Blah blah blah, ususal author shit here. Ok, kidding. Multi-tasking. Um.

This chapter is late-ish because, well, frankly, I spent last week sick as a dog. So I went to work, came home, and passed out. I feel much better now, even though I had to go see the doctor twice (the first guy was an ASS and totally wrong). So if I never got back to your review, that would be why.

I've had a few people ask about how many chapters are left, or express the desire to see more, you know who you guys are. So, after a chat with one in particular where I laid out some of the original ideas I had, I (and by 'I' I mean 'we') found that with a little bit of (ick) effort on my part, I could re-incorporate a bunch of the ones I thought I'd have to jettison. So. YAY!

I hope.

This chapter isn't quite as long as I'd like, but I seriously tried! The next chapter is in the works, but with the holidays coming up...I'll get it up as soon as possible.

"Thanks and thanks again!" to all my readers, reviewers, favers, alerters, and C2ers, as usual. (I do want to know why the heck people would bother to read this whole thing only to review with 'this is crap!' or the like. Seriously people, if you don't like it, DON'T read it. You just waste your time, and mine. Not to mention it's insulting to all the people who DO enjoy the story. Luckily most people seem to be smart enough to stop reading if they don't like something, so I don't get many of these reviews.)

Question of the chapter: What's the most obscure anime you've watched? Mine would be...Ginga: Nagareboshi Gin and Ginga Densetsu Weed because I live in the USA, and no one seems to know them here.

_*&*&*_Time Skip_*&*&*_

Naruto sighed; all this talk about circles, the Earth's energy, and 'equivalent exchange' was giving him a headache. It was like being back in the academy all over again, only worse, because there wasn't anyone he could sneak out and goof off with.

It was times like this he missed Kiba.

He sighed, glancing at Kakashi as the jounin went over the charts again with the group at the table. May, Marcoh, Ed, and Roy were trying to explain about the differences between Alchemy and Alkahestry, which, as far as the blond was concerned, were the same thing, basically. It was like arguing that a water clone wasn't the same thing as a sand clone because they used different elements. The result was the same, right? Wisely, he kept the thought to himself.

Naruto rolled his eyes; it figured Kakashi would know all about stuff like that. Idly, he flipped though the book in front of him, only half paying attention. "I see, so if you draw a line here and here, you get this...but this way you get nothing, right?" Kakashi mused, "This diagram looks a lot like a seal we use to store things, and the pattern of this one reminds me of an explosive tag's seal. I wonder if it is possible to combine them?"

Something caught his attention, "Hey, what's this?"

"Hmm? Oh, that? You idiot, that's got nothing to do with anything we're talking about," scoffed Ed. "That is a map of Amestris and the surrounding countries."

"Oh. Well, I thought it might be a weird seal or circle, whatever. It's not like I can read these stupid squiggles." He pouted, "It's weird that your country is so... round, isn't it? I mean, other than this little spot here, you've got a complete circle. That doesn't seem normal to me," he mused, running his finger along the country's border over and over again, as if by repetition he'd make his point.

"Yeah, well, that asshole 'Father' helped create this country for one reason and one reason only: to make a big philosopher's stone." Ed spat, "So of course our country resembles a circle, that's what it was up until a few years ago. Since we've defeated Father, there's no need to worry about some megalomaniac turning everyone here into fodder, so it's not a big deal anymore. We still have some issues at the borders with some of our neighbors, though."

"That, I understand. The Land of Fire used to not get along with the Land of Wind, and we still don't get along with Lightning. Most of the countries right on our borders are our allies, or at least know by now it's better not to mess with us."

"Can you demonstrate how this alchemy works again, please? Both with and without the circle," Kakashi requested, ignoring the two teens.

Roy huffed, becoming annoyed with the silver haired man, "Why? I've already shown you this."

"Because I haven't looked with this eye," He pointed to his covered eye, and Naruto perked up, grinning. If there was anything to this alchemy trick, Kakashi's sharingan would be able to see it. Roy shrugged and sketched a quick circle on a scrap piece of paper. He then tossed on a stick and looked at Kakashi with a raised eyebrow. The smug look was quickly wiped from his face as the jounin pulled his hitai-ate up, revealing the red tomoe'd eye.

"That can't be normal," muttered Marcoh as he studied the eye.

Kakashi just shrugged. "A gift from a friend, as it were," he explained, "With this sharingan, I am able to copy any technique, learning its secrets. So, let's see what it can tell me about Alchemy, hmm?" Roy rolled his eyes and put his hands to the diagram, causing the stick to reform into a simple wooden doll. Looking at Kakashi to make sure he was watching, he brought his hands together before reaching for another stick, turning it into a doll as well. Naruto noticed he now had a nice little collection going. Kakashi pulled the paper over in front of him, "I see how you're doing it, but..." he placed a stick on the page and touched the circle with no results, not even a flicker of blue. "I can't duplicate it." He looked over at his suddenly crestfallen student, "It looks like it's going to be a little harder to get you home than I thought."

"What about that other one, Alkes-whatever?" whined the blond. "Try that one?" With a shrug, May obliged, creating a slightly different looking doll. However, Kakashi was once again unable to reproduce the results. "Damn."

"Hey, I wonder," Ed slowly turned a doll over in his hand, "maybe Kakashi doesn't have a Gate. I thought that old Truth was saying justyoudidn't have a gate, but maybe none of you shinobi do?" He looked at the two pensively, "That's the only thing I can think of. This chakra thing seems to take the place of your Gate, and without a Gate…"

"You can't do Alchemy!" Al put in, sounding excited, though Naruto couldn't figure out why the only normal guy seemed so happy about the bad news, since Alchemy was apparently needed to get him home. "Brother! Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"You betcha, Al," The teen grinned before smirking at Kakashi. "Teach me."

Naruto shouted, "Oh, HELL no. We're going home!"

The door banged open, causing Naruto to jump as Kakashi drew a kunai and spun to face the unexpected guest. The young shinobi sighed as he had a flash of deja-vu. Framed by the (ridiculously large now that he thought about it) door frame stood four armed men wearing what he'd come to realize was the military uniform for these people. Two of them had guns trained on Kakashi, while two had him in their sights. Calmly, like he walked into a room held hostage by armed men every day, a man with a receding hairline and glasses strolled in. The guy had a really skeevy-smile, like he was totally expecting to see them there, and they'd fallen for his elaborate plot. Actually, Naruto wouldn't have been surprised if he had rubbed his hands together and twirled his handlebar mustache. It wasn't completely lost on him that all the people in the room other than Kakashi, May and himself snapped to attention and saluted, though he just settled further into the couch and rolled his eyes. Something tells me he DOES walk into rooms like this a lot.

"F...Fuhrer Grumman! I wasn't expecting to see you till, well, next month!" Mustang paled, "To what do I owe this honor?"

"Now, now, Mustang, my friend, relax! No need to be so formal!" The man grinned, slightly less creepily this time, " I heard word of some," his eyes found Naruto and got steely for a second, "uninvited guests, and given what happened last week at Briggs, I thought I'd stop in and check up on things. Can't be too careful."

_*&*&*_POV ROY_*&*&*_

Ed perked up, looking between the older man and Mustang, who was just as confused as the blond. "Briggs? What happened there?"

Smacking Naruto so he'd put his feet back on the floor where there belonged and off the desk, Roy eyed his superior warily, "Who told you about our guests, Grumman?"

"Oh, you know, a man like me, I hear things. All sorts of interesting rumors come to me, like this giant rabbit-dog monster you had visit." Kakashi quickly slapped his hand over Naruto's mouth.

"It's a fox." Mustang strove to remain calm, like being attacked by a giant fox monster is an everyday thing... he wasn't amused that he had had a leak, but honestly, he wasn't that surprised by the fact. "What, exactly, does a gigantic fox showing up here, at Eastern Headquarters, have to do with the goings on at Briggs, all the way up North?"

The old man laughed, still looking at the two shinobi in a calculating manner. "Maybe nothing, maybe everything. Really, I don't know what our enemies might be planning." He smiled at May, "Ah! Hello there, princess! I was not aware that your envoy had arrived in this country already."

May bobbed her head, "Yes, sir, we arrived a few days ago, and Ling decided to offer our assistance in matters here before continuing on to Central. I hope you don't mind."

"Not at all, not at all!" The Fuhrer turned his attention back to Roy, "Actually, I'm glad to see you all here, even if there seems to have been trouble. I take it it's all under control?"

"Yes, sir."

Once again the man studied Kakashi and Naruto, lingering over the younger's less than stellar appearance, "Are these two trustworthy?"

Mustang thought quickly. He still didn't really trust either of them, but he had to acknowledge that their stories matched up, even if they did seem far-fetched. Plus, he had what Ed overheard at the gate. Given that, it was unlikely that the 'attack' had been deliberate. At least, not on Naruto's part. Grumman was watching him, waiting for an answer. He belatedly realized that the soldiers still had the two in their sights, guns drawn. He sighed, Great. If this comes back and bites me in the ass, I'm going to KILL Ed. For now, he had to trust his former subordinate's judgment. "Reasonably, sir. They're visiting from another land, researching the best way home."

It was obvious Grumman didn't buy that for a moment, but he waved to his men, who holstered their weapons. "I see. Well then." He became serious, "Briggs was attacked about a week ago by unknown forces." The man glared openly at the two shinobi, "An attack that coincidentally coincided with your little...fox... trouble. The Drachmanian government claims no knowledge of the event, however. They are claiming that they've been framed. Olivier's men were able to repel the attack, with very little damage to the fort. There were injuries, I'm told, but no loss of life as of yet. We don't want another repeat of the Homunculus incident two years ago."

"Attacked how?"

Kakashi stood, tapping Naruto on the shoulder, "Come on, I'm sure they want to discuss this without prying ears. Let's get you something to eat." He calmly led his student out of the room, ignoring the stony silence that followed them. Roy wasn't fooled for a moment; he knew that they'd have one of those 'clones' right outside the room listening in. He stopped himself from rolling his eyes; there was nothing he could really do about it now.

"Sir? How were they attacked?" He pressed.

"It seems they were attacked by some strange form of Alchemy. The details are a little rough in the preliminary reports, but it sounds like they were attacked by creatures very similar to those things you found below Central. On top of that, mid-way through the attack, a large black hole opened in the air before closing again. The Major General suspects that it was a failed attempt of some sort, possibly a new weapon. Regardless, after the hole closed the enemy almost immediately withdrew."

Mustang did NOT like the sound of that. Not one bit. The 'black hole' could have been an attempt to reach the Gate. Wait. Didn't Havoc say that the giant fox came out of a black hole? Are there more like him, or did that bastard Truth actually do us a favor ?He mentally snorted, More like Naruto a favor. Olivier would have killed him a thousand different ways before he could even blink. "Do we have any photos of the attack? Particularly this failed alchemy?"

"Ohh, you've got something, don't you, Mustang? Well, I'm sure you'll tell me, eventually." The Fuhrer nodded to one of the men with him, who presented Roy with a thick file. "This is all preliminary, of course. See what you can make of it, hmmm? Meanwhile, I've heard that you have an excellent cooking staff, have you not? Local Ishballans, if I'm not mistaken. I think I shall go try some of the Ishballan cuisine I've heard so much about." The man grinned, reminding Roy once again of how formidable was. "We'll discuss this later. Over chess." He called, leaving the room's occupants to pore over the data, all thoughts of shinobi from another world temporarily pushed from their minds.