"Wake up Otou-san, Okaa-san! Wake up!" A young girl's voice cried out.
"Ugh... five more minutes please." A man's voice said as he pulled a blanket over his head.
The girl looked at her sleeping parent's in their bed for a moment, and then she got on the bed and jumped onto her father. The sudden impact made him yell and wake up whether he wanted to or not. The noise also stirred the mother awake too. "What's going on?"
"Akane-chan, couldn't you wait just a bit longer?"
"Sorry, but I'm too excited to wait. I've never had a birthday after all." The young girl answered.
This young girl happened to be Akane Uzumaki, the red-haired, blue-eyed daughter to Naruto and Hinata Uzumaki. Today was April 1st, her birthday, because that was the day she had been 'born'. She was now nine years old and looked almost like a mini-Kushina and acted almost exactly like Naruto at times, which only made her resemble Kushina even more to those that knew the late Fiery Red Habenero.
Tsunade always thought that was a particular point of interest regarding Akane. By all facts, Akane should not take after Naruto or Kushina so much considering she wasn't actually related to either one of them. In fact, Akane wasn't even a human, but the Kyuubi no Kitsune that had been sealed away in both aforementioned Uzumaki's. Tsunade could understand thanks to Inoichi why Akane was so much like Naruto, since his memories formed the foundation of her persona after a rebirthing process called phoenixification. But she could only conclude that the physical similarities between Akane and Kushina was probably just a coincidence. Unless jinchuuriki had as much an effect on their bijuu as the bijuu had on them.
But even if Kushina had given the new Kyuubi her appearance, Naruto gave her his spirit. If Naruto had been born a girl, Akane is probably exactly what he would have been like. So even though she was a fox demon, she was very humane and in no way a threat to Konoha, unless you counted her pranks as threatening. Basically she was no more harmful than Naruto was at her age, and she had it better than he did because she had a loving family and no one even suspected she was a demon. No one who wasn't already informed of the truth that is, and the list was small.
Naruto sat up and ruffled his daughter's hair as he rubbed his eyes. "Fine fine, I'm up. But you're still not opening your presents until the party later."
"I know that, but Ichiraku-san said he'd give me any large bowl of ramen free anytime today and I don't want to wait."
Hinata mock-groaned. "Why am I not surprised that would be your reason for being awake before us for once?"
"What? I like to sleep in." Akane said.
"So do we dear." Hinata replied as her eyes struggled to stay open.
"Well what am I supposed to do? Go there by myself?" Akane asked, then suddenly perked up. "Oh that's a good idea. Can I? Can I? Can I?"
"No way. You always cause some sort of trouble when you're out by yourself. Remember when you got Kakashi-sensei tarred and feathered by the women at the hot springs because you told them he was peeking at them?" Naruto told her.
"Of course I do. That was yesterday." The young girl answered plainly.
Both of her parents sat up in surprise. "Yesterday? You mean you did that to Smut-Lover a second time?" Hinata asked.
"Yep. I wanted to see if he truly never got caught in the same trick twice. I guess he can after all."
Elsewhere, Kakashi was still trying to get clean from his little torture.
"Just when did you do that?" Naruto asked.
"When the timing was right."
Hinata narrowed her eyes. "Care to be more specific?"
"Nope."
"You're lucky it's your birthday and that prank is so funny, otherwise I'd have to enforce the Ramen Ban." Naruto told her as he swung his legs off the mattress and placed his feet on the floor. "Now why don't you let your mother and I wake up and get dressed before we head out?"
"Mind if I get a little more shut-eye instead? Jiraiya-chan kept me up quite a bit last night." Hinata asked. Her and Naruto's son Jiraiya Uzumaki was born two months ago on February 16th and like all babies occasionally gave his parents, especially the mother, rough nights.
"Sure thing koiishi. Go ahead." Naruto told his wife, then stood up. "That doesn't bother you, does it Akane-chan?"
"I guess not. Ramen is really more our thing anyway Otou-san."
"Did you already take a shower?" He asked, and she nodded. "Great. I'm going to take one and then we'll go. Just wait a little more." She groaned but didn't argue.
Naruto went into the washroom to take a shower, and with Hinata already dozing off back to sleep, that left Akane to entertain herself for the time being, even if only a half-hour or so. She settled for doing some katas taught to her by Hinata and Tsunade, since their styles took feminine flexibility more into account than the ones Naruto taught her, accompanied by some chakra control exercises taught by the two older women too.
Twenty minutes later Naruto came out dried and dressed. "You ready?"
"Yep." She said, then noticed his attire. She herself was just wearing a red t-shirt and a green skirt. "You going to work afterwards?"
"Yeah, I can't get the entire day off but I will be home in time for your party." He told her. Right now Naruto was wearing what most of his friends dubbed his Hokage Attire, which was a bit of a professional step up from his past jumpsuits. It was based mostly on the outfit his father Minato Namikaze was best known in combined with his sage outfit, made the week Naruto had been inaugurated in as the Rokudaime Hokage six months ago. He wore a black shirt and grey pants with an open red-orange jacket that looked like a cape from the back. On the back there was no design other than a single black vertical stripe from top to bottom that was two inches thick and ended in a black flame pattern across the bottom.
"Your mother will join me later, and baa-chan's going to come over and keep an eye on you until we get home." Akane nodded. "Now, let's go to Ichiraku's."
"Ah, good morning Naruto, Akane-chan. Happy birthday by the way. How old are you now?" Teuchi greeted the two Uzumaki's as they entered his stand.
"I'm nine now." Akane said as she showed him nine fingers to emphasize the number.
'Technically you're actually one, but for your own sake we'll stick with that.' Naruto thought as they both took a seat on the stools.
Teuchi smiled, then turned to Naruto. "Hey Naruto, remember how the Sandaime would bring you here for ramen on your birthday? My how the tables have turned."
Naruto laughed. "You got a point there Jiji."
"I want your biggest bowl filled with pork ramen." Akane told the ramen chef.
"Coming right up kiddo." He said before going in back.
"Don't forget a miso one for me." Naruto called out.
"You got it Naruto." Teuchi called back.
Akane then looked at her father. "Otou-san, what did he mean by all that anyway?"
Naruto smiled at her and rested his elbows on the counter. "When I was a kid, the Sandaime Hokage, who was like a grandfather to me, would take me here once a month for a bowl or two and try to answer any questions I had for him. Of course, being the kid I was I didn't have any smart ones, but it was a tradition I cherished. He also made sure to do it a second time in October on my birthday so I'd have at least one good memory on that day and feel a bit safer from the villagers that didn't want me to feel anything but pain."
"He sounds like a good guy."
"He was." Naruto said with a nod. "He was actually the one who helped me decide to become hokage someday myself, by telling me all the glory stories of his past and the others. Especially the ones about your grandfather the Yondaime." Naruto often wondered how his father, and his mother too, who both died because of the previous Kyuubi, would feel about being called Akane's grandfather.
Akane smiled. "He must have known you'd be perfect for the job."
Naruto shook his head negatively, greatly confusing the young girl. "No, now that I know for a fact what it means to be a working hokage, I think I know exactly why he wanted me to have the job."
"Why?" Akane curiously asked.
"When I was a hell-raiser back then, my pranks ended up increasing his paperwork every day for years. So what better revenge than ensuring that same hell-raiser would have to deal with never-ending paperwork too someday?" Naruto answered, then turned to face the Sandaime's head on the Hokage Monument. "I just know you were laughing your ass off when I got my first hand cramp, weren't you Jiji?"
Akane just kept looking confused. "But Otou-san, I thought you used shadow clones to handle that stuff. Like I will when I become the Shichidaime Hokage."
"I use them to lighten the burden, not do all the work for me. Remember your mother is there too with me and she'd get upset if I was being lazy. And besides, I'm in that office all day, I need something to do too or I'd go crazy." Naruto told her. "And you'll be the same way if you take my place."
"If?" Akane asked.
Naruto nodded. "Yeah, if. Just because you're my daughter doesn't mean I can promise you the job later. In fact, you'll have to work harder than anyone else trying to prove you deserve it instead of getting it just because you know me."
"Or I could fight with you like you did with Baa-chan so no one will say you played favorites." Akane countered.
"Why don't you save that for your rebellious phases?" Naruto half-heartedly suggested.
Teuchi came out holding two hot bowls of ramen. "Order up. Take the one closest to you." Both Uzumaki's took their bowls, with Naruto's in the chef's left hand and Akane's in the right. "Hope you like."
"It's impossible to not like Ichiraku ramen." Naruto and Akane said together.
Teuchi arched his eyebrow. "Was that something you two prepared or did that happen by accident?"
"That was weird." Akane said to herself as she broke her chopsticks and ate.
Akane was heading home after eating, being watched over by a clone Naruto made. The real one had to go to the Hokage tower. Akane was used to this, since sometimes she had to be escorted home from the academy by a clone. Occasionally Tsunade or Shizune would do it instead. The young girl always got a few looks from being escorted by such high ranked people, but she knew it was really because they were among the few that could keep a scamp like her in line.
'I'm just glad my birthday's on a weekend this year. I'd hate to have to spend my first one ever in school. Like Nara-san would say, what a drag that would be.' Akane thought to herself.
The two got to the Uzumaki house, where Tsunade was outside waiting for them. "Baa-chan!" Akane called out happily with a wave.
The slug sannin smiled and engulfed the girl in a hug. "There's my adorable granddaughter. Happy birthday dear."
"Baa-chan you're crushing me again." Akane squeaked.
"Sorry." Tsunade said as she loosened her grip. She paused for a moment and saw the Naruto clone had dispelled, then focused her attention back on her foster granddaughter. "So, how old are you now? One or nine?"
"I'm nine Baa-chan. No way I'm telling my friends I'm only one year old."
Tsunade grinned menacingly. "Then that means you get spanked nine times. Did anyone tell you that part?" Akane's eyes widened in horror and next thing Tsunade knew, there was a puff of smoke and she was holding onto a bag of trash. She dropped it and saw Akane hop out of a nearby trashcan. "Oh you're not getting away that easy girl."
Akane made a small scream and ran off. Tsunade playfully chased after her. 'She's fast, I'll give her that. But she can't outrun me for long.'
Inside the house, Hinata watched them both from Jiraiya's window as she changed his diaper before heading off to work. She smiled and giggled at seeing Akane and Tsunade interact. "Give her hell Akane-chan."
"If anyone can, she can." Shizune said from behind her, testing the warmth of the baby's bottle.
"No doubt about that Shizune-san." Hinata agreed. "Remember, Naruto was able to outrun and avoid the Anbu when he was a kid. And she's even faster then he was."
"'Pant'... 'pant'... How the hell can... 'pant'... one little girl... 'cough'... be so hard to catch?" Tsunade asked herself forty minutes later as she was bent forward, hands on her knees trying to catch her breath.
"Tsunade-sama, maybe you should give up." Shizune said as she approached her mentor, holding Jiraiya Uzumaki in her arms and with Tonton at her feet.
"Where have you been? 'Pant'... You could have helped me here!"
The younger medic shrugged. "Someone had to watch the baby. Let's go back to the house."
Tsunade straightened up. "Ugh... you're right I guess. I'm too old to be chasing kids. But how will we catch her?"
Shizune smirked. "Leave that to me."
Akane was hiding behind her house, hoping Tsunade was still out looking for her. 'I've seen how strong she is. No way I'm letting her swat my rear end. Maybe now I can go back insi...' An aroma caught her attention. 'Is that what I think it is?' Another sniff. 'No doubt about it.'
Curiosity got the better of the young girl and she edged closer to the front of her house, trying to be sneaky like a ninja. She looked around the corner and saw Ayame place a delivery box on he front step and watched away. 'Wow, must be for me. Who else would be here for it today? And if not, finders keepers.'
Akane came out and grabbed the box. She opened it, and Tsunade's arms wrapped around her from behind, making her drop it. Luckily it didn't get damaged. "Caught ya, you hooligan." The former Godaime said.
"Baa-chan? You set me up?" Akane asked.
Shizune appeared in front of her. "Actually, I did. Ramen to you is like a flame to a moth."
"Now you're in for it." Tsunade playfully warned to the girl she still had a hold on.
"Remember Baa-chan I know where you keep your booze and I know you want me to paint that message on the monument again this year." Akane warned back, less playfully.
Tsunade loosened her grip. "Alright, I won't spank you, but you will do as I say until your parents come home. Clear?" Akane nodded. "Good. Now, go inside and behave."
"Can I still have the ramen?"
"Try again." Tsunade told Akane as her current student balled up her fist and flexed her shoulder. It was an hour after they returned to the Uzumaki home and Tsunade was out in the backyard giving Akane some lessons in chakra control. Shizune was busy in the kitchen making the cake for later that day. Hinata would come by during her lunch break to lend a hand as well.
Akane took a deep breath and thrust her right fist onto a piece of wood held up by two cinderblocks. Upon impact the board broke into two pieces with many splinters fragmenting off. "Ah, finally. And I thought rasengan practice was hard." Akane said as she rubbed her sore knuckles.
"Good, you're getting better. In no time you'll be able to use my strength-enhancing chakra techniques too." Tsunade said with pride.
"Think I'll be as good as you someday?"
The slug sannin crossed her arms and smiled. "I expect you to be even better by the time you're my age. Now, let's make sure this time it wasn't a fluke. Grab another board and try again. Actually, grab two, that way we can have you try it out with your other hand on the second one."
Akane did as told and grabbed two planks of wood from the pile Tsunade had set up for this exercise. She set up one of the boards, focused some chakra into her right fist, and punched the board with all her might. Once again the board split, this time with a little more noise. "Hey, didn't hurt as much that time." She said as she checked her hand.
Tsunade nodded. "Once you get more experienced the chakra will provide a better cushion for your hand and you'll form calluses too. But it looks like you've gotten the first stage of focusing chakra in your arms to reinforce the thrusting damage of your punches down, for your good hand. To truly master the first step, you need to get the same results in the hand you're less used to using. As you can expect, that means focusing chakra there won't be as easy as it would for your primary one. That's why most one-handed hand signs are right-handed."
Akane tried the same exercise with her left fist and hit the board. It cracked but remained solid. "Ouch!" Akane cried sharply as she held her hurt hand.
"Just keep at it."
"I'm back." Hinata's voice called out from the front as she walked into the house.
"In here Hinata-chan." Shizune's voice called back.
Hinata went into the kitchen. "I've got about forty-five minutes before I got to go back. Where should I start?"
Shizune had already gotten the batter prepared and had just pulled out the metal pans it would be poured into for the layers of the cake. Hinata noticed there were some stray globs of dough in random spots on the counter and one even on the medic's kimono by her right knee. "You could start by opening the oven for me. There should be some cupcakes already in there I made as appetizers. They need to be taken out and frosted."
"I'm on it." Hinata said.
"Ah. Ah." Jiraiya said from his baby seat on the counter as he reached out for his mother.
"In a minute son. Kaa-san's busy now." Hinata told him as she dealt with the oven and the small deserts inside. She placed the tray on an open spot on the counter and took the oven mitts off. "Where's the frosting again?"
"In the fridge next to the milk. Sprinkles are in the cupboard by the cinnamon." Shizune replied.
Hinata opened the fridge. "It's amazing how much effort has to go into something like this."
"I know. When we were kids we never thought about what the adults had to do to make parties and fun all happen. Now we're the adults and we have to do all the work." Shizune commented.
"At least it should be easier when it's his turn this year." Hinata added with a point towards a still fussy Jiraiya with the spoon she was holding to put frosting on the cupcakes.
"Yeah. Why go all out for someone who won't even remember it?"
"Okaa-san you're back." Akane said happily as she and Tsunade entered the kitchen. She rushed to hug her mother, who stopped what she had been doing to hug the young child back.
"Are you being a good girl?" Hinata asked.
"As good as you would expect from her." Tsunade answered for the kid as she went to get a drink of water.
"Okaa-san, Baa-chan says someday I'll be even better than she is. Better than a sannin or a hokage! Can you believe it?" Akane said enthusiastically.
Hinata smiled and rubbed her daughter's hair. "That's terrific. But until then you need more practice. Now, could you take your brother outside and keep him busy?"
"No problem. And this sure smells good." Akane said before taking her brother off the counter. He still fussed and reached for his mother though. "Maybe you should give him one hug before I take him anywhere though."
Hinata took the four month old infant from the carrier and gave him a small hug. It settled his brewing temper tantrum and made him squeal gleefully instead. She patted his back for a minute and got him to burp, making him feel even better. "There. That's better. Now be a good boy." She told him before rubbing her son's nose with her own and then placed him in her adopted daughter's arms.
"I better leave you be so you can get back to baking. Thanks Okaa-san, Shizune-ba-san." Akane then took the young boy and his toddler seat outside.
"I'll keep her busy some more and watch the boy too." Tsunade told the other two women before going out back behind them.
Hinata just stood there watching them for a moment before snapping out of it and getting back to frosting the cupcakes. Shizune, done with putting the cake into the oven, was already helping her finish.
Naruto was in his office greeting two visitors to Konoha, who had been brought to the village by one of his shinobi and was in the office with him and them. The meeting was just about over, being a relatively short one this time. "So enjoy your stay in Konoha you two. Let Temari-san show you where to go. She should know where to take you."
Temari nodded. "As you wish Hokage-sama." With her engagement to Shikamaru that became official seven months ago, she decided to become a permanent citizen of Konoha. She still was their communicator to Suna and held onto her Suna hitai-ate, but also possessed one with Konoha's symbol on it.
Naruto nodded. "Have fun. And if you see my wife, let her know I'm giving her the rest of the afternoon off instead of just one hour."
"You think you can last that long without her?"
"Yes, I'm not an idiot. Now go before you decide you just have to make a snide comment about that."
"Don't worry, I'll save it for when we're both off duty." The Suna kunoichi playfully told him as she took her charges outside.
Akane was sparring with Tsunade while Jiraiya watched from the back porch, working on her accuracy while the sannin gave her a nimble target. 'She sure doesn't move like an old lady.' Akane thought, not daring to test if her cuteness would allow her to get away with saying it out loud. She got away with a lot, but she knew there were limits and that wasn't one she wanted to cross.
Akane tried to land a hit, only for Tsunade to use her hand to deflect the hit. 'She's moving like she's trying to imitate Naruto and Hinata at the same time, and their fighting styles are polar opposites.' Tsunade internally commented. She held up her right hand. "Stop right there Akane-chan." The young girl halted. "You're moving all wrong. You can't fight like a brawler and a Hyuuga at the same time. Personally I say you're more suited for the brawler style, so stick to that for now."
Akane nodded, and dropped to the stance Naruto was best known for. Gai would never approve of it, but it did keep every part of her body free to strike without revealing which way she'd start with. For someone who worked best with the element of unpredictability, that was a huge plus. But before she made a move, she sniffed like something important just caught her nose. "Baa-chan, someone's here now."
"Who?"
"I don't remember the name but there are three scents, one woman and two animals. A... raccoon and bug?" Akane answered as she looked towards the front of the house and dropped her stance.
Tsunade arched an eyebrow. 'Now why would anyone have those things with them?'
"Akane-chan, you've got visitors." Hinata's voice called out from inside, hearable thanks to an open window in the kitchen since Hinata wasn't much of a shouter.
Before Akane could go inside, the back door opened and three people appeared. Temari was the first noticeable one. "Hey kid, guess who decided to show up today." She then stepped off to the side.
Accompanying Temari were two girls close to Akane's age. The first one had dusty yellow hair that almost looked tan and wore a blood red shirt with grey slacks. She had black rings around her blue eyes and her shirt had the kanji 'Ai' on it. Strapped to each of her upper arms was a small corked gourd. The second one had flat purple hair that was a bit glossy and held up in two short bristly ponytails like Anko wore, red eyes, and wore a dark blue kimono with the kanji 'Ten' on it and a green obi. Strapped to both thighs were two weapons, on the left was a foot-long fan and on the right was a kusarigama in a leather case.
Akane smiled. "Shukaku-chan, Mushi-chan, long time no see."
"Good to see you again Akane-chan." Mushi, the new Shichibi no Kabutomushi, told the fox girl with a kind smile.
"Likewise." Shukaku, the new Ichibi no Tanuki but with the same name as the previous one, added with a polite grin and nod.
"Isn't that nice? Your cousins came to visit you." Tsunade told her surrogate granddaughter.
While Akane had no blood relatives, the closed thing she had to that were the other eight biju which had been 'reborn' just like she had been a year ago. The Ichibi and Shichibi were the two that lived in Suna under the care of Gaara and Matsuri and were the two Akane most often got the chance to see. The two lived together as sisters with Gaara and Matsuri being their foster parents, mostly because Shukaku, like Akane, thought her previous jinchuuriki was her father. Mushi ended up thinking the same way by association.
Shukaku, like Akane, ended up inheriting a lot of traits from the human that had once contained her. She was quiet, calculating, and forceful when irritated, and had even stronger power over sand than Gaara did. Fortunately this Shukaku wasn't tampered with by an insane monk so she was sane and not bloodthirsty. Not to say she wouldn't enjoy being in a fight.
Mushi however ended up taking more after Matsuri and Temari. Since no one ever really knew Fuu from Takigakure, no one could say for sure what her personality was like. This biju girl was outgoing, tomboyish, and often competitive. Wind Jutsus came to her naturally and so did weapon-using. Her uncle Kankuro often moaned that he had to deal with a mini-Temari like her and a mini-Gaara like Shukaku, but oddly she never demeaned the puppet-user. Shukaku did occasionally though.
"I bet it feels nice to be in a forest rather than a scorching desert, right?" Akane asked.
Shukaku shrugged. "All the green hurts my eyes."
"You want green that hurts your eyes? I know two guys in green jumpsuits that can give you nightmares for years." Akane said.
Mushi snickered. "That I might need to see. Just to make sure you're not exaggerating."
Akane shook her head. "Trust me Mushi-chan, you'll be a lot happier if you don't. I still get a chill down my spine whenever I see those two, especially the older one."
Shukaku closed her eyes and sighed internally. "You're only making her more curious. My sister may be a beetle, but she's often like a moth to the flame."
Mushi gave the raccoon girl an annoyed look. "This coming from someone whose name means 'drunk'?"
"Alright, settle down." Temari told them both. "You don't want your parents to hear you two were bad on this trip do you?"
"We're sorry." Shukaku and Mushi said in tandem. If there was one person they feared upsetting, it was Gaara.
"Good. Now be good girls and behave for the adults here. I'm going to go relax for a bit then come back." Temari said before turning around. "See ya later Tsunade-sama." The buxom sannin nodded and the Suna kunoichi left them.
"Oh, Hinata?" Temari said once she was inside the house passing the kitchen. "Your husband says take the rest of the day off from work if you want."
"Thanks Temari-san." Hinata replied.
Temari then left the house and headed down the street. "Now, the hot springs are calling for me."
A few hours later another pair of guests showed up at Akane's house. Hinata answered the door and instantly recognized the two. "Ah, Shiba-chan, Tatsu-kun, so nice to see you two. Come on in. Akane-chan's in the back yard now with her cousins from Suna."
"Thanks Uzumaki-san." Tatsu told her with a light bow.
These two guests were Akane's best friends in Konoha. Shiba Inuzuka was a younger cousin of Kiba but she often acted like Hinata did years ago, mostly because she was viewed as un-trainable in her clan's eyes. She wore a black kimono and had grey hair kept in a low ponytail that almost reached her rear end, making sitting somewhat painful sometimes when she wasn't careful. Tatsu Aburame was a younger cousin of Shino and was just like how you'd expect someone from his clan to be, except a bit more vocal. He wore a black version of the standard Aburame cloak with dark blue sunglasses. Tatsu was already capable of using some of his clan's bug Jutsus while Shiba had difficulty with her partnered ones, despite the fact she had both a husky puppy and a white fox as partners.
"Where can we put these?" Shiba asked as she held up a present for her friend. Tatsu had one in his hands too.
"I'll take those. Akane-chan might get too excited if she sees these." Hinata said as she took the wrapped boxes from the kid's hands. The two kids thanked her and went to the back yard. They both had been to the house in the past so they knew right away how to get there.
Shiba opened the back door and her two companions Mino and Sassha were the first to go thru it. Tatsu waited until she passed before he exited. Once they were outside, all four stopped in their tracks.
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!" Mushi shouted as she channeled chakra into her small fan and sent a large swirling gust of wind at Akane, who performed a substitution with a log to get away. Said log was turned into sawdust in moments. Akane tried to attack her cousin from behind, but Mushi used her kusarigama chain to wrap around her ankles and stop her. Akane tumbled, but her hands grew claws and she cut the chain freeing herself. "Hey! I'm going to have to get that fixed you know!"
"Ninja have to deal with damaged weaponry all the time. Besides, it's not like you're the one who has to pay for it anyway." Akane calmly said as she took the chain off her. "Here." She then threw the chain towards her opponent. Mushi caught it, but then Akane swiftly got close to her and threw a black egg in her face.
Mushi screamed as a dark substance burned her eyes. Fortunately for her this black egg was the pepper kind, not the broken glass kind used in some serious matches. While she wiped her eyes Akane threw some makibishi spikes on the ground, hindering Mushi's movement.
Shukaku, who was watching from the side after having already sparred against her demon fox cousin earlier, smirked at seeing this tactic. 'Not bad. She didn't use that against me because I fight pretty good while standing in one place, unlike Mushi.'
Mushi was able to open her eyes now, but they were an irritated red and teary, making her glare at Akane lose some of it's effectiveness. "You'll pay for that you mangy fox."
"Bring it on bug-babe." Akane said without fear, pulling out two sai's she gathered earlier from her outside weapon storage areas she had created in case of a surprise assault.
"Aren't they taking this a bit too far?" Shiba nervously asked.
"Not really. For those two this is probably the best challenge they can actually get." Shukaku said as she leaned against the wall of the house. "I'm Shukaku Subaku by the way. I'm a cousin of Akane-chan. Battling her is my sister Mushi Subaku."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Tatsu Aburame and this is Shiba Inuzuka. We're good friends of Akane-chan." Tatsu replied.
"Ah, so you both must be a lot like her then." Shukaku asked. Meanwhile, Akane and Mushi were holding each other back in a deadlock with their weapons both in hand, trying to make the other one give in.
"Actually, we're not really that much like her. I'm not that impulsive and Shiba-chan here isn't as outgoing." Tatsu answered.
Shukaku arched an eyebrow. "So she's the livewire in your group? Not that I'm surprised, but why are you friends with her then?"
Mushi tried a sweep kick which worked, but Akane twisted and landed on her hands and feet then kicked Mushi in the chin before spinning on her hands to get away and back up on her feet. Mushi swaggered for a bit but recomposed herself.
"Because she's a great person once you get to know her." Shiba said. "And she never lets anyone be bored or hurt."
"Although on that last part I can't speak for some of the jounin in this village." Tatsu added, making Shiba giggle and nod while Shukaku just looked confused. Tatsu noticed that look and explained further. "Let's just say that if I had to describe her in a single word, besides 'friend', I'd go with 'hell-raiser'." Shiba nodded in agreement.
Akane created twenty clones and had them surround Mushi, all holding their own pairs of sais. Mushi opened her fan again. "Wind Style: Cyclone Shield." She held her fan out in front of herself and spun around counterclockwise, creating a whirlwind around herself, making it impossible for Akane to reach her.
Too bad for Mushi that Akane didn't believe in 'impossible.' With a devious smirk, one of her clones did a substitution which put it in the center of the cyclone and Mushi in accessible range for the real Akane and more clones to fight directly. "Gotcha."
Mushi paled. "Okay, I give. You happy now?"
Akane dispelled her clones. "Yep. But you were tough." She then looked towards Shukaku and saw two of her human friends. "Oh, hi guys. Sorry I didn't see you there. Were you here long?"
"Not really. We got her a few moments ago." Tatsu answered. "Happy birthday."
"Thanks for coming."
"Are we the only ones?" Shiba asked.
"No, I invited some others. But they haven't shown up yet." Akane answered. "Mostly just family and close friends are coming this year. But that's good enough for me, since I didn't have any of either until I met Otou-san."
Tsunade stepped outside. She had to go inside to put Jiraiya back in his crib so he could take a nap. Also she wanted him out of the way when the biju children fought each other. She quickly noticed the two extra kids present. "Hi, when did you two show up?"
"N-not to-too long ago, G-Godaime-sama." Shiba said with a bow.
"Please, just Tsunade-sama would be fine. I haven't been the hokage in months." The last sannin told the young Inuzuka.
"But... but you were and always will be the Godaime." Shiba countered.
"Thanks, but today I'm just Akane-chan's grandmother so treat me like that instead."
"Does that mean I can get away with calling you an old alcoholic like Otou-san does?" Akane asked.
The Suna girls couldn't help but laugh at the sannin's expression while Shiba and Tatsu chose not to for differing reasons. "No and he doesn't get away with it either."
"Since he still does it I'm guessing he does get away with it, Baa-chan." Akane countered.
Tsunade sighed. "You're lucky you're cute and it's your birthday little girl."
Akane turned to face her friends. "So what would you guys like to do now? I'm up for anything."
"How about a nice board game?" Tatsu recommended.
"I'm home." Naruto said when he came home at 5:10 after his long day at work. He had gotten out early for Akane's big day but left some clones behind to handle anything that needed some more attention.
Hinata, wearing an apron over her casual clothes, approached him right away. "Welcome home koiishi." She greeted with a kiss. "Everything's ready now, so all we need are the remaining guests to show up."
"Anything I should do before that?" He asked.
"Could you get the barbeque set up? We should have dinner at least almost ready before everyone get's here. And we do have a lot of guests coming."
Naruto nodded. "I'm on it. And where are the kids?"
"The ones already here are upstairs in Akane's room playing Monopoly." Hinata told him. "Last time I checked our girl was struggling and Shino-kun's cousin was winning."
"I'm not too surprised. Should I tell her I'm here?"
"Naw, let them keep playing for now. Besides, the door's open as usual so she probably already knows." Hinata said. Maybe it was a result of being in a sealed cage for eighteen years, but Akane hated having the door to her room closed when she was in it. "Now get to work on the main course. Everyone should be here in an hour."
"Yes dear."
An hour went by and the kids finished their game of Monopoly. Tatsu had won but Akane came close to bankrupting him once while the others ran out of money at least twenty minutes before she did. They put away the game and came downstairs.
They quickly saw that the table in the kitchen had been lengthened with lots of food on it. Available for the taking were hamburger buns, assorted condiments, potato chips of various flavors, bread rolls, salad with dressing bottles next to it, and all the cupcakes Hinata and Shizune had frosted earlier.
Hinata came in carrying a cooler full of soft drinks and saw the kids. "Ah good, you're here. I won't have to yell for you now. Dinner should be ready in just a moment. We just need to get the plates out then we all can dish up. Go wash your hands all of you."
"Already did." Akane said.
"In that case, grab a plate from the cupboard and help yourselves. When you're done, go outside where the grill is to eat. Akane's father is finishing up the last part."
"Otou-san's back?" Akane asked, unable to smell him since there were several other scents in the area. "Great. It wouldn't be the same without him. Is everyone else here?"
"A few guests haven't shown up yet but they should be here soon enough." Hinata said, and then the doorbell rang. "Wow good timing."
"I'll go see who it is." Akane said. "Go ahead and dish up without me guys." She then left to go answer the door. Akane answered with a smile, but that changed to a look of surprise when she saw who it was. "Oh Sayo-san, I'm actually kind of surprised you came."
Standing at the door was a young girl wearing a lime green T-shirt with black pants and red shoes. She had brown hair she kept short but looked like she was starting to grow it out a bit more and dark black eyes. Standing beside her was an adult woman, the girls mother, who wore a red dress with her long light brown hair held in a low ponytail. The two looked an awful lot alike except for their hair style and the fact that the mother had green eyes.
"Shizune-obasan insisted on it. She said we might get along better if I did." The young girl answered.
Shizune was related to Sayo because the young girl's mother was Dan's cousin who shared a grandparent with him and Shizune's father. So Shizune was more closely related to Sayo than Dan had been.
"That's good. Come on in." Akane said then stepped out of the way for her guests. She knew that Shizune really wanted these two girls to get along, but it was challenging. They didn't hate each other, but neither did they think to see each other outside school. Akane's reasons were mostly that Sayo's scent has a hint of 'nasty medicine' to it which she didn't like, while Sayo's reasons were mostly because Akane tended to goof around in school and get the highest scores while she tried her best just to make second best. As if she was trying to one-up Akane but couldn't. Thus the two gained a bit of a rivalry.
"Thank you for inviting us." Sayo's mother said courteously, her voice somewhat off-key due to her being deaf. Akane was used to it though, having seen the woman drop off and pick up her daughter at the academy many times.
Akane led the two new guests inside and to the kitchen where they could dish up their plates. The kids were almost done and some of the adults were getting started. Akane tried to go to the back of the line but the adults insisted she go ahead of them. It was her day after all. So she grabbed her food and went outside to the back yard.
Outside she saw most of the guests already seated and conversing. Those attending were her family, friends, and her parent's friends. Her family consisted of Naruto, Hinata, Tsunade, Hiashi, and Hanabi. Her friends consisted of Shiba, Tatsu, Shukaku, Mushi, Sayo in a way, a blue-haired boy named Noburo Akane was familiar with, and three older kids from the Yamanaka, Nara, and Akimichi clans she had been introduced to months ago primarily because of Ino. Her parent's friends consisted of Shizune, Temari, Neji, Tenten, Lee, Ino, Shikamaru, Chouji, Teuchi, Ayame, Kurenai and her son, Sakura, Anko, Iruka, Kiba, Shino, Konohamaru, Moegi, and Udon.
Akane walked right up to the grill, where Naruto was cooking burgers for everyone. "Here you go sweetheart." He said with a smile as he used his spatula to put a ready beef patty on her plate.
"Thanks Otou-san."
Akane then took a seat at an empty table set out in the yard and the other kids quickly joined her. The adults took the other two, Kurenai's son choosing to stay close to her. To Akane's right sat Shiba and Tatsu, to her left sat Shukaku and Mushi, and across from her from left to right were Noburo, Sayo, and the three kids from the Yamanaka, Nara, and Akimichi clans. Their names were Ryou Yamanaka, Satoshi Nara, and Naomi Akimichi, all one year ahead of the others in the academy. Ryou looked like most members of his clan but his hair was more of a yellow-blonde than a platinum-blonde. Satoshi was everything you'd expect in a male Nara except he didn't have a pineapple hairstyle, at least not yet. Naomi was a thin member of the Akimichi clan but still the heaviest of all the girls in her class, with small four-point stars on her cheeks that almost looked like plus symbols: +, and she had the largest collection of food at the kids table.
"Hey, Naomi-sempai; save some room for the cake." Akane chided.
"Do I tell you how to eat?" The Akimichi girl replied with a full mouth.
"At least eat civilly Naomi-chan." Ryou added, which Naomi just shrugged off. She did slow down a bit more.
"Thanks for inviting us Akane-chan." Noburo said.
"Thanks for coming everyone." She said. "I'm glad to have my first real birthday party with all my friends." Since the others knew the cover story of Akane's origins they didn't ask any questions on that comment.
"It's a shame that the rest of us couldn't come here as well." Shukaku mused.
"Who?" Sayo asked.
"She means my other cousins who live in the other villages." Akane answered.
Sayo looked confused. "How can you have other cousins in other villages when you don't even really remember your birth family? For that matter, how are you related to these two anyway?"
Akane, Shukaku, and Mushi shared a look before Akane answered the black-eyed girl. "I can't tell you. Baa-chan said it's an SS-class secret to keep bad people out of the village."
"You mean those creeps who tried to hypnotize you into being a weapon not too long ago?" Shiba asked. Akane nodded.
"But I thought you said the one who did that was an Uchiha. Because you remember they had a sharingan. There aren't any sharingan-wielders left anymore, are there?" Sayo asked.
"Not counting Smut Lover, none that I know of." Akane answered. "But you should remember that... what's it called? Um..."
"The Sharingan Preservation Program?" Tatsu suggested.
"Yeah, that's it. Baa-chan said that some women could still have evil-eye babies if they wanted to keep it around. Bad idea if you ask me."
"Have any done that?" Satoshi asked.
Akane shrugged. "Why would I know?"
"Anyway, what's the threat?" Sayo asked, getting back to her original question.
Mushi spoke up to answer. "Let's just say that the three of us and the others that aren't here have many enemies that would love to abuse our strengths if they knew how. It has happened before so to prevent it from happening again it's best nobody knows any more than we already told you."
Sayo didn't understand all the secrecy, but saw she'd get no more on the subject. "So when's the cake coming out?"
Akane laughed. "I can't believe that Naomi-sempai didn't ask that first."
"What kind is it?" The aforementioned chubby girl asked.
"It should be chocolate and it'll come out in an hour or so when we're done here." Akane answered as she finished her hamburger. She paused when she heard the doorbell ring thanks to her enhanced sense of hearing. "Otou-san, someone's at the door." She called out to Naruto.
He got up from his seat and went to answer it. When he came back, he was joined by Kakashi. "Look who finally decided to show up." Naruto told everyone.
"Sorry I'm late. I had to take care of some personal business." The perpetually late jounin said. 'I swear if I get tarred and feathered one more time...'
Akane made her trademark mischievous smirk. "Ah, come back for more, Smut Lover?"
Kakashi looked like he was about to wet himself. "Please don't. I even brought a peace offering with me."
"Oh really?" The birthday girl was rather curious now, but her foxy smile was still obvious.
"Save it for after dinner Akane-chan." Naruto told her.
Dinner passed with lots of conversation and laughter, and thankfully no food fights at the kid's table. When they finished they sat around and let themselves digest their meal a bit before moving on to the next part.
Naruto stood up. "Alright, I hope everyone's in the mood for dessert now." No one objected. "I'll go get it then. Could you lend me a hand Hinata?"
"Certainly." She said before rising and following him.
Akane was confused. 'Why didn't he just make a clone if he needed another set of hands?'
A few minutes later the cake was brought out. Right away everyone could see why two people needed to bring it out. It was roughly the length and width of a standard coffin and thick as a cinder block on it's side. Akane couldn't even imagine that thing actually fitting in their oven. The frosting was white with red lining along the edges and bottom. Atop it were nine lit red candles arranged in a circle. Naruto and Hinata then placed it on a small table previously set aside for just this.
Tsunade came over to the kid's table and placed a large tub of chocolate and vanilla mix ice cream on it, along with some chocolate syrup and sprinkles to use as toppings if desired. "Well? What'cha waiting for Akane-chan? Go on up."
Akane rose from her seat and slowly walked towards her parents. As she did, the other adults and kids got up too and surrounded her, making her a bit nervous. Then, they started singing.
"Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear Akane. Happy birthday to you."
"Come on dear, blow out the candles and make a wish." Hinata told her daughter with a warm smile as she stepped away from the cake.
Akane approached the table. Up close she saw in red icing the words 'Happy Ninth Birthday Akane' on it. To the right, the side Naruto had held, there was the Uzumaki spiral in orange icing. To the left, the side Hinata had held, there was the Hyuuga symbol in purple icing. Fortunately it was already cut so they wouldn't have to wait to have a piece. Akane thought about her wish before she inhaled deeply and blew. All the candles went out and everyone clapped for her.
"So what'd ya wish for?" Tsunade asked.
Akane arched an eyebrow. "Didn't you tell me I shouldn't tell anybody or it wouldn't come true?"
The slug sannin smiled and ruffled her surrogate granddaughter's hair. "Just making sure you remembered."
Hinata handed the young girl a piece of cake, a corner piece since kids usually covet those particular ones. In time everyone still hungry got a piece and some ice cream then sat down to eat.
"So what's going to happen next?" Shiba asked.
"I'm not sure. I wanted to be surprised." Akane admitted.
"Okay everyone, before we get to the end of this, I think it's time for Akane-chan to open her presents." Tsunade told everyone when they were done with the dessert.
"Alright!" The young girl shouted with her fist triumphantly in the air.
Everyone stayed outside but Naruto's clones brought out a large collection of wrapped-up gifts of various sizes and colors. The clones deposited them on the now bare table where the cake had been. The leftovers were currently in the kitchen.
"Oh where to start?" Akane asked herself.
"Here. Mine first. I know you're going to love it." Tsunade said with a large smile as she pulled her gift out of the pile.
Akane eagerly took it and tore into it with reckless abandon, yet careful enough to not actually damage the contents. She found a white box and opened it to reveal a red-and-black jumpsuit much like the one she wore to the academy. "Thanks Baa-chan it's great."
"Another one?" Sakura asked.
Tsunade nodded. "Of course. She's a growing girl and her current one is getting small and worn out. This one's a bit tougher and looser so it should last her until next year hopefully."
"Should I go put it on?" Akane asked after checking it's size.
"Later sweetheart. Here, open mine." Naruto told her as he handed her his own present.
She unwrapped it and saw a recipe book for how to make dozens of ramen dishes from scratch and came included with several utensils for the job and even a few seasoning packets. Seeing it made her immediately glomp onto her father in a tight hug. "THANK YOU OTOU-SAN IT'S PERFECT!"
"Okay, before we go any further, how many people brought ramen-related gifts?" Tsunade asked everyone. Kakashi, the Ichiraku's, Kiba, Chouji, and Shiba all raised their hands sheepishly, as if they had done something wrong. "Wow, fewer than I thought."
"I'm going for those ones next." Akane claimed, starting with the Ichiraku's. She wasn't that surprised to see a booklet of coupons to their stand. "Thanks guys, it's terrific." Then she eyed the big gift Kakashi brought her and opened it. His gift was a store's worth of no less than a dozen flavors of instant ramen cups numbering possibly no less than 90 cups total. "Cool. This should cover me for about a month or so."
"Oh no you don't. You are not going to eat all that so quickly." Hinata sternly insisted.
'A month or so? It's supposed to last three months. She really must be Naruto's kid.' Kakashi thought with some nervousness.
The other ramen-based gifts were fairly simple. Kiba gave her own set of red ramen bowls with matching reusable chopsticks. Shiba gave her the same only it was a blue set instead and the included chopsticks were decoratively designed to resemble katanas. Akane thanked them both for the gifts, promising to put them to full use later on. No one doubted that. Some suspected she'd use them all within the week if not tomorrow. As for Chouji, he gave her a bag of various ramen-flavored food pills to use when training, and told her to go easy on them as they weren't meant for snacking.
"Now that all the ramen-gifts are out of the way, which one will you pick next dear?" Hinata asked.
"How about yours Okaa-san?" Akane asked.
Hinata smiled, handed Jiraiya to Naruto, and soon pulled her present out and held it for a moment. "Akane-chan, this is a very special present. I got it from my mother years after she died, because I was too young back then to take care of it. She got it from her mother, and so on for generations, and I always knew I'd give it to my own daughter. Today, it's now yours."
Most of the guests were shocked speechless after hearing this, none more so than Hiashi, Hanabi, and Neji. "You sure about that Hinata?" Hiashi asked. "It was intended to stay within the clan after all."
"Kaa-san said it was meant to stay in the family, not the clan. If my daughter isn't fit to inherit it, then no one is." The former heiress replied with soft conviction.
Akane however looked unnerved. "Umm... Okaa-san, is it really okay for me to have this then?"
Hinata smiled, nodded, and handed the young girl the present. "Of course dear. I hope you enjoy it. I sure did when I was your age."
Akane carefully opened this gift, as if afraid she would damage it somehow. Once the wrapping paper and ribbon were off, she saw a small box the size of a DVD case covered in white felt, and unlocked the lid. Inside she saw a set of earrings made from silver and decorated with small diamonds. The earrings were sculpted to look like a yin-yang, one of the symbols of the Hyuuga clan, two diamonds in each of them to complete the symbol and some more diamonds covered the rim.
Akane smiled and hugged Hinata. "Thank you Okaa-san, they're beautiful. But can I really wear them?"
"If you pierce your ears and promise not to wear them while training or on missions. That would be dangerous to them and to you. They're just for at home and special occasions, understand?"
Akane nodded. "Yeah, but with my healing would it really work?"
"We'll see later, okay?" Hinata asked and Akane nodded.
"Can we take a look at those?" Shizune asked. Akane handed her the box and soon everyone in the room got the chance to see the heirloom jewelry one at a time.
While the earrings were being shown off, Akane picked a random gift again. This one turned out to be from Noburo and was the size of a toaster. Being careful with this one too, Akane discovered the contents were a fancy fox figurine made out of glass, made to look like it was sitting and waiting. Much like a statue in honor to the deity Inari, only much more realistic in design.
"Wow, thank you Noburo-kun."
The blue-haired boy smiled. "I thought you'd like it. I heard you got a thing for foxes, plus when you make that prankster smile of yours you remind me of a fox about to surprise its prey."
Akane blushed and looked away, but Hinata smiled. 'So he pays attention to her smile does he?'
Akane put the glass fox aside with the other opened gifts and moved onto the rest. Some of the guests brought similar but not identical things to give the young girl. Hiashi, Shino, Iruka, and Udon all gave her some books to read, some for her education and some just for recreational reading. None of them were Icha Icha of course. Ino, Sakura, Shizune, and Kurenai all gave her various clothes to wear, most of them red or having some red on them. Hanabi gave Akane something to wear as well, but it was a new pair of blue shoes with some white socks. Tenten, Neji, Anko, Moegi, and Mushi gave her a large collection of practice kunai, shuriken, and senbon along with a bokken too from Mushi.
The others were a bit more unique in their choice of presents. Shikamaru gave her one of his old shoji boards telling her it would help her learn strategizing and could be a way for her to beat Naruto at something, making many people snicker. Satoshi did something much like his cousin but he gave Akane a Go game instead, saying it would help her just as much. Temari gave her some seeds for some flowers and herbs from Suna, in case the girl had inherited her father's gardening hobby. Lee gave her some training weights, much lighter than he was used to due to her young age, and a small sample of the Curry of Life to eat later. Konohamaru gave her a pair of goggles, much like what he and Naruto used to wear before they became genin. Tatsu gave her a butterfly collection, which was actually a difficult thing to receive from an Aburame since insects had to die to create such a thing. Sayo gave her a few manga's from a series she heard Akane liked and some drawing supplies such as a paper pad and some pens. Shukaku gave her a small portable telescope so she could stargaze if she wanted to. Ryou gave her some CDs and Naomi gave her a non-digital wrist watch.
After everything was put away and Naruto and Hinata cleared away the excess wrapping paper, Akane bowed to the guests. "Thank you all for the wonderful gifts. I appreciate them all, but more so I'm just glad I'm not alone today." Some of the older guests wondered if that was a reference to Naruto's own neglected childhood or her life before Naruto took her in.
"We're glad you enjoyed today Akane-chan." Tsunade told her.
Akane smiled then faced her parents. "So what do we do now?"
"Why don't we and the other adults go somewhere and you kids go have fun on the Wii?" Hinata suggested. That game system was pretty popular with ninja families because it kept the player active.
"Sounds great."
"Have fun, and don't break anything." Naruto told the kids as he and the other adults went outside to hang out while Akane readied the Wii, selecting a multi-sport game and grabbed two controllers.
"Alright, who wants to get their tail kicked?" Akane cockily asked as she held out the second controller, keeping the first for herself.
Time went by and soon it was late at night. Akane and her friends spent hours passing the controllers between themselves and playing various sports, bowling being their favorite. Throughout their game little by little the adults left and went home, and each kid had to leave with their respective family member. By 9:30, only Naruto, Hinata, Jiraiya, and Akane were left.
"Was that fun for you dear?" Naruto asked.
Akane yawned and nodded. "Very."
'Looks like she's starting to crash from her sugar-rush.' He thought. "Maybe you should head for bed."
"But I'm not that tired."
"Try telling me that with your eyes open all the way." The blonde replied.
"Either way, it's close to your bedtime young lady." Hinata added. She had already put her infant son in his crib.
Akane whined. "Can't I stay up just a bit longer? I don't have school tomorrow."
"Alright, let's watch a movie for a bit but then you're going to bed." Naruto said.
Akane immediately plopped on the couch. "Sounds great."
Hinata smiled and sat down next to her daughter, putting one of her arms across Akane's shoulders to hold her. Naruto reached for the DVD collection, selected one, and placed it in the player before joining his wife and adopted child on the couch.
As the two adults expected, Akane fell asleep on her parent's lap before the movie ended. Moving quietly, they turned the TV and DVD player off and carried her up to her room. They placed her on her bed and pulled the blanket over her, then kissed her forehead.
"Goodnight Akane-chan." Hinata lovingly whispered.
"Hard to believe she's been with us for a year already huh?" Naruto asked his wife.
She wrapped an arm around his waist. "Yeah it is, and yet I can't picture life without her anymore."
"Me too, but then again she was already connected to me in a way." He added as they quietly left the room. "I'm glad she got what I couldn't at her age."
"And that's why you're such a good parent, Naruto." Hinata told him with a kiss.
They entered their room and put on their nightclothes. "I can't help but wonder though." Naruto started, catching his wife's attention. "Would my own parents be able to accept Akane-chan? With her being... you know?"
"I'm not sure." Hinata answered as she sat down on their bed. "I bet they would if they got to know her like we did. After all, Akane-chan isn't the same Kyuubi that did all that damage years ago."
Naruto slowly nodded and joined her on the mattress. "Yeah, but I get the feeling I'll always wonder." He then laid down but didn't cover himself.
Hinata pulled the blanket over them both, cuddled up to her husband, and kissed his cheek as she placed her hand on his chest. "All we can do is hope and be the best parents we can for her and Jiraiya-chan. And any others that will come later."
Naruto gave her a smile. "Eager to have a third so quickly?"
Hinata slapped his chest. "Ask me again when they're both older and I know how long it'll take me to lose all the weight I've still got from the first pregnancy."
"You're still beautiful, you know that right?" He asked with a smile and semi-closed eyes.
Hinata just smiled and lightly yawned. "Goodnight dear. I love you."
"I love you too my hime." He told her, but she was already going to sleep.
Unknown to everyone residing in the Uzumaki household, two people were watching the occupants that night. The duo was one man and one woman. Like ghosts, they sneaked into the house undetected by even the best security systems, and made no noise. But rather than scope out for the valuables as most would expect them to, they went upstairs to the bedrooms. The one belonging to Naruto and Hinata was the first one they entered.
The visiting duo just looked upon the sleeping blonde man and pale-eyed woman contently. For this duo was the spirits of Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki, being allowed a brief visit to the world of the living by the Shinigami to see their loved ones. In their case, their son and his family. They could see, but not been seen or heard or touched. No one would know they were there.
"I'm glad he found someone who could love him." Kushina said. "I knew he'd have a hard time finding love, like I did."
"I had faith." Minato added. "He did inherit my charm after all."
"Along with your obliviousness to women." Kushina replied teasingly.
"Hey it's not my fault men aren't taught to be romance-lovers from a young age."
The dead kunoichi giggled, but her eyes never left her son. "I wish we could have been there for him. I'll spend the rest of eternity wishing that, but knowing I can't change it."
The former hokage hugged his wife comfortingly. "It would have been nice to see him speak his first words, take his first steps, teach him what he needed to know, and everything else. But we didn't come here to talk about what we missed out on, did we?"
Kushina shook her head, and ran her hand across Naruto's cheek. He felt nothing, other than a brief chill. "My son, I'm glad you found what you were looking for. I'm sorry we had to force such a burden and lifestyle on you, but I'm proud you overcame it. And I'm proud that despite being around that old perv Jiraiya so much you didn't become one yourself."
"I'm proud you were able to match up to me my son. You've still got a few years before you can surpass me though." Minato added.
Kushina gave her husband a look. "He did get rid of Madara you know. And not only that, he learned the rasengan in a month and even advanced it. In my book, that means he surpassed you."
"But koi, I have more experience than he currently does. And he hasn't mastered the Hiraishin yet. Or advanced it."
"Fine, he's even. For now."
Minato nodded. "Yeah, I swear he might even upgrade the Hiraishin someday, although I have no idea how. But that I'd like to see."
Kushina nodded, then moved her eyes towards Hinata. "Thank you, daughter-in-law, for being there for him in a way no one else would. I don't think my son would have remained sane if it weren't for your kindness and care, even before you both knew what you really felt for each other. Always be there for him, for he will need you by his side for many things in the future."
"And I'm sure you'll need him just as much." Minato commented.
Kushina sighed. "You never did have a flair for saying a lot, did you dear?"
Minato shrugged. "I never said I was a jack-of-all-trades. You were the one with the gift of gab Kushina."
Kushina smiled at the Yondaime Hokage, then looked back at the sleeping couple. "We both wish you the best you two. We know you'll make us even more proud than we already are."
With that, the dead parents reluctantly left their son and went into another room, this one belonging to Jiraiya Uzumaki. The two approached the crib and leaned in to see their sleeping grandson up close.
"He looks just like you, but with dark hair." Kushina commented.
"I just hope he doesn't turn out like his namesake." Minato stated.
"Agreed. I don't mind if he becomes a sannin someday, but definitely not an ero-sannin."
"If he's anything like Naruto, then becoming a sannin should be the cards for him in the future." Minato said.
Kushina smiled at the infant and shed a ghostly tear. "Enjoy this time while it lasts little one, because once you're older you're in for a rough time."
"Especially if you end up with some fangirls." Minato semi-joked.
"Oh, it must be so horrible to a young boy to have a lot of girls throwing themselves at him." Kushina sarcastically remarked.
"Trust me, I'd rather deal with an Iwa nin then a horde of fangirls any day."
Kushina laughed and Minato rolled his eyes. "Something tells me this guy here is going to have a few admirers for sure. Maybe even a shy stutterer like his father did."
"Won't that be weird?"
The two then stared in content silence for a bit more at the sleeping infant, then quietly left the room. There was only one place left to see before they went back where they came from, and that was Akane's room. They entered and stood next to her bed, watching the young fox girl sleep comfortably.
"Hard to believe such a powerful, destructive creature could become such a charismatic, energetic child overnight, isn't it?" Minato asked.
Kushina nodded. "In all the time I knew the Kyuubi and it's connection to the Uzumaki's, I never imagined one day it would be considered family by any of us."
"I bet that wasn't an easy thing for our son to accept."
"It wouldn't have been any easier for me if it had happened to me instead." Kushina commented. "Having such a fearsome beast escape your body and then turn out to be an unknowing child? I don't know how I would have reacted. But I probably would have been too afraid to just stick her in the orphanage."
Minato chuckled. "That's a funny thought. The Kyuubi becoming Naruto's sister rather than daughter."
"I guess it's better than as his enemy. This Kyuubi would never turn against him, maybe even if her life depended on it."
"I just hope that will never have to be proven. It would probably destroy Naruto and his wife to see her die, even if she just got reborn again."
Kushina nodded. "Yeah, because then she wouldn't be the girl they knew anymore." She then turned back to look at Akane, who had shifted onto her other side, making her face away from the ghosts. "This girl here, may not be what I envisioned my granddaughter to be, but if our son loves her, that's enough for me. She's not the Kyuubi we knew. She's not a monster."
"But she will be a force to be reckoned with when she's older." Minato stated, then faced his wife. "And if she keeps looking like you as she grows up, she'll be beating away boys with a stick. Or a rasengan."
Kushina laughed. "And what if she catches a few perverts?"
"I don't want to know." He answered, making them both laugh. They stopped when Akane coughed once.
"We should probably get going." Kushina sadly proclaimed.
Minato nodded. "It was nice to see them all up close for once rather than just from the afterlife. Maybe someday we'll get to do this again. And maybe by then, there'll be another member to visit."
Kushina nodded and wiped away a tear. "Goodbye my son. Goodbye my grandchildren. Know that I love you. That we love you."
Minato hugged his wife, who pressed herself against him. "Take care of them Naruto. We'll always watch over you."
The two ghosts then faded away, returning to their eternity.
Akane rolled on her back and slowly opened her eyes. "Thanks, Jii-san and Baa-san. I guess I got my wish." She then closed her eyes and went back to sleep.