Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Pokémon. If I did, I'd have a lot of money…but I don't. So don't bother suing, you won't get anything out of it.

Notes: (Crossover, could be a crack!fic if you want) Here there be Naruto characters and Pokémon monsters! This is a short story which takes place after "Freaky Foxes" (the summer after…however many months that is).

I hope that you enjoy it!

Gold and Silver

Part I

Naruto scowled down at the map he'd picked up at the border and tried to figure out the distance scale and where exactly he was in relation to where he wanted to be.

Shouldn't I have gotten to Trinity City by now? He turned the map one way and tilted his head the other way. Or…am I not reading this right?

Visiting Demon Country had seemed like a good idea when he'd been pondering on where to go next. His mother had given him a list of places she'd been, things she'd done, and places and things she'd wished to have gotten to—and Demon Country had been right at the top of the "didn't go there but wanted to" list. But once he'd crossed the border into the lesser country and started looking for things to do, he found it…lacking.

There were no gyms.

At all.

There were contest halls which hosted contests, super contests, and battle contests, and stadiums that hosted pokéthlons.

But no gyms.

Upon discovering this bit of information, he'd been ready to turn around and scamper right back across the border. Even if Demon Country had had some gyms their badges wouldn't have counted towards his total for entry in high-level Fire Country tournaments, but the experience gained would've been something. No gyms meant no experience, which meant there was no point in coming to this country.

However, before he'd gotten to turning around and leaving, he'd heard about some really awesome festival that was going to be held in Trinity City in a couple weeks. It was some kind of historical celebration of some local event that had evolved into what sounded like one of the biggest parties in all of Demon Country. It sounded like it was worth his while to go there and check it out, so his plans of ditching Demon Country were scrapped in favor of heading to Trinity City.

…I don't like this map, Naruto decided as he folded it back up and shoved it in his bag. Whenever I get to Trinity City, I should get a new one.

The boy sighed and started to walk down the trail, hoping it was really taking him where he wanted to go, but stopped when he realized that Bolt wasn't following him. Instead, the pikachu was sitting on the ground, desperately scratching himself. Concerned, Naruto picked the electrical rodent up and examined him while the monster kept on scratching.

"Hey what's wrong—what's this?"

Brushing back the pikachu's short, fine, yellow fur with his thumb, he found pink, irritated skin that was covered in tiny purple spots.

Oh…that doesn't look good.

Holding his pikachu in his arms, Naruto jogged on down the trail, intent on finding the closest pokémon center as soon as possible.

Naruto fidgeted anxiously at the service counter of the pokémon center that he'd found shortly after finally reaching Trinity City. It had been nerve-wracking to wait his turn while Bolt kept on scratching. And even now that the pikachu was getting treatment, it was hard to relax.

Please don't let it be serious, please don't let it be serious, please…

"All done!" the rosy-haired attendant chirped as she returned to the counter and set Bolt down…and the pikachu was still scratching. "There was really nothing to worry about; just a strong reaction to a pokérus infection. Next in line?"

"A pokérus infection?" Naruto repeated, not budging from his spot at the counter. That sounds like something to worry about to me.

"It's a harmless condition, most pokémon that contract it suffer no side-effects at all," the attendant replied impatiently. "Once it passes, your pikachu will never catch it again. Next in line, please?"

Naruto scowled and left the counter with Bolt, and headed for the bank of phones along the far wall. He was not impressed by counter attendant; she seemed like a ditz to him. He sought an opinion that he could trust.

"C'mon, pick up," the boy muttered while Bolt kept on desperately itching himself.

"Professor Sarutobi's lab, how can—" Ebisu paused on the video screen, adjusted his shades, and grimaced slightly. "What do you want?"

"I got a question for the Old Man," Naruto said hurriedly. "It'll only take a second, I swear!"

Ebisu eyed him for a moment before stiffly nodding. "I will see if he's available."

Naruto went back to anxious fidgeting while the video screen showed him a very dull view of a blank laboratory wall. A few minutes later, the old man settled himself in front of the video phone with his pipe in hand. The old professor looked to be in a good mood and his kind smile relaxed Naruto a bit.

"Good afternoon Naruto! What's your question?"

"Hey, Old Man," Naruto waved. "Is pokérus dangerous? The lady at the counter said it isn't, but—" He lifted Bolt into view so that the professor could see the pikachu's itchy misery. "—it's making Bolt so itchy."

"Hmm…" The professor tapped his pipe thoughtfully. "That's unusual; pokémon who have contracted pokérus normally suffer no side-effects, and those few who do experience nothing severe."

"Is there some medicine I can give him to help him get over this faster?" Naruto asked.

"No," the man replied with a shake of his head. "Because pokérus normally has no negative effect on pokémon, no company or research group has ever bothered to experiment with treatments for it. And once the infection has run its course, pokémon become immune to it and will never contract it again."

Naruto's shoulders slumped. "So…there's nothing I can do for him?"

"Well, you could send him here and we could try a few things," the professor suggested. "And gather data on him for possible use in future cases."

The boy hesitated before making up his mind. "Okay."

He put the pikachu back in its capsule, put that in the transport tray underneath the video phone, and sent it off with a sigh.

"…Alright, pokémon received," the old man said. "Now which pokémon would you like me to send back?"

Naruto rubbed at the back of his head thoughtfully. "Well…"

It started out with a little shiver that buzzed up the soles of his feet. Then the floor seemed to buck and heave, knocking him to the floor. There were shouts and panicked screams and the sounds of falling things and breaking glass. The lights flickered before going out entirely, leaving the pokémon center in almost total darkness.

And then, just as suddenly, it all stopped.

Naruto sat on the floor where he'd fallen and blinked owlishly in the dark.

Holy crap! That was an earthquake!