Naruto: Hello!

Me: Quiet. The guest of honor has to wait until the party is ready.

Sasuke: Dobe.

Sakura: Do you really want to know what my fists can do to you?

Me: Everyone, stop fighting.

Kakashi: Well, I should help you stop them, but this volume of Icha Icha is so good…

Me: (sighs)

Well, before Naruto interrupted, I was going to tell you that this is the first chapter of my new story, Walking Back. Worst name ever, but it has to start somewhere. Anyway, please feel free to completely denounce it, spam it with horrible reviews, and whatever else you want to do. This is just a test, anyhow.

7/6/16 Edit: The first 9 chapters are old. They involve Minato and Kushina coming back to life and meeting Naruto. If the writing here bothers you, skip to chapter 10 and start there.

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Boredom-Chapter 1

It was so quiet here. There was nothing, nothing at all, except for the occasional jostling and whispers of insults. Insulting whom, they couldn't imagine, but all was quiet and blurry. Until, in a moment (they had lost track of time when one of them in the corner stopped gurgling) there was a bang, and then there was light.

"Who," boomed a voice, from the light, "took the service of my master, just a short 3 years ago?" None answered; for who could remember such a thing as who was who and what was then and where they were at such a time, for all knew that there was fire at some such other moment, a strange burning. Except two.

"We do not know of this action of which you speak of, nor whether we were even here at that time," spoke two voices intertwined together. Slowly, the others retreated into the corners, for they were unlike the rest, with sense of self. "YOU!" And suddenly the two were grasped by a spectral force, and they lapsed into unconsciousness.

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Shinigami was not a patient being, and, thus, as he waited for his servant (out of many, this one was supposed to be the fastest) he muttered curses under his breath, damning the servant's ancestors and descendants to whatever fates he could think of. "One should be turned into a mangy dog and slaughtered by their kin… then, the one-" the doors to his hall were forced open by the very servant he was cursing.

"Finally, you worthless creature. Now, go back to your job of shoveling soul vomit, or whatever it was that you were doing before," Shinigami hissed out before turning the souls toward him (he never turned towards anyone, he was much too prideful for that).

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There was light all around him. Yes, he remembered now, he and her (it was a her, he knew now) were separate beings, even in the afterlife. Yes, he recalled, they were dead, killed by something he could not think of, and not anything else would yield to his prying presence in his mind.

He looked around, eyes now able to see that the light gave way to shapes and color. Then, his eyes were forced onto a figure, and his still recovering mind sent him a rope to cling to. One word. "Shinigami-sama," he exclaimed, yet he could not move, for the being in front of him exerted such killing intent that he could not bear to look away.

"You two," hissed Shinigami, his lips dry and stiff, "called upon my services and hoped you could get away with it. I threw you into the Pit of Nothingness and hoped you would dissolve, but after THREE YEARS you still cling to life! I have decided to restore you to complete consciousness and let you look upon the consequences of your actions, both here and on Earth. I believe that will finally break you." The little energy he had, it seemed, burst from him and left him spiraling into darkness again.

When he awoke (yes, that was the proper word) it was dark again. His partner seemed as clueless as him. "Partner," he began, but couldn't finish, as his partner clung to him closely, and they both were silent, comforted by the physical contact. "Partner, do you recall more than I?" whispered he. "Shinigami-sama, no, just Shinigami, said something else. I couldn't quite hear it. Sorry, Partner. I wasn't efficient enough, for I remember as much as you."

He was silent, for his Partner, he had hoped, should have remembered more. Perhaps it was a stray bit of his memory, but though he could sense that she remembered as much as he, she always did more than he, even in… where? He almost remembered, but it was still lost to him.

"Mina…" his Partner muttered. "I know that I called you Mina sometimes, but I'm still missing part of your…" she paused, searching for a word, "name." He pressed her closer, the two once more silent. She looked into his eyes. "Blue. Your eyes are blue, Mina, like the sky." "And yours are a darker blue, almost purple, like my… I can't remember, Partner." And the two descended into nothingness again, slumber coming easily to them.

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She was shaking, as they awoke again, this time in a chamber with a wide rectangle, a… bed? Was that the word? Yes, and the walls were brown, the room small. Mina was by her side, staring at her, the two of them illuminated by a ball of soft, red light. Shinigami's little joke.

"Mina? It's so cold. We have no… clothes. That's it. No clothes," she almost sang, for they were still remembering things, and they were still together. Partners always were together. Or it would hurt. "Just stay under the blankets." She laughed (laughter, she now knew, could be used at many times) at the now-obvious solution.

"Aw, Kushina, it's not that funny. You shouldn't laugh at yourself like that," Mina scolded. "Minato, you're one to talk, always laughing at those seals of yours!" And they laughed together, their names now echoing in the small space. Kushina almost nuzzled Minato, getting closer to him. "Mina. I'm still going to call you Mina," she teased. It felt so natural, like she had done it before. "Aw, but it sounds so girly," pouted Minato. Kushina smiled, before darkness pressed itself onto the two again.

Dream/Flashback

"No, Kushina, we can't go telling everyone you're pregnant with my son and his name is going to be Naruto," scolded Minato. "But you're the Hokage! Minato Namikaze! And we need some reason for me to suddenly take a vacation and turn in my hitai ate. I know you're paranoid, but even the leader of Konohagakure has to stop worrying about his wife sometimes." Minato just nodded, and went back to his ever-multiplying paperwork. It was better not to anger her.

End

The two awoke, again in the room. "Did you have the same dream as I?" Minato asked, Kushina simply nodding. " I still feel so empty." "And broken," Minato added, the room now silent. The red light above flickered. "Crap," Kushina got in, before darkness came again, pain pulsing from the light, memories being forced into their fallible minds.

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They were taking too long to remember. Forcing the memories in was faster, and the screams of torment that slipped from their mouths gave him a wonderful rush of satisfaction. Their limp forms took in slow, greedy breaths, still slumbering. "Awaken," he commanded, and their eyes (what pathetic eyes, he thought) opened.

They stood up, daring to defy him by speaking before he. "You enjoy playing with us, don't you? Damn bastard," Kushina said, before Minato whispered soothing words to her, quieting her. "Time to start your punishment." And he smirked. This would be fun.

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Alright, so I hope you enjoyed this first chapter. Please review!