A/N: Story 2, because inspiration strikes at the most weirdest of hours XD


A Collection of MinaKushi Love-stories

2: A Matter of Hormones

A tiresome sigh escaped his chapped lips as he entered, on silent soles, his beloved home. The smell of faded, aromatic cooking and Kushina's all-too-well-known fragrance graced his sensitive nose. That, combined with the simple smell the house possessed in itself were a welcoming and stress-relieving factor.

It was late at night, something past four O'clock in the morning but still far from dawn. Cerulean eyes gazed through the prevailing darkness, gradually adjusting to the dimness of the chalky moonlight.

He recognized the couch of their living room, the doorway which led to the kitchen at the far end and the ever-so-dangerous flight of stairs (at least dangerous during the hours of moonshine!)

Longingly, and ignoring the protestant rumble of his famished stomach, he trailed along the steps, his calloused hand stroking the polished banister as he ascended with heavy feet.

His complaining belly had to wait for tomorrow, when Kushina's magnificent home-made cooking would await him and make up for all the disgusting protein-food he had to devour hastily during the tense minutes of battle and death.

Despite being the important figure of a Hokage, Minato could not hold back when it came to fighting and protecting his village on the fronts.

Not that they still had a war going on.

No.

But after the last Ninja War, where the blonde had painfully lost one of his most inspirational students, some smaller nations had decided they shouldn't back and start miniature attacks on Konohagakure.

They simply hadn't learnt their lesson yet.

You'd expect such a high tier as Minato was one to not bother with fetish, little assaults by second-class Shinobi who rather faced death than to plan a devious strategy which would promise them more success.

And usually, Minato would have not bothered with that, sending out a few of his best Jounin's and further, even more skilled Anbu in case the dangers were higher than expected.

Yet Kumogakure had decided to send a couple of their most intriguing, deadly assassins for a further assault. An assault which a specialized team of some of Minato's most favoured men hadn't survived.

Hence, and due to his rising worry, he came up with the decision to check things out for himself.

Which had earned him strong criticism.

No, I am not talking about the elders and feudal lords who seemed to maim him with their blazing glares.

Because Namikaze Minato could handle some petty old men and women who believed they had the knowledge of Gods.

Nor was it some of his close Jounin friends who advised him to send out further troops and 12-man-cell teams to take care of the troubles near the outskirts of the village hidden behind the leaf.

They were all a joke in comparison to a specific, scarlet-haired beauty he knew.

Kushina had burst into thousand rampaging fires when he had told her about his plan of going and taking care of the enemy nin's himself.

He thought even the Kyuubi would be sweating like a pig under the fury she had let free.

"What do you mean, going out yourself?!" she seethed incredulously, a hand placed onto her hip.

He gave her a sheepish grin as he rubbed the back of his head, "Well, I have lost quite a few men, and these assassins seem to be no small fish. I just want to make sure we don't have further losses. As the Hokage it is my responsibility to-"

"Sit in the fucking Hokage tower and be guarded by 200 odd Anbu units, not head out to battle and risk your life instead." she finished him off with a venomously dark tone.

He sighed.

Minato blamed it on her hormones.

Yes, her hormones, because they were on their own blustering adventure right now, driving her sanity nuts.

"The wonders of pregnancy." he murmured to himself as he turned towards the right, along the cold, creaking corridor, dim light shining near to heavenly towards the door which would lead him to his beloved bedroom.

The one he shared with his high-on-hormones wife.

But she was asleep right now. Beautiful, mesmerizing Kushina was far away in the land of miraculous dreams, together with their tiny, little son, or daughter, which was gradually growing inside of her.

Opening the door with as much care and delicacy as he could muster, as to not make a sound and wake his wife, he entered, jumping when the clack of metal indicated he had successfully closed it again.

The faint sound of soft breathing reached his ears; Kushina was never one to snore.

You'd believe, with her loud, bashful attitude, and tomboyish style, and the way she could bellow like a boy, she'd be the snoring type, but then you'd be wrong.

She was a silent sleeper. Like an angel, Minato liked to cheesily compare. She never ever usually budged, only sometimes liked to kick and stir, thus throwing the bedding in all directions, but mainly when he was absent (on some missions this would be the case, one understands, and during his return he would find the bed in a disarray).

Yet she never pronounced a word.

Minato had to admit, he loved that about her. The way she made him feel so comfortable, so relaxed, so safe that he found it damn hard to actually shut an eye without her.

He would turn an insomniac if she weren't there, by his side, in the bed, consoling him with her presence.

Discarding some of his attire such as the vest, jumper and boots, he righted his stiffened neck with a twist to the side before he smoothly slid into the bed.

Tomorrow would be another stressful day full of negotiating and consulting. He had a Hokage-meeting sometime early in the morning which he didn't look forward to.

After all, someone had to explain why Kumogakure had six assassins less, and what the circumstances precisely were.

Not looking forward to the stoic, wrinkly faces of the cold elders, the Yondaime tried to enjoy the few hours of peaceful sleep he had left with his angelic soulmate.

"Mhm..." she began to moan, turning her head in his direction as she felt his arm snake its way around her waist.

He hoped she would retreat to her sleep, realising it was only him who had finally returned, and would be inwardly glad to have him back. Maybe she'd open one of her indigo orbs and quickly peck his lips, muttering a sleepy "Okaeri Nasai" to him before cuddling into his chest and letting her conscience succumb to the world of slumber once more.

"Flaky boy." she muttered with a hint of annoyance.

Minato sighed inwardly.

Yes, hormones were a bitch.

They not only caused Kushina to be overly sensitive, emotionally speaking, to any actions and happenings around her, but it also caused her to return to her childlike attitude which she possessed during the youth of their friendship; back then, at the academy and shortly afterwards, when she decided he was just about a respectable man, even if he looked a flake.

"Flake..." her voice echoed in the hollow darkness of their room once more.

"Just go back to sleep." he softly spoke, smiling as he pressed lips against her forehead.

"I can't..." she croaked, and as he opened his eyes he saw her staring back at him.

Hormones did have their fantastical, amazing side, he decided.

Ever since she was expecting a baby, her hair glossed over in a breathtaking vermilion like it had never before during her childhood. It seemed to radiate more, fitting perfectly around her head and shaping her face ever so sweetly.

And her eyes; as if fireflies had crawled inside and were glowing with the power of stars, even to this moment, in the dimness of their room.

Her face rounded off more, the porcelain hue of her skin shined with strength and artisery. Her whole being sparkled in general in such a way he had never seen it before.

"Why not?" he closed his eyes to devour the picture he had painted with his inner eye.

"I'm hungry."

He smirked.

"What is it you want, then?" He expected her to come up with a whole list of foods before she would return to her outstanding favourite: Shio Ramen, with extra egg, made by none other than Teuchi from Ichiraku's Ramen shop. She would force him to go there, wake up the poor man and force him to cook it for her during these overly early hours.

By the time Minato would have managed to return home with the steaming broth, which would only stay so hot if he used his Haraishin no Jutsu, Kushina would have stuffed her face with various other nourishments before falling asleep rather unladylike and forgetting all about her actual desire.

"Chocolate chip cookies. And potato crisps, and coffee-"

His eyes widened fractionally, "Kushina, you don't like coffee."

She pouted as if she were ten years old again, "But I want some!"

Creasing a quizzical eyebrow, the blonde Hokage sighed, "How about something healthier? Something that'll actually appease your appetite-"

"Cookies appease my appetite."


He wasn't surprised to find himself awake during the primal hours of daylight, watching with mild attention as Kushina sat at the kitchen table, crunching on biscuits whilst a warmed glass of milk sat next to the plate covered in crumbles and chunks.

He had been having these nights a lot more often, recently.

Hormones.

The word spoke for itself.

"I said coffee..." she sulked miserably as her voice was muffled due to her busy chewing.

"It's much too early for coffee, it isn't the best of drinks for you right now and for a fact I know you just have to so much as smell the substance before you pull a face of disgust."

She frowned.

He could not determine if he found this view cute and alluring, or just downright hilarious.

"You don't like it, trust me." He spoke softly, smiling his tender smile which he knew she loved so much.

"Not fair." Came the muttered response before she returned to gulping down biscuits.

"That child must be one healthy lad when he gets born, what with all the food Kushina is currently consuming."

"How 'bout we go to Ichiraku Ramen and paint the walls green!"

Eyes springing out widely, he sat back a little as he inspected his overzealous wife, who seemed determined and excited with her new-found energy.

"K-Kushina! Why would you want to do that!?"

"Why not?" She grinned at him, eyes closing mirthfully, "It'll sure as hell be funny!"

"But you like Ichiraku Ramen..."

"Exactly, and I like the colour green. So I should combine the both of them."

Minato felt sweat pooling at his temples anew, "I don't think Teuchi-san will be very happy about that..."

"Of course he will be! I am his favourite customer! I'm sure he'll be excited about it!"

She stated it as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, her maroon tresses glittering with the approaching sunlight which gradually crept over the Hokage-mountain.

Hormones.

How often should Minato repeat himself mentally?

Kushina was a handful in her normal state; especially if she decided to head off on her own during missions. But now? With the little baby growing inside her?

She was just that much more extreme.

Waltzing over towards him, placing herself seductively in front of him, two hands flat on the table, she stared him squarely into those azure eyes which had always had this special, captivating feature about themselves.

"Or..." her voice suddenly became hushed, sugar-like, "We could go back to bed and..." Steel eyes gleamed with hidden implications as she stopped for Minato to figure the rest. One of her hands wounded itself around the nape of his neck, massaging the path leading up to the scalp.

It only took seconds before a rosy blush crept across his cheeks and his orbs widened even further.

Kushina leaned further towards him, her hot breath tickling his left ear, "Just because we're expecting a baby doesn't mean we can't..."

The young Yondaime gulped, suddenly feeling that the temperature within the room was rising at a drastic rate, suffocating him. There was this itch which now invaded his skin and crawled all over; he knew for a fact it wasn't from the grime and sweat he received during his strenuous mission.

"Whaddaya say?" Minato could literally tell she was smirking upon his reaction as she sat on the table in front of him, leaning down like the acrobat she was.

Yet before he could formulate a response and utter it with as much dignity he found himself to have left, she continued her banter. Just this time, her voice held an innocent side to it, "We still need to pick out a good name for him..."

Suddenly, he heard a silent, steady breathing on his left shoulder.

Glancing there, he was presented with the sight of his peaceful, angelic wife having fallen victim to the claws of slumber and finding his shoulder to be just the perfect pillow for named exercise.

He sighed shakily, smiling at her wonderful form.

Hormones.

Sometimes he forgot even he possessed some.

'Seems I need a shower now. A cold one.'


Minato sprang awake from his new-found sleep, "WAIT! Him? It'll be a..."

His eyes began to gleam.


"If I had any regrets...then it would be that I won't see Naruto grow up." - Uzumaki Kushina, Manga chapter 503.


A/N: Whilst I search for the manga chapters and exact words for these inspirational quotes, I feel like crying all over when seeing Minato's and Kushina's last moments with their beloved son :'D PLEASE REVIEW!