It didn't take long to realize that Hana was no ordinary fox. She wagged all three of her pure white tails and let her tongue sprawl out like a dogs' would. She pricked her ears at their conversation as they walked along, more alert than before.

"So she can transform, and her chakra is incredible. What do you think that's from? How old is she?"

Kakashi tried his best to answer, as he really didn't know much. The Hokage didn't let him in on many secrets. "I don't know. And I think she's only a few months old…not sure though. Her main size should tell us.."

Naruto put his hands behind his head as they walked. "I dunno. Hey Hana, can you understand us?"

Hana let out a single little bark. Sakura giggled at how cute it sounded and Hana's pink tongue hung out of her mouth again, a slight grin on her face.

"Okay…so one bark for yes, and two for no. Yes or no questions."

Again Hana let out a single bark. She let her tails wag happily. They could finally communicate! The little group thought of the questions they wanted her to answer first.

"Is your name really Hana?" Sasuke was the first to ask something else. Hana tilted her head. She let out a whine. She didn't know how to tell him her answer. She didn't have a name before anyways, so Hana was given to her by them, so it was…

Hana let out a soft bark and looked to Naruto. "Okay Hana, how about…..how old you are. Are you a year old?"

Hana rolled her eyes at him but gave two short barks. She knew they would never get there. "Okay, one bark for higher and two for lower. Two years?"

Hana let her head droop. He was nowhere near close. She let out a single bark. Kakashi seemed to pick up on this and put a finger to his covered chin.

"My turn. Are you older than ten years?" A single bark for yes. "Twenty years?" Another yes. "Fifty?" Still the same answer. "One-hundred?" Hana nodded her head and barked at the same time. She got impatient and sat down, effectively halting their progress. They stared at her and she stuck out a dainty paw.

"Do you want me to take your paw?" Naruto asked, confused. He wasn't sure what she was trying to play at. It was getting annoying. No fox could be older than a hundred!

He took her paw in his hand anyways, and right away her eyes glowed a sharper blue. His echoed that same color, and his mind was overwhelmed with her thoughts. She seemed to have thousands of memories deep inside her mind, despite being so little. The knowledge was staggering.

Then suddenly it was over and a single thought was in his head. It looked like it was written down in his head, ink on paper. Slowly it formed a word. Hello.

Naruto didn't know why, but he was still peaceful. He didn't seem to care that they weren't supposed to be communicating like this. Hey there. He said back.

"I'm Hana. Yes, you did give me my name. It is nice to finally have a name after all these years. I do not want to alarm you with my age, as I am as old as time, but let me tell you that I am a demon spirit. I am not actually evil, though. I am the single spirit that is a healer. I am here to heal and repair your damaged soul. My…mate, the Kyuubi, is sealed inside of you. I'm afraid he's the anger that you've been feeling. But I'll talk more about that later. Right now, all you need to know is that I'm your guardian. I'll do whatever it takes to protect you. And if that means protecting your loved ones, then so e it I'll help them too. Please, if at any time you wish to have me speak to you, just hold one of my tails while we walk. They are our contact for now. I don't want the others worrying about you now, so farewell…"

Her speech grew faint as it faded away. When he looked around, blinking, he noticed the others staring at him oddly. "Uh.."

"What did you learn?" Kakashi was all business. He did want to know. He was curious. The others nodded their support. They wanted to know too. Even Tazuna.

"Well" he began slowly. "She's very special, and…" she wagged her tails and started to trot along, keeping the pace so they would get to Tazuna's village faster. "And she's a spirit. Technically the Kyuubi's mate."

Naruto had to force the last part out. It made it seem like she was there just because of the Kyuubi inside of him. He winced at the sudden contact on his palm before realizing it was just Hana.

A few wide eyes. The white vulpine tilted her head at them, looking cute for their amusement. Hana let her nose press into Naruto's palm, and thousands of scents flooded into his nose, now sensitive to everything around them. He figured this was how Hana smelt things, and he also picked up that she knew people due to their chakra signature. It actually had a smell.

"Hana, what kind of smell does my chakra have?" he asked when she finally pulled back her nose. She blinked and looked down. He could have sworn he saw some red peeking through her fur, but he let it go. For now.

Again the group was silent. It was slow progress. Hana kept brushing her tails against one of the three Genin, sending them her thoughts.

And that's how they were found two hours later, ambushed by none other than Zabuza, the Demon of the Mist.