A Growing Affection

Chapter 71: Where You Are

"You're right," Tenten nodded, looking chagrinned, "I'm sorry, Hinata, of course I'm with you."

"You don't have to apologize," Hinata shook her head, "Naruto expected everyone would react like this. He didn't want anyone to feel they were tricked into this."

"Well, I do have to apologize then," Kiba backed away as he stood, "Because I'm out. Even if I accepted that Naruto and the Fox are separate, that demon killed my uncle and his wife, and my aunt. So I think it deserves whatever the Akatsuki do to it."

"Idiot," Neji snorted.

"What was that?" Kiba snarled at Jonin.

"The Akatsuki intend to use the Kyubi as some sort of weapon," Neji answered condescendingly, "How many more will die if we let those rogues take the beast?"

"Naruto," Temari said, "Naruto will die if the Akatsuki remove the demon. "

"Akamaru," Shino interjected, "Do you want to come with us?"

The large hound looked at his partner, and then back to Shino, barking loudly once.

"What?" Kiba looked at the dog in confusion, "Why?"

"When Akamaru was infected with the bio-weapon," the insect user reminded his teammate, "he attacked Naruto, and despite that, Naruto defied the Hokage and risked his life to help save Akamaru. I'm sure Akamaru hasn't forgotten that, either."

"So, even though Naruto wanted us to have a choice in the matter," Kiba grumbled, "If I don't choose to help, I'm a big, insensitive, ungrateful, bigoted jerk?"

"Don't forget you'll be helping the enemies of your village," Kankuro reminded him sarcastically.

"If you decide not to help Naruto, I'm sure it will make Hanabi happy," Hinata suggested innocently. A shudder went done Kiba's spine.

"OK, fine, I'm in," he told them guiltily, "But when I see that guy, I'm gonna slug him in the gut for not telling us sooner."

"Twelve Zodiac animals," Madara examined Hinata's seal, "forming a dodecahedral web. But where did it start and where does it end..."

He probed each of the anchors in turn, studying how they connected, and how they reacted. The Uchiha founder was forced to admit a grudging respect for whoever had crafted the secondary cage; it was perfectly balanced. Unable to find the loose thread from the outside, Madara moved to hover over Naruto's face. He pried open one of the younger man's eyes and stared deeply into it with his own red orb.

"Tsukiyomi," he incanted, pouring his thoughts into the Leaf Chunin's mind. Madara was amused to find himself in the middle of a vast field of flowers. He could feel the divide, with the teenage human on one side and the fox demon on the other. Uzumaki responded sluggishly to the new arrival, looking at him in confusion.

"Who are you?" the blonde asked lazily. This caught the Kyubi's attention. She lifted her head, and her crimson eyes flared.

"Uchiha?" she screeched, "How did you get here, you bastard?"

"Is that any way to speak to your master?" Madara taunted. The demon roared in response, and charged him. But the Sharingan user was on Naruto's side of the seal, and the net of flowers stopped the Bijuu. She howled again, and sent her chakra crashing through the floral barrier, trying to force him out of Naruto's soul. But the raw energy had no effect, if anything Madara appeared to drink it in and become more solid. Uzumaki blinked at them, too deeply drugged to recognize what was happening.

"Why are you here, Madara?" the fox stepped back from the boundary, still livid but now more in control.

"To set you free," he answered, watching closely as the web of vines retracted once again, "I need to find the key to unraveling the Zodiac Seal. Then my followers will be able to take you out of Naruto."