AN: Because I got all kinds of sunburned yesterday while I was swimming with the guys, I'm staying indoors today and working on stories! :D Good for you guys, huh? ;]

Disclaimer: I don't own, please don't sue!

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Brave New World

Chapter 4

Kagome sat in the Hokage's office staring into the eyes of the blonde woman behind the large desk. Light chocolate orbs were sharp and challenging as they stared into her own dark sapphire eyes, but for some reason Kagome didn't feel threatened. She recognized the gaze that she was receiving and instantly understood; it was the look of a cautious parent. This woman was sizing Kagome up, looking for any sign that could pose as threatening, and silently warning her that if she dared to hurt anyone who she saw as one of her 'children' there would be hell to pay.

Sakura and Ino had accompanied Kagome to the Hokage's tower, but only Sakura had entered the office with her. The pink-haired young woman stood behind the Hokage smiling a reassuring smile at Kagome. Tsunade had already read over the report that Ibiki had sent with Sakura, but she wanted a moment to put a little extra fear into the young woman; an insurance plan, if you will, for just in case.

"Do you plan on staying in our village?" Tsunade asked never breaking her eyes away from Kagome's. There was something about this woman that wasn't normal, but she couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was. Her extremely thin frame and the pallor of her skin didn't help the unsettled feeling in her stomach.

"Yes, ma'am," Kagome answered with a small nod. "I don't have a home anymore and I'm not sure where else I would go. I'd like to try to start a life here. Your people seem very kind…given the circumstances," she added with an awkward grin.

"Yes…well, I'll have to go through my roster and find someone who will be able to keep an eye on you for a while. You've already been told that you'll be in a probationary period for several months. I have to make sure that I'm not allowing someone into the city that will cause trouble," Tsunade stated simply as a formality already going over lists of possible shinobi able to keep guard.

"She could stay with me," Sakura volunteered. "We've already gotten to know each other a little and I think Kagome might be comfortable being with someone she knows. Am I right?"

Kagome smiled at one of her new-found friends and nodded. "Yes, I would like that much more," she agreed.

"As convenient as that would be," Tsunade interjected without drawing her eyes away from various lists, "that won't be possible. Sakura has many duties at the hospital that she has to attend and is often called away as a medic for teams on field missions. No offense, but I'm looking for who would be able to perform the task best; comfort isn't being taken into consideration."

Kagome nodded her head slowly and directed her gaze out the large office windows. It was a sunny day and for the first time Kagome could see just how different this world was from her own. The buildings weren't made of metal beams and siding, but looked to be made from natural elements. And beyond the large wall in the far distance, she could even make out the green of thick forests. Swallowing in an attempt to wet her suddenly dry throat, Kagome took a deep breath and silently hoped that not too many things had changed.

"This would be easier if I didn't have so many shinobi constantly in and out of the damn village!" Tsunade huffed in frustration drawing Kagome's attention once more as she threw her lists down on the desk.

Leaning around Tsunade's chair, Sakura looked over the lists of names in an attempt to help. "I'm sure there's someone who—" But she was interrupted when the door to the office swung open unexpectedly.

"Granny!" A deep voice called out in an almost whining tone.

Kagome turned around in her chair slightly to see the newcomer. The man was tall and lean with lightly tanned skin. Golden-blonde hair stuck out in every direction and was held out of his face by a black band adorned with an identical piece of etched metal to the one that Sakura wore. Bright blue eyes were full of energy as he advanced into the room, and Kagome noticed odd markings on his cheeks but wasn't sure what they were. He was dressed in orange pants with white bandages around one thigh and black sandals. His orange and black jacket was unzipped due to the warm weather revealing a white t-shirt underneath.

"Naruto," both Sakura and Tsunade growled out at the blonde's intrusion.

Not taking the hint, Naruto carried on as though nothing was wrong. "When are you going to let me go on missions again?" He whined. He was bored with staying in the village and was quickly running out of money to fund his ramen addiction.

"Naruto," Tsunade snapped again to get the man's attention as she slammed her palms down on her desk and stood. "Not only have I told you over and over not to just barge into my office, but if you call me 'Granny' one more time I'm going to throw you out the window!" She paused to take a deep breath and sit back down before continuing, "And I told you that short of a catastrophic emergency where your abilities were absolutely necessary, you needed to take up a hobby because you weren't getting any missions for a very long time."

"But…" Naruto paused speechless for a minute before his mind kicked back into high gear. "But I'm bored! And broke! You know those aren't good combinations, especially for me. There's no telling what I might do!" He threw his hands into the air to emphasize his point. "Do you want me to starve? I may have to take up stripping just to support myself! I can see it now, flyers and posters littering all of Konoha; 'Shinobi Stripping Services: perfect for bachelorette parties!' What would that say to people coming to us with missions they needed completed? They would take their business elsewhere! Then none of us would be getting work and all of us would have to strip! The entire village would spiral into chaos and debauchery and—!"

"Naruto!" Tsunade yelled again in an attempt to end his rambling rant. She rubbed her temples and leaned back in her seat. Naruto had always been excitable, but sometimes he was just too much! "I'm not sending you out of this village," she said with an air of finality. "And if I hear about you stripping, I'll have ANBU take you in!"

Looking completely dejected, Naruto tried a more reasonable approach. "I don't understand why you won't let me go on missions anymore…" He pouted.

Snorting at the statement, Tsunade said, "After that last escort mission you were sent on, you don't know why I won't send you on any more?"

Naruto took a moment to think back before a goofy grin split across his face. "Oh yeah…but how was I supposed to know we were taking her to marry the Daimyo's son?"

"You read the mission scroll that you're given, idiot," Sakura said as she brought a hand up to cover her face.

"Whatever," Naruto said suddenly finding something on the ceiling to stare at. "I still say that she came onto me first."

"It doesn't matter!" Tsunade yelled trying to get back to the topic. "You aren't leaving this village unless I say so. You're going to stay right here where I can keep an eye on you." Her attention went back to the lists in front of her before she felt an idea take root in her mind and she grinned to herself. "Yes, you'll stay where I can keep an eye on you and you can keep an eye on her."

Naruto followed Tsunade's pointing finger to a small woman sitting in a chair to his left. When had she gotten there? Stepping forward a little more and bending down slightly, Naruto examined the woman who was staring at him with an odd look. He quickly took in her size and slightly sickly appearance before asking, "Who are you?"

"This is Kagome," Tsunade answered. "She's the one Neji's team found on their last surveillance mission. She's been interrogated and, deeming her safe for the time, will be living in the village until we can be sure. You wanted a mission, well here you go. Naruto Uzumaki, I charge you with keeping watch over Kagome Higurashi for any dangerous or suspicious behavior and making sure that she adjusts to life in Konoha; that means making sure that she obeys our laws and customs. You won't be leaving the village for this, but you'll be paid accordingly."

Looking between the Hokage and his new charge, Naruto sputtered before saying, "But I only have one bedroom and one bed in my apartment! Where is she going to stay?"

Grinning wickedly, Tsunade looked directly at the blonde and said, "She'll stay with you and you'll be a gentleman and take the couch until she can find a place of her own."

Naruto eyed Kagome again and was about to speak when Sakura beat him to it, "And I'll be checking in on you. Kagome is very nice and I like her. If I hear about you trying anything funny, I'll beat you into next week."

Rolling his eyes, Naruto waved a hand and said, "Yeah, yeah, yeah…I know!" He then turned to Kagome and gave her one of his mischievous smiles as he said, "She said you're nice, so you don't have anything to worry about. I like the pink-haired, violent type."

Kagome watched as Sakura blushed and growled at the same time while narrowing green eyes onto the blonde who stuck his tongue out at her.

Tsunade sighed again before she said, "Naruto, you are twenty-three years old. Will you ever stop acting like you did the day I met you?"

"Bah! You know if I started acting my age it would just make you feel as old as you really are, Granny!" Naruto laughed until he realized exactly what he had just said. All laughter stopped and he slid nervous blue eyes over to a seething Hokage. "I didn't mean it!" He backed away as the older woman advanced on him and whimpered right before the woman laid her hands on him.

Kagome ducked and flinched as Naruto was sent sailing across the room and out one of the large windows. As she watched Tsunade straighten her clothes and head back to her seat, Kagome mused on how her new home was doubtful to ever be boring.

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Kagome stood in the small living room of Naruto's apartment taking in her new home. Aside from the various scrolls and weapons that littered the floors and tables, there were discarded ramen containers and dishes everywhere. She was definitely going to have to do something about that. Aside from the dangers that it posed, it couldn't be healthy to live in that kind of mess. But Kagome's attention was drawn back to the tall blonde who had taken the few outfits given to her by Sakura and Ino into his room.

He walked back into the living room reading over a list that Sakura had given him. "Geez…you'd think she thought you were her pet!" He waved the list around and looked at Kagome as she laughed lightly before continuing on with his rant. "I mean, look at this; diet outlines, rules about your health, a schedule for check-ups at the hospital, she even wrote down a sleep schedule for you! A bedtime? Really? Does she think you're five?" Naruto stopped again to look Kagome over for a minute. "How old are you, anyway?"

Kagome shrugged before answering honestly, "I'm not sure. I was about seventeen when my friends put me to sleep, but Sakura said that I'm definitely older than that now. She can't get a close enough read on how old I am physically until my health improves, though."

"Physically?" Naruto said raising a brow as he plopped down on his couch.

"Yeah, I'm not sure how long I was asleep. I may not have changed much physically, but I'm willing to bet that I was around for a lot longer than just a few years," Kagome answered as she sat down on the couch beside Naruto. She stared ahead blankly for several minutes as the full weight of the situation hit her. She was in a world completely new to her where she knew very few people. She had slept for years and had no idea how she was going to proceed with her life. What could she possibly do in a world dominated with ninja? She wasn't trained in their arts. She couldn't fight against them with only her bow and arrows; she severely doubted that her purification powers would have any effect on them. She sighed and Naruto noticed.

Awkward was the word that came to Naruto's mind. He'd glanced over the scroll he'd been given with a brief description of Kagome's situation on the walk back to his apartment. But he couldn't let that get him down, he brightened as he looked over at the small woman beside him. She looked lost, confused, and a little sad. He would have to fix that! He would think of something to cheer Kagome up.

"Hey!" He said as he suddenly rose from his seat. "I'm going to the market to get some of this stuff from Sakura's list. Will you be okay here while I'm gone?"

Kagome blinked up at Naruto. "But…aren't you supposed to watch me or something?"

Naruto's face fell a little, but he maintained a small smile. "Do you plan on overthrowing society and corrupting all of Konoha into following plans for world domination within the next," Naruto glanced at the clock, "hour?"

Kagome shook her head as she bit back a grin at the blonde's exaggerated scenarios. Maybe living with Naruto wouldn't be so bad.

"Then I think we'll be fine," Naruto said as he headed to the door. "Make yourself at home but try not to mess up the place!" Naruto smiled brightly as Kagome's laughter followed him out of the apartment.

Kagome sat on the couch for a few minutes more after Naruto left before deciding to make herself useful. After rummaging around in the kitchen, she found some trash bags and began picking up all of the ramen containers. She then set about taking all of the dishes to the kitchen and washing them. The next step was dusting and general straightening up. All of Naruto's weapons were placed in a small box she found under the kitchen table and all of his scrolls were wrapped and placed on a shelf near the couch. By the time she was done, Kagome looked around the living room and kitchen and was pleased with how much better everything looked.

She walked back into the bedroom where she was going to sleep and found that there were clothes that needed to be picked up. She would wash them for him tomorrow. When the bedroom was as tidy as the rest of the house, Kagome looked through the bag that Sakura and Ino had packed for her only to find something in the very bottom. It was the same old leather bag that had been found at the temple with her.

Kagome pulled the bag from underneath her clothes and found a note from Sakura pinned to it.

Since this is the only thing you have that's really yours, I thought you should have it back. Ibiki said that it's not of anymore use to him, so don't worry about someone looking for it later. Come find me if you need anything!

Sakura

Kagome smiled at the little note and set it aside before looking in the bag. All of the scrolls were there. When her fingers grazed over the only sealed scroll left, Kagome gripped it and pulled it free from the others. Sitting down on the bed, all she could do was stare at the paper in her hands.

"What did you have to say to me, Inuyasha?" She thought aloud as shaking fingers broke the wax seal. Taking a nervous breath, Kagome bit her lip and unrolled the scroll containing the words of her best friend and one-time love.

Kagome,

I'm so sorry. That's all I can think to tell you. I hoped that you would be able to wake up and see your world and your family again, but I don't think that's going to happen. The others can't understand how different things are now from how they're supposed to be. I don't know where it all went wrong, but the world has changed. And all I can do is say that I'm sorry that I couldn't stop it.

I don't even know if I'll be around when you wake up. You've been asleep for over four hundred years now. And every time I look in the mirror it seems like an older face is looking back at me. If I'm not the one who's there when you wake up, please don't think that I abandoned you. You're my friend, Kagome. I may not have always acted like it, but I do care.

Most of the world is a dangerous place for demons now. We try to keep each other safe in our own small country. But I come to see if you're ready to wake up each month. But as the years have gone by, I've started to lose faith that I'll be around when you come back.

So if I'm not with you when you read this, keep living Kagome. You'll never be alone. You draw people to you too easily to ever be alone. Let the people of this new world become your new family like Sango, Miroku, Shippo, and I were. Be safe, be happy, and know that we'll meet again one day even if it's in another life.

Love,
Inuyasha

Kagome wiped away her teas before they could fall onto Inuyasha's letter and ruin his words. She quickly rolled the scroll back up and held it tightly to her chest. Could he really be gone? Kagome's thin fingers wrapped around the scroll tighter as she cried.

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Naruto returned almost two hours after leaving the apartment; it had taken him longer than he thought it would after running into Sakura. He'd dared to question her on some of the things on her list for Kagome. What a mistake that had been. He'd received a lecture and been told to follow her instructions. She'd apparently taken over the roll as Kagome's doctor.

"Kagome!" He called as he set the grocery bags down in the kitchen before seeking out the younger woman.

Knocking gently on the bedroom door, Naruto cracked it open calling softly, "Kagome?" But he opened the door fully when he saw his charge lying on the bed curled into herself and holding something. As he approached he could see the shining trails on her cheeks. Naruto had never been comfortable with the tears of others, but looking down at someone who already seemed so frail…it made her look like a broken doll.

Not able to squash his curiosity, Naruto reached out and gently pulled the scroll from Kagome's hands hoping that he didn't wake her up in the process. Blue eyes read the intimate words written from one friend—or possibly more—to another. When he finished his reading, Naruto sighed deeply. There was much more to Kagome Higurashi than he could have thought.

Why was it that even the missions that seemed easy evolved into much more?

Naruto placed the scroll on the small nightstand by the bed and placed the bag with Kagome's clothes and an old leather bag in the corner of the room. He then gently lifted Kagome's small frame into one arm so that he could pull back the blankets and cover her up.

Turning off the light, he glanced back once more with sympathetic eyes before leaving Kagome to sleep.

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AN: I'd like to keep going, but these chapters would just be way too long! So you'll have to wait to see what happens next. But I promise that the next chapter will be more upbeat! Naruto can't just leave someone alone when they're sad, you know? Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the new chapter! And if anyone is interested, I did a couple of pieces of fanart (character designs) for this story. They're on my deviantArt page and the link for that is the 'homepage' link on my profile here :] One might be a little spoiler-ish, so keep that in mind if you don't want to ruin anything! Thanks for reading!