6

Ok, I can do this, I can do this...I can't do this.'

"Naruto stop fidgeting. Your tails keep hitting me and it's getting annoying. Look, all we gotta do is tell my parents and Iruka-sensei and Tsunade-sama that we're demons now and rulers of a vast kingdom. It'll be easy."

Naruto just stared at her like she'd grown another head. After much whining, he had finally fallen asleep last night only for reality to hit him like a sledgehammer to the nuts the next morning. He had found a mate and he couldn't be happier, but now he had to inform Tsunade that he wouldn't be around much after the coming year. He'd have to go to his new domain and make decisions and alliances, fight for his people, basically be responsible for everything. The mere thought hurt his head and he began to whine piteously again until Ino whacked him over the head with his notebook that she had been reading again. Seriously, who would have thought his mate would have been into naughty stories? The sound of the door flying open brought both of them out of their stupors and Ino quickly hid the offending notebook from Hikaru's eyes. The blonde and pink haired boy bounded across the floor and spring boarded onto the bed, landing in between his father and his new mother, snuggling their tails. The feeling of affection from the nuzzling of her tail brought out motherly instincts in Ino and she grabbed the boy and sat him on her lap, hugging him.

"Well good morning sunshine. How was your night?"

"It was good Miss Ino. I always sleep good when Genmaki is around."

"That's good. And what did I tell you about calling me Miss Ino? You can call me mom ok?"

"Ok...mom."

"There, that's better. Now then Naruto, we're going and that's final. We're doing it today because daddy doesn't have any missions and mom's not working the flower shop. Iruka can find a substitute and I'm pretty sure Tsunade will cancel any appointments she has to hear this."

"We're going to see grandma? Yay! I love visiting grandma, she always gets me snacks and presents. And she beats up daddy and they're always funny."

Ino cocked an eyebrow and looked at Naruto, who rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"Heh, she says I have no respect for authority and she wants her grandson to grow up respectful. I don't know what she's talking about though. I'm respectful right?"

Silence greeted him as all parties present (Genmaki had come in after Hikaru and sat at the end of the bed) just gave him incredulous looks.

"Right? Oh come on. I'm not that bad. And besides that, now I am authority."

"That doesn't mean you aren't disrespectful sweetie. In fact, I'd say that you deserve more punishment than Tsunade-sama gives you. She's pretty lenient with you, you know."

"Yeah, well...you've never been hit by her either..."

"Touché. But I don't think it hurts as bad as you say it does, you big baby. Tell you what, next time she hits you I'll kiss it better. How's that sound?"

Hikaru, of course, made an 'eeewww' noise at the notion of kissing that earned him a bonk on the top of his head from his mother. He pouted and crossed his arms, causing Ino to giggle and kiss the top of his head.

"Now, now Hikaru, don't be such a baby. It doesn't become you. Go get dressed, we're leaving soon."

As soon as the boy was out the door, Genmaki stepped forward for any orders. Naruto finally noticed him and gave him a small smile.

"Genmaki, I think it's time to retrieve the scroll. We've been dormant as a race for too long. It's time we joined the world of summons. And there are three people who will sign right off the bat."

Genmaki started to bow low but Naruto leapt off the bed and stopped him by grabbing his head and turning his face back up. Confusion swept over the fox's face until Naruto gave his reason.

"Genmaki, never bow to me again. I may be king but I have always been a humble person. You have been my most trusted friend and advisor these past three years. I consider you my equal and a dear friend. Never bow in front of me. Stand beside me as I rule."

Genmaki looked at his ruler with awe. The old Kyuubi had instilled a sense of fear and respect for power during his rule. If you disobeyed or disrespected you died. But now here he was being told that he was seen as an equal and important part of the court. Tears of joy sprang to his eyes and he laughed in happiness.

"Lord Naruto, you have no idea how happy I am that you are king. Truly we will prosper under you and Lady Ino. I will honor your wishes and I shall never bow before you but I shall always revere you...my friend."

His reward was a genuine smile from Naruto and a rub between the ears. While the two males were enjoying their bonding experience, Ino sat on the bed and watched with pride. This is what made her mate so special. He could befriend anyone, make anyone feel special, make something from nothing. He had that one intangible that made him a good ruler and even greater friend: kindness. Seeing that the two weren't moving and she really wanted to get this over with, she coughed into her hand until they noticed her. With a nod of his head, Genmaki disappeared to retrieve the fox summoning scroll. Naruto stood and stretched, gaining an appreciative eye from Ino. Noticing her eyeing him up he sauntered over to her side of the bed and leaned in like he was going to kiss her. She closed her eyes and waited until she felt his hand envelop her face, scrunching her cheeks into a pucker. Opening her eyes, she saw a playgul grin and even more playful glint in his eyes.

"I think you had enough last night, princess. Now get dressed and we'll do this while my nerve is up."

She stood and made towards the closet while Naruto straightened the covers back out. While fluffing the pillows he found himself wondering what he was forgetting. Suddenly, it came to him.

"Ino, didn't you hide my notebook under your pillow?"

A reply of 'Yeah' came from the deep recesses of the closet. Then a 'why?'

"Well I can't find it and if you don't have it then..."

"HIKARU!"

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The procession of the Uzumakis down the streets of Konoha was a spectacle to behold. They turned heads everywhere even though they weren't trying to. It's just when you see three people and a fox, laughing and enjoying the day like a family, it's a little...unsettling. Not to mention that they all looked...regal. The two adults had an almost ethereal glow about them and warmth was emanating from them. The small boy, riding on the back of a great dane sized fox, was laughing happily. But what stunned most, aside from their attitudes, was the clothing all were wearing.

Naruto, much to the delight of women and chagrin of men, was decked out in clothes befitting a man of status. His black slacks were immaculate and fell over his polished leather boots. His shirt of orange silk (still hasn't given up on that ridiculous color) had black flames licking a line across his chest. His battle coat flowed majestically behind him and gave him an aura of power. The hitai-ate of the Toad Sennin adorned his brow and his smile exuded happiness and his eyes shone with power.

His mate walking beside him was the object of much envy and hatred. The women were all still jealous of her for stealing Naruto from bachelorhood, giving them little to no chance to have him, since he seemed so happy with her. The streets were almost flooding with drool from the males of Konoha as she passed by, hanging on the arm of her king. Instead of her normal black shirt and skirt she had opted to...spice things up a little with color. Digging as far into her wardrobe as possible, she had come out with a blood red skirt, a black shirt emblazoned with a gold stitched fox and her shoes were the heeled sandals with fishnet leggings. Her birthday present from Naruto was proudly on display; a royal purple battle coat, fitted to her size, with the kanji for 'Queen' on the back. Her hair pulled back into the familiar ponytail with a diamond scrunchie (nobody could accuse Naruto of being cheap when it came to his mate) and her hitai-ate around her waist. They made quite the pair.

Hikaru was perhaps the most normally dressed out of the three even though he too was dressed for success. Decked out in khaki slacks with black sandals and a black button up shirt with the Konoha Leaf symbol in silver thread on the back; he was a very sharply dressed little boy. Genmaki merely plodded along, seemingly oblivious to all the stares they were getting. On the inside he was swearing about having to lug around a heavy Hikaru and wishing they could have just teleported to the Hokage office. But noooo, Ino wanted to show off her new family and insisted on walking through town. Curse his loyalty to his master...oh thank the stars, they were finally there.

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Naruto breathed deep before opening the door to Tsunade's office. This was the final plunge, letting everyone dear to him in on his secret. Although now it was more than just his secret, Ino was at risk too. There she sat in all her glory; head on the table, drool coming from her mouth, and her breasts starting to pop slightly out of her top. Ino immediately clapped her hand over Hikaru's eyes lest he see his grandmother's 'goodies'. Naruto was torn between waking her up (an immediate death sentence in Konoha) and leaving and coming back later. Suddenly he heard a low chuckle from one of the high back chairs in front of her desk. Slipping quietly up behind it he peered over the back and saw Jiraiya, his former master, giggling perversely and making notes in his infamous notebook. A wry smile crossed Naruto's face. At least he wouldn't have to look all over for the hermit. Two birds, one stone, and he even got to see the old man put through the wall. Good times. Crossing his arms on the back of the chair, he spoke in a voice loud enough to wake Tsunade.

"You know, Ero-Sennin, I thought I was the author of the books now. Your research really is nothing more than pervertedness."

Tsunade immediately shot up and glared at the Toad Hermit, who began to whimper in fear at his punishment. An arm shot out, a cry rang out, and Jiraiya was embedded in the wall across the room while Tsunade tried to calm herself down. Now standing her shirt had loosened even more and her ta-tas were spilling out. Ino had to speak up since Naruto's tongue was sufficiently tied (not that it was possible to speak with all the blood rushing to his face).

"Tsunade-sama! Please cover yourself!"

Tsunade looked down and saw that her girls were bouncing freely and flushed redder than Ino's skirt. Hooking them back into the shirt and straightening herself out, she gave Naruto the evil eye.

"What the hell are you gawking at brat?"

Seeing she wasn't going to get an answer from her stunned son, she turned to Ino and gave an apologetic grin. Finally shaking herself of her blush, she saw Hikaru in Ino's grasp with his eyes covered. She smiled seeing her grandson and opened her arms.

"What are you waiting for sweetie? Come give your grandma a hug."

Hikaru broke from Ino's grip and ran to Tsunade who picked him up and enveloped him in a bone crushing hug. It had been a long time since she had seen him except in passing and she missed the little boy's bright smile. She sighed in contentment. He was so much like his father when he was younger and wasn't burdened with so much responsibility. She turned back to see Ino, and raised her eyebrow at the kunoichi's attire. If she didn't know better she was imitating Naruto and looking damn good doing it. Hearing a groan behind her she hazarded a glance to see Naruto peeling Jiraiya off the wall and helping him back into a chair. Noticing everything was as it should be, she motioned for Naruto and Ino to have a seat while she held Hikaru in her lap.

"All right now that the gang's all here, what gives me the honor of seeing you, besides a long overdue visit from my grandson?"

Naruto took a deep breath and let it out slowly. This was gonna be hard. A squeeze on his hand let him know that Ino was right beside him. Giving her a weak smile, he turned his attention back to Tsunade.

"Baa-chan, I have a secret to tell you. But not only you, I need to tell those closest to me. Ero-Sennin's already here, so that just leaves Iruka-sensei and Shizune-nee-chan. I'd like you to call Ino's parents too, since she's involved in this. I won't say a word until they all get here."

"What about Kakashi? Sakura and Sasuke? Don't you want them here too?"

Naruto's face darkened and Ino could feel a cold chill at the mention of those names. She was finding out first hand just how powerful the link between them was. She sent a mental soothing to him and saw him visibly relax.

"Tsunade...my two ex-teammates are definitely out of the question. You know that. As for Kakashi, I don't want him here either. I tried to be forgiving in the past but the more I think about how he treated me while training me, the more upset and angry I get. True he showed me the secret behind shadow clones but beyond that and tree climbing I learned jack shit from him. I haven't spoken to him in years and he's made no effort to speak to me at all. I'm through with him."

Tsunade frowned at this but understood. Naruto had tried to forgive and forget but it takes two to tango and Kakashi wasn't dancing to the same tune. He showed little to no remorse to blatantly favoring Sasuke in the past and even now could be seen hanging out aroung the future Hokage. She cringed at this thought and her chakra flared just a little but she snapped out of it when Hikaru pulled one of her pigtails, getting her attention.

"Yes little one? What is it?"

"Grandma, you need to get momma's parents and Iruka-sensei in here soon. Daddy has a big secret and it'll make you laugh."

"Momma's parents? Do you mean Sa..."

"NO! He means Ino's. That'll be explained to. Call Shizune and have her fetch them, then come in here herself. I'll put up a sound barrier."

While Shizune was playing messenger girl, Naruto was busy putting up a sound barrier, Ino was chatting with Tsunade about her relationship with Naruto, and Jiraiya was playing with Hikaru while Genmaki watched with a disapproving eye. He liked Jiraiya well enough, it was just that the man's idea of fun was trying to convince Hikaru to yank Tsunade's top off. Hikaru adamantly refused saying he didn't want to see 'old lady boobies' and sent Jiraiya into peals of laughter (earning him another trip into the plaster). Finally after what seemed like eternity, everyone was gathered and chairs were offered. Naruto and Ino declined theirs and stood side-by-side, holding hands. After greeting Ino's parents (he was on really good terms with them and they adored Hikaru, not having any grandchildren of their own...yet. They hoped Naruto could remedy that.) he coughed to get attention and began his story.

"Ok so you all know about the Kyuubi. Well, I'm here to tell you the rest of that story..."

"And that's how I became a demon. So any questions?"

Voices were immediately thrown everywhere. Persistent questions milling in the air until a very loud shout from Tsunade silenced everyone. She glared at them all and noticed that when Naruto said he was not only a demon but the Kyuubi, she had held Hikaru even tighter. She was relieved that the little boy was still human, but was still unsure that Naruto's story was true.

"Show us. Prove that you are the Kyuubi."

"Sigh...Baa-chan, I'm still Naruto. Kyuubi is a title. I'm a king of foxes now. And as for proof..."

He dropped the henge and everyone's jaws hit the floor. Hikaru giggled when he saw their faces and looked up into his grandmother's eyes to see her completely speechless. He leaned up and planted a kiss on her cheek.

"Daddy looks funny when he's furry. Doesn't he grandma?"

Tsunade snapped out of her stupor and looked down at him with a grin.

"Well dear, it's certainly better than the other times I've seen him with tails. Now hop down so I can examine him."

Hikaru complied and Tsunade stood before Naruto and grabbed one of his tails harshly, causing him to yelp in pain.

"Hey watch it. Those things are sensitive you know. Be gentle."

She nodded and proceeded to pet the tails and moved to his whiskered cheeks, stroking them, causing him to purr. She looked back at Ino's mother and saw a familiar glint in her eyes, one of...a need to rub the cute, furry thing. She motioned her over and forced Naruto to his knees so she could examine his ears. Ino's mother (hereto forth known as Yuka, for lack of a better name) sidled over and began to scratch an ear while Tsunade scratched the other. A blissful smile came over Naruto's face, his tongue rolled out one side, and his tails wagged happily, some thumping the two women and sending them into giggle fits while the men laughed hard and long. Here before them was a demon lord reduced to a mere pulp at the mere scratch of an ear. Ino laughed in spite of herself, seeing her mate so serene. Then she remembered the second part of their visit.

"Mom, it's good to see that you accept Naruto as a demon, because that's the second part of our calling you here. As you all know I've been going out with Naruto for six months now and I couldn't be happier. I just recently found out about his being a demon and to tell you the truth I didn't care. I love him. Plain and simple. And now for my part of the secret."

With that she dropped her own henge and revealed her royal purple tail and ears. Gasps were heard around the room until they heard Hikaru giggle once again while playing with Ino's tails.

"Momma looks pretty with a tail doesn't she?"

Yuka smiled at the innocence of the little boy. He was a natural icebreaker. Any negative thoughts about Ino's transformation were thrown aside when it was revealed that, yes, Ino was more beautiful with her new appendages. They made her look otherworldly and more goddess like. She walked to her daughter and along with Inoichi, gave her a hug.

"Oh sweety, you do look lovely. Now care to tell us why you have a tail?"

Thus began Ino's tale of how she became queen of the foxes. Eyes went wide and mouths opened at the tale and when she told of how she and Naruto were now mates, Yuka threw herself at Naruto and cried into his chest, confusing the young demon.

"Thank god you two finally got together officially. I thought Ino was never going to get married the way she was going. And now I find out that not only is she married, she's a queen. Calling her princess when she was little seems appropriate now. Of course I expect grandchildren and I'm sure Tsunade-sama wants more as well..."

"MOM! You're babbling. Be still. Now then we have a more pressing matter than grandbabies at the moment. Naruto only has a year left in this plane before he has to go the domain of the foxes and rule there. There are certain things we must accomplish before that."

"Genmaki. Bring forth the scroll."

Genmaki waddled forth with a giant scroll on his back and flipped it into the air, letting it land and unroll with flair before stepping back into the shadows of the room.

"Tsunade, Jiraiya, Hikaru, and Ino step forth. I have a gift for all of you. This, Tsunade, Hokage of Konohagakure, is the summon scroll for foxes, my gift to Konoha. You four shall be the signers and holders of the scroll until Hikaru comes of age, where it will be passed down through his family through the generations, each becoming the new Fox Sennin. Hikaru, as my son, you shall be the first to sign. Sign your name in your own blood and put a handprint at the bottom. The rest of you follow him."

And so it came that they each signed the scroll and once done, it rolled shut and poofed out of existence. Naruto smiled at all of them and clapped his hands.

"Well, now that that part of the business is out of the way, I would like to say thank you to all of you for accepting mine and Ino's love and status as royalty in a demon realm. Now each of you summon a fox. Hikaru, Genmaki is your personal summon so he won't need to be summoned. He'll be with you forever. Now the rest of you, no seals needed, no chakra needed, this is my gift. A summon without burden. Now do it!"

Three cries of 'Kuchiyose no Jutsu' rang out in the office and with three bursts of flame, a yellow fox, a red fox, and a...green fox, arrived in the office, bowing low to Naruto and then to Ino. The green fox, larger than the rest and having four tails, spoke for the rest.

"Ah Lord Naruto, such a pleasant surprise to meet you. I am Gero, the red one is Akane, and the golden one is Isane. We are honored to meet you all, Lord Jiraiya, Lady Tsunade, and of course Queen Ino. How may we serve you?"

"I simply had them call you here to test the contract Gero. I am happy that you approve of my choice of scroll bearers. My son is partnered to Genmaki. I myself will be the boss summons and shall handle all matters in the human world accordingly if need be. I don't want to put a strain on our people."

Hearing Naruto speak with such regal bearing astounded everyone except Ino (it just made her want to ravage him) and he chuckled nervously at their looks. Tsunade was the first to recover.

"What do you mean boss summon? Just how powerful are you?"

"Remember that it was my chakra that held the Kyuubi at bay? Since I'm the new Kyuubi and am a fusion of my power and his that makes me a total of a little over eighteen tails of power. Of course nine is as high as you can go, but I'm the most powerful being alive right now. Too bad I was shut out from being Hokage huh? No one would ever attack us with a fox demon for a leader with near limitless amounts of chakra."

Iruka finally found his voice after absorbing the fact that the boy he thought of as a son, was now a summon, the most powerful no less.

"Naruto, how...how did all this come to be? Why do you always seem to be in the midst of trouble? Why do you...have to leave us?"

Naruto crossed to the man and enveloped him in a hug.

"Iruka-sensei, I'm not leaving forever. As a bijuu I have the power to come and go as I please in this world. But I have other responsibilities now and I can't ignore them. In a way, I got my wish. I'm a leader and I'm acknowledged. I'm...happy. I have a beautiful mate and a wonderful son. You guys are my family. Let Konoha be stupid and resentful of me. When the time comes, I'll still protect them. Let Sasuke be Hokage, I'm something more. I have what his precious master always wanted."

"And what's that Naruto?"

"Everlasting life. I'm immortal now Iruka-sensei. And so is Ino. We'll protect Konoha forever or until we deem them unworthy of our protection. But as long as our family is happy here, we will remain."

Shizune came forward and enveloped him in a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

"I'm happy for you Naruto-kun. You finally got what your heart desires. And all it cost you was your mortality. I'm proud of you little brother."

"Thank you sister. I love you too."

Inoichi and Yuka came next.

"Naruto you have no idea how happy I am that my little girl chose you over the Uchiha she used to crush on."

"DADDY!"

"Now now pumpkin, I'm just teasing. Ahem, Naruto if you ever hurt my little girl, demon or not, I'll castrate you and then kill you, clear?"

"Crystal, sir."

"Good."

Inoichi slapped him on the back and was surprised to see he didn't budge an inch. Yuka then made her way forward and enveloped him in a motherly hug and whispered in his ear.

"I want grandbabies by the end of the year or you're dead mister."

"MOM!"

"What? How did you? Oh that's right, super hearing. Now then, what about a wedding?"

"We're already mates by demon law, I don't think we need anything else."

"I don't think so. My baby girl is getting married in a church and that's final. On there's so much to prepare. Invitations, dress, bridesmaids, ooooooo....."

And with that squeal the girls launched into a frenzy, leaving the males confused and slightly fearful for the future. Naruto leaned over to Inoichi and whispered in his ear.

"Hey, this wedding thing isn't going to hurt is it? I mean how hard could it be?"

"Ever been kicked in the balls kid?"

"Yeah why?"

"It's gonna hurt like that, except forever."

"Aw damn..."

The men all cringed at the thought of a wedding and stood forlorn until Naruto turned and went to retrieve his new family. Unbeknownst to him, the older men all had predatory smiles on their faces.

Bachelor parties are always so much fun.

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Getting back home was easier than getting to the Hokage tower. After inviting her mother and father over for dinner (and threatening Naruto so that he invited the rest of the party) they simply teleported back home and everyone collapsed on the couch. Hikaru, exhausted from playing with the older men all day, was asleep in Ino's arms while she played with his hair, trying to get it to straighten out, which much to her dismay, was like trying to straighten a coiled spring. Naruto was stroking the fur of an exhausted Genmaki. Making that many trips to the fox domain in one day was tiring even for him. Both Naruto and Ino sighed at the same time and looked lovingly at each other.

"Let's get these guys to bed and hit the hay. I'm bushed."

With that they picked up their respective bundles and made their way forward. After changing Hikaru into his pajamas and flopping Genmaki onto a pillow they made their way to their bedroom. Not even bothering with bedclothes they simply fell into bed nude and wrapped their arms and tails around each other, sighing happily in contentment, too exhausted to do anything strenuous. To Ino it felt so good to just lay there with no expectation of doing anything other than feeling comfortable. It was still an odd feeling, since all the guys before Naruto expected something every night. She smiled into his shoulder and licked his mark, making him shudder. He looked at her with a raised eyebrow. Otherworldly stamina or not, he was still tired.

"Don't worry dear, I just wanted to see your reaction. I like making you jump. Keeps you on your toes. Now then, why did you want me to sign the scroll?"

"Because when I leave, you're staying here in the human world."

"What? I don't think I heard you right. My place is beside you as queen."

"Your place is here beside Hikaru as his mother. I'm leaving him in your capable hands and when he enters the academy I want you to be his Jounin instructor. I'll help you of course. And I'll be home every night and at least two days a week. This is still my home after all. But Hikaru is human and can't come with us. I need you to take care of him while I can't."

He leaned over and bit her mark earning a sharp breath and lustful moan.

"Come on babe. I'll make it worth your while."

Ino glared at him for a moment and then smirked.

"Bloody cheating bastard. That's not fair biting my mark. What if I bit your?"

"You won't if you know what's good for you."

"Oh really? Why's that?"

"I outrank you, here and there. You bite me and I'll demote you to...well, damn you're still a one tail so I can't do much there. Ah, I know. I'll make you babysit for all the new fox mothers."

"That doesn't sound so bad. I like babies..."

"Foxes tend to have litters of up to four or more...and there are literally thousands of demonesses in our kingdom."

She looked up off his shoulder to see the fox like grin he was displaying and scowled before biting his neck hard, causing him to moan loud and squirm. Feeling that he was ready for a round, she smirked and rolled over.

"Goodnight dear. I have a headache tonight."

"...You evil little bitch."