AN: Hi guys. Its been a while i think. Sorry about that. For those of you looking for more moments with minato and kushina...thats going to be on hold for a bit.

I do however...have a little rant. Feel free to ignore and move on.

What the hell is passing for writing these days? I do my best to draw inspiration from the writing of others, but lately for the most part its been garbage after garbage after garbage. Too many stories of unfaithfulness and other annoying topics. Now i dont claim to be the exception. In fact i know for a fact that most of the characters in this story seem off and i apologize for that. If anything consider this a self rant as well. Its just that so many stories just leave much disapointment. I was genuinely hoping for more in this genre.

Anyways, now that i have that out of my system. Heres the story.


He couldn't keep it contained within himself anymore. The lies had gone on for far too long. The night, this damned haunting night was slowly clawing away at the experienced ninja's resolve.

Deceit was at the very heart and soul of the life that had been chosen for him. Given his father's stature, there truly was no other path for him to follow. Only now however, did he truly understand what it meant to block off the world around you.

Sure he was lucky enough to have found love. That was what kept him going. It was the driving factor to give him inspiration and live on with the lies he had kept in his heart. Yet despite all of this one thing was true. He was sealed within a cage with no bars, yet offered no route of escape.

Except one that would betray his duty as a ninja.

One secret was already revealed. One that was supposed to have been locked away for years, whose return was a reminder to Konoha of the evil things it had done as a village. Though Root acted alone, its mistakes could not be separated from that of Konoha's. Root existed because it believed there was corruption and evil within the current government, and it was not totally without merit.

The copy nin continued to stare down at the book that gave him solace in the harshest of times. It was his sanctuary, his salvation. The weakness that proved him to be human and not a tool. Tools didn't have emotions like the one he was feeling right now. Tools were nothing. Blank. Nonexistent, unimportant, and easily replaced.

Kakashi sighed to himself as he felt the presence of another standing just behind him. Damn, he let his habit distract him from his ninja duties. No, that was a lie. He was never off his guard. Rin however, knew him well enough to get past his defenses. Another weakness.

With the cracking of knuckles, he knew it would be the most painful weakness yet. In some sick way, he almost welcomed it. Ironic for one such as himself to get beaten like a dog. Perhaps not ironic…but fitting. Being a dog was better than being a tool any day of the week. At least dogs knew loyalty and trust. That was something Kakashi wished desperately to reclaim, even if it meant shattering the vows he made when he became a ninja.

"Honestly! I don't know why you still have that damn bloody book!" Rin was getting furious now. It wasn't the first time she had caught him reading that smut. Every time she did he promised to put it away forever, and every time she believed in his hollow words. The love she felt for this man blinded her shinobi instincts and caused her to easily accept his words.

But tonight would be different. It just had to be. Not with this young couple with them. She wouldn't let them get corrupted by all of this nonsense. She wanted trust. She wanted his word to her to be above any other code Kakashi held.

It was a selfish desire to be sure. Rin had chosen to fall in love with one of the most powerful ninjas to be produced by Konoha. Talk was already being spread around on how he would someday rival the strength of a sannin at their prime. Yet Rin didn't care. She just wanted Kakashi to love her above all else. Was it really asking that much?

To Kakashi…no, it wasn't asking much at all. He wanted to hold her in that regard. But there were things in his heart that were holding him back from making such a commitment. Things that would be cleared up for good.

"Am I not enough for you? Do I bore you? Do you not find me smart enough or attractive enough or-" Kakashi had deftly used his hands to cover Rin's mouth and pull her towards the ground to join him. She landed with a soft thud as her hair bounced around and lagged just a few seconds behind her. It was now his secret would be revealed.

The copy-nin closed the book he held with one hand and offered it to Rin, hoping it would provide all the explanation she needed.

"I don't wanna read that trash! Just tell me why-" She stopped when she felt the book forced into her hands. Her eyes quickly darted down to the book only to see the cover mysteriously change its shape. It wasn't what she thought it was.

A religious guide?

Kakashi was seeking redemption?

Rin was being strangled with confusion as she darted her eyes back down to the book and up to a nearly ashamed Kakashi who could not make contact with her gaze. Very few shinobi ever sought out a higher answer. Typically it was only the ones that committed the worst crimes.

Rin knew his records. Her status and their relationship had given her insight to even his most classified mission. Though many of his assignments were indeed extraordinary, nothing she read made her believe he needed to find a higher power.

"But…..but why?" Why did he need this book? Why the desire to hide it? It was not a symbol of shame to have it. In fact it was often a mark of a shinobi who had done what was necessary of them to preserve the will of Konoha.

"I've betrayed the trust of the people I care about." It wasn't a mission that had affected the ninja so. It was his actions in his personal life. "I kept secrets, from you…from Konoha…and-"

"But you helped Naruto! You taught him, kept him human! Helped in his release. The secret is out and no one blames you. I don't care that you kept it from me! You had to! You just had to!" Rin was almost hysterical as she screamed out these reasons. She could only be glad that Naruto and Sakura had left hours ago to collect wood for a fire. The crackling campfire Rin had set herself in front of her was a reminder of the things the two probably really went out to do.

"Naruto? He's not Konoha's deepest secret. If only…" The silver haired jonin had lived with the fact he was lying to Naruto. Everyday he had spoken to the rambunctious blond boy he had lied to him. By refusing to tell Naruto the truth about his heritage he had assisted in creating the web of deceit."

"His heritage….I never…I should have." A single tear was now forming in the ninja's visible eye as he tried to blink it away. It wasn't working. Nothing was going right today. Only then did he feel a gentle finger from Rin gather the tear and dry his sorrow away. It was a reminder of why he loved her.

"He knows about his mother now. If anything I should have told him sooner. Why are you so upset over it? What's the secret you have been keeping from us all? Whatever it is, I know you didn't betray me or Naruto. Everything you've done was for our benefit. That's why I lov-"

"Minato-sensei lives. That is Konoha's true secret."

"…Sensei….?"

The greatest of the Hokages. The savior of the Hidden Village of the Leaf. The man who had taken on a wily group of gennins upon graduation and trained them to become a fighting force to be reckoned with. The man who had torn her sister's heart apart when the news of his death was confirmed and that jutsu was completed. Moments later she would hear of her son's demise, nearly setting her over the edge…

But now….all those emotions, all those times…it was a lie? Sensei lived? Then where was he? How could he have abandoned the village!? His son!? His wife?

"How long did you-"

Kakashi hung his head down and focused upon the book which resided with Rin. "Since the beginning."

Rin felt the world around her shattering. All this time. Kakashi held this secret, this critical information from the entire hidden village, from herself? All those times he claimed that he held no real secrets from her were nothing but farces!? Was he really so two-faced?

Kakashi was about to turn away, needing some time alone only to feel Rin's body quickly pressed against him in a fierce hug. "All those years….you carried this burden….all by yourself? You couldn't let anyone in….ever…and now the guilt….of lying…of feeling you betrayed your village with your actions….I won't let it consume you."

Now it was Kakashi's turn to freeze. Wasn't she supposed to despise him right about now? "I know that if you kept it a secret…then there was a good reason for it. You are a good man Kakashi. A good man that I love." She released his embrace and dropped the book to the floor.

It seemed to be pulled towards the earth in slow motion until it collided with the soft ground and then fluttered open to a random page. Then something strange happened. The pages flipped again and it opened to the inside cover.

There was writing there, put in manually by a pen and paper mixed in with bloodstains. Unusual for a book on redemption.

Curiously Rin picked it up and studied the handwriting. She remembered it. Few people had the chicken scratch handwriting Minato did.

I am sorry for what I must ask you to do.

It has to be this way. For the sake of my family.

Watch over them…be discrete. It is the only way.

This text has served me well over the years and through the wars

I hope this book offers you the salvation I know you will need.

-Minato

Rin read the last few lines of the book and couldn't imagine he pain he had to live through. There is only one other person out there in the world who would suffer more from this news.

"How do we tell Naruto this?"

Off in the forest Sakura lay quietly near the bank of a river as her eyes were fixated on the clear night sky looking for shooting stars to streak their way across. Her hands were folded nicely behind her head to act as a pillow while she kicked one leg over the other in a peaceful manner.

"Are you having any luck Naruto?"

The sound of erratic splashing and some incoherent muttering told her the answer to that question.

"I told you that you need to be quiet. Fish get scared away easily. You can't keep jumping around like that and expect to catch anything, baka" It annoyed her that Naruto often disregarded the advice she gave him. Then again she found his attempts to make it his own way to be infinitely too cute to stay mad at him for long.

"Just you wait! I'll catch the biggest one in the whole river!"

Naruto was quickly bonked on the head by a rock and fell face first into the river. He never got the chance to see an angry Sakura now standing with her fish raised in actor. "You idiot! Stop saying such stupid things and just catch a few fish. Besides, you're ruining my peaceful nights sleep!"

Naruto stood up grinning like an idiot while rubbing the back of his head with one of his hands. "Heh, sorry." It was then however that he noticed something rather large wiggling down in his pocket. Sticking out of it was a huge fish tail that was wriggling back and forth looking for an escape back into the river.

"Aha! See! I caught one! I knew I could do it!" Naruto got so excited over such little things. Single handedly stopping a war? A minor accomplishment. Catching a fish in a river to impress Sakura…definitely a big deal.

Sakura slapped her forehead with an exasperated sigh and slunk back down onto the ground. That knucklehead managed to show her up again. With a sly smile on her face she returned to her stargazing when she noticed a very wet blond took a seat beside. She allowed her defenses to close with the closeness of his presence and began the release of the chakra that seemed to sooth the demon spirit within. How she came across this technique to seal the beast she may never know, but it was an aid to Naruto and that was all that mattered.

Unfortunately letting her guard down was precisely the wrong thing to do. Because it was Naruto now who would stumble across another secret.

"Hey Sakura? What's this?" Something was different in Naruto's voice. It wasn't worried, nor concerned. It wasn't angry or happy. It simply was….different.

Her eyes shot open and looked towards the blond ninja to see him holding something in his hand that forced him to stare intently at it. Unless she was mistaken, it looked like a picture. But that couldn't be, the only picture she had was…..

Her mind immediately froze as that thought flashed through her mind.

"Who is this guy with Kakashi-sensei and you? Is he a friend? Why is your face all red? How come I haven't seen him in the village? He looks a little mad? So? Who is it Sakura?" Naruto was no fool. He was educated while imprisoned. Certain books from certain perverted ninja taught him what would cause a woman to blush in such a manner. All he could do was hope, hope to Kami it was a misunderstanding.

Her silence was earth shattering as the wheels in her mind continued to spin and look for an acceptable answer. How could have found this? How could she have been so careless as to let him stumble upon that tossed away section of her life?

"That's….Sasuke….an old fri-" She bit her tongue as she was about to smooth over that part of her life. It wouldn't be fair to Naruto. He had always shown her nothing short of the truth. He wore his emotions on his sleeves and sought to deceive no one. How could she even consider doing anything but that for him?

"Naruto, I want you to listen to me. Very carefully, ok?" He gave her a simple nod and eyed her curiously at the story to come. Sakura moved herself over until she was situated within Naruto's arms, with her back lying against his chest.

"And I want you to remember Naruto…that I….that I love you very much, ok? Even though you act like an idiot, and a goofball…and are a loudmouth…and a clutz." She said she loved him. That's all Naruto needed to hear as his arms wrapped tighter around her. Those words were never spoken to him before. He would have to ask about this love word later on and find out what it means. For now…all he knew is that it made him feel infinitely good.

Sakura loved the feel of his hold and continued that sealing technique in the back of her mind. Little snipits of green chakra systematically left everyone of her pores and found their way soothingly into Naruto's body. There it would work its way to the seal that contained the incarnation of evil and strengthen the hold it had against the demon.

"So what's a Sasuke? How come you haven't introduced us? Is he away on a mission? Why is the picture so old…why-"

"Sasuke was a teammate of mine. Back when I first became a gennin."

"Gennin?" That's right. Naruto missed most of that education. The focus was always to make Naruto stronger, not to teach him how to become a better ninja.

"When I first became a ninja. Anyways…Sasuke was…..different. Something about him….really made the girls go crazy over him. He was so dark, so mysterious and a lot stronger than the other people in our class. I remember when I found out I was on his team….I was soo excited and-" The hold Naruto seemed to have on her tightened. She could feel the thumping of his heart increase with each passing moment. Naruto thought his heart was about to be broken. She wouldn't let him continue on with that feeling.

"I did have a crush on him. For many years. I remember I kept asking him out on dates" His breathing became sporadic. His pulse increased. The intensity was building. "And he kept turning me down."

His numbers continue to race. She needed to calm him down. "But…Sasuke wasn't the man we all thought he was. He had a purpose. A mission. One that he would give up anything for…."

He was starting to calm down now. His pulse was slowing, not a lot but rather just enough. It was then that Naruto noticed a small tear streaming down from her eye. He wanted to wipe it away…but he wouldn't risk loosing the hold he had onto her.

"….he…he betrayed the village Naruto. Just a few years back when we were barely 16. He left this village and searched for power. Sasuke cut us loose. Like we were nothing to him." Sakura continued to sniffle at the story. "And I was heart-broken. I never knew who Sasuke really was…what his likes were…his dislikes…his favorite anything…what annoyed him….half the time he never said more than two words to me but….

Naruto's body froze as he was listening to Sakura's story. She was hurt. In pain from events in the past. Though he didn't notice it before, but there was a part of her that was broken.

"But we were a team…and when he left…the team was broken up. I just want things to be back the way things were." Again Naruto tensed. He never wanted to return back to his past. His life in that prison were already carefully sealed away in his mind. A trick Tsunade put upon him to maintain his sanity. "No…better than they were before." Sakura shifted a little bit within Naruto's hold so she could face him straight in the eyes. "This time…you will be a part of Team 7 as well."

"Sasuke was really important to you, wasn't he?" The determination was unmistakable in his voice.

"Yes…he was. He was a team member. He was family."

All of a sudden Naruto let go of Sakura and stood up quickly with a triumphant look on his face.

"Well then if he is important to you, then he is important to me!" There was a little glint in his eyes as he spoke, one that lacked any worry or doubt. "I'll bring him back home and then we will finally be a team."

Sakura looked up at him with surprise in her heart but hopefulness there as well. Was he serious? Here he was on the verge of discovering his own past and mending the wounds that led him to having such a despicable life, yet all he could think about was saving Sakura from the far more trivial troubles she had gone through.

How did she end up finding such a gem? He was her diamond in the rough.

"I only have one condition." He was smiling again. Always so bright and cheery.

"Oh yeah, and what's that." She held out her hand to allow Naruto to bring her to her feet as well. She was now standing before him with their noses almost touching one another yet their eyes were fixated on each other.

"What does love mean?"


Yeah, i know, about a dozen more errors than i usually put in. Ive been in a mood lately. apolgies all around. Ill try and do better next time