Shades of Grey

Chapter 3

The Kyuubi could not help but to chuckle. He had been alive for so many, many years that rarely could anything surprise him anymore. However, as he paced back and forth testing the bars and seal on his new cell, he was just that. This was not something that he ever could have envisioned happening. His movement stilled when he felt the approach of a chakra that he had become well acquainted with over the years approach him.

"So, you are the fox." The girl approached him trying to show no emotion. "After all of the trouble that you have caused Naruto over the years, I would have imagined you being much scarier."

"I never imagined that we would speak face to face like this." The mighty fox ignored her impudence for the moment. "How, little one, did you accomplish such a feat?"

"I studied many years for this day." The girl replied as she stepped even closer a sense of wonder evident in her tone.

"You always were the smart one." He mocked with only a hint of sarcasm in his tone.

"You know who I am?" Her eyes widened slightly with her question.

"Of course, I do." He decided to knock her off her game. "You were the bitch that I chose to mate my jinchuriki."

"Well it should be obvious that you aren't in him anymore." Sakura replied trying to fight the blush from her face.

"Explain what happened." The fox growled he was growing tired of the girl's game.

"I learned a lot about seals over the past years; how to remove them and to place them." She replied as though it was answer enough.

"Then give me my freedom now!" The Kyuubi demanded. "You placed this seal therefore you know how to remove it."

"Why would I do that?" Sakura sounded shocked at the very thought.

"Because if you do not, I will rip you to shreds." He lowly warned. "Learn your place bitch."

"Learn yours!" Her temper got the best of her. "Like it or not I am your jinchuriki now. I have both the knowledge to keep you here and the chakra control to make sure you never see the light of day."

As soon as she said it the girl turned to walk down the corridor of her own creation. The Kyuubi again chuckled. Maybe they both needed to learn their new place, however reluctantly, it was now with each other.

"Damn my head hurts." Naruto grumbled to himself as he tried to set up and remember what happened to him.

"Hn," The response surprised the blonde.

"What are you doing here?" Naruto turned his head and saw Sasuke laying in a bed next to his.

"Do you remember nothing?" Sasuke replied with a question of his own.

"Wait a minute we were with Sakura-Chan. What happened? Where is she?" The blonde again tried to set up.

"She drugged us." The Uchiha quietly answered.

"Why would she do that?" Naruto's eyes widened as he tried to figure out what could make her do such a thing.

"Do you feel no different?" The dark-haired man asked a question of his own.

Naruto took a minute to think about what Sasuke had asked him. One thing for sure his head hurt like hell. As he brought his hand up to rub against it, he felt something strange on his palm and it throbbed. A bandage? He removed it quickly and looked at the shallow cut that ran across it. What the hell? A little cut like that should have healed in minutes. As he thought about it there was more. He felt lighter than he ever had in his whole life; like a huge burden had been lifted from him. Naruto Uzumaki for the first time in his life felt free. Suddenly the implications of such feelings began to sink in, and he shook in fear.

"Hn," Sasuke remarked as he turned his eyes to look out at the night sky.