It All Started With A Smell

The Pup

Kurama's POV:

When he came too, the first thing he registered was crying. Wailing, more accurately. For a moment, he couldn't work out where it was coming from. Then he had to scold his own idiocy. The Woman had been pregnant, to a strong, little thing. Foetuses with that much chakra typically struggle to remain past the first trimester. He had seen it before. His previous gaoler had had to help a few women with those types of pregnancies. It was also why the Uchiha Clan often went a decade without any children and were becoming one of the smallest Clans in the village.

Kurama hadn't mentioned anything to the Woman, she never wanted to listen to him anyway. Instead, he had sent a trickle of chakra towards the forming baby, helping it stabiles itself. He knew very little about babies but he knew healing chakra would help keep the pregnancy viable. He had had no idea if the thing needed it, but he had shrugged and figured at least it would been amusing to see the temperamental Woman try to handle a baby.

"WOMAN!" He roared before groaning at the ringing it caused in his head. "Shut that thing up!"

The screaming increased.

"WOMAN!" He paused. Normally she yelled at him for things like this. Not that he wanted to hear her raised voice at the moment. He felt a presence enter the connection between him and his holder and peeked an eye open. The area looked different. The bars between them were a burnt red and only vertical, instead of the ashy grey checkerboard he saw whenever the Woman wanted to tell him to shut up. The entire space had a red and black look to it, as well as a flooded look.

The crying was also louder now. Looking past the bars he saw a flailing form laying on the damp floor. The thing had two legs, two arms, tan skin, and a head of the obnoxiously blonde hair that the Woman's partner had. The thing also had whisker marks on its cheeks and a sealing mark on its belly.

"Woman? Where are you?" He called, his voice cracking. He watched the baby wiggle, their tiny fists shaking under their chin. Hers. She was a girl. "Woman! Your girl is here!"

"Shh, you're alright," A male voice whispered through the space.

Kurama could tell that he was hearing what the baby could hear. He knew what that meant, and what it meant that the baby was in front of his cage. But it couldn't be that. He hadn't tried to escape. The seal had risked weakening during labour, but he hadn't tried to actively break it. And besides, the Idiot had been there to hold it closed.

"Your name is Naruto, isn't it?" The voice asked. The back wall filled for a moment of a blond man picking up the baby, a strained smile on his face, but it was not the Idiot. "Such a beautiful name for a beautiful little girl."

"She seems to like you."

Kurama knew that voice. It was the Old Man. The baby's cries were peppering out and she blinked up at the two men, allowing the fox a glimpse of them.

"Are you sure I should take her, Lord Third?"

"Yes, Inoichi. She's calm with you and I believe it would be safest at the moment."

"Not to mention none of Choji's baby things will fit her," A third voice added. "But I'll check when I get home to see if we have any of his old things. No small diapers though."

"We should have enough clothing and things. Thanks, Choza," Inoichi assured. "Momiji and I were given way too much stuff for Ino."

The baby gave another cry.

"Shh, shh, Naruto, you're alright. You're safe."

"She might be hungry," The Big Man voiced.

"Shit, we don't have formula at home. Maybe Momiji can breastfeed Naruto as well, but I don't want her to have to try to suddenly feed two hungry babies."