Lalalalalala………..nothing to put. When I put prices down, don't think I know what I'm doing. I don't!

Disclaimer: Why bother reading this? You OBVIOUSLY know who owns the anime…

Anyway, it kind of saddens me to see the Naruto section in It's slowly becoming like the Yu Yu Hakusho section, full of oc x anime character, mary-sues, and crappy writers who try and get people to pity them so they could get reviews, not to mention the fics with crappy grammar and spelling… It really bothers me to try and find the good or decent fics between that junk! (Sighs) but I guess SOME people enjoy them, why bother posting it if no one likes it? (Though some people do that.)

I wish there would be more people criticizing my work so I can improve it! I can't improve if no one will point out my errors! And I don't want to be one of the many authors out there stuck under the illusion that I'm good, 'cause I'm not! I know I'm not, but it's really hard to convince myself to improve my writing if no one will say anything.

Bah, I'm ranting again. Just enjoy the fic.

(Chapter Begin)

Naruto stood glumly in front of the funeral, forehead protector tied around his neck. He wore all black, the same thing every other male wore. He glanced to his left and saw Iruka comforting Konohamaru. He sighed and decided to say something to the smaller boy.

He said gently, "He gave up everything in order to protect this place. I'm not sure what he saw, but he must have seen something good here. Sandaime-sama was old, he was perverted, and he wasn't exactly the best guy out there." His eyes softened. "Still, the Gods thought he had a beautiful soul. You didn't think it was raining for nothing, right? These-" Naruto held out a hand with rain water in it. "-are their tears." He gave the younger boy a smile.

No one said anything for a moment. Konohamaru broke into a grin and quickly wiped his tears. "Y-yeah."

Naruto took off the black gloves that he was wearing and tucked them into his pocket. Some stared at his claws. He used his right hand to slice into his left, making an odd symbol. He made the same one on his left and smeared the blood on both his palms, then let the blood get washed away. Konohamaru stared at his role model, confused. The blonde only smiled sadly at him and said something no one in the vicinity understood.

Why bother saying it if they don't understand?

'Just so they know what the name is.'

Not like they could pronounce it or understand it's a thing demons do when someone important to them dies.

'Few demons do it now. It's such an old tradition.'

And for it to be old for demons, it's -old-.

'You know…I miss him.'

Yeah, the old man wasn't half bad.

(Scene Change)

"What do you want?" Orochimaru's voice cut the tense silence.

"A gift…from my Master," the demon hissed out. Her tail swished back and forth from behind her.

Mistress Serpent stood in front of Orochimaru and his right hand man, Kabuto. To her right and left were Sound shinobi, ready to attack.

"This isn't a good time," the snake like man gritted out, on edge, but still interested. 'This thing just won't leave! Though, it's not ever day you deal with demons…'

"It is a good time when my Master says so." She held out a pale, delicate hand. Within the shapely fingers was a jade green scroll. Orochimaru hesitated. He still couldn't move his fingers. "Take it," the demon urged. "You will not regret it…"

The snake like man looked into her eyes, much like his own except colder and the coloring. Before he could stop himself, his arm painfully shot up and grabbed the offered object. He felt power just by touching the scroll. He couldn't open it so Kabuto did and held up the scroll for him to read.

"Interesting…" the Sennin hissed out.

The demon bowed. "At your service…Orochimaru-sama."

(Scene Change)

"Road trip, road trip, road trip," Naruto chanted happily as he walked down the road, feeling like he wanted to annoy someone.

'Didn't think he'd agree so easily…I didn't even finish asking him before he yelled "I'll go!"' Jiraiya mused. "Hey, brat! Quiet down!"

"Why?" the blonde yelled.

"Because I said so!"

Naruto rolled his eyes. "So loud."

Jiraiya gritted his teeth in annoyance. 'Calm down, he's doing this on purpose…'

"Hey, Jiraiya-sensei, why did you bring me all the way over here?"

"…We walked for miles out here and only now you're asking?"

Naruto shrugged carelessly. He answered, "I didn't really care. I just wanted to get out of that village for a while, but now I'm kind of curious."

"We're going to look for a woman." Naruto looked at him, incredulous. Jaraiya noticed the look and explained, "She's very important."

After a moment of silence, Naruto asked, "The Fifth Hokage?"

Jaraiya blinked in surprise. "How did you know?"

"I didn't. It was a guess," Naruto said sheepishly, scratching the back of his head.

The Sennin didn't comment. They walked in silence for a while until they reached a town. They went into an inn before the older male announced, "We're staying here for today."

They caught the sight of a dark haired beauty flipping her hair in a flirting manner, winking at them. Jiraiya drooled in desire. He hurriedly shoved their room's key in his charge's hand and said quickly, "Here is the room key. Go to your room and refine your chakra as training." He quickly walked away.

"Pervert," Naruto muttered. "Why would someone like her flirt with Jiraiya?" Then he realized something. 'Genjutsu.' Naruto looked around for the Sennin. 'Damn…oh well, I guess he can handle himself with all that talk about how great he is.'

The blonde walked up the stairs and into his room, where he locked the door. He flopped on the bed and sighed, moving his hands behind his head. 'I've been so distracted lately, I've hardly thought about that bastard Naraku…but…I want to kill that guy so bad…'

When the time comes, it comes…don't worry about it.

'I know, but I've been too relaxed. Have you realized I only occasionally scan my surroundings unlike how I used to?'

I hope you know that isn't healthy, constantly looking over your shoulder.

'Oh well…'

How's the memory thing?

'I've gotten a few of them back, but there's this nagging feeling that won't leave me alone.'

Something important, then.

The conversation was interrupted by the knocking of the door. Naruto gave a heavy sigh before sitting up. He stood on his bare feet, wearing a similar outfit to when he was in the final test of the Chuunin Exam except he wore sandels and without the collar. He didn't know how to replace the weights.

He walked to the door and opened it, looking up. 'I think I should act stupid…' Naruto gave a wide grin and said, "Hi, Mr. Someone-who-looks-frighteningly-like-Sasuke-kun-but-way-older. What can I do for you?"

"This brat really the nine-tails?" someone asked behind the obvious Uchiha.

"Naruto-kun, we would like you to come with us," the Uchiha said calmly.

"Sorry, but my mommy told me not to talk or to follow strangers," Naruto said with a smile, preparing to close the door.

A foot blocked it. "Come out of the room," was the order.

'This guy isn't joking around…what a strange aura…' Naruto thought.

"Itachi-san," the man behind the Uchiha said with a smirk. "We don't need him running around, we should cut off a leg." He gripped the handle of his sword.

"Uh…maybe this is a bad time?" Naruto asked, holding up his hands harmlessly. "I don't think this is a good time. Maybe we should do this some other day? How about next week? I can squeeze you in on Wednesday."

Itachi said, "It has been a long time…Sasuke."

Naruto looked behind the Uchiha to see another one. 'Didn't even notice him there…I was too distracted!'

"Uchiha Itachi," Sasuke began darkly. "I will kill you!" He activated his Sharingan.

'This is bad,' Naruto thought glumly.

"Heh. Sharingan…who is this kid?" the shark like man asked.

"My younger brother."

'So…This is the guy Sasuke wants to kill…Sasuke's aura is spiked up,' Naruto observed. 'He's blinded by hate and can't see that he won't stand a chance against his older brother…'

Sasuke's eyes were wide in hate and he said coldly, "I've been waiting to say this to you…I've lived hating you…And also I've lived only to kill you…I have lived for this!" He held up his left hand and chakra began to form around it.

"Chidori?" Itachi asked to no one.

Sasuke ran forward, ready to strike his brother. He missed and hit the wall, crumbling it. Naruto muttered, "I hope I don't have to pay for that." He said louder, "Hey! Leave Sasuke-kun alone!"

Sasuke and Itachi shared a look of contempt. Itachi said, "You're in the way." He snapped his younger brother's wrist, causing Sasuke to emit a cry of pain from his lips.

Jiraiya arrived to the scene with a large toad that nearly took up the hallway. A voice said behind Naruto, "You don't seem to know very much about me…I'm better at getting girls than they are at getting me. Even though it doesn't look like it, it's my…specialty."

His little speech was cut off as Naruto kicked him in the shins. "Where in the seven hells were you?"

Jiraiya shot him a glare before introducing himself. "I, Jiraiya, this epitome of manliness! I will fall for no woman's feminine wiles! When you're someone like me, you'll only have to flash that sexiness to have women fall at your feet!"

There was an awkward silence until the blonde genin said, "That woman only winked at you and you were scampering after her."

"One of the legendary three, huh?" the shark like man asked. "Didn't think such a simple method would distract you for so long. In any case, it seems you have undone the genjutsu binding her."

"You wanted to draw me away, huh?" the Sennin asked. "So you really -are- after Naruto…"

"No wonder Kakashi knew, you were the source of information," Itachi said. "'To abduct Naruto.' Those were the orders of the higher echelons of our organization, 'Akatsuki.'"

"You won't get Naruto," Jiraiya stated.

"And why not?"

"Because right here, right now, you two will die by my hand."

"Don't do it." Sasuke got up to his feet. "This guy is mine!"

Itachi turned his back to him, saying, "I have absolutely no interest in you."

Sasuke yelled out some profanity before trying to attack again. The blonde watched impassively as Sasuke was rendered unconscious. Naruto said seriously, "If you are looking for the Kyubi inside me, even if you get your hands on him, he will never help you. It's a hopeless mission, give up."

They all stared at the blonde, surprised.

"Why is that?" Itachi asked.

"Too bad you're not going to live long enough to find out." Naruto looked at Jiraiya and said, "Now! Do it now!"

Jiraiya got out of his stupor and yelled out, "Ninpou! Gama Guchi Shibari!" The Sennin smirked. "Too bad…you're already inside my stomach."

Itachi and Kisame made a run for it. They made a hole from the flesh and escaped. Naruto moved closer despite Jiraiya's warning, examining the black fire. 'Never seen this before…'

Odd. Different from any flame I've seen.

The Sennin went over and sealed the flames up with a scroll.

"Dynamic entry!" someone yelled as he kicked Jiraiya.

Naruto blinked.

Gai quickly apologized. "I'm sorry! I was in a rush and used my forehead protector as a mirror…I didn't mean it…it didn't give a clear view and I just attacked."

"You…didn't do it on purpose?" Jiraiya asked. "I suppose it's ok then…anyway, Sasuke needs to get to the hospital. He seems to have gotten a fractured rib and broken wrist."

"Who were those guys?" Naruto asked, a little frustrated that he was being left out. "Why are they after me? The Kyubi? What's 'Akatsuki'? And why did he attack Sasuke-kun?"

"I don't know for sure…" Jiraiya said.

'This is complicated...I'm nothing special…and they were human so the chances of Naraku being involved is slim…so that leaves you,' Naruto thought.

If you fight those guys, get my help. These guys are stronger than Orochimaru.

Naruto stiffened. 'I see…'

(Scene Change)

"Jiraiya-sama…please find Tsunade-sama and bring her back to us!" Gai yelled.

"Don't worry, we'll be back in no time!" Naruto declared, grinning.

"Well, Gai…We'll be leaving Sasuke in your care."

Gai hunched over and reached for something. "Naruto! You've got guts and I like kids like that. Here, I've giving this to you! This is the reason why Lee is so strong."

"What?" Naruto asked.

"This!" Gai said triumphantly as he held up a green spandex suit. "It is the ultimate, stream-lined, form-fitting, easily-accessible, perfectly made body suit! Wear it during training and you'll -know- the difference! You'll never look back! Our Lee wears it 24/7 and it's my most beloved piece of ninja must have!"

"COOL!" Naruto yelled, completely convinced.

"If you walk around carrying that, why not carry a mirror, sheesh," Jaraiya muttered.

Gai waved good bye as he left.

"You…you're not going to walk around carrying that, are you…?" Jiraiya asked hesitantly.

"It fits me, doesn't it?" Naruto asked.

"Don't…Just look at that -thing- you're holding. It's a fashion faux pas."

'What is he talking about? Gai said-'

Gai should be a sells man. He made that crappy suit seem really cool.

'It's not crappy!'

I forbid you to wear that-that -thing-! Gods, you are so weak minded!

'Why can't I wear it?'

Uh…it's not your color.

'It's not? Yeah, I guess that shade of green doesn't look good on me.'

Yeah.

As the two shinobi traveled down the road, Naruto asked, "Hey, what do you know about those two guys that came after me?"

"…They are after the Kyubi, as you thought. I don't really know why they would want it, but I think they want to harness its powers. Those guys are going to keep going after you. Don't worry, I'll protect you-"

"Why?"

Jiraiya blinked. "What?"

"Why would you want to help me? What have I ever done for you?" Naruto looked him straight in the eyes, not backing down. He wanted to know.

There was a pause before the Sennin answered. "You're a Leaf-nin. Besides, I wouldn't want that sort of power to go to Akatsuki."

Naruto closed his eyes and he walked ahead of Jiraiya, silent. Jiraiya didn't know what to make of it so he didn't comment. After a while, the blonde said, "Let's find Tsunade-san. She'll help heal Sasuke."

(Scene Change)

"What in the seven hells happened here?" Inu-Yasha asked no one in particular. "Looks like there's been a fight. Did Naraku already attack…?"

Inu-Yasha jumped off the roof he was on and landed on the ground. He put his hood up and stayed in the shadows. It was night and few people were out besides the shinobi of the village.

The demon walked into a bar full of men, ages varying. There were some women too but they were either prostitutes or girlfriends of the men. He sat down on a stool by the bar. The bar keeper walked over and asked, "Wha' can I get ye fer?"

"Sake," the demon growled. The barkeeper left to get the beverage.

"Hi," a whore said seductively as she slid into the seat next to the demon. She wore a skirt that didn't exactly cover everything and a -very- revealing top. "Would you like a night with me? It's only 30,000 yen an hour."

The demon mentally flinched but said in a high pitched voice, "Sorry, but I'm a woman."

The whore's eyes widened in slight surprised but she quickly regained her composure. "That's ok," she purred. "I'm not picky."

"I'm straight," the demon squeaked out.

The woman glared but left, angry she wouldn't get any money. She left to bother some willing participant. Inu-Yasha had learned long ago how to deal with people like that. Pretend you're the same gender and say you're straight. That was, if you didn't want to blow your cover. There always was the option of slicing the person's neck…

"Your sake. That'll be 5,000 yen," the barkeeper grumbled as he cleaned a glass cup. The demon slammed the money on the today but the noise was covered but the yells and growls of the other people. The man took the money and left.

Inu-Yasha took the bottle and drained half the thing with one gulp. He drank the rest slowly. He listened around. The best place to find information without attention was a bar, even if the information wasn't reliable.

"Durin; the atta', I took down t'enty o' tho' sound shinobi!" bragged a drunk man with a leaf forehead protector.

Another one argued, "No ya didn'! I saw ya runin' scare'!"

"Di' no'!"

"Shew di'!"

"Hol' i' down!"

By then, Inu-Yasha decided to turned his attention to someone else.

One whore was sitting on the lap of a man who had a bottle in hand with a gofy smile. The man howled out, "Saw t' 'ol t'in'! So' birdy feat'ers fall do' an' make pe'pole go sleepy! So'nd-nin atta' an' fight st'rt!"

"Yea'!" someone agreed. He didn't sound quite as drunk. "Some biiig snakey come and it went 'mashing everythin' in sight!"

"Uh-huh!"

'…Now I remember why I hate to be in the company of others,' Inu-Yasha thought. 'Well, from their slurred words, I'd say some other shinobi village attacked. Guess that's some what of a relief.' Inu-Yasha pondered what to do next. 'Go find the runt.'

The demon finished the rest of his drink with one swing and left, bottle in hand. As someone was drunk and blocked the doorway, he smashed the sake bottle on his head and left the human on the ground. Inu-Yasha left the bar, a fight starting from what he did.

"Ah! So'one 'nocked ou' poor Akira!"

"Shew di'! Saw ya!"

"I di't! 'E di'!"

"No!"

Smash! Bam! Slam!

'Ningen,' Inu-Yasha thought with a sigh.

The demon quickly made his way to Naruto's apartment. 'Where is he? I can't sense him in the apartment,' Inu-Yasha as he approached the area. He walked to the door and found a note written in a scribble. 'Heh. Smart. Made it look like really bad kanji instead of the demon language. Though, no one would be able to read this…besides me. His writing really sucks.'

Inu-Yasha read the note.

"Dear Inu-Yasha/'Tou-san,

I went off in some road trip. Don't really know what it's for but I guess it's to look for the Fifth Hokage. The Third died in a battle against Orochimaru.

'Tou-san, don't go bother looking for us if you find this note. It's not a big deal and Naruto can look after himself. If he can't, I can look after both of us.

Don't listen to him! I can so take care of myself!

Like how you did when- (the next part was crossed off).

Shut up! I'm not a child!

You are compared to us.

Why you- (some more words were crossed off).

Anyway, don't worry about us. It's not like Naraku would come and attack us out of the blue. Actually, he might, but is that really going to happen? He's weak and he can't really do anything at the moment besides hide.

Yeah, what Kyubi said. By the way, do NOT let anyone see you, not even if you're in disguise! If Kakashi or someone else who saw you before caught sight of you, they'll make me say everything I did in those three months I went missing. We kind of had this deal that if they don't see a demon/imp/evil creature thing then I won't have to talk but if someone did then I'm in trouble.

I was there, it was so boring. At least they let us off the hook. That Iruka guy was worried but now he seems ok with it, same with Kakashi. Though, I don't think Kakashi should teach Naruto anymore. He's playing favorites with that Uchiha brat.

Hey! What does that have to do with anything?

I don't know, I just wanted to tell him.

Yeah, I am sort of pissed off that Kakashi would -deliberately- ignore me and go train Sasuke! But he -did- say that I needed to work on my basics on chakra so I guess he was only trying to do what he thought best.

That's no excuse for playing fucking favorites! The- (crossed out profanity.)

Anyway, no use continuing. See you when I see you. No hard feelings on you completely DITCHING me. (Unhappy face.)

He's a little upset but he'll get over it.

Naruto/Kyubi"

'…Right.' Inu-Yasha ripped the note to pieces. 'I feel a little bad for leaving the kid like that. I'll make it up to him, I guess. But what am I supposed to do now?' The demon mentally sighed. 'Nothing to do back in Sesshomaru-nii-san's castle. Guess I should just watch over the village…'

(Scene Change)

"Stupid fucking balloon won't fucking burst," Naruto cursed under his breath.

'I didn't think Naruto swore so much. He always seemed the kind of guy who would act childishly or maturely, depending on the situation,' Jaraiya thought as he watched Naruto train.

Naruto held the balloon up with his right hand and concentrated again.

Maybe you should use spirit energy. Chakra is so weak.

'Then Jaraiya would get suspicious.'

So?

Naruto sighed and felt like popping the water balloon with his claws.

"Don't get so frustrated," the Sennin said from where he sat. "The Fourth made this jutsu and he took three years to master it."

Naruto looked at him like he was crazy. Then he said slowly, "Three years?"

"Yes."

Naruto slammed his head against a tree. "Ugh…"

Jaraiya left him to train. Naruto sat down and stared at his hand. 'One day of training and I still don't have it down.'

Take a break and try again tomorrow.

'I don't want to.'

That wasn't a request.

The blonde sighed heavily and got up. He looked up at the sky as he walked. 'What do the stars say tonight?' Naruto mused.

They say, "GET SOME REST!"

Naruto rolled his eyes and watched the stars. He narrowed his eyes. 'See what I see?'

A great loss.

'I'm not experienced enough to tell what kind of loss. So…what is it?'

They do not say. Nor do they say when or how.

'Must be pretty far away, then.'

Then let us not dwindle on it.

Naruto made his way for the inn and walked in. He slumped on the wall. He sat cross legged and slept like that.

(Scene Change)

Naruto woke up in the middle of the night. 'Toilet…' he thought in a haze. He slowly, lazily got up and walked very slowly towards the restroom. He caught sight of a ct playing with something.

"Hey, that's not a toy," Naruto said to the cat as he tried to get his water balloon back. He froze when he watched the cat bounce the ball back and forth between its paws.

'That's it!' Naruto realized.

Ugh…too early for this, kit.

'I got it! Hahahahaha!'

SHUT UP! Kyubi roared.

Naruto winced at the "volume." He picked up the water balloon before the cat accidentally popped it. He petted the cat before it took a swipe it him for taking its toy away.

"OW! That hurt!"

Naruto left the hall way before the cat could have another go at him. He made his way to his sensei. The man was snoozing away, not noticing anything. Naruto sighed before he gathered air into his lungs.

"Oi! You could at least be awake to see this!"

Still sleeping like a baby. Naruto's eyebrow twitched. He held out his left hand with the water balloon safely in his palm. He forced energy into it.

Splash!

"Wha-what?"

"First stage cleared!" Naruto announced with a grin.

"Hey! Keep it down in there! Some people are trying to sleep!" a random person yelled from one of the inn rooms.

Another one yelled out, "Yeah! Do that sort of stuff at home! This is an inn and there could be kids around!"

"…I'm not even going to dignify that with an answer," Naruto muttered under his breath.

Kyubi was wide awake and laughing.

(Scene Change)

"A rubber ball?"

"This is step two. The purpose is for strength," Jaraiya explained.

"Whatever." Naruto looked at the rubber ball in his hand. He sighed. "This isn't going to be easy, is it?"

"Of course not."

Naruto tried to break it. Didn't work. "…"

"I'll see you in a bit," Jaraiya said as he left.

"Bastard," Naruto muttered under his breath.

After three hours…

No improvement, I see.

'Oh shut up! What do you do all day in there?'

Nothing but watch you.

'That sounds creepy.'

What else is there to do?

'Maybe come out and try this training yourself might be helpful!'

Fine.

Naruto made a Kage Bunshin. In a minute of the replica morphing into a shape, another boy stood in its place. This boy had waist length golden brown hair, golden fox ears adorned the top of his head, fangs, and claws that looked more deadly than Naruto's. He wore the same thing as Naruto except he had a collar that had the word "seal" on it. He had odd eyes. In the center of his pupils, it was a forest green but as it reached the edge, it turned red.

"Ok, how am I supposed to do this training?" Kyubi asked.

"Here." Naruto handed him the rubber ball. "You saw what I did to the water balloon, do the same thing but with more force."

Kyubi rolled his eyes and forced youki into the ball.

Bam!

Pieces of rubber fell down here and there. Naruto was silent.

"Wasn't so hard," Kyubi said as he smirked.

"Shut up."

(Flashback)

Kyubi smiled proudly. Ah, clever you have gotten, young kit. Plus, you handled that demon with relative ease, though it was only a C-class. Did you know C-class-

'Demons were the same level as your jounin?' Naruto said at the same time as Kyubi. 'Yeah, yeah, I've heard it a million times.'

Actually, it was only six times, including just now.

'Why do you bother remembering that kind of stuff?'

Do you know how boring it is in here? Oh look, a wall. Oh! Another wall! And guess what? A wall behind me! Do you know what is in front of me? A gate! Very interesting, don't you think?

'No need to be so sarcastic, Kyubi.' Naruto mentally rolled his eyes. Then, an idea popped in his head. 'I got an idea!'

I can see that, kit. I don't think it'll work though. It just looks like one of those crazy pranks you pull.

'Hey! Those were creative! And they always worked, didn't they?'

Barely-, the demon stressed out the word.

'It wouldn't hurt to try, now would it?'

With you involved, I'm just not so sure.

(End Flashback)

That was when Naruto first got the idea. After that, he had experimented on how to actually make it happen. He only mastered it about two weeks ago, a little after the Chuunin Exam. He rarely did it in case anyone saw, but he was in the middle of the woods, who would see?

"You just broke it!" Naruto yelled. "How am I supposed to train now?"

"Well, you told me too! I -told- you to use spirit energy but nooo!" Kyubi shouted. "You insisted to use chakra!"

"Well-"

It was all spoken in the demon language until-

"Who the hell is that, Naruto?"

The two turned to the Sennin, shock clearly on their faces. They were too preoccupied on yelling at each other to notice.

The Sennin looked at Kyubi suspiciously before his eyes fell on his ears and face. "Who…-what- are you?"

"It's a bloodline limit, ok?" Kyubi yelled out, faking annoyance. "Why does everyone ask me that? Just 'cause I look different doesn't mean I'm not human!"

Jaraiya looked at him, surprised, then guilty. "Ah, sorry, sorry. I didn't know."

"Yeah! That's what they -all- say but they just want an excuse to insult me without making it obvious!" Kyubi yelled at him.

'Getting a little too loud, don't you think?' Naruto sent his thoughts to Kyubi.

Kyubi replied back, Only makes it more convincing.

"I didn't mean it!" the Sennin said to the fox looking boy. "But-" That was when he caught sight of the collar that read "seal." He stared at the kitsune.

'Cover blown.'

No kidding.

"You're the Kyubi," Jaraiya stated, shocked.

"No, I'm a cute little bunny," the kitsune said sarcastically.

Naruto interrupted Jaraiya from saying anything more. "Wait! Look, just hear him out before you go in attack mode!"

"I don't think that'll happen, you know how ningen are," Kyubi snorted.

Jaraiya paused but was alert. He finally said, "Alright. Start explaining."

The boys shared a look before they both said at the same time, "Alright, you start- no, you start!"

Kyubi growled out, "-You're- his pupil!"

"So? You're the demon!"

"You're the vessel!"

"You're a fox!"

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"I don't know but I don't want to start it!"

"Do you know you're immature for even arguing?"

"This is coming from someone who's over 200 years old?"

Jaraiya watched in a daze as they continued to yell at each other, soon going form the human language to the demon one. He waited until they ran out of things to say, which, surprisingly, took about half an hour but he didn't dare interrupt.

After they started to breathe instead of talk, he coughed and said, "I think I deserve an explanation."

Naruto tried to say something but when he did, no sound came out. He clutched his neck and found he lost his voice. Kyubi started to burst out laughing until he also found out he lost his voice.

It was an odd sight, seeing them both clutching their neck with their tongues lolled out, trying to talk. Kyubi finally had the sense to grabbed a stick and write something in the dirt. He motioned for Jaraiya to come over and read it. The human cautiously did so.

The ground read:

"I don't think you're going to get your explanation anytime soon."

The two boys both held identical sheepish grins as Jaraiya stared at them flatly, not amused. What he didn't know was that they could still communicate with each other telepathically.

(End Chapter)

That wasn't such a bad ending for me. Review, review, review!

Hopefully I made it a bit more original. I just can't seem to NOT stick with the manga story line. (Ashamed.)

Need some people to point out flaws! I'm practically asking, maybe even begging, for criticism! I really want to improve my writing! But of course, polite or real praise is nice. Only thing is, that's not going to help improve my writing. I need to define my style more, add detail! Make it more exciting! And, you people can't help me if you don't reviews.

Well, reviews are also nice, even if they just say I suck or something. But point out flaws, not just insult me! Insults don't help unless they say what I'm doing wrong! But sometimes I'm ignorant or just plain stupid and ignore the criticism. (Sigh) But I think I'm a little addicted to insults…(Oo;) It' weird, I'm also a little addicted to embarrassment. (Shakes head at her own weirdness.)

Anyway, I worked a little on the fighting scene with Naruto and Gaara. Fixed it up a little, no major difference, but I did add some more originality to it.