unable to fall asleep without hearing my mother play music before bed. I am used to it now, but it took me several months to adjust to it, after she died."

There was a long silence from the other side of the door and Natsumi turned to look at it.

Did he fall asleep?

"Would it be terrible of me if I said that I'm not sure anymore if I want to return home?"

Natsumi blinked at the door, pressing her lips together at the question. "…I don't think that's terrible of you."

Hasu laughed under his breath.

"Part of me wants to stay in the Leaf. The air here does not feel so tense, and there are so many more opportunities and freedoms. I would no longer have to worry about any of my old burdens again." He paused. "More than that, though… I don't know if I can return home. I have many memories there, especially of my mother and me, however…"

There was another pause and Natsumi's eyes stayed fixed on the door.

"I may have been blindfolded, but I could still smell. I'd never been around death before, though I recognized it right away. I'm not sure if I'll be able to walk those halls again without that smell returning to my thoughts."

Natsumi bit her lip and closed her eyes for a moment.

He lost everyone and everything that he cared about. I haven't been thinking about how he was affected by it, because he's seemed so… content. But now that I think about it, isn't he just trying to not think about it by keeping busy? All those books and questions, and his curiosity to visit every inch of the Village and learn about Ninjutsu… he's all just doing that to stay sane, isn't he?

"It feels almost selfish of me to admit that out loud." Hasu broke the quietness. "After all, you were the one who had to experience it firsthand, risking your own life in the process to rescue a pampered prince like me. I didn't have to see it with my own eyes."

"You're not selfish," Natsumi muttered. "And, I don't blame you if you wouldn't want to go back. If we're being honest… I don't think I ever want to look at that castle ever again."

"No one will say what happened. Even your friend Kiri and the Lord Hokage spoke very carefully in my presence." Hasu paused. "Natsumi… what took place there? In the events leading up to when we met?"

Natsumi swallowed hard. "I don't…" She shook her head. "I can't say."

"But—"

"And I never want to." Natsumi interrupted. "It was…" She paused to swallow the lump in her throat as it formed. "What I saw, it wouldn't have been even in my worst nightmare. Even if I was allowed to tell you… I wouldn't."

"I understand."

There was another long pause.

"They're all dead, aren't they?"

Natsumi opened her mouth, then shut it quickly.

"I think I've known for all of this time, but I never consciously acknowledged it."

"Hasu—"

"To be honest, I think that I… sensed it, somehow. I was in that cell, half-asleep, and I suddenly felt wide awake. The air felt so heavy, and every part of my body felt as if it was crushed by it. My chest ached, and then, I simply felt cold. I had no explanation as to why I felt so strange so suddenly… but I think now… that was the moment that they died." He paused again. "My father… my brothers… the servants… I think that for so many to die at once, I was able to feel it."

"I'm sorry." Natsumi choked out quietly, biting her lip to keep back her tears.

"I don't know what would be the right course of action for me." Hasu continued. "What could be left for me in that place? I was never raised to follow in my father's footsteps, yet here I am, the only one left. At least if Ryuji had been the one to survive, instead of me… everything would be in good hands."

Natsumi frowned slightly. "…Now you're saying selfish things."

"Huh?"

She sat up and opened the door, meeting his eyes. "We all fought to save you. We risked our lives to honor our agreement and to rescue you. I risked my life to rescue you. Yes, it was our mission, but I wanted to save you because it was the right thing to do. Because you have value. Saying that you wish you had died is an insult to everyone who fought so hard to see you alive."

His eyes widened at her and he stared at her for a moment, then bowed deeply and pressed his palms to the floor.

"You're right… I apologize. I hadn't thought of it from your perspective like that… please accept my apology." He paused and maintained the bow. "I am glad that you rescued me… and I'm grateful for your protection and friendship, and everything else that you have done for me since then. I, who was both afraid to die and be forgotten, yet had also resigned myself to that fate… please accept my apology for belittling your efforts."

Natsumi touched his shoulder and sighed.

"You don't need to apologize to me. The person you should be apologizing to is yourself."

"Myself?" He sat up and met her eyes.

She nodded. "All you do is talk about how you're somehow 'lesser' just because you were born last. You say that there wasn't a place for you, that there was no purpose for you, and you repeat it over and over as if it's the truth. But it's not. How people treated you was wrong. You have value, and you have a purpose; even if none of them saw it." She paused and rested her hand on her knee. "You have to see it and accept it. And then, you decide what you want to do with your life, who you want to be, and what you want your purpose to be. From there, you just do it and believe in yourself, without looking back. If you don't, and you just continue to repeat what has always been said to you and about you, then you just become as irrelevant as they all thought."

His eyes widened slightly and he lowered his gaze. "I know that you're right, and, I know what you mean. I've repeated to myself what many have said so often that I almost believe it myself. I acknowledge that it is a major flaw of mine, and I swear that I will put more effort in to counter it. Both out of gratitude and respect for you saving my life, and for my own sake, I will change my mindset."

Natsumi smiled and let out a breath.

"I'm glad. Resigning yourself to be exactly what people say about you… it's too painful, and you're a really good person. You don't deserve to live like that."

"Neither do you."

Natsumi's eyes widened briefly and met his eyes. "Hasu?"

He smiled and reached over to take her hand gently. "I could tell by your expression and the way you said that, that you were speaking from experience."

Natsumi looked down and then nodded after a moment. "The Villagers… they always looked down on Naruto and I. They always said that we were nuisances, and some even said that they wished we hadn't been born. We never knew why…" She paused and pressed her lips together. "It really affected us. We didn't have anyone to look after us… Naruto became a prankster, and everyone called him horrible things, like a delinquent. And me… I cried all the time, and it made people say that I was pathetic and useless. I wasn't good at anything, and I was always picked on. It wasn't until recently that we even learned why people always treated us like this."

"Because of a tragedy that happened when you were infants?"

She glanced down and then drew in a deep breath before meeting his eyes again. "After everything you've told me about yourself, and how you lost your mom… It's only right if I'm honest with you, too."

"I'm listening." He sat upright with a faint smile.

"Naruto is…" She bit her lip briefly. "My brother's a Jinchuriki."

"A Jinchuriki?" Hasu repeated, then his eyes widened. "I remember from that book, how it mentioned the wife of the First Hokage became the vessel of the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox. Is that what you mean?" He leaned forward slightly. "Your brother is a vessel for such a creature?"

"The same one." She sighed softly. "He's got the Nine-Tails sealed inside of him, the same as Lord First's wife."

"Truly? How fascinating!" Hasu blinked, then cleared this throat and sat back slightly. "Although I now understand the villager's reasoning. When it comes to such a fearsome beast, many would be afraid, as well as wondering if a child could truly keep it safely sealed away."

"You're not afraid?"

"Well, perhaps I would be if I had seen the beast with my own eyes." He shook his head. "Though, I see no need to be afraid. You are a wonderful person, and from my brief meeting with him, your brother was also a friendly, caring individual. I see no reason to fear either of you."

Natsumi's eyes rested on her hands in her lap and Hasu frowned.

"Are you concerned about something else?"

"It's just that…" Natsumi mumbled softly. "I'm not sure if it really is Naruto or not…"

"What do you mean?"

She swallowed and kept her eyes on her hands, opening and closing her fists slowly. "There have been times where I haven't been…myself. Like the way I was when we were ambushed at that temple." She swallowed again. "I never remember it clearly afterward, but something happens to me… it made one of my friends stop talking to me entirely, and I hurt Kiri by accident. I still don't know what happened exactly, but the more I think of it…" Her voice lowered and was almost inaudible. "What if I am the real host and not Naruto? All that hatred toward him… what if it was meant for me? I've never known him to lose control like that. But for me… it's already happened a few times, and each time, it's almost easier for it to happen."

She clenched her fists tightly until her knuckles whitened. "What if… I can't stop myself the next time? What if I hurt people? What if… I just completely become the beast?"

"I do not think so." He smiled faintly and touched her hands, and her fists loosed slightly. "It might have startled me, but you were only protective of me at that time. How could I be afraid of you? Even when you were changed, you were still very much in control, as far as I could tell."

"In control?" She mumbled and furrowed her brows.

So, I was the one who killed them so brutally? And without mercy? I can't even blame it on that monster?

"If it worries you so, you should try to learn all about the beast that you are able. Perhaps if you understand it better, you will be able to control those moments when you feel that you are being influenced."

Her eyes widened slightly and she looked at him. "To control it… I need to understand the Fox?"

"I am not a Shinobi, so I, of course, do not know what is best in this situation, but that is what makes the most sense to me."

"What is there to even understand about a bloodthirsty monster?" She mumbled and then sighed after a long pause. "It's worth a try, I guess." Natsumi smiled faintly and nodded. "Thank you, Hasu. And I know that you feel conflicted, and you're not sure what you should do, but I know you'll figure it out. I can help you, if you'll help me with my research, too."

"I would be happy to help." He smiled and nodded.

"You should get some sleep now. Something tells me that mister Jian is going to work you to the bone tomorrow just to test you."

Hasu chuckled and ran his fingers through his hair. "I believe you may be right, though I am sure that it will still be rather enjoyable." He placed his hand on the door and smiled. "Sleep well, Natsumi."

"Goodnight, Hasu."

He shut the sliding door and Natsumi settled back down on the futon, sighing as she closed her eyes.

Understand the Demon Fox, huh?