Teamwork

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or Naruto.

Naruto gazed out over Konoha from his favorite spot in the village: on top of the Fourth Hokage's head. It was a peaceful place, but peaceful that was far from what he was feeling now. He had just come back from the failed Sasuke Retrieval mission, and he couldn't reach Kyuubi, which was disturbing in and of itself. He wanted answers about what had happened in his mindscape; how had Sasuke gotten in, and what had be done to Kyuubi?

"Mind if I sit with you?" He started and turned to face the bright blue eyes of his second best friend and sparring partner. He smiled slightly and nodded. She grinned and sat next to him with her back to his side so that she was leaning against his shoulder. "The sunset is really beautiful tonight, ne?"

He nodded and let her presence soothe his nerves. Kagome had come upon him and Ero-Sennin when they were traveling for his training. She had come with them after one particularly nasty fight with some Iwa-nin. She had claimed that it was safer for all of them, and that she had nothing better to do. Later, they had learned that she was looking for her family, but had no idea where to find them, so she went with them and hoped for the best.

The kitsune jinchuuriki narrowed his eyes at the red stain in the sky; it reminded him of his other best friend, and said friend's Sharingan. When they had come to Konoha after three years of traveling, he had been expecting that Kagome would stay a few days then leave to look for her family again, but she didn't. She had shaken her head and said that she had time, and that they would most likely find her before she found them anyway.

She hadn't come along on his mission with Sakura, Yamato and Sai. Now he wished that she had; she always had a way of knowing what was happening, especially when it came to him and Kyuubi.

"I wish you could have come with us…" She tilted her head back to listen to him but otherwise made no move. "You could have seen Sasuke, and probably figured out what he did to me." The girl turned her head away again and leaned against him a little more.

"I already know." Naruto snapped his head to her to see a sad smile on her face. "He sealed Kyuubi again; I think that it's a property of the Sharingan… I can't reverse it, Naruto." He slumped a little and turned back to the sunset. "I might have been able to stop it, but it's done now; you and Kyuubi have to work together to undo what he did."

The jinchuuriki sighed, his usual happy attitude gone for the night. "Then this is permanent then; the kitsune-teme would never help me."

A smirk graced Kagome's face. "He will if it's to his benefit. You have to offer him something that he would want; then he'll do whatever you ask." She felt the question he was about to ask and went ahead to answer it. "He's a kitsune, and that's just the way a kitsune's mind works. Don't tell him I said that though, he might try to change so that I can't predict him anymore."

Naruto stared at her for a moment before giving a small laugh, shaking his head. "I'll never know how you do that…"

Kagome just smirked and closed her eyes. You wouldn't believe me if I ever told you. How could you when my answer would be that I knew him when he was a kit. She sighed and shifted so that her head was pillowed by his shoulder. I had to understand how a kitsune's mind worked in order to keep him in line and out of Sesshomaru's hair. She opened her eyes and allowed a fond smile to cross her face as she thought or her kit. All he would really have to do is say that I told him to do it and Shippo would work with Naruto in a heartbeat, but what fun is that? Besides… She yawned and closed her eyes again, blocking out the sun in the west while Naruto draped an arm around her shoulder. They have to learn teamwork sometime.

AN: I know, this isn't what I said would be coming up, but things got really messed up and I wrote this a long time ago but I didn't post it, so I'm posting it now. --' I apologize for all of you who were waiting for the Deidara and Kagome one. ' Please don't kill me. I'm not sure if I like this one or not, so we'll wait and see, ne? Please review with a request, maybe!

I know that the Yondaime's name is Minato KamiKaze or something like that, but I had the last oneshot typed already and I didn't want to go back and change it; forgive me for being lazy. --'

Coming up: (The order has been changed a bit and things have been moved around, so bear with me for a bit.) Deidara and Kagome, Gaara and Kagome, Sasuke and Kagome, Shikamaru and Kagome, Kiba and Kagome, Sasori and Kagome, Sasuke and Kagome. Not all of these are actual couples, some of them are just friendship or family drabbles.

Some of you have asked for a sequel to In The West, and I have two ideas for it, so please vote on them. You can vote once per update that I have this question posted; I'm trying to keep track, and at the moment, the first idea is winning.

1. All of Akatsuki froze as they felt the pure killing intent flooding around them; it was like nothing they had ever felt before. Inside her 'prison', Kagome's head shot up, eyes wide and lips moving in a silent word. "Sesshomaru..."

2. Itachi held Kagome's small body to his as he ran. They were finished; Akatsuki as defeated and scattered. He and a few of the others, namely Tobi, Deidara and Hidan had survived and agreed to meet somewhere, but they didn't know where they wouldn't be caught. Kagome had spoken up then, whispering faintly from having been drained saving them all from Oto. "West... as far West as you can go... follow the sunset..."

Again, please vote and I'll write whichever one wins. I also have a few idea for others, such as a Juugo and Kagome, but I don't know enough about Juugo to really write about him; if you want to tell me about him, please do so I can get the idea on paper before I loose it. Also, lots of you have been asking for a HidanKag, but I know next to nothing about Hidan, so you need to tell me what he's like too.

(--' The author's note is about as long as the story... I'll try not to do that next time; I know you guys don't like to listen to me ramble.)