XXXXXXXXXXXX ~Chapter Two~ XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Golden rays spilled across a small meadow illuminating flourishing bell shaped flowers. Their petals were baby blue and the leaves broad and a pale, cream yellow. Kitsune Bells were newly discovered flowers whose leaves were used to make medicinal tea. A local bathhouse also used the leaves in their individual baths to alleviate arthritis and heal minor injuries.
It had actually been an employee of the bathhouse that had discovered the flowers. He had been out gathering medicinal herbs for the bathhouse doctor when he'd stumbled upon the meadow. The young yokai had become entranced by the unusual flowers and brought some back with him. Little did he know how this simple discovery would change his life.
One of their customers that day noticed the teenaged employee carrying the flowers. Being a woodland nymph they could sense the strong healing properties in the plants but couldn't identify them. So, taking into account that a kitsune had discovered them and their bell shape, they became known as Kitsune Bells.
Of course the kitsune that had discovered them was ecstatic to have something named after him. However, the doctor used his discovery as a way to force him into being her gofer. Well her medicinal herb gathering gofer anyway. When he'd complained to the owner, Jiraiya; that perverted toad yokai had just gone along with her!
All because, Tsunade happened to be his wife. Still, he didn't have to go along with everything she said. Dammit, it may be his goal to one day take over Heated Pleasure's Bath & Inn but that didn't mean they could dump all their work on him! It was bad enough that Jiraiya was constantly being caught peeping and Tsunade was often passed out drunk on her desk. Leaving him to manage what's supposed to be their business.
Which was why Naruto Uzumaki was currently loudly cursing his employers. The golden haired kitsune was supposed to finally be on a much needed vacation, not picking these damn flowers! Last time he'd tried to take a vacation an entire clan had booked all the rooms at the last minute. Well that was the price you paid when you lived in a resort town.
However, no matter how much crap they threw at the blond they'd taken him in when no one else would. When he was kit, Naruto was dumped at a ramen stand. The owner of the stand had found the blonde haired kit sitting on top of the counter. Jiraiya and Tsunade, close friends of the owner, were unable to have children of their own. So, when the owner had asked if they would take in the boy, they'd agreed instantly.
Naruto couldn't stay mad at either of them for long even if those bastards were totally taking advantage of him. The loud cursing slowly faded into low grumbles. Grumbles then turned to humming as the kitsune's naturally upbeat personality kicked in. It was a gorgeous day and Naruto reasoned that he couldn't spend the first day of his vacation pissed off.
Even if the sun was beating down on him causing sweat drops to bead in between caramel shoulder blades. A loose bright orange t-shirt hung down one shoulder. The exposed shoulder showed no tan lines on the tanned skin. Broad shoulders tapered down to trim hips and lean legs. The blond was muscled but not bulky, his frame was lithe and compact.
After wiping a dirt covered hand across his sweat soaked brow the blond finished unearthing the last flower. A large grin split the blue eyed teen's oval face. Three whisker like marks on each cheek coupled with the bright smile gave the blond an appearance of childlike excitement. Cerulean eyes flashed happily as a calloused hand carelessly threw the plant into a large woven basket filled to the brim with other Kitsune Bells.
"I'm done!" Naruto screamed into the open air of the empty meadow fist pumping his right hand.
It had taken the teen forever to dig up enough plants to fill the ridiculously large basket Tsunade had sent with him. What the hell was the woman doing with them? He knew the tea made from the plant's leaves was popular but they were entering their off season. Not too many people would be staying at the inn during this time. Once the first snow fell the inn would be shut down until spring.
With a sigh of relief the kitsune stood up and brushed dirt off his black yoga capris. Don't judge, it's not his fault they were so goddamn comfy. Not to mention they made his ass look amazing, which was always a plus. His face splitting grin firmly back in place Naruto nodded at the filled to the brim basket. Silently acknowledging all of his hard work as he placed his day-glow orange, handheld trowel inside his pant's pocket.
Without further ado, the blond then gleefully pranced over to the basket, tripping a bit in the process. If anyone else had been there to witness the blond they would have laughed at his happy antics. Bending down the golden haired kitsune picked up what appeared to be a leash attached to the basket's rim. Naruto sent a tiny but steady stream of chakra down the leash. Before tugging on it twice with his calloused caramel coloured hand.
The basket was instantly raised a few inches off the ground as multiple popping sounds came from underneath it. Multiple tiny feet had seemingly popped out of nowhere all along the bottom of the basket. Thank the gods Tsunade, even drunk off her ass, had the foresight to send a chakra item with him. There was no way he'd willingly carry a basket this size all the way back to the bathhouse.
So as long as he kept holding the leash and continually sent chakra down it, the basket would 'walk' on its own. Follow Me baskets were just one of many different kinds of chakra items out there that yokai used in their everyday lives. They also served the secondary purpose of teaching yokai children how to control their chakra. Try dealing with a tantrum when the child could spit fire or create miniature tornadoes.
Bright azure eyes scanned the meadow as the blond made sure nothing of his was left behind. Nodding his tanned oval face in the blond was happily surprised he hadn't left anything behind. Usually he could be counted on to forget something but it looked like that wasn't the case this time. 'Ha, in your face you old hag! I told you I wouldn't forget anything' Naruto thought smugly.
Feeling pleased with himself the flaxen haired kitsune tugged twice again on the leash. Slowly the basket began to follow Naruto as the teen cheerfully walked his cargo. Pouty full lips parted to begin whistling as he headed towards the road that would take him back to the village. Unfortunately, the meadow was a fair distance from the main road. So, the blond was stuck taking a barely existent trail until it met with the road.
Sometimes he thought it was a good thing that he'd been left alone so much as child. Since it'd taught him how to entertain himself which often came in handy. Especially, during times like these where he had a long ass walk ahead of him and nothing to pass the time with. He was definitely getting an extra vacation day out of this or his adoptive grandparents would regret it.
Naruto's face splitting grin turned sly as the kitsune's head filled with thoughts of how best to prank his adoptive family. The old hag kept a massive stash of booze hidden all over her office and Jiraiya had drilled multiple holes in the bamboo fencing surrounding the women's outdoor hot spring. He had made sure to memorize the location of every hidden liquor bottle and peep hole. That way if the geezers needed to be taught a lesson Naruto knew exactly where to go.
Needless to say this knowledge was effectively used more times than teenager could count. Over the years though, his 'revenge' on Tsunade and Jiraiya had decreased in frequency. Only to completely stop when the blond had turned fourteen. At first the older yokai couple had believed that their knuckleheaded grandson was maturing. Much to their amusement they later discovered that Naruto had only stopped because he had a crush on an older yokai.
Haku, was an ice apparition that owned the flower shop down the road from them. The long haired brunette had mentioned to young blond that he found his childlike antics adorable. This hadn't set well with Naruto since he was trying so hard to impress the other yokai. It had further upset the young teenager when Haku was revealed to be a male. After much inner debating Naruto had realized that his crush's gender didn't matter so long as they were a good person.
So with his feelings sorted out and reaffirmed, the teenager had marched over to the flower shop to confess. Sadly when he arrived it was to find Haku in the arms of another man with their lips crushed together. Shocked, Naruto did the first thing that came to mind, he charged towards the larger man holding Haku. Pushing the tall, pale skinned man backwards he stood defiantly in front of Haku.
Baring his fangs at the stranger as all six of his tails appeared behind him fluffed up and his ears laid flat against his head. Before things could get out of control Haku had calmly placed a hand on a exposed tan shoulder. He then turned the teen around to inform him that the man he was kissing, Zabuza, was his mate. With a pop the blonde's tails and ears disappeared followed by a stream of large tears spilling down a 'whiskered' face. Golden locks were flung about as Naruto shook his head at the memory of his first heartbreak.
Thankfully he'd quickly gotten over his crush on Haku and was now good friends with the delicate yokai. Although he was still a tad wary of his imposing mate, Zabuza. Maybe it had something to do with the later being a shark yokai that put the fox him on edge. Then again it could be the fact that the spiky haired asshole never let him forget his little crush he'd had on Haku. Pointy toothed douche.
Slowly the blonde's grin morphed into a smirk, it never got old insulting Zabuza. Plots of revenge against his grandparents and ways to torment Zabuza raced through his mind. Which was why it was such a shock when the overwhelming scent of blood filled his nostrils. Using his heightened sense of smell the cautious blond headed towards where the smell was strongest.
He was careful as he approached where the scent seemed to originate from. Naruto tried to use as much stealth as he could considering the basket walking beside. On his way back from the meadow foliage had surrounded him on both sides but started to thin. As he drew closer to whatever was up ahead and waiting to be discovered. Whether it would be a good discovery or not was yet to be seen.
Considering the cloying scent of fresh blood seemed to practically cling to the air. It pointed more strongly towards a negative outcome than a positive one. Nervous sapphire eyes darted side to side wildly as a break in the trees only a few yards away came into view. Even though the trails Naruto used were maze-like the blond took them often enough that he recognized where he was.
Up ahead was where the trail converged with the main road. Bandits occasionally would attack people traveling along the main road. After robbing and beating them they would discard their victims on the roadside. More times than he'd like, Naruto had ended up being the good samaritan to several of these victims. The blond was an extremely powerful yokai but he wasn't invincible nor immortal.
Which was why he peeked his head out to see if there were any bandits in the vicinity. He heaved a sigh of relief when he couldn't see or smell anyone else. The only thing he could see was a black and crimson mass lying on the ground. Considering the mass was visibly covered in blood Naruto assumed that whoever was under the thick cloak covering them had been robbed then abandoned.
Seriously, what was the point of paying this kingdom's outrageous taxes? If people couldn't even travel across it without the very real, threat of being attacked. Naruto knew for a fact that a good portion of a soldier's paycheck in this country came from protecting the roads against bandit attack. It may have been out in the boonies but his village was a well visited tourist attraction.
Many important and wealthy people used this road. You'd think for the sake of relations with other nations the king would make sure this road was well guarded. Considering how often nobles from other kingdoms and queendoms visited, there should be more security. Unfortunately this wasn't the case as far too many innocent people had discovered.
Knowing that the coast was clear the kitsune confidently walked over to the bloody mass. His basket still steadily walking faithfully behind him. When he was a few feet from the cloak covered whatever or whoever he let the basket's lead fall from his grip. Instantly it stopped moving jarring the plants inside there woven container a handful falling onto the ground.
Naruto knelt beside the dark mass and lifted the midnight coloured cloak up flinging it to the side. Underneath the cloak was another yokai. He couldn't really determine what this other yokai looked like because they were covered in a thick layer of blood. All he could really make out was that they were male and had dark hair. It was possible the yokai had pale skin or they were just pale from all the blood loss.
Full lips were pulled down into a frown as the blond considered what he should do first. After a few seconds of internal debate he decided to check the extent of the stranger's injuries. Luckily Tsunade had discovered he had a slight healing ability.
Truthfully his talent for healing was small and could only heal minor injuries. Even though the blonde had an incredible amount of chakra his abilities were better suited for combat. It contrasted heavily with Naruto's personality since the young kitsune was for the most part a pacifist. He only ever got into fights when someone else was in danger and needed to be protected. Sometimes he was able to calm things down before blows were exchanged but this didn't always work. So when he was younger Naruto had been beaten up a lot and had dragged himself to Tsunade for her to heal him.
The good news was that even though anything more than shallow cut would be difficult to heal. The blond was excellent at determining the extent of someone's injuries. Placing calloused sun-kissed hands over the other's chest Naruto began to channel chakra. A green glow surrounded the fox's hands as he gently laid them on the bloodied chest. Sending in small waves of healing chakra the blond was able to 'see' exactly where the injuries were.
It was like echolocation but instead of sound, chakra bounced off the injuries and sent back an image of their locations. This technique required the user to have a large amount of chakra as they had to send continuous waves throughout a body. Not to mention they had to be able to send these to every part of the body. Right down to the tiniest particle because if you didn't you could miss something and the patient in question could die.
Naruto didn't have the precision chakra control needed to be a doctor but that wasn't required for this procedure. All it needed was a lot of chakra used continually for a long period of time. Which was something he had in spades. Fortunately it also seemed the injured strangers own healing abilities were beginning to activate. This was good news since it meant that the battered raven had a higher rate of survival.
Sweat dripped down his back as the sun beat down him. Then when it seemed as if he'd run out of chakra before his examination was over, grunts could be heard coming from the body beneath him, so with a final burst of power Naruto concluded the exam. This yokai, whoever they were, should consider themselves lucky, considering there weren't any internal injuries that he'd been able to find.
Their body was also rapidly rejuvenating at an astonishing pace. Even by yokai standards the regeneration rate of this other male was extraordinary. Which meant there was a good chance that when this stranger awoke Naruto would be faced with a very powerful yokai on his hands. A confused and pained yokai. Once again the kitsune found himself in a position where he needed to be cautious and subtle. Two things he was never very good at.
For the foreseeable future he'd have to fight his impulsive nature. Otherwise one or both of them could get hurt. Another problem, was that the raven haired yokai would need a place to recuperate. Naruto's house was ideal but it was a considerable distance away. Racking his brain the blond looked around to see if anything could help him.
The only thing there that might possible be of use was the basket he had with him. It was quite large but this yokai may be too large to fit. What would he do with all of the plants inside it? Maybe if he gathered them in a pile under one of the trees around them no one would mess with them.
After some internal debate Naruto decided it was his only real option. As the other male even with his rapid healing might aggravate or reinjure himself if he were carried. A smoother ride back to the blonde's home would be better. After a quick once over of the raven's remaining injuries Naruto stood up. The blond then walked over to the plant filled basket. Picking it up from the bottom before dumping its contents onto the ground.
Gathering up the plants he raced over to a large Evergreen on the side of the road. With as much haste as his exhausted body could muster. Naruto chucked the armful of plants underneath the closely spaced tree limbs. He stepped back to analyze his hiding space. To his relief you couldn't see the hidden flowers unless you got right next to the tree. Even then you probably wouldn't notice them unless you were looking for them.
Louder grunts and moans could be heard coming of the injured stranger. When the blond looked back he noticed that the dark haired yokai was lifting his and looking around. Since, he didn't look in the kitsune's direction Naruto assumed that his head may not have full range of motion. Which made sense with the considerable amount of injuries the raven had sustained.
Naruto approached the newly awakened yokai slowly, not wishing to startle him when it was likely the raven was in pain. He made sure to make a little noise so the other would be on alert, so hopefully when he sat next to him it wouldn't startle the injured raven. At least that was the plan until the inky locks fell back onto the ground.
Jumpstarting Naruto into a sprint towards the yokai. He'd dropped his head fairly heavily. There was a possibility he'd worsened his concussion. At the moment though Naruto felt it would serve the moron right. Who the hell just thunks their head down onto the rocks when they are clearly badly injured.
A moron that's who, the blond thought to himself. His inner voice clearly reflecting the agitation he felt for the other yokai. Crouching down beside the other male the blond raised tanned hands to inspect the other's face.
Apparently he wasn't a moron after all. He'd merely passed out from the pain and most likely the blood kitsune prayed to every benevolent healer deity that the raven's extraordinary healing ability would prevent him from going into shock.
Well I guess I'll have to take back that moron comment. Calloused caramel hands gently felt the back of the yokai's head. Heaving a sigh of relief the kitsune withdrew his hands when he couldn't find any injuries. Either the raven had already healed or his head hadn't hit the rocks as hard as the blond thought. All in all Naruto was pleased that there weren't any other wounds to worry about.
Before Naruto could attempt to wake the passed out yokai blue eyes were peering at endless obsidian. The dark eyes were unfocused and staring off to the side slightly. "Fuck off," was growled from behind chapped thin lips. Cerulean blue eyes widened in shock before narrowing into angry slits. A slight hiss escaped from between the blonde's needle sharp fangs.
What the fuck was this guy's problem. Here he was trying to do him favor. Trying to save his beat to hell ass from dying and that's what he gets. A 'fuck off'? Well fuck him and this bullshit! Before he could give the asshole a piece of his mind the bastard had the nerve to pass out again. Seriously, they hadn't even technically met and this guy was pissing him off.
Two words form the raven haired yokai and the blond already wanted to strangle him. Too bad that would be detrimental to his efforts trying to save the male. Justa s he was about to roughly shake the other awake. Naruto found himself glaring into confused and slightly suspicious onyx. Perhaps this bastard.. er.. person hadn't been talking to him.
It was possible the other had been thinking of someone else. Considering the look in the obsidian eyes left little doubt in his mind that he didn't recognize the blond. What else could he have been glaring at instead of Naruto? The only other thing straight in front of him was the sky. The bright and cheerful; don't-give-a-fuck-if-you-could-be-bleeding-to-death, sky.
Ding! Naruto thought as though a light had gone on in his head the blond realized the truth. He was cursing at the sky! The angry glare in the blonde's eye's dissipated. Only to be replaced by a mischievous glint and a playful smile. Judging from the ruined but expensive looking black velvet cloak. This stranger likely came from a wealthy family or was a thief. Maybe a runaway?
Whoever he was the kitsune had a feeling his life was about to get a bit more exciting. With his grin in place and ears twitching, Naruto opened his mouth. "You know, if you want my help then you're going to have to be nicer than that."
TBC