Life could have been much simpler as far as Kouka was concerned. Right now she was walking through the village of Konohagakure no sato wearing some of Naruto's clothes just in case some ninja managed to see through her henge, that hid her tails, ears and eyes from the public, while also making her appear to wear a simple, loose fitting Kimono that hid her figure from the prying eyes of the countless men that wandered the streets, after all, Naruto was the only one that was allowed to ogle her, so why draw attention to herself?
Of course her eyes landed on several men that seemed to be perfectly at home trying to imagine her without the garments covering her and every last one was sent a glare saturated with killing intent that made them immediately cease their apparently suicidal attempts. Of course the many ninja that lived in the village found this complete stranger with such a bad temper to be quite disturbing, to unleash the amount of killing intent she did she must have received at least some kind of training, which meant that if she was a spy she wouldn't be drawing attention to herself like she was.
The only other possibilities that came to their minds was that the woman was either a distraction for a real spy or just an aggressive visitor that came to watch the Chūnin exams. Of course they hoped it was the latter but there was no definitive proof of such a thing and therefore would be incapable of doing anything more than keep her under surveillance.
The day passed by slowly for the ninja that decided to keep tabs on the strange redhead, consisting of nothing but watching her glare at men (and the odd woman) that started eying her up, with the only changes being when the woman entered a clothes store and started looking through the garments on sale... especially the skimpy underwear. They actually found it quite strange, the woman was looking at the sexiest underwear and the least sexy outer clothing.
There confusion grew even greater when they realised something they hadn't before, this woman was looking at clothes for both women AND men, or rather boys. Their minds began to race as they wondered if she had a little brother that she was shopping for as well however her patience eventually broke and she turned to face them with annoyance clear in her eyes.
"Will you people just piss off! I'm trying to do some shopping here!" almost immediately everyone that had previously been staring at her with curiosity in their eyes instead of perversion decided it was probably for the best to leave this aggressive woman alone to continue her shopping.
XXX XXX XXX
Jiraiya couldn't help but let out a sigh as his new student summoned yet another tadpole. He could tell the boy was wearing a henge, he assumed it was because of his morning activities with that woman he called Kouka, if his guess was right then the boy was probably naked under his henge and was just trying to maintain some form of modesty.
He wasn't that far off either. The boy was wearing his boxers so he would've worn the henge even if he didn't have his new appendages. Of course he knew that his perverted sensei had thought something more than talking (and screaming and blushing) had happened when it hadn't.
If he was perfectly honest with himself Naruto couldn't bring himself to focus entirely on the exercise he had been given, though it wasn't exactly difficult to realise that he wouldn't have done any better even if he had.
His mind kept wandering to a single fact… he was no longer a jinchūriki and had instead become a Hanyou, he had just taken a step closer to becoming what the villagers feared he was. However he was certain that becoming part demon should've actually done something and so far he had not noticed any difference in his strength, speed or senses. He may have felt strange but he couldn't really place the feeling, it was nothing like anything he had ever experienced before, not even the times when he used Kouka's chakra had felt as strange as he currently did.
His chakra felt exactly the same as he remembered it so he was sure that it wasn't where this strange feeling came from so all in all, he couldn't figure out what it was that made him feel so out of place against his previous state… he would just have to ask Kouka the next time he saw her and hope she had some idea of what was going on with him.
XXX XXX XXX
Kouka couldn't help but feel slightly frustrated, she had decided to do some food shopping after buying new clothes for both herself and her mate and getting dressed back at his apartment.
Of course she had to try and figure out exactly how to make the blond genin eat nutritiously instead of just devouring ramen like he always did. The problem of course was that he didn't like vegetables, which meant she either had to find a way to sneak some into his food without him noticing or try and get him to try some fruit to supplement his diet.
At least her mate already had a good grasp of finance and had managed to save up a good amount of money despite his addiction to the noodle dish. So she had a good amount of money to work with in her attempts to bring him to a better standard of both living and training.
She had no doubt that the toad summoner would train the boy… to a certain extent, he was his godfather after all… she should probably tell him that little titbit of information, a good couple shouldn't keep secrets from each other of course.
Despite her certainty on the man she knew that he would have no idea how to train the demonic aspect of her mate, she would have to do that herself. Chances were that he had already noticed the Youki flowing within his body but was unable to either figure out what it was or how to grasp it.
She let out a small smile as she began to wonder what his Youki would do and what they would have to do to figure it out.
XXX XXX XXX
Inuzuka Kiba didn't really know what to do right now. He was supposed to be on a team with Hyūga Hinata and Aburame Shino, however right now Hinata was in the hospital recovering from taking a Juken strike to the heart while Shino was busy training for the Chūnin exam finals, leaving him alone to do… well whatever it was he ended up doing.
Because of the state of his team he couldn't take missions, do any team training, Kurenai-sensei was nowhere to be seen and couldn't give him anymore help, his mother was angry with him for losing to a fart and he wasn't prepared to risk her wrath right now. So all it came down to was either to visit Hinata in the hospital or wander the streets with nothing to do.
Given that he had just left the hospital after visiting the young girl, he thought it would probably give her the impression that he was some sort of sick stalker that would just try and watch her all day… of course she wouldn't really be one to talk, the only person that was oblivious to the fact the girl stalked a certain blond, was the blond in question.
His mind lit up slightly at that thought, Naruto was fun to hang out with, regularly pulling some form of prank or even occasionally getting photos of the women's hot spring, he had actually learned most of his knowledge on the female anatomy from the pictures the blond showed him… even if he had mentally scarred him with a photo of his mother and sister sitting completely naked one time… he still hadn't managed to get his revenge for that most hated prank.
Suddenly his mind reeled back to the whole reason he had nothing to do, the blond had beaten him in the prelims and would now be training to avenge Hinata by beating her cousin into a bloody pulp, that is assuming Neji didn't kill him first. So yet another option was out of the question, that is until his eyes caught a glimpse of neon orange.
Immediately turning to face where he saw the bright colour move, he was met by the sight of the spiky haired boy walking beside an old man with long white hair and a hitae-ate with the kanji for oil decorating it. His eyes widened upon seeing the man Naruto was walking alongside, Jiraiya of the Sannin was a living legend… so what was he doing with the deadlast?
"Hey Naruto!" he called out upon deciding he wanted to know what was happening, causing the boy to turn and face him with a slightly grumpy face.
"What do you want dog breath," came the response, the dark haired boy ignoring the insult… it was something they always did anyway when not cheering each other on.
"Why are you following that guy?" the young Inuzuka asked while casually motioning towards Jiraiya, curious if the blond even knew who the man was.
"He's supposed to be training me, though all he's actually doing is peeking on women while I have to keep summoning tadpoles," the spiky haired youth muttered, almost completely annoyed at the fact the man never actually watched him attempt the Kuchiyose no jutsu.
"Whoa, hold on a sec, did you just say that guy is training you? And that you know the Kuchiyose no jutsu?" Kiba asked, for once in shock at the idea the blond might actually be getting some form of training from the man he appeared to be following.
"Yeah… but right now we're getting something to eat, I missed breakfast so he's taking me for ramen," came the statement from the whiskered child, earning a shrug off the other genin as he decided to join the boy that beat him in the prelims.
XXX XXX XXX
Kouka couldn't help but realise something after she put the groceries away. Naruto hadn't gotten dressed before applying the henge and in combination with that he had forgotten to take his wallet with him.
Knowing her mate she found it obvious that he would go to Ichiraku's for dinner before realising that he didn't have any money on him. Sure the owner would probably cut him some slack but she felt the need to make sure he had what he needed… namely his wallet, ninja supplies and a fresh change of clothes, taken straight from the clothing stores.
Deciding that she didn't actually have anything better to do with her time, she calmly placed everything in Naruto's backpack before making her way to the small ramen stand, her mate would show up their sooner or later.
XXX XXX XXX
Jiraiya was beginning to pale. He had offered to buy his newest student some food and had been practically overjoyed when the boy had asked for ramen, it was cheap after all.
However even the cheapest meal could be expensive when enough of it was eaten and right now, he was beginning to fear that the blond would eat him into bankruptcy. At least the Inuzuka was going to pay for his own food… speaking of the Inuzuka…
The white haired man had to suppress a smirk as he noticed the two bantering with each other enough that neither was paying any attention to him, now if he could just sneak out he wouldn't have to pay for the genin's meal.
Quietly turning on his seat, the aged ninja readied his muscles in preparation for his imminent departure, making sure neither of the genin had noticed his change in posture… good, they hadn't.
In an instant he had turned to face the door, raising as he did so and with a sudden burst of speed, found himself charging straight into an outstretched arm that effortlessly blocked off his windpipe and threw him straight back into his chair. The action had also caught the full attention of the conversing genin.
"Kouka-chan? What are you doing here?" Naruto asked in confusion when he immediately recognised the woman that he had woken up with earlier that morning, from the looks of things she had caught the man trying to make a run for it… and for some reason she had his backpack with her which only further confused him.
"I just came to give you some things you forgot this morning," she told him with a smile as her eyes registered the feral looking boy that her mate had been friends with was looking at her with a combination of lust and confusion… but mainly confusion, "Inuzuka, if you even think about undressing me with your eyes I will crack every tooth in your mouth with a senbon before forcing you to drink ice water."
She knew the threat didn't sound like much but she knew from experience that small things like that could hurt… a lot. It was also apparent that the boy she was threatening also understood that the pain involved wasn't small if the fact he immediately took his eyes off her was any indication.
"As for you Jiraiya, if you try anything I will shove senbon between every joint in your body, dose you up to the eyeballs on amphetamines and place red hot irons at random points on your body until I feel you've been punished enough," she stated without a hint of emotion in her tone.
"Kouka-chan… why are you being so aggressive right now?" the now slightly scared blond asked, causing the red haired vixen to turn to face him
"Because only you are allowed to think of me that way," she said with a warm smile directed solely at the child, causing everyone in the stand to stare disbelievingly at the woman after she made that statement.
Snapping himself out of his stupor Jiraiya proceeded to eye the woman carefully, however for once there was not a hint of lust in his gaze.
"What are you looking at Jiraiya?" came the dangerous inquiry from the woman as she noticed the man staring at her, noticing that this time he was serious.
"Why are you wearing a henge?" immediately Naruto nearly choked on his ramen, the old man had seen through her henge then… what about his own? "I understand that Naruto is wearing one to hide the fact he didn't have time to get dressed because of you but you have had plenty of time to get your clothes on so why are you hiding your real appearance?"
"I have my reasons and I'm not prepared to tell you in a public area like this," the statement made the perverted hermits eyes narrow in a way that indicated he wasn't at all happy with that answer.
"Uh… sorry but can I ask what the hell is going on right now? I mean seriously, who's this chick and why the hell is Jiraiya of the sannin training Naruto?" Kiba finally managed to verbalise and despite everything, the owner of the ramen stand couldn't help but agree.
"Well this is Kouka-chan… uh… how can I put this?" Naruto started explaining only to come to a standstill, he didn't want to cause mass hysteria by saying 'she's the Kyūbi and decided to make me her mate' but he didn't know of another way to explain it. Fortunately the redhead had another way to explain it.
"I'm essentially his wife," it was short, simple and left all the other occupants of the stand choking, well except Naruto but even he found the way she said it disturbing, though for a completely different reason, "and that old pervert is training him because it's his duty."
Once again confusion hit Naruto, Kiba and the owner of the ramen stand, Ichiraku Teuchi, however it was the dangerous edge visible in the white haired ninja's eyes that caught everyone's attention.
"Wait, what do you mean it's his duty? I thought he only decided to train me because of the Oiroke no jutsu?" Naruto asked, causing Kiba to suddenly burst out in sniggers at the statement.
"He would've trained you sooner or later whether you used that jutsu or not, he's probably just trying to hide the fact he wasn't there for you through your childhood by pretending to be a stranger," Kouka stated seriously, "he is your godfather after all."
The next instant the stand changed completely. Naruto started to choke upon the new revelation, Kiba fell off his stool in shock while his puppy Akamaru jumped onto the counter, Teuchi dropped a bowl of ramen upon hearing that and last but not least, Kouka found a kunai poised at her neck courtesy of the now extremely serious sannin.
"You have ten seconds to explain how you know that, there are only eight people that are privy to that information," Jiraiya stated with an edge in his voice that said, 'it had better be a good answer or I'll kill you where you stand'.
"Yes… yourself, Tsunade, The Sandaime, Kakashi, Shikaku and the Yondaime's special guard led by Genma are the only people that know that information," she stated calmly before turning to face the old man, removing his kunai from the area around her throat with little effort as she leaned in to whisper a piece of information in his ear, "however I'm not a person. Go on, tell the Hokage that the Kyūbi is free and won't tolerate anything happening to her former host."
The look on the sannin's face turned to one of terror as she gave a miniscule flare of chakra, just enough for him to feel and confirm as belonging to the bijū that attacked the village thirteen years ago.
"Is that a good enough reason for me knowing about you being Naruto-kun's godfather?" she asked with a smile that held a sense of maliciousness despite possessing nothing out of place, Jiraiya was almost compelled to think that it was merely the knowledge of her true nature that made him feel so.
"Oh, and before I forget, Naruto-kun's training has been substandard… mainly because of the amount of time he spent trying to get attention when he was younger, so pay more attention to him during his training… or else," she decided to simply let her threat hang, she was certain the man's imagination would fill in the rest of it for him.
"Hehe… well then I guess I'll go and get everything ready for him then," the old man started saying, slowly edging towards the exit before he found himself flung back to his seat by the henged kitsune.
"You're not leaving until you've paid for Naruto-kun's meal, you owe him at least that much," the surprisingly volatile woman told him with a stern glare, letting the henge over her eyes slip for an instant to let the man see the slitted red they usually took.
"Oh come on… I paid for his apartment for the past eight years, cut me some slack won't you," Jiraiya said with a hint of indignation in his voice earning a pair of confused looks from the red head and her mate.
"Huh? I thought Hokage-jiji paid for my apartment?" Naruto said with confusion in his tone, causing the older man to let out a sigh.
"Look... do you know who your parents were?" the toad sage asked the blond, earning a curt nod from the child, "then you should realise that your father had a lot of enemies and if it had become known that I was your godfather they might have come after you and unfortunately I have a spy network to look after so I couldn't be here to keep an eye on you every day. However I was able to transfer funds to the Hokage to give to you as an 'orphan benefit', which helped pay towards your apartment."
"Uh… excuse me, who the hell is Naruto's father?" Kiba asked, he didn't like the fact that he seemed to be the only person there that was kept out of the loop.
"Classified," came one simple word from the sannin before he blinked a couple of times as Kouka walked over to the younger boy and moved his head to look at Naruto, then the Hokage monument.
Several seconds passed before the Inuzuka jerked his head back to face his blond friend before once again looking at the monument. He spent nearly two whole minutes switching between the two before his mouth finally came up with a suitable question.
"Wait, if you're the son of the Yondaime then how the hell are you such a retard?" the effect was immediate. Jiraiya nearly had a fit, Naruto was about to shout at him for the insult and Kiba went flying into a wall courtesy of a well aimed fist from the kitsune.
"There is a difference between being a retard and being poorly educated mutt," came the statement filled with a cold anger that almost made the boy evacuate his bladder, though not quite.
Jiraiya couldn't figure out what he should feel about the Kyūbi right now. On one hand it had just attacked a Konoha ninja, on the other it seemed to be particularly attached to his godson. However there was also the question of how Naruto was still alive right now if the Kyūbi had escaped, no human could survive having their chakra coils torn to shreds by the extraction process but it was apparent that the blond had.
Despite everything however, the simple fact that the fox hadn't actually killed anyone yet was working in its favour, other than its apparent aggression when Naruto was concerned it displayed no actual malicious intent, just a short fuse… did that mean that it had attacked the village because it was angry with someone? It was then that he made his decision, he would try to get the full story off it before coming to conclusions.
Kiba had to admit that his nose hurt, it wasn't broken or anything close to that but damn that woman had a mean punch. He knew that he could easily report her for that strike but at the same time he couldn't really blame her, anyone that didn't know the playful nature of his and Naruto's insults towards each other would be inclined to believe that he had just been mean.
"Damn… that was one mean fist… you'd better watch yourself whiskers, you got yourself a troublesome one there," the tattooed boy stated with a mischievous grin, "just like a hot version of Sakura that wants you instead of the bastard."
The blond couldn't help but blush at that statement. Kiba thought Kouka was like Sakura? He couldn't see why he thought that, Kouka was violent… wait, so was Sakura. Kouka fawned over him… wait, Sakura fawned over Sasuke. Kouka was smart… ya, Sakura was smart… ish… Kouka could kill him simply by stepping on him… no, Sakura could NOT do that even if she was more inclined to try to kill him.
"I hate puppies, always shit everywhere," the hanyou muttered just loud enough for his friend to hear, earning a small snicker from the Inuzuka. He knew that Naruto meant he had either talked shit or shit all over his conceptions of life, given the circumstances it was probably the latter.
"I'm sorry, but it's up to the humans to make sure we're outside when that happens," the grin that came from Naruto when he said that made him realise his mistake, though it would also prove to be the blonds undoing as well.
Just as he predicted, the boy he know knew the heritage of walked up to him and with a little effort lifted him off his stool before literally throwing him outside. Kiba knew that since the boy had thrown him out of the stand that it would mean one thing, Naruto would now have to pay for his meal as well… that was until his mind wondered where his partner was.
"Well Akamaru, since your pet needed to go to the toilet I guess it's up to you to pay for his meal huh?" he heard Naruto say with a malicious edge in his tone… he should've known the blond would've thought of that, he had never once been able to out prank the dobe and it looked like today was no exception.
XXX XXX XXX
Naruto couldn't help but feel confused right now, they had finished their meal and made their payment, however right now he was following Jiraiya back where they had been 'training' earlier that day. What confused him however was the fact the white haired shinobi had ordered that Kouka would have to go with them.
So there she was, her arms latched around his neck while an enthusiastic smile covered her face, simply following him wherever he went, happy in the knowledge that she could cling to him and would apparently be able to help him with his training if the aged man actually had a purpose for bringing her with them.
"Alright, I want explanation Kyūbi," was the immediate demand from the sage, causing Naruto to nearly choke once again upon hearing his godfather call Kouka by the name given to her by the human populace.
"What do you want to know?" came the calm response, she didn't really care if the man in front of her wanted the truth or not, all hearing it would do would be shatter if world views… that is if he believed her, which in itself was doubtful.
"Why did you attack Konoha thirteen years ago?" he was completely serious as he waited for her response noticing her bored expression as she opened her mouth to answer.
"Someone with a sharingan activated an ancient contract to control me and make me do it, don't ask me which one because I don't have a clue," she told him before dispelling her henge and wrapping her mate in her tails, earning a couple of stares from the men in the clearing.
"So… you're saying that the elders suspicions were right," the master spy muttered quietly, causing the two demonic beings to look at him blankly, "alright next question, how is Naruto still alive?"
"I made him my mate," Kouka stated with a simple smile as if that one sentence explained everything.
"Uh… how does that make any difference?" the toad sage asked with a tone that simply said 'why does that matter?'
"Well, by making him my mate he became a hanyou which in turn allowed him to survive my chakra leaving his body," the way she said it made it sound like it was an obvious piece of information however Jiraiya knew that the demon didn't seem to be looking down on him, she probably just assumed that he already knew.
"Wait… Naruto is a hanyou now? Does that mean his henge is hiding more than his dick?" the perverted sage asked blankly, causing the child to start spluttering at the question, however fortunately for him Kouka answered before he could recompose himself.
"Naruto-kun isn't naked, he's just embarrassed about his new tail and ears," the small smile that graced her lips upon saying that was enough to make the sannin wonder just how lucky his godson was to have apparently scored a bijū that looked like she did.
"I see…next question, why did you keep hindering Kushina and are now sticking to her son like glue?" it was yet another question, however this time Naruto perked up, if he heard right then Kouka didn't get along with his mother… he wanted to know the reason behind that.
"(sigh) I would say it is like positive and negative. Positive, aka, Naruto-kun attracts negative, aka, me and Kushina… however negative repels negative, in other words, me and her were too alike to get along, however Naruto-kun is just perfect for me," she explained causing both males to look at her, one with a raised eyebrow and the other with a deep blush.
"Well, I guess you do act a lot like her. Alright, can I get your word that you won't harm Konoha," once again Jiraiya was perfectly serious, he wanted to ensure that even if the Kyūbi was free of the seal that it wouldn't cause any harm to his home.
"No," immediately the sannin drew a kunai as Naruto's eyes widened in shock, "I won't give you my word that I won't harm Konoha, however I will give you my word that I won't do anything to hurt Naruto-kun," once again the males looked at her with confusion in their eyes as she made her statement.
"If Konoha ever hurts Naruto-kun then I WILL crush it, however as long as they don't put themselves on his bad side then they won't have anything to worry about, if that isn't good enough for you then I'm sorry but I won't make a promise that will force me to put my mate second," the look on her face was a combination of deadly serious but also regretful, it was something that made the sennin accept that the fox would always place his godson above everything else.
"I see… heh, I guess I can live with that," the statement put the entire group at ease as they all understood one thing, that the only person that would get hurt would be Jiraiya and even that was only if he decided to try and get an eyeful of the nine tailed woman.
"So, does the fact that Naruto is now a hanyou change anything except his appearance?" the toad summoner asked seriously, he needed to know if the blond would need to learn a different set of skills to the ones he originally intended to teach him.
"Well, he will live a much longer life than humans and he should have started to produce his own youki in addition to his chakra," she stated calmly.
"So what does youki actually do?" Jiraiya had heard of the term before but he didn't know the specifics of the energy so he didn't know if it would work well for a ninja or not.
"Now THAT is the hard part," immediately the two males blinked in confusion, why would telling them what youki could do be the hard part, "okay, with chakra each person has a type of manipulation that is easier for them than the others forms, for example some people can use Katon chakra easier than others. Youki has a similar principle, however it is much less flexible. In other words, my youki can only disintegrate living tissue, not matter what I try that is the only property my youki possesses, the Ichibi can only manipulate sand etc."
Both of the younger beings looked at her with looks of surprise, to think that youki was that… specialised. However her previous statement now made sense, since Naruto was producing his own youki it meant that the first thing they would have to do is figure out the property it possessed.
"Uh, that's all well and good but I don't even know how to use my youki, hell I don't even know what it's supposed to feel like," the blond genin stated with a hint of depression at the fact that he would have to learn how to simply harness the power before he would have to start experimenting with it just to figure out what it could do.
"That's why I am going to start teaching you," the five hundred year old demon told him with a warm smile, "but first, you should get dressed and drop your henge, this pervert already knows that you are a hanyou so there is no point in hiding it around him anymore."
"Huh? uh, yeah," came the almost uncertain reply as the boy opened his back pack and pulled out clothes he had never seen before. He would've complained however he managed to figure out that the new girl in his life had bought them and had also taken his love of orange into consideration.
Dropping his henge he quickly pulled on the navy blue pants before placing a pair of orange leg warmers on top. Once his lower body was covered, he put the black shinobi sandals that she had gotten him over his feet and proceeded to pull on the black t-shirt with orange sleeves on his upper body, finishing off his new outfit.
Jiraiya had to admit that he was impressed, apparently the Kyūbi had actually managed to buy clothes that the blond liked while also making sure they were suitable for a ninja. He was slightly surprised at his lack of feelings over his godsons none human appendages, the fluffy blond tail and fox ears actually looked right at home on the boy, the only problem was his hair, the spiky hair of his father's looked more out of place than his ears and tail. Another thing the sage noticed was that the boy no longer possessed human ears, leaving a strange emptiness where the audio receptors were normally located.
The boys tail didn't get in the way of his clothing courtesy of it erupting from the bottom of his back, as opposed to the point just above the rectum like it did on most animals. Looking at the other kitsune he concluded that that positioning was normal for a demon, apparently they had evolved to fit human clothing.
"So… how do I look?" the blue eyed hanyou asked with a wide grin, actually pleased with Kouka's choice of clothing for him.
"Depends, if you grew your hair out a bit then you'd look pretty badass, but right now you just look weird," the pervert said with a grin, earning a pout off the boy.
"I think you look wonderful Naruto-kun, though I will agree with the idiot there that you'd look better with longer hair," the redhead stated calmly, completely ignoring the white haired mans indignant yell at being called an idiot.
"So… should we get around to learning how to learning about my youki?" the blond hanyou asked, causing his mate to give a warm smile.
"Of course Naruto-kun."