Summary: Uchiha Sasuke isn't someone Naruto would want to spend the rest of his life with - especially since his life as a fox demon won't end anytime soon. Too bad that his wishes don't matter to Sasuke; since suicide is obviously out of question, only one option remains...

Warnings: Male slash, yaoi, lemons, some violence, cursing, minor character bashing (Kagome)

Author's note: This chapter has been beta'd by 'XxDreaming of RealityxX'

Author's note the 2nd: Sorry for the delay... I just finished my crappy holiday asisngment. And I must say... it's the bigges waste of paper in the history of law... really... it's the biggest piece of shit I have ever written... EVER... I haven't slept more than 3 hours in the last week... Again, sorry for the delay.

Disclaimer: don't own anything T.T

"Talking"

"Demon talking"

'Thinking'

'Inner demon'

Dreams/ flashbacks

Chapter 6: Interlopers

They all hurriedly left the chamber to send for their children. Mere hours later, 14 new guests arrived at the Western palace. All of them set on destroying any relationship that might develop between Naruto and Sesshomaru.

xxx

Three months. Three month was all that Sesshomaru had left to find himself an acceptable mate and he was just about ready to murder someone, preferably a member of the Elder Council.

Though they had given until the next mating season to find someone he was willing to mate with, every single one of them had sent for all of their unmated children. They hoped, of course, that he would choose his mate from one of them. He couldn't stand it any longer. Wherever he went, he was followed by some whiney bitch. He had never shown interest in any of the councils children; why they thought that that would change now he didn't understand.

But that wasn't his only problem. It seemed like the council had decided that Naruto was a threat to their plans for his mating. Somehow, they must have gotten wind of the change in their relationship. He should have been more careful. Now the poor kit couldn't make a step without male youkai following him. Their attempts at flirting with the blonde were less than subtle. It was pathetic and infuriating. How dare them to interfere in his life.

'How dare those stupid males throw themselves onto OUR prey? The fox is OURS!' His inner youkai growled irritated.

'That is beside the point. I'm their Lord; they have no right to make my decisions for me. It is bad enough that they have forced my hand. We had an agreement! I still have time.' Sesshomaru answered - though he had to agree with his inner demon.

He had to admit that he could see himself mated to the young kitsune. His opinion of Naruto had changed a lot since the fox had first appeared before him. The blonde kit was of royal blood; he was incredibly beautiful and intelligent, all things that were desirable in a good mate. But what appealed to Sesshoumaru the most was the defiance and inner fire he noticed every time he looked into those blue eyes. The kitsune wasn't one of those submissives that were needy and dependent and couldn't do a thing on their own. He was strong and independent individual. Between the two of them, any possible children would surely be very impressive, perfect little heirs.

The fox was just about his perfect match; that much was clear. And most importantly was that Naruto wasn't scared to state his opinion even if it disagreed with his own. He hated nothing more than people that always agreed with him out of fear of his reaction. He enjoyed a challenge.

'Beside you love it to rile him up. It is so much fun to mess with him. He's so cute when he's angry.'

'… Maybe.'

Suddenly his thoughts were rudely interrupted by the shrill, female voice of Kaori, yet another of the council members numerous children. He had to employ all of his self-control to suppress his flinch when he saw her approaching.

'And I thought I would be safe here. Even the most secluded of my gardens isn't safe from that useless bitch' he cursed inwardly.

"Oh, Sesshomaru- sama, there you are. I've been looking for you all day," the woman said in what she believed to be a seductive voice.

Kaori was the only daughter of Itomaru, the Head of the Elder Council; she was the most annoying of bitch of them all. And she followed him nearly everywhere. He considered it a miracle that she hadn't yet tried to follow him into the hot springs, taking a bath was just about the only thing left that he could do alone.

"Would you care to take a walk with me, my Lord?" She asked, batting her eyelashes at him.

Sesshomaru could barely restrain himself from giving an undignified answer like rolling his eyes or beheading the bitch with his poisoned energy whip.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, Lady Kaori," he answered instead, quickly thinking of an appropriate excuse, "but I still have some important paperwork to deal with."

"Oh, of course, my lord. Being the ruler must be…" The woman stated, obviously trying to prolong their exchange.

But Sesshomaru didn't stay to listen. Without sparing the female youkai another glance, he turned around and hurried away in the direction of his office.

'I wonder how Naruto is faring,' his inner demon wondered as he closed the door of his private office behind him.

'Better than us, of that I am certain. He isn't bound to that despicable deadline,' the demon lord thought as he locked his office door. He wouldn't put it past those parasites to try something while he was working.

Just as Sesshomaru expected, Naruto was fairing much better with the unwelcome attention of the male visitors. Fortunately, his extensive ninja training was quite the advantage. His troublesome situation with Sasuke was also working in his favor. He certainly had experience in avoiding people.

But despite all that, he was getting seriously annoyed. He had come to Edo just to avoid getting mated to an arrogant bastard. Well, much good it had done him. Now, instead of being stalked by one asshole, he was being harassed by a whole bunch of them.

He had asked, or rather pleaded with his great grandfather to help him get rid of all those stupid people. To tell them that he wasn't getting mated to anyone. But the older kitsune had refused to help him. It seemed that the traitor found the whole situation pretty hilarious and was really enjoying seeing his grandson running from his admirers. Since the arrival of those people, Naruto had spent most of his time hiding out from them.

Naruto just couldn't understand what those idiots wanted with him.

'We're just so good looking they can't leave us alone. Besides, we're royalty. We're a good catch.' his inner demon commented.

'…. But I don't want to mate with any of those annoying assholes' hepouted.

'Me neither. But how about Sesshomaru?'

'… .What about him?'

'You like him, WE like him! He could be the solution to our little problem.'

'… . I'm not talking about that pervert. Now be silent! And I don't like him.'

'Back to denial, are we? You've already admitted once that you kind of liked him, remember?'

'… . '

"Ah, Naruto-sama, there you are." A male voice called from somewhere behind him.

Naruto's cringed at the sound and his whole body became rigid in response. 'Oh damn, they found me,' he thought exasperatedly.

He didn't even take the time turn around to get a look whoever it was that had called his name before he bolted from his hideout. At high speed, he ran through the garden to escape yet another one of his new, persistent stalkers.

When he was finally sure that he was out of sight from the person that had called out to him, he made use of an open window climbed through into the palace. Since he had taken to hiding his scent and the palace was pretty big, it would take his pursuers a while to find him.

Finally inside of what seemed to be a study, he slid to the floor with a relieved sigh...

"Hah, lost him. Hehe." Naruto muttered and relaxed against the wall next to the window.

"Lost whom?" A very familiar and distinctly male voice asked him out of nowhere.

"One of those creepy stalkers. God, these guy are like vermin," he answered, too relaxed to truly pay attention.

It took him a moment to notice that he wasn't alone in the room and he tensed in realization. He knew that voice. Turning around slowly he came face to face with Sesshomaru.

"Oh, it's just you" the blonde said, his tension body relaxed again, "For a second there I thought you were one of them."

"Just me? Should I be offended?" Sesshomaru questioned, smirking amusedly.

"What exactly are you doing here, anyway?" Naruto asked, completely ignoring Sesshomaru's question.

"I guess I'm doing the same thing you are obviously doing." The elder male answered, scowling moodily.

Naruto couldn't help himself and burst out laughing at hearing this. Suddenly he could find some humor in the whole situation.

"You… ha-ha … the great demon lord Sesshomaru hiding... ha-ha… from rabid females… ha-ha. That's really funny." The blonde snickered.

"Be silent or I will tell those idiots all your favorite hiding places," the demon lord hissed in annoyance... He couldn't find any humor in his situation. He certainly didn't find it funny that he had to hide in his own palace.

'That shut him up fast,' he thought as Naruto grew silent at the threat. He didn't like people laughing at him. People who laughed at him tended to die very painful deaths at his hand.

Sighing, Naruto stood up from his position on the floor and flopped down on the comfortable sofa that stood in front of Sesshomaru's desk.

"I really hate this shit. You know, I thought I had left all this stupid mating business behind me when I came here to Edo." The blonde muttered tiredly.

Somehow the atmosphere between the two of them was different this time around. Usually the air between them was intense. They both felt an undeniable attraction to the other but at the same time they couldn't stop riling each other up. Now, though the attraction was still there, the need to antagonize the other was absent so that the atmosphere grew strangely comfortable.

"What do you mean by that?" Sesshomaru asked out of curiosity. Done with his work for the moment, he stood from his desk and settled down right next to Naruto.

"Nah, it's a long story. And I don't really want to talk about it. Those are certainly not my fondest memories," the young fox mumbled, crossing his arms and leaning further into the sofa.

"You might as well tell me. I don't believe that we will be able to leave this room for quite some time. Talking about bad memories is supposed to be therapeutic and we do have to pass the time somehow," the older demon replied and made himself comfortable.

Sesshomaru didn't know what had compelled him to drop his work, welcome the blonde into his study and ask him about his past. He had never really been a person to show interest in the life's of others. But with Naruto he just couldn't resist asking – especially not after the word 'mating' left the blonde's mouth. And maybe the comfortable air between them had something to do with it, too.

Just like Sesshomaru, Naruto didn't have a clue why he suddenly felt like he could talk to the elder male. But he told him anyway, he told Sesshomaru just about everything. About his abysmal childhood in Konoha and about Sasuke and his unhealthy obsession with himself and the demon lord listened attentively, without complains or any snide remarks. Though he let out an angry growl when the blonde told him how he had gotten injured before he arrived in Edo. Naruto couldn't believe it, but it truly felt damn good to talk about it, finally. And who could have guessed that the prissy lord Sesshomaru would turn out to be a surprisingly good listener?

They sat together for a long time, the blonde had lived a long life after all, and somehow, without even realizing it, Naruto sank deeper into the sofa until he ended up cuddling up to the dog demon. He knew he should have had protested when Sesshomaru had put his arm around his shoulders, but he didn't. It felt so right and he felt really safe in the arms of the other.

And then the Lord of the West started talking about himself, about his father, his death and his hanyo brother. Feeling Naruto's warm body and his conforming weight at his side, he felt more relaxed than he had been in a long time.

"Oh, and Naruto, should you ever speak of what I've just told you, you'll get intimately acquainted with my poisoned whip. I have a reputation to uphold." Sesshomaru interjected suddenly.

"Ditto." Naruto answered with an overly cheerful smile. At that moment, a fragile trust was established between them.

After that, they decided to stop talking about all the depressing things in their life and switched onto more cheerful topics, like all the pranks Naruto had pulled on unsuspecting victim's or all the times Yaken had learned to fly with just a little encouragement from Sesshomaru's boot. They talked for a long time, laughing at the silly stories- well, laughing in Naruto's and smirking in Sesshomaru's case. At the end of the day, the two of them were lulled to sleep by the steady beat of their hearts, curled up in each other's arms.

Rei Inu and Lord Yuuki couldn't help but chuckle at the sight they encountered when they entered Sesshomaru's study. They hadn't expected to find their grandchildren asleep and cuddling together.

"They are so cute together. A very beautiful pairing, don't you think?" Rei Inu whispered.

"Hmm. Do you thing they will confess their feelings for each other sometime soon?"

"They'll have to accept them first, especially Sesshomaru. He is a very stubborn pup."

"Let's hope for the best. But this does seem to be a good sign, doesn't it?" Yuuki asked hopefully.

"I just hope he doesn't do anything stupid." The old dog demon replied.

And, with that, the two of them left the study without disturbing the slumber of their grandchildren.

"Your genius plan isn't working Itomaru. Sesshomaru-sama still spends far more time with that annoying fox child than with any of the girls. I don't know why you thought it work. We always knew Sesshomaru-sama has absolutely no interest in any of our daughters." One of the Elders said snappishly.

"Or sons." Another interjected sullenly.

Once it became clear that the budding relationship between the kitsune and the Western Lord was not as easily destroyed as they had hoped, the Elders had to meet again to regroup and work out a new, hopefully more successful, strategy.

"I have never said it would be easy. Maybe we should tell our children to be more aggressive in their approach." Itomaru answered. He wasn't all that upset that their plan wasn't working. He knew his children well. Should they be unable to gain the interest of their intended targets, they would at least find a way to destroy any relationship between Sesshomaru and the young kitsune.

'They are my children after all,' he thought with pride.

The following week was pretty much hell for both Naruto and Sesshomaru. They didn't know why, but for some unfathomable reason, their suitors had become even more aggressive than before. After the enjoyable time they had spent together in Sesshomaru's study they had hardly had any time alone together, as their persistent stalkers tried absolutely everything to keep them apart.

Every time they were able to spend together the air between them was pleasant but somewhat strange. Sesshomaru's study was their preferred meeting place, seeing as the harpies were everywhere else. Though the times the blonde could slip into the study without being seen by his pursuers became rather seldom as they grew more persistent. Both of them thought a lot about that evening, trying to make sense of their feelings. Truth to be told, both of them had believed that the attraction that existed between them was of a purely sexual nature. But now, even Naruto had to admit that there was something more to it.

It was a very stressful time for them. Half the time they spent trying to work out what they were feeling for each other while evading a seemingly never ending supply of admirers. It got so bad that one night Naruto had woken up only to find someone climbing onto his bed. He hadn't slept in his rooms since then, preferring to room with his grandfather, and, honestly, Sesshomaru didn't fare any better. In the end, the western lord had to resort to placing a pair guards in front of his rooms to stop those crazy bitches. The fact that he couldn't even punish them appropriately had him trembling with rage. Since all of them were children of councilmen, the council made excuses for them, calling them overly enthusiastic. Surely he wouldn't punish them for attempting to win his affection.

Naruto had no such restrictions. Oh, he certainly wasn't going around beheading people, like the Western Lord wished he could, but he was pranking the hell out of them. Itching powder, stink bombs, colorful makeovers in the brightest colors imaginable, painful boils in unfortunate place etc... The most painful and humiliating things he had in his repertoire. Unfortunately that didn't seem to discourage them in the least. He didn't know what was wrong with those people. Naruto could certainly understand why the bitches were after Sesshomaru, he was one sexy bastard, but what the heck did they want from him?

'Hey, hey. Don't sell yourself short. Just for your information, we're quite the good catch, just so you know.' his inner demon said indignantly.

'Yeah? How so?'

'I thought that we've already established that we're prettier than all those stupid females (and males) put together. Not to mention that we're the heir to the Southern throne and that we're pretty strong. Why wouldn't they want to mate with you?'

'…. .Whatever floats your boat...?'

'Why don't you just ask Sesshomaru? I'm sure he would love to mate with you.'

'S-Shut up.' Naruto answered trying very hard not to blush. 'Oh, who am I kidding? OK, I admit it. I like Sesshomaru!'

'I thought we had agreed on that one, too, already?'

'Please be silent already, leave me alone.'

'You're no fun.'

'…. I'm not talking to you anymore.'

'… . That's fine with me. Let's see how you fare without me. Hiding from possible suitors, all alone, with no one to talk to. You'll have so much fun. '

'… . I can't win with you, can I? '

'Nope.'

'… . I hate you.' Naruto finally sighed in resignation.

'I love you, too.' his inner demon answered smugly.

At the end of the week Sesshomaru was beyond furious and very much near the end of his patience. He couldn't sleep; he couldn't eat, he couldn't do anything without some stupid bitch trying to jump him. The only time he had some semblance of peace was when he was in the presence of either his grandfather or Lord Yuuki. Whenever one of them was present, the persistent stalkers turned into charming young men and women. It was getting ridiculous and he knew that it was, without a doubt, that it was the fault of those damn councilmen. They had said that he would have time until the end of the next mating season to find a suitable mate but now they had sent their pathetic children after him to undermine his efforts.

He knew that he had to mate sooner rather than later, but he would never take one of those whiny bitches. Why couldn't they understand that he wanted someone strong, someone who wouldn't grovel at his feet, someone like Naruto?

The blonde was the only person he could even imagine mating with. And he knew without a doubt that Naruto wouldn't be adverse to that idea. The attraction was there, the blonde's reaction to their last kiss proved that. The evening in his study hinted at something more. He just had to build on that.

But he had to be careful, he didn't want to scare his little fox away, after all. He couldn't afford failure.

While Sesshomaru and Naruto tried to avoid their admirers and spend some time together, their grandparents watched them carefully and, in Rei Inu's case, impatiently.

'I should do something about this whole mess. At this pace Yaken will probably find a mate before they get to it,' Rei Inu thought, annoyed.

He knew that neither Sesshomaru nor Naruto had confessed their feelings to the other even thought he had been so sure that they would - especially after the endearing scene he and the Lord of the South had walked in on. But after that things just didn't progress, at all, in his opinion. Maybe it was time to have a word with his stubborn grandchild. Something needed to happen or else his eldest grandson would spend the rest of his life with some chit being miserable. Deciding to go for it, Rei Inu went to find his grandson.

Seeing as his study was the only safe haven, he had left from the harpies that had taken over his palace. It was no surprise that Sesshomaru had been once again reading through some of his paperwork when his grandfather entered his study. The older dog demon looked rather serious as he sat down on the nice chair in front of the young lord's desk.

"Sesshomaru" he said in greeting.

"Yes grandfather? You don't usually visit me in my study. Did something happen? How can I be of service?" Sesshomaru asked pleasantly.

"No, nothing happened. But I think it is time for us to have a serious word about this whole mating disaster."

"What is it that you want me to do about it, grandfather?"

"Choose a mate already!" Rei Inu snarled, "For Kami's sake child, you're 450 years old. It can't be that hard to find a mate."

"So what? Do you want me to mate with some of those stupid bitches?" Sesshomaru asked, deceptively calm.

"Oh Sesshomaru-sama, I know that the other women are not really mate material but you don't have to be so pessimistic." A female voice interfered slyly.

As the two dog demon turned around they saw that the person who so rudely interrupted their conversation was Kaori. It seemed like she had entered without knocking. They hadn't even noticed her entrance.

"You don't have to mate with one of them." Sesshoumaru's grandfather said, completely ignoring the rude demoness.

"So, who do you propose?" Sesshomaru asked without paying any attention to Kaori.

"Why, Naruto of course!" Rei Inu answered.

Sesshomaru thought, 'Damn it grandfather. As if they need more of a reason to interrupt every single moment I could spend with Naruto. Your approval of him will only make them more aggressive in their approach.'

"Naruto? Really grandfather, you can't be serious. He's not even mature, yet. Besides he's far too childish and rather annoying. How could I spend the rest of my life with someone that I can't stand to spend time with? Though I have to admit, he's very pretty. I would probably bed him. If he could keep that mouth of his shut, of course. But that would be a onetime occurrence, I assure you." Sesshomaru said, hoping his words would get both Kaori of his back and his grandfather to back off. He couldn't have this conversation in the presence of that woman. She was the most persistent of his stalkers and he knew that dirty tricks were not beneath her. She was her father's child, after all, and an apple never falls far from the tree.

"As if I would ever let you touch me you bastard!" Yet another voice yelled, interrupting the demon lord's little speech.

'Shit.' Sesshomaru cursed inwardly; as he realized just whose voice it was that he was hearing. Naruto couldn't have chosen a worse timing for visiting his study if he tried.

Though he would never admit it to anyone in that moment Sesshomaru really dreaded seeing the expression on the kitsune's face. When he finally turned around and saw Naruto sitting on the window sill of his study, it was worse than he had expected. The blond didn't look too happy, but the worst things were his eyes. Though the young man tried to hide it, the demon lord could see that his words had seriously hurt him.

"Naruto, what are you doing here?" Rei Inu asked nervously, sensing the tension between his grandchild and the young kitsune.

"Oh well, I came here to find a hiding place. I never thought I'd hear something so interesting" The blonde answered calmly.

"Naruto…" Sesshomaru tried.

"It's a good thing I heard this before I started to like you, you heartless bastard. So you think I am annoying, do you? Like you are such a great person, yourself. It's like you're made of ice, incapable of any positive feelings. The only reason someone would ever mate with you is because of your money and your station. I wish you the best of luck with that. Well then, now that I've had my say, it would be the best for all of us, I believe, if I left the Western palace as soon as possible. I wouldn't want to be an annoyance for the great Lord Sesshomaru. I had wanted to have a look around Edo anyway. I'll just have a word with my grandfather before I go. Fare well, Lord Rei Inu, bastard. I don't think we'll see each other before I leave." Naruto said, cutting off any attempt to speak to him.

And before anyone could even try to say anything to stop him, the blond had left through the same window he came.

"Sesshomaru…"

"Yes, grandfather?" he asked numbly, trying to understand how things could have gone so wrong in such a short period of time.

"You truly are an idiot."

"… " Sesshomaru said nothing to that. He couldn't really. He was suppressing the urge to snap at his grandfather. Without him the situation wouldn't have happened. Why did he have to interfere? And why did the blonde have to listen in? It was his own fault if he was hurt by what he heard. The more he thought about it the angrier he became at himself, but more importantly at Naruto. His angry accusations had hit a nerve with the demon lord.

"I don't know what you mean, Lord Rei Inu" Kaori interfered yet again, distracting the young lord from his musings, "Sesshomaru-sama is right. That child is far too immature... He will have a lot of growing up to do before he can even be considered mating material."

'She's right.' Sesshomaru told himself angrily, 'I don't need a mate that runs away at the first sign of trouble. This heartless bastard will have to find another candidate to mate with. Preferably, someone who won't be bothered that I'm made of ice and that I am incapable of any positive feelings.'

'But…" His inner demon tried to object.

'Silence. If Naruto wants to leave because of something so foolish, I have obviously misjudged his character. And, in that case, I'm better off without him.' The demon lord snapped, furiously. Completely ignoring the other two people in the room, he stormed from his study.

"Lady Kaori, it would be in your best interest for you to leave before I decide to punish you for being so disrespectful to a royal guest. You were not invited inside this room but you entered anyways. You interrupted our private conversation and you stuck your nose where it doesn't belong. You overstepped your boundaries. Obviously you don't know your place. I would never let my grandchild mate with someone without common sense, tell that your father would you." Rei Inu snarled, glaring at Kaori until she left the study in a hurry.

'Annoying, am I? As if he's not annoying, that fucking bastard. And I had really thought that he liked me. He even kissed me… among other things, I'm good enough when he wants to molest me but I'm far too annoying to be even considered mating material.' Naruto fumed as he sealed all of his personal stuff back into his sealing scrolls. He was so glad he had had them on him when he was transported to Edo. Best invention ever.

"Naruto, are you really sure this is a good idea? Do you really want to leave here? And on your own, too? I understand that you want to travel around a bit, but don't you think you're a bit too young to do that on your own?" His grandfather asked, watching helplessly as his grandchild packed.

'What did that stupid pup say to him? Oh, when I get my hands on him.' The Lord of the South thought irately. He didn't even know what had happened between Naruto and the Lord of the West. The only reason he even knew that his grandson's sudden wish to travel was Sesshoumaru's fault was because he had heard his name between the numerous colorful curses Naruto had muttered while he packed.

"I'll be fine, grandfather. Believe me; I can take care of myself. You don't have to worry about me," the blond answered, as he finally finished sealing his belongings.

"I can't help it, child. You're my grandson; you're all that is left of my family. I have just found you; I don't want you to leave my sight so soon. Why don't we go to the Southern palace first? You can still travel around after the mating season."

"I don't want to mate yet grandfather. I'm barely mature. And from what I have heard I don't really want to be around during the mating season. I don't really need to see that."

"You don't have to mate with anyone yet, child. You are young and you will have a lot of time for that yet. But I would feel a lot better if you spend your first mating season somewhere safe. A lot of the lower demons lose all reasonable thought during the season and proceed to jump anything that comes along."

"I've survived 150 years on my own, some months alone won't kill me. Besides, I don't think some lower demons could get the best of me. It'll be fine, grandfather." Naruto replied, trying to assure his grandfather.

"Very well then," Yuuki relented with a sigh, "but should you decide that you've had enough of traveling, you better come to our palace right away. You packed the map I gave you, didn't you?"

"Of course I did. How could I forget the map? You've only mentioned packing it once, every minute since I started packing," the young kitsune joked, trying to lighten the mood as he prepared to leave the western palace through a window in his rooms. He really wanted to avoid using the gates; he really didn't want to meet anyone on his way out.

"Okay, I have everything I need, so I'll be on my way," he said, awkwardly. He really hated saying goodbye to people, even if it was only temporary. He would miss his grandfather; he had grown very fond of him in the short amount of time they had spent with each other...

"Stay safe, child. Have fun but try not to wreak too much chaos." Yuuki replied with an uneasy smile. He hated to part with Naruto so soon but if he was even a little bit like his son he would just do as he pleased.

"I'll try," the blonde replied, before he finally jumped out of the window.

For a few moments Lord Yuuki watched as his grandson's figure grew smaller in the distance.

'Now to that stupid child. He'll regret the day he was born when I am through with him.' he thought, finally, hoping his grandchild would have a save journey.

In another part of the western palace, contrarily to the lord of the south, some people couldn't be happier with Naruto's decision to abort his stay at the palace.

"I still can't believe that the kitsune just up and left. We didn't even do anything. All this planning and scheming and in the end it was Lord Sesshomaru himself who drove that fox away. Who would have thought it turn out to be that easy?" Itomaru laughed as his daughter finished informing him about what she had witnessed.

"Oh, this is just brilliant. Now it is up to you, all you have to do, Kaori, is to winSesshomaru's favor."

"But father, Lord Rei Inu said he'll never approve of me," his daughter whined.

Sighing in exasperation he answered: "The old dog doesn't have a say in these things, you stupid girl. He's not on the council and he's not the Lord of these Lands. What can he possibly do? He holds very little sway over Sesshomaru-sama's decisions and he is the one who has to approve in the end."

Some of my reviewers asked for Sasuke. Yes, he will reappear. Soon. Thank you for your reviews. I hope you enjoyed the new chapter. Please REVIEW. ^^