A/N: Here I am with yet another story! I should really be focusing on ABOFA but I couldn't resist writing this for the life of me. There is simply not enough MinaKush love.
I don't own Naruto, yada yada. This will be the first and last time I say it.
Enjoy!
It was a dreary and dismal afternoon when it happened. Not even the blistering sun of Konoha could penetrate the dark cloud that hung exclusively over Kushina Uzumaki's head.
Just this morning Kushina strolled along the sidewalk with her head held high and a skip in her step, all prepared for another day of third grade. That's how she was every morning. She would wake up with a promise to herself that Fugu-face and his pathetic lackeys wouldn't bring her down even if they beat her down. Her hyperactive mother whom she received most of her traits from would pack her a lunch that usually consisted of lots of sweets, ramen and a note on pink paper that smelled like strawberries and told her how perfect she was. Her father would help her into her light up sneakers, give her a kiss on the cheek and repeat the same line he did every morning: "Go get 'em, tiger!"
Looking back on it, Kushina realized it was horribly cheesy and cliché, yet it never failed to keep her fiery spirit alive.
Normally, Kushina would return home not as spirited as she had been that morning, but today was exceptionally bad. Just thinking of the humiliation she had been through during recess was enough to turn her face as vibrant as her hair.
In a seething rage, Kushina snatched her blue jacket from one of the hooks in Peach class's coat closet. Practically shoving a girl with navy blue hair out of the way, she grabbed her small backpack and stormed out of the building. Wanting to get far away from the school as quickly as she could, Kushina raced past the playground and down the steps where multiple kids her age were waiting for their parents to come pick them up. A few girls snickered as she passed. Kushina ignored them and turned left.
Once she was a good twenty feet away from school grounds, Kushina slowed down, one hand trailing the tan fence that towered over her head.
"Stupid Fugu-face," The furious red-head grumbled, her eyes on the ground as she walked, "Stupid Inoichi, stupid Shikaku, stupid Chouza, stupid, stupid, stupid!"
While the spicy red pepper was throwing her mini-hissy fit, she didn't notice the sources of her embarrassment and horrible day a few paces in front of her.
"Hey, Haruno, the chubby girl is following you," Fugaku nudged the boy whose pink hair was covered by a red hat. He glanced over his shoulder and grimaced.
"Someone has a stalker!" Chouza sang.
"Do you even know what a stalker is?" Shikaku asked his best friend, looking at him dubiously.
"Yes!" Chouza quickly defended himself, flushing.
"Ugh, shut up, you guys," He shoved Shikaku's shoulder lightly and rolled his eyes.
"Come on, Haruno," Inoichi gave him a challenging look, "go give your girlfriend some looooove."
Haruno resisted the urge to punch the blonde in the face. "I don't like her!" He yelled, coming to a sudden halt. Finally, Kushina noticed the banes of her existence and looked up right before colliding with Haruno.
Kushina jumped up and bowed fervently, "I'm sorry, I'm so, so sorry! I wasn't watching where I was-"
"Look at her, guys, she's practically on her knees for Haruno!" Inoichi and the rest of his friends cracked up at the blush that flooded Kushina's face and the annoyance that flashed across Haruno's. He quickly got to his feet and shoved Inoichi.
Kushina deliberated whom she should attack first. Normally, she would be flying at the closest person without a second thought. But she was equally enraged with two people. Fugaku, who was the one who announced to the class that she had a crush on the pink-haired boy and wrote Kushina Haruno all over her notebooks in hearts and Inoichi was the one who was relentless in teasing both of them about it.
Just as she made her decision to end Fugaku's life right then and there, the object of her affection spoke up, "Leave me alone, Uzumaki. You're so annoying."
Kushina stared at him, her violet eyes wide in shock. Now, Kushina was never one for tears – just mindless rage – but she couldn't help the tears the spilled over as her humiliation increased tenfold. Fugaku and his friends were cackling mercilessly. Her usual resolution would be to pummel the source of her humiliation into the ground, but she couldn't do that to the supposed love of her life. All she wanted was for a hole to open in the sidewalk and to swallow her whole. And maybe for a truck to obliterate Fugaku and Inoichi. Shikaku and Chouza weren't as bad; she would allow them to live.
"Oi!"
Six heads turned upwards. One boy stared down at them from his perch on a tree branch with a gaze that could merely pass for curious. No sympathy or disgust. Just simply intrigued by the scene before him. "Who the hell are you?" Inoichi spat, crossing his arms over his chest to seem tough. Kushina would have rolled her eyes if they hadn't been glued to her blonde haired blue-eyed savior.
"God," He deadpanned. Nobody said a word. The mystery boy had said it without a hint of sarcasm. "And God punishes bad boys like yourselves."
"We aren't bad!" Chouza protested, frowning.
"Good boys don't make girls cry," 'God' retorted without even glancing at Kushina. She studied him harder, wiping her tears away discreetly. His spiky blonde hair fell over his bright eyes like he was in desperate need of a haircut and it looked like it would be lighter if it weren't so dirty. He was sitting on a tree branch that hung above heir heads, with his head resting on his knee that was pulled up to his chest and the other leg dangled in the air.
"Get down here so I can show you just how good we are," Fugaku glared at the boy and beckoned him over.
'God' stood, dropped down from the branch, and grabbed it before he fell completely, skillfully swung from it and landed neatly in front of Fugaku. Kushina watched in awe as the boy's fist wordlessly flew into Fugu-face's face. Inoichi made a shocked noise before lunging for 'God'. Shikaku and Chouza exchanged an exasperated look before turning and leaving without another word to their friends.
Without wanting to miss any action, Kushina dove into the scuffle. She grabbed Inoichi's short ponytail and jerked him backwards to make him release her savior's shirt. Caught off guard, the blonde Yamanaka stumbled backwards and knocked over Kushina. She landed on her bottom and groaned loudly. "You're gonna pay for that!" She shouted, baring her teeth menacingly at him.
"Oh, man," a husky voice made the fighting kids freeze, all turning to look up. Yet another intruder. Konoha High school uniform, spiky white hair, red lines that reached to the end of his cheekbones and pursed lips that were fighting a smile all stood before them. The high schooler sighed and placed a hand on his hip. "What am I going to do with you?"
He seemed to be talking to the blonde stranger who promptly shot up into a standing position. He was sporting a black eye courtesy of Fugaku Uchiha. "But, Sensei-"
"No buts, kid, this is the fourth fight I've caught you in this week," Kushina absently noted that it was only Tuesday. "When we get back your ass is mine."
Kushina's eyes widened at the inappropriate word. The boy simply nodded like a docile student, "Yes, Sensei." He then turned to her, finally acknowledging her. He bent down in front of her. "I'm sorry he made you cry," Was all he said before placing a chaste kiss on her cheek. Kushina's face once again flooded with heat as she gaped open mouthed at him. The white haired teenager burst into jolly laughter, reminding Kushina of Santa Claus.
"That's my little ladies man!"
After 'God' arrived, Kushina didn't even notice Haruno had already left.
xxx
It was roughly four years before she encountered him again. She was still chubby, she still had painfully red hair, she was still hopelessly in love with Haruno and Fugaku and his friends still hated her. Even worse, her mom still left encouraging notes in her lunchbox everyday. They did little to encourage her. Especially when Tsume Inuzuka took them from her and read them aloud to everyone at their lunch table. Being in middle school was hell compared to elementary school. In elementary school it was being shoved around on the playground. In middle school it's blood seeping from her private parts, plaid knee-length skirts, petty girls and getting shoved around in the locker room.
The only bright side was that she actually made a friend. Her first friend. Her name was Mikoto and she was Kushina's polar opposite. She was beautiful, gentle, and graceful and everybody loved her. The greatest thing about her was that she wasn't a total bitch. In fact, Kushina specifically remembered shoving Mikoto out of the way multiple times in the coat closet in elementary school and she never said or did anything. Not once. Not even a dirty look or nasty rumor. When they were assigned seats next to each other in history class, they became inseparable. At first, Mikoto was too shy to say anything and Kushina was too stubborn. One day Kushina asked her for a pencil and everything changed. Mikoto pulled out a giant pencil bag and launched into a speech that Kushina had trouble keeping up with.
"Oh, sure! I'm Mikoto, by the way. You're Kushina! I've heard a lot about you. I've always wanted to talk to you but I wasn't sure if you wanted to talk to me. Do you like red or blue? I like red, myself. I use red pens all the time! I wish they could make a marker the color of your hair. It's beautiful! I hate my blue hair. It's so weird. I mean come on, who was blue hair? Me, sadly. But-"
"Thank you."
"Huh? No problem! You can borrow a pencil whenever!" Mikoto smiled at her like no one besides her parents had before.
Kushina didn't bother telling her that she was thanking her for more than the pencil.
After that day, Kushina always happened to forget to bring a necessary supply for that class just to talk to her and eventually Mikoto greeted her with a smile everyday. She would talk to her, more like at her, everyday practically the whole class about meaningless things. Kushina didn't mind though. She would talk about television shows she'd never seen or manga she'd never read. She would talk about her little brother and how obnoxious he was. She would talk about dance class and how much she wanted to grab her instructor's butt. The girl was an open book. Kushina practically had her life story after one week.
During one particularly boring history lesson, Mikoto turned to Kushina and said, "You're my best friend, you know that?" Kushina simply blinked owlishly at her. Mikoto smiled and turned back to taking notes. The redhead had found it a little more than odd. Mikoto was the It girl. She had more friends than Kushina had underwear. And Mikoto didn't even know Kushina's favorite color. Despite that fact, Kushina couldn't help the grin that spread across her face.
Kushina's second encounter with him wasn't quite as glorified as the first. There was no swinging from tree branches to her rescue, no kisses on the cheek and no fistfights. One could even say it was quite boring.
Fed up with the fat jokes, Kushina decided she was going to exercise every day to get fit and skinny. Everyday quickly dissolved into once a week. She took advantage of the trails near her house every Sunday at sunset. The first time she went jogging she could have sworn she saw a flash of blonde in the woods. The second time she had a creepy sensation that someone was following her and quickly headed home, cutting the jogging session short. The third time it happened. She got that creepy feeling again and sped up. In her panic, she trailed – no pun intended – off into the woods, getting lost. To add to her great luck, she slipped on a log, twisting her ankle.
Kushina sat on the ground for a good ten minutes before he appeared. He dropped down from a tree and lifted her into his arms as if she weighed less than a feather. The only thing he said was "Where do you live?" Kushina simply instructed him and he maneuvered through the forest expertly.
"So, are you following me or something?" She asked as he found the trail once more.
He didn't answer.
"Why are you always hanging out in trees?" Kushina asked again after five minutes of silence.
He continued to stay silent.
"You sure are strong for such a flaky looking guy," She commented, genuinely impressed that he could lift her. She wasn't the skinniest in town.
He didn't comment.
"Who are you?"
He looked down at her with smoldering cobalt eyes, "God."
After that, Kushina saw him every Sunday. Not once did they exchange words. No witty banter. No secrets spilled. No greetings or goodbyes. Nothing. Kushina always got a glimpse of him though. Her personal favorite was seeing him swim in a creek shirtless.
Kushina became comfortable with the routine and he became a fixture in her life. In all honesty, she didn't like him very much. To her, he was an egotistical prick who liked to play the role as knight in shining armor and wander around the forest spying on a fat girl trying to lose the fat. The fact that he wouldn't respond to any of her questions except to tell her he was God pissed her off immensely. He either thought way too highly of himself or he was just messing with her. Neither a good thing. Despite that, his spiky blonde hair and his unrelenting presence were like the sun setting and rising.
So, imagine Kushina's dismay to discover that his presence simply stopped after a few months. In turn, she stopped jogging entirely and slipped into her stupor once more.
xxx
Another three years passed and Kushina's sunshine faded from her mind. High school was relatively easier than middle school. Normally, high school is what gets most people, but Kushina bloomed her freshman year. She had a growth spurt and gained half a foot, loosing almost every inch of fat on her body. Well, she didn't exactly loose it. It seemed to all go to one particular part of her body. Her chest. Kushina wasn't so sure if it was a blessing or a curse. She had an overwhelming amount of new attention from boys and negative attention from girls. Mikoto was still her only real friend. In high school the skirts were much shorter, the blazers were more form fitting, the girls were even more vicious and the boys were even more lewd.
It was in tenth grade when Kushina saw him again.
"Hey, Kushy!" Her blue haired best friend ran up to her and linked their arms together. "I have something to ask you and you have to promise to hear me out before you say no."
"I can't make any promises," Kushina looked at her wearily and weaved a strand of bright red hair through her fingers. They exited the doors of their large high school. On the steps, a group of delinquent girls sat in a group. They all wore too much makeup and hairspray and their skirts barely covered their asses.
"So, you know Fugaku Uchiha and Inoichi Yamanaka, right?" Mikoto began wearily. At Kushina's skeptical nod, she continued, "Well, you know how I've always had the biggest crush on Fugaku-" Mikoto ignored Kushina's disgusted face-"And you know how Inoichi has always admired your exotic beauty-"
Kushina stopped in the middle of the stairs and held up a hand to stop her friend, "And by exotic beauty you mean by boobs, right?"
"Aw, Kushina, don't be like that!" Mikoto whined, "He thinks you're pretty!"
"He thinks my boobs are pretty," She repeated, "And he made fun of me mercilessly until last year." So did Fugaku. Kushina felt generous enough to leave that one out.
"Just please do this for me!" She huffed.
"Fine, what is it?" Kushina sighed in defeat.
"It's just one little double date to the movies and maybe dinner." Kushina shrugged. She could survive that.
"As long as he pays." Mikoto squealed and hugged Kushina before hurrying down the steps. Kushina watched as she rushed over to a picnic table that consisted of everyone Kushina hated most in the world. She watched as the blue haired beauty told Fugaku something. The ever-emotional Uchiha simply nodded and patted the seat next to him. Mikoto plopped down next to him and blushed when he wrapped an arm around her shoulder and whispered into her ear. Kushina almost rolled her eyes at the embarrassed giggle she could hear from her spot on the stairs.
Kushina's gaze drifted over Shikaku Nara and Chouza Akimichi and landed on Inoichi Yamanaka. He grinned at her. She didn't smile back.
"Uzumaki!" Someone spat. The redhead turned to look at one of the stair sluts who appeared right in front of her face.
"That is my name," Kushina crossed her arms over her chest and looked at the girl with a bored expression.
"Aren't you, like, in love with Haruno?" She asked, cocking her head.
Kushina tried to will her blush away as she glanced at the table once again. The pink haired teenager was now arm wrestling Inoichi. "I'm not in love with him."
"Well, then, we need to get one thing straight," She said, stepping closer, "Inoichi is mine."
"Does he know that?"
"Oh, hell, no," The girl unclasped her hoop earrings and handed them to the girl on her right, "Hold my earrings."
Kushina would have laughed at the horribly cliché sight if the girl hadn't lunged at her in an attempt to rip her face off.
xxx
It was a cold night and the moon was full. The only sound as four teenagers walked down the sidewalk was the clicking of high heels. They were forced upon Kushina after Mikoto's claim of not wanting to be alone. They had, of course, worn their uniforms. Teenage boys have uniform fetishes, Mikoto told her.
As much as it pained her, Kushina had to cling to Inoichi's arm in an attempt to stay balanced. She just didn't have the grace that Mikoto earned from years of dancing. And if it wasn't painful enough, Inoichi noticed her shivering in the movie theater and offered her his letterman jacket. Her best friend glared at her when she opened her mouth to decline so she had no choice but to accept. At least it didn't smell like body odor and she was warm.
It was an awkward night to say the least. Inoichi tried to hold her hand or touch her throughout the movie, probably feeling pressured by the sound of Mikoto and Fugaku sucking face, but she had denied him every opportunity subtly. She would coincidentally need to adjust her skirt or reach for her drink every time he tried to hold her hand. She would get up to use the bathroom whenever he made a move to put his arm around her. All subtle hints that told him to get the hell away from her.
"Wasn't that movie great?" Mikoto burst out, almost dying from the awkwardness of the night.
"It sucked," Kushina deadpanned.
"I agree with Habanero," Inoichi grimaced, "Chick flicks, man."
Kushina had the urge to stomp on his foot with her spiky heel. "That's not my name."
"Huh?" He looked down at her. She opened her mouth to shout it at him but was interrupted by a hearty chuckle. They all turned to look up into a tree to their right that was behind a large fence.
Kushina felt her chest swell up with an emotion she couldn't identify. Relief? Longing? No, couldn't be. There in a large branch sat her personal sunshine. He jumped from his spot and landed in front of the double daters. He certainly had a growth spurt. He was much taller and had a lanky build. He also looked much dirtier than the last time she saw him. He still had the same impossibly blue eyes and spiky yellow-blonde hair. His face had matured and he had a confident air to him that surely would have girls at his feet if he took a shower.
"You look familiar," Fugaku studied him, racking his brain.
"God!" Kushina blurted out and would have run to him if she could walk two feet on her own. They all looked at her.
"Well, you have changed," Kushina was slightly disappointed in the look that he gave her. If he's another pervert…"What, no hug?"
Inoichi's grip on her tightened. "Oh, you've got protective man candy now?"
"He's not-" She stopped mid-sentence. She wasn't sure what he was and what he wasn't. Inoichi and 'God' were looking at her expectantly. She detached herself from the blonde and stepped forward tentatively, "Look, um…" She trailed off, not knowing what to call him. She didn't want to call him God and look like a total idiot.
"Minato," He flashed her an impressive grin, "Minato Namikaze."
A/N: So, not exactly how I was going to end it but when is it? There was going to be a whole other scene after this introducing the actual plot of the story but I decided to end it there. This is just kind of a prologue so there will be more!
I was too tired after writing this whole thing in one sitting to go back over and edit it so there's probably numerous mistakes. OH WELL.
I hope you enjoyed! Review, if you'd like!
Oh and I am not giving Haruno a name! Hahahah, I know, what? Obviously he is Sakura's father. Pink hair. Haruno. Come on. And I simply HATE OC's and I feel like if I don't give him a name he won't be an OC.. right? Sakura obviously has a father, he was just never introduced unless I completely missed something. So yeah. He will just be referred to as Haruno the entire time. If it bothers you to no end, feel free to offer a name and I'll think about it.