In which Fuu makes a new friend and Roshi learns how to babysit.
O-O-O-O-O
Fuu cries for a week after Kushina dies.
Her instructors don't know how to handle her tears. For the first few days, they indulge her. They suspend training for a day and send her to the hospital, believing she is ill and fearing her seal has weakened. However, she receives a clean bill of health from the terrified doctors and nurses and she is sent back to her handlers the next day.
When asked, Fuu can only explain that she's sad. When they ask for a reason why, however, she can't answer and she's too young to invent a good lie. No one except the jinchuuriki know about the Room that connects them to each other. So when they ask for a reason, she can only respond with I don't know, which only makes her handlers angrier.
Besides, with her four-year-old vocabulary, what could she say? How her heart feels empty? How she will never again hear Kushina's voice? How Kushina was the first person outside of her mother to ever let her to sit on her lap? How Kushina always smiled at her, even when all Fuu did was complain about her training? How she will never ever see her again?
For the past few months, Kushina had been showing up in the Room more and more often, each time with a bigger belly. She cooed at Fuu, lifting her up easily and making her laugh. A few times, she even peered through the window of the One-Tail Jinchuuriki and tried to communicate with it, a frown on her face. Apparently, the vessel was still too young to enter the Room and its handlers were not doing a good job of taking care of a baby.
Kushina had explained that she was going to have a son. She had told Fuu that she wanted her son to be as beautiful and intelligent as Fuu was (it was the nicest thing anyone had ever said to her). She had said the baby was going to be named Naruto. Fuu wonders what happened to the infant. Did the baby die with Kushina? Or is the baby alive and safe somewhere? She hopes that whatever happened to Naruto, he grows up happy and loved.
Fuu doesn't know how she died. Fuu hadn't been in the Room when Kushina perished, but she had received the emotional impressions that always happen when any of them are feeling anything very strongly. For the months leading up to her death, Kushina's aura had shined with happiness, although it was always mixed with a little anxiety. As for the actual day of her death, all she remembers are pain and excitement, followed by panic, then melancholy, and finally death.
Thinking about Kushina, missing Kushina is the worst thing that has ever happened in her young life. Even the pain of sealing the Nanabi last year pales in comparison to the deep aching sorrow in her young heart. And because life isn't fair and she barely understands what happened and Kushina is gone, she can't stop crying, no matter how much they ask why.
And because Fuu can't explain anything, her handlers get more frustrated with her by the minute, telling her to stop sobbing and get back to work on her katas. But she can't. It hurts too much. Finally, after a week of crying and doing mediocre katas with eyes blurred by tears, her jounin instructor slaps her across the face and yells at her that weapons aren't supposed to have feelings.
Even with the bijuu in her body, the slap stings and she falls to the ground. It doesn't take long to heal and the slap barely hurts after a few seconds- one of the few benefits to being a jinchuuriki. However, she still feels tired and her heart hurts. She wants to rebel. She knows Kushina would have stood up for herself because that's the kind of person she was.
But Fuu can't. She's just a little girl and she's scared. So she follows her jounin's orders, wipes the tears from her eyes, and begins practicing her katas again. And while the sting of her instructor's slap quickly fades thanks to her bijuu, the pain in her heart doesn't leave. It simply waits.
That night, Fuu cries herself to sleep and appears in front of her green Door in the Room. She hasn't visited the Room since the night before Kushina died. She had expected the Room to be empty. Instead, the short red-haired man whom she has never talked to is standing in the middle and doing katas with a long wooden staff. Kushina liked asking him for recipes, she remembers.
She looks at the Door that once belonged to Kushina. There is a new Nine-Tails Jinchuuriki. She can only tell there's a new vessel because the Door representing the Kyuubi's jinchuuriki is glowing a faint blue color. She wonders what kind of person the new vessel is and hopes that they will be as kind as Kushina was.
The man nods at her with acknowledgment but says nothing. Except for Kushina, all of the jinchuuriki prefer to spend their time alone, rarely talking to each other beyond basic pleasantries or overt threats. The shadows of the Shinobi Wars are too large to ignore, even in times of peace. Fuu was created after the Third War ended, but the others have been part of rival villages for a really long time.
Even with her limited life experience, she knows that she should never ask any other jinchuuriki personal questions or questions about their countries. The only ones you could possibly trust were the ones from the same village. But Takigakure only has one jinchuuriki and she's alone there too.
So instead of talking, Fuu goes and sits down in front of the man. He has so much control and power behind his strikes that it's hypnotic. It's clearly a kata that he has done thousands of times until he perfected the rhythm. The man raises his eyebrows for a second to look at her, but doesn't protest and he continues his kata.
The unlikely pair stay like that for a long time, silent except for the grunts of effort when he swings his staff. Other than the nod and the raised eyebrow, the man continues his routine as if he were alone in the Room.
As she pulls her knees to her chest, Fuu wishes that she hadn't come to the Room. She feels more alone than ever. The Room was the place where she met Kushina, the woman Fuu admired and who helped take care of her. The woman who wiped her tears and let her sit on her lap. Who taught her a children's song from Uzushio. The only one who cared about her as a person. Who made her feel like being a jinchuuriki was a good thing. Who told her that she needed to fill her life with love.
But Kushina will never spend time with her again. And Fuu will just be alone the rest of her life. If even her fellow villagers distrust and hate her, how can anyone love her? Before she knows it, Fuu is bawling again.
O-O-O-O-O
Roshi stops in the middle of the kata and looks at the small child. He knows that the girl was close to Kushina. He had heard them chattering with each other often enough, usually keeping him awake at night, to his annoyance. He himself had a distant but respectful relationship with Kushina.
It isn't easy to put away Village Rivalries, despite having a shared background as bijuu vessels. Kushina would occasionally ask about life before the Second Shinobi War and he would sometimes share recipes from Iwagakure. They exchanged conversation once or twice a month at most.
But the little girl had spent almost every night with Kushina since she had linked up to the Room, tiny and terrified. Kushina took the girl under her wing, soothing her fears and comforting her at night. He wasn't surprised her death had such an impact on her, especially considering the little girl's age. He hadn't expected Kushina to die so suddenly either, since it was a time of peace.
Roshi hesitates only a second before he squats down next to the girl. He puts his old callused hand on her tiny shoulder and tries to think of a way to cheer her up, even though he has no idea how. Kushina would have screamed at him for letting a little girl cry and in respect for her memory, he will try.
"Hey girl," he gruffly says. Oh god, I'm going to frighten her. On her part, the girl only continues bawling. He doesn't know if she's actually crying harder or if he's imagining it.
"It's okay, it's okay," he continues nervously, "it's okay to cry you know. The shinobi code says we aren't supposed to cry, but you're not a shinobi yet, so the rules don't apply to you. Besides, Kushina-san wouldn't have wanted to see you cry all the time."
She's definitely crying harder than before.
What is he supposed to say? He had never comforted a little girl before. Or anyone, actually. Just looking at his face sends even the most hardhearted jounin walking away in the opposite direction. He has made more people cry in one week than he has ever comforted in his life. But now, his new mission is to make a little girl stop crying. Maybe some misdirection could work?
"So, kid," he started, "what's your name, anyway?"
The girl takes a second to wipe her nose with her forearm before answering.
"Fuu," she whispers, her large orange eyes shiny and full of tears. She buries her face in her hands, sobbing. But at least she is now willing to talk to him.
"My name's Roshi," he answers to the unasked question. "Nice to meet you."
He extends his hand to for her to shake. She hesitates before putting her tiny palm inside his hand. He squeezes her hand and sits down next to her, still holding on to her.
"Nice to meet you, too," she whispers. She has stopped sobbing, although a few tears roll down her cheeks and her voice is strained. They sit together for a few moments in companionable silence. Roshi's hand is warm. Slowly, Fuu's breathing slows down to smaller hiccups until she finally quiets completely. Her orange eyes are still dangerously damp though.
"Have you looked through the window of the new Nine-Tails Jinchuuriki yet?" he finally asks when she wipes away the last of the tears. She shakes her head. She's too short to look through the window without help and she hasn't been in the Room for over a week now.
"Well, in that case, let's go see together," he says. Still holding hands, they stand up. Effortlessly, Roshi picks her up and puts her on his hip. He can tell that the girl is unused to being carried. All of the jinchuuriki are. Even as a young boy, his handlers would never carry him, instead forcing him to walk or run on his own, no matter how tired he felt or how young he was.
Being carried probably also reminds her of Kushina. They might not have talked often, but he had seen her devotion to the little girl, especially after she got pregnant. She had even confided to him that she was looking forward to being a mother, despite her status as a jinchuuriki. How often did jinchuuriki become parents anyway?
With the girl on his hip, he walks to the door that represents the Kyuubi's vessel. He peers through the window and moves her face closer, pointing to the other side.
"Look, Fuu," he points, "through the window, you can see what the other host sees. The other host can block the sight from the others if they want, but since this is a new jinchuuriki, they still haven't figured out how to do it."
Together, the man and the little girl peer through the window. To his surprise, instead of objects, he could only see the basic outlines of creatures that seemed to slowly move in front of its eyes. A baby mobile?
"Roshi-san, why is everything so blurry?" the girl asked.
"This jinchuuriki is still very young," he explains, "their vision hasn't fully developed yet. I'm guessing the new host of the Kyuubi is just a newborn baby."
Just like with the One-Tail. Are the villages making their weapons younger and younger? It's a little worrying. Yugito and Fuu had at least been out of diapers when they were created.
"So it's a baby?"
"Yeah, a baby."
Roshi touches the door of the host, which is usually the only way to have direct contact with another jinchuuriki when they aren't also in the Room. Hello, child, how are you? The baby seems to stir for a moment and their vision moves around the room a little, as if looking for the source of the new mysterious voice.
"Here, Fuu-chan, touch the door. Send the baby a message." Fuu doesn't hesitate. She puts her tiny hand on the window next to Roshi's hand. She had probably communicated with Kushina like this before.
Hello Baby! What's your name? Fuu already sounds a lot more cheerful.
The newborn, of course, can't understand anything although both of them receive a vague expression of happiness from the baby. It's obviously excited to hear a something completely new. Hearing mysterious voices in its head is probably the most exciting thing that has ever happened in its short life.
What have you been doing in your life? Is your mommy nearby? Do you have a mommy? I have a mommy but she's busy on a mission now that I'm a jinchuuriki. She says I have to be strong and listen to my teacher but the teachers are mean and I don't like when they hit me. If you have mean teachers, make sure you hit them too! Oh, are you a boy or a girl? Because I want a little sister, but if you are a boy, it's okay too. But you have to be nice to girls! If you're not nice to girls, I will hit you, even if you are a baby!
The girl sure looks happier. She is even smiling as she mentally talks a mile a minute to their tiny new companion. Although the newborn is still too young to give words to his thoughts, Roshi can tell from its emotional state, that the baby is very happy at the moment. If it's being raised like most jinchuuriki children, the infant is probably only receiving the bare minimum amount of attention required to keep it alive.
He wonders who the new host is. Usually they know in advance when a jinchuuriki is going to leave the Room forever, usually from age or bijuu extraction. However, Kushina's death was incredibly sudden and unexpected. A newborn baby is unexpected too, especially considering Kushina's condition at the time of her death. If he were a betting man, he would say this new jinchuuriki is also Kushina's child, considering the Uzumaki clan's abilities. However, there is no way to prove that until the baby joins them in the Room.
Roshi and Fuu sit down in front of the door and continue to communicate with the baby for a while longer, talking about everything and anything that springs to mind (or at least Fuu does, Roshi mostly sends vague messages of cheer that the baby seems to enjoy anyway). They don't leave until they felt the baby snoozing, a feeling of safety and comfort spreading from the jinchuuriki's Door.
Fuu, who had at one point moved to sit on his lap (when had that happened?), smiles at the door and sends the baby a final message. Sleep well. The pair stand up, Roshi and Fuu finally separating as he sets her down on the floor.
"Sleep well, girl, you have a long day tomorrow I'm sure," he tells her.
"I will! And you too Roshi-sama. Sleep well!" Her eyes are still full of grief about Kushina's death, but the smile she gives him is strong.
She disappears from the Room as she waves goodbye, a small smile on her face. He shakes his head. How did he ever get put in babysitting duty? He only wanted to practice his form before going to sleep, dammit!
Roshi gives one last look at the new jailor's door before walking away to inspect the other rooms. Except for the youngest ones, the other jinchuuriki can all form a mental barrier to protect their privacy, like a curtain on a window. Because of that, he can't see through any other Doors except for those of the youngest three.
So instead of trying to spy on his fellow hosts, Roshi glances at the Door of the One-Tail Jinchuuriki. Kushina had mentioned in passing that she liked talking to the other baby because it seemed to be in a lot of pain and suffering. Kushina had been one of the few to visit the Room with regularity. Sometimes, she even tried to communicate with the mysterious jinchuriki of the Three-Tails and the Six-Tails. If they ever answered or even acknowledged her, Roshi would probably never know.
Kushina was probably the only one of us that ever talked to the other baby, he thinks.
The thought of a baby being separated from reassurance does strange things to his conscience and before he knows it, he's standing in front of the Ichibi Jinchuuriki's Door. Peering through the window, he can see that this baby is older than the newest host. Instead of blurry black and white shapes, he can see colors and the shapes of some toys. Based on the point of view, the baby is seated on the floor and surrounded by toys and stuffed animals. Maybe this baby is not being treated as badly as the other one?
Roshi touches the Door. Instinctively, he flinches and pulls his hand away. The baby is suffering. The child is exhausted and in extreme pain, unable to deal with that and confused about where the pain comes from. It makes him want to throw up. How can a tiny baby deal with this level of suffering?
He puts his hand back on the door, this time ready to feel and absorb some of the baby's emotions. I'm here child. Let me take some of the pain away.
Roshi concentrates and is able to absorb the negative feelings into himself. Compared to what he experienced during the Second and Third Shinobi Wars, the pain is nothing. However, for a child, let alone a baby, the pain is excruciating. The infant needs all of the help it can get. However, this solution is temporary at best, since he can't remove the source of the pain, even if he knew what it was. The two are simply too far away from each other.
From the other side of the door, the baby seems to tilt its head, as if the reduction of its suffering has never happened before. It probably hasn't.
Hello, baby. Are you feeling better now? A child your age shouldn't feel this much pain, you know.
His messages seem to reach the target easily, but just like the newborn, the jinchuuriki is still too young to fully understand the words he says. It can obviously understand the sentiment, though, because he quickly receives an emotional impression of joy. Roshi can't help but smile in pleasure.
He can tell that the baby is exhausted. He would say it was chakra exhaustion but he has never had to worry about that in his life and he doubts any jinchuuriki could ever run out of chakra. He's sure that whatever is keeping the child in pain is also keeping him from sleeping for long periods of time.
He sends the host a few more messages, trying to be positive while at the same time trying to absorb some of the negative energy away. Roshi keeps talking by the door for a while- an hour according to his internal clock. He almost doesn't notice when someone else joins the room. He doesn't need to turn around to know that it's Han, the Five-Tails jinchuuriki.
While Roshi is short, Han towers over him at over seven feet tall. His broad shoulders and armor only make him look bigger and more intimidating. He is also the oldest of the jinchuuriki, having seen dozens of hosts come and go during the shinobi wars. Some jinchuuriki didn't even last a week before dying and getting transferred into a new poor bastard.
But Han is a friend. Possibly, he is Roshi's only friend considering their shared disdain for the Tsuchikage and their status as jinchuuriki. He is also his cousin, although that connection is so distant as to be practically meaningless. Han trained Roshi in how to be a shinobi and for that alone, he is grateful.
Han walks over to stand next to Roshi in front of the One-Tail Jinchuuriki's door. Han can see that he is touching the door to communicate with the baby and he raises an eyebrow at Roshi.
"I've been stuck with babysitting duty, it seems," Roshi complains. "For some reason, being possessed by an arrogant monkey demon is not enough to get out of taking care of little tiny babies."
"Are you talking about your bijuu or are you describing yourself?" he teases. Roshi glares back at him but without any rancor.
Han gives a small chuckle as he goes to put his hand on the door next to Roshi's in order to send a message. Hello, baby. Will you be joining us soon in the Room? Even mentally, Han's voice is strong and calming.
Based on what they can see through the small window, the appearance of a second voice delights the child and it starts to giggle. Roshi gives a satisfied smile. He doesn't think he has ever heard a baby laugh before. It's also nice to feel positive emotions coming from the child.
Han appears calmer than he has seen him since Kushina died. His eyes are relaxed and he seems to be absorbing some of the same suffering that Roshi is currently dealing with. The two stand together in silence that's become usual for the two men- of a friendship so strong it transcends words.
They stay like that for a while longer, giving a little comfort to the child before they leave the Room and head back to their lives as weapons of their village.
O-O-O-O-O
When Fuu wakes up, she doesn't feel like crying anymore. Thinking about Kushina still hurts and she knows that part of her heart will always feel empty when she thinks about her. But for now, she is ready to move on with her life. She needs to meet the little baby soon.
She leaves her bed to get ready for the day. She has taijutsu katas to complete and her handlers will probably be even more strict and vindictive than normal considering how she's been doing for the past week. In any case, she gets dressed in her normal mesh outfit, brushes her teeth, combs her hair, and washes her face.
She will never see Kushina again, but for now, she needs to move forward.
O-O-O-O-O
A/N: Figuring out formatting took way longer than I thought it would. Thanks so much to modoribashi on AO3 for helping me beta this work.
Just as a heads up, there will be minor background (non-canon) relationships in this work. Some of those relationships and characters will be LGBT/Queer because I am a gay (TM). If you are curious, Sasuke/Naruto and Gaara/Lee are the two big ones although there will be a few other minor background relationships. All of the romance will be in the background though, so even when I get to those parts, there won't be too much on that front. I'm not good at writing romance and if I DO decide to write more details in how characters get together, I'll probably make a side story instead of adding it to this one.
Next chapter: rumors spread about the Nine-Tails Jinchuuriki, Naruto links up with the Room, Killer B's rapping sucks.