Hello all! Just decided to try my hand at something else once more – while I may not be known for anything quite yet.(Thankfully. No expectations!) I decided to entertain others with the thought of "What if?" A phrase that many of us have heard several times before of course, a speculation in it's own right. So the question is – "What if Kushina had a younger cousin who she corresponded with on the regular?" "What if she was never aware of the fact that Naruto had made it?" Because at the end of the day, the Shinobi world isn't quite what people make it out to be. It is a place of intrigue, of deception, of betrayal. What is the pain of a few, if it is for the sake of many?

Please note; this will be a one – two shot at most. If interest piques, then I don't mind doing a few more snippets like I plan to do for "Lyn oui scema vun sa?" Which I plan to do… eventually. Anyone who is interested in the origin of Taifu can… PM me, I guess? I have her backstory saved… somewhere. But all well! Enough about that. Let's get this show on the road.

"If I had the most trivial of things to say… my dearest cousin, Kushina. It would be that… I'm glad to have visited Konohagakure. Hopefully I can meet your little bundle of joy, and whoever the father is sometime! Mother says that I have to focus on my sealing though… I don't really care for it, but the Uzumaki name is dependent on us! Right? I know that I… pester you about it all the time, and I know the subject is changing so suddenly, but Kushina-Chan, how is it… being a shinobi? Tetsu no Kuni isn't really the… best of places to be curious, and I think that my father (Inari rest his spirit) wouldn't be proud of me seeking out that path of life.

It was nice though, seeing you… six more months, eh? Well, it was a nice birthday gift! Fourteen… I wonder how it'd be, being the older cousin to your runt. Heheh! It'll be cool I bet! 'Ttebane!

Crap, mom would strangle me if she heard me… 'copying' your verbal tic. But you're the best! So whatever. Please, just write back soon, ne?

With all of the love that I can muster – Uzumaki-Taifu."

The letter had been sent off in the early months of spring, April if she remembered precisely – it was a gift from her ailing mother, who had wanted her daughter to come into contact with more of their kin to dissuade her from the life of a Shinobi, no matter how dangerous or alluring it had been.

While Taifu Uzumaki – the slender, vivacious, yet somehow soft-spoken crimson haired cousin (Second? Third?) cousin of Uzumaki-Kushina hadn't expected to be allowed to be a Shinobi in the first place. Her father may have given her hand to hand combat, and information on how to utilize the seals that their clan were feared for…

But being a Shinobi? Pft, that would've sent him to the grave far faster than anything else that could have. And the man was as stubborn as a rock. It took a few months, until the start of July until she received her next letter – a little longer than what she had expected, but then again, things like this always tended to lag behind more important assignments. She was sitting on the windowsill, bundled up tightly and staring out to the distance – as if waiting, as if knowing that people would be there with her mail soon enough. Well, they always were, so it was really more of a sense of anticipation of what she would get instead of being anxious of not getting anything. She didn't have to wait long of course – her ice blue eyes devoured the next letter hungrily, prying open the scroll with a bit of her blood (a safety precaution. It was still sensitive information, after all.) and curling up on her perch with a ravenous interest.

"Dear little Taifu.

It's interestin' to hear about your questions again! I thought that you got enough of questioning me when you were last here! Y'know? There are so many things I can tell you about the Shinobi life, how dangerous it is… but how it allows you to protect those who are close to your heart. That's something that I'm sure that your old man taught you right? Protect your precious people? Yeah, I know it sounds cheesy and all, but it's the thing that's been driving me for my entire life!

Maybe it's best for you to follow your heart instead of what's expected. Don't tell your mom I said that though… Ranko has a temper that can make me, the great Uzumaki Kushina balk! Hehe, but yeah. Now that the war is winding down... maybe you could visit again soon? I can show the little baby to you, and introduce you to the father. You'd like him… you'd never believe how we met too…

So romantic… even if he was a prick when I first met him. He thought that some village had lost its idiot when he met me! Me! An idiot? Pft, as if…

Right. Where were we again Gaki? Right, what it means to be a shinobi. Well, some people want fame, and other people want to be heroes. But if you want to be a Hero in the shinobi world, it means that ya gotta be willing to do things that ain't the best… and so, I'm glad that you're not in that life yourself, it brings all sorts of troubles – I'm sure that my kid is going to be a great Shinobi though! The kid'll do us proud, I'm sure…

I'll indulge you that in a few years I guess!

To the hopes for our futures - Uzumaki-Kushina."

There was a wistful pause between words, as if she could envision her cousin smiling her bright smile, her beautiful countenance practically illuminating the paper with warmth that left the messy haired youth smiling subconsciously.

Maybe she was never one for romance novels, but Kushina often had her hanging off of each and every word with a rapture that was more akin to hero worship than just respecting her elders. Is that what she would call it? Hero worship? Well, she certainly appreciated Kushina, and not just her cooking either… even if she could make some delicious dumplings.

And it was the last letter that she had ever received. It took some months, she had sent off her own curt reply sometime later – planning on visiting Konohagakure with her mother one last time, to see the kid (October 10th was the due date. She always reminded herself of this.) And bouncing on her heels in urgency every morning wasn't exactly helping anyone around their home of two.

October 20th brought with it news that broke the heart of her mother. Both redheads were prepared to leave that morning, and Taifu was surprised to hear a wail, a cry of emotional anguish that woke her from her slumber and left her own heart pounding in her ears. What had gone on? What was wrong with her mother? Why was she so… broken? She had taken the death of her father on in stride, but the pale woman looked especially broken at the black envelope in hand.

"To whomever this may concern…

We regretfully inform you that Uzumaki Kushina, along with her firstborne child, have perished due to complications in birth. Condolences are offered, as it is always hard losing family. However, the will of Kushina lives on in you, as it lives on in others that she has touched.

Respectfully regarded – Sarutobi Hrizuen."

And it was the worst letter that she had ever received from Konoha, she decided then and there. There of course, was a disbelief, and a hatred, and a loathing of the child that had taken away Kushina, but then there was the memories the time that they shared, the week of laughter that they shared… well, everything they shared.

And she would cherish these moments, and carry on her life like her cousin would want her to. Maybe someday soon, she would be worthy of laying flowers on Kushina's grave, and to meet her and her unborn child in the afterlife…

But for now? Taifu had to focus on the here and now, she would have her time to grieve, just as her mother would – if that grief hadn't brought her mother death, then maybe the redhead wouldn't be so afraid to express her own sorrows.

Maybe, just maybe? She could hold up her head and look forward to a brighter dawn. Because if she wasn't willing to live for Kushina, if she wasn't willing to live for herself, if she wasn't willing to live for the dying clan of the Uzumaki….

Then she wasn't worth her spot on the Earth. It took time, but maybe, just maybe… her own way of honoring Kushina would be through the few things that they shared.

Taifu always wondered how she would look with her hair grown past shoulder length anyhow.

And that's that! Nothing fabulous I know, but I don't like getting in over my head and… being ditzy. Maybe you guys can give me a few pointers here and there? I would really appreciate it, Naruto isn't exactly my strongest suit anymore, and y'know… stuff… decent at characterization, decent at Roleplaying, suck-ass at making a story (even a one shot) by myself. :3