Hey everyone! While I am on break from Regret and Redemption, I decided to add another fic based on the Neglected Naruto genre, except in this, he doesn't run away from Konoha, or despise his family. He instead, out of sadness and believing he's not wanted by anybody in his home, moves into Training Ground 44, aka, The Forest of Death. There he meets a pack of a breed of wolf that was supposed to be extinct, as well as finding a secret compund that once belonged to a group of ninja, who also studied the arts of the Samurai and were companions to the Pack.

Also, in this fic, Naruto isn't the Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi no Kitsune. But, he becomes a container of something else, concieved on the night of the sealing.

I know you're all wondering why I'm justing adding a new story out of the blue, but bear with me here. When I get a new idea, I have the urge to get it out, while I get a serious Writer's block for the other fics I have. I hope you can all forgive me for that. Now, if we're done, let's get started!

Prologue:

Leaving the Den, Meeting the Pack

Konohagakure no Sato, Hi no Kuni

7 years after the Kyuubi no Kitsune attacked

It was early Autumn in the ninja village known as Konoha, the Hidden Leaf Village. This village was known for it being hidden in a forest of trees, it's strong shinobi, and also, the kindness of it's people. It produced many great shinobi, such as the Senju Brothers, Hashirama and Tobirama, who were the First and Second Hokage respectively, Hiruzen Sarutobi, the third Hokage and the Sensei of the Legendary Sannin, also known as the God of Shinobi. Then there was Minato Namikaze, the Fourth and current Hokage, who was known as the Yellow Flash, due to his Hiraishin no Jutsu. Their were other ninja who weren't Hokage, but were just as famous, such as Kakashi Hatake, Jiraiya the Toad Sage, Tsunade Senju, Asuma Sarutobi, etc.

Konoha is considered one, and number one, of the Top Five Shinobi Villages in the entire Elemental Countries, with Kumo coming in second, Iwa in third, Suna in fourth, while Kiri, which is in a state of Civil War, is fifth.

But, Konoha was almost completely destroyed when on October 10th, the Kyubi no Kitsune, attacked the village, after it was ripped from it's host, Kushina Uzumaki, formerly of Uzushiogakure, after the village's destruction, who was giving. The fox went on a rampage while under the influence of a Masked Man, who somehow killed the Elite ANBU Security Detail, breached a S-Rank barrier jutsu, and killed the midwifes before taking one of the twin children hostage.

Minato Namikaze, after saving his wife and children, battled the Masked Man, and wounded him, after relinquishing him control of the Kyubi, forcing the intruder to retreat.

Afterwards, with the fox still running amok, Minato had to face the most difficult and heart renching decision of his life, resealing the Nine-tails into one of his twin children. After a minute of thinking, and with time running out, he decided to seal the Kyuubi into his daughter, Shinri. However large quantities of the Kyuubi's chakra were still ravaging the village.

Knowing he couldn't risk opening Shinri's seal, with the possibility of the fox breaking out, he decided to seal the excess chakra into his son, Naruto. Making a psuedo jinchuriki.

Somehow, by some miracle, Minato and his wife survived the ordeal, both parents happy to be with their children.

Of course, they now had to face the ultimate question from the villagers, Elders, and the village council.

'Who is the container of the Kyubi?'

At the first, the couple planned to tell them the truth, but knowing how the death and destruction caused by the Kyuubi's rampage, they knew the villagers ad the Elders would do everything in their power to make the Jinchuriki miserable. Then there was the horrible thought of their little girl being tortured and raped.

So with a heavy heart, and knowing that their son will live a salutary life, without many friends, they announced that Naruto was the Jinchuriki. The reactions were what they feared, as the Elders and Village council with the exceptions of the Shinobi Clans, sans the Uchiha head, called for the young boy's death or turned into a weapon.

It was here that Konoha's reputation in the eyes of the Fourth Hokage, and Kushina Uzumaki, was shattered.

Minato immediatley shot down both attempts and immediately decreed that the older generation are forbidden tell the younger generation of Naruto's status as a Jinchuriki. Of course, this didn't stop them from attempting to harm the young blonde.

The Uzumaki/Namikaze Family lived happily together for four years, until Minato and Kushina decided to train Shinri in using the Kyuubi's chakra. For some reason, they never offered Naruto the same training. And denied his requests every time. At first the neglect wasn't so serious, but as time went on it became worse, and worse.

Then Naruto's parents and sister distanced themselves even more from their nearly forgotten family member. That is where we come to today, as Minato and Kushina are training their daughter.

Shinri Uzumaki-Namikaze was a seven year old girl who had red like her mother, and the same eyes. She was busy focusing chakra into her hand, which began to spin until it formed a rotating ball.

"Yes! I did it! I finally did it!" she shouted, happy that she accomplished one of her father's signature jutsu, the Rasengan. The two parents smiled at their daughter, both very proud of her.

"Nice work, Shinri-chan!" said Minato, "Keep this up and you'll be able to became a great ninja like me and your mother,"

Shinri smiled as her parents walked and gave her a hug, or a kiss on the cheek.

Watching this, from the top of a tree, was Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze, a boy, the same age as his sister, who had the same type of hair as his father, including the banes, with red tips. His eyes were the same shape and color as his mother's, but the rest of his face was like his father's. He was wearing a mesh shirt under a green unzipped hooded sweatshirt and black pants with black sandals.

The young boy could only look on sadly, wishing he was part of that family moment. But alas, he wasn't, due to them neglecting for his younger sister, who was, unknown to the rest of the village, the Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi no Kitsune. He asked his parents many times if they could train him since he had some of the Fox's chakra, but was turned every time.

The last and final time...didn't end very well, as while doing a advanced chakra exercise, his parents caught him and yelled at him, calling him many hurtful words that no child deserves from a parent. After being scolded he was sent to his room, and after entering, he curled up in a corner and cried his eyes out, asking Kami why everything was unfair to him. His misery didn't end at home though. Whenever he would leave the house, the villagers would either glared, insulted, spat at him, or, on a dozen occasions, attempt to gain up and hurt him.

This happened because his father, though the man hated himself for it, officially announced Naruto, as the Jinchuriki of the fox.

Naruto sighed at that, he might not be the container of the fox, but one thing is certain, he did contain a Bijuu. You see, what Minato, Kushina, or anyone in Konoha didn't count on, was that the excess chakra of the fox to actually form into a whole new entity. This entity, based on Naruto's feelings of wanting attention and love from his family, became Naruto's first and one of only few friends he had.

Naruto smiled softly, as he remebered how he met his friend. It was after the severe scolding he got from his parents, that while he was crying in the corner, he passed out and went into his mindscape

Flashback 1.5 years ago

Naruto's Mindscape

Naruto woke up to find himself in a forest where the trees looked as tall as ten-story buildings, with the trees themselves being a rusty red, with green on the branches, that were WAY too far up to reach. Naruto, stunned, pinched himself to see if he was dreaming, but became shocked, when he felt it.

'Whoa. This is really wierd!' he thought to himself as he looked around, trying to see if he could find anyone else here. As he walked through the forest, he could the sounds of birds singing, and felt calmed by the sound. But then, a new, and heart breaking sound got his attention.

Childlike curiosity getting the better of him, Naruto followed the sound, and soon came upon a small clearing, and in the middle of that clearing, he saw a black and furry form curled up into a ball. He then heard the whimpering sound again, this time coming from the ball and carefully moved toward it.

As soon as he reached he bent down and reached his hand toward the whimpering ball. Just as his fingertips touched it, it jumped, revealing it to be a wolf pup. But what shocked is what it did next.

"Ah! W-Who are you!?" the wolf pup said, causing to blink multiple time before...

"AAAAHHHH!" the blonde yelped as he jumped in the air and landed on his bottom.

"Y-You just talked!" he said as he pointed at the pup, who gave him a slight glare.

"Of course I can talk! Got a problem with it!?"

Naruto didn't know how to answer that as he kept looking at the wolf pup.

"W...What are you?" he asked the wolf, "And why were you crying?"

The pups eyes seemed to glisten with tears at that, "Because I'm all alone," he said, "No one is here except me,"

Naruto's heart ached as he slowly approached the pup again.

"How long have you been here?" he asked.

"Since after the day your father the excess chakra from the Fox into you," he said, causing the eyes of the blonde to widen in shock.

"How much do you know about the Kyuubi?" he asked, and the pup sniffled a bit.

"The chakra the Fourth Hokage sealed in you also had his memories," the wolf explained, "When he was created by the Rikudo Sennin, to the day he attacked your village. When that ninjen sealed the chakra, what he didn't know was that it had gathered some of the first of your chakra, and the chakra of a wolf that happened to be passing through. Thus I was concieved,"

Naruto's eyes widen at that, "Are you saying you're some sort of Bijuu?" he said.

"Sorta," the wolf said, "And when I was born, I found myself here. Alone. Without the love of a parent or anything,"

Naruto looked upon the wolf pup with sympathy as it started crying again. He could somehow relate to this poor little, since he reminded him of himself.

"Do you have a name?" he asked, and the pup shook his head.

"No, since no one is here to give me one,"

Naruto then did something that surprised the little pup. The blonde picked up the wolf pup and gave it a hug.

"I know how it feels, being alone," he said as he stroked it's fur.

"How would you know?" the pup said, "You have your parents and your sister,"

Naruto's eyes gained a sad look, "My family doesn't see me that way anymore," he said, surprising the wolf pup yet again, "They all agreed I'm not worth their time. And so they excluded me as their family,"

"Sounds like you really don't like them," the pup said. Said blonde shook his head no at that.

"I don't hate them. In fact I love them all very much," Naruto said, "I just wish they see me as their son/brother, and not as an nuisance,"

The pup didn't say a word, as it found comfort in the boy's embrace. Naruto looked at the pup, and could only smile as it snuggled in his arms.

"You said you didn't have a name, right?" he asked and the wolf pup nodded, "Then how about I give you one,"

The pup perked at that, "Y-You'd really do that?" he stammered, while Naruto gave him a wide smile.

"Of course! Everybody needs a name!" he said, and the pup could only gape in shock, "Now what to call you...,"

The blonde began to think of the names he knew in his mind, until one came to him, causing him to smile.

"...Kibō. Yes, that sounds right," he says, and the pup looked at him owly.

"Kibō?" the now named wolf pup said. Naruto looked down.

"Yeah, it means 'Hope'. Hope that someday we'll be seen as family," Naruto said, "You like it?"

Kibō gave a look that Naruto guessed was the wolf-version of being shy, "I...I like it,"

Flashback End

Naruto opened his eyes after reliving that memory, and saw his family heading back inside as it was getting dark. It had been a year and few months since that day. It had him happy to have a true bond with someone. Even if that someone was a young Bijuu.

Speaking of which, Kibō had grown much as they found out that he absorb chakra through the seal. He was now at three tails strength, and they made a guess that he would reach nine-tails, since he was basically the 'son' of the fox, when Naruto is twelve years old. The two, with their bond, also perfected the Bijuu cloak, in which, instead of being the fox's corrosive red and black, Kibō's chakra was a green color.

Though it still hurt but not as much as the Fox's. His thoughts were then interrupted, as Kibō spoke through their telepathic link.

"Are you sure it was a good idea not to leave them a note?," the wolf Bijuu said. Two weeks ago, after another attack by the villagers. The two have decided that they need to find a place to hide, while they train and get ready for the Academy. Of course, there's the part of Naruto's family trying to stop him, so he decided to do it the stealthy way.

'I'm sure Kibō,' Naruto said/thought sadly, 'If they notice I'm gone, or where I'm going to be living for the next few years, they'll send ANBU after me,'

Said wolf gave a sigh at that, "You know. You could've told them about me. Then they could've trained you along with your sister,"he said.

Naruto could only breathe out at that, 'It doesn't matter. Besides, I doubt they would believe me, even if I did tell them,'

Kibō could only look at his container sadly at that. Things were not going smoothly between Naruto and his family. Naruto stopped talking to them, for fear of being yelled at, or punished. He didn't make any suggestions of where they should go, knowing they would pick Shinri's option over his.

He decided it was best to stay quiet, and thus, when he trained, he did it outside of the village. Out of sight and hearing range of the ANBU, and his family.

But now, the villagers were getting more and more bold and rabid, attacking him when he is just a few blocks away from his home. Despite a few bruises, he managed to get away alright.

'It's time for us to go,' Naruto told his host, as he placed a backpack on his shoulders, filled with only food rations, a couple bottles of water, and some clothes.

"I'm still not privy about the place you picked for us to hide in," Kibō said, sounding uneasy, "There's a reason why they call it 'The Forest of Death' you know,"

Naruto face sported a look of conviction, as he hopped from tree to tree.

'Hence why no one will be stupid enough to look for us in there,' he said, causing Kibō's eyes to narrow.

"And why wouldn't they? That place is a virtual hellhole and death trap! Even the ANBU think twice before going in that accursed place!" Kibō tried to reason, but Naruto kept on going.

'We're going in there, and that's final,' he said, and the wolf's mouth opened and closed like a gaping fish, before sighing.

"You're nuts. Seriously, you are,"he said, while Naruto chuckled.

"It's who I am, Kibō," he said, "You should know that,"

The young Bijuu only gave a deadpanned look, "That's what worries me,"

Naruto only laughed as he made a beeline toward their destination. Unknown to them however, they were being followed by several blurs.

30 Minutes Later

Outside perimeter fence of

Training Ground 44, AKA, "Forest of Death"

"I still think this a bad idea," Kibō said as they arrived at the fence to the infamous training ground.

'Are you a wolf or a mouse?' Naruto said, 'The only thing we have to worry about is that crazy Snake Girl that lives here. The animals would most likely leave us alone because they can sense your chakra,'

"That doesn't mean that they're a few animals in there who are bold enough to attack us!" The wolf persisted, but before Naruto could make a retort, the both of them felt chakra signatures heading their way.

'ANBU, four of them,' Naruto deduced, 'And one of them is...Neko-o'nee-chan,'

"You mean that pretty ANBU girl?" Kibō said, and Naruto mentally glared at his surrogate brother.

'Now's not the time, Kibō,' Naruto, just as the ANBU arrived on the scene. One of them, with long purple hair, and wearing a white Cat mask with red lines.

"Naruto, what are you doing out here?" the ANBU said, while Naruto still faced the fence, his face having a sad expression.

"I'm sorry Onee-chan, but I need to be away from the village and my family for a little while," he said, much to the woman's shock. Yugao Uzuki knew his parents were neglecting him over his sister, and the villager's harsh treatment towards him. But she didn't know it was this bad.

"Naruto, please listen to me," the ANBU captain pleaded, "Whatever is happening at home between you and your family, you can talk to me about it. But for now, let's get you home,"

Naruto's eyes glistened with tears at that word.

"Home...I wish that place did felt like home," he said, much to Yugao and the rest of her team's confusion, "But...I guess I'm not wanted or needed there, since no one there wants to give me even an ounce of love,"

Yugao's eyes widen at this, "Naruto please! Don't talk like that!,"

Naruto only smiled sadly as he brought his hands into a handsign.

"Sorry Nee-chan," he said, "But I need to do this. Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

To the surprise of the ANBU, in 7 puffs of smoke, appeared 7 perfect copies of the young boy.

"N-Nani!? Kage Bunshin!" said one of the team in shock as the rest gave their own response.

"But he's not even in the Academy yet! How can he know such an advanced Jutsu!?"

Naruto turned as he rubbed behind his neck, "Well, I sorta broke into the vault where the Forbidden scroll and copied the directions for the Jutsu," he said with a chuckle, before looking at the team, more specifically Yugao, "Tell Mom and Dad I don't hate them Onee-chan. And tell them I don't Shinri. Tell them, despite everything they did, I still love them,"

With that, and with a chakra infused jump, Naruto and the clones sprinted into the Forest.

"Shit! What do we do!?" shouted the last member, while Yugao bit a curse, knowing one of the best uses for the Kage Bunshin was to use them to throw any pursuers off the original's trail. Turning her head to one of her subordinates, she gave her orders, go get Tenzo and another team! And find Anko while you're at it, she knows this place better than anybody!" the other ANBU nodded and took off, she turned towards the other two.

"You two go in after him! If the trail you're following is a decoy, double-back and try another trail!"

The two ANBU were surprised by that, "But that place is infested with montrous animals, bugs, and who knows what else is in there!" one of them said, before they felt Killing Intent directed at them.

"Get in there, or I will slice off your legs and leave you two for the predators in that forest to feast on," she growled, making them quiver a bit.

"B-But what are you gonna do?" the second one said, and he swore he could see the eyes of the female ANBU narrowing.

"I'm going to inform the Hokage," she said, "Now move!"

The two hesitantly, but surely darted into the Forbidden Training Ground. Yugao then immediately turned on her heel, and headed straight for the Uzumaki/Namikaze home.

Meanwhile, at said location

Kushina Uzumaki was in the kitchen of the house, cooking dinner for the rest of her family. As she thought about that, she remembered her only son, Naruto. A sad look crossed her face as she remembered how she and Minato neglected him over their daughter. She even remembered how they yelled at him, after doing water walking, an advanced chakra excercise.

The cruel words and the tone she and her husband used, had no doubt frightened, confused, and hurt him. And she didn't even realize this until after he fled, a look of terror and fear on his face.

Afterward she wanted to apologize, and went to his room that night. What she saw when she entered the room, made her regret even more what she did.

Flashback, Naruto's Room

Kushina walked up to the door that led to her son's bedroom, she grasped the knob and turned it slowly, before opening it. As she walked in, she immediately noticed that Naruto was not on the bed, and immediately began to panic, thinking he ran away, until she saw his mop of blonde hair on the other side. Walking to the other side, she froze and her eyes glistened with unshed as she saw her little boy sitting against the wall. Legs curled up, with his arms wrapped tightly around them, as if he was expecting to get hit.

"Naruto...," the former native of Uzushio quietly said, as she carefully walked foward and knelt down. She slowly reached her hand forward and gently laid it on his shoulder.

Seeing no immediate reaction, meaning he was fast asleep, Kushina stood up and pulled the covers of his bed back. She then bent down and carefully picked him up, so as not to startle him awake and gently laid him down on the mattress, and removed his sandals before pulling the covers over him.

She took notice of the tear stains on his face,and felt disgusted at herself and Minato for overreacting the way they did that afternoon. She knelt and proceeded to run her fingers through his hair.

"I'm sorry, Naruto," she said, still keeping quiet so as not to wake him, "Me and your father didn't mean to react the way we did. We were just...," she shook her head at that, "No. There's no excuse. But please know that I still love and care about you. And I wouldn't allow anything to happen to you,"

She then reached and gave her son a kiss on the forehead.

"I'll talk to your father about this," she said, "We'll try to spend more with you if we can alright. Especially me," she then stood up, as a lone tear ran down her cheek as a small sad smile formed on her face.

"Good night, my little maelstrom," she said, "I will always love you,"

With that, she quietly left the room, and let her son sleep.

Flashback End

Ever since that day, she tried to be there for her son. But, he would always leave very early in the morning, and was wasn't seen much at all. Add to that Shinri's training sessions took a lot of her time to see him.

She had also talked to Minato, and he agreed that what they did to their son was too much. He also tried to bond with Naruto, as well, but the boy was just scarce. Not to mention he also had to train Shinri. However, they promised themselves that as soon as they had more time, they will try to bond more with their son.

Her thoughts were disrupted by the arrival of her daughter and husband, with the former being carried on his back, due to her over training herself. The redhaired woman only sighed at her daughter's eagerness to become stronger.

"Again?" she asked Minato who sighed.

"Yep," he said, while Shinri gave a sheepish grin.

"Sorry Kaa-chan," said the carbon copy of Kushina as Minato placed her on the ground.

Shinri although was partly spoiled because of her parent's attention was more on her than her brother Naruto, wasn't as arrogant or bratty as most spoiled children were. She helped clean up around, and sometimes made attempts to spend time with her brother, but didn't had much luck because he would disappear.

Kushina also saw that Shinri was a little envious of Naruto, because of the freedom he got. But was also sad for him when he was yelled at last year.

She smiled, happy that her little girl was not a stuck up Uchiha, no offense to her good friend Mikoto and her eldest son, Itachi.

"It's alright, Shinri," she said, "Why don't you go upstairs and get Naruto, dinner's almost ready,"

Shinri, and with a burst of energy, bolted up the stairs. Minato sighed as he sat down in his spot at the table.

"I don't know where she gets the sudden surge of energy, excluding the Kyuubi," he said, and Kushina chuckled.

"You forget Minato that my clanfolk are only tired for a minute, then feel great the next," she said, while Minato's head slumped forward.

"Curse your longevity," he grumbled, causing his wife to chuckle, before she turned back to check on the food. But as she was checking, a series of urgent and desperate knocks at the door were heard.

"Hokage-sama! Sensei! Open the door!" shouted the familiar voice of Kushina's student Yuugao, and by the sound of it, it was panicked, "It's important! Open up!"

Kushina turned the stove and oven off, and then she and Minato began to head over to the door, until Shinri came down in hurry, her face panicked.

"Kaa-san! Tou-san! Naruto's not in his room!" she said, and the two parents became concerned, as the knocking continued.

"Sensei! Open the fucking door!" Yugao shouted again, and this time Kushina went over and opened the door, revealing her student in her ANBU uniform and gear, her mask removed, and her face having an urgent and pissed off look.

"Yugao? What's wrong?" she asked.

"It's Naruto...," the purple haired woman said, now making the mother and the rest of the family real worried.

"What happened?" she said, "Where is he?"

"He went into Training Ground 44!" he said, and the house was quiet at that. Until...

"WHAT!?" Kushina screamed, her eyes wide in horror, along with Minato whose eyes were wide at the mention of that Training Ground.

"The Forest of Death? What's he doing in there!?" the Hokage, now terrified for his son.

"He felt he was unwanted, and he decided the best way to make you all happy was to leave," the ANBU said, as the signs of anger appeared on her face, "But he said, that despite all the neglect, he still loved you all,"

The parents and sister of Naruto were shocked by those words.

'Un...Unwanted?' Kushina thought, 'Naruto, you truly believe we didn't want you?'

She was broken out of her thoughts as her student continued, "And that's not all. Apparently the village have been getting more and more brazen in their attacks on him,"

Kushina's head snapped up at that, "A-Attacked!?" she said, while Minato was also shocked, he knew the villagers were very antagonistic towards his son, but he didn't expect them to attack him.

His fists clenched as he realized how much of a fool, he really was.

"Yes, attacked," Yugao said, "And none of you didn't even notice,"

Kushina was about to retort before Minato placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Now's not the time to argue, Kushina," the Fourth Hokage said, "Right now we have to focus on Naruto,"

Kushina wanted to retort, but nodded and went over to Shinri.

"My Shōjo," she said, "Me and your father are going to go with Yugao-neechan to get your brother. I want to stay here and lock all the doors and windows. Don't let anybody in or out, okay?"

Shinri nodded as Kushina and went to her and Minato's room, and came back in her Jonin uniform, with her hair in a pony-tail. (Her Road to Ninja outfit)

"Let's go," she said as she walked out the door with Minato following, shutting the door behind them.

Shinri, now alone looked out the nearest window so she could see her parents and Yugao running down the street.

"Onii-san, please be alright,"

With Naruto

Naruto was hopping from one branch to another, as he traversed the gigantic trees of the infamous Forest of Death. So far, he hadn't run into any of those monstrous beasts he heard about.

The ANBU that had been tailing him, each went after one of his Kage Bunshin, not knowing they were following a decoy.

"Well, at least my decoys have them going the wrong way," Naruto said, while Kibō just sighed.

"Yeah, that worked at least,"the wolf said, "But now the things we have to worry about is the animals and the Snake Lady. Also, it's getting late, and despite your Uzumaki longevity, you need to find a spot to crash for the night. And I suggest someplace high up a tree,"

Naruto shook his head at that, "No, too obvious," he said, "We need to find someplace where it will be easy to hide, and harder for them to find,"

Kibō could only blink, but sighed. But before he could make, his animal senses caused him to stiffen.

"Naruto! Stop!" the wolf said, and the Jinchuriki did just that.

"What is it?" Naruto said, concerned at his friend's silence.

"We're being watched, and it's not ANBU or any other Konoha ninja," Kibō said, greatly alarmed, "I just caught a scent through you. It's wolf, but it's... different,"

Naruto blinked at that, "How different?"

Kibō snarled a bit, "It smells strong, old... prehistoric," he said, and then his eyes widened, "And they've surrounded us! I can smell at least 10 to 20 of them!,"

Naruto's eyes widen as he pulled out a kunai while listening and looking all around him. It was half a minute until he began hearing something. Growls, and snarls were heard, before out of the shadows appeared at least two dozen wolves. But these wolves were different as they looked bigger, and stronger than what Naruto read about.

They were almost five feet long, and looked to be between 110 and 175 pounds! Their fur was colored in the same color as an ordinary wolves, but with a spinal stripe down their backs.

The wolves then began to circle around the nervous boy, who was sweating bullets.

'Hey, Kibō," he said to his surrogate brother, 'If I let you take over my body, would you be able to talk to them?,'

Said wolf felt uneasy at that, "I don't know. These guys are a different breed than what I'm familiar with. I can tell just by the smell," he said, but before Naruto could respond to that, a sharp howl caught their attention, as the supposed leader of the pack, who was slightly bigger than the others, and had a full white fur coat, as it's yellow eyes bore into his own.

'Oh man, this doesn't look good,' Naruto said, as the wolf began to approach him.

"Naruto, kneel down,"said Kibō, while his container blinked, "That's the Matriarch of the pack, if I can tell from the scent. Kneel down, or she'll attack you,"

Naruto took Kibō's advice and knelt down so he wouldn't be mauled to death by the she-wolf. The wolf continued it's approach before stopping in front of Naruto and began sniffing him up and down.

'O-Kay, this starting to get wierd,' Naruto thought nervously.

"Just relax," Kibō said, as the wolf continued to sniff before it's eyes widened and began to back off.

Naruto's eyes blinked in confusion, while feeling nervous, at the she-wolf's actions.

'Uhh, okay, now what?' he thought as the wolf then turned and seemed to glare at the other wolves, which resulted in them backing off and heading back into the forest. The female wolf then turned toward him and surprised Naruto by jerking her to the side, as if telling him to follow her.

'What should we do?' the young blonde thought to Kibō, who only shrugged.

"We got nothing better to do, let's follow her," the 'son' of the Kyuubi said, and Naruto, hesitantly, began to follow the white she-wolf.

Meanwhile, in another part of the Forest

"GET THE HELL OUT OF MY WAY!" an angry and desperate voice shouted out, as a giant mantis fell to the ground with it's head cut off. The voice belonged to none other than Kushina Uzumaki as she cleaved her way through many of the vicious beasts in the Forest of Death that were foolish enough to get in her way.

Following behind her was none other than her husband, Yugao, and a few other ANBU, and the Training Grounds only resident, Anko Mitarashi. They stayed back as Kushina using a 'borrowed' sword from one of the ANBU, as she sliced, diced, or used any sort of jutsu on the poor unfortunate creatures.

"Oh man, I know I can be sadist, but even I know not to mess with a mother, who is a strong S-Rank kunoichi by the way," Anko said with a small hint of fear, as she watched as Kushina proceeded to beat a giant bear's skull in when it tried to swipe at her.

Minato could only look on with worry, seeing the state his wife was in. He knew she was desperate to find Naruto, as he was the same way. But he could also see that she was starting to become fatigued, and had used a lot of her chakra. He had to do something, or else she would hurt herself.

"Kushina. Please stop! We have to go back!" he said, as he saw her now strangling another mantis with her chakra chains before using them to slam it to the ground, and looked back at them with a look of anger in her eyes.

"I'm not leaving Naruto out here in this damn place! I'd rather rot in hell than go back without him!" she argued, as she back-fisted a huge green lizard, that was about to attack her, in the face, making said reptile fall to the ground and go swirly eyed.

"I want him back as much as you do!," Minato retorted, "But with you overusing your chakra, and and your current condition, you could end up killing yourself!"

Kushina could only narrow her eyes as she kept moving forward, by now all the creatures were now hiding in fear from the red-haired woman's wrath.

"You all can go back if you want, but I'm no-ugh!," she gasped out as she felt a chop to the back of her neck, her senses not warning due to her focusing on getting her son back, and falling to the ground unconcious.

"I'm sorry sensei. But for Naruto and Shinri's sake, I have to stop you," Yugao said, as she sighed and turned to Minato who had a solemn look on his face as he walked over and picked his unconcious wife off the ground.

"Come on everyone," he said, "We'll continue looking for Naruto in the morning,"

With that the team of shinobi vanished as they departed the area. Minato's last thought being.

'Naruto...be safe,'

Back with Naruto

Naruto yawned as he contiued to follow the wolf. It was past his bedtime and he was tired.

'Man, how much futher do we have to go?' he thought, as they continued walking, 'I can barely keep my eyes open,'

"Just hang on for a little longer, Naruto," Kibō said, "I have a feeling we don't have to wait much longer,"

Naruto didn't say anything as he rubbed his eye. It was another ten minutes, before the She-wolf stopped between two trees and gave a howl that jolted Naruto out of his half-sleep walk, and made him hurry up toward where the she-wolf was. When he got there, his eyes widened as he saw what looked a series of buildings surrounded by a large wall.

However, it looked as though it was abandoned for a long time, due to the tall grass, and the vines on the walls.

But he was also surprised to see at least whole scores of wolves, who were living outside the walls.

"Well, this is something new," he said, before he was nudged forward by the she-wolf, and continued walking forward with said wolf behind him. The other wolves looked at him curiously as their matriarch followed behind.

'I got a bad feeling about this,' the blonde thought as they entered through the gate of the large compound.

"You're not the only one,"said Kibō as they walked down the street toward what looked the main building. It looked like a smaller version of the Hokage Tower, but it was partially covered in vines, and it was colored a stone grey.

He could see a duo of wolves standing guard and when he stopped, only to be nudged by the she-wolf again, the guard wolves snapped up and began growling threatingly. The Matriarch moved in front and gave a series of small growls and barks, and the two guards stood down. Then, the wolf turned toward Naruto, and, to his shock, it spoke.

"Inside human,"the wolf said in a clearly female voice, but it's mouth didn't move, meaning it was telepathic.

"Y-You can talk?" the blonde said, while the wolf nodded.

"Only through thoughts,"the wolf said, "And I heard every word you spoken to your tenant since I first saw you,"

Naruto's eyes widen at that, but before he could speak, the she-wolf again told him to go inside the building, telling him she'll explain later. With no other choice, and not wanting to piss the she-wolf off, Naruto went inside the building. The wolf led him through what looked like the living room of a house, before arriving at a set of stairs. After climbing them they arrived at a bedroom, that was in moderately decent condition, with a bed and everything.

"Get some rest, child,"the white she-wolf said again, "All of your questions will be answered tomorrow when you meet the Alpha of our pack,"

She then turned, but before she go out, Naruto stopped her.

"Wait! Can you please, at least, tell me what your name is?" he asked, and the wolf turned back to him, and answered him.

"It's Shikon,"the wolf said, "Now, rest,"

With that said, Shikon left the boy alone in the room. Naruto sighed as he took off his backpack and laid next to the bed and sat down, and was amazed at how comfortable it felt.

'Man, I was not expecting this, Kibō,' he said as he laid down on the bed.

"I know, bro," Kibō said, "But for now, let's sleep. We'll find out more in the morning,"

Naruto nodded, but then remembered something as he sat up and reached for his backpack and put it on his lap. He then opened it and began fishing through the contents untile he found what he was looking for and pulled it out.

It was a picture of his family before his and Shinri's 5th birthday. One of the very few where they were all equally happy as a family. He then placed the framed photo on the small chest next to the head of the bed. A single tear escaped his eye as he thought about if he made the right choice.

Deciding not to dwell on it tonight, Naruto took the covers of the bed, and pulled them over himself, and fell asleep.

And done! I hope you all liked this! Next chapter is when Kushina wakes up the next morning, and see she's back in the Uzumaki/Namikaze home, and she will not be happy. Then, we return to Naruto in the Forest of Death, as he meets the Alpha of the pack of wolves. Until next time, ciao!