Chapter Five

I sighed deeply, creating thick clouds of heat as a blizzard raged around me. In my arms, I held a boy who seemed no older than Naruto. No matter how tightly I held him, my body couldn't give him enough warmth. Slowly, he was freezing. Getting colder and colder. Every second out here was a second gone for him. Gazing ahead through the white haze, I saw something unexpected. An abandoned house stood lop-sided and decayed on top of a hill, half buried in snow. Pushing against the wind, I trudged my way to the house. As I traversed up the hill, the snow grew thinner. A weak cough escaped the boy's almost purple lips. I clenched my teeth in frustration and began to run.

Even if we made it to the house, even if it was safe from the blizzard, even if we found warmth, I knew it was too late.

Two Days Earlier

"What did you say?" I asked, leaving my mouth open in either disgust or shock. Maybe both.

Naruto looked down at his feet, face blushing red. "I-I met a girl," he stammered, "And I like her. What do I do?" He gazed up at me, determined and slightly hormonal for a six-year old.

"You're asking me advice?" I grumbled and rested my head in my hands. After the meeting with Jackal and his generals, I had exhausted my patience trying to find out where Naruto had run off too. Yeah, it only took me five minutes to find him huddled in a corner, clasping to a yellow flower like his very life depended on it. Only five minutes, but it doesn't take long to crush my patience. Hm. I guess that defeats the very purpose of patience. His eyes were wide and um…glittering? I never saw him look so dazed as he stared at the flower.

Now, we were in some kind of mess hall getting food. Roasted chicken and white rice to be exact. It was a meal fit for a king in my opinion, especially compared to what Naruto and I have been surviving off of.

"I've never liked a girl before and look! She gave me this," he began excitedly as he shoved the yellow flower in my face. "What should I do? Should I give her something in return? I don't want to mess this up. She's pretty! Wait-" he looked left and then right, eyes shifting around the room. "S-Should I kiss her?"

Oh no.

"Naruto," I growled under my breath, eyes drilling into his. I could see the red reflection of pure fury inside his blue eyes. I would guess this is the scariest I've looked in quite some time. "Where the hell did you learn about kissing?" Ok, so maybe I wasn't angry. Mortified would be more accurate.

"Come on, Kyuubi," Naruto grumbled. "I'm six now. I know what goes on when you take a pretty lady in your room. You guys kiss. I saw you do it once."

…Oh for the love of… "At least that's all you know," I sighed.

"What?" Naruto asked, his big innocent eyes now drilling into mine. I groaned and looked away, face flushing with heat.

"Don't kiss anyone, Kid. Too young. Too stupid. And don't spy on me when I have a guest. It doesn't happen often, so, yeah. Don't spoil it by crushing your innocence prematurely," I replied quickly. Ok, so I went from mortified to absolutely dumbstruck to…embarrassed.

Naruto huffed and folded his arms. "I just want to know how to talk to her and stuff. She didn't seem to like me too much."

"You probably sounded like an idiot," I laughed, grateful for the change of subject. A wicked grin crawled across my face. "What? Did you tell her how you still snuggle up to your demon friend? Or how you still don't know how to even boil an egg?"

"Hey! At least I don't slam my tails in every door I shut! If you keep forgetting to watch your tails, why do you even slam doors? Just close them like a normal person and maybe then you wouldn't end up with a crooked tail for days," Naruto retaliated.

I stood up and slammed my hands on the table, slightly cracking the wood underneath my palms.

"You wanna say that again, brat?" I threatened.

"Door-challenged stupid fox!" He yelled. A large vein started to bulge in my forehead as my blood started pumping with pure liquid anger instead of blood.

"Girl-challenged stupid brat!" I retorted five times louder.

That's when I had Naruto leaping over the table at me. I caught him, threw him in a head lock and started the torture. With a tight fist, I began rubbing the top of Naruto's head with my knuckles. It wouldn't kill him, but it would give him the worse brush burn/ hair day of his life.

"OW! Ow!" Naruto flailed wildly. "Stupid fox!"

I increased the speed and pressure ruthlessly. "Say I'm king of the universe and we'll call it even, Brat." I cackled.

After several seconds of rapid fire insults, Naruto finally caved in. "You're king of the universe! Stupid fox!"

"Good boy," I said as I dropped him. With a crescent grin a crocodile would be proud of plastered on my face, I glared down at Naruto. "I always win. Remember that."

"Yeah, yeah, wait till I get big," he mumbled as he rubbed his freshly messed up head of hair.

I smiled, bent down to his eye level and said, "Look, if you want to make that girl happy, act like a cool guy."

"Huh?" He tilted his head in confusion.

"Don't act all excited and lovey dovey. Women are strange creatures. If you act cool, they like you. Act like a guy who actually gives a damn and they think you're worse than the plague. Try it out. Although, I'm sure most people would say, 'just be yourself'. It's up to you, Naruto. If she's worth anything, she's see the real you anyway." I sighed and patted his head. Looking up, I saw several people in the mess hall, staring directly at Naruto and I. Hm. I forgot that we weren't alone anymore. Should I be embarrassed? Probably. I'm a demon who just had a childish fight with a, well…a child. Yet, considering the fact I would rip the head off of anyone who dared to laugh, I guess I should feel pretty secure.

"Act cool…" Naruto began repeating that to himself all the way to our new lodging, which was only five minutes away from Jackal's Castle. I guess Jackal wanted to keep a close eye on me.

I don't blame him really. If I was a helpless human playing king, I'd keep a close eye on my overly dangerous pawns as well.

I was more than shocked when I saw our new accommodations. Jackal must have had a hard on for me or something, because this was ridiculous. Naruto and I stared down our two story cabin, nestled right in the middle of a park. An elaborate playground wasn't too far in the distance and although everything was covered in snow, it looked nothing but inviting. Everything was open and bathed in sunlight, making this probably the most beautiful part of the city I've seen so far. To make it even better, it was quiet. It was just far away enough from the square to avoid the noise, but close enough to be a place where kids would come to play. If I didn't know any better, this place was perfect for Naruto to enjoy himself and even met kids his age.

Hm. Maybe I'm not the one Jackal likes.

"This is amazing," Naruto said with a big smile on his face.

"I bet the inside is just as cool," I grabbed Naruto's hand and led him to the front door. Strangely, I was a bit excited. Not for me, but for Naruto. If this job worked out, Naruto could actually have a life here. Even if I have to fight this war for the rest of our days together, as long as Naruto can find some kind of normality and peace, I'd live with it. And yeah. I'd be damn happy too.

I use to be a wild fox, controlled by the twisted strings of an even more twisted puppet master. Oda taught me to fight, taught me to hate and especially how to kill. When I was an empty shell eight years ago, I only had him to lead me out of the nothingness. I thought this world could only offer me more bloodshed, more hatred. I fed off the anger and cruelty of this war. Yet, it was Naruto who somehow managed to show me more.

I looked down at Naruto and allowed the slightest smile to creep onto my face. He really was something.

I let him open the door to our cabin. You'd have thought I gave him the key to heaven when he finished scanning the front living room. "It's so big!" He cheered and ran off to explore.

I chuckled and took a look around myself. The cabin was fully furnished with a fire place already pulsating with a comfortable heat. The kitchen was half the size of the living room, but it was more than enough. I'd have to figure out how to cook with a fully functional kitchen.

Upstairs was even better. Naruto and I had our own rooms. He already claimed the bigger of the two. I didn't mind. An entire side of the west wall was practically all window. The view was stunning I'm sure at sunset, but I prefer my privacy.

"Well, get settled," I began, "You'll have the cabin all to yourself for about two days."

He ignored me, too busy running top speed around his room. I didn't blame him. This was the first time he could ever really call something his.

"Wow," he gasped as he collapsed on his bed, which could have easily fit five of him. "This is my bed and my room."

"Sure is, Brat." I laughed. "All yours."

"Kyuubi," Naruto murmured as he stared up at the ceiling, "this is our home now, right?"

Home?

I looked down at my hands, spaying my fingers apart. My claws were cut, sharp and clean. I knew they would be a fresh shade of red sooner or later working for Jackal.

But if I had to paint the town crimson, I'd do it. If this is what it took to make this place home—our home—it was well worth the price.

"Yeah, Naruto," I replied, "This is it. This is our home."

And I promise to keep it that way.

First day on the Job:

"I left you enough money to buy an entire herd of cows under you bed. Don't use all of it unless you're dying. Jackal's being really generous for some reason, but I don't think the gravy train is going to keep chugging along forever," I rattled off to Naruto who was half asleep in his bed still. It was early the next day after moving in. The sun hadn't even risen yet, but I had places to be, people to hunt down.

"Kay," he mumbled. "Don't die, come back and all that good stuff." Naruto yawned over every other word. Usually, he'd be falling over himself whenever I had to leave his side. I guess having a roof over your head and a comfy pillow under it made him slightly less paranoid.

Good.

This is how a six year old brat is supposed to be. At least, I think so. Naruto is really the only kid I've interacted with longer than five minutes before wanting to punt someone's head off.

All I know is that I prefer a sleeping, almost carefree Naruto than the jumping out of his skin version. I chuckled and replied, "I won't die, I'll come back and yeah. All that good stuff right back at you."

A lazy smile formed onto Naruto's face as he torpedoed back into the depths of sleep.

I made my way out the back door. I bolted the front door several times, making it impossible to open from the outside and the amount of back up locks I put on the inside made it more trouble than it was worth. The back door was locked with a set combination only Naruto and I knew. It was just as troublesome to an invader as the front door, but at least it didn't take me five minutes to open. I'd have to make escape routes throughout the house when I returned.

Hm. Am I over protective?

I think not…Ok, so maybe the pit fall traps I made against ever downstairs window sill was a bit much.

"You're awake early."

I turned on my heels, nails already elongated into claws and pointed at the throat of Kakashi, Jackals' little ghoul.

"Sneaking up on me isn't smart," I said through an echoing growl. My claws pricked Kakashi's skin, resting just under his chin. How he managed to get this close to me without my noticing till he spoke…well, I don't know. He's defiantly more of a ghost than a ghoul.

He sighed, tilting his head as if he couldn't care less about his situation. "Jackal asked me to give you a few things before you ran out." With that he walked past my claws and held out a small bag. "You can attach this to your belt. It has a map of the area you will be searching. There's also been a slight development in the weather. A blizzard is on its way."

My eyes widened as I started to ask, "Wait, will—"

"Don't worry," Kakashi began before I could even finish my question, "The walls around the capital help protect the city against blizzards and this cabin will keep little Naruto more than comfortable. We can send someone to check on him periodically as well if you want."

"Although," Kakashi looked past me at the cabin, "I think those pit traps may be a bit of a problem if we aren't careful. Please tell me there aren't spikes or deadly snakes at the bottom." He chuckled to himself.

"Spikes," I grunted, "There are sharp, rib cage piercing spikes at the bottom of each pit. Naruto will be fine. Keep your people away from him and the cabin. I don't exactly trust strangers easily. Especially the kind that sneak around. Then again, you aren't like the others around here. You're a demon. If I come back and find a single hair out of place on Naruto, you'll have something a lot more effective piercing your rib cage than some measly sticks."

I wasn't joking. There really were spikes I hand carved at the bottom of each pit.

"No need to be violent," Kakashi said, seemingly unimpressed with my threat. "I was just offering. We'll give you and Naruto plenty of space to get settled in. Now, you'll be heading north west into the wastelands. Before the last storm hit, I saw foot prints in the snow. They were old, so it was hard to determine the number of survivors, but that's not my problem anymore. You've got the rest from here, correct?"

I didn't need to answer. I growled at Kakashi and walked past him, immediately heading towards my mission.

"I'll take that as a yes," Kakashi sighed. I glanced behind to get one last look at the demon, but when I looked back, he was gone.

Ghoul? Not a chance. Ghost? Not that either. He was 100% demon.

I may not be the king, but it doesn't hurt to keep your eye on a fellow pawn that's equally as dangerous as yourself.

War games. You got to love them.

Reader Notes: Thanks for reading!