Well, I'm sitting here at 10:30 pm, listening to Yellowcard, and all of a sudden I get bit by the writing bug hard. Something completely different from my previous works, and it seems original. At least, I haven't found anything remotely like it, but since I don't read yaoi (70 percent of this fandom, apparently) I may have missed it. The story starts when Naruto is six.

Summary: Gaara houses Shukaku, and has an absolute defense. Naruto houses the Kyuubi, much stronger than Shukaku, but he does not. What if he did?

Story!

"That does it brat! Let's see how you like this!"

"Put me down! You're hurting me!"

"Good! It's less than you deserve, you worthless punk!"

Naruto continued to squall as the angry shopkeeper, apparently an ex-shinobi if his method of travel (roof hopping) was anything to go by, drug him by the scruff of the neck off to god-knows-where. It had only been a little prank anyway, and the old man deserved it for trying to rip him off on the ramen! Naruto had seen two old ladies buy that same stuff for less than half the price the shopkeeper charged him! "Leggo, you crazy old man!"

The former ninja had apparently decided not to answer any more of Naruto's pleas. Instead, he continued seething in silence. 'Goddamn demon spawn always wrecking everything around him! The Hokage may have ordered us not to kill him, but I'm gonna put the fear of god into him tonight!'

Naruto continued shouting himself hoarse, noticing as other roof-traveling ninjas bounced towards his abductor, only to veer off when they realized who his prey was. Every time a ninja turned their back on him, it sent a little spike into his heart, just as it did when the villagers acted coldly to him, or threw things and yelled at him. 'What did I do? I never pranked no one who didn't do something to me first!'

Eventually the ninja reached his destination; an old training ground, one he knew to be inhabited by tons of mutant critters that would just love to snack on an evil little blonde kid. Training Ground #44: better known as the Forest of Death.

Naruto realized that they were slowing, and redoubled his efforts to shake himself free, still hollering at the best of his capacity. "I'll get you! You're gonna get a nice big pile of dog shit in your shoes!"

The shopkeeper shook his head disgustedly. "You even talk like a demon. I should've expected." The fact that Naruto was so rough due to a lack of care and the necessity of spending time on the streets didn't seem to occur to him. "Well, you're not gonna be bothering me for a while. In fact, if no one bothers to rescue you, which I doubt anyone will, you won't be bothering anyone anymore. After all, the Hokage only said for us not to kill you; he never mentioned putting you in a situation where you would die."

Naruto froze and paled. "D-d-die! It wasn't that bad! I swear I'll clean up all the paint, mister! Just put me down!"

The shopkeeper smirked, wondering why no one had thought of this before. He had no intention of actually leaving the brat to die; Sandaime would have him killed in as painful a way as possible, not to mention his family and friends. No one knew why he was so protective of the Kyuubi spawn, but it was a fact that none argued. Scaring the shit out of him, and maybe teaching him to respect his betters, was something else entirely. "In you go, punk! I hope the centipedes get ya; the take the longest to kill someone!"

That said, the retired (only recently) shinobi broke the lock on one of the gates cordoning off the forest and chucked the kid in as quick as he could, aiming low to make him roll as far in as possible. It would leave him a little banged up (maybe a lot banged up; details, details), but that would only go further to scare the golden haired menace.

Naruto let out a scream of pure terror that was interrupted by a loud oof! as he hit the ground. He did indeed roll, bouncing over a few roots and royally scraping his arms and legs in the process, before finally hitting a leaf filled depression and stopping. He sniffled as he gingerly sat up, wincing at the scrapes but not crying; he'd gotten worse from kids who wanted to beat up 'the freak my mom told me about.'

After spending nearly a minute sniffling to himself, Naruto got up and tried to get his bearings. The only problem was that he had no idea which way he had come from; he had rolled so much that his sense of direction was totally shot, and he had no where near as much survival training as he would later have. As Naruto realized this, he almost did start crying, only holding in the tears by a thread. Remembering what the nasty, worthless old man had said about centipedes (and while Naruto didn't really know what one of those was, he would be damned if he stuck around and got eaten by one), he decided to pick a direction and hope that the exit lay on that path.

The shopkeeper shook his head as Naruto moved off deeper into the forest. Even though his skills were a bit rusty, he could still avoid the detection of a kid like Naruto easily enough. He'd wait until something suitably threatening emerged, then get the kid out. Shouldn't take too long; something making as much noise as Naruto was, tromping through the sticks and other debris of the undergrowth, was bound to attract predators.

Unfortunately, the shopkeeper neglected to think about what might be sneaking up on him. The beast moved so quietly and quickly that he only had a bare moment's warning before he was being swiped out of his current perch by an obscenely large paw topped with very deadly claws. He shouted in pain and fear as he hit the ground hard, drawing Naruto's attention and spurring on the massive cat that had attacked him.

Naruto was tempted to run like a bat out of hell when he heard the scream, not to mention the huge roar that followed it, but he also felt an insane desire to see what was going on. Reasoning that he would just poke his head into the area he'd heard the scream come from, he scrambled back the way he had come as quietly as he could; not very, to say the least.

When he finally made his away around the last tree that was covering his vision, he froze, seeing the giant tiger-marked cat that was stalking the mean old man who had put him here in the first place. Naruto noticed the blood on the old man's back; if he was already hurt, then he didn't have a chance to get away from the oversized feline. In short, he was just as dead as the old man had said he'd be.

Naruto fell to his knees and started crying. 'I don't want to die!'

--

Inside Naruto's belly, something that hadn't happened for over three years was happening again. The Kyuubi no Kitsune, the nine-tailed demon fox, was throwing himself against the bars of his prison with all the force he could muster. He had done this almost constantly for the first few months of his imprisonment within the damnable human child he had been sealed in, only to eventually give up when the bars didn't so much as show a scratch. He had tried again every so often, to check for any sign of weakening in his cage, but had always been disappointed to the point where he stopped trying.

Now, however, was a different story. He had had time to study the workings of the seal; it was tied into the very life force of the brat who housed him, his Jinchuuriki. However, where normally this would mean that the death of his carrier would result in his release, the thrice-damned Yondaime had added a little something extra to his seal; it had bonded the Kyuubi's life force to the child's as well. This meant that, rather than being ecstatic at his upcoming release, the demon was trying his damndest to extend some influence into the whelp and prevent both of their deaths; as he was already a demon, death meant oblivion. And the Kyuubi did not want that at all.

He had considered sending chakra, which would fit through the bars, but the kid wouldn't have the slightest idea what to do with it; he had no training in utilizing chakra to enhance his strength or speed, nor did he know any jutsu that could be used to fend off the predator. Even if he healed the wounds as Naruto acquired them, that would only put off the inevitable; once the brat was ripped into pieces and being digested, it would be too late for a little healing. He'd have to intervene directly… but he couldn't do that while the gate was closed.

In addition to the desperate attack on his prison gate, he was howling at the greatest volume he could muster. "BRAT! LET ME OUT! LET ME OUT NOW, DAMMIT! YOU STUPID LITTLE TWIT, RELEASE ME OR WE DIE!"

--

Naruto was still frozen as he noticed the cat-beast evaluating whether to attack him or to kill the one already wounded. When the cat started moving towards him, his crying redoubled, as did his mental assertions; 'I don't want to be kitty food! I want to live! I WANT TO LIVE!'

The shopkeeper was also struggling up, cursing his pride; he'd thought that none of the animals here were a match for him, but apparently he'd let his conditioning slack even more than he'd thought. 10 years before, he could have taken a wound like this one and barely even noticed, as far as combat efficiency went; now, it was all he could do to keep conscious from the pain and loss of blood. How ironic, to be killed in the way he'd threatened the demon child?

Naruto broke slightly from his fear, picking up a fairly thick stick. "Go away!" He threw it at the monster approaching him cautiously, wary for some trick from the elder of its prey. It didn't even notice the stick, as it went flying almost five feet over it. When it felt that the old one was truly no threat, and not merely pretending, it turned it full attention to the young one, tamping down its hindquarters as it prepared to pounce. All to quickly it was in the air, barreling straight towards Naruto's body, claws outstretched and mouth wide open.

Naruto screamed when he saw the final approach, throwing up his arms in a futile attempt to guard his life. It was heading straight for him! It was halfway there already! It was…

Gone.

Naruto slowly uncovered his head, staring with disbelief at the walls that surrounded him. This was most certainly not the forest. He jumped as he heard an incredibly loud clang, followed by cursing in the loudest voice he'd ever heard. "GET YOUR WORTHLESS ASS IN HERE, BOY, WE DON'T HAVE ALL FUCKING DAY!"

Naruto moved slowly down the corridor towards where the voice had come from, stumbling as he saw the giant barred gate. When he saw what was behind the gate, he started crying again. "WAAAH! It's an even bigger monster!"

The Kyuubi stopped pounding, snarling down at his Jinchuuriki. "CUT THAT OUT, YOU IDIOT! OPEN THE GATE BEFORE THE CAT KILLS YOU!"

Naruto cowered, although he stopped crying when he realized that the huge fox couldn't get through the gate. He flinched when he realized two things. "What! How can you talk! And, and, if I let you out, you're just going to eat me! I'm not stupid!"

The fox slammed its head against the gate in frustration, causing Naruto to leap backwards with a yelp. When the Kyuubi realized that a frightened child wasn't going to do anything productive, he forcibly calmed himself down, fighting against the rage that was so natural for him. "Shut up. I'm not going to eat you."

Naruto stopped backpedaling once again. He now had a suspicious look on his face. "Are you sure?"

The Kyuubi began to snarl, but twisted his expression into a grimace that could, with a bit of imagination, be called a smile. "… Yes."

Naruto accepted that at face value. Had he been older, he might have continued questioning, but he figured that if a fox could talk, it wouldn't bother lying. "So why do you want me to open the gate if you don't want to eat me? The cat ain't here."

Kyuubi inhaled briefly, then exhaled in an explosive snort. Naruto was pushed back a little, and only kept his balance by waving his arms in a windmill. "This place isn't real. The cat is still outside attacking your body."

Naruto started panicking again. "But, but, then that means it could be eating me right now!"

Kyuubi shook his head. "Time is slowed outside when you're here. You'll be fine if you just open the d… the gate."

Naruto nodded solemnly for a moment. "… Huh?"

Kyuubi breathed in deeply, resisting the urge to simply start screaming at the brat. Why, oh why did his container have to be so stupid? Why couldn't he have been sealed in some genius child that wouldn't be dumb enough to prank ex-shinobi and get them in this situation in the first place? "Just let me out and I'll kill the cat."

Naruto nodded. That sounded good to him. But then he paused again. "What are you, anyway? And what are you doing inside me?"

Kyuubi grasped mentally for something other than 'engine of destruction' before coming up with an answer that he knew would sway his juvenile host. "… I'm your hidden power. You have to open the gate to use me."

Naruto's eyes widened comically. "Hidden power? You mean, you mean, like a bloodline? Like, now I can fly and shoot lasers and stuff!"

Kyuubi wondered if he should feel guilty about such an easy play. "Sure. Something like that. Now, time's wasting, let me out."

Naruto nodded excitedly. "Yeah!" He ran towards the gate, before stopping midstep and sweatdropping himself. "Um, how? I'm too little to move that big gate."

Kyuubi looked skyward for a moment, mumbling about idiot jinchuuriki, before facing Naruto again. "Just command the gates to open. They should obey you."

Naruto grunted an affirmative. He then faced the gates head on, pointing a declarative finger in a pose he might have made famous as his 'I'm gonna be Hokage!' pose in another life. "Open up, stupid gates!"

There wasn't any movement for a long moment, causing both current occupants of Naruto's mind to become disheartened, before a loud creaking and groaning started, followed by the gate moving slowly upward. The Kyuubi leapt to his feet, all nine tails waving in anticipation, while Naruto did a little happy dance. Both actions curtailed when a massive screech sounded, and the gate stopped moving. It had only raised enough for Kyuubi to maybe squeeze his paws through.

Kyuubi had a sinking feeling as he rechecked the lines on the seal. There was a new element that had not been present before, which appeared to be a hidden failsafe preventing the full opening of the gate; the Yondaime had probably put it in against the possibility of demonic corruption of Naruto. It was infernally clever; if the seal had been incapable of being tampered with from the outside, then the inside would have been more open to attack. The pitiful opening that had been made was far too small for the Kyuubi to escape. Wait… it wasn't that small…

Naruto was crying again. After all, if the fox couldn't get out, then he couldn't get the cat, and Naruto would get eaten after all. He stopped when he saw that the fox was grinning. At least, Naruto hoped that the wide baring of teeth was a grin. "Wha?"

Kyuubi continued grinning. "This might just be enough after all. Just sit back and watch." So saying, the demon fox turned around, facing the rear of his prison, before sitting down again, his tails now facing the gates. Apparently Naruto hadn't noticed previously that there were nine of them, a number that was ringing some bells far off in his memory, as he gasped out loud when he saw them. The Kyuubi looked over his shoulder and smirked. "Now, to deal with that little pest…" And he slithered his tails under the opening.

--

Back in the real word, the old shopkeeper turned his head as he saw the cat land on the blonde boy, sending up a cloud of leaves as they landed. Although he didn't really care for the demon carrier, he hadn't wanted him to die. And he most definitely hadn't wanted to see him ripped apart by a large predator. He heard a yowl from the cat, probably proclaiming its victory to the forest, and the rustling of more leaves. Then he heard another thing which made him resume watching the cat's position; a cry of pain… from the cat.

He gaped in disbelief at what he saw: One small mound of leaves was in the middle of eight other waving pillars of leaves, one of which was withdrawing from where it had apparently dealt a vicious blow to the hunting cat. He could see it spread out against a tree for a moment before gravity reasserted itself and the cat fell to the forest floor. He was at a loss as to what was happening; he had never heard of a jutsu that attacked with leaves, and even had there been one, this was way beyond the abilities of any six year old; before the mound unfurled itself into another pillar, showing him something that made him freeze in a new sort of terror.

The blonde stood unharmed, surrounded by nine waving lines of leaves; the way the leaves blended together and rustled almost made them appear to be fur, fur covering… "Nine tails…"

Naruto turned to look at the man who had almost been the cause of his demise, smiling cheerfully, not even noticing as one of the tails formed into an edge and sliced down into the cat, ensuring that it would not get back up. "Aren't they neat? My hidden power is even cooler than I thought!"

End Prologue.

Edited on 4/21/08 to revise Kyuubi's dialog.