Kitsune here with a new chapter! This was like pulling teeth. Seriously, I warred with myself on this one. Anyway. I've now got me a nice awesome beta reader who is being kind enough to help with editing for spelling and such. Seriously, I owe you big.

In other news, um. Stuff. A lot happens in this chapter. Can't say more here without giving things away.

I do have two Naruto-based questions that have been bugging the shit out of me.

The first is, if Naruto failed the Academy test twice, shouldn't he start the series two years older than everyone else in his class? What, did he get enrolled extra early? In any case, Lee, Neji and Tenten should have recognized him when they met for the first time.

The second is Ibiki's test for the chuunin exam. You have a paper with 9 questions plus one mystery question. The blank page starts out as 10 points, and you don't GAIN points for correct answers, you LOSE them for incorrect ones. Wouldn't a blank page still be worth 10 points at the end of the test? I don't remember him saying you actually had to write anything...

Just been bugging me a lot recently.

"Thanks and Thanks again!" to all of you who've read, reviewed, faved, and alerted. Notes at the end.

_*&*&*_POV NARUTO_*&*&*_

When Naruto awoke, he found himself confused by his location. He had only been out for maybe an hour or so, and he'd really been expecting to wake up chained against a wall or something. Instead, he found himself on a rather comfortable couch. Naturally, he froze, since it wasn't the first time he had woken up somewhere unexpected.

A voice came from somewhere by his feet, "But, I'm telling you that I don't think he's a homunculus!"

"May, you felt that thing, that, what did he call it, Kyuubi, feels just like them." He recognized that one—Ling was apparently right in his face. The blond decided to keep his eyes closed and pretend to still be sleeping as long as possible.

"Even when you were a homunculus, you always felt like a homunculus to me. He doesn't!" The voice he now identified as 'May' yelled, "He doesn't! When he does that 'Sage Mode' he doesn't feel like it at all! You know this!"

"But, May," Al said from somewhere by the girl, "We don't really know what that is. All we've proven is he's stronger and different then the ones we have fought."

"Then how do you explain the Gate, Al?"

"Ed," Roy seemed to be somewhere past his head, "We have no proof that he was talking about that place. As Ling pointed out, it could very well be another false gate."

Oh great, it's a full room isn't it? Naruto mused as he lay there. He could feel at least seven other people in the room with him, and he had a feeling that there were more right outside the door. What the hell, you save someone's life, and they up the guards?

"I've never seen this 'gate' of yours, but what worries me is his talk of bringing the dead back. This person he and the toad spoke of sounded an awful lot like Father." And that would be Scar-face, somewhere over on the other side of the room. "We might have another being that wants to become god on our hands."

"Oh, come on! He saved my life; he can't be all that bad." The girl he had saved, Winry, was apparently in the room as well.

"That may be the case, Miss Rockbell, but it could have been a ruse. He could have done so in order to gain our trust."

"Oh, now you guys are just being paranoid, Major." The girl responded, "All I see is a boy who saved my life at the risk of his own while you people were trying to flatten him into a pancake."

"Winry, let me assure you, even if we flattened this guy, he'd be fine in a few hours," Mustang sighed; apparently this conversation had been going on for a while. "This guy is an un-killable monster."

The girl made a sound of protest, only to be cut off. "Mmm, he's got a point, Winry-san. He does turn into a big monster-fox-rabbit thing." Ling poked Naruto in the head as he spoke, "He's definitely an odd one. Hey, when you guys are done with him, can I take him back to Xing with me? That old emperor might like a new pet."

Naruto couldn't take it anymore. "I'm not a freaking pet!" he shouted as he snatched at the hand, discovering his hands were tied together, "And Kyuubi is a fox. Not a rabbit, not a monster. The nine tailed demon fox."

"Oh, he's awake."

"Thanks for pointing out the obvious, Ling..." Suddenly there was a weight on his chest; opening his eyes, he found himself nose to nose with Ed. "Now, tell me what you know about the Gate! How did you get there, and did you see that bastard Truth?"

Naruto blinked up at him, "Eh? What gate?"

"That place you said was like a weird illusion. Tell me about it. Now."

"Get off me first! I can't breathe with you sitting on my chest, you weirdo." Once the other teen had gotten off his chest, Naruto sat up, turning to face the room full of wary people. "Why am I here?"

"We're the ones asking questions," Roy put in from his seat behind a desk. Naruto stuck his tongue out at him.

"The Gate?" prompted Al.

"Huh? I don't know what that is." Naruto shrugged, "I saw no gate. I was hoping it was some weird genjutsu that Nagato did. But it was really boring, nothing like Ita...this other guy's abilities. It was all white, kinda like a hospital, except there were no sounds or smells. Completely empty. What was really weird was Kyuubi was there too, and that's never happened before. He's supposed to be in the seal-cage."

"Sounds like the gate to me," Ed sighed. "Al, Roy?"

"I agree, brother."

"I'm not so sure, Ed. Last time I was there, it wasn't empty."

"Roy, last time you were there, you were blind," Ed pointed out, "so how would you know?"

"Ehhh? What are you guys talking about?" Naruto huffed, attempting to cross his arms, only to be ignored.

"So, was he there because he tried to bring back the dead?"

"I've never tried to bring back the dead! That's a forbidden technique; it can get you kicked out of the village and labeled a missing-nin just for talking about doing that! Don't even joke about that shit." The blond shivered, "I've got enough people after me without adding the ANBU black-ops to the list, thanks."

"Then what were you talking about earlier, in regards to all the dead people you 'got Nagato to bring back,' boy?" Armstrong flexed, "It's very unmanly to blame others for your deeds."

"What on earth are you talking about? It's not like I beat him up till he gave back their souls or anything. We just talked about stuff. I wanted to know why he sent the six Peins after me and killed everyone, and so he told me."

"Pain, like headaches and such?" Winry piped in. "How do you send a feeling after someone?"

"Well, I assume they'd be similar to the homuculi, and named after types of pain," Scar spat. "Another egotistical man attempting to take over the world. Don't you Alchemists ever learn?"

The blond let his eyes roam around the room, looking for a way out. Distractedly, he clarified, "Not PA-in, PE-in. The six paths of Pein. They had some real scary skills! But, really, it was all Nagato, which is way scarier. He wanted to become God and stop the cycle of pain and hate. But, his methods only produced more pain. Still, he wanted to help everyone, in his way."

There was a moment of silence before Ed asked, "He wanted to be a God...and killed a bunch of people...in order to HELP people? How the fuck does that work? And you, where were you in all this?"

"Training with the toads to beat him." Naruto shrugged, "And before he attacked my home, I was training with my Sensei, my team, or my Master." He stood and stretched, "It's hard work to become this amazing."

"Team?" Roy raised an eyebrow, warily eyeing the bound blond as he strolled up to the desk and flipped open the file on his desk.

"Yep. I've been training with them since I was a kid. Got put on my team at twelve." He smirked up at Mustang, "You know what was the first thing my Sensei taught us? Eva—"

*&*&*_POV ED_*&*&*

Ed blinked in surprise. "Get Winry out of here, NOW!" One moment, that idiot Naruto had been standing next to Roy, taunting him, and more than likely plotting to bolt out of the window, and the next, he was just gone. There wasn't even the usual puff of smoke, or anything. Somehow, he didn't think it was quite deliberate. He carefully checked were the whiskered possible-homunculus had been standing.I smell ozone, but other than that I don't see anything out of the ordinary...

"-ell do you think you...?" Naruto stopped mid sentence. "Ah crap, back here again?" He looked at the window, "Screw this, I-" and was gone again.

"What the hell is going on?" Shouted Roy as both he and Ed made a grab for the blond, only grabbing the air where he had been.

"It was too fast, dammit. Where will he appear next?"

"Brother?" It was obvious to Ed that no one else realized just what had happened.

"It's the Gate, Al. Somehow, without an array or anything, he's sent himself there. But what I don't..."

There he was again. But something was different. The former Alchemist could feel the malice radiating off him. The boy looked over his shoulder, smirking at them with blood red eyes as some strange energy enveloped him, rapidly forming what appeared to be ears and tails."Hahaha... It worked!"He took a step towards them before a bloom of fire stopped him

"Don't even think about it, or I roast you where you stand."

Ed got as close as he could, a plan half-formed in his mind as the blond glared at Mustang."You are Nothing! I will...NOT LET YOU...Stop fighting me...Give me back my body!" The overwhelming feeling of hate abruptly vanished, as did the strange swirling energy, leaving Naruto panting. "I think I'm gonna be sick," he whined before bolting for the window.

I can't let him get away! Let's hope I'm right about this, because if I'm wrong, I'm so dead. Ed lunged, tackling the other blond just as he reached the window. "Roy! Outside, NOW!" he bellowed as the two went crashing though into the open air. Why does he have to have his office on the fifth floor? Was his last thought as he scrunched his eyes closed so he couldn't see the ground come racing up at them—

*&*&*Change*&*&*

There was no impact. Ed cracked open a golden eye as Naruto squirmed out of his grip. There was nothing to see, everything before him was white. "Shit. It is the Gate."

"What the fuck! Stop getting in my way, Smudge! I told you I'm going home, dammit!"

Smudge?

"And I told you that I'm not stopping you at all,"came the amused response. Tugging his jacket back into some semblance of order, Ed located the source of the voice."Hello again, Mr. Alchemist."The speaker turned his crazy-grin back to Naruto, "The way you used is closed. I can't send you back."

"But you said you COULD!" The blue eyed blond shouted.

"I did send you back."

"You just sent me back to that nuthouse!"

Is he arguing...with Truth? And where's the Gate itself? His should be here at least..."What the hell is going on?"

"That's what I want to know!" The other blond shouted as Truth laughed, "YOU! I want answers!"

"But, you know all the answers already."Truth turned his attention back to his old acquaintance."Much like you, they have no gate,"he explained, preempting the question,"They arrived through different means. Honestly, you think they would be thankful that I rescued them."

"They?"

"You call that a rescue? HAHAHAHA… You're almost as amusing as the brat."The hair on the back of Ed's neck stood up. Slowly, he turned and looked behind him. There, attached somehow to Naruto's shadow, stood a monster."Come, boy, let me eat you again. I almost had us out of that place."

Naruto rounded on the monster, "NO! That was the worst feeling in the world, you stupid fox! I told you I won't let you control me like that!"

"Then what about him?"The beast looked right at Ed's slightly shaking form, laughing,"Can I eat him? I wonder what would happen if I did. He's barely a snack though."

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SO SMALL HE DOESN'T EVEN QUALIFY AS AN H'ORDERVE?" Ed screeched before realizing what exactly he was shouting at.Ah crap.Suddenly, Naruto was between him and the fox, arms out.

"NO. No eating people! Bad fox, BAD!" The whiskered boy turned back to Ed, "I won't let him eat you, and he knows it. He thinks he's being funny, and THAT guy keeps letting him in here."

"Of course. Where one goes, you both go. Even you should know that, Mr. Jinchuuriki."Truth laughed.

Ed couldn't believe it. He'd seen the picture, but seeing something that large and obviously mean right in front of you is another thing. "THAT is what is inside you?" He looked incredulously at the other blond, who refused to meet his eyes, "Someone put THAT in you when you were a baby?"

Naruto pouted, "Yeah, so? It's not that big of a deal, really."

"Not that big of a deal!" The beast hooted in laughter, "Oh, you're priceless, Naruto. All that pain and suffering, and you say it isn't that big of a deal. You truly are an idiot." The fox turned its attention back to Truth, tails whipping in annoyance, "Well, are you going to send us back, or are you waiting until I eat Naruto again?"

"I don't think he likes that, Kyuubi. And here I was enjoying the company. Well then, back you all go." He turned his faceless face towards Ed,"Come again, Mr. Alchemist. When you find the way, that is..."

*&*&*Change*&*&*

He felt someone shaking him. "ED! Are you all right?" It was Mustang.

"Nnnnn, fine. Just stop shaking me, alright?" he mumbled, sitting up.

Roy punched his head, "Don't you ever do something like that again, Fullmetal!" He snarled as Al rushed forward to hug his brother.

"Where's Naruto?" He asked as he looked around, seeing Hawkeye, Ling, Lan Fan, Al, and of course Roy. He assumed the others weren't far away.

"UUUGGGHHH, I'm going to be sick," came the moan from just behind him.

"Never mind."

"What happened, Brother?" What happened indeed, I wonder.

"I'll tell you guys about it all later, but I can tell you he definitely saw Truth." He glared at Mustang, "YOU didn't tell me that the Kyuubi-monster was THAT big! He threatened to eat me!"

Roy's jaw dropped, "You SAW that thing?"

"Yeah. That is one nasty piece of work," griped the blond as he stood with the help of his brother. "We've been really lucky so far."

"Lucky how?"

"Oh crud, what if Gamakichi tries to summon me again? I seriously can't handle any more!"I can relate to that. That trip always makes my stomach turn. I can't imagine doing it three times so rapidly. "I know!" Naruto leapt to his feet, ignoring the crowd. He chomped down on his thumb and then pressed his hand into the ground.

PUFFT!

Ahh, so that's how he does it.

A large toad now squatted amidst the group, causing them all to take a few large steps back. This one looked a bit meaner than the previous toad. Its colors were darker, and it looked like it had a cocky expression.Not that I know how a toad can look cocky.

"Gamakichi! What gives, man? You keep sending me to this awful place. Knock it off already and bring me home, dammit! I can't take it anymore!" Naruto cried, waving his arms around emphatically.

"M-MUUMPH!"

"Eh?"

"MMMMPH!"

He leaned closer, "Eh?" before looking at the toad. "What do you have in your mouth? Were you eating? You're supposed to be SAVING ME and you WERE EATING?"

The toad looked affronted. Then it glared at all of them before its eyes settled on Hawkeye. If looks could kill, the look it gave her would have dropped her like a rock. Finally it turned back to Naruto before opening its mouth wide, revealing...

"Is that a dog?" Ling asked.

The shinobi grabbed the small pug-like dog out of the toad's mouth and hugged it. "Pakkun!"

"Yo, Naruto. Put me down."

"It's a dog...That can TALK?" Ed winced; the last talking dog-creature he had seen had been made out of Nina and Alexander.

"Sorry." The teen sheepishly put the dog down, "Wait, what were you doing in Gamakichi's mouth?"

"Of course I can talk," The dog groused. "Tsunade's plan, kid. Ya might want to step back." The dog nipped his paw-pad before pressing it into the dirt.

PUFFT!

A sliver haired man stood before them, holding a now familiar orange book. One eye was hidden behind a hitai-ate, and the rest of his face was obscured with a black mask. "Oh, hey, Naruto." The man said, putting away his book. "That took less time than I was expecting."

Bonzai! Kakashi!

Also, we had Ed's POV for a change, because Roy wouldn't have fit there, and it didn't flow well with him anyway. From Naruto's POV it also came out odd...so Ed!

Yes, I know people are probably confused. First off, Naruto did come to FMA via the Gate, as in, he showed up there with Truth. Truth sent him on to Amestris, collecting a fee for his good deed. Think of it like he kinda did the world change with a layover in Gate-land. Every time they try to reverse summon him, it pulls him half way and gets interrupted. Like...he's a square and the path has a circle hole. Or a video that won't buffer all the way. He hits that and lands with Truth. Naruto isn't an Alchemist, so he actually has no gate-wall-thing. Neither does the fox. Answers will be forthcoming, eventually. Even if I have to do that bonus chapter at the end of Naruto's first visit with Truth.