Disclaimer: Still waiting for Jiraiya...
Pairing: Minato/Naruto
Summary Notes: WARNING. Spoilers for the newest manga ahead and speculation.
Namikaze Minato had always prided himself on being a brave man.
Always. Whether he was shinobi, sensei, Hokage, the smitten teenage boy rescuing a beautiful red-head from her kidnappers...he had always prided himself on being the brave one. The strong one. The dexterous one. The courageous Yellow Flash, the one the village turned to in times of need.
Yet right at this moment, the Yondaime Hokage wanted nothing more than to run. He wanted to run and hide in some dark place, and howl and howl until he was so spent he couldn't even muster the energy to grieve.
The village was in ruins. His men and women, his brave shinobi, dissolved in a blur of chaos and fire and darkness. He could hear it - every scream and cry and howl as that demonic chakra leaked throughout the village, released from it's host. Reminding him that Kushina was...Kushina...
The Kyuubi was free. And when it escaped its host, the Jinchuuriki would die.
And Kushina was...oh god...
A shrill mewling interrupted his thoughts, and Minato turned, his throat closing up as he regarded the small bundle curled up in the large, woolen blanket that shielded him from the cold in the cave. Bright blue eyes regarded him in the firelight, filled with fear and more confusion than a little baby should ever feel.
But worst of all, there was pleading, trust in those eyes. Eyes that were so perfectly the replica of the baby's mother's as they regarded him that Minato could almost swear they were her eyes. Kushina's eyes.
The baby made another mewling sound. It was too much. Minato had tried to distance himself, thinking it best in this raw, nightmarish situation, but...
"I'm so sorry, Naruto..." he whispered, choking on a sob as he lay beside the little boy. His son. He stroked the tiny tufts of blonde hair, running a hand over the boy's face, resting it on the round stomach as it moved up and down with every breath. Naruto gave another soft whimper before settling, and Minato's heart broke that much more.
This was so wrong...this wasn't how it was meant to happen. Kushina was supposed to go through the birth with no worries, and they would raise their child together. Minato remembered the daydreams he had entertained...Naruto's first word would be "Mummy", because he'd be a Mummy's boy, but his first steps would be to Minato, and they would eventually turn into excited running...he would cuddle the boy while he signed paperwork, so Kushina could rest...he'd even get up at ungodly hours to spare her...
He wanted to run away. He wanted to run and hide. And he wanted to take his son with him. Away from this nightmare.
Another roar sounded outside. The entire earth seemed to shake, and instinctively, Minato held his son protectively in his embrace, humming softly to quiet Naruto's frightened cries, glaring through tear-filled eyes at the sickly orange chakra around them as if that alone would chase it all away.
Vaguely, he knew somewhere in his mind that it was time. Time to carry out the ritual, time to save his village.
...Time to seal away his soul, and deprive his only son of the one thing Minato had sworn never to take from his child. Parents. The one thing Minato had never had, and the one thing he had always wished for with all his heart.
A shaky sigh escaped his lips, and Minato held his son tightly for a moment longer, inhaling the baby smell, relishing in the texture of his son's hair and the warmth of his plump little body one last time. He was nearly undone again when the boy cooed softly, his little fingers tangling in his father's bangs as he snuggled into him trustingly.
Despite the sounds outside, Minato held him for a few moments longer, waiting quietly for Naruto to fall asleep. That, at least, he could do as a father. And somehow, it steeled him. He inhaled deeply, tightening his arms around Naruto one more time, pressing a kiss to the baby's forehead before wrapping him in the blanket once more, trying to ignore the emptiness in his arms and his heart as he walked to the mouth of the cave.
He stopped, just for a moment, glancing over his shoulder and smiling softly before continuing on.
I hope you'll forgive me one day, Naruto.
