Ninetails 40

The sun had just started to peak over the horizon when it happened.

The water began to ripple near the beach.

Anko was the first to awake, sitting up and pulling out a kunai, slowly to not prompt a sudden attack.

Waves lapped at the shore as the water began to bulge.

Hinata awoke next as she sat up in alarm and dread, her bloodline activated.

Large tentacles slithered out of the sea and circled around the campsite.

This was when Sakura and Ino finally awoke.

".....Oh shit," Ino whispered, her expression pale as the massive body of the octopus slowly rose out of the water and came near the shore, the cephalopod's eyes looking directly at the sleeping figures.

"Don't even think about it."

Naruto's voice was calm, annoyed even. He didn't even rise, simply opening one blue orb to eye his "neighbor" with a warning look. The kunoichi wondered if it should be comforting or unsettling that Naruto was so unbothered by this.

The octopus looked back at the humans again with a strange look of its own.

"My Lord has spoken," the goose said, fearlessly flying in front of the massive creature. "I would suggest you listen."

Now the octopus looked almost comically confused at the goose's arrival and words. It looked back to Naruto, who just smirked.

Ultimately, the octopus slunk away back into the sea without a fight.

Anko sat up with a sigh of relief. "So, that was your neighbor," Anko said as she sat up, giving the girls disappointed looks. "I can't believe you three took that long to wake up! How do you not notice something like that?"

Before any of them could voice an apology or defense, another spoke.

"The octopus was looking at you."

Anko raised an eyebrow as she turned to look at the goose, who landed near where she had been sleeping.

"It was?" Sakura asked in surprise.

"Definitively," the goose confirmed. "It did not seem to care for any of you. Just her," he explained, waving a wing at Anko.

"Strange. The only slithering things I have a connection to are snakes," Anko mused, stroking her chin. "Hey, Foxy? Do you know any reason why your swimming buddy was eyeing me?"

Naruto sighed as he sat up partially to prop his head against one of his hands. "Why are you asking me? I honestly don't know anything more about octopussies than what I figured out from fighting him."

They all stared at him. Anko was grinning, Hinata blinked, while Ino and Sakura were giving him dubious looks.

"Did....did you just say Octo-pussies?" Ino asked in disbelief.

"Yeah? Isn't that what you call more than one of them?" Naruto asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No! No, it definitely is not! Haha!" Anko said with laughter.

"....Dammit, Pervy-Sage!" Naruto said, facepalming. "And damn Shikamaru too, for letting me think that!"

Sakura gave a sigh of fond exasperation. "Never change, Naruto," she said with a small smile as she shook her head.

"..." Naruto said nothing to that, but the silence was somehow meaningful in its own way.

"Alright, ladies! Excitement is over, we're heading out! Do any business you need to do now, I want us walking out of here in twenty minutes!" Anko ordered with a clap of her hands.

"Yeah, I wouldn't mind being further from the sea right now," Ino said, rubbing her head. "I'll have that stuck in my head for a few nights."

"Thank you for sharing your beach with us, Naruto," Hianta said with a smile up at the golden kitsune.

Naruto smiled down at them. "And thanks for telling me some of those stories before you went to sleep.”

Sakura looked between the two before clearing her throat. "Anko-senai? Ino and I have to use the bathroom."

"We do?" Ino asked, getting elbowed. "Ow!"

"Uh huh.. And what excuse do you have to drag me along?" Anko asked, fully aware of the situation.

".....Could you tell us if any of these plants are poisonous? We don't know too much about plant life common around shores," Ino provided, still rubbing her side.

"Not bad, and yeah, I should probably take a look around real quick," Anko agreed as they headed off.

"And I'll just leave," the goose said without excuse, flapping to give the two some imagined privacy.

Naruto blinked at the reactions before looking at Hinata with a head tilt.

Hinata blushed, a bit unhappy to be put on the spot like this, but...

She took a deep breath. She could say it as softly as she needed to and he would still hear it.

"N-naurto? I....." Hinata took a breath, her voice just above a whisper. "That night after you first came back to the village? I told you I wasn't scared of talking to you because of you being a bijuu."

Naruto listened intently and silently.

Hinata flushed a bit, looking to the sands. "I.....I've had a crush on you since we were little kids."

Naruto blinked, his eyes wide.

"I think...I think I love you. And I...I've just been too shy to say it properly. That night, after you came back, I felt...so ashamed and sad. We almost lost you, forever, and I had never told you that I cared about you. I could see how you were hurting from this....change, but I couldn't think of any way to help. So I froze. Like a coward. Like I always did. So, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I never said or did anything sooner. And....and I'm sorry to say all of this, to drop this all on you, but I just...wanted you to know-"

Hinata stopped her rambling confession as one of Naruto's tail tips was suddenly pressed against her back.

It was as soft and gentle as the first rays of dawn that were falling upon the shores.

She looked up hesitantly and saw Naruto looking down at her with a soft, half-smile on his maw.

"So, that's what it was? And here I thought you just had a fox-phobia or something," Naruto asked with a chuckle.

"That's his response to a love confession!?" Ino hissed in annoyance.

"I might find a way to kill him," Sakura said with a sigh.

Naruto decided to ignore them and focus on Hinata. "I could just say I'm awesome or something, but really? I can't imagine what a clan princess saw in me, human or bijuu," Naruto said with a head shake. 

"You've always been someone I admired," Hinata admitted with a smile. "Sometimes, the idea of you was enough to make me keep trying."

"Let me guess. Your family told you to stay away from me, and you never understood why?" Naruto predicted.

Hinata hung her head in shame. "I know it's not an excuse-"

"It's fine," Naruto promised, waving that away as he looked to the horizon. "I hated being alone as a kid. Not having parents or friends. But I can't blame you or any of the others for listening to your folks. What else can a little kid do but take their parents at their word. And if all the adults say it, how can it not be true?"

Ino and Sakura silently shared looks at that. It was so hard to look back on, remember how their parents and most adults had acted around Naruto. If it wasn’t hostility, it was a guarded concern. Of course, they picked up on that. How could they not?

Naruto's smile returned a bit before sighing heavily. "Thank you, Hinata, for telling me. That...look, a lot of things about you suddenly make a lot more sense, while reminding me that I am a dumbass. Don't deny it."

Hianta just giggled.

"...If you were hoping for something like from a movie or something, I'm sorry to disappoint. I don't love you. I care for you as a friend, but-"

"I know. You hardly know me," Hinata said with an understanding smile of her own.

"And that's before even acknowledging that I'm a damn bijuu. If I don't figure out a way to take human form, my love life options will get very limited," Naruto said, shaking his head. "I've actively not thought about that much besides Ino's idea of getting me a booty-summons."

"Will you let that go!?" Ino yelled out in frustration.

"Never!" Naruto snapped back with a smirk before turning to Hinata again. "My point is...thank you. And I'm sorry, but a love life isn't in the cards for me right now."

"I know," Hinata said genuinely. "I just wanted you to know, like I said."

"Well, not a fairy tale ending, but that was still rather nice," Anko mused, leaning against a tree. She glanced up. "No thoughts on your "lord's" love life issue?"

"I'm more concerned with the treatment my Lord has endured among the humans of your village," the goose said simply. "You are lucky that he has such a benevolent nature."

Anko grew silent at that. Most didn't say it aloud, but many had thought of it. How badly things would go if Naruto did turn against Konoha. Anko herself probably would have fucked off and left in Naruto's shoes, but he was still here and still helping out the village and Fire Country.

Soon enough, the group was making their leave from Naruto's beach, the air feeling light and relaxed about them.

"I hope you know that the warning I gave Sakura about people using her against Naruto now applies to you?" Anko pointed out idly.

Hinata nodded, putting that in the back of her mind. She didn't want to think about that right now. She just wanted to enjoy the feeling of having told Naruto how she had felt. It was nothing like she imagined or wanted, but it felt good to have told him. And maybe one day, when Naruto had found a way to take human form, they could try and see if what she felt was love and if it was mutual.

Naruto lay on the beach, watching in the direction they went until they were outside the barrier around the beach. "Goose?"

"Yes, My Lord?" the goose answered, flying down to sit on the beach once more.

"I have an idea for your name," Naruto remarked. "In Hinata's story, there was a flaming weapon. It had a name that I think would fit you."

"Oh? And what might that name be, My Lord?" the Goose asked in growing excitement.

"Sokyoku." 

Meanwhile

They met in secret, in the Land of Iron. The land of samurai had long been a powerful, neutral force between the Elemental Nations. It was not uncommon for diplomatic negotiations between hostile powers to meet here.

It was also done for the sake of secrecy. The samurai were hardly greedy figures, but they would keep the meeting hidden and unknown for the right price.

"It has been a long while, Old Fence Sitter. You still refuse to retire," A, the Riakage said with an even look on his face.

Onoki scuffed. "As if I would leave things as they are to a whelp like you," the Tsuchikage said in his usual way.

Silence came over them, and it was heavy.

"We both know why we are here," A said firmly. "So let us cut to the chase.

Onoki grunted in agreement. "Konoha has this....new bijuu of theirs running about. Not only do they refuse to seal it, but their daimyo is basically letting it do whatever it wants, especially after that incident with the undead monster."

A nodded. "I take it that your daimyo is like mine, and sent....suggestions for us to look into replicating this event?"

Onoki rolled his eyes. "Of course he did. Few remember the days when the Bijuu were just lurking about, so of course the nobles that know little of such things find it appealing to have one as a pet."

A was silent for a moment, crossing his arms. "Your Jinchuriki were there, weren't they? When the Kyuubi fought the ninja from Rain."

"It was just short of our doorstep, of course they were!" Onoki answered as if it were obvious. "But while Konoha's golden beast has won, I can say with certainty it is nowhere near the same threat as the original Kyuubi. The power is there, but it is clearly clumsy, still unused to its form and power."

"Which is why we're here," A said with a scowl. "I have the Nibi and the Hachibi. You have the Gobi and the Yonbi."

Onoki nodded. "All four might just be enough to overwhelm and defeat it, giving us a chance to seal or kill it. Be it for a few years or altogether, Konoha would be without their great beast, and prove to everyone that this "friendly ninetails" does not make the Leaf Village insurmountable."

Despite his character having been secretly described as a "meathead" by many, A carefully considered the proposal. Starting another great ninja war was not ideal, but for the ninja villages, perception and reputation were everything. Suna was a living example of this, their own daimyo favoring to send missions to Konoha. And now people saw that Konoha had a bijuu to protect and aid them. That alone attracted attention, and attention attracted clients.

"We must do this carefully," A said, stroking his chin. "As it stands, we would be seen as trying to provoke another war."

"Which is why I am proposing a defensive alliance," Onoki explained as he leaned in. "Specifically against the Kyuubi, not Konoha itself. If word gets out somehow, we will simply tell the truth; that we are working together against the potential threat of the strongest bijuu."

That could work, they both knew. The people of Fire Country were warming up to bijuu, their spies told them as much. But the people of other lands were far more anxious, if not downright terrified. Ninjas hurling around mighty jutsu were one thing, but a bijuu was more like a living force of nature in the eyes of everyday people.

"Well? What's your answer?" Onoki asked with a scowl.

Meanwhile

After the others had left, Naruto decided to take a stool and walked along the surface of the water as he tredded out to see.

"My Lord?" Sokyoku spoke up, soaring relatively near him.

Naruto hummed questioningly.

"Do you suppose I could learn to walk on water?" Naruto asked curiously.

Naruto blinked. "I mean, yeah? I can do it. Gamabunta can do it. I think I saw Kakashi's dogs do it too? So, yeah, I don't see why not," he answered thoughtfully. "Would you really care too? You can already fly and swim."

"Yes, but I have heard that it helps one gain great control of their chakra, which I believe I can benefit from," Sokyoku remarked.

"You heard? From where?" Naruto asked incredulously.

In response, Sokyoku lost his golden glow and appeared a normal goose, albeit a somewhat large one. He gave Naruto a rather cheeky look. "People will talk about most anything if they believe I am just a simple avian, minding my own business."

Naruto blinked. "Huh. I forgot you could do that."

Sokyoku flared his chakra and was once more gold-feathered. "My Lord, is there a reason we are out here? I don't believe this is a mere stroll." 

"You're sharp," Naruto mused. "I just wanted to get away from the prying eyes and ears to talk with you a bit."

"Is this about your "neighbor's" reaction to that Anko woman?" Sokyoku questioned, looking around in case the cephalopod made another appearance.

"Yeah, it is," Naruto said with a sigh. "How much do you know about her?"

"If you to the Snake Sannin, I've heard of his well-earned infamy and that she was his apprentice before his betrayal," Sokyoku remarked.

"He also left her a nasty parting gift, a prototype of his curse seal or something like that," Naruto said with a scowl. "Orochimaru has his eyes and ears he tries to keep around here, but the octopus never reacted to them. Not even a mud clone of the bastard himself."

Sokyoku tilted his head. "You believe the octopus sensed one of the snake's marked underlings?"

"Or some experiment of his," Nauto said, stopping as he looked to the east. "Something is going on to the west of here, some supposed sea monster. It might be something Orochmaru cooked up."

"Should I investigate, My Lord?" Sokyoku asked, ready to fly off and do just that.

"No, we have something more important to do here," Naruto said honestly.

"And what is that, My Lord?" Sokyoku asked but got no answer. "....My Lord?"

He turned back in time and saw Naruto's teeth moving past him, just as the maw snapped shut with the goose inside.

The goose, while "uplifted" in his own words, was still a living creature with instincts. And Sokyoku had to fight off several fear-based instincts about being in the maw of a giant creature. "My Lord, I trust this is not an execution, but whatever it is? I would have appreciated some manner of warning."

"Sorry. This is something I don't want anyone finding out about," Naruto answered.

Sokyoku blinked as he stood awkwardly in Naruto's mouth. "My Lord, you can speak without moving your mouth? Or tongue?"

"Yeah, it was weird when I realized it.  I think I just subconsciously turn chakra into my voice or something," Naruto answered honestly. "Here we are."

The mouth opened and Sokyoku gratefully flew out with a few quick flaps-

He stopped dead as he realized they were now in an air bubble at the bottom of the ocean.

And he was staring at a giant slug with many tails.

"Hello! You much by the nose-goose that my nephew mentioned!"

Sokyoku suddenly realized why Naruto wanted to keep this a secret from prying ears.