"Katon: Gyuki no Jutsu": skill technique or Jutsu

"Naruto!": Bijuu talk

'Naruto!': Bijuu thoughts

'Naruto!': character thoughts

"Naruto!": Regular speech

[Circumstance: n. a fact or condition connected with or relevant to an event or action.]

Ichiraku's Ramen

Naruto sat down next to Kakashi with a big grin. The aroma of ramen broth in the air literally made the young Uzumaki drool.

"Welcome back Naruto-kun, the regular I assume?" asked Ayame, daughter of Teuchi and also number one employee.

"Yeah you already know!" Naruto said while banging on the counter causing Ayame to laugh. Before taking a pasuing and side glacing at Kakashi. "And make it double please." The young girl then turned her attention to Kakashi.

"And what would you like Mr. Hatake?"

"One bowl of Miso ramen, please." Kakashi informed with an eye smile. Ayame wrote down their orders and went to calculate the price. teuchi who was nearby heard the whole order and was aready working on it.

"I spoke with the Hokage today"

"Oh? and what did he say big bro?" Naruto inquired as he started to dig into the his noodle soup.

"I was just issued with a standard delivery mission. One that I might or might not have pushed for you to come along with." Kakashi watched in amusement as his little brother gag on his meal at his revelation.

FlashBack

Kakashi casually waltz in the Hokage's office. He was recently summoned for an audience with the old fire shadow. So like always, he showed up thirty minutes late.

"Jounin Hatake reporting for duty Hokage-sama." Kakashi calmly introduced as he while bowed to Hiruzen.

"Ahh Kakashi-kun has it already been an hour?." Hiruzen asked as he shuffled through papers. "Tell me about Naruto, is there any new behaviors he exhibits?"

"So far nothing out of the ordinary was kind of surprised that he accepted me immediately. But no doubt the boy does have wit and a keen mind. His first accusation was that my guardianship was a mission sent by you." Kakashi replied. Hiruzen eyebrow raised curiously at that piece of information.

"Good the boy is smart. I don't expect any less from Minato's son. Alright well lets get down to business shall we?" Hirzuen retrieved a scroll from his desk and threw it to Kakashi. "Kakashi I am sending you on an A-ranked delivery mission. You will go to the sand village and try your utmost best to convince Rasa that forming an alliance with us; IS in Sunagakure's best benefit." Hiruzen threw the scroll to Kakashi which he caught promptly.

"Permission to include Naruto in this mission?" Kakashi asked as he placed the scroll into one of the many pockets his jounin vest holds. Hiruzen narrowed his eyes at the request.

"You know the consequences if Naruto doesn't return correct?" Kakashi nodded his head.

"Immediate execution."

"Glad we're clear on that. Permission granted Kakashi-kun. Now off you go"

"Hai Hokage-sama."

End of FlashBack

"So after we finish eating, we're going straight to the land of wind." Kakashi said somehow not pulling down his mask to eat.

"Isn't Sunagakure like two days away from here?" Naruto asked while finishing his bowl.

"Yeah it's a pretty far distance away. But I may teach you a few things along the way." Kakashi threw out some bait, hoping that it would work.

"Cool so what are we waiting for!" Naruto yelled as he got up, jumping with excitement. Bait success. The Copy nin then paid for the rest of the meal.

"Com on Naruto lets start packing some things yeah?" Kakashi smoothly wisped Naruto off of his feet and onto his shoulders. Walking towards the jinchurikis abode.

Konoha Gate one hour later.

"Are you ready Naruto?" Kakashi asked as they walked out of the village.

"You know it!" Naruto replied cheerfully. Kakashi and Naruto ran for most of the way rarely taking breaks since neither of them tire easy. They managed to cross over two miles before Kurama at point spoke up.

"Prolbem child, ask that cyclops of yours about the training he promised you earlier." Kurama's insult had thrown Naruto off so badly that his movemet had faltered for a bit. Naruto he quickly managed to ecover though, he may not be tired by he still felt the ahce and caught himself.

'Oh yeah I almost forgot all about that, thank you for reminding me Kurama!'

"Hey Nii-san you said that you were going to teach me a few things?"

"Oh well I do remember promising something like that." Kakashi tapped his chin aloofly as he put away his infamous orange book.

"Alright Naruto let us start with the basics: the tree walking technique." Kakashi walked towards the nearest tree and started to perform an demonstration. "It's simple all you need to do is apply some chakra to your feet and walk up the tree." Kakashi started to casually scale the tree.

"Now you try and Naruto remember to keep your chakra low and steady alright?"

"Hai Nii-san!" Naruto approached a nearby tree and slowly started to walk on it. Naruto managed to complete eight steps, before falling off the tree face first. Kakashi's eyes widened as he walked over to Naruto and picked him up.

"Naruto are you alright?" Kakashi asked as he slightly shook Naruto. Naruto opened his eyes and replied. "Hai Kakash-, Naruto stopped his response and noticed something different about Kakashi. Kakashi had a blue hue surrounding him and he noticed a lot of other very small dots around him. The academy student instantly demanded his fox for an explanation.

'Kurama what's happening?!'

"Hmm what a coincidence, when you fell down a dormant ability seemed to resurface. Right now what you're experiencing is chakra sensory. That means you can now sense chakra in other living things and you can also tell how much chakra that living thing has. This technique will also be helpful for detecting genjutsus."

'That's cool and all but how do I turn it off?'

"Chakra sensory is more of a passive second nature type of thing. For example like how you breathe through your nose. Just try unfocusing on the chakra around you. If that doesn't work then try only focusing on that ningen in front of you. Also one last thing, there is a seal on you that was placed by your mother right before I was sealed into you."

'And you're just now telling me this?'

"The seal is literally placed upon your back. I just found it amusing how little you observe yourself. Must be all that self hate you have should really work on that." Naruto suppressed his rebuttal and focused on the seal instead.

'Do you know how to unlock it Kurama?'

"Just apply some chakra to your trapezius muscle and like any other seal. I suggest that you explore that later. Scarecrow out their needs your attention."

Naruto snapped out of his trance and focused back on Kakashi. The other smaller chakra beakers began to diminish once the blonde gave little importance to them. Smiling, Naruto stood up and told Kakashi that he was ok. The jounin also stood up and gave Naruto an eye smile.

"Naruto are you okay enough to continue the exercise?" Kakashi asked in a concerned voice. He certainly didn't want to over train the six year old. But he did wanted to know his limits.

"I'm alright Kakashi-nii, let's continue!" The enthusiastic jinchuriki spouted out, ready for more training.

000

The duo trained for a total of six hours straight. With many kunai gashes littered on the poor tree, Naruto managed to complete the tree walking exercise. Kakashi was surprised since he thought the task would at least keep Naruto stumped for a week. But low and behold Naruto reminded Kakashi once again that he was full of surpises.

After exiting the forest greenery and traveling through the harsh desert. The Duo now found themselves at the front 'gates' of Sunagakure. Which weren't gates at all but more like a wide canyon conveniently placed in front of the village.

"I Kakashi Hatake, A-rank jounin from Konohagakure, am here on a diplomatic C-rank mission directly assigned from my Hokage." Kakashi adressed himself in his most business like tone. Naruto, who was holding onto Kakashi's hand, barely paid attention as he was purely fascinated by the sheer size of the canyon. Contemplating if the canyon was manmade by chakra or just a natural phenomenon.

"Alright so where is your squad? And who's the brat with you?" One of the guards antagonized suspiciously.

"Actually it is just me and apprentice on this mission. I assure you he will cause no trouble as he is well behaved." Kakashi replied in a chirpy tone. Getting on the nerves of the Suna ninja slightly. Both of the guards shared a look between each other before they begrudgingly let Kakashi and Naruto into their sandy civilization.

Kakashi decided to not waste anytime and went straight to the Kazekage tower. He decided not let Naruto explore since they were in enemy territory. Requesting for an audience with the villager leader he was met with an immediate answer. On the way up to the Kazekage's office Naruto saw a kid with red hair holding a teddy bear sitting in the lobby by himself. He was carrying the same face that he himself did for so many years. The expression of loneliness.

"Kit that's the Ichibi's container. Lets bother him, it has been ages since I've tormented that bastard raccoon." Kurama suggested, curious to see how Shukaku was doing after all these years.

"Hey Kakashi-nii, can I hang out in the lobby while you talk to the Kazekage?" Naruto asked

Kakashi decided to let him stay in the lobby. Since the meeting would be boring for the six year old.

"Alright but under no circumstances. Do. Not. Leave this building." Kakashi had made sure to put emphasis on the 'do' and 'not'. Naruto nodded his head seriously then instantly made his way over to his fellow jinchuriki.

"Hi, the name's Naruto!" Naruto eagerly shot his hand out in front of him, he was anticipating for the Ichibi's jinchūriki friendly response. Gaara sat there in shock and disbelief. Ever since he could walk civilians and shinobi alike would ostracize him. For this was the first time ever that a person initiated a conversation him with such confidence and good intentions. Without hesitation Gaara decided to greet his potentially new friend.

"My name is Gaara, nice to meet you Naruto-san." Gaara stood up from his seat and shook Naruto's hand. In an instant both Naruto and Gaara found themselves in a dimly lit..room?

"Kurama what is the meaning of this?" Tremors caused by the deep voice of his tenant had swept Gaara off of his feet. The sight of a massive sand tanuki installed fear in the young child instantly. Gaara inched a few steps backwards, stoping his movement after realizing that his friend was unfazed by this giant beast.

"It's been centuries since I've seen you baby brother and yet you're still the same as ever." Now with the new addition of the fox Gaara started to quiver. He never saw bijuu before, much less two, so it was natural that he was on edge. When Naruto and Gaara's hand connected earlier, Kurama decided to create a mental link between the two. Bringing them both into the tailed beast psyche plain.

Even though Kurama borderline hated Shukaku's personality. The fox still wanted to tease his little brother. Fortunately his little brother's brash attitude never changed. Making it that much easier to get on his nerves. Meanwhile Shukaku's focus were on the two humans between them. A disdainful look formed on the Tanuki's face at the mere sight of them. The only humans Shukaku would ever tolerate were the sage of six paths and his last container not these riff raff that dare share his presence.

"I see you have gone soft on me. You actually befriended your human. Pftt AHAHAHA you make me laugh furball. As if I could ever respect these flesh bags; look mine can't even stop trembling!" Shukaku ended his ridicules off by pointing a finger at Gaara.

"It's natural for humans to fear what they don't understand. You should give your host a chance Shukaku. Life with a trusted host could possibly be ,might I dare say, fun?" Kurama tried to reason with the tanuki but the Ichibi wasn't having any of it.

"Whatever genjutsu that container of yours put you under is corrupting your mind Kurama. I'll end this right now!"

Shukaku's massive tail shot out to impale both Naruto and Gaara with extreme speed. On instinct golden chains sprouted out of Naruto's back. Said chains halted and restricted Shukaku's tail with ease. Gaara had no words as he stared at the majestically golden chain levitating behind Naruto. Naruto's eyes widened as he inspected his chakra construct.

'These are the Uzumaki sealing chains that Kurama was talking about… so cool!' Focusing back on task Naruto slowly released the Ichibi's tail as he retracted his chains.

"All the hate we had to endure, the loneliness we had to experience, all because we have bijuu sealed inside of us. Do you really think we can't understand the unfairness you've been put through? You should give Gaara a chance Shukaku, everybody needs a friend!" The blonde finished his speech with a glowing smile. Meanwhile Gaara had been vastly confused as he had no idea what was going.

Shukaku contemplated as he observed the two humans in front of him. A memory of his first host, Bunpuku had seemed to resurface.

'You know Shukaku.. There will be someone to save you, and they will guide you in the future.'

Shukaku then shifted his gaze to Gaara. After some time passed by the sand tanuki had turned his back towards everybody. Naruto wasn't sure on what the bijuu was thinking but he was certain that the seeds of acceptance were planted in the tanuki's heart.

"Hehe.. what a reunion, this meeting is over. I refuse to waste any more of my time in this conversation." With a wave of his tail and a grunt filled with disgust, the tanuki had managed to successfully end the link.

Naruto and Gaara found themselves back in the lobby. An exasperated expression overtook Gaara's face as he looked around.

"Naruto what just happened?" A soft chuckle escaped Naruto's lips as he smiled at Gaara.

"You've never met your bijuu before? Oh man I have a lot to explain, we should get out of this lobby first." Naruto took Gaara's hand as he led him out of the building. Gaara smiled as he took the lead.

"I know a park nearby, follow me." And with that Naruto and Gaara raced through the village laughing along through the streets of Suna. For some reason Naruto felt like he was forgetting something but quickly gave it no mind.

000

Kakashi was on edge as he stood in front of the Kazekage. Being in the presence of any Kage was no joke. While the village leader was an imposing figure that wasn't the only thing that troubled the seasoned jounin. Any wrong response that he makes could compromise this mission.

"State the reason as to why the Leaf would send one of their own shinobi into my village." The Kage spoke in an authoritative tone. Kakashi took a knee as he laid the scroll on the Kage's desk. Rasa read the scroll with a blank expression, a master of his emotions.

"This alliance would be the most beneficial for Suna.. but I must talk this over with my council. Konoha will receive an answer but not immediately. You're welcome to rest in one of our hotels, but I expect you to be gone by night, am I understood?"

"Hai, thank you Kazekage-sama."

After Kakashi left his office Rasa had summoned his brother in law, Yashamaru, and a freshly promoted chunin who was ready to serve his village.

"Yashamaru are you ready to execute the mission we rehearsed?"

"Rasa.. Gaara-sama is but a mere child."

"It does not matter, we will still put him through the test tonight. You will speak of his mother in order to stress him mentally. If he can't handle the stress brought upon him, then he is not suited for the role of jinchūriki." The Kazekage then turned his attention upon the chunin. "You will stay hidden and obverse the mission. Report the results.. and if the mission is a failure I want his body back. Am I clear?"

"Hai Kazekage-sama!" With that the two shinobi began to carry out their orders.

'Yashamaru, you might not understand now but soon you will. Sacrifices like these are pinnacle for Suna's advancement.' Rasa thought as he once again read over the leaf scroll.

Kakashi had been pleased with the outcome of the meeting. But alas his jolly mood had quickly turned into annoyance as he found the lobby missing a certain blonde.

'Of Course the sun would choose to set now of all times..'

Kakashi had left the Kage building to search for the young jinchūriki, hoping that he hadn't caused any mischief in a foreign village already.

000

Gaara's older sister, Temari, had spotted the duo chatting with each other. She had never seen the new kid before as he casually laughed with her younger brother. She didn't want to interrupt their moment so she decided to spy on them. After all human interaction was a rare occurrence for her younger sibling. She stayed close to the civilians so she could blend into her background easily. Training to become a shinobi at such a young age helped her accomplish this with ease. Said civilians were at a loss of words at the scene in front of them. Many wanted to 'save' Naruto. But they were glued to the sidelines watching because they feared Gaara even more. Fortunately the sun had decided to set. The crowd dispersed, civilians here treat their village curfew very seriously. Temari decided to follow their example as her father was pretty strict about her whereabouts at all times.

"How can you live in this heat Gaara?" Naruto complained as he slumped on the bench they were sitting upon. Gaara started to focus on the sand surrounding them as he summoned a wall of sand to give Naruto shade.

Naruto's eyes had transformed into stars as he gazed upon the Gaara abilities. "That's so cool! How do you do that?" Gaara smiled at his praise. Before he could respond Kakashi had dropped down next to the two.

"Mah mah I see you've made a friend Naruto." Kakashi crouched down as he started to painfully pinch Naruto's cheek. "I also see that you took my warning very seriously."

"Agh! Sorry Kakashi-nii I just forgot in the moment!" Naruto rubbed his cheek to sooth the pain as he apologized.

"Hope you had your fun because we have to leave immediately. The Kazekage wanted us gone by the time the moon rised." Naruto hadn't kept track of the time and he finally noticed the night sky. A frown had came to life upon Gaara's face as he heard the news.

Naruto smiled to reassure him. "Don't worry our village's may become allies, so this won't be the last time you'll see of me."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

Having said his goodbye Naruto and Kakashi had made there way to the main gate of Sunagakure, it would take a while at the pace they were going since they were in the heart of the village. Gaara had stood there for a moment before finally deciding to go home.

000

Gaara had been sitting on top of his roof, he enjoyed the view from his home. He could see the beautiful lights that came from each establishment. Altogether the lights had illuminated the village a golden yellow mixing with the bleak night of the dessert, it was truly a beautiful sight to behold. Too bad it was cut short as several kunai had ambushed Gaara. His sand had successfully absorbed the kunai as he looked upon his attacker. An anbu officer with kunai floating around him. This had been the sixth attempt at his life and Gaara had enough. He commanded his sand to wrap around the ninja. Snaring him into his sand, with his final command Gaara smashed the body into the wall. It left blood everywhere as the body slid to the ground.

'Who is this? Why?' Gaara removed the cloth covering the nin's face. Revealing his assailant to be his uncle Yashamaru!

"Well done Gaara-sama." Gaara had let out a pained cry that could be heard throughout the entire village.

000

'Oi Kurama, do you think Shukaku has accepted Gaara yet?'

"With a mindset like his.. it would take time. But he definitely has started to walk on the path of acceptance."

Their conversation was cut short as he heard Gaara's piercing scream echo throughout the village.

'Gaara!'

Without thinking he dashed towards the large chakra signature that belonged to the Ichibi jinchūriki. Kakashi following behind him decided to create two kage bunshin and henged one of his clones to look like Naruto. He had sent the pair to leave the village. While he grabbed Naruto and shunshin to the scene.

'I really hope I'm making the right decision.' Kakashi thought as he raced across the village.

Gaara's Rooftop

"Gaara.. Nobody will ever love y-." "Don't listen to him Gaara! You have people that care about you!" Naruto had landed on the roof, interrupting the dying nin's last words since he couldn't bare to let Yashamaru finish.

Naruto had walked up to is fellow jinchūriki extending his hand. "Come with us back to the leaf, this village will make you insane."

Yashamaru looked upon the last scene his eyes would ever see. It had taken a great amount of willpower to not break character. Yashamaru couldn't help but let a tear of joy as he gazed upon the scene in front of him. 'Good Gaara has made friends, he'll surely grow into an amazing person. Karura looks like we have nothing to fear.'

Not uttering any words Yashamaru had decided to end this mission. Opening his tan flak jacket he revealed dozens of explosion notes stuck on his body. Naruto had never took his eyes off the fallen ninja. A rule Kakashi has drilled into his head on the way to Suna. Never take your attention off a ninja unless you are sure he is dead.

Instinctively the Uzumaki pushed Gaara behind him. Clapping his hands together four golden chains had sprouted from his back and formed a small barrier around the two.

Adamantine Sealing Chains!

The explosion that followed had not affected neither of them, the barrier had been impressively durable. Unfortunately the barrier had been seen through. Not sparing Gaara from seeing the mangled and charred corpse of his uncle. Not a second later Kakashi had joined the pair. While Kakashi was sympathetic for Gaara he still had to get out of the village, he wanted to avoid war as best as possible.

"We need to leave. Now. There is no time to waste! Gaara do you know any other exits besides the main gate?" Kakashi did not want to disregard the young jinchūriki's feelings but escape was mandatory. Gaara was still in shock and basically unresponsive. A well placed hand upon his shoulder from Naruto brought him to his senses.

"Y-y-yeah I can use my sand to create a tunnel underneath the walls. I've done it before...follow me." The squad then quickly fled Suna.

Nearby rooftop

The chūnin that was sent to observe Yashimaru hadn't seen what actually transpired. Instead he fell victim to a B rank genjutsu courtesy to Kakashi's sharingan. The illusion had done its job, successfully fooling the chūnin into seeing that Gaara has been killed. Without a second thought the fresh Chūnin had set out to report the mission.

That night the poor chunin was executed for treason. There was no body to recover.

000

It had been exactly one day since the trio had left Sunagakure. Light from the rising sun had painted the forest a beautiful orange tint. Having been crossed the border of land of wind the trio were moving through the Konoha Forest with ease.

"Do you regret your decision Gaara?" Kakashi had tried to reassure the jinchūriki, unsure if he actually needed it since the child was sporting an extremely well poker face. Gaara had faithfully believed he had made the right choice. But the guilt of leaving behind his family without a second thought had been nagging him.

"It was for the best" Gaara melancholy responded

"Gaara you're gonna love Konoha! I'm sure you'll fit right in." Naruto's cheerful manor was infectious as a smile managed to wiggle its way on Gaara's face.

'Yes this choice was truly for the best!'

Hokage's office

The trio had arrived at their destination and were currently giving their report on the mission. To say that Hiruzen was unhappy would be an understatement.

"So not only did you return a with an extra jinchūriki.. you've managed to kidnap the Kazekage's youngest son?"

Hiruzen didn't wait for Kakashi to respond. The cyclopse knew a rhetorical question when he heard one. Not wasting anytime the stressed out old man took out his pipe and started smoking his tobacco with a flame conjured by his fingers.

'If Rasa find out this will definentaly ruin our peace treaty and tarnish our alliance. This could possible lead to war..sigh leave it to Naruto to bring a ticking timebomb to my doorstep.'

"Now even if I were to accept you into my village, how could we keep your heritage and status a secret?" Hiruzen questioned Gaara in his usual grandfatherly tone.

'Human, tell that leader of yours thatr I have the abilities to change your hair appearance. It could help with creating a whole new identity'

Shukaku's deep rumbling voice reverted in Gaara's mind. Keep his face completely indifferent Gaara's mind raced a mile a second trying to figure out how to communicate with his bijuu.

'HYEHHEHE you idiot I can hear your thoughts.'

'Oh...well thank you Shukaku-san.' Now that Gaara's focus was on his tenant the boy could actually feel the sand demons sass roll off of him.

"Hokage-sama...Shukaku had told me he could help change my appearance." Gaara's timid voice had adorable caught the Third Hokage offguard.

'Shukaku?! They have names?' Before the god of shinobi could question Gaara on his claim anyfurther Kakashi decided to step in the converdation.

"Hokage-sama let Gaara take my clans name. Allow me to be his parental Guardian." Kakashi smoothly retrieved a face mask from the back of his pocket. "To stay completely hidden." With negotiations and persuasions out of the way. it was now finally time for make it or break it answer from The Proffesor.

"Gaara-kun you can be a civilian of Konoha. But because of your 'situation' you must be a shinobi under my rule. Are you ready to embody the will of fire and protect this village?" Gaara had looked over to Naruto, he was met with a giant smile and thumbs up. With the encouragement of his now bestfriend he had taken a knee "Hai Hokage-sama."

Silently Gaara had put on the mask. A warm grandfatherly smile had graced Hiruzen face. "Welcome to Konoha Gaara Hatake, but before you leave I need a quick debrief on any abilities and skills that you have."

"I can manipulate sand.. I'm not very good at controlling it though. And my sand also instinctively lashes out to protect me when I'm in danger. It's unclear as to why my sand behaves like this but my father suggested that it's Shukaku protecting me."

Hearing this had peaked Naruto's interest. Ever since the first time he'd seen Gaara's sand protecting him. He had noticed that the chakra signature contorling the defensive sand didn't fully belong to him nor Shukaku. 'I thought he already knew.. I guess I should tell him'

"Gaara the chakra controlling your reflexive sand isn't that of a bijuu's. It feels very similar to your signature actually." Gaara had looked at Naruto with wide eyes. With this new information dawned upon him Gaara had remembered what his deceased uncle had told him that day.

"I believe that my older sister loved you, Gaara. Ever noticed how your sand automatically protects you? I'm sure that's Karura's soul keeping you from harm. The love of a mother transcends even death after all."

Tear drops stained the floor as his flashback had brought too many emotions. In the end the sand had formed into a sculpture of his mother, Karura.

"Yashamaru wasn't lying…Kaa-san did love me." Gaara's quiet mumbles had been heard by everyone in the room. Naruto the empathic child he truly was; had placed a comforting hand upon Gaara's cold shoulder.

Impressed by the sculpture but saddened because of the child's tears, Hiruzen had decided that this debriefing had came to an end. After dismissing the trio Hiruzen had laid back and thought over the previous events.

'Naruto is a sensor? He also knows about bijuu chakra..what else does he know?'

Spruced up this chapter, way better grammar.