Chapter 20:

The following morning, Naruto and his team left the palace with the prince wishing them a safe journey from his front steps.

The lord and the assassins left the palace the day before. Still suspicious, Neji and the others watched them closely, hoping they wouldn't try to harm the real prince. They did not and the lord appeared to be on good terms with the prince once again. Akio promised to right every wrong the kitsune had done in his place and ordered his servants to help provide the lord with a wagon full of supplies that should have been traded and never were thanks to Reevo. Akio said that this was a token of his apologies and and showing of how much he intended to truly pay them back. The lord left happy and told Prince Akio that there were no hard feelings and that it wasn't his fault. They hadn't heard from them since.

Akio saw them off and thanked them once again for their help in uncovering the truth and defeating Reevo. Naruto and the others said their good-byes and left the palace feeling successful.

"Well, this wasn't the mission I expected but I think it went pretty well," said Sakura. "It was certainly interesting."

"Interesting isn't the first word that comes to my mind," said Neji. "By the way, Naruto, why didn't you tell us about the curse in the first place? We would have helped you."

"Because Ryosuke and the other kitsune told me that anyone who learns about the curse gets cursed as well. I didn't want you guys to suffer, too. Plus, there was no way of knowing what you would turn into. You guys might not have been foxes."

"True."

"Odd how that one fox cursed you into being a fox in order to hinder you," said Sai. "I wouldn't have expected that. It doesn't seem like much of a handicap to me."

"According to Reevo, he never expected to turn me into a kitsune. He said he wasn't sure why it happened or why it took me so long to change." Naruto had his suspicions that the nine-tailed fox had somehow protected him. Perhaps it was his chakra that slowed the transformation down so much so it took Naruto a few minutes to change whereas it took humans and foxes mere seconds. Maybe his transformation was, in a way, predestined because of the fox. Maybe because Naruto was already pretty fox-like, the transformation took on such a form. In a way, some of the cursed objects resembled the person they were of to some extent. Sakura was a lotus flower. There were a few connections with that transformation. The prince being a portrait of himself was another example.

Naruto looked off in the direction of the mountain. He half expected to see Ryosuke and the others to be standing there like they were last night. Though he couldn't see them, he knew they were there.

On the edge of the forest were traces of leftover food from last night's offerings. Some crushed grapes and a pear lay on the ground under a tree. Naruto felt comfortable leaving the town seeing evidence that the offerings were going to continue.

"So the enemy kitsune never intended to turn you into a kitsune?" asked Sakura.

Naruto turned back. "No. He said he didn't and didn't know why it happened that way."

"You don't think it could be because of... you-know-what, do you?" she whispered.

"You mean the Nine-Tails? I guess so. Maybe. I was thinking that, too." Naruto scratched an itch on his stomach. "He's been pretty quiet all this time. I thought being a fox might trigger something to happen. Not to the seal or anything. Just get his attention or something. But it's over now so who cares?"

"Weren't you worried about something happening?"

"Not really. Actually, the first night, I kind of thought it was a dream and went with it. I guess I should have panicked more." Naruto shrugged. "I was more concerned about other things to be honest. Like you guys."

"You seemed most concerned about the fake prince hitting on Sakura," said Neji.

Sakura put her hands on her hips, smirking. "That's true. It was pathetic."

"Hey, I sensed there was something bad about the guy. The things he was saying to you was so cheap and stupid. I thought he was going to start saying some really lame lines like you were an angel fallen from heaven or something stupid like that."

"So were you jealous because someone was hitting on Sakura," asked Sai, "or was it because you sensed the prince was an evil fox?"

That was a good question. Even Neji slowed his walk to hear the answer. Sakura looked at Naruto expectantly.

Naruto gave it some thought. It was true that he did get jealous when men hit on Sakura, but he was more verbal about it when he was younger and had a crush on her. He still had feelings for her but not as strongly as before. Now that he thought about it, he didn't think he was actually in love with her. Sakura was just a good friend and teammate who cared about him. Honestly, he would have loved a date with her, but if another girl asked him he would jump at the chance. He just wanted someone to love him. He was close to Sakura. He had a crush on her when he was younger. Did he still have a crush on her?

"Well..." he drawled.

Sai was waiting for an answer. So was Sakura.

"I think it's because I sensed he was a bad guy. There's no way I would let Sakura date a guy like that. Totally fake."

"What do you mean you wouldn't let me?" Sakura growled.

Naruto flinched. "I- I didn't mean..!"

"He wasn't your type," Neji said quickly. "Shall we press on?"

Sakura didn't punch him. Listening to Neji, she turned around and continued to walk. Naruto breathed a sigh of relief.

"Hey, I sensed the guy was someone to be watched from the beginning," Sakura muttered. "I didn't fall for his cheap lines for one second."

Sai walked closer to Naruto as they left the town. "I thought you had feelings for her. You show all the signs I've read about. And she seems to care about you," he whispered.

"I used to have a crush on her," Naruto whispered back.

"Used to? So you don't anymore?"

"Uh, well..." He wasn't sure. "Not as big a one, I guess. But if she wanted to be my girlfriend, I wouldn't say no. Not if she meant it."

"So it was because you sensed that the prince was a fake and not because of any personal feelings. I see."

"I guess it is." Naruto didn't like the fake prince to begin with. He was angry and found fault in just about everything he did. What started it was him flirting with Sakura the moment he met her. Maybe part of it was jealousy. Maybe it was because after that Naruto started to keep a close eye on him and notice everything he did. The fake prince was false. He wasn't being sincere. Naruto hated people who were false.

Sai frowned. "I'm confused." He looked back at Naruto. "You say you had a crush on her. But you also said that if she wanted to go out with you, you would agree if she meant it and it wasn't out of pity. But you also said that you would jump at the chance to date any girl who asked you out."

"Your point being?"

"If you want any girl, does that make you desperate or a pimp?"

Naruto's eye twitched. "Sai!" he barked.

"What? And my other question was if that's the case and all..."

"It's complicated! Ok?"

"I'm just trying to understand, Naruto."

Did Sai have to be this clueless? Then again, even Naruto was confused about his feelings and what they were. "Look," he sighed. "It doesn't matter. Sakura already likes Sasuke. If she loves him, there's no way she would go out with me and have feelings about it."

"So you do want her to date you but only if she means it?"

"Yeah." Naruto didn't want Sakura to give up Sasuke to be with him if her heart wasn't in it. He wanted her to love him if her heart allowed it. Since she didn't have feelings for him in that way, they would simply be friends. Naruto was happy with that. "Sakura and I are dear friends. So of course I care about her. Of course I would feel protective of her. And because I care about her, I don't want to see her end up with a rotten guy she'll never really care about. Or with a guy who's a total player. Since that fake prince started hitting on her, I knew he wasn't right for her and didn't mean anything he said. I mean, a guy who starts asking a girl out right out of the gate like that? He didn't mean it and I didn't want to see her get in a bad way because of it."

"So... you were jealous because you care and not because you love her?"

This was very hard to explain. In some ways, Sai was like a child. "There are different kinds of love, Sai. I love her in the way I love all my friends. Alright? I care about them and don't want anything bad to happen to them."

Sai seemed to accept that. "Oh, ok. I think I understand."

"Good. Can we drop it now?"

"Just one more question. It was the one I wanted to ask before you cut me off." For this question, Sai did not bother to whisper. "If that's the case and how you feel... after everything you just told me... then why is it when someone asks if you two are dating, you never correct them? You always say she is your girlfriend."

"Uh..."

Sakura was staring at him, frowning.

Naruto was afraid to answer.

Sakura did that for him and he wasn't overly fond of what she had to say. "Because Naruto is a hot-blooded male who can't stand to be alone. So to be a big shot, he tells everybody that we're going out even though we're not. It's just so he comes across like 'the man' to impress people."

"Oh!" Sai said, slamming his fist into his open palm. "So it is because he's desperate and lonely."

"Do we have to keep this conversation going?!" Naruto yelled. "What is the point? What does this have to do with anything? Random!"

Sakura started laughing.

"It's not funny!" Naruto whined.

"These relationships are hard to understand. They're so complicated." Sai thought of a new question. "So if-"

"Shut up!" Naruto snapped at him. Then he lowered his voice. "Look, Sai, I'll keep it simple for you. All guys want someone to love them. I want a girlfriend just like everyone else. Since I've known Sakura a long time and like her and everything, I figured she would be a good girlfriend for me. But we're just friends. If there's another girl out there who cares for me and wants to date me, I'm all for it. So far, no one has even hinted that they love me enough to want to be my girlfriend."

"I see," Sai said in an understanding tone. "So we must simply find a girl out there who loves you. Then you will go on a date with her. Is that right?"

"Yes!" Finally Sai understood and would drop the subject.

"Since Sakura, though a friend, does not love you like that, you simply have to find another girl who does."

"That's what I'm saying." Naruto hoped Sai would stop asking him questions now.

"If only there were someone in our circle of friends who did have feelings of love for you. That would be convenient."

"Yeah," Naruto scoffed. "Too bad no girl has even hinted that she had feelings for me. Otherwise, I would be willing to date her. Oh, well."

Leading the group, Neji paused for a moment to mentally slap his forehead. He hung his head and grumbled to himself, as he thought of his cousin and the Naruto doll she sewed and kept in her room. "I'm surrounded by idiots..."

Sai looked behind him and then back at Naruto. "Say, Naruto..."

"Sai, I'm gonna beat you!"

"I'll settle this right now," Neji said over his shoulder. "Naruto sensed that the fake was bad news from the start, like he said, and he feels protective of his friends. That's why he reacted the way that he did. Not to mention he was jealous of the treatment she was being given. And if I may toss my observation into the matter, I think Naruto's jealousy was also brought on by the idea that he finds it unfair that one person is being shown affection when he is receiving none. Now can we drop it?"

There was some truth to that. Naruto often got jealous when Sakura was giving someone a lot of affection and gave him none. If he had someone showing him some love, too, he wouldn't have felt so jealous. It was also common for him to feel jealous when anyone was given all the attention and he received none.

"No, this is something else." Sai looked back at the town at the bottom of the hill. "I was going to ask about your kitsune friends and how it was to be one."

This Naruto was happy to talk about. "It was great!" he started. He began to tell Sai all about the things he learned and how some of his ninja skills had gotten stronger because of them.

As the group started to pass the edge of the prince's land, Naruto asked to make a quick stop into the tall grass. He wanted to see the shrine. Even if the legend the prince told was just a story, even if it wasn't true, Naruto still wanted to pay his respects.

Naruto went straight to the shrine and bent down to look inside. He smiled at the fox inside, wondering if it could see him. He reached out and pat the stone fox on the head. "Thanks for guarding this place."

Naruto's finger brushed against a rough spot behind its head. It wasn't just some random marking from being weathered. There was a pattern to it. Curious, Naruto reached into the shrine and pulled the stone fox out inch by inch. He turned it around. There on the back of its head, between its two ears, was an artist's name carved in the stone. It was dated below the signature, going back fifty years.

It was a fake. This was no kitsune. This was some artist's work, used as a decoration in a wooden shrine.

Naruto felt disappointed as he slid the statue back into place. The legend wasn't true after all. "Oh, well. I really wanted that story to be true."

That's when he noticed something else in front of the shrine, covered by grass and moss. He brushed them aside and tried to scrape off the moss with his fingernails. It was a small plaque. In tiny writing, it read:

I dedicate this statue to the kitsune who saved my life and drove out the evil lurking in the dark. May it always be a reminder of whose land this truly is and may we share it and live in peace.

Naruto sat back staring at the faded words carved on the smooth surface.

"Maybe the legend wasn't completely wrong. Even Ryosuke said that stories change over years. They may have the same theme and idea, but the details are different every time."

Something must have happened in the past involving the kitsune and the humans. The plaque mentioned an evil in the darkness being driven out. Naruto felt like there was a new mystery he needed to solve.

"Are you coming?" he heard Sakura calling him.

"I'm coming!" Naruto stood up and left the shrine feeling curious. He wondered what happened all those years ago.

When he made it back to the road, his friends led the way down the dirt road.

Before following them, Naruto gave the mountain one final look. The towering cliff looked so empty without a crowd of kitsune calling down to him.

Neji, Sai and Sakura stopped, noticing that Naruto wasn't following. He was standing on the top of the hill, facing the mountain. Before they could ask what he was doing, they saw him cup his hands around his mouth and howl his name toward the mountain.

"Narutoooooooo!"

His voice traveled over the town and into the sky, coming back in a faded echo.

"Why did you do that?" Neji asked him, looking a little annoyed.

Naruto shrugged, still facing the mountain. "Just had the urge."

"Now that it's out of your system, can we go?"

Naruto turned away with a nod. "Yeah. We can go."

They started walking again. One by one, they entered the forest, cloaked in the shade of the trees. As Naruto started to follow, he felt the wind on his back. Carried with it was his earlier howl, echoed faintly by another's voice.

"...rutooooo..."

They heard him. He responded.

Naruto's face broke into a bittersweet smile.

Now he could go home.

He followed his friends into the forest and back to the Hidden Leaf.

The end!

Just to let you know, there will be a sequel. Fox Fire 2 will be coming out, and the Nine-Tailed fox will make an appearance. I couldn't find a place for him in this one that didn't seem tacked on. So he will be in the second.

The next one will have more action and a lot more problems for Naruto. And yes, he will regain his kitsune powers. So think of this as an introduction, because he had to learn all his kitsune powers. Reevo was mostly Ryosuke's fight, but in the next one, Naruto will have his own battles.

I can't give away too much, but I hope you guys will read it.

Thank you all for reading and please review! Thanks! ^-^