Title: Her Gaki
Author: Ashley
Summary: No matter how long she lived, and no matter how old he was. No matter what people said, no matter how distantly they related, no matter how far he had already surpassed her, and no matter how much further he went in life. To her, he would always be her Gaki.
Genre: Family/General
Disclaimer: I don't own the sandbox, I am just playing in it.
Warning: Unbeta'd
Pairing/Characters: Tsunade, Naruto, mentions of others.
Rating: K+
Author's notes: Unbeta'd as always, I own all my mistakes. This is another "Naruto becomes the Rokudaime" story, but with the twist of being from Tsunade's POV. I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!
Almost into her sixties, Tsunade knew she was reaching her limit. She had come closer to death more times in the past seven years of being the Godaime of Konoha than she had in her whole fifty one years prior. She would not follow in her sensei's footsteps, she had already chosen her heir to the Hokage title. Had chosen him eight years prior, when he saved her from herself.
Her Gaki… In a few minutes she would stand in front of the entirety of Konohagakure and symbolically remove the Hokage's hat from her head and place it on his, and announce his status as the new pillar of Konoha to the world. At a mere twenty years old, he would become the youngest Hokage in the history of Konoha. He would be the youngest Kage in the history of all the Hidden Villages if not for the Kazekage, Sabaku no Gaara.
The thoughts tumbled around her head at a startling pace, reminiscing every memorable moment she had shared with her Gaki over the years. Her Gaki she thought. The man who had saved her, his comrades, and changed almost everyone he met when he had been just a boy. The man who never really had a change to be a true Gaki. The same man who had accomplished what the Yondaime and Jiraiya had strived for their whole lives in less than ten years, peace and unity between all the great nations and hidden villages. Yogen no Ko and the Savior of the Hidden leaf, he had come far in the time she had known him; quickly surpassing all his former senseis, his father, and herself.
But to her, he would always be her Gaki.
As they smiled lovingly at each other, the perfect image of a loving brother and sister to anyone who saw them, the blonde Sannin knew that no matter what happened from this point on that nothing would ever change how she saw him. She led him onto the balcony and raised their clasped hands above theirs head, beaming at the answering cheer from the village below. She could see the rest of the Konoha 11, Iruka, Kakashi, Yamato, and several others standing front and center, all smiling proudly up at them.
Tsunade dropped Naruto's hand and turned to the blonde and flashed him a quick smile. She raised her hands for silence, and it was granted to her instantly. "Yosh! Today, we are gathered for one reason only," she began, raising her hands to lift the Hokage's hat from her own head. "From this moment on, I step down as my position as Hokage!" Golden eyes and blue eyes locked, and she set the mantle of the Hokage on top her Gaki's head. "Uzumaki Naruto! From this moment on, and for the rest of eternity, you will be known as Rokudaime Hokage. I give you this title as my heir, and as the former Hokage." Tsunade bowed her head in respect, before turning back to the crowd. To her right, Naruto mimicked her actions and she once again clasped his hand.
"Konohagakure! I present to you the new Pillar of the Village, Rokudaime Hokage, Uzumaki Naruto!" She announced happily and stepped back so he could step forward and officially claim his position as the village head.
Watching him stand there, arms crossed and smiling down all the Shinobi of Konoha standing kneeling in respect and acknowledgement, she had a flash of him as the child he had been when they first met.
"Becoming the Hokage one day is my dream, dattebayo!" That image merged with the man in front of her, the Hokage robe fluttering around him in the slight breeze. He looked just like his father, with some distinct differences of course. His black and red short sleeved robe was now his trademark look. He wore standard issue Shinobi pants, plated gloves, sandals, and flack vest over top of his long sleeved mesh armor, and instead of carrying two weapons pouches like he used to he had two ANBU issue Katana strapped across his back with a summoning scroll attached to the bottom of the holster.
He was a grown man, not a Gaki anymore. He was her leader now, not the other way around. When he turned to face her though, they both had tears in their eyes. Amidst the cheering of the crowd, they shared a moment they would both cherish for the rest of their lives.
Tsunade held up a single finger and grinned at him mischievously. When he raised an eyebrow at her and uncrossed his arms, she took a single step forward, flicked the edge of his hat and smiled at him, he knew immediately what she intended to do: But instead of bending down like she had in the past, she had to place a hand on each arm and reach up to place a gentle kiss on his forehead.
"Congratulations, my Gaki." The blond man wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly, awarding her one of his brilliant smiles that had come to mean so much to her, because it gave her true joy to see him truly happy and realizing his dreams before her eyes.
Because to the former Hokage, he would always be that precious child she had come to care for like she had her own flesh and blood brother. Because he would always be precious to her, and his happiness made her happy. And because no matter how long she lived, and no matter how old he was; No matter what people said, no matter how distantly they related, no matter how far he had already surpassed her, and no matter how much further he went in life. To her, he would always be her Gaki.
Yogen no Ko - Child of Prophecy
Gaki - Kid and Brat