In one of the alleyways of the Village Hidden in the Leaves, a boy of about four years old shivered as he used an old towel he found in a dumpster as a makeshift blanket. The boy was somewhat short for his age and had sun blonde hair that spiked in all directions, yet it was darkened by the dirt from the alley he was forced to be called his temporary home. The boy had heterochromia, with one eye being a sky blue and the other being a molten gold color. He also wore shorts and a T-shirt, clothing that while suitable for the day, wasn't good for a Land of Fire night in the Fall. This boy's name is Naruto Uzumaki.

Earlier that same day had been just like any other with him waking up in the orphanage he had been living in since the day he was born exactly four years ago. It was his birthday, yet unlike other children this day did not fill him with joy, more of a sense of melancholy. For you see, the day he was born was the day some great disaster had befallen the village he called home, and the mood in the village was never a happy one. In fact, people seemed even colder towards him than usual. What this disaster was, he wasn't sure as most adults avoided talking to him and the handful that could stand being in his presence said they would tell him when he was older. All he knew was that it must have had something to do with fire, as there were many buildings in the village that were still rebuilding from fire damage. Some had just been condemned and were burnt out shells of former buildings that people were forbidden to approach, yet some kids, himself included, would attempt to sneak into them on a dare.

This birthday seemed extra hard because during the night, someone had placed graffiti all over the front of the orphanage. Naruto, who was still learning his alphabet, couldn't make out what the words said but he did see that there was a crude depiction of what looked like cats involved. Somehow, the young boy knew this involved him somehow and he was proven correct when the head of the orphanage called him to his office that afternoon. He had explained to the boy that, due to unforeseen circumstances, they could no longer house him at the orphanage. When the boy asked where he should go, the man suggested that he ask the Hokage for a new place to stay. Naruto knew the Hokage as that old man who'd come by from time to time and was one of the few adults who really gave the boy anything resembling love and affection. So, with that in mind, Naruto packed his few belongings and headed out to find the old man.

As previously stated though, Naruto was a four year old boy who just barely understood the way of the world. While he did know that most adults didn't seem to like him for some reason, and kept their children away from him whenever he wanted to play, he never really knew how much that dislike extended until this day. After an hour of searching for the old man, Naruto had enough sense to ask around to see if someone could point him in the right direction. However, all the adults he saw would avoid him like he had the plague, and cast him cold glares that discouraged him from further trying. Normally, he'd ask one of those people in the animal masks if they knew where the Hokage was, but for some reason he couldn't find them today. And so he pressed on until the sun started to set and the streets became more and more deserted.

Normally, the Land of Fire had a fairly warm climate, but during the Fall and Winter months, the nights tended to have biting, bitter winds. So Naruto decided that he wasn't going to make any progress today and decided that he should find shelter for the night. Since he didn't have any money to his name, and no close friends to speak of, Naruto looked for a possible shelter outside. This brings us to the present, with Naruto huddled in an alley on top of some old newspapers as a mattress and a dirty towel as a blanket.

Shuddering from the cold once more, Naruto drifted off into an uneasy slumber. His last conscious thought was, 'I wish there was someone who loved me.'

When he awoke, Naruto noticed that for some reason, he was no longer cold. In fact, he was quite toasty. Thinking it was daytime, he looked around but was surprised to find that he wasn't in the alleyway he'd fallen asleep in. In fact, it wasn't in any place he recognized at all! The closest thing he could compare this place to was that blacksmith the orphanage had taken him and the other children to for a field trip about a month ago. The area smelled strongly of sulfur and had what looked to be giant forges poking out of the ground. What was strange though was that the fire coming from the oven like structures wasn't red, yellow, or orange, but a deep azure blue with flickers of black in it.

"Wha's dis place?" he asked aloud.

"Hello little one,"a deep yet distinctly female voice called out, causing the boy to jump with a yelp.

"W-who's there?" Naruto shouted, mentally wishing he sounded braver and more intimidating.

"Don't be afraid,"the voice said as if sensing his fear."Follow the sound of my voice. I have been wanting to meet you for a very long time."

Hesitantly, Naruto complied since he had no better ideas. Walking in the direction the voice was coming from, he soon came upon what looked to be a giant furnace, easily twice the size of any building he had ever seen! The grate of the furnace was level with him and seemed to be locked by what looked to be a slip of paper. Within it, Naruto could see more blue and black flames, yet they were larger than the ones he'd seen in this strange place, nearly as big as the furnace itself.

"Please, come closer,"the voice asked in a calm tone.

Naruto creeped closer to the grate and was surprised to see the flame take shape. The inferno seemed to twist and warp, forming a feline shaped head with a gold and green pupilless eyes, paws that were easily bigger than a full grown man, and two whipping tails waving lazily behind the figure. The giant cat made of blue fire smiled, its mouth full of razor sharp fangs that, surprisingly, didn't seem to be made of flames themselves.

"Hello Naruto,"the two tailed cat greeted.

"H-hullo. Who you?" the boy asked, feeling smaller than usual in the presence of the giant cat.

The cat lowered itself to the ground, yet her (for the voice was that of a woman's) eye was still a good distance away from his own height. For some reason though, the smile the cat gave wasn't vicious, but almost seemed gentle."I am called the Nibi, or the Two Tailed Cat. Though you may call me Matatabi."

Naruto, getting over his nervousness as the now named Matatabi didn't seem like she wanted to hurt him (and even if she did, she seemed to be locked in that furnace), gave a smile of his own and called out, "Pleased ta meet yah, Ms. Matatabi!"

Matatabi gave a rumbling laugh, her fire danced with amusement."My, what a polite young fellow! Definitely more well behaved than my last host."

"Host?" Naruto cocked his head at the unfamiliar word.

Matatabi waved the boy's question off with a flick of her tail."I'll tell you later. And you don't need to be so formal with me, Naruto. Now, I can tell you have questions."

Naruto nodded as he looked around. "Where are we? I don't know dis place," he asked.

Matatabi gave a hum as she thought how best to word it to a four year old."Well, I guess you can say that this is all in your head."

Naruto rubbed said body part as he repeated, "My head?"

"More specifically, your mind or if you prefer, your imagination,"the cat added helpfully.

"So…does this mean this isn't real? That you're not real?" Naruto asked and couldn't quite keep the disappointment out of his voice. Despite just meeting her and her not being human, the giant feline had been nice to him and hadn't made him feel unwanted, which already placed her above most of the villagers.

"I'm as real as you are, Naruto,"Matatabi assured the boy."We're just in your imagination right now, but even when if you leave I'll still be with you."

"Does…does that mean you'll be my friend?" Naruto asked hopefully.

The cat seemed surprised at the request before her mismatched eyes softened."I would be happy to be your friend, Naruto. Now, why don't you come in here with me so we won't have these bars between us? I can't leave them, but you can enter and go as you please."

"Okay!" Naruto cheered, still on a happiness high on finally making a friend. Naruto started to approach the bars before stopping, a piece of his common sense telling him something very important. "Um, Matatabi? You're made a' fire n' stuff…won't I get burned if I get too close?"

"Don't worry Naruto, I can control the intensity of my flames. To you, they'll just feel like a warm summer breeze. It'll feel much better than the cold your body is actually feeling."

Nodding, Naruto entered the furnace and, upon approaching the cat, noticed that the heat was just as she said. Instead of burning, he felt more like he was being covered by a warm blanket. Feeling a bit more daring, Naruto walked over and snuggled into one of Matatabi's forepaws. Unknown to the blonde, in the real world his body started heating up like if he had a fever, yet the heat didn't have any negative effect other than keeping the biting winds at bay.

"Dis is comfy," Naruto commented as he snuggled closer to the cat. A thought then occurred to him as he glanced around the more confined space. "Say…Matatabi? Why're you locked in here?"

The Two Tails gave a chuckle that to the trained ear would sound bitter."Well child, you can say that some bad people wanted to use my power, so some other people decided to lock me up for my own safety. And while I appreciate the thought, it is rather bothersome being kept prisoner here."

"Can't I let you out?" Naruto asked innocently.

The cat's tails flicked in surprise at this, but after a moment's thought she answered,"I appreciate it, Naruto, but for now it is probably safer for me to stay here. After all, one or more of those bad people I mentioned could still be out there."

Naruto puffed himself up to look more impressive and boasted, "Don' worry Tabi! I'll protect you from the bad guys!"

Matatabi gave a purring laugh at that. Truly, she had an interesting host this time."Of that I don't doubt. However, it would be best if you were older and stronger before you try something like that."

Naruto seemed to deflate at that as he sunk against her paw. "Okay," he murmured before trying to stifle a yawn.

"Sounds like somebody's tired,"Matatabi laughed."Go to sleep, Naruto. We'll talk more when you're awake."

Naruto made to reply, but he was already out the second Matatabi finished talking, curling up against the azure flames like a little kitten.

When Naruto woke up, he found himself on a couch in an unfamiliar office. 'Was it all a dream?' he wondered.

"It might have been, but does that make it any less real?"a familiar voice echoed in his mind. Naruto was about to exclaim, when Matatabi's voice called out,"Whenever we talk like this you just need to think what you want to say. No need to talk out loud, Naruto."

'Matatabi? Where are you? Where am I?' he thought.

"I'm still in your mind, Naruto. I can speak to you now though because we were able to actually meet. As to where you are, I have a feeling you're going to find out right about…now."

When the cat finished speaking, the door to the office opened up and the Hokage walked in, smiling at the boy he treated as a surrogate grandson.

"Gramps!" Naruto called out happily, but before he could continue he heard Matatabi speaking in his mind again.

"For now, Naruto, it's best you don't mention me to anyone. I'll tell you why later, but for now you'll just have to trust me."

Giving a mental nod, Naruto turned his attention back to the Third, who said, "Ah, Naruto you're awake. I'm glad to see you unhurt my boy. When I found out what happened, I had some of my best ninja go looking for you. Tell me, how are you feeling?"

Naruto grinned thinking of his new friend he had met last night. "I feel great."