"Kyuubi and Shukaku Speech"

"Thought Speech"

"Everyone else Speech"

Chapter 3

On with the story

"Here is will you be living for now on." The third Hokage, Sarutobi, said to the small red headed child standing next to him. Gaara looked at the apartment building presented in front of him. The building was filthy and broken. Mold and rust could be seen on the walls. Various creatures scattered here and there. Gaara, reaction-less, started to walk inside the building. He had been told his apartment number. Sarutobi watched him sadly, remembering the decisions that had placed Gaara here.

Flashback

Gaara stood in front of the Konoha council and the Hokage. They stared at him wordlessly until one council member stood up. "Gaara, through our generosity we have accepted you into our village. You will be given the necessities to live out your life in Konoha. You will be given a place to live, freedom to explore the village as you please, and to take advantage of all the benefits your being able to live here will grant you. The only thing that is required of you is your complete loyalty to our and now your village. When you are eight years old, you will be enrolled into our ninja academy. You will have the great honor of becoming a ninja in our village, and an even greater honor of fighting for your village. Now that you know your duties, we welcome you." He said before sitting back down. The room was filled with silence as they gave Gaara time to process the information.

"Can you not see it Gaara? They only want to use you as a weapon, they don't care about you." Gaara listened silently, the voice was always right. Sarotobi looked at the child and began to walk over to him.

"I will personally take you to your new home. We're glad to have you here in our village." As he approached he rested his hand on Gaara's shoulder affectionately. Gaara flinched and moved a little to the side. He didn't trust anyone. Sarutobi sighed before leading him to his home.

End Flashback

Sarutobi stood outside the apartment building making sure he got in safely. He knew this was the worst part of town but this was the only place the council would agree to pay for. The exact same building that a similar child lived in, Naruto Uzumaki. Maybe they could find friendship with one other. Unknown to him, plans were already being set in motion to unite them forever.

Gaara opened the moldy door to his apartment. The door creaked open loudly as he walked in. As soon as he entered, a horribly foul smell invaded his nose. He shook his head and ignored it. He walked around his tiny apartment, taking in his surroundings. There was a tiny living room connected to a kitchen. Nearby there was a bathroom with a bedroom across from it. There was a lumpy dirty bed with a desk and a lamp. He sadly climbed into bed and sat atop the uncomfortable thing. The red headed boy dropped his pack on the bed and opened the cloth, pulling out a brown teddy bear from the cloth and hugged it close. Gaara then laid down, closed his eyes, and fell into a sleepless meditation.

Occupying the floor above Gaara a similar child slept an unmerciful sleep. Inside that child a beast stirred. The Kyuubi's eyes flung open in its cage. It's tails began to swing excitedly, its fur raised in suspense.

"It's time, he's so close, I can't wait any longer. He's not strong enough to feel my presence so I'm going to have to speed things up." As she said that fox began to shrink and transform. When she finished, a different but similar figure appeared in place of the huge fox. A six foot tall woman appeared. She had smooth, tan skin and wore a red dress across her slim body. Her dark red hair flowed down to her ankles, the silky strands perfectly groomed as if a brush had been run through the locks a thousand times.

There were dark red furry fox ears on top of her head. Nine dark red fox tails swung gracefully behind her in a hypnotic fashion, the long appendages seemingly shrouding the ancient demon's human form in a beautiful scarlet veil. The woman held a rather voluptuous hourglass figure, maintaining wide hips and a very generous bust size. She was young, no more than 30 years old in appearance. She smiled in a devilish manner, revealing her sharp pearly white teeth before flaring her demonic chakra. It was time to summon Naruto.

Naruto stood around in darkness. Nothing could be seen around him. He stood in that darkness, alone and scared. He's had this dream many times. Suddenly figures began to form around him. There features couldn't be made out in the darkness. All of a sudden the dark figures began to scream. They shouted and cursed, shouting things like

"Go rot in hell demon!" And, "Crawl back to that hole you came from!" Naruto stood there in agony, but refused to cry even though it hurt so much. No matter how many times he had this dream, it would always hurt. After what seemed like hours of those angry shouts, he finally broke. He dropped to his knees and began to cry his eyes out. The figures cheered as they saw his pain.

"Why, what did I do to deserve this?" The boy whimpered quietly to himself.

"You did nothing my child." Spoke a mysterious voice which echoed around Naruto.

Naruto raised his head but before he was able to say anything, his world began to spin. When he came to he was in a completely different place. He stood up and took in his surroundings. He was in a huge room with red brick walls. Along the walls ran grey pipes that headed towards a huge cage. His neck craned at the size. His attention then came upon a small piece of paper that had the kanji for "seal" painted on to it.

"Come closer my child."

Naruto curiously moved towards the voice which came from inside the cage. He could only see darkness in the cage as he approached it. Once he got to the cage he was suddenly pulled in through the huge bars by an unknown object. He let out a small shriek as he was grabbed around the waist. He flew through the cage, but fell into something soft. His body was surrounding by something fuzzy and warm. It embraced him and held him comfortably. Naruto held a look of surprise across his face before relaxing in the thing's embrace.

"Hello Naruto, I'm glad to finally meet you in person." She said with Naruto in her lap, keeping him in a warm embrace. Her nine tails wrapped around him affectionately, encasing the tiny boy's body in a pillowy soft cocoon. Naruto cuddled into the person holding him and smiled contently. This was a new dream, and he liked it, a lot.

"Who are you?" He asked softly.

"I am the nine tailed fox Kyuubi, the mortal enemy of Konoha, and the reason the people of the village hate you." Naruto pulled back his head quickly, but despite his shock the blonde still grasped feminine form.

"What, what do you mean?"

Kyuubi looked down at the boy with a gentle expression, a heavy sigh releasing from her throat before she motioned for him to look upwards. As Naruto did a scene began to play out depicting Kyuubi's attack on the village.

"Seven years ago I attacked the village for reasons I choose not to discuss at the time. I killed many of Konoha's people and caused an untold amount of destruction. The fourth Hokage sacrificed himself to seal me inside of a child. That child was you Naruto. And to this day, the village sees you as a cursed child, a demon, because of me." Naruto sat there taking in this information. As it all hit him, he began to shake. Not of hate but of fear. This was a demon after all.

"What are you going to do to me? Why did you bring me here?" He asked in a frightened, barely audible voice, on the verge of tears. Kyuubi looked at this child in her lap, with sorrow. She never meant for this to happen. No one should ever be put through what he's been put through. And they called her evil. She chuckled softly at the thought. Naruto began to shake more because of her laughter. She held him closer and began to rub circles in his back.

"Do not worry child, I did not bring you here to harm you. I brought you here to offer you something no one else would." The tanned tanned woman said, still speaking a gentle voice.

"What is it?" He said curiously, unable to stay upset in her embrace. Her touch was something he'd never experience. Was this what if felt like to have a mother?

"I offer you a family and a life long friend." Naruto pulled back and looked up at her face, getting a good look at her features. Most notably her eyes which were slitted red. But despite that fiery gaze Naruto didn't shy away from her sight. The woman smiled down at Naruto's hope-filled expression.

"What, how?"

"If you accept, I will take you in as my child, and if you listen to me, I can also offer you a father. You will be cared for with love and I will teach you all you need to know. You will be my son." Naruto stared up at her motionless.

He had given up on ever being adopted a long time ago. He didn't even know what to do, his voice was gone, and it was too good to be true. Could this even be real? What if this was all just a dream? He would just be hurt again. But he couldn't pass this up. Even if it was a dream, he had to take a chance. Her being a demon, a killer, the most feared being he knew; none of that mattered to the 7 year old boy. He just wanted...he just wanted someone who didn't hate him. He wanted someone to love. Nothing else mattered. He rested his head against her chest, and hugged her tight.

"Is that a yes, Naruto?" Kyuubi asked while releasing another sultry chuckle when watching his adorable behavior.

He silently nodded into her body. Kyuubi smiled before flaring her chakra. A red swirl of chakra encircled them, but Naruto stayed still. It then launched itself towards the bars of her cage, and into the sealing paper. It engulfed the paper but was soon distinguished by a blue force field emitted by the paper. After the force field lowered, a quarter of the paper was burned off. Kyuubi looked at it with a satisfied smile. Naruto's acceptance of her had weakened the seal. If she played her cards right then she could be free. Naruto looked up at her questioningly.

"What did you do?'

"I have weakened the seal. I will now be able to communicate through your mind when you are conscious. Speaking of consciousness, it is time for you to wake. You have slept well into the afternoon." Kyuubi stated with a warm smile crossing her lips.

"Will I see you again?" Naruto asked, that hopeful expression again glistening across his bright orbs. In response to hearing his question Kyuubi leaned down to place a gentle kiss against his forehead.

"Child, I will always be with you. Now it's time to wake up Naruto." As she said this Naruto was pulled away from Kyuubi and through the cage. He reached out for her only to be continuously pulled away by an invisible force. His eyes flew open and he quickly sat up in his bed. The sun shined brightly in his face. He looked around and sighed sadly.

"It was all just a dream. But it felt so real." He sat there and gripped his cover in a vulnerable way, his little body beginning to shake again.

"Kyuubi." The boy whispered in a desperate manner, a sinking feeling forming in chest at the idea of his hopes being so thoroughly crushed.

"You rang?" Came a sultry voice which appeared to echo inside of Naruto's head. Naruto jumped up on his bed and looked around frantically in surprise.

"Who's there!?"

"Silly child, did you listen to nothing I said. I will always be with you. I am speaking to you from inside your head. You can talk to me with just your thoughts." Naruto listened to the voice before freezing and realizing that his dream was true. A huge smile appeared on his face and he started jumping around on his bed happily. The 7 year old flung around wildly while laughing in a way he never had before. Naruto didn't remember even being this excited about anything. Kyuubi watched his antics with a heartwarming smile before getting down to business.

"Naruto, I know you are excited but we have some matters to take care of. Remember, we need to find your new father." Naruto sat down with his legs crossed with a huge smile on his face.

"What do you want me to do Mother?"

A few miles away, a small red headed child approached Konoha Park. Inside the park, children played and ran about wildly. They played various games and just enjoyed their childhood. The child approached the park with slightly more hope than usual. Maybe he could make some friends.

"Don't get your hopes up Gaara." The voice inside his head warned.

"I have to try." Gaara whispered in a somber tone. The voice became silent. The owner of the voice watched, already knowing the outcome of Gaara's attempt to make friends.

Gaara slowly walked into the park watching the happy children enjoy their day. He kept his head down and brought little attention his way. It helped when you weren't being followed by two shinobi. He walked around for a while trying to build the courage to speak to someone. Just as he was about to give up, an opportunity flew his way. A small red Frisbee flew through the air. This time it flew straight at him. He turned his attention to the Frisbee and in a panic; he put his palms in from of his face and closed his eyes. When he felt something hit his palms, he closed his fingers around the thing and opened his big bright green eyes. Gaara had caught the Frisbee with no help from the sand, and kids were now running over to him.

"Wow nice catch, what's your name?" One kid asked with many others at his side. Gaara stared at the kids in front of him before nervously answering with his head bowed, the red headed boy fidgeting nervously with the edge of the Frisbee. This was his chance.

"My name is Gaara." He replied in a tiny voice, barely a whisper just loud enough for the other children to hear. The kid looked at him before smiling.

"You're pretty good Gaara, you want to play with us?" Gaara stared at the kid and the smiling faces of him and the others around him. Gaara lit up, his body filled with excitement, and a huge smile appeared on his face. He could not remember the last time he felt so happy. He nodded his head and began to give the Frisbee back to the kid. As the kid reached for it, a loud scream was heard from across the park.

"GET AWAY FROM MY SON!" They all looked towards the voice to see a women not far away running towards them. She grabbed her son's hand and glared at Gaara. She then roughly pulled the boy away while warning him not to associate with Gaara. Soon a number of other parents ran over to grab their respective children and began to leave the park, telling their children not to talk or even be around Gaara. The children didn't go against the wills of their parents. Gaara stood in that empty park, frozen, he stared at the spot where the kid had been, nothing going through his mind. The Frisbee fell from Gaara's hand, hitting the ground and echoing through the empty park.

The boy suddenly turned his head upward and let out a scream of despair into the air. Gaara malnourished form dropped to the ground, the boy kneeling in a hunched position. Tears streamed down his cheeks, his body shaking, his throat raw. He held his head and stared down at the ground with a crazed and broken expression in those dull green eyes of his.

As he sobbed uncontrollably a shadow appeared above him. A hand reached out and touched his shoulder. Gaara's body held no reaction, but he turned around to look up at the owner of the hand. When he turned around, he was met with a scared, worried, and sad face. Big blue eyes, stared at Gaara sadly, the figure's curly blond hair blowing in the wind.

"Please don't cry." The boy spoke in a somber voice towards Gaara. Gaara looked up at the kid before standing up and wiping his tears away. His face became emotionless as he turned around and started to walk away silently.

"Soon he'll leave too. Just like everyone else." Gaara thought to himself, resentment welling up inside the adolescent boy. This was it, the last time he would try to be part of society.

But something forced Gaara to stop, a warm pressure around his wrist. He turned around and saw that the kid had grabbed his hand. Gaara stood there and stared at the golden-haired boy. He stared with broken and lifeless eyes. The other boy stared sadly at him before taking a step towards Gaara. Gaara continued to stare but made no move. The stranger took small steps forward and when he got close Gaara took a step back only to be grabbed around the waist. Gaara's skinny, malnourished body was pulled into a warm hug. Gaara's eyes widened, the side of his head resting motionlessly against the boy's shoulder. He stood there in silence and disbelief, unsure of how to react. Gaara's arms stood limp at his side at the foreign feeling.

"My name is Naruto and I want to be your friend." Naruto whispered in a quiet, soothing voice directly into Gaara's ear. Gaara looked up to the slightly taller boy in disbelief before a pool of tears began to gather in his eyes once more. Slowly Gaara brought both of his scrawny arms up and wrapped them around Naruto's neck. He buried his face into Naruto's shoulder and began to cry softly again, his voice muffled as his little body began to quiver.

"My name is Gaara, and I want to be your friend too." Were the quiet words he spoke.

Naruto looked down at Gaara in understanding, that grip tightening around his new friend's waist. It was all he could do to stop himself from crying. Slowly he brought one arm up so that he could wipe away Gaara's tears with his thumb. But Gaara didn't stop crying. The flow would go on for a time. All his pent up emotions over the years being released to the first person that showed him a bit of kindness. Naruto, even though he was only 7 years old, understood perfectly. And so he returned his arm around Gaara's waist and tugged him into an even closer embrace, staying silent while leaning a bit forward to nuzzle the side of his face against Gaara's cheek. Gaara continue to hang off of Naruto, clinging desperately to the other boy's form. Never wanting to let go for fear of losing this moment.

Naruto and Gaara stood there in that embrace and just enjoyed each others presence for a long while. They said nothing, feeling a connection between one another even though they have never met. They felt that they understood each other perfectly, neither wanted to let go. As they hugged, a real connection went through their bodies. It was more of a feeling that transferred from one to another.

Inside Gaara, there was a room. The floors were filed with sand. In the room was a huge cage. In the middle of the cage there was a paper with the kanji for "seal" on it. Inside that cage there was a creature. This creature was fifty feet tall. It had dark brown fur with black rings around it. One huge tails swung excitedly behind it, the tip broken into three points. Its eyes were black and around his black eyes were four golden stars. He was the one tailed raccoon demon, Shukaku.

A smile appeared along his muzzle, exposing his razor sharp teeth.

"Kyuubi! Gaara, this child, he is the carrier of Kyuubi the nine tailed fox." On the outside Gaara pulled his head back and looked at Naruto questioningly.

"Kyuubi?" Gaara asked in a curious voice, confusion evident in his expression. Naruto looked at Gaara with shock. Inside Naruto, Kyuubi's nine tails flung about wildly. She could not keep in her excitement.

"Naruto, this is the carrier of Shukaku, he will be your father. We must meet. Naruto you must say what I tell you to say." On the outside Naruto stared at Gaara and nodded.

"Shukaku." Naruto spoke out hesitantly, mimicking Kyuubi's words. Gaara stared at Naruto and nodded. Naruto stared back and began to quote Kyuubi.

"Hello Shukaku, it's been a long time. Where have you been in the past hundred years?" Gaara looked at Naruto nervously before talking for Shukaku.

"I've been around, soon after we separated I attacked this child's village and was sealed away. What about you?

"The same happened to me as well. I attacked this pitiful village and I was sealed. There's much I need to tell you, we need to talk in person, I've missed you Shuka-kun."

"I've missed you as well Kyu-chan." After the conversation Gaara and Naruto both had blushes on their faces. Not only because they were sharing conversations between the two demons inside them but once they began to be aware of their surroundings again, they realized they were still hugging. They were embarrassed but neither broke away.

"Take him to some place private Naruto, away from people." Naruto mentally nodded with a chipper grin. He pulled away from Gaara and held his hand. Again Gaara's face contorted into a huge smile. He was feeling something he had never felt for anyone before. If Naruto was to leave him now, he didn't think he could go on. But he wanted to try, he would take a risk, and he would open up to someone in hopes of acceptance and maybe something more. One last time.

"Come with me." Naruto whispered in a tender voice. Gaara nodded and bowed his head bashfully before being dragged away. Naruto then disappeared into the nearby forest, hand in hand with his new best friend.

End of Chapter