What does the fox say V2

What is there to life, when all you have known is the name of demon. In the beginning there was silence, there was one. He made me feel, that's all it was, made me feel. My brothers and sisters, they existed, but they didn't understand what it was like to be me. How could they, when my power eclipsed all of theirs. Alas, the one who knew me..........his time came to a close.

There was another........though he seems lost to me. I was only ever known as demon, there was no one with my brothers and sisters and I............we were alone.

I was known as demon, in the beginning I was alone, all alone, I was the demon, I was what they feared.........

Maku's hair lay plastered to his face. Streams of sweat moved down his face, his back, and dropped from the tip of his nose to hit the floor beneath him. His eyes crimson, and a thin bead of blood moved from his tear ducts to drip rhythmically on the floor.

Demon...............there was nothing before. There is nothing now, I am the demon.

Kurama in his miniature fox form sat on his hind quarters on the table of the inn. It's eyes wide and pupils wide. It's hair stood up on its cockles, its teeth barred and a growling sound played as white noise for the room.

Demon..............demon........demon.

Maku's hands were positioned in the seal of confrontation. His robe and armor sprawled on the floor around him. Surrounding his body the air appeared hazy as his chakra continued to flow out of him. Rarely had he pressed it this far, and he couldn't deny that it felt good. His eyes locked on the Kyuubi's. The beasts of legend had always been one of his great fascinations. He had found and even mildly befriended one for a short time. For this to have happened, was an anomaly. Specific circumstances had occurred, as they often do to bring together unlikely bed fellows. To recreate this, which a worse meeting was impossible. Maku wasn't a fool, this was how it was, and well it was time to do something about it.

I was...............

A sigh escaped his lips, his eyes still locked on the Bijuu's. The genjutsu he was using was the most powerful that he had learned. He had learned many in his studies, but none could do what he was attempting to do now.

I.............…………………

The white noise of growling disappeared, leaving a void in the room. The Kyuubi's eyes went glassy, and where it had been sitting, its small frame lowered to lie down. The genjutsu was under full effect now, and he could get to work. His mission inside the creatures very being involved several layers. The first had been to fully take control of the creature. Not a mere contract, but to fully force it to submission. The next part was to lock away the pieces that would prevent their partnership. The mental barricades began to form within its mind.

The solid pillars erected, and the walls formed. The vault formed and all memories of its life resided within. In its mind was a labyrinth. A dripping of water could be heard and the endless tunnels of what looked like a sewer system expanded from his eyes. Deep in the Bowes of this system lay the vault. Placing his hand on it, Maku breathed out, embedding his chakra into the vault. It was to never be opened as long as he lived, that at least was his intent. The beast would no doubt be furious if it opened any sooner. Though, that was a casualty of the struggle.

"Now the real work.....". Maku would say out loud, though within the creatures mind his voice also echoed out. One of the powers of the Tsukyomi was to rewrite the memories of its victims. This however, would probably be one of the most difficult processes that he had undertaken. His hand still on the vault, Maku positioned himself cross legged on the floor.

The process was long and arduous. Maku could feel his breath coming quickly, though there was still work to be done. In the end, he had managed to recreate the majority of its past. The point being to keep the creatures original memories in tact, and have these new ones. In doing so, it would be impossible to tell they were tampered with unless one found the actual vault of memories within its mind. That of course would be a dead give away, but if one had went that close then there wasn't much to hide at that point.

As he neared the present day, that was when he finally started to place his own mark. He would recreate the memories that Maku had. From being freed from Echo, to plum cake, to being kidnapped and resealed. He did however, embellish these points perhaps more than necessary. This mostly dealt with times, and feelings. What had been a reluctant partnership was now the feelings of true friendship. A decent person might feel a little sleazy with this whole process, and the thought did occur to him, but like many moral annoyances he brushed it aside.

Closing out the memories and leading them to present day, he finally released his hold. The beasts eyes closed, falling asleep having it's chakra so thoroughly infiltrated. As for Maku in the real world, he sat back falling into a well placed chair. "Damn...". He would say, reaching up and wiping his brow, moving the hair out of his face. His eyes rolled as if in exasperation, and as they centered again they became blue rather than red.

So, that was done. He had done a patchwork job, but now his work was complete. To his knowledge, of course not knowing of Kurama and Makona's conversation, there would now be no gaps in the beasts memories, and no way to tell there had been alterations. He was also now confident that he had an ally in the fox instilling in it knowledge of all his plans, schemes, and contingencies. Which would make things easier, and avoid unnecessary filler topics explaining these later. His contract with the beast now solid, both unwillingly and willingly.

All there was left to do, was relax and wait. His hand reached out and ran through the red fur. This creature would be able to help him now. He could now send the creature out to assist him, and perhaps hurry along his last plan. He wished Youka was moving quicker with his trials though the plague shinobi was taking his time. He had always been an emotionally fragile being, but this was ridiculous.

Looking around his tiny apartment room he considered what to do now. Back in Hoshigakure after so long, the place had changed and not changed. While there were more shinobi, they lacked the strength of the older villages in his opinion. He had only gathered a small amount of information from his informants, but if he had to guess it was true. Denkitiki himself was a capable shinobi, though he questioned what his brother could do with the people. His reclusiveness, and his private ways just didn't seem conducive to empower a shinobi force. As for "queen" Akihanna, well the same problem was involved with slightly different circumstances.

Did they even know what he had done for this village, what he had done to help set them up? In his tiny room lay a tray of fairly extravagant food. Several sacks of gems, gold, and other valuables littered the place. He had worked to take over the criminal organizations of old, and they seemed to still be here. There would always be crime in one way or another, and making them pull together only solidified their hold.

It didn't matter, they didn't need to know. The illegal trades was just something fun to do when he was bored and in town. It gave him some of the old rush of being a village leader, without the responsibilities and moral obligations.

He had given Akihanna a little of why he had come just before he found himself here, but the rest he had left to be a mystery. An audience with the queen would be gained eventually, it would be then that he would make his last and final demand on the village hidden in the stars. The illegal trade goods would pay for the festival, he had ideas for entertainment, and then it would be over.

Two great nations existed other than Kumogakure. The leaf and the mist. Taking up one of the gold coins he gave it a flip, catching it as it came down. Opening his hand he looked at how the coin had landed and smiled. Well first thing was first, he'd twirl the akatsuki ring between his left hands fingers. He needed one more bang before the next war.

"The barrels are here...........should we smuggle them out to Suna now?" The voice called gruffly through the door.

The smile if possible got even bigger. "Absolutely, and you know what.......double the order.." things were picking up again. His fingers trailed down the Kyuubi's face and it's eyes opened. "I think, it's time to play a game." Kurama looked into the blue eyes, and its mouth curved into a matching grin.

(Fin)

Ren who had just decided to try a new form of the dynamic entry technique with amazing space time powers leaped at the tree a few countries away, traveling over 1800 miles per hour he hurled into the table the fox sat upon, somehow taking it with him as he continued traveling through the walls of the inn and all the way to the throne room of hoshigakure with a thud, the fox being sent flying to sit upon the throne... or upon the lap of a lovely lady who sat there. Ren himself lay sprawled on the floor, a trench of destruction sprawled before him.

[Entering]
[Exiting to Hoshi's Royal Chambers]
[Giving the 9 tails to whoever's sitting on the throne?]