The Guardian

Synopsis: From the rubble of Konoha on the day of the Kyuubi attack, Kushina, near death and half crazy with grief, wanders aimlessly through the forest and meets the man with the one-eyed mask.

AN: I was just wondering where Kushina was. Perhaps she is just dead, or maybe she is more involved in the story in some way! This was just one idea out of many! Please read and review!

Prologue

There was only one thing Kushina understood at the moment, and it was pain and confusion. Searing, hot sorrow scalded her insides. Images of Minato periodically flashed into her mind's eye—baby in hand, running towards the disaster, on top of Gamabunta, falling to the ground, body limp, hands wrapped protectively around the baby—these images pervaded her mind as it degenerated into a chaotic place of nonsensical thoughts.

She did not notice that she was limping along on a fractured shin, and that several of her ribs were broken. She walked aimlessly through the forest, barely avoiding trees and bushes, crashing into some of them even. Her eyes were as dead and faraway as her mind, leaving her body to run around like a headless chicken.

After several hours, Kushina stumbled upon the company of two men, or rather a man and a creature resembling something of man. She could not comprehend it of course, but she did know something was different about him, with the strange things on either side of his head.

"Hm, what is this?" the strange man said.

"A woman. Heavily injured," the same man spoke, but his voice was different.

"Looks like a lost survivor from Konoha," said the other man, the one who looked like a man, except he had no face, just one eye and swirls that came out from it. He cast a cursory glance at the woman and turned away, his mask revealing no thought or emotion.

"Ooh, Let's eat her! She looks yummy!"

Kushina understood nothing that she was hearing. She fell to her knees abruptly, tears rolling out of her eyes.

"Heh, look, she's cooperating! She must want to die!"

"I…" Kushina began, recognizing the word 'die', "They…died…"

"Hm? You say something girly?"

"Minato…die…they…died…"

"Minato? Died?"

This seemed to perk up the masked man's interest a bit.

"Minato, our lovely, brave Hokage?" he asked, his tone was flippant but there a trace of annoyance, "That Minato? Of course he's dead…though not without doing something irritating. He was good. Very good. Wouldn't expect less from a successor of Hashirama."

She started to sob, and the tears fell even faster. She pulled at her hair as she let out sorrowful cries accompanied feverish whisperings and mutterings. Sometimes her words were intelligible, "My son…Minato…my son…container…give him back!" She looked up at them, her green eyes set ablaze with renewed anger. "Give him back! I won't agree to this anymore!" She lunged towards the strange man with two voices, "Give Naruto back! I won't let you do this! I won't let you do this to my child!"

"How very sad, let's put her out of her misery!" The man reached out a hand for her, but the masked man suddenly stopped him by pulling him back.

"Wait, Zetsu," the masked man's one eye was set intently on Kushina, "What is it that you want?"

"I want Naruto back! I won't have him become a host…there…must be another way, Minato! Please!"

"So it's your child? You must be his wife then…" the masked man cocked his left slightly, his voice sounding amused.

"My child…" Kushina murmured, looking around confusedly, as if she started realizing the man in front of her was not Minato.

It was then the masked man burst into laughter, slapping his thigh and clutching his chest. "How amusing!" he exclaimed, "What's the Hokage's wife doing all the way out here? Plus, you don't quite seem…functional…"

"So we can't eat her?"

This seemed to shock Kushina out of her numbness, and she suddenly became fully aware. She let out a gasp and clutched her chest when burning pain erupted under her breasts, and both her knees were stinging. Her entire body seemed to be on fire. She looked up and let out another gasp at the sight of the monstrous plant-man in front of her, and an even more terrified sound when her eyes fell on the masked man. Her mind screamed, "Run!" but her body was frozen to the spot, partly from fear and partly from the pain.

"You!" she cried with a raspy voice, "You're the one—" Painful, hacking cough overtook her and she tensed for several moments, trying to get rid of the painful itch in her throat. Blood had come out with the cough.

The masked man regarded her silently for several moments, waiting for her to recover, and then asked, "What's your name?"

She glanced up at him, her eyes wide with fear and suspicion. "You…were the one who…did this…"

He ignored at the accusation and knelt before her, "What's your name? What are you called?"

"I'd rather die," she said in a painful gasp, and spat at him, but he seemed completely unaffected by the gesture.

"Yes, you would…wouldn't you," the masked man said, "But…we'll find out. So your son is the host for the fox? Then for sure he and I will meet one day."

She jumped in alarm at this comment, and every muscle in her body seemed to multiply in pain. "Don't you dare go near him! Don't you dare touch him! Who are you anyways? Why are you doing this?"

"Hm? How rude," the masked man said lightly, "I ask for your name, and you spit at me. Now you demand mine. Have you no manners, little mother?"

"Shut up," she growled, "You won't…get away with this…Minato…" She trailed off at the name as fresh tears welled in her eyes, "He…He's…"

"Dead," the man finished for her, "After a very impressive jutsu that summoned and contracted the Death God, now he is forever suffering there. What a nice reward for sacrificing his everything to save everyone, isn't it? I never quite understood the appeal of heroism."

"You won't get away with this…"

"Oh?" said the man, "I won't? I have many times. But we'll see. We'll see. I've got an idea, little mother, let's do a trade. I give you my name, and you'll give me yours. And trust me, little mother, you want to know my name. Since I asked first, you go first."

Kushina glared at the man. Her breathing was heavy and painful, and the taste and smell of iron was warping her mind and senses. This man was the man who Minato had told her about just moments before he left with the baby…the masked man who was pulling the strings…that's right, she needed to know who this man was!

"Fine," Kushina agreed tersely, "Uzumaki Kushina."

There were several moments of silence before the masked back burst out into another fit of laughter. Kushina looked at him, bewildered and slightly offended, "What...why are you...laughing?"

"I knew it," the masked man said through his laughter, "The boy was named Uzumaki Naruto. Uzumaki! No wonder, the mother is an Uzumaki! Oh, your kind is like a cockroach! I thought I succeeded in getting rid of all of you when I set Rain on Whirlpool, yet you little bug managed to survive! What an annoying infestation…now the kyuubi has been bound…"

"What are you saying?" Kushina demanded, eyes widening in shock at this new information, "What do you mean you set Rain on Whirlpool?"

He ignored her, stood up and turned to his companion, "Zetsu, take her, but don't eat her."

"Why? She anyone important?"

"She is the mother of a host," said the masked man, "She can be quite useful in the future. Plus, she is an Uzumaki. If it is fate, I can play this game too…and mess things up for this disgusting thing called destiny…"

"Don't ignore me!" Kushina cried out angrily, "Who are you?"

"Oh, yes, my part of the deal," the masked man said with an irritated sigh, "I am called Uchiha Madara." He smiled at her reaction, "Yes, I told that you want to know my name."

AN: Obvious, prologue was short. Please leave a review! It makes me happy, and its good to make people happy!