The Orange Flash and the White Dog

Disclaimer: I don’t own Naruto, Inuyasha, Yu Yu Hakushou, and King of Hell. Their respective creators do. I do own all the original characters though. If you wish to use them, please ask.
Summary: Naruto is banished by the council after his failing to retrieve Sasuke and return him to the village. On leaving, things happen between him and the Kyuubi and he ends up meeting Taishio Yaone. A powerful Inuyoukai who is the daughter of Taishio Sesshoumaru, the ruler of the Western Lands of the Makai and the Shikon Miko, Kagome. Together they become the legendary Orange Flash and White Dog.

Warnings: This is a yaoi/slash fic. The eventual main pairing will be Shino/Naru with mentions of Shino/Kiba, Majeh/Naru, and Majeh/Naru/Samhuk
If you don’t like slash, don’t read, don’t flame.

Author’s Notes: Any grammatical errors that I may have missed please let me know. Thanks.

Chapter III

“Well, as I said my name is Taishio Yaone. I am sure you have already figured out that I am a youkai from our confrontation with Kyuubi when I revealed his crimes within the Makai and when I used my own youki to help you push his youki back into his cage. So I will give you a brief history of just exactly what a youkai is.”
She said quietly.

Naruto looked at her curiously and asked, “What is youki?”

“Youki is the youkai version of chakra except as I am sure you have noticed that it is more inherently malevolent and destructive in its nature. All youki is like that even for us youkai who are not truly evil per se. Our race is a violent one and we tend to solve our problems by killing or utterly destroying our opponents but the more powerful we are the more we are able to control these urges. We do not generally go about razing human villages and causing suffering and fear. This is what makes the bijuu running around here criminals in the Makai.”

“Now the Kyuubi is a very powerful member of our race but he refused to control his instincts like all respectable youkai lords. We youkai are allowed to run rampant when we are younger because it is harder for us to control our instincts when we are young but as soon as we are old enough to do so we are expected to control ourselves. Those of us who do not control or instincts to cause violence become criminals. Kyuubi refused to control himself. He delighted in the pain of others and that is what makes him evil unlike a majority of the youkai lords in the Makai. Eventually the Taiyoukai of the Makai finally had enough and warned him to reign in his behavior because it reflected badly upon them. He refused and went on a rampage killing a bunch of major and minor lords loyal to the four Rulers of the Makai. This made him a criminal and he fled here in order to escape his death at the hands of my father, Sesshoumaru, the Lord of the Western Lands of the Makai.”

“Yes, Naruto, I am a princess and not only that I am the eldest child and the heir to the Western Lands. Now the very brief overview of the youkai and the Makai is over and I will tell you my story but in order to understand my story you need to know my parents story. My father as I mentioned is the Inu Taiyoukai of the West. My mother, on the other hand, is human. She is known as the Shikon Miko Kagome. My mother is actually from this time period originally but an event happened that ended up pulling her into the past were she met my uncle Inuyasha. They ended up having a few adventures involving the Shikon jewel. She ended up shattering it when trying to save it from a crow youkai. After that Uncle Inuyasha and her went on a mission to find the shards and reassemble the Shikon Jewel.”

“That is when her and my dad first met. You have to understand that this happened about five hundred years ago and my father was still quite young. At this point in time he hated all humans and he despised my uncle. So in their first encounter my father tried to kill my mother. Fortunately my mother was saved by one of the swords my grandfather had made from his fangs. My uncle ended up defeating my father in battle with that sword and father retreated minus an arm.”

“Minus an arm? That’s pretty bad.” Naruto said.

“Well for a human in would be but for a youkai all we have to do is wait a few years and it will regenerate itself. Now that was their first meeting their second meeting was just as bad as their first. Dad was once again trying to kill my uncle. He wanted his fathers Fang and of course Inuyasha would never let his hated half-brother have it.”

“Half-brother?”

“Oh, right, my uncle is a hanryou. His mother was human. Which is why my father despised uncle Inuyasha, he hated the human blood that tainted the noble line of the White Dog Clan. Now during the battle between the two, my mom got involved and helped Inuyasha win. Once again my father was forced to retreat and he was getting quite annoyed with my mother’s constant interference.”

“Of course my father could not let it go and he tried once again to kill Inuyasha. Of course by this time Inuyasha had pretty much mastered the first technique that Tetsusaiga could perform and my father was almost killed. The sword, Tenseiga, that my grandfather had left him pulsed to life and saved him from certain death. This is where my father’s hatred of humans starts to wane. A human child named Rin found where he was lying injured and she tried to help him. She brought him food and bandages at the cost of being beaten by the local village people. When he asked her what happened all she did was smile happily at him. He healed and began to leave the area. He then found her body lying on the road. He was about to leave her lying there when Tenseiga pulsed again. At that moment he was at a cross-road. He could leave her dead, lying on that road or he could use Tenseiga to bring her back to life. He told me he saw her gap tooth smile and the flowers and food she brought him and that is when he decided to use his sword. She followed her Sesshoumaru-sama till she was old and gray. Her loyalty to him never wavered.”

“Rin changed him. She taught him that not all humans were bad and so his hatred lessened. He stopped trying to kill his brother and his friends. In there next meeting he saved Inuyasha from losing himself to his demonic instincts. My uncle had been in the midst of a blood rage when he showed up. He knocked him out and left him in my mother’s care. After that they encountered each other more and more often.”

“My mother had actually fallen in love with my uncle first but Inuyasha did something stupid. He kept on pushing her away. Finally one day she had enough. He had pushed her away one time to many and she decided to let that love go and find someone new. I do not think she had been planning to fall for my father. She never even once thought about my father in a romantic way until a mutual enemy ended up drawing them together. There mutual enemies name was Naraku and he too was after the Shikon jewel. He lusted for power and he wanted absorb my father’s power for his own. He made many attempts through the years but was always thwarted.”

He once again put forth a plot to gain my father’s power both his power as a powerful youkai but also his political power as the Lord of the West. Naraku put his plan into motion and somehow he was able to get his hands on both of my parents. Both of them quickly realized that their individual powers would not be enough to escape the situation that they were in but their powers together would definitely be enough. Together they figured out a way to escape and they did so. This alliance was the beginning of their romance. They each saw a side of the other that they found desirable. My father saw her as his perfect mate even though she was human. My mother saw the stability she craved. Inuyasha had jerked her heart around so many times that all she wanted was someone who would stand by her and want her for her and not someone else. My father ended up being that someone and their relationship had many ups and downs but they stayed together through it all.”

Naruto looked at Yaone in puzzlement and tentatively asked, “If your mother is a human, why are you a full demon?”

Yaone smiled, replying, “My mother is the Shikon Miko her holy powers are unparalleled in fact they are equaling power to a Taiyoukai. She would not normally have been able to have children with my father though because their different powers would have ripped the child apart before it was even born. The Shikon Jewel took action and made it possible for them to have children together. All of my parent’s kids would either be completely human with powerful holy powers or full demons. Of course, we kids got abilities that reflected our parents combined power. I am able to enter someone’s mindscape which was how I was able to help you. My baby brother who is a full demon has yet to manifest any special ability. My other two siblings are human. My little sister inherited my father’s ability to create a cloud to fly upon. My other brother can speak to canines; all canine’s which pisses off Lord Kouga to no end.”

“Wow that is so cool, Yaone. But why are you here instead of in the Makai?” he asked her.

Yaone leaned back on her hands and looked up at the sky. “Why am I here? I was quite simply bored. The Makai has been quiet, no minor civil wars, no big tournaments, nothing really happening. My father does not need me to help him run the Lands of the West so I had nothing to do. I decided to go explore the Hidden Realm while I still had the chance to do so.”

“The Hidden Realm?”

“Here.”

“Ummmm, why is it called the Hidden Realm?”

Yaone sighed and sat there for a minute thinking about how to exactly explain why this place was called the Hidden Realm. “MMMMnnnnn, alright, in order to understand why this place is referred to as the Hidden Realm you need to know about the other Realms as well. It makes much more sense if you know the background of all the Realms. Are you with me so far, Naruto?”

Naruto nodded his head and Yaone started her explanation, “I will start with the Makai as that is the Realm I am most familiar with.”

“Ok.”

“Now, the Makai is divided into four Continents. They have no names they are merely referred to as The West, the South, the North, and the East. Each continent is ruled by a youkai clan and its leader. In the West, the clan of youkai who rule are the Inu clan. That clan’s leader is my father Sesshoumaru. In the South, the clan of youkai who rule are the kitsune clan. That clan’s leader is Shippou, the adopted son of my mother. In the North, the clan of youkai who rule are the Ookami clan. That clan’s leader is Kouga, a former suitor of my mother and Uncle Inuyasha’s significant other. In the East, the clan of youkai who rule are the Ryu clan. That clan’s leader is Kamuro, who is not really tied to my family like the other two are but he gets along the best with my father.”

“The four continents are further divided into countries. Each country has its own Lord. Now each country has a different way of choosing their ruler. I believe that a country in the East has a tournament every few years or so. The Winner rules the country until the next tournament. The current Lord has won it for quite a long time but he is getting old. Soon he will not be strong enough the defeat all his opponents. My father has a great deal of respect for Raizen.”

“Anyways, the countries are further divided into various provinces which a variety of different minor youkai lords rule. The country where the tournament happens has three lords, Raizen, Yomi, and Mukuro. ” Yaone smirked nastily and said, “The rulers change quite often. In the Makai the strongest rule. If you can not hold your lands you can not rule them. But when all is said and done, all of the lords, major and minor, answer to one of the four Great Lords.”

“The next realm is the Ningenkai. This realm is the most complicated to explain so I am going to really simplify it. It is a realm ruled by humans just like yours is but youkai, magic, and chakra or ki have become legends and stories that people tell each other. Well, they are only stories for most humans but there are a few humans who know that demons, magic and chakra or ki are all too real.”

This realm has highly advanced technology which pretty much dominates how things are run. This realm has seven continents, North and South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, Antarctica, and Australia. The realm has multiple human races and just as many countries. Each country has there own form of government whether it is elected or is ruled by nobility or those who forcibly take control. Their realm has multiple religions as well. I do have to say that their realm has very few absolute rulers like in the Makai or here.”

“The next realm is the Reikai and it governs the interactions between the Ningenkai and the Makai as well as the afterlife for both realms. What it tries to do is keep an eye on the barrier between the two realms and makes sure that the youkai do not cross over into the Ningenkai and vice versa. It is a difficult job and they quite often fail. They ended up creating a team called Team Reikai that hunts the youkai that escape into the Ningenkai and cause trouble. The newest team is actually composed of one spiritually powerful human, one human with a youkai blood in his family but the kid does not know that . . . yet, a silver kitsune who’s soul merged with a human’s soul and body, and a half fire and half koorime youkai.”

“How is that possible, fire and ice does not mix well. They are opposing elements?” Naruto questioned.

“Hiei is considered to be a Forbidden Child and it is amazing that he exists but he does. There is one thing you should know about him and that he truly is a creature of fire and ice. He controls both aspects of his blood with ease but he tends to be partial to fire. That is enough about Hiei and Team Reikai. The Reikai has only one form of government. It is ruled absolutely by King Enma and his son, Koenma.”

“Now, the final realm is the Hidden Realm, the world you know. I really do not have to explain how your world functions. You already know after all. The Hidden Realm is different from the Ningenkai in that even though you do have some advanced technology in some areas you do not have it in other areas. The people in your realm know about youkai and still practice magic or use chakra. Your realm unlike the Ningenkai it is easy for those of the Makai to enter and leave whenever they please. It is also a realm in which the Ningenkai and the Reikai know nothing about. It was created by the four Great Lords of the Makai and they made sure that it was hidden so the rulers of the Reikai would not be able to prevent us from entering this world as well. And now you know why it is called the Hidden Realm because it is hidden from the other two Realms.”

“Wow, I guess the name the Hidden Realm makes sense now. So there are only four Realms?” Naruto asked.

Yaone thought for moment thinking about a rumor she had once heard. “Hmmmmm, there is a rumor of another Realm. The rumors tie it to the Reikai in the same way that the Hidden Realm is tied to the Makai. The rumor states it does not exist anymore that the Reikai did something to it. Unfortunately that is all I know about this realm. I do not know its name, how it is governed, or who or what lives there.”

“So that is it?”

“Yep!”

“Ummm, Yaone, I have another question for you,” Naruto said.

“What is it?”

“Did the four realms always exist like they do now?”

Yaone smiled and said, “You caught some of the inconsistencies in my story didn’t you?”

Naruto simply nodded his head.

“You’re suspicions are right. Originally, the four realms didn’t exist and the people in them lived in one realm. During the hunt for the Shikon Shards, my mother noticed how humans and youkai never really seemed to get along. The group that she’d formed around her was the rare exception. After the Shikon no Tama was reassembled and Naraku was defeated, she and father gathered the other three Lords as well as King Enma and Koenma. Together with the Shikon no Tama created the Realms. What King Enma and Koenma didn’t know was that they had created the Hidden Realm in order to move the humans with powers into their own realm. The only humans without powers of any kind were those that had accepted those who had powers. The Four Lords had decided they would keep an eye on the Hidden Realm and make sure those with special abilities did dot go too far with the use of their powers. Of course, the Lords didn’t get every human with special abilities but they did get most of them. They didn’t want King Enma and Koenma to be suspicious,” Yaone finished with a sigh.

Naruto blinked and then said, “The Shikon no Tama is that powerful?”

“Yes.”


*****

They sat there quietly for a moment and watched the fading sunset. They looked at each other and nodded. Naruto and Yaone got up and headed into the nearby forest. Yaone headed deeper into the woods to hunt their supper while Naruto gathered wood for a fire. He quickly gathered a respectable pile and set up a fire pit and lit the fire. While Yaone was still hunting he set up his tent and bedroll. A half hour later Yaone returned back to their camp with a couple of freshly skinned rabbits. She set them up to roast and went to set up her own tent. An hour later they sat by the fire eating their meal. Naruto looked at Yaone’s exposed face as she had pulled down her white mask to eat. She was beautiful but she kind of reminded him of the Inuzuka’s with her prominent canines and the two maroon stripes that were on each side of her face. Yaone noticed him staring and she raised a brow. “What?”

“Why do you hide your face?” Naruto inquired. “I mean the Inuzuka’s have tattoos on their faces and prominent canine’s too and they do not hide their faces behind a mask.”

Yaone smiled at him. “My marks are not tattoos and humans would quickly realize that and I did not feel like dealing with their reactions. I have noticed that masked individuals while rare are not uncommon.” She took a bite out of her rabbit and then after swallowing said, “The head wrap covers my pointed ears and the royal purple half moon on my forehead that signifies that I am a Taiyoukai.”

“Oh,” Naruto quietly muttered and continued eating his supper.

After they finished eating, they laid back and stared up at the stars. Yaone turned her head to the side and looked at Naruto and then said, “So, Naruto, what are you going to do now?”

Naruto smiled sadly up at the stars and spoke softly, “I want to make my parents, Ji-chan, baa-chan and my senseis proud. I want to become the strongest ninja in the world.” He paused for a minute and the said wryly, “I would also like to bring that bastard Sasuke back to the village and save him from Orochimaru.”

“Why does he need to be saved from Orochimaru?” Yaone inquired curiously.

“That snake bastard has developed a jutsu that will allow him to transfer his soul to another body thereby making him immortal. He wants Sasuke’s body to use as his next vessel. I have got three years to save him after that it will be too late,” Naruto murmured.

“I see,” she said and then laughed. “Well you have some big dreams there kid. I would like to help you achieve them.”

Naruto turned his head and looked at her. He smiled brilliantly, hope in his eyes. “Really?” he whispered.

“Really,” she affirmed.

“Thank-you, Yaone-sensei,” he whispered happily.

“No, just use Yaone, no sensei. I am a friend helping out another friend,” she said quietly and muttered under her breath, “Plus I do not think I will be training you alone. I think father and Shippo will probably train you themselves.”

“Friends, Yaone?” Naruto inquired eagerly.

“Yes, Naruto, friends . . . friends and partners. I am going to need a job while I am in the Hidden Realm after all. It is getting late, we should go to bed and talk more tomorrow,” she stated firmly. Yaone waited until Naruto entered his tent then carefully put out the fire and crawled into her tent.

****

Early in the morning they woke up and got ready for the day. Naruto shared his breakfast bars with her. She wrinkled her nose in distaste and their fake cherry flavor and hoped they arrived at a place that had better options then this soon. They packed up their bedrolls and tent and began moving down the road. “So where are we going, Naruto?” she asked.

“I was planning to go to Wave because I think I can easily find a place to stay because of our mission there. I plan to stay there for a while and get some training in and then I would like to go to Snow because the princess said we would be welcome at anytime,” Naruto told her.

“That is a sound plan. Let’s pick up the pace,” she commanded.

The miles to Wave fell behind them swiftly and in a few hours they had reached the bridge to Wave. They paused in front of the bridge to read the plaque. Naruto’s mouth fell slightly open and Yaone smiled softly as she read, ‘This is the Great Naruto Bridge. It is named in honor of Uzumaki Naruto because Naruto helped build the bridge that eventually led us all to hope and courage.’

“Wow, kid, that is quiet the compliment,” Yaone remarked.

“I never expected this,” he whispered and the then blushed beat red, rubbing the back of his spiky blonde head.

“So where do we go from here?” Yaone inquired.

“Let’s go to Tazuna’s place,” Naruto said firmly.

“Ok!”

Yaone followed Naruto as he led the way to the bridge builder’s house. They arrived and Naruto knocked on the door. Tsunami opened and exclaimed, “Naruto, what are you doing here?”

Naruto smiled tentatively and said, “I have been banished from Konoha and I hoped I could stay here for awhile.”

“What!” Tsunami exclaimed. “Come on in Naruto and . . .,” Tsunami looked at Yaone inquiringly.”

“Taishio Yaone,” Yaone offered.

“Yaone. Come in and tell us what happened,” Tsunami said.

Inari, on seeing Naruto ran up and glomped him. “Naruto-nii, what are you doing here?”

“I will tell you and the rest of your family here in a minute, Inari. Let us get settled in first,” Naruto said quietly.

After they sat down, Tsunami said, “Ok, Naruto, we are all sitting down now. Tell us why Konoha banished you.”

Naruto smiled sadly and told them what happened during the Chunin exam and the Sasuke Retrieval mission. “But they did not banish the other genin on that mission,” Tazuna exclaimed, “Why just you?”

Naruto looked at his feet and took a deep breath. “Well, in order to understand why I was banished I need to relate some of the history of Konoha. So bear with me while I explain, okay. Twelve years ago, the Kyuubi no Kitsune attacked Konoha. The Yondaime fought it and killed it or that is what is told in the history books. In reality it is impossible for a human to kill a bijuu of Kyuubi’s power without some weapon make by a god or another youkai so instead he sealed it away. Unfortunately, the only thing able to contain the raw power of the beast is a baby with its umbilical cord just cut.” Naruto paused for a few seconds before continuing. “I was the only child born during the time that the Kyuubi attacked Konoha. So the Fourth sealed him within me. He asked with his dying breath that I be seen as a hero but unfortunately, that did not happen. Ji-chan did his best to protect me but the council has always been waiting for the one thing they could use to get rid of me. The failure to bring Sasuke back to the village was just the excuse that they needed to get rid of what they thought was an eyesore to the village.”

“Oh, Naruto,” Tsunami whispered sadly.

“Damn them,” Inari yelled angrily, “How could they do that to you, Naruto-nii? It is not fair!”

Yaone spoke, “Life is often unfair, Inari. All that Naruto can do now is go forward and make the best of things.” She smirked and the said, “Of course, Naruto and I are going to make the council of Konoha regret banishing him. After I am done, Naruto will be the strongest ninja in the world.”

“How can you do that?” Inari asked.

Yaone pulled off her head wrap and pulled down her mask. “Well for a demoness like me it should be no problem,” she stated casually.

The little family stared at Yaone in surprise before Inari said, “How come you are not evil?”

“Not all youkai are,” was her short response.

“Anyways, guys, I was wondering if Yaone and I can stay here for awhile.” Naruto asked. “We need to get my training started and do some planning for the future.”

“No problem,” Tazuna replied.

“Thanks,” Naruto said gratefully.

Yaone leaned back in her chair, “Naruto, we will relax for today and start your training regime in the morning. Also, I know that you were given money and weapons by your hokage but it might be a good idea to get a job to pay for supplies and stuff and to keep that money as an emergency stash.”

Naruto thought about it for a moment and then said, “That is probably a good idea.” He smiled happily at everyone in the room and then began to talk about what had happened in Wave during the time that he was gone.