A Maelstrom's Mobius Misadventure

by Curious Kitsune654

Naruto really hated his luck at times, it always made even the most mundane of missions turn into a total disaster of epic proportions. And now it's struck again while he was just trying to enjoy a nice bowl of ramen. What's a ninja to do when he finds himself surrounded by talking animal people, an overweight megalomaniac, and who knows what else? (New cover by Koniak007)

4. Candid Canines

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from the Naruto or Sonic franchises. Comments/Criticism is fine as long as it isn't just hate or flaming

Thanks for reading and please enjoy

A Maelstrom's Mobius Misadventures

-Chapter 4-

-Last Time-

"Let me guess, it's not as simple as that?" He asked rhetorically before sinking back into his seat when all three girls nodded. "Alright how fucked are we this time? And don't try to sugar coat it, just give it to me straight."

"…Your home is in another dimension."

-And Now-

"Why am I doing this again?" Naruto asked with a dull look and his arms crossed, standing on a circular metal platform as a green light passed over his body, causing his skeleton to briefly be seen in a vibrant neon hue. Thankfully he was fully dressed now, wearing his usual orange pants along with a tight grey t-shirt that hugged his frame.

Meanwhile, Sally and Ayame were over beside a duck mobian known as Dr. Quack, the latter of which was manning a complicated console.

"Because I'd rather hear that from a trained medical professional rather than the boy who thinks being shot, stabbed, and blown up is no big deal mister 'Nothing I can't handle'." Ayame stated bluntly as she gave the whiskered blonde a dirty look that made him shrink back.

"…Fair enough nee-chan," He conceded reluctantly, only to end up with a scowl marring his lips when he heard someone mimicking the sound of a whip cracking. Turning his gaze towards the source, the blonde deadpanned at a chuckling Sonic along with the fox with two tails, who had introduced himself as… Tails. Yeah, he was starting to see a running theme about this place when it comes to names... "I could have done without the peanut gallery though."

"Ah what's wrong Whiskers? Worried you might look bad in front of your big sis?" Sonic jokingly asked with a chuckle while biting into a chili dog, his smirk growing when he noticed the annoyed look Naruto was giving him.

"Do not call me Whiskers."

"Oh, or what? You gonna threaten me with your butter knife again?" The hedgehog asked playfully before quickly stepping to the side to avoid the coin that was flung at his head. "Nice try but you'll have to be faster than-ow!"

He was cut off mid-taunt when the ryo bounced off the wall behind him and smacked into his hand, causing him to drop his snack onto the floor.

"You were saying?" Naruto asked as he caught the coin on the rebound, twirling it on the tip of his finger as another scan passed over, this time highlighting his inner organs.

Staring at his ruined chilidog, Sonic blinked a few times in apparent shock… before chuckling deeply as he pulled out another one. "I'll give ya that one, not bad Whiskers."

Eyebrow twitching in annoyance, Naruto was about to flick the coin at the speedster again when his attention was drawn away by the scanner shutting down.

"Remarkable… just remarkable…" Dr. Quack muttered as he walked up to the platform with a tablet that projected various holographic readouts from a scaled down 3D image of Naruto's body to individual cell images and vital signs. Most of it went straight over the blonde's head but the doctor seemed to understand as he marveled over the results. "Young man, you have got some absolutely fascinating biology."

"Uh… thanks?" Naruto wasn't exactly sure how to take that comment.

"I can't even decide where to start, muscle tissue tensile strength like steel, incredibly fast cellular regeneration, some sort of energy based circulatory system," The duck flicked through various holographs, seemingly talking more to himself than anyone. "You certainly aren't like any Overlander I've seen, that's for certain."

"That's because I'm not a… ah forget it, can you just tell them I'm fine so I can leave already?" The whiskered boy asked as he stepped down from the scanner, snapping Dr. Quack out of his rambling.

"Oh, yes, physically you're perfectly fine but I would still suggest that you res-"

"See Ayame, perfectly fine, just like I told you," Not even waiting for the doctor to finish, Naruto walked past him and headed towards his older sister figure, patting her on the shoulder with a bright smile. However, his good mood was gone almost as fast as it came as he turned to Sally with an uncharacteristically serious look. "Now that we're done wasting time pointing out the obvious, you said you could tell me more about that Robotnik asshole-*SMACK*-ow!

"Don't curse in front of Tails," The redheaded mobian said sternly after slapping the whiskered teen, jabbing a thumb at said fox who smiled sheepishly. "But yeah, follow me, we can talk more in the war alcove and we can show you what we've got, right Sonic?"

"Hmm, spend all day digging through old files about ol Robuttik?" Pretending to stroke a beard with a thoughtful look for a moment, Sonic shrugged before turning away. "Fun as that sounds I think I'll go on a run instead, later."

And just like that he vanished in a blur, leaving naught but a trail of dust in his wake while Sally palmed her face.

"…I should have seen that coming."

"You really should have," Tails said with a nod while walking up to the chipmunk's side. "Don't worry though, I'll help out."

"Thanks Tails but I think I can handle this myself." Giggling softly, Sally ruffled the double-tailed fox's head before giggling again when he shook her hand off with a whine.

"Aww… But I wanna help Aunt Sally." He said, pouting with his tails dragging along the ground as the group stepped out of the medical building together.

"Well in that case," Reaching to the side, Sally suddenly pulled a surprised Ayame closer and gestured to her. "How about you show Ayame around, give her a proper tour of Knothole and all that. I'm sure she'd appreciate it."

"I would?" The brunette blinked in confusion at being put on the spot all of a sudden with her gaze flickering between the two mobians.

"You got it Aunt Sally, come on miss Ayame," Before Ayame's brain could catch up to what was happening though, Tails grabbed her hand with one of his namesake tails and started pulling her along excitedly. "You couldn't have a better guide, I know this whole place like the back of my tails. Oh, our first stop should be the..."

Naruto just couldn't help but chuckle at the adorably baffled look on his nee-chan's face while she was dragged away by the much smaller mobian. Hearing a muffled snorting beside him, he glanced over to see Sally covering her mouth in a vain attempt to stifle her own laughter. Or at least that was the case before a breeze blew by and her laughing fit turned into a coughing fit as she grabbed her neck with a grimace.

"Sheesh, maybe the doctor should have been giving you a checkup," The whiskered teen muttered, resting a hand on the redhead's shoulder for support until her coughing stopped. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah… yeah I'm fine, sorry, my throat's just a little sensitive still after that 'shave' you gave me." She muttered out a bit breathlessly while massaging her neck, specifically a certain half bald spot, causing Naruto to wince.

"Did I mention that I'm sorry about that?"

"And I've told you there's no need to apologize, it was self-defense plain and simple," Sally waved off his apology as she straightened up and they got going again. "If anyone's to blame it'd be Robotnik for putting us in that situation in the first place, not you Whiskers."

"True, but still…" Naruto trailed off as he scratched the back of his head with a sheepish look, his eyebrow twitching at the nickname, but let it slide this time. After a moment though, his eyes lit up with an idea and he started rifling around in his pockets for something.

"Besides its just a little fur, it'll grow back even-" Sally started to say, only to be cut off by a small puff of smoke that burst from Naruto's hand to reveal a red cloth. She was just as quickly snapped out of her surprise though as he brought his hands up to her neck and started tying it around her neck. "What are you doing?"

"Trust me, this'll help, it did for Senbon after… nevermind, just hold still a sec," He said with a shake of his head and focused on what he was doing. "There, how's that? Is it too tight or anything?"

"A little." The chipmunk mobian stated as the blonde adjusted the cloth a bit…

"Handz off you scoundrel!" Before he quickly stepped back to avoid a certain coyote that tried to ram into him out of the blue, causing said mobian to fall flat on his face instead. Quickly scrambling back to his feet, he pointedly stood between Naruto and Sally with his best intimidating glare… or at least it might have been intimidating if not for the fact he was shivering and sweating so much. "One does not just manny handle ze princess like zat! Apologize right now!"

Staring at the quivering canine for a few moments with a quirked brow, Naruto hummed thoughtfully as he took in his fanciful uniform and the saber at his hip, before turning to Sally as he jabbed a thumb at the new guy. "Let me guess, bumbling scared of his own shadow fanboy?"

"Oi! I am not vumbling you uncouth plouc," The well-dressed mobian exclaimed indignantly, not noticing as Sally shook her head with a bemused smile. "And the name is Antoine D'Coolette of the royal guard, thou would do well to remember that."

"Ah, so you're just a fanboyafraidofyourownshadow then, my apologies dear sir." Naruto said while patting the now named Antoine's shoulder, speaking the middle part super-fast as he walked past him.

"That's better." The coyote's chest puffed out in pride, while once again missing how Sally palmed her face as she and Naruto started to walk away.

"Great, sorry for the inconvenience, we'll just be back on our way then," The whiskered teen called over his shoulder to the preening royal guard, before chuckling once he was out of earshot. Draping an arm over Sally's shoulders, he pretended to wipe a tear from his eye as he shook his head in amusement. "Oh man it's been so long since I've seen someone fall for that old trick."

"Indeed," Rolling her eyes while she fiddled with the cloth around her neck, the vested girl tried to play it off as no big deal but the small smirk on her lips belied her amusement. "And sorry about that, Antoine's actually a pretty nice guy once you get to know him, he just tends to get a little overprotective of me at times. Especially whenever I'm around new people."

"And I'm guessing that has something to do with why everyone keeps calling you princess?" Naruto asked, getting Sally to nod.

"That's because I am one, I am Princess Sally Alicia Acorn of the Royal Acorn family, current de facto ruler of the Kingdom of Acorn," She admitted while gesturing to an old flag that hung from one of the huts, which depicted an acorn in a field of blue. "Although nowadays that pretty much amounts to just Knothole since Robotnik overthrew my father and took over everything else."

"Ah… I see, I'm sorry to hear that." The blonde muttered while scratching the back of his head awkwardly.

"Don't worry about it, I came to terms with this situation a long time ago," Sally waved off his apology, before smirking playfully. "Or as you might say 'it's nothing I can't handle', huh Whiskers?"

"That nickname is going to be a thing from now on, isn't it?" When the only answer he got was a giggle from the redhead, he rolled his eyes as he grumbled under his breath. "Figured as much, so when do you think he'll figure out what just happened?"

"Oh, I'd say right about…"

"Vait a minute!"

"Now." Sally finished with a snap of her fingers as a shout of outrage rang out, followed by a now furious Antoine rushing after the pair.

"You dare to insult me so heinously zen flee?" Cutting them off, he drew his saber on Naruto with a scowl, pointing it right at the blonde's face with a scowl which only grew when he saw Naruto's arm draped over Sally's shoulders. "And again you callously touch ze princess without permission, I should strike you down where you stand insufferable cur."

Sighing, Sally shrugged off Naruto's arm as she reached up to push the coyote's weapon aside with a pointed look. "Would you relax Antoine, if I didn't want him touching me I would make sure he didn't, I am quite capable of taking care of myself."

"But princess, iz it not suspicious how close he haz been trying to get with you?" Antoine questioned with narrowed eyes, keeping his gaze firmly on Naruto as he spoke. "For all we know he could bees one of Robotnik's spies waiting for ze opportune momentz to assassinate you."

"I… highly doubt that." The redhead muttered dully albeit with a slight hesitance at first as she idly tugged at her new neckerchief. Memories of her first encounter with Naruto flashed through her mind, causing a small shiver to run down the back of her spine.

If that hadn't been the absolute perfect opportunity ever to take her out than she didn't know what was.

"Besides had I'd been actually trying to spy or something I would have definitely been a lot more subtle about it," Naruto chipped in. "I mean had I wanted to I probably could have gotten here without any of you guys even realizing it."

"Oh really?" That got both Sally and Antoine's attention as the latter recentered his sword at the whiskered blonde. "Andz how exactly would you haz done that monsieur spy?"

"Well for one-" Crossing his arms with a knowing smirk, Naruto was suddenly enveloped by a puff of smoke that quickly cleared away to reveal… another Antoine? "I could haz walked right in."

"Sacré bleu!" The real Antoine exclaimed in disbelief, taking a step back as his whole body shook. His doppelganger was almost identical to him in every way from his uniform to his hair to even the saber he wielded. The only distinct difference was the air of confidence the phony Antoine exuded as he twirled his sword playfully. "What trickery is zis?!"

"Whatz wrong monsieur, not a fan on yourself?" The transformed teen asked in a botch French accent before being enveloped by another puff of smoke to reveal a copy of Sally instead. "How about this?" Another cloud changed to Bunnie next. "Or perhaps ya'll prefer looking at little ol me sugah?" Once more the smoke appeared, this time to show Sonic munching on a chili dog with his ever-evident smirk. "Am I going too fast for you?"

"I… I-I am not impressed," The coyote said shakily while reaffirming his stance, trying (quite unsuccessfully) to project an air of confidence and intimidation. "There iz no way that any of us would ve fooled by such disguises."

"And yet you did." Naruto stated as he turned back to normal and crossed his arms with a smirk, making Antoine blink in confusion.

"What nonsense are you babbaling about?"

"It's simply, really, the other way I could have gotten in here is with a-" Was as far as the whiskered blonde got before bursting into yet another cloud of smoke. However, rather than his appearance changing into that of someone else, Naruto straight up disappeared entirely.

All that was left was a folded piece of paper that floated in the air for a few seconds before fluttering down to Antoine's feet, unfurling as soon as it touched the ground to reveal a single word scribbled on its surface.

Distraction ;P

It was at that moment that Antoine finally noticed the fact that both Sally and Naruto were nowhere to be found… again.

On the other side of Knothole, Naruto burst into chuckles as he heard Antoine's infuriated shouts ringing out in the distance once again. "Oh man, forget what I said before, that was funny. Wish I could see the look on that guy's face right now."

"Knowing Antoine it'd definitely be a sight to see," Sally couldn't help but giggle as well when she pictured the uppity coyote's reaction to once again being ditched, although she did feel a bit bad for the guy too. However, her amusement quickly turned to curiosity as she looked the blonde over with a thoughtful expression. "So you can transform into other people as well as clone yourself?"

"Not just people, the transformation jutsu can let me turn into weapons, furniture, plants, just about anything really," Naruto listed off while ticking fingers before tapping the side of his noggin. "Basically as long as I can picture it up here then I can turn into it."

"That is incredible… yet also very disturbing to think about." Sally admitted, her mind flitting through the various possibilities from such a combination of abilities and not all of them were good. If what he said was true then he could quite literally be everywhere yet nowhere at the same time, hiding right under her nose while still talking to her face to face.

"What's wrong? You worried I'd show someone that star shaped birthmark you got on your-"

"Aah!" Snapping out of her thoughts when she heard what the blonde was saying, the chipmunk girl's eyes widened in alarm as she quickly clapped her hands over his mouth. Her cheeks were a bright red as she glanced around to make sure no one heard anything, sighing softly in relief upon finding that nobody was around at the moment before glaring at him demandingly. "How do you know about that?!"

Rolling his eyes, Naruto grabbed her hands with his own and peeled them off with a dull look. "I saw it when I was frisking you for weapons back in the city, thought it was cute."

"Oh… right, I almost forgot about that," Well if she wasn't blushing before Sally definitely was now as her entire face practically started glowing upon being reminded of that. Taking a few slow deep breaths, she did her best to calm back down before continuing. "Would you please not talk about either of those so causally in public?"

She could only imagine how Antoine would have reacted if he found out about that particular incident, considering how riled up he got from just from a shoulder hug.

"What's the big deal? It was just a pat down," The blonde stated with a raised brow. "I'm assuming you guys checked me for anything suspicious too while I was out cold, right?"

"Fair point but regardless… I'd prefer to not risk anyone getting the wrong idea because they misheard something." Sally said, her eyes flickering around again just to be double sure nobody was eavesdropping.

"Alright, if it means that much to ya then my lips are sealed." Naruto made a motion like he was locking his lips and throwing away the key to emphasize his point.

"Thank you, now come on we're almost there," The redheaded chipmunk tugged her arms free of the whiskered boy's grasp before grabbing his wrist and leading him to a structure built into one of the largest trees inside the village. Pulling open the door revealed a conference-esque room, with all the usual amenities from a wide circular table and chairs to a series of maps and charts tacked up on the walls. "Welcome to the war alcove."

"Not bad, got a nice setup," Walking into the room, Naruto picked up a crinkled-up paper laying on the table that he unraveled to reveal a doodle of a beat up Robotnik with Sonic standing over him in a cheesy victory pose. Meanwhile the name 'Miles Prower' just barely legibly written in the corner and a neater note commenting that the drawing was 'Way Past Cool'. "Homely even."

"We do our best." Sally said while swiping the picture from him, smiling softly as she looked it over before tucking it away inside her vest. At the same time she pulled out a device the size of her palm that she unfolded to reveal what looked like a miniature computer with a small green screen on the top half and a tiny keyboard on the bottom.

"What's that thing-a-ma-jig?" Naruto asked as he leaned in closer with a curious look-

[Hello]

Before recoiling when the device actually spoke with a synthetic sounding female voice.

Sally giggled at the confusion on the blonde's face as he turned to her questioningly before setting the device on the table. "This is Nicole, a fully sentient artificial intelligence system and close friend of mine, and Nicole, this is Naruto, the guy I was telling you about earlier."

[It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance] The now named Nicole said as her screen showed a smile emoji.

"Uh… nice to meet you too." Naruto waved to the device unsurely, not really sure what else to say.

"Nicole, I need you to give a full rundown on what we know about Robotnik for Naruto," Thankfully Sally was willing to pick up the slack while taking a seat, motioning for Naruto to do the same. "And don't spare any of the details, he's got a lot of catching up to do."

[Of course Sally, pulling up files on Doctor Ivo Robotnik] Nicole's screen changed to a loading bar for a few moments before glowing brightly once it was filled. When the light cleared, Naruto was left awestruck at the sight of numerous holographic projections that floated in the air.

Some showed a slightly less ugly Robotnik in a formal looking uniform while others depicted a vibrant looking city that was a perfect mix of modernization and nature. Curiously reaching for one of the closer ones, a picture of a male Mobian chipmunk in royal garb who he assumed was Sally's father, the blonde marveled as his fingers phased through the image.

[Approximately fifteen years ago, Ivo Robotnik, who at the time was known as Julian Kintober was brought into the Kingdom of Acorns by…] Breaking out of his stupor when he heard Nicole start to talk, the color in Naruto's face suddenly drained away as he came to a horrifying realization.

'Oh no, I'm stuck listening to a history lesson! It's the academy all over again!'

-Meanwhile, with Ayame and Tails-

"Over there is Rosie's place, she's really nice and makes the bestest cookies you've ever tasted, and that's Rotor's workshop, I'd stick clear from there whenever he's working since things can get a little wacky. Like this one time where Rotor built a robot that was supposed to help with lab work but ended up falling in love with Antoine. Oh, and that's Dulcy's new favorite napping tree, the old one used to be by Aunt Sally's place but it ended up falling over when she got bigger. Boy you should have seen Sally's face when Dulcy came crashing down through the roof like that, she was all 'Eeeeh!' and I was all 'yikes!'."

'Heh, he's certainly an energetic little guy.' Ayame thought as Tails led her through Knothole, the twin tailed fox excitedly pointing to the various landmarks while he told her all about various misadventures or hijinks that'd happened in those places. He'd even stop on occasion to reenact certain moments he was telling her about, albeit in a rather exaggerated manner that was just adorable in the brunette's opinion.

And then there were the other mobians they ran into along the way, such as Dulcy the Dragon, who had quite cheerfully welcomed the brunette to the village, and Rotor, who gave a more subdued but no less warm welcome. Of course others had been far less friendly, such as a pig named Hamlin who immediately accused her of being a spy and warned that he'd be watching her closely, but otherwise it was a pleasant tour.

It was honestly a nice breath of fresh air after all the crazy world conquering madmen and humanoid animal people that was going on the last few days. Not to mention the whole 'stuck in another dimension' thing that still sent her mind reeling whenever she thought about it. She still didn't understand how Naruto was able to just shrug that little detail off like it was nothing.

"Oh, and that's Lupe over there, hi Lupe." The noodle maker was snapped out of her thoughts when Tails pointed to a wolf Mobian who was sitting on a bench as she sharpened her spear. She was grey furred with spiky black hair with a white stripe that had a single braid dangling almost all the way to the ground and a fluffy grey tail while dressed in a blue bodysuit with a gold collar.

Hearing her name being called out, Lupe looked up from her work curiously before smiling at seeing the fox waving to her. "Hello Tails, did you need something?"

"Nope, just showing our new friend around." He said while gesturing towards the ramen chef, who waved shyly when the wolf's attention turned to her.

"Hello, I-"

"Hello again Ayame," Ayame froze when Lupe not only cut her off but actually addressed her by name familiarly as she hopped to her feet, slipping her spear into a holster on her back as she did so. She then walked up and patted the dazed brunette on the shoulder while offering an encouraging smile. "It is good to see that you are doing better since the last time we spoke."

Snapping out of her shock, Ayame's confusion only grew at Lupe's words. "Have… have we met before?"

"You don't remember?" The wolf girl asked back with a raised brow as the cook shook her head. "It was just last night, we talked whilst you were getting your blood drawn to help your friend."

"We did?" Ayame sure didn't recall any… 'Wait, now I remember.'

-Last Night, Knothole Medical Hut-

A VERY frazzled looking Ayame was trembling violently as she sat in a chair, not even reacting while a mobian cat in scrubs sanitized a spot on her arm before prepping a syringe. Gently petting an equally disheveled Senbon curled up on her lap, the brunette's eyes stayed focused on door across the room where she knew Naruto was being operated on.

'Oh god, please be okay Naruto, please,' She thought worriedly, barely even noticing when the needle pierced her skin and started slowly sapping her life fluid out.

She just couldn't get the image of his limp form being dragged in by Sally and Sonic out of her head, playing through her mind over and over. The lifeless pallor of his skin had sent spikes of fear into her heart that dug deeper with each passing second. This was only made worse when a nurse came out to talk to her, saying they needed blood for a transfusion.

Of course she had immediately informed that same nurse that she was a compatible donor, having an O negative blood type, but she was still quite worried. What if they couldn't get the blood to him in time? What if they needed more than she could give? What if-

"Hey, hey," A soft voice cut through Ayame's thoughts as a grey furred hand gave her shoulder a gentle shake. Jumping slightly, the brunette snapped her head towards the hand's owner and saw as a wolf woman pulling up a seat beside her while offering a comforting smile. "You know if you stay all tensed like that then the doctors won't be able to do their job."

"W-what?" Ayame muttered as she turned to other side, her panic skyrocketing when she noticed that the blood wasn't even flowing. "On no! What's wrong? Why isn't it-"

"Ah, what did I just say?" Grabbing the frazzled cook's chin, the wolf mobian made her look back at her as she continued to speak in a calming tone. "You need to relax my friend."

"Relax? How am I supposed to relax?!" Ayame shook her head in disbelief, pulling her head free of the mobian's grasp. "I was abducted from my home by a psychopath, my little brother was badly hurt protecting me, and now I'm talking to a wolf while a cat takes my blood to save his life! So excuse me if that seems like a great time to be freaked out!"

By the end of her rant the ramen chef was breathing heavily with a bright red face while Senbon trilled softly in apparent agreement and nuzzled deeper into her lap, though whether for his own comfort or his owner was unclear.

Unperturbed by the sudden outburst, the wolf woman beside her calmly waited till Ayame caught her breath. "Feel better?"

"No," The brunette muttered, slumping in her seat with tears welling up in her eyes. "I'm s-sorry, I didn't mean to yell at you ma'am…"

"It is alright, best to let it out now than allow it to fester within," The grey furred canine said wisely as she patted the girl's shoulder once again before offering her hand for a shake. "Please call me Lupe, I'm too young to be called ma'am. And you are?"

"Ayame." Ayame introduced herself as she awkwardly accepted the handshake.

"Well Ayame, how about you tell me a bit about yourself? Like what do you do for a living?" Lupe asked, making the brunette blink at the out of the blue question.

"O-oh, I'm a ramen chef, m-my father and I run a s-stand back home selling it."

"Uh-huh, and your father, what is he like?"

"Well he's a nice g-guy, he always treats everyone kindly and been supportive…" And so the pair would continue to chat for several minutes, with Ayame never noticing as the stress slowly ebbed away from her body and the blood bag began to fill up again.

-Present-

Shaking her head as the memory played in her head, Ayame bowed her head towards the spear wielding mobian. "I'm sorry for almost forgetting Lupe-san, most of last night is a bit hazy."

"It's quite alright my friend, it's completely understandable given the state you were in," Lupe waved off the apology with an understanding smile. "And I doubt losing a few pints of blood did any favors about it either."

"You can say that again, I'm still feeling a little wobbly to be honest." The brunette muttered while rubbing the bandaid on her arm, getting the raven-haired wolf to hum thoughtfully.

"Then perhaps it'd be best if we continue this conversation after some lunch."

"Oh, in that case I know just the place to get some grub, come on!" Tails chipped in excitedly, grabbing Ayame by the hand and pulling her down the road.

'…This is gonna become a thing from now on, isn't it?' The ramen chef wondered to herself with a deadpan at yet again getting dragged away somewhere. Seeing the exasperation on her face, Lupe couldn't help but giggle as she followed after the pair.

After just a few feet though, the grey-furred lady suddenly stumbled mid-step, seemingly triping over nothing as her legs wobbled unsteadily. It only lasted a second and she was quick to recover, but not before a concerned Ayame noticed the little fumble. "Are you alright Lupe-san?"

"Yes, I'm fine, sorry, just feeling a little lightheaded." Lupe said as she tried to smile reassuringly, only to end up grimacing instead while rubbing the side of her head. As she did so though, a glint caused Ayame's gaze to drift to the crook of the wolf girl's elbow, where a bandaid could just be seen tacked against her fur.

Glancing at the bandaid that rested on the exact same spot on her own arm, it didn't take a genius to put the pieces together. "You had your blood drawn as well?"

"Of course, where do you think they got the second transfusion from?" Lupe asked back with a raised brow, causing Ayame to blink in surprise and confusion.

"B-but how… you're… and h-he is… I-I mean…" The words tumbled from the brunette's mouth as she struggled to articulate her thoughts.

"How the heck did that work?" Thankfully an equally confused Tails was able to finish her sentence for her, the twin tailed fox stopping dead in his tracks and staring at the canine mobian with a tilted head. "You guys are completely different species and last I checked that's a pretty big issue when it comes to blood stuff."

"Do not ask me, I may know much about how to heal others when it is needed but I don't pretend to understand the many intricacies involved in modern medicine," Lupe shrugged as she continued past the duo, prompting them both to start walking again to not fall behind. "If you wish though, I'm sure Doctor Quack would be quite happy to explain it for you in depth."

"Tempting… but I think I'll pass; I'll leave that stuff to the professionals." Ayame said with a wave of her hand, content with the fact her little brother figure was okay for the time being. Well that and the cook doubted she'd understand a word the good doctor said during said explanation anyway if everything else that happened so far was to go by.

"Yeah, that sounds good to me to-Oh hey, we're here!" Tails cut himself off when a food stand came into view, currently manned by a pig mobian who was in the midst of making a fresh batch of chilidogs. "Come on, Portly makes some of the best chilidogs you've ever tasted, even has the Sonic stamp of approval. Oh, that reminds me of when he tried to make the world's biggest chilidog…"

'And there he goes again.' Taking a seat at the stand, Ayame couldn't help but giggle as she listened to the young fox chatter on and on.

-End Chapter-