The one-eyed fox led me down a dirt road and into a large clearing up against a cliff face with a waterfall crashing down into a river, which led off into a nearby lake to the east. Laying down beside the waterfall, eyes closed, was an enormous fox that looked to be about the size of Gamabunta. Their fur was a lighter shade of orange than the one I was following, and they too wore a dark blue vest. Their muzzle was criss-crossed with scars, and a chunk of their left ear was missing. They also had a blade on their back, the design similar to that of the smaller fox, which suggested that this one had taught the first. On our approach, one amber eye opened and fixed on me immediately.
"Kitsuhebi," they spoke in a deep, rumbling tone that I could feel in my bones. "Why the hell is there a human here?" The smaller fox bowed.
"I sensed a presence appear near the entrance of the forest," he explained. "I believe they tried the Summoning Jutsu without a contract."
"And they got us? Hmm, they don't look like our usual type. Judging by that headband, though… Hey, kit! You're from Konoha, right? Why hasn't your fool Hokage sent us our next summoner yet? We felt the last one die thirteen years ago!" Well, that was interesting. Apparently Konoha had an arrangement with the foxes.
"I don't know, Fox-sama. I was unaware the Hokage was supposed to send you one."
"Well of course he was! Who else could possibly deserve the honour of fighting alongside Kurama-sama's jinchuriki!?" My eyes widened.
"Kurama-sama? You serve the Kyuubi's hosts? So your last summoner was Uzumaki Kushina, right?"
"Yes, Habanero-chan! Why hasn't Namikaze sent her successor yet!?" Oh boy, this was a very complicated situation.
"Fox-sama, things have changed dramatically in the last thirteen years…"
I took the time to explain to the Boss Fox that Minato Namikaze had died sealing Kurama into a new host, that I was said new host's teammate, that he was completely unaware of his heritage and had only recently learned of Kurama's presence within him, and that Hiruzen had completely neglected, for unknown reasons, to inform him of any arrangements with the foxes.
"…Right now, Naruto is learning from Jiraiya of the Sannin. He's probably learning to summon toads as we speak." The giant fox finally opened his other eye on hearing this.
"Toads? Toads!?" he roared in fury, his voice shaking the forest. "You mean to tell me that slimy bastard Gamabunta is getting his filthy, pipe-smoking, second-rate swordsman paws on Kurama-sama's host!? This is absolutely unacceptable!" At his screaming, tens of other foxes I hadn't even noticed until now leaped out of the undergrowth and fled in different directions with a chorus of frightened yips. "Kit." His sudden calm was perhaps more unnerving than his outburst of anger. "If you're here about becoming our summoner, speak with the Elder. When she's done rejecting you, come back here. I'm hitching a ride with you back to your village, and I'm having a word with Sarutobi Hiruzen." He tapped the cliff face beside him with his tail, and the waterfall split to reveal a cave. "Go on, I'll be waiting."
The cave behind the waterfall sloped downward into darkness until there was so little light that I was forced to use my Sharingan to see. At the end of a long passage, I saw a blue glow pouring out of an entryway into a large chamber. Upon entry, I was stunned by the source of the light: beautiful glowing crystals studded the cavern walls, throwing off a gorgeous glow. But something caught my attention and held it even more strongly than the crystals. In the centre of the room, sitting upon a bed of what looked like extremely soft and inviting cushions, was a pure white fox with nine fluffy tails and eyes the colour of polished rubies. Their chakra was immense, far beyond anything I had yet seen. Even Orochimaru's considerable strength was paltry compared to the veritable ocean of power contained within the being before me. This must have been the Elder. Instinctively, I bowed, not wanting to offend an entity that could probably vaporise me without even moving from their current location.
"So, an Uchiha has come to visit. It has been centuries since one of your bloodline signed our contract. Rise, kit, I have no need of such formalities."
The Fox Elder appeared to be appraising me, her gleaming eyes taking in every detail of my appearance.
"Now," she said after a while, "I am fully aware of what you shared with Kitsumura-kun out there. Don't look so surprised, I know everything that occurs within the bounds of Sekoia no Mori. What makes you think that you would make a suitable replacement for Kurama-kun's jinchuriki?" I blinked upon hearing the familiar honorific being used to refer to the Kyuubi. If the Elder knew him well enough to call him that, she must be positively ancient. Putting that aside for a moment, I was unsure how to answer her question. How could I possibly be as desirable to the foxes as the host of the greatest fox spirit in the world?
"Prestige?" I suggested hesitantly.
"Really? A scared little runt like you, bringing us greater prestige than Kurama-kun's vessel?" She laughed. "Unlikely. Come closer, kit. Let me examine you, and we can get this over with." I approached until I was standing just before her bed, and she raised a paw. "This is something the Rikudou Sennin himself taught to the world 2000 years ago, though it is a long lost art in modern times. Press your fist against my paw."
Oh no. I knew what this meant: ninshu, the method of unspoken understanding. The Elder would no doubt see the truth about me – that I was not truly the heir of the Uchiha, but a lost woman stuck in a body not her own, in a world vastly different from that which she grew up in. More importantly, she might learn of the nature of her world: a form of entertainment for the people of another.
"Well? Hurry up, before I grow bored. Just because I am ageless does not mean I enjoy wasting time, kit." I gulped. Pissing off the Fox Elder did not seem like a wise move, so I sucked it up and bumped fists with her.
Immediately, I felt a presence, like someone was rummaging around in my head looking for something. It was a distinctly uncomfortable sensation, not helped by the throbbing headache that was developing alongside it. Then, almost as soon as it had started, it was over, the pain receding the moment her paw left my fist. The fox blinked, then burst out laughing, falling on to her bed and rolling around in hysterics, which was certainly not the reaction I had expected.
"Ha! Oh, this is too perfect!" she declared through her laughter. "I see now why the Summoning brought you here!" She seemed to calm down as she sat back up again, though her eyes were still filled with mirth. "Foxes are tricksters, and you, my kit, might just be the greatest trickster who ever lived! You've got everyone dancing to your little tune, believing that you're just the Uchiha clan's latest little prodigy, all the while you're planning and scheming, looking to change the very destiny of this world! You're playing a grand trick on fate itself!" Her tails weaved an intricate pattern, and she slammed a paw on the bed. In a puff of smoke, a large scroll appeared, which she unrolled to reveal a series of names written in blood next to some blank spaces: the fox summoning contract. The last two names before the next blank were of particular interest: Uzumaki Mito and Uzumaki Kushina. "You know how this works, kit: sign your name in your own blood and leave the fingerprints of your dominant hand beneath." I bit my finger, grunting in annoyance as it burst my Henge, but hesitated.
"Which name do I sign?"
"Which one best represents you as you are now?" I supposed that was easy enough. I had changed a lot since arriving in this world, especially after going on the mission to Nami no Kuni. My old name no longer fit me: it was the name of an ordinary civilian woman who's only experience with blades was in the kitchen, who had never fought for her life or taken the life of another. And Sasuke's name obviously didn't fit, so that just left one. I signed the paper.
Uchiha Makoto.
I added my fingerprints and immediately reapplied my Henge.
"Excellent." The Elder gave a toothy vulpine smile as the scroll rolled up and disappeared. "Welcome to the fox clan, Uchiha Makoto. Now, if you are to act as our summoner, you must be trained in our ways."
"Are you going to teach me sage mode?" I asked excitedly, only to be disappointed when the Elder laughed.
"Goodness, no! You are not yet ready for sage mode – your body is weak and your chakra underdeveloped. Train up your body, increase your chakra capacity, and in a year or two you might be ready. For now though, you will train with one of my grandsons. Kitsukuromaru!" At her call, another fox appeared by my side as if he had always been there. His fur was black where it would ordinarily be orange, and he wore a hitai-ate around his neck with the kanji for 'fox' where the village emblem would normally be. Just like the first two foxes, he also carried a blade, though his was a tanto with black silk wrappings that hung from a black sash tied around his waist.
"Elder-sama?" he asked quietly.
"This is our new summoner, Uchiha Makoto. Take her out into the forest and teach her the ways of the fox clan."
"Of course." He looked at me. "I am Kitsukuromaru, though you may call me Kuro. Please follow me."
"And tell Kitsumura-kun he'll have to wait for his meeting with the Hokage!" the Elder called after us.
The dark fox led me into a clearing away from the cliffside.
"Alright, kit, it's time to-"
"Hold on," I interrupted. "I accepted it from Kitsumura-sama and Elder-sama, but there's no way you get to call me 'kit'."
"Alright, fine. Kit-chan. Happy?"
"I'm going to skin you."
"Sure you are, kit-chan," Kuro said dismissively. "Now, as I was saying, it's time to figure out what exactly I need to teach you." He drew his tanto in his teeth. "Defend yourself!" he growled around the weapon before jumping right at me. I barely had time to draw a kunai and parry.
"Wait a sec!"
"Your enemy won't wait for you!" He came at me again, and I ducked under his attack and slashed at him as he passed, only to catch empty air. Kuro disappeared into a nearby bush. I looked around frantically with my Sharingan, but could not catch so much as a glimpse of his chakra signature. Thankfully, there was at least one useful hand seal I could make while holding a knife.
"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" I made a single clone to watch my back, and we both waited warily for our foe to strike.
"That's an impressive technique for a kit your age," he commented, his voice seeming to come from all around us.
"Show yourself!"
"Now why would I do that?"
"Because I'll burn you out otherwise!" He just laughed at my threat, so I nodded to my clone, and together we holstered our knives and ran through a long-practised set of hand seals.
"Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!" We both launched fireballs in opposite directions, intent on burning away Kuro's cover.
"Katon: Shouka-Chuu no Jutsu (Fire Release: Extinguishing Jutsu)!" Immediately, our fireballs were consumed by shrouds of chakra.
Well, if ordinarily fire isn't enough… I met my clone's eyes for a brief moment, and as one, we activated our Mangekyou. "Amaterasu!" The undergrowth on both sides burst into black flames, at the cost of a searing pain in my eye, tears of blood, and a hefty portion of my chakra.
"Katon: Shouka-Chuu no Jutsu!" Kuro repeated. This time, the shroud of chakra failed to extinguish my flames. "What the-? No way your flames are strong enough to resist my Extinguishing Jutsu!" I grinned.
"Amaterasu is special. These flames will go out when I say they go out! Kagutsuchi!" With some more pain and bleeding, and a slightly less hefty toll of chakra, I wrapped the flames of Amaterasu around the clearing, creating a wall of fire.
"That's an amazing technique," Kuro conceded, "but you're breathing heavily, and any jutsu that makes you bleed from the eyes must come with some serious recoil." Hearing the woosh of displaced air characteristic of the Shunshin above me, I looked up in time to see him falling towards me with his tanto ready to slash, and my clone shoved me aside to take the blow herself, getting dispelled in the process. "Kitsune-Ryu: Kuukyo no Mai (Fox Style: Dance of Emptiness)!" Kuro seemed to fade into the shadows, blending in with the black flames that surrounded us, his chakra disappearing from my sight. I frowned and redrew my knife, falling into a defensive stance, trying to listen for any hint of movement. Thinking I heard something behind me, I whirled around and slashed, only to meet empty air. In that instant, I felt pain lance through my side as my Henge broke and blood splashed onto the forest floor. I fell to my knees, clutching the wound. Fortunately it was only minor, doing no serious damage.
"Damnit." Exhausted, I allowed myself to fall facedown in the grass.
"Kit, that was absolutely pathetic. You didn't even land one hit on me." Groaning, I looked up to see the fox with his blade sheathed, looking down on me with disappointment in his eyes.
"Of course I didn't land a hit! I tried to tell you, I'm wearing multiple times my own body mass in training weights!" He looked surprised.
"What?" Rolling onto my back, I pulled down my socks to reveal the weights beneath.
"I'm trying to increase my speed and stamina, so my Sensei made me wear these." Kuro looked closely at the weights.
"Huh, that's some serious fuuinjutsu right there," he commented, sounding impressed. "Gravity seals to imitate weight, an array to spread it around the body, an alarm seal that activates when removed… This is the work of a real expert right here. No wonder you couldn't hit me. I'm surprised you can move so fluidly with these things on."
"You know fuuinjutsu?"
"Kit, our last two summoners were Uzumaki prodigies. Of course we know fuuinjutsu. Now if you would get rid of these creepy flames, we can talk about your training."
"Oh, right. Sorry." Thankfully, putting Amaterasu out only caused minor pain, and no bleeding at all. Idly, I thought that the leaves in the distance above me might be just a little bit blurry. Really shouldn't use the Mangekyou in training battles, I chastised myself, allowing my eyes to return to their normal state.
"Alright, so as you must have noticed, foxes mainly fight with swords," Kuro explained after helping me sit back against a tree. "We like to use stealth and deception to get in close and end things quickly with a single blow. Big flashy jutsu aren't our thing. That's not to say we can't do it, Kitsumura-sama is amazing with fire release, but it's not our go-to. We're tricksters, and we fight like tricksters." I nodded in understanding. Kuro had made excellent use of stealth in that fight, in ways I didn't think were possible in a one-on-one battle where the enemy knew you were coming. Especially that Dance of Emptiness technique. Actually…
"How did you hide your chakra like that?" I asked. "I couldn't see it even with my Sharingan."
"That was part of Fox Style senjutsu. You won't be able to do something like that without learning sage mode first," he answered apologetically. "But the part where you blend in with the background is just genjutsu. Part of Fox Style swordsmanship is the combination of straight-up swordplay with little genjutsu tricks like that. You'll probably be good at it, what with those fancy eyes and all."
"I don't really have time to learn swordsmanship right now. I need to be back in Konoha within nineteen days." I explained how I was training for the chuunin exams, and more specifically to fight Gaara of the Desert.
"Hmm… Ichibi no Shukaku's jinchuriki, huh? Sounds like you've got a hell of a fight coming up. Alright, we can work on some of the more fundamental aspects of the fox clan combat style and keep up with the physical training your sensei wanted you to do, and then swordsmanship can come when you've got a bit more time. I'll make a bijuu slayer out of you yet, kit-chan!"
After showing Kuro the ninjutsu I knew and demonstrating my ability with the Sharingan's genjutsu, we took a break for dinner (various small animals cooked over an open fire, definitely better than the bugs I'd be eating if I were training with the toads), then Kuro decided I should work on the Summoning Jutsu itself, since signing the contract was meaningless if I couldn't actually summon anything. While I understood the importance of mastering it, and I had been the one to choose to learn it in the first place, I still hated performing this technique. It hadn't occurred to me when I railroaded Kakashi into showing it to me that drawing blood would always break my Henge. I sighed as I bit my thumb, once again forcing myself back into the form I hated.
"Wait a second," Kuro interrupted. "You've been keeping that Transformation up the entire time you've been here. Do you always wear one, or is it another part of your training?"
"I always keep it up. I hate the way my body is naturally, so I keep the Henge going as long as I'm conscious."
"Huh. You know, if you're good enough with the Transformation Jutsu to keep it up that long, even under combat conditions, there are a lot of interesting ways you can make use of it. We'll try that tomorrow – for now, we'll get back to working on Summoning." I nodded and performed the necessary seals.
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" My palm struck the grass below, then was displaced by a furry mass appearing beneath it. The smoke cleared, revealing a tiny baby fox that gazed up at me with huge, adorable eyes before disappearing back to wherever it came from. Kuro stared at me with a neutral expression.
"I had no idea it was possible to be that bad at the Summoning Jutsu. You're supposed to put some actual chakra into it, you know? Kami, you've gotta be the worst summoner alive right now."
On the outskirts of Konoha, Naruto slammed his palm down eagerly, sure that this time he'd get a proper toad.
Only for yet another tadpole to appear.
"Damnit, Naruto, you're completely worthless at this! How can you possibly spend over a week trying and still get nowhere!"
"Wait, Ero-sennin, look! I'm getting better, see! This one has legs!"
By the end of the day I was at least able to summon foxes that were old enough to speak. They were still only kits, but I was getting somewhere at least.
"Alright, that's enough for today," Kuro told me after my latest summon returned to their prior location. "We'll pick this up after dinner again tomorrow. Let's go find you a place to sleep."
The next morning, we were back out in the clearing as soon as dawn broke.
"Okay, kit-chan, it's time for Transformation training. Since you're such a natural with that technique, I figured you should learn how the foxes use it. Henge no Jutsu!" After the smoke from the jutsu cleared, instead of a fox sitting before me, there was an eagle perched on the ground. "We use the Henge to Transform into other creatures," Kuro explained. "It's a powerful technique for infiltration. We can become birds for their wings, fish for their gills, even humans for the occasional prank. Elder-sama used to transform into a beautiful human and seduce travellers just to steal all their clothes for a laugh." He returned to his normal form. "Taking on the forms of other animals is difficult, since your mind isn't naturally built to operate such a radically different body. Just because you have wings doesn't mean you can use them, for example. What I'm going to do first is teach you how to fly as a bird, the most useful form you can take. Now give me a Transformation!"
"Henge no Jutsu!" I chose to take the form of a large raven, and we got to work.
It took me five days to master the Summoning Jutsu to the point where I could freely summon a number of low-level foxes, with Kuro being the strongest I could currently call on. Then another two days were necessary before I was confident enough in my flight to freely use the raven transformation.
"Okay, kit, your bird form is good enough to be serviceable for now," Kuro told me after our latest training session. "There's something else I want to work on that I expect to take a good while. We're going to work on fox-style combat. So draw your knife, kit. By the time we're done, you'll be sneaking up on veteran jounin in the middle of battle like it's nothing."
In the evening of my eighteenth day with the foxes, the Elder requested an audience, so I returned to the cave behind the waterfall to meet with her.
"Makoto-chan," she greeted me warmly. "You have done well in your training. Since you will be leaving us tomorrow, I wanted to speak with you tonight. Come, sit with me." Tentatively, I joined the white fox on her bed, finding the cushions just as comfortable as I had expected.
"What did you want to talk about?"
"Your plans for this world. I know you have seen how things are supposed to play out, that you intend to change future events, and that you hope to bring about peace, but not how you intend to go about doing these things."
"Honestly, I don't really have a proper plan at the moment," I admitted. "More of a general outline."
"Making specific plans too far in advance can be a poor idea anyway, kit. But take me through it, and perhaps together we can come up with some more concrete ideas together."
"Well, the most important thing is to ensure that Otsutsuki Kaguya doesn't get revived and that Uchiha Madara's Eye of the Moon Plan fails. Killing Black Zetsu should be a priority, since even if everything else goes perfectly, he can just wait for another opportunity in the future…"
The next morning, after saying goodbye to the Elder and preparing to return to Konoha, I was stopped just outside the Elder's cave by Kitsumura.
"Hold it, kit," he rumbled just before Kuro reverse-summoned me back home.
"Kitsumura-sama?"
"Hmph. While I appreciate you giving me the proper respect, you have yet to earn the right to address me by name. You will refer to me as 'Boss', am I clear?"
"Yes, Boss!"
"Good. Now, I hear you're going to be fighting Ichibi no Shukaku's jinchuriki out there." He tapped the ground in front of him, and a small sealing tag appeared in a puff of smoke. "This is a single-use summoning array. If Shukaku gets released, use it to summon me."
"Thank you, Boss. I'm honoured that you would allow me to summon you."
"Don't get too full of yourself, kit. This is a one-time deal. If you want to summon me normally, you'll need a lot more chakra, and you'll have to prove yourself worthy."
"How would I go about doing that, Boss?"
"Hmm…" He thought for a moment before answering. "As a fire release specialist, I have a certain respect for your clan's prowess in that area. There's an old Uchiha jutsu said to be the pinnacle of the art: Great Fire Annihilation. Master this jutsu, and you will have both the chakra reserves necessary for the summoning and my acknowledgement as a worthy summoner. But I don't expect a kit like you to manage this anytime soon." I nodded. Great Fire Annihilation was the insane fire technique Madara used against the Allied Shinobi Forces. It would make an excellent addition to my arsenal if I could learn it, so I'd definitely be putting in the effort, even if it took years. "Now get going, kit! And try not to embarrass the fox clan in the arena!"