Chapter Six

Four Months Later

Kagome was worried. She hadn't seen Itachi since the night they kissed and that had been almost four months ago. Thinking back on that night, Kagome's cheeks turned pink. 'I was so forward!' She thought, mentally groaning in mortification. Luckily, all it took was a trip to Ichiraku's and Naruto's lips were sealed.

However, Kagome couldn't help but think that maybe Itachi had been turned off by her behavior, or maybe she was…a bad kisser! Or was it the age difference? Itachi was ten while she was only five, soon to be six. Maybe he wanted someone older and prettier than her?

"Kagome-chan! Hurry up!" Tenten was several yards ahead, her hands on her hips and a fake stern look on her face. Hinata stood by Tenten, her lips curled in a smile as she watched her friend get lost in her thoughts. It was funny to watch the emotions past through Kagome's expressive face.

Kilala mewed as she hopped off her mistress' shoulder to chase after an emerald butterfly fluttering within her reach while Kagome jogged to catch up with her friends. Tenten waited until Kagome was closer before beginning to whine for the fourth time.

"Why did we have to get the Fire Lily for kunoichi class? It's so far away from Konoha!" Hinata giggled but nodded in agreement. Kikyo-sensei had produced three passes for the Academy students to leave the village limits and instructed them to go a mile into the forest to find the famous flower as part of a scavenger hunt. They had left the village at ten in the morning. It was now three in the afternoon and they still hadn't seen the flower.

"Tenten-chan, you know Kikyo-sensei hates us. She always gives us the boring and hard assignments." Kagome smirked as they continued walking. Hinata smiled mischievously. "I'm sure it wouldn't so boring if Itachi-san was here." Hinata said innocently. Tenten gaped at her.

"No you didn't go there." Kagome said incredulously. Hinata smirked, an action outside her normally sweet character and snapped her fingers.

"Oh yes I did."

Now was one of those numerous times Jiraiya wished he had killed his traitorous teammate while he had had his chance.

Minato's face was tired but his blue eyes were sharp as he quickly read a report that had arrived from the hospital. Tsunade stood next to Jiraiya, her brown eyes hard. Both started when Minato slammed his fist down on his desk.

"Minato, what is it?" Tsunade asked tersely. The young Hokage gritted his teeth and barked out a command, "Get the Council, Clan Heads and all available shinobi, Chunin level and above in my office. Now."

Ten minutes later, everyone was crowded in the office, and those who couldn't fit were perched on the ledge outside. Minato leaned his face on his linked knuckles and his voice was tight. "For the past couple months, a team of selected shinobi have been keeping watch over Orochimaru's hideout in Sound. They reported a week ago that a platoon of Sound ninja were being deployed towards Konoha."

The room was silent.

"However," Minato continued, "the team managed to take down the platoon and headed back to Konoha last night. However, they discovered on their way home that Orochimaru had also deployed three platoons from another one of his bases in Grass. They tried to take out as many possible before being forced to retreat due to extensive injuries."

"Who composed the team?" Shibi Aburame asked. "Itachi Uchiha, Kakashi Hatake, Anko Mitarashi, Asuma Sarutobi, and Kurenai Yui. All of them have been hospitalized for their injuries and are currently located in the Intensive Care Unit." Minato answered. The crowd looked at him with sober faces.

"How long until the platoons arrive?" Jiraiya asked quietly, his arms crossed as he leaned against the wall.

"The remaining two platoons will arrive in an hour."

"I found it!" Hinata yelled, a bright red-orange flower clutched in her hand. Tenten and Kagome let out an exhausted whoop before they decided to take a break. Kagome pulled out some wrapped up rice balls from her backpack, courtesy of her mother-hen father, and passed them around.

Hinata saw a still Kilala and held out some rice in her hand when the feline suddenly hissed. All three girls suddenly jumped to attention, kunai clutched in shaking hands and rice balls forgotten on the leave strewn ground.

"Who's there?" Tenten demanded, using anger to mask her fear. Hinata was shaking badly; her kunai was hardly staying in her hand. Kagome was tense, her eyes jumping back and forth while Kilala continued to hiss.

A ninja appeared from around a tree, a gas mask covering his lower face. But what was alarming was the musical symbol on his head band. He was a Sound ninja and they were just three Academy girls.

"Well, look what we have here. What's a couple of cute little girls doing so far out in the forest?" The Sound Nin asked darkly. "We're only a mile away from Konoha." Kagome pointed out even though her knees were shaking. The Nin laughed. "No cutie, you're actually three miles away from your little village. Plenty of time for fun and no one will even hear you scream."

Their hearts sank.

Naruto looked around wildly, scanning the crowds for blond hair that resembled him. Seeing his father, Naruto quickly pushed through the throngs of civilians, intent on speaking to Minato. The Fourth Hokage saw his son and his eyes nearly turned red.

"Naruto! Get to the Hokage Monument now!" Minato growled, his hands curling into fists. Naruto started to protest and Minato quickly cuffed his in the back of his head. "You need to be with your sister!"

"But that's what I've been trying to tell you!" Naruto yelled, "No one knows where Kagome is!"

The Sound Nin pulled out a shiny kunai with a curved tip that looked like a cross between a hook and a torture device. Hinata was busy trying not to hyperventilate while Kagome and Tenten were shaking in fear.

"Hurry up already and get your damn fun over with! We still have a job to do in Konoha." The shinobi's eyes turned bloodthirsty at his comrade's words before he disappeared from view. Kagome grabbed a handful of her friends' shirts and pulled them low to the ground right as the curved kunai swiped over their heads.

Kagome quickly flipped using Tenten and Hinata's shirts as bases to push off on and bashed the Sound shinobi's face in with her knee. He fell backwards screaming obscenities as he nursed his broken mask and nose while the girls made a run for it. Rage filled eyes glared at them hatefully as his comrades snickered at his misfortune and the Nin launched a handful of shuriken at the retreating figures.

Kagome had the bad luck of looking behind her to see the rapidly approaching projectiles and she closed her eyes in fear. A loud feline roar sounded and Kagome felt her breath leave her body as her stomach dropped. Feeling no pain, Kagome opened her eyes hesitantly to see that they were flying in the air above the treetops.

Sapphire met brown and white in wonder, before they heard a loud grumble underneath them. Kagome looked at the creature's face they were riding and was surprised to see a larger and wilder version of Kilala looking back at her.

"Kilala you're the best!" Kagome squealed, burying her face in her pet's fur. "Kagome, we have a problem." She looked up to meet Tenten's serious face. "Kilala can't support all three of us."

Sure enough, the feline was beginning to pant and they were lowering in altitude each passing second. "What a-are we going to d-do?" Hinata stuttered and Kagome answered the question by jumping off Kilala's back.

"Kagome! What are you doing?" Tenten screamed from overhead. "Get to my father! I need to buy time!" Kagome yelled back before jumping off the tree branch. On the way down, Kagome realized what a bad idea she had.

"Oh crap." She muttered when she landed on her ankle the wrong way. Channeling chakra to the area to numb the pain, Kagome took out some kunai before running towards the approaching Sound Nin. Dashing through some bushes, Kagome quickly shot her kunai at the enemies in the trees before continuing to run.

Kagome smirked when she realized a large number of the Nin had turned around to go after her, but grew fearful when they began to catch up to her. Kagome never stopped running, even though her legs were sore and screaming at her to stop, she knew she needed to buy her father some time to evacuate everyone.

"Run. Run. Run." She mentally chanted, never seeing the low branch. Colliding into it, Kagome fell on her back and slid a couple feet before dazedly looking up at the sky. The ninja with the broken mask/nose stuck his head in her line of view, the curved kunai glinting in the sun.

"Let's see how much little piglets bleed."

Minato yanked his kunai out the dead shinobi's face and turned to survey the scene. They had managed to get everyone evacuated several minutes before the Sound Nin launched their attack, but they still had been unprepared for their numbers.

Damn Orochimaru.

"Hokage-sama!" Minato looked up to see a large version of Kilala land beside him with a crying Hinata and Tenten. "You shouldn't be here! Where's Kagome?" He asked, flinging a shuriken at a Sound Nin trying to stab him with a katana.

"Kagome tried to buy us some time." Tenten sniffled, and Minato's heart skipped a beat.

"No…"

"Wake up Kagome."

The five year old groaned as she sat up from off the floor, clutching her pounding head. She opened her eyes to see pure white all around her. 'Am I in an asylum or something?' Kagome thought, confused.

"No you're not. Now turn around, there's not much time."

An armored woman with long flowing black hair and a hole where her heart was stood behind Kagome, a neutral expression on her face as she looked down on the sitting girl. 'Who is this?'

"I am Midoriko, your ancestor. And I'm the only thing keeping you anchored to the land of the living."

Kagome's eyes reflected her confusion and Midoriko moved her hand across the air. A shimmering mirror appeared and showed Kagome's tiny body surrounded by blood and several deep gashes dug in her skin. Her eyes widened and the mirror disappeared.

"Kagome you're dead. And you will remain dead depending on the decision you make."

'What decision?'

Midoriko extended a translucent hand and jewels shimmered into existence. Onyx, Turquoise, Emerald, Opal, Amber, Diamond and Amethyst all glittered as they seemed to call out for Kagome. The girl closed her eyes as she felt her blood and soul respond, not knowing what to make of this. It was all too sudden, she didn't know what she wanted to do, and she wanted her tou-san.

"Your tou-san will die if you don't go back."

That got her attention and Kagome reached for the jewels. A translucent but solid hand latched on her wrist and Kagome started trembling from the woman's aura that was starting to leak out. It felt like every fiber in her being was on fire.

"For every decision we make, there are consequences." Midoriko's face was unwavering in its stoicism, "If you choose to go to the afterlife, Konoha will join you. But if you choose to save your village, your life will unravel before your very eyes. And you will be powerless to stop it."

Midoriko let her hand go and Kagome hesitated for a moment.

"Are you choosing to die Kagome?"

Blue eyes hardened and as she touched the jewels, seven people gasped.

"I choose to live!"

Just as a blade was about to pierce Minato's heart, a blue chakra barrier sprang up around him, breaking the blade into pieces. All the Sound shinobi sprang back as they were thwarted in their attempts to get past the blue dome surrounding all the Konoha Nin, trying to regroup and come up with a plan.

"Who did this?" Minato said aloud, looking at Hiashi who shook his head. No Hyuuga could do a dome so large and no one was spinning around. Thunder boomed and Kagome appeared in front the dome, smoke rising off of her despite the lack of burnt clothing. Minato was torn between relief and terror.

"Kagome, get out of there!" Frantic blue met calm sapphire. "It's okay Tou-san. I'll take care of everything." As Kagome turned back around, Minato caught sight of the numerous jewels around his daughter's neck and his eyes widened in realization.

"Didn't we kill this piglet already?" A Sound Nin remarked and the one with the broken mask grinned savagely. "Oh well. We'll give Konoha a real show then."

Kagome smirked as her glowing pink hand grasped the ruby around her neck.

"I'll give them a show alright."

Red chakra began to flow out in streams from around Kagome's neck, her hair billowing upward as symbols glowed in a circle around her. Fugaku latched onto Minato and held him back after seeing that he was intent on running out the barrier to get her. The chakra streams began to gather, roughly forming a body as the symbols began to glow even more intensely. It looked like she was…

"Hey girl! What are you summoning?" The broken masked shinobi demanded. Kagome raised up off the ground as the symbols disappeared and the red chakra solidified.

"Sound, meet my summon Kyuubi."

The nine tailed fox's roar echoed throughout the forest as it focused its bestial eyes on the trembling Sound platoons. The Konoha shinobi watched in disbelief as several tails shot forward, wiping out dozens of shinobi in a single swipe. Kagome nodded and the beast leapt over her head, intent on killing its prey. The day that Minato dreaded had finally come.

Kagome had unleashed her powers.

I am never satisfied with my work so please let me know how you like the story! And thank you again to everyone who reviewed! Finally over the hundred review mark! There should probably be one more chapter before the time skip and thats to set up stuff for the Chunin Exams, Wave Arc etc.

Oh, last but not least. The first person who correctly lists which of the nine jewels represents each of the nine tailed bijuu will be the one who chooses what pairing my next story will feature.

So.. review please!

Your reviews channel my imagination,

-Verdant