Whaz up ladies, gents and other! Here's the twenty-sixth chapter, a milestone for me if there ever was one! I'm startin' to think of removin' Temari from the pairin', but I made it this far, so I'm gonna try to keep 'er in it and see if I can pull it off. This chapter's gonna be focused on Temari and Naruto bondin', 'cause most've my chapters've been about Naruto and Ino. For old times' sake: I don't own jackshit of Naruto Shippuden.

Thoughts or emphasis

'Paraphrasin'

"Normal speech"

"Demon speech or Inner Sakura"

Jutsu

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In a crater lay the Kyuubi jinchuuriki, unconscious and unresponsive. Inside, however, he was all too awake, What the fuck? I thought I'd be able to withstand that fall! Any ideas, Kyuubi? The daiyoukai kitsune behind the seal looked to his jailer with wise eyes, over the three year training trip they'd come to see each other as more-or-less equals, so Kyuubi wasn't prone to insult Naruto the moment he asked a question anymore.

"I'm under the impression that the woman once straddling you was a major part of the equation, let's see how long it takes for you to figure out my meaning..." Naruto was in his mindscape, and his appearance was that of his single-tailed fox form, driving home his belief that he was a kitsune through and through. He was sitting, tail thumping in thought on the wet, sewer floor. It was about ten minutes when a literal lightbulb appeared above his head, You're saying she's heavy! Ino-chan's not fat, she's very slender... The way he left it hanging with his eyes staring off into space made Kyuubi bark out laughs that shook the smaller fox that Naruto appeared to be, "You're a baka, even after all that training, you'll never change Kit! Hahahaha! She's heavier, most of her weight is in her breasts and she's grown, she's gained weight and muscle. Muscle weighs more than fat, so no matter how you bite it, the bone's still a bone."

You really know how to make someone feel better, huh? Anyways, why's Temari-san so hooked on completing her mission from Sunagakure? I understand that she's loyal to her original village and all, but does that give her a reason to follow me everywhere?! Another fit of ground shaking laughter left the gigantic fox's throat, making Naruto tense up to stop himself from falling on his face, WHAT'S SO FUCKING FUNNY?!

"You'll never stop being the dumbass you've always been, no matter how much you train and no matter how much you try to change it. Hahahaha!" Naruto glared indignantly at his superior-in-strength vulpine, Don't go spouting all that shit about 'Fate dictates all' and 'You will never achieve anything because Fate is on my side'!

Kyuubi was silent after Naruto said that, "Why would I spout such nonsense, Kit? Do I have any belief that Fate rules the known universe or me?! No! Fate is a disillusion Ningen came up with to give everything that happens a reason. The Fates are real, but they do not dictate what happens in the world. They watch what can, can't, has, hasn't, will, and or won't happen in the world." The Kyuubi looked upward, seeing into the waking world through Naruto's other senses, "You should wake up now, or we may be expecting company. If your friend decides to be bold, we'll both be having problems! Now, go, before the Yamanaka Heiress plays heroine!" Naruto nodded and faded from his mindscape, leaving the daiyoukai kitsune to his own thoughts...

Waking World

Light probed to enter Naruto's eyes, when he heard the voice of the woman sent to get close to him, "He's coming to!" "Turn off the lights, and turn the dark on so I can see, please..." He was then engulfed in the smell of cigarettes, Nope! If I can't have a drink of my flask today, you don't get to smoke, Asuma.

Sending foxes from his sleeves, he transformed into his single-tailed form while everyone was distracted by his foxes, giving off the illusion that he was a Kitsune Bunshin. His foxes ran off into the forest, while the original went to do the same but running in Asuma's direction. When he was close enough, he leaped onto the bearded man's flak jacket, pickpocketed his box of cigarettes and then took the cigarette in his mouth right out.

Before anything else could happen, Naruto threw his head back and swallowed the box and cigarette whole, ending Asuma's smoking for the day. But there was one problem, he now wanted to throw up. While he was resisting the urge to throw up, the others in the clearing were pale at the bold move. Anko, Iruka and Jiraiya weren't pale, just stunned that he would zoom in on the smoker among them. Kakashi, Gai, Asuma, Kurenai, Shizune and Tsunade were unable to move for a few moments. Temari, Shikamaru, Choji, Sakura, Neji, Tenten, Lee, Ino, Kiba, Akamaru, Shino and Hinata were all pale enough to be considered paper.

"What...The...Fuck?!" These words were uttered by Temari, who was trying to not kill Naruto for all the shit he'd pulled since he'd gotten back. When the fox before them sent out a pulse of red chakra from his body, the green tint in his fur and face disappeared entirely and he bounded off into the woods, leaving a stunned group of shinobi behind him. Jiraiya broke the silence, "Well! Time to catch him before he commits mass murder..." Before anyone could ask if he was joking, his face looked haunted and the sound of an innocent civilian screaming was heard.

"And he's on the move, try to keep up with him, or we're gonna be seeing a lot more destruction than the Kyuubi Attack!" That made everyone run like Hell in every direction to try and find the runaway fox. Before a certain butterfly-haired blonde could run in the direction Naruto went, a small fox leaped onto her shoulder and grabbed her battlefan, "NOT AGAIN!"

The fox ran in a seemingly random direction, Temari giving chase, and changing course without any rhyme or reason. It was three minutes into the run that she began to pick up the sounds of yipping, yapping and playful fighting. Stopping dead in her tracks, she took a gander of her surroundings and froze with what she saw.

All around her were stones gathered in small piles and stacked in ways that they should have fallen, but yet stood still. On each stone pile was a slab of marble with scratch marks on it, the shade from the trees making it harder to make out than it would've had the area been clear. That's when she felt fur run by and brush her leg, making her turn around sharply and take up a Taijutsu stance. I'm not a Taijutsu master, but I'm strong enough to hold off whatever's here!

Another passing of fur occurred on her shoulders and head, making her turn around until she came face to face with a fox that had five tails and her fan in its mouth. What made her freeze when she saw him was that he had other foxes behind him and next to him. The foxes around her varied in size and color, but it was obvious that some of them weren't normal foxes. Those in the trees were smaller than the rest and had a predominant grey in their fur, alerting her to them as Grey Foxes which are able to climb trees. A single grey fox came down from its spot in a tree and landed at her feet, letting light pass through its translucent body.

When the fox in front of her started to walk away, she followed in fear that the foxes around her were hostiles. The foxes next to her guide were around his size, some larger and some smaller, but they were see-through like many of the others around her. "Where are we, Uzumaki? What's with all the foxes and why are some of them transparent?!" Yipping was her answer, getting a tickmark to pulse on her face, "I'd suggest you transform back, or your ass is going to become very intimate with my foot!"

She was then tackled, by Naruto's kitsune from his flak vest. One of them transformed and turned her head to face a clearing of similarly stacked stones, "Welcome to my kind's ultimate location..." He growled this out, his voice more of an animal's than a human's, "Each stone stacking is a grave dedicated to every fox or kitsune we've lost to this village! Every one of them is remembered by name, birthdate, family, friends, accomplishments, mistakes and everything else that's ever happened in their lives. You can see the foxes around you 'cause you're psychic at some level, and that allows you to see the dead, but you can't see past yourself far enough to see what we're trying to tell you..."

Temari was then let go and her ears were suddenly assaulted by the yowls and cries of foxes, dead and alive. Every cry carried pain, every yip held happiness, every yowl was filled to the brim with sorrow and every other noise held emotions she'd no names for. Naruto's sleeves were refilled by his kitsune-imitators.

"Can you hear us? Can you feel our plight? Can you tell what we're saying?! Can you comprehend what's happening?!" The voices of each fox carried events that held so much emotion that tears were being shed, by both Naruto and Temari equally. Naruto faded into nothingness, leaving an emotionally unfit Temari on her own before Naruto's five-tailed fox form stepped in front of her and knelt down, offering her a ride, which she gladly took.

Ten minutes into Naruto's padding, Temari let her meek voice be heard, "...What was all that, back there? What did I see? Was any of that real?" A pair of tails moved so that one of them had its tip touching her third eye and the other placed its tip at her heart. You saw what became of my kind, and what will continue to become of us if someone doesn't put a stop to it. The foxes back at the graveyard were victims, restless spirits and souls wishing to be allowed passage over to the other side but unable to with their murderers still breathing. All of that was real, all too real unfortunately...Keep this place secret, if any of the civilians who hate me found out about here, it'd be desecrated and many more lives lost. Please never speak of what you've seen to anyone else!

She nodded inwardly, but the feeling of a soft smile could be felt through Naruto's thoughts. Hold on tight. That was all the warning she was going to get, because the next minute she was holding onto his fur for dear life. Every twist and turn in the forest made her fear for her safety, each jump he made lifted her into the air before knocking the wind out of her, and ducking under branches or logs made her duck down to the point she was smothering herself in his fur so her head wasn't taken off.

The trees and bushes flew past them as Naruto's paws beat the ground beneath him. Temari, in a fit of emotional overexertion, hugged herself into his fire-like fur and felt safe. Darkness reached to her, but she felt the compassion in her temporary-steed's heart keeping it at bay, keeping her safe. For the first time since she'd come to Konoha-Hell, since she was a little girl-she felt happiness. Happy to be close to someone, happy to feel the goodness inside of another's warm body, and happy to know that she wasn't in danger of being killed or alone.

Naruto dug his paws into the ground abruptly, stopping his momentum too quickly and throwing Temari off his back before he caught her by the collar of her kimono, and not a moment too soon. For as soon as he caught her, the click of a contraption resounded in the small clearing they were in, shooting mismatching cutlery and house tools at them. Throwing his passenger back onto his back, he began to dodge every odd item and knick-knack that came their way.

He spun, jumped, hopped, ducked, rolled-with-Temari-close-to-his-stomach-to-avoid-crushing-her, and danced around everything that came their way when-"Yyyaaaarrrhhhhpppp!"(Bad attempt at a giant fox yelp, sorry) His right shoulder was impaled and his neck was caught in a pitchfork that sent him flying into a nearby tree that had all of the other odds-and-ends embedded in it. Temari, being on his back at the moment, was about to be crushed until Naruto grabbed her with his tails and flung her away from him, knocking her out against a tree.

Timeskip, one hour later

The world was all a blur and fuzzed up, before she heard heavy pants and pained whines. That's when it struck her about what happened before she took a forceful nap, "Shit! Come one, Uzumaki, stay with me!" She ran to his side, his bloodstained fur a bad sign until she saw what caused all of it. There at her feet, lay the still fox impaled with knives, spoons(Sharpen a spoon's edge well 'nough an' ye got a deadly weapon), forks, the pitchfork from before, broken glass from several pieces of trash, sticks and stones.

Her brow and heart were touched by an individual tail for their respective area, I'm...fine, Temari-san. Just, a little, He tried to get up and fell on himself, digging some of the makeshift projectiles deeper into his side, Bruised. Hehehehe...I'll be fine, I just need to get you back to the village before they start sending-"Yarhp!" His yelp was caused by Temari pressing him down to the ground so she could get to work on trying to remove the individual source of his each of wounds.

"I'm not skilled in medical jutsu, but you saved me...So let me save your furry ass!" Her determined tone of voice made a deep, pained fox purr escape Naruto's throat as he placed the same tails to her forehead and heart, You never change, Datteboyo. You're just like Gaara said you were: Snarky, bitchy, Every word he brought to her mind made a crooked grin come to life on her face, while a tickmark grew on her cheek and a vein popped on her forehead.

Annoying, loyal, stubborner than a mule, and hard to hate. You're willing to help those who've done good and those who're innocent. You won't take no for an answer, stand your ground and will never listen to someone else when your mind's made up. You and Ino-chan are a lot alike, you two just won't admit or accept it. Naruto inhaled deeply and tiredly as Temari removed a knife from inbetween one of his ribs near his stomach. This monk I met on my trip, Sigmund Freud, said to me once, 'You dislike someone because they are a great deal like a part of yourself that which you do not appreciate being there...'. Only now do I see what he meant when he said that, Ino-chan won't take no for an answer and she's very set in her ways.

His temporary physician smiled warmly down at him, something she wouldn't do to just anyone, Why is it that You don't smile more often? It suits you better than that scowl you're apparently always giving. Temari's smile faltered at the sad 'tone' in his 'voice'. For reasons unknown to her, she hated hearing him sound sad or hurt and he made her feel all warm inside, I haven't had a lot to smile about, or desire to for that matter. I've always been either afraid for my life, a peacekeeper for my younger brothers, or supposed to be a role-model for my siblings and kunoichi I meet. Through my childhood, all I've known is to never cry...Yet, Tears began to fall from her face again at the memories of all the hardships she'd gone through,"...All I've ever wanted to do is cry!"

(Cue: Daughtry-Life After You) Her voice was choked and her eyes were welling up with tears, when Naruto's wise and soothing voice entered her mind once more, Than cry. And she did. She rubbed her face into his furry neck for comfort, his face rubbing her head compassionately, You're safe with me, I won't let any harm come to you. You're in a village known for its strength, right? A nod into his fur was the only response he got from the crying kunoichi, The reason Konohagakure no Sato is known for being so strong is because Konoha shinobi never give up and are stronger when we are brought together with our bonds...I am strong because I have to be, for those I hold precious and for those I love dearly. You may not know it, or even want to accept it, but the Konoha Juichinin are your bonds.

And her breath hitched at that, eyes wide as Naruto continued, They'd do anything to protect one of their own. I was a member, not anymore, but I am still considered one of them and they'd do what they could to help me if they could. You're not a Jonin yet, you're very close, but not yet. You don't have to be a role model, you just have to be a young one learning to be a ninja and taking missions. But you've been raised in a mindset surrounding worth and hardship, you may never see it the way I ask you to... He took to using his tails to remove the objects embedded in his hide, still consoling his temporarily-emotionally-unstable comrade.

I'd do anything to keep you guys and gals safe from harm and hardship. His 'tone' sounded apologetic and guilty for not being there, I can never do that, however. Humanity will never learn to stop fighting until it has seen the fullest extent of war, and that time is coming quickly. If I could, I'd keep everyone I hold dear safe and away from the things that must come to pass, but that was not meant to be. You are still young, enjoy your younger years while you've the chance and open up! Temari sniffled softly, her tears weren't as heavy but they were still there, "To who...?"

Them! Naruto moved closer to her, wrapping his tails around her to bring her closer to himself, his wounds now healing and without anything in them. The ones you choose. The Konoha no Juichinin, they want to get to know you, you just won't open up to them. They want to laugh with you, to cry with you, to heal you when you hurt, to protect you when you need to be protected and to be loved when you seek love...I will never know these things, neither will the other eight. He looked to the sky, it was noon still, but the trees made it feel like it was night.

"How can you say that?! You're one of the nicest people I've met! I just had to see what lies beneath the blood and hatred, I had to look underneath..." She felt a purr leave his throat and vibrate through her body, The underneath, yes. But we are forever going to be ostracized, feared, hated, outcasts, banished, unloved and rejected. I don't believe in Fate, or anything like that, but I know what I'm talking about. I can never know love, or companionship that the others will know as they grow up. The nine of us are forever kept at an arms length, if that, and are never going to be allowed in the arms of normal humans. We...are going to be alone the rest of our lives.

(Uncue music) Temari wrapped her arms around his thick neck, feeling sorry for him and those like him. Unknown to the two of them, downwind of them lay a bluenette in wait. She had stumbled upon them as soon as she heard the sobbing and shuddering, and lo'an'behold, there on the ground was a healing Naruto-fox and a teary-eyed Temari. The way they were 'embraced', in a sense, rubbed her the wrong way. So, to save her Naruto-kun, she leapt out of the bushes she was hiding behind and ran at her new opponent with a passion.

A passion that was killed when she saw Naruto get up, stand in front of the former Suna kunoichi and snarl at Hinata threateningly. His actions confused her to no end, "But, Naruto-kun! She hurt you to get close to you!" Naruto began to yowl in defense of his new friend, before he realized Hinata couldn't understand him. FUCK! He transformed, "Sorry 'bout that. Anyway, she didn't hurt me, a trap someone set up did, she tried to heal me, Hinata, let her be. Oh, it's a good thing your stuttering's gone, now I can understand you better!" His swift change of topic burnt the two girls' minds right out at that moment.

Seeing that they would need to get back to the village, he transformed back to normal and carried the two kunoichi back. He didn't like the effect he had on Hinata when she rode him, so he opted to carry her in his mouth while he let Temari rest on his back. He took a ready stance and ran like the wind was his.

The run was short, aside from juggling the girls around between his tails, back, and mouth it was easy. And since Hinata wasn't going to wake up anytime soon, Better take her to Hiashi...! "Oh, joy! We get to see the son of a bitch who ruined one of your friends' childhoods!" And Naruto's long face hit a frying pan, courtesy of Ayame Ichiraku, "Serves you right for causing so much mayhem..."

Her chipper tone of voice made Naruto place Hinata down so he could gekker at her indignantly, "Yeah, well, you should've thought of the consequences for your actions before! And before you ask, Anko-san taught me." She crossed her arms, closed her eyes and tilted her head upward to the side to look superior, when Naruto tackled her and began to lick her to near death.

"Stop it, hehehehe! Stop it, hahahahaha! I said stop it!" And the frying pan became intimately close with Naruto's skull, "You should listen when a lady tells you to do or not do something..." She smiled cheekily with closed eyes like she was a little girl asking to be friends with someone. The large fox began to gekker and yarp(Deep yap sound) at her, making her blush at his 'words', "I am too a lady! Just because I've done work before and because I'm not nobility doesn't mean I'm not!"

Naruto picked up Hinata in his mouth again, nodding in assurance that his work there was done and took off down the road towards the Hyuuga Compound. And his reception was less than spectacular, "DEMON!" The man who screamed was then headless, courtesy of a large paw. Stepping into the compound, he had to either incapacitate or kill several people he came across, and Hiashi found him instead of him find Hiashi.

"What do you want, Demon?!" Now transformed, "If you really wanna play it as that game, I guess I'll just keep this fine, young girl as my own and keep her eyes too..." That made the Hyuuga Patriarch paler than paper, and Naruto knew he was victorious, "Check and mate, Teme! We should do this more often, you know, it's so much fun to play when there're more players. Especially when they're you!" He placed Hinata at Hiashi's feet like this was an everyday occurrence and waved behind himself at the pissed Hyuuga, "See you next time, Dickwad!"

Piss of Hiashi, check. What else's on my list? Kyuubi answered amusedly, "Take the female on your back to your den or apartment, and make her yours perhaps?! That would be a sight! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Naruto wasn't transformed, and he was once again hit in the face with a frying pan, so it hurt more.

"Gods damn it, Ayame-niichan, THAT HURTS!" She was now in his face, "AND YOU WOULDN'T BE HURTING IF YOU'D DONE WHAT I SAID!" Naruto butted his head against hers, "I SHOULDN'T HAVE TO LISTEN TO WHAT YOU SAY ANYMORE, I'VE GROWN UP AND CAN TAKE CARE OF MYSELF! HELL, I'VE GOT A STUDENT WHO'S MORE OF A DAUGHTER TO ME THAN ANYTHING ELSE!" And that shut Ayame up, as well as everyone in the immediate area until, "WWWHHHHHHAAAAAAATTTTTT?!"

Naruto's ears were busted, even after he kept cleaning them out, he couldn't hear a thing. It was only after about ten minutes that his hearing returned, although muted slightly, "WHY'D YOU HAVE TO YELL IN MY EAR, DATTEBOYO?! I CAN BARELY HEAR MYSELF NOW!" Ayame was breathing heavily, from yelling and from the heart attack she nearly failed to dodge.

"You've a DAUGHTER?! WHY HAVEN'T I MET THIS GIRL TO KEEP HER SAFE FROM YOUR DESTRUCTIVE WAYS?!" Before Naruto could answer, Isaribi landed right next to him, pinnacle of health and a slight...blush on her face!(I failed at givin' Naruto's second person POV in there.) Alarms rang in Naruto's head, "Why are you blushing?!" He said this in a low tone, like he was going to kill someone. Shaking his head and pounding lightly at his ears, he got his hearing back to a 'reasonable' level, by which is referred to as 'normal people hearing'.

Naruto could hear relatively well, but for him he was practically deaf compared to his senses when they weren't destroyed by an 'evil' sister-figure who decided to yell in someone's ears. Isaribi looked to her foster father-figure, tapping her fingertips together, having talked to Hinata before she'd picked up on one of her 'Hinata-isms' as Kiba had called them.

"U-U-U-Um...W-W-Well, y-you see..." Now he was scared, his 'little girl'(Does it work if I use that 'ere? I mean, they're only two years apart from each one another, so) was stuttering and blushing! Slowly, Naruto sat Temari down in a seat at Ichiraku's counter before he grabbed his daughterly-students shoulders firmly, "What's wrong?! And WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH MY DAUGHTER/STUDENT, DATTEBOYO?!" His yell made Isaribi jump in fright, Am I really acting that out of character? I'm not trying to act strangely, I just...Haaaaaahhhh!(I don't know if that equates to a sigh for y'all)

She began to stutter incoherently and tap her fingers together quicker, making Naruto growl out a fox noise that made her freeze in fear as he backed up and crouched to the ground in a familiar quadrupedal stance. Wind picked up and began to circle him as a twister that he exited in his Yugo Fomu: Suteji Yon. Before he could charge an attack however, Isaribi said quickly, "Kiba-sanaskedmeoutonadate!" And Naruto was frozen stiff with wide eyes; not a muscle moved, not a tendon or tail twitched, and not an ear flicked.

That ended with Naruto roaring at her and then to the sky, his tails were a frenzy of activity that looked like a tornado could form if he tried hard enough. The fox-skull-that-surrounded-his-head's teeth grew longer and sharper to the point that they looked like they were kunai painted or something. His claws dug into the ground, trying to remain in control of himself and his instinct driven mind but to know avail. Ribs from the ribcage grew larger and more began to reach from the spinal column that was attached to the fox skull, which lengthened to reach his tails.

He didn't grow another tail, he was insane but he wasn't suicidal, but he was certainly contemplating it. Running off to find the one he now called enemy, he left a worried Ayame and Isaribi with the unconscious Temari. Seeing that she didn't know her little brother-figure's 'baby girl', she broke the fearful silence, "So!" The powerful genin jumped at the suddenness of the conversation starter, "Is he harsh on you, or...?" Unknown to the two girls, Temari was all too awake and had to sweatdrop at the actions of both the clearly overprotective father and the chatty cheftress.

With the looking-to-kill-a-certain-Inuzuka Uzumaki, carts and stands were run over and through as Naruto searched for his new 'enemy'. His blood and youki-covered-lightly-furred-skin boiling at the edge! All Naruto wanted to do right now was to destroy Inuzuka Kiba for making his 'little girl' feel awkward and for even thinking of making moves on her! He roared to the sky, challenging the world to stand in his way, making the cloudy sky thunder in response to his rage.

That's when he caught a whiff of the-one-he-hunted's scent, making an evil, Cheshire Cat smile grow on his face and fox skull mask/helmet. Running at full speed, an impressive speed that could rival Rock Lee and or even Maito Gai when they wore their weights, towards the source of the scent he began to get a sense of tunnel vision that turned red with his new-found hatred. ...KIBA! YOU'LL PAY! Even Kyuubi was a little concerned, most of it was for its vessel's foster daughter, but the minority of its concern was for the poor fool who'd dare flirt with the Kyuubi jinchuuriki's 'child'.

Training Ground 8, with Kurenai, Shino and the Inuzuka Duo

"I asked her out, how many times do I have to tell you that's what I did?!" Kiba's indignant, raised voice could be heard by anyone close by, but the reason his voice was raised was because his sensei, best friend and his partner were trying to tell him something he wouldn't hear anything of. Shino, being from the Aburame who look at everything logically, was trying to reason with Kiba's self-preservation instinct...or any instinct that wasn't located near his crotch, for that matter.

"Kiba, Isaribi-san is Uzumaki-san's adoptive daughter, how do you think he will react to the news that the girl he has taken under his wing was asked out by a complete stranger? She ran awa-" Kiba interrupted vehemently, "She didn't run away, she leaped into the lake nearby and disappeared underneath the surface. Akamaru and I had been looking around the lake to see if she was on the other side, but after twenty minutes I went so far as to dive in myself to make sure she didn't get caught on something or drowned. She wasn't down there! I've been to that lake over a thousand times and I know every rock and crevice above and below the surface. I even have the dimensions of the lake memorized! There's a tunnel that leads to who-knows-where, and the only one who knows the exact location of it is me."

He took a breath and looked to the ground with a cloud over his head, "Going in there wouldn't be possible for me, let alone her with how small it is and her bust size." When his nose didn't bleed at the mention of a girl's bust size, the other three started worrying for his health. "The entrance isn't the problem, it's the length of it itself. The entrance is about three-by-five feet, width by height. When you pass the entrance, the 'funnel tube' gets narrower until only an average sized ten year-old or...a fish! Could fit into it. And the fact that humans can't breath underwater makes it even more impossible that she's alive. But I couldn't find her, is the problem, Shino!"

The way he knew the exact age of an average person to fit in the tunnel spoke about how serious he was. Kurenai, seeing that Shino couldn't get Kiba to just accept that she ran away, spoke up. "Kiba," She said, "she may have cast a genjutsu on you like she did to all of you when she and Naruto-san got here with Jiraiya-sama. We can look for her and have you apologize to her for doing what you did before Naruto-san finds out. She's probably fine and as alive as ever! Come on, she ran off while you were underneath the water or some sort of genjutsu. Let's go-"

"I could smell her! You told me that genjutsu that effect the sense of smell are practically impossible. And Akamaru was running around the lake's sides, looking for her. If she somehow had survived long enough to stay under the water for up to an hour underwater long enough for Akamaru and I do leave the lakeside to find you, we would have caught her scent or seen her by now! We need to send out search parties or something. She's a Konoha ninja, and we never abandon our own! Come on-Wait...That scent...Oh SHIT!"

A fox-like creature with a bloody substance flowing over its fur, five tails and a skeletal exterior around its head and chest pinned the Inuzuka heir to the ground under one paw. It roared to the sky before charging a ball of chakra in its skull-like mouth, preparing to destroy Kiba in the most painful ways possible. That is, until the girl they were talking about came out from the brush and bashed her shoulder against its jaw, making it point its blast to the sky.

"STOP IT, SENSEI! HE'S INNOCENT AND MEANT NO HARM! LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Naruto roared at her, rage burning in his eyes and youki flaring all over his body. She stood there in front of the on-his-back-raised-on-his-elbows Inuzuka Kiba with her arms outstretched to her sides and her legs spread enough to give her a hold on the ground to stop herself from falling if Naruto rammed her. Luckily, she wouldn't need to find out, because Temari came in out of the trees from behind the jinchuuriki with her fan readied to knock him out.

When the weapon struck, it struck hard. The sound of bones cracking could be heard as the fox skull that encased his head broke, before it repaired itself and looked to her with the glare that could freeze Hell and burn Heaven. Suddenly, a man with black eyes and a hitae-ate that covered up his forehead and framed his face.

"Hokage-Shiki Jijun Jutsu-Kakuan Nitten Suishu!" A kanji appeared in his outstretched palm, making spiked pillars surround Naruto and a beam of light to leave his reaching hand. The beam touched Naruto's chest, where a special charm with a one-of-a-kind crystal rested. Bones returned to their source, tails shrank the tailbone, fur shed, bloody youki seeped back into the pours before being pulled out and filled the crystal. Naruto roared to the sky with what little youki he had before it became a simple yowling of pain, leaving him in his fishnet undershirt and his pants.

His vest and scrolls returned to where they normally were, on his chest and in his sleeves. Naruto's yowl didn't end until the beam stopped touching his body, and even then he yowled for a little bit before falling into his foster-daughter's arms unconscious. "Who are you?! What did you do to my sensei?!" The stranger looked surprised at the title she used for the jinchuuriki, "I am Tenzo Yamato, but my title is Mokuton no Tenzo and I am-" Isaribi sniffed the air silently and inconspicuously before she opened her eyes and glared at the man, "ROOT! YOU PEOPLE WANT TO USE SENSEI AS A WEAPON, BUT I WON'T LET YOU! SUITON: RYUSUISO!"

She made a jab-like punch towards the named 'Yamato' and a stream of water shaped like a spear went towards him, "Mokuton: Mokujoheki!" A dome appeared in front of the man, protecting him from the spear, making Isaribi grunt in anger. "I'M," He yelled over the water, "NOT IN ROOT ANYMORE! I ESCAPED THAT LIFE AND I WANT TO HELP!" Isaribi continued her onslaught on the dome, creating more and spears of water come from the lake they'd been talking about that was only about a quarter mile away from the training ground.

"YEAH," She yelled vehemently, hatred burning in her eyes, "RIGHT, ROOT OPERATIVES ARE FULL OF SHIT! ONCE A ROOT OPERATIVE, ALWAYS A ROOT OPERATIVE! YOU'RE ASSIGNED NAMES TO BE CALLED UNTIL THE TEME IN CHARGE CHANGES IT! DIIIIIIEEEEEEE!" Temari, having been knocked away by the watery spears' splashing was now behind the man, ready to strike him where he stood, "Die!" She struck him at the back of the neck, his senses too focused on keeping the dome up to worry about what was behind him. As soon as he hit the ground, the half-dome began to crack and leak from Isaribi's continuous onslaught.

It was when the the wood broke and the spears went right through, heading straight for the man and Temari, that Naruto awoke, "ENOUGH!" He transformed and grabbed Temari by her collar before tossing her on his back, allowing him to transform back to hold the spears back with a chakra claw-covered hand as the spears were zeroing in on 'Yamato'. A fox left Naruto's vest and transformed into a normal bunshin, allowing it to grab Isaribi's wrist and stopping the flowing stream.

The bunshin returned to the red, slitted eyed Naruto, "Enough, Student-Daughter of Kit, he is down. Not defeated, but down. There is a time and place for everything, and exercising your full power in a village full of foolish strangers is not the most appropriate place. This isn't the time nor the place, Student-Daughter of Kit. As for you," The possessed Naruto looked to Temari with slitted, red eyes that frightened her more than her brother did. "Hit harder next time you attempt to defeat an Anbu of Root. And on that note..."

Naruto put the shaken blonde down and strolled over to the downed 'Yamato' with a feral, sadistic grin on his face. "You think that my vessel is but a tool, that I am but a weapon for you," He kicked the man in the stomach, sending him forward a foot or two. "Pathetic," He stomped on the man's left arm, getting him to grunt in pain and making the possessed Naruto smile in sick amusement. "Worthless!" The man tried to stand, but 'Naruto' broke his leg by stepping on the man's knee caps, making a disgusting crack resound.

"SCUM! I am what your kind wish to control and hope to ascend-the-height-to. I am the one Kit, Uzumaki Naruto, holds caged within himself against his will!" He knelt down to look the man in the eye, smirking in a sadistically feral way. "I am the one who helps him grow to one day allow me freedom from this Worthless village. I will assist Kit in his mission to destroy what is to begin it anew, until I choose not to. He came here to destroy the one who made his daughter run to him, but here I am speaking to a Ningen who would attempt to control him. Attempt to control me! The reason he was abused as a newborn,"

Kyuubi, though the Shino, Akamaru and Kiba didn't know it, kicked the man in the stomach and began to bark sick laughter. "The reason he never knew a mother's love. The reason he never knew a father's wisdom. The reason he was shunned by fools who know nothing but lies and folly. The reason he will tear the sky asunder and destroy armies...Is because humanity is." He drew blood with his claw-like nails, "Too!" He broke ribs, making the man scream in agony, "WEAK TO LEARN! I WILL GRANT HIM MY POWER SO THAT I MAY HAVE FREEDOM AND SO THAT HE MAY FULFILL HIS DREAM TO DESTROY THAT WAS IS TO CREATE ANEW! HE DOES NOT MATTER TO ME, BUT MY GOALS AND HIS DREAM ARE INTERTWINED BECAUSE HUMANITY WAS TOO FOOLISH TO SEE THAT IT COULD LIVE WITHOUT DESTROYING ITSELF!"

Before he could go on, Temari knocked him out with a bash to the head from her fan, "That oughta shut him up for a while." Today had started out fine, but it had turned into something it shouldn't have.

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That's a wrap ladies, gents and other! I gave Temari and Naruto some time to bond, and I gave Naruto a reason to try to kill someone...Win-Win! Not much to say this chapter. So as always: R&R, no flamin' my ass, constructive criticism, and SEE YE-GOOD NIGHT!