Authors Forenote – I don't own Naruto, Kishimoto does.

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Bubbles

Utakata looked in confusion at the package that the Postal Shinobi had given him.

Life as a Nukenin had not been anything like how Utakata had expected. He'd defected from the Kirigakure forces in protest against the increasing levels of violence and bloodthirstiness which the leaders were encouraging, but rather than be allowed to remain on the sidelines, the Kirigakure forces had continued to send Hunter-nin after him.

Under normal circumstances, receiving a package would have made him even more wary than he already was, but on the top of the package was a picture of a Kumo shinobi and and a young, blond boy wearing a t-shirt maked with the Konoha leaf who barely reached up to the swordsman's waist, both giving peace signs to the camera.

"Thank you." he said quietly and the Post-nin nodded, then sprinted off. Putting the package down, Utakata carefully used his pipe to encase the package in a bubble, then used a smaller bubble to dissolve the string that held it closed. A second bubble lifted the top off, to reveal a tri-blade kunai in a leather sheath.

"Hello, Mr Six!"

Utakata leaped away from the bombastic voice, spinning round to find himself facing the duo from the pictures even as he reflexively created a cloud of various-types of bubbles ready for combat.

"Oooh! Bubbles" The boy shouted eagerly and Utakata quickly replaced the explosive bubble the boy was trying to catch with one that was simply reinforced enough that it was difficult to pop. The boy leapt into the air, managing to catch it, then held it in one hand as he poked it with a finger, giggling as he did so.

"So, I'm Killer B, from Kumo high,
"And that's Naruto, a strong lil' guy.
"I hold the eight, he's got the nine,
"And we're good friends, get on real fine.
"But the other seven, we wish to meet
"'Cause Peace is a thing we think is neat.
"Word!"

Utakata stared at the odd man. "What?"

"We're Jinchuuriki." Naruto chirped as he trotted up and held out the bubble for Utakata to take. "So are you, right?"

"I… am." Utakata agreed. "I hold…"

"The Rokubi." B supplied. "I heard you'd left Kiri after they went all grrr-rawr-blood. Anyway… uh-oh."

A rustling sound made Utakata sigh. "The Hunter-nin, they've found me again."

"Mr Nine, your place?"

"Sure!" Naruto reached out to grab Utakata's kimono, then the world seemed to blink and Utakata looked round in shock.

"Gotcha, Mr Nine." B siad and Utakata spun back to see B carefully lift Naruto up. "Two at once almost too much for you, huh. Okay, we'll work on helping you get bigger and stronger."

"…where are we?" Utakata asked and B tilted his head towards a nearby hut.

"We're on Mr Nine's private island. That's his house there, he likes to visit me and I'm helping him learn how to use chakra. He's the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi and is the son of the Yondaime Hokage, little tyke wants to become Hokage himself so he can protect everyone."

As he talked, B led the disconcerted Kiri shinobi into the hut.

"I'll put him to bed for a nap, then we can talk, yes?"

"'m not tired." Naruto complained, then he yawned.

"Jus a little nap, bro, then you can try swinging a sword again, 'kay?"

"'kay…"

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"So… why?" Utakata asked once B had come down and poured water for both of them.

"Now that's the question." B smirked, then he glanced up at the area where Naruto was asleep.

"Naruto, mainly. Little tyke popped up 'bout a year ago and shared some fruit with me. Asked me questions on how to be an awesome ninja, what being a Jinchuuriki is all about, that kind of stuff. It got me thinking and talking to Gyoki." B patted his chest to show what he was referring to. "Gyoki and the others, they can talk to each other as well as to their hosts. Your beast said you'd defected from Kiri in search of peace, so I talked it over with little bro and he… well, he's making friends in Konoha, has a flat there of his own, now, but he doesn't like to leave this place alone for too long. His dad built it, you know."

Utakata looked round with renewed appreciation.

"The Yondaime built this?"

"Yep, it was his holiday home for him and his wife, the Habanero. Uzumaki Kushina."

"…wow."

B nodded and took another sip. "Anyway, Over the last few months, we brough over panes of glass and stuff, built another hut so I could stay over, or lil' Yugito could… she quite likes him. Finds him interesting."

"…Yugito?"

"Miss Two."

Utakata shook his head in shocked disbelief. "The Nibi? How many of us is he trying to collect?"

B sighed. "He'd like to meet all of us, but… the Sanbi says there's something wrong with his host. Some sort of control he can't break."

Utakata inhaled sharply. "The Mizukage's being controlled?"

"That's what Gyoku tells me." B confirmed. "You should ask your own beast."

"I… I'll try." Utakata managed.

"As for the others, I've sent a message to the host of the Ichibi, but the Ichibi itself? Gyoku says that he's gone crazy with pain. I'd say his seal needs fixing. I've got feelers out for the host of the Yonbi, he's currently in the wilds according to his beast and the host of the Gobi is in tune enough that we've talked. I've sent him a tag so we can meet. The host of the Nanabi is another matter. Turns out that the Nanabi is held by Takigakure."

"What?" Utakata jolted in shock. "How did such a tiny Village get a Biju?"

"Not a clue." B shrugged. "According to the Nanabi, they ain't mistreating her, but they ain't helping her either. Not sure how to get a tag to her."

"…so what do you want from me?" Utakata finally asked.

"Sooner or later, the Mizukage is going down and when that happens, the replacement will probably want to meet you. Until then, you should stay safe and this island will help you do so. Naruto's in and out daily, so if you want to go anywhere, he can drop you off at the nearest tag he has access to. I have one under one of the benches outside my house.

"Till then, offer him training. Maybe with reading and calligraphy?"

"I'm quite good with those." Utakata gave a faint smile. "I do not know if I can teach him anything to do with violence… but reading, writing and so on? that I can do."

"Kid's got a lot of energy." B warned him. "He can almost keep up with me."