Disclaimer for this story: InuYasha is property of Rumiko Takahashi and Naruto is property of Masashi Kishimoto. All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author, punkish furball. The author, punkish furball, is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. The author, punkish furball, makes no profit from this fanfiction. No copyright infringement is intended.

punkish furball – Howdy! :3

Words to Ponder:

Hello, all. This is a little drabble series I started while I'm working on other, longer pieces. The main pairing is Naruto/Kagome/Sasuke. I hope you enjoy it! XD

And, pardon my shameless plug, but I recently updated my Harry Potter/InuYasha crossover, Demonic Teachings. Check it out if you have the time!

Installment 1: Welcome to the Afterlife, Naruto!

Uzumaki Naruto groaned as he slowly regained the feeling in his limbs which were stiff and numb from overexertion. It took him a while to remember the events prior to this moment, but they eventually came to him in a bombardment of scattered memories.

That's right, he thought, Sasuke came to the Hidden Leaf.

Just as he promised, Uchiha Sasuke, the self-proclaimed avenger, returned to Konohagakure for a direct assault with his party of three shinobi. And, just as he promised, Naruto along with the rest of Kakashi-tachi intercepted them before they reached the village. While the others divided the members of Taka-tachi amongst themselves, Naruto immediately confronted Sasuke. Soon after, the two engaged in combat.

Everything after that is so blurry. What happened to Sasuke?

Naruto quickly sat up, groaning when a wave of dizziness hit him. He pressed a hand to his head and rubbed his temples to fight off the oncoming headache.

"You shouldn't sit up too fast or you'll regret it," an unfamiliar but gentle voice said.

Naruto opened his eyes to see a raven-haired beauty with deep blue eyes and a heartwarming smile kneeling by his side. Despite how innocent she appeared, he regarded the unknown girl with suspicion. He knew she was not a citizen of Konohagakure, and there was no way a normal civilian or even another ninja could enter the village during the ongoing battle.

"Who are you?" he asked her harshly.

Surprisingly, she sighed and shook her head at him, exasperated.

"You don't trust me at all, do you?" she asked. Without waiting for an answer, she added, "Then again, I should expect that from a shinobi."

"Answer me."

Instead of replying immediately, the girl stood to her feet and held her hand to Naruto, catching him off guard again.

"My name is Kagome. You can consider me your tour guide for the time being," she told him.

"Tour guide?" Naruto curiously repeated.

He finally looked around and noticed he was no longer in the battlefield on the outskirts of his village and the Hidden Leaf was nowhere in sight. Surrounding him was a seemingly endless meadow of lush green grass dotted with wild flowers blooming in a wide spectrum of colors.

"Where the hell am I?" Naruto shouted, demanding answers.

Kagome sighed again; she had a feeling she'd be doing that a lot.

Kami-sama, give me strength.

"If you would just be quiet and a little more pati—" she began but was cut off when Naruto held a kunai to her neck.

"Tell me who you really are, and why I'm here."

Despite the obvious danger, Kagome stood with her hands clamped by her side, unwavering. Naruto, still not sure if she was truly an enemy, applied more pressure to her neck, nicking her skin and producing a small trail of blood.

That scent!

Huh? Naruto uttered when the other presence in his body stirred, Kurama?

In an instant, Naruto was completely overwhelmed, and his body was taken over by the kitsune. Due to his constant training with Killer Bee, it was much easier for the Nine-Tails to possess him when he wasn't expecting it.

In Naruto's form, the Nine-Tails pounced and knocked Kagome off her feet, making her yelp in shock. He quickly straddled her waist and placed his mouth by the small flesh wound Naruto inflicted, hungrily breathing in the feminine musk that drew his attention. Kurama slowly traced the trail of blood with his tongue and relished the tingling sensation it produced in his mouth. Placated, Kurama rested his head against Kagome's breasts, purring in contentment.

What the hell are you doing? Naruto asked, alarmed. Kurama never expressed any interest in such carnal desires despite his demonic nature—directly or otherwise.

Kurama chuckled. It's been a long time since I had the opportunity to savor a delicacy like this. I was not about to pass it up.

What are you talking about? Do you really drink human blood?

Nine-Tails fiendishly grinned and snuggled closer into his newly acquired warmth. He was far too content to answer Naruto's questions.

Naruto growled before roughly taking back control and locking Kurama away. He would never fully understand the demonic entity, and he wasn't sure he wanted to. He stiffened when he heard Kagome clear her throat and as realized his head was still resting on top of her warm, fleshy mounds. Naruto scrambled off of her, an angry red flush on his whiskered cheeks.

"Sorry!" he uttered, embarrassed.

Kagome only laughed as she stood. "Don't worry about it! It's not the first time I was molested on the job, but I did forget you were a package deal!"

At the sound of her voice, Naruto relaxed even though he still didn't understand what was going on. When he joined her on his feet, Kagome spoke again, her eyes suddenly dimmed and saddened. Her tone wasn't as reassuring as it was before.

"As you can probably tell, this isn't your village, Uzumaki-san," she stated.

"How…how did you know my name? And where are we? Why am I here?" he asked, wildly gesturing to the tranquil meadow.

As he continued to speak, Naruto's suspicion slowly receded as an uncomfortable, heavy feeling took its place and filled his heart.

"I'm sorry to be the one to tell you this, but this is the afterlife. You are dead."

Naruto's heart sank.

-O0o0O-

punkish furball – That's a wrap! Updates on this piece will be sporadic as I'm not entirely sure where it's headed. If you guys like it, that might change. Until next time, TCB! X3

(revised 05.17.2014)