Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do, however, own the plot, my original characters, etc.

Wow. This is the fastest I've updated anything in a long time. That's probably because I haven't gotten much in the way of homework yet so I've had nearly nothing to do and I had a lot of this chapter already planned out because most of it was originally supposed to go in the first chapter but then the first chapter got really long and I wanted to post it before I left for school.

Anyway, on with the chapter!

Chapter Two: Homecoming

(*)NarutoKin(*)

Drayan spent the better part of the next two days sleeping. When he was awake, he was groggy, irritable, and got into constant arguments with Luke, which were almost never finished because Drayan would fall back asleep. Luke told Naruto that the seal that Drayan had placed on him that cut him off from most of his abilities and allowed him to age had taken a lot of Drayan's energy because he, himself, was cut off from most of his powers and was only a child.

Luke spent the time teaching Naruto. He had started off going over the basics of the Ishtvar and the Shadow Realm but had then found himself horribly appalled by Naruto's lack of general knowledge. Luke then decided that Megumi could take care of the Ishtvar stuff and that he was going to start filling in the gaps in Naruto's education, starting with reading, because Megumi wouldn't think too, or so he said. That reasoning nearly turned into another fight but Drayan fell asleep barely fifteen seconds in.

In the late afternoon of the second day, Naruto and Luke sat in the middle of the makeshift campsite in the midst of a reading lesson while Drayan watched, his eyes a lighter shade of grey than Naruto had first saw. He had been awake for half an hour already and looked greatly determined not to fall back asleep.

That was the exact moment when MegumiKai dropped from the sky. She landed directly in front of Naruto and Luke, right on top of the letters that Naruto was trying to copy. She looked back up at the sky and waved to someone or something that Naruto couldn't see.

Naruto's jaw hung open as he looked up at the newcomer. He got the impression that Megumi didn't much like color. She wore light tan cargo shorts, a dark brown short-sleeved shirt, and black sandals. Her shoulder-length hair was also brown, curling upward slightly at her shoulders, and her eyes were charcoal black. The only real color on her entire person is the familiar seeming red and white fan embroidered on the back of her shirt. Her Shadow, Kai, Naruto remembered, appeared behind her. He was a head and shoulders taller than she was and had long scraggly hair. He wore what looked like a pair of katana across his back but his figure was too dark to make out any more details.

Drayan looked like he'd fallen asleep sitting up and Luke looked really annoyed. "I wasn't expecting you for at least another week, Megumi." He said though clenched teeth.

Megumi just smiled. "I made Kage loan me Kotesu. Much faster."

"Made? You didn't light his hair on fire again, did you?"

"I most certainly did not." She scoffed. "I only threatened to."

"You know… This, this," Luke stood up and stepped forward, obscuring the rest of Naruto's reading lesson, "is exactly why I didn't want to leave the kid with you. Look what happened when we left Aggie with you! You lost her!"

"I was distracted for all of two seconds! She Shadow-Walked thirty miles! Thirty Miles!" Megumi exclaimed. "I'm sorry, Mister Gate-Walker, but I cannot Shadow-Walk thirty miles. Besides, Terru and Kai both had eyes on her the entire time it took me to get there. And, frankly, you don't have any room to talk."

"I never lost Aggie." Luke retorted.

"You nearly got arrested because somebody thought you were a kidnapper when Drayan was freaking out after Lady Agari's death."

"That was once and—"

"And then there's this." Megumi gestured around the campsite. "What is this? You couldn't have gone and found an inn or something and, I don't know, put Drayan in an actual bed."

"First off, let me finish." Megumi's mouth snapped shut under Luke's glare. She returned the glare and crossed her arms, waiting. "Second, don't bring up Lady Agari unless you want Drayan freaking out. And third—"

"Um…" Naruto stopped trying to look around their feet to see if any of the letters Luke had written in the dirt were still legible. "You're standing on my reading lesson."

Megumi and Luke both jumped and looked down at Naruto like they had forgotten he was there. Megumi then looked down at her feet at the smeared writing under her feet. She backed away. "Oops. I was aiming for Luke's head."

"Sorry kid." Luke picked up the stick he used to write with earlier and retraced the letters. His head jerked back up and he narrowed his eyes at Megumi. "Hey, wait a minute—"

"Thanks, Luke!" Naruto pointed to one set of letters with his own stick. "What's this one again?" Luke siat back down next to Naruto and restarted the lesson where he'd left off when Megumi interrupted. Megumi sat next to the sleeping Drayan and watched. Naruto glanced over at her nervously every now and then, worrying that she might start another fight with Luke and mess up his lesson again, but she just sat quietly, watching.

"The kid can't read?" She asked when Luke had finished talking.

"No, we're just going over all this because the kid wants a refresher course." Luke rolled his eyes. "Yes, he can't read. Never even been to any kind of school."

"Really? Geez. Did he tell you why not?"

Before Luke could answer, Drayan stirred. He yawned and rubbed his eyes. "Did Megumi drop in yet?"

"Yup! Right next to you." Megumi leaned over and ruffled Drayan's hair. He swatted at her hand but the movement was so sluggish that it was already long gone. "You were sleeping."

"Drop in?" Luke looked from Megumi to Drayan, feeling like he'd missed some joke. "Wait! You bastard!" He rounded on Drayan. "You knew! You knew she's bummed a ride off Kage and was going to try to land on my head! And you didn't tell me!"

"I wanted to see the look on your face but, apparently, I missed it anyway."

"You all just love making jokes at my expense, don't you?"

"Aw, come on, Luke." Megumi said. "You're just so—"

"If that sentence ends with 'adorable when you're angry' I'm going to kill you." Luke snarled. Megumi just smiled coyly without speaking, letting Luke know that that was exactly what she was going to say. "Why you!"

Luke dove across the clearing. He grabbed Megumi by the throat and pinned her to the ground. Suddenly, Megumi had a black kunai in her hand and drove it into Luke's shoulder. Luke sprung backward, not very far, a straight-edged dagger in his hand. Megumi lunged at him before he could recover. She buried her kunai in Luke's other shoulder and drove him to the ground. She held his left wrist down and his other hand, and knife, were pinned under his body.

Megumi grinned and dug the kunai deeper. "You'd think you'd a' learned to fight after a couple thousand years." Luke glared at her.

"Hey! You're on my reading lesson again!"

Both of the brawlers started and looked over at Naruto. They both vanished, and then reappeared on opposite sides of the clearing. "Oops…" Megumi twirled her kunai around her finger. "Again."

Luke grumbled under his breath. He stood with his back toward the clearing with his arms crossed, knife still in hand. Drayan looked like he wanted to laugh but didn't have the energy. Naruto glanced around at all three of them, wondering what was going to happen next.

Drayan spoke first. "If you two are done behaving like children, can we get back to important issues, like, I don't know, planning the future, the kid's curriculum, why the sky's blue." Megumi giggled and Luke grunted. "Well, if that's settled, I'm taking a nap. Luke, we're leaving in the morning." Drayan simply closed his eyes and fell silent.

The clearing became completely silent. Luke looked over his shoulder at Megumi. The moment their eyes met, they both broke out laughing.

"Hey, hey! What's so funny?" Naruto looking back and forth between the two of them, not understanding what was so funny or how two people who had literally been trying to rip each other's throats out one moment could be laughing like best friends the next. They both quieted and looked down at Naruto, then abruptly started laughing again. "What?"

"When you're older." Megumi said.

Luke added. "You'll get it when you're older."

(*)MegumiKai(*)

It was early in the morning and the air was cool and damp. This had always been Megumi's favorite time of day, despite the fact that the dampness clashed with her natural fire. She sighed and smiled into the cool breeze. Today would be a good day for traveling.

Drayan was awake, barely. Luke scooped him up and set him on his shoulders. The sight reminded Megumi of when she had first seen the pair. It was sometimes easy to forget just how long ago that was.

Megumi grabbed Naruto by the back of his shirt and swung him over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes. The boy giggled as she tickled his tummy, making both Luke and Drayan smile. She swung him the rest of the up so that he sat on her shoulders with that big goofy grin of his. Megumi had to smile. The kid really was a bundle of sunshine.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Luke asked.

Megumi wasn't exactly sure who he was asking but it turned out that it didn't matter because everybody gave him the same answer at the same time. "Yes!"

"Alright! Alright! Geez, no need to shout." To Luke's increasing irritation, Megumi and Naruto giggled at him. "You know what? Never mind. You to make a great pair of giggly idiots." Drayan pulled Luke's hair. "Ow! Hey!"

"You're making a scene. Stop it." Drayan emphasized his point by tugging Luke's hair again. Luke grumbled about not being a pony ride but Drayan ignored him, addressing Naruto instead. He bit his thumb and muttered a word under his breath. The drop of blood that dripped from the cut turned into a long black feather as Luke's had the other day, but changed no farther than that. The feather hovered in the air over Drayan's hand surrounded by a sphere of light and Naruto watched in awe as he held it out to him. "Naruto… I give to you this."

Naruto reached out and wrapped his hands around the sphere. There was nothing to physically touch but it moved with his hands when he pulled them back. "What is it?" He asked as the light dimmed and the feather floated down onto his palms.

"It's a Raven's Plume." Drayan said. "When taken, it burns the hand that clutches it. When given, it heals the hand that cradles it. You might not really need it, but it should speed up your regenerative abilities. It's also a symbol. Megumi can explain it to you later."

"Thank you." Naruto said, his voice filled with awe and gratitude. Megumi wondered, as she watched him carefully stroke the feather, if he had ever been given anything before.

Drayan gave him a tired smile and a nod. He lifted his head and looked Naruto square in the eye, his grey eyes darkening in color. "One day, NarutoKin, you will be great. I know that I will be able to count on you." Drayan lay one arm across Luke's head and lay his own head against it.

Luke tried to maintain as much dignity as he could with a sleeping child on his head. "Well, it looks like this is so long for now, kid. Don't worry, we'll see each other again soon enough. You listen to Megumi until then, okay? Irritating little girl she might be, she does know what she's talking about. Especially when it comes to fighting."

Megumi glared at him then grinned. "Maybe you ought to let this 'irritating little girl' teach you a thing or two about fighting since you so royally suck at it."

"You just want an excuse to put a knife it me."

"Yup!" Megumi chirped.

"That's what I thought. Later, brats." Luke turned on his heel and started walking through the trees.

"Bye Luke!" Naruto shouted after him, waving both arms above his head. "And tell Drayan 'bye' for me when he wakes up!" Luke said nothing in reply, just gave them a backward wave over his shoulder. As Luke vanished into the trees, Naruto's smile faded. "Hey, Megumi? Do you know the way to Konoha? Because I don't know where we are or how to get back."

"Ask Kin."

"Kin?"

Megumi nodded. "Shadows have the ability to locate any Named place. This ability is enhanced in a Bound Shadow if who or what they're bound to has a strong connection to the place. Since you and Kin don't have all of your powers, I wouldn't expect you to be able to find a place you've never been to, but because you have such a strong connection to Konoha, Naruto, I think that Kin should be able to find it." She told him and then blatantly eavesdropped on their conversation.

Naruto: -What do you think, Kin?-

Kin: -She speaks truth.-

Naruto: -But she was also saying that she wasn't sure.-

Megumi smiled. Time to play the trump card. "Well, if you don't think you're up to it, I'll just have Kai lead us."

"No way! We can do this, no sweat! Believe it!" Naruto declared, grabbing a chunk Megumi's hair as he did so. Kin ran ahead of them, taking the form of a slightly larger than average fox with two tails. She yipped at Megumi and took off through the trees. Megumi grinned and followed. This was going to be fun.

{Break}

Megumi was starting to remember why she loved children. Naruto was little bundle of energy and sunshine. He soaked up any and all information she presented him with. It was easy to see why Drayan and Luke were so taken with him. He was very Light among a people who had a tendency to be very Dark. The kid had even managed to get Drayan to smile for the first time in months. She grinned as Naruto started babbling out loud to both her and Kin about how wonderful Konoha was.

Maybe she'd look after Aggie next time Kage needed a break.

-I might just hold you to that.-

-Kage, you asshole! Eavesdropping's rude.-

Kage: -It's not my fault you're so god-awful loud. Now, about this Aggie-sitting you offered to do— -

Megumi: -Unfortunately, I'm going to be preoccupied for the next decade and a half. I'll have to recant that offer.-

Kage: -Of course you will.-

"Megumi? Hey, Megumi? Megumi?" Naruto tugged at Megumi's hair to get her attention. "Hey, Megumi? Are you talking to someone? Megumi?"

"Yes, Naruto, I am." Megumi was starting to remember why she hated kids.

Three different bouts of laughter reached her. Kage, Luke and… Zel! Well, great! The baby of the family was laughing at her now!

Zel: -I'm not the baby anymore.-

Kage: -You're definitely still a baby.-

Zel: -Hey! Who're you calling a baby?-

Megumi: -Why are you talking like this when you can't be more than two rooms apart?-

Kage sighed. –The same room, actually.-

Zel: -This way I can bug you and Luke too!-

Kage: -Oh, shut it!-

Zel: -Gah! That was my head! What the hell did you lop of my head for? You asshole!

Kage: -Ahg! That's my arm! You flea-bitten sorry excuse for a canine! You ripped my arm off! Damn it, Zel! Call off your mutt!-

Zel: -You started it you bastard!-

Jeanne: -Who're you calling a mutt?-

Megumi: -Is it just me or do all of Kage's attempts to shut Zel up only succeed in making things louder?-

It was a sensation that had always unnerved Megumi early on in this life; the feeling that four people who knows how far apart were standing in the same room. She could feel something between annoyance and amusement radiating off of Luke and the sideways look he would be giving her had they been standing next to her as they watched Kage and Zel squabble.

Luke: -Now, now, children—-

Kage and Zel: -Who're you calling children!-

Luke: -Oh, I don't know, the two noisily bickering brats that are going to wake up Drayan if they don't shut up. Not that I'd mind too much since he's drooling on my head but he needs all the rest he can get and you're not helping.-

"Hey, Megumi?"

Megumi winced. At least he didn't yank her hair this time. She pulled herself away from the mental conversation (argument) and focused her attention back onto her physical companion who rode on her shoulders. "What's up, Naruto?"

"Well, I was wondering," Naruto began, "how come I could hear when you and Luke and Kin talk through the Shadow Realm to me but I can't hear the people talking to you?"

"It probably has to do with the fact that your powers aren't fully intact." Megumi explained. "That's probably going to be the answer to a lot of your questions about why you can't do things the rest of us can. As for speaking through the Shadow Realm, you'll probably only be able to hear others if they are speaking directly to you. With the exception of Kin, of course."

-Naruto! Megumi- Kin took human form in front of them. She waved her arms and pointed off into the distance. She ran to them and walked beside them, grinning. –Konoha!-

Megumi smiled as the top of Konoha's gates became visible. –It looks like we've reached the beginning of a new path. What say you, Kai?-

-We agree with the Master.- Kai said. –The boy will be great.-

-Yes.- Her smile widened as Naruto began another bout of excited babble. –I must agree.-

(*)Sarutobi(*)

Sarutobi, the Hokage of Konoha, and one of the greatest shinobi that ever lived, felt powerless. The reason wasn't the mountain of paperwork that was piling up on his desk, either. He sighed as he gazed out the window that overlooked Konoha. He bit down on the end of his pipe. It had been four days since Naruto Uzumaki had disappeared and there were still no clues as to where he might have gone.

Half the council was in an uproar, demanding to know how the 'demon child' could have been allowed to escape. No one had any kind of answer to give them because no one knew where or how he had gone. Some of the more paranoid members were insisting that hunter ninja be sent out after him.

The Hokage had, in fact, sent his most trusted ANBU to find Naruto. Sarutobi thought that Naruto might have still been in the village somewhere, the boy knew all its nooks and crannies better than most seasoned ninja. He had yet to turn up, though, and it was starting to make even the more level-headed of the council members anxious.

"Lord Hokage!" An AMBU in a dog mask with white hair that stuck up above it every which way appeared in an open window, interrupting the Hogake's thoughts.

"Any luck, Hound?" He asked, exhaling a puff of smoke.

"Actually, yes."

"What?" Sarutobi turned around, his eyes wide. "How is he? Is he alright?"

"There's no need to worry. He's perfectly fine." Hound assured the Hogake. "Crow is escorting them up."

"Where did you—wait. Them?"

"Yes. It seems that Naruto has made a new friend. It was pure chance that they walked in the gate right when we were about to leave to go look for him. There's also something else—"

The door to the office was pushed open. "Hey, old man!" Naruto sat on the shoulders of a brown-haired, dark-eyed girl. Crow closed the door behind them, his shoulders oddly tense. "Did ja' miss me?"

Srutobi's expression softened. "Yes, Naruto, but," He tried to hide his surprise as he took in Naruto's appearance for the first time. The whisker-like scars that had marred his cheeks had vanished, leaving no trace, and his hair seemed to have lightened a shade. He looked even more like a miniature version of his father than he had before. "What happened?"

"A bunch of villagers chased me into the woods." Naruto shot off in his usual fashion. "Then, nee-san found me and since she was coming to Konoha anyway she brought me back."

The Hokage frowned. Even if Naruto had run a day out and taken a day to return, there were still two days missing somewhere in the story. He stroked his chin and eyed the girl suspiciously. "So, miss, why were you on your way to our fair village?"

The girl shrugged, an odd gesture with a small child on her shoulders. "My mother died not long ago and I heard that my father may have been from here, so, I thought I'd come check it out. I doubt find him though. I don't even know his given name."

"And what, may I ask, is your name, young lady?"

The girl smiled but there was a strange glint in her eye that made Sarutobi feel like she was laughing at him. "My name is Megumi Uchiha."


Terms

Raven's Plume: Refers to either one of two things. In this chapter, the Raven's Plume that Drayan gives Naruto is a charm that is created by a Raven and given to someone, usually a less powerful black-blood, that the Raven wishes to protect. The Plume contains a minor healing charm that speeds the healing of injuries and can prevent life threatening wounds. A Raven's Plume cannot be stolen. If someone other than the person it was meant for tries to take it, it will burn them. There is a saying about the Raven Plume that says: "When taken, it burns the hand that clutches it. When given, it heals the hand that cradles it." Because of this saying, when a Raven gives a Plume to someone they usually say "I give to you this" or simply "I give this to you" instead of "Take this". This has no effect on the spell, it doesn't care about the wording. It is simply tradition. The Raven's Plume is highly symbolic for the Ishtvar in the current era. (Why will be explained later.)

Raven's Plume also refers to the silver feather-shaped talisman worn by Ravens. (Luke uses his in chapter one). It's usually worn from a chain, on the collar of a coat, or, most commonly, a cloak pin. (More detail will be added when (or if) the Raven's become more important.

People of Note

The Lady Agari: (Uh-gahr-eye). A powerful Raven seal master who was killed by Sheeta when the Raven's Guild was destroyed. Drayan's mother, (technically). I mention her here because she will come up in the story whether I decide to include the rest of the Ravens or not.

ZelJeanne: The youngest Ishtvar, excluding Naruto. I bring her up here because she and Jeanne (Zhahn) break half the rules that govern the Ishtvar. Jeanne's name has no Ayleid meaning. He is the only Shadow who refers to himself in the singular (I, me, my, as opposed to we, us, our.) He is also the only Shadow who can take a Substantial human form for a prolonged length of time and can take an animal one indefinitely. (The story of why will probably come up later.)

Ayleid Vocab.

Kin: Truth

Mar: eye

Marru: Literally 'eye of.' Can also be translated as a plural 'eyes of.' 'Mar' means 'eye' and 'ru' and be translated as 'of' or 'of the.' The full word 'marru' has also occasionally been translated as 'sight.'

Marez: (Mar-eh-z) Plural of mar. If a word ends in a consonant you make the plural by adding 'ez'. If it ends in a vowel you just ad a 'z'.

Lieu: (lee-ow) Puppet

Dray: Shadow

Kai: 'Kai' is a word with a double meaning depending on the pronunciation. When pronounced the way you all probably think it should be (k-eye) it means 'blade' or 'sword'. When pronounced 'kah-ee' it means 'fire' or 'flame'. In order to avoid confusion, in modern times the second meaning is written ka'i.

Ishtvar: 'Ish' means 'bind'. The 't' denotes the past tense making 'isht' mean 'bound'. 'Var' means 'soul', so the word literally means 'bound soul'. The word is generally used as both singular and plural without adding a suffix (like sheep and sheep) but this is grammatically incorrect (like saying 'cow' to refer to an entire herd instead of just one animal.) Correctly the plural should be 'Ishtvarez' but no one ever uses it. 'The Ishtvar' could refer to a single Ishtvar or a group of them.

Kote: (coat-eh) Refers to the sky or the place above.

Kotesu: 'In the sky' or 'in the place above'. 'Su' means 'in' or 'in the'. Kote is translated above.

This chapter is about half the length of the first. Please tell me if you think that's a good thing or a bad thing.

One of my, and thus far my only, reviewer (thank you Rinnala) suggested that I put the Ayleid vocabulary at the beginning of the chapter instead of the end. My only concern is that new words might have spoilers for the chapter. Please review and tell me what you think.

On another 'tell me what you think' note. I've been debating how large a roll the Ravens will play in this story. One of my concerns is that most Naruto fans hate it when OCs have western names and the Ravens almost all have western names. I've been thinking about this since I decided to post this story. One of my ideas that I thought might make the western names less annoying was that by having a different style of names than the regular people of the Naruto world, it would set them apart as different, strange, or a part of a separate society. If you guys still don't like it only two Ravens (apart from Drayan and Luke) will have any kind of major role in the story. This won't come up for a long while yet (as in Shippuden long while) but please tell me what you think so I can plan later parts of the story.

In an attempt to get more people to see this story, I'm not posting it in the middle of the night this time. (By nine in the morning it was already on page five.) Today I'm trying late afternoon, next time I might try early morning.

Anyway, the next chapter might take me longer with the course load I'm dealing with.

Thanks for reading and please review,

Ebony