IDIL's Note: Aw, the first semi-cheerful Yondaime birthday fic! Again, it's just centered around him; doesn't actually have anything to do with his birthday. :) Enjoy! Please leave a review! ;D
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Or Minato for that matter. It's unfortunate, yes. D:
Minato had become a father long before the birth of Naruto.
In fact, his duties as a guardian seemed to start the minute he was nominated to teach the Konoha youth. Like all new sensei, he was required to start out doing a class or two at the academy, but upon news that Hatake Sakumo's prodigious son had managed to finish classes at the academy by the age of 5, he was assigned instead to watch over the brat as they went out on missions.
Later, when Kakashi was 9, and the Sandaime was beginning to get worried that unless the boy had a proper team along with him, he would be forced to go on A and S-Rank missions, he announced that there would be two fresh and bright young minds added to the team's force. Minato had been most excited at the prospect of finally being able to get Kakashi to associate with people his own age – the boy seemed to enjoy solitude a little too much, and he was getting to be too mature for his own good – while Kakashi had complained that due to the newcomers, he would be forced to take lower ranking missions.
With all three members of his team he developed a deep connection, although it sometimes seemed that he paid the most attention to Kakashi. Truth be told, he had sworn to protect the boy, in all senses of the word, the minute he had first been assigned to work with the five year old. The first time they were assigned a B-rank mission together had been when Kakashi was just six, and the poor young boy had become so fatigued from fighting enemies, that Minato had carried him all the way home.
He also stayed and watched over him two years later in the hospital when Kakashi had contracted a mild case of pneumonia, attributed to him tragically falling asleep beside his father's grave despite torrential rains. After Kakashi had fully recovered, Minato had taken him in and attempted to heal the invisible scars over his heart; had attempted to be the father the boy no longer had; had attempted to continue teaching him right from wrong, to ensure that he took all the positive outlooks from life lessons.
Although he did not display his affection for Obito as openly as he did for Kakashi, he still cared a lot for the other young boy on his team. Despite being a genius, he knew how it felt to be overshadowed by something, and he knew that Kakashi understood the feeling as well, which was why Minato always tried so hard to get them to befriend each other. They were going through different experiences, but those experiences had the same types of underlying causes, and both could take comfort knowing there was someone else who understood what it felt like. He would also always laugh at Obito's incessant excuses for tardiness. While they did irritate him occasionally, he strived to be patient and calm with the boy, never raising his voice or yelling.
Though not many could tell, Obito's death had shaken Minato, had put a stake straight through his chest and into his heart. He felt like one of those unfortunate parents whose hearts were broken as they heard someone tell them that their son was never coming home, that he'd never be there again. He'd never smile, or laugh, or cry, or fall in love; he'd never have the chance to live many experiences. Whenever Minato thought of Obito, he thought of bright smiles and bright minds, but he also thought of how much he hated the war. Obito was a permanent scar on Minato's heart, one that sometimes bled more than necessary.
His fatherly love did not really shine through with Rin, because like most fathers of teenage girls, he was much too afraid of the emotion and femininity that lurked behind her humble smile and warm eyes. It didn't help that she seemed to have a crush on Obito and an even larger one on Kakashi, or that her moods could sometimes be completely unpredictable. Minato was a lot of things, but quite that degree of father, he was not.
Nevertheless he kept a watchful eye on her and was the first to reach her side and protect her if she needed him. He always made himself available for when she needed to get something off her chest, and he always listened fully, even if he felt uncomfortable with what she was saying. Whenever Kakashi would occasionally verbally abuse her during one of his bad moods, Minato would silence him with a stern glare and would be sure to reprimand him about it later.
It helped the dynamic greatly, since they all bickered and fought and cared and pretended like siblings anyway. As for Minato, he was just glad they all seemed to be getting what they needed from him, and this notice pleased him greatly. For that, he continued to cheer for them with pride at their successes, comfort them after their falls, and remind them that not everything had to be perfect for it to be all right. Oh yes, Minato took great pride in his duties, and many often argued that he took them a step too far; he didn't pay any heed to them, because what did they know anyway?
They didn't know how nice and warm and good it felt to elicit a smile from Kakashi every now and then. They didn't know how your heart could surge with such pride that it felt as though it might take wings and fly out your throat whenever Obito perfected another Chuunin-level jutsu. They'd definitely never know how sad and weak and vulnerable one would feel as they comforted a crying Rin, one arm around her shoulders pinning her to you protectively, sheltering her from the world, and also effectively letting her know that you were there for her.
They'd never see or understand things from his perspective. And Minato figured that was ok with him. If no one could ever see them in that way again, it was fine. Because as far as he was concerned, they were his children, and he loved them more than anything.