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Disclaimer: All rights and characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto. (I can only hope I've kept his creations in character...)
I. Beginnings
In the beginning, he'd had no one.
No mother. No father. No family. No friends.
The third had always looked out for him, though. To a lonely child like Naruto, having the Hokage on his side almost made up for all the missing pieces in his life. (It did not make up for the fact that he had never heard his father's laugh, nor ever see his mother's smile… but it did help.)
But eventually he had gone as well.
Then Jiraiya showed up, and with his arrival a new sense of warmth and protection. He filled the void that only a father ever could. (And for that Naruto was forever grateful.) His three years spent with the pervert had been the most memorable years of Naruto's young life – but that, too, had eventually come to an end.
But then Jiraiya died, because not even a Sannin could escape Death's call.
And Naruto had cried. And cried, and cried, and cried, because now, despite the bonds with his friends and the new-found acknowledgement from the villagers, he felt that he was truly alone again.
But then she jumped into his life – quite literally – and he realized he had never been alone to begin with.
She had always been there for him, quietly watching from the shadows. At first, if he were to be honest, he'd found it to be a bit creepy. But the more he thought about it, the more it warmed his heart. All along, she had been there, rooting for him when nobody else did. She had empathized with him before anyone could have ever had the chance. She had loved him, way before he himself had known what the emotion really meant. He could never thank her enough.
And now, as he stood next to her, hand white and throbbing from her vice-like grip, he could only thank her again for the gift she had bestowed upon him.
A son.
Naruto Uzumaki had a son.
The nurses whisked the child away right after the whole ordeal, Sakura instructing them of what to do while absently healing the Orange Hokage's nearly broken left hand.
("I didn't know she had it in her." Sakura smirked, and Naruto could only mutter his agreement as he watched his tired wife begin to drowse off.
"Neither did I.")
Half an hour later their little bundle of joy was returned - safe and clean, and with an adorable blue cap snug on his tiny little head.
Naruto poked Hinata on her cheek to awaken her, a dreamy smile still fixed on her lips as she tucked the newborn close to her chest.
"Naruto-kun?"
The orange-clad Hokage never looked up from the whiskered-face of his child, wondering in amazement if this was really his life. "Yes?"
"I was thinking… of a name. H-how about Mina–?"
Hinata did not get to finish the sentence, as Naruto maneuvered around their child to give her a long, passionate kiss.
"How did you know?" he asked when their lips broke, glancing at the baby's spiky blond locks. His eyes weren't open yet, but it didn't matter. Byakugan or not, Naruto would still treat his son with all the love and attention he himself had dreamed of as a child.
"...I could tell from your eyes."
Naruto smiled as Hinata wiped an escaping tear from his eye. "Thank you, Hinata. Thank you so much." Hinata said nothing. She only smiled, lifting her free arm to welcome Naruto's hug. "I love you."
"Aishiteru, Naruto-kun."
Naruto thoughts drifted to two navy haired Uchihas.
Get ready, bastard. Naruto visibly grinned. Once Kaiori-san gives birth to your son, the Uzumaki's will be knocking on your door every day.
Naruto's expression softened as his thoughts turned to the other Uchiha. Sorry, Obito-san, but this reality is better than any dream I could have come up with.
Actually, this was better than anything he could have ever wished for.
This was a new beginning: for him, for his family, and most importantly, for his son.
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Until next time,
Dee
