Interlude—Minato

Seven long years passed by since the deaths of Minato's parents. His memories of them were becoming hazy fragments; he'd only been six when they died and each year after that drew in an abundance of new memories that replaced the old.

However, some moments would never leave his mind—they were boldly imprinted and would remain with him as long as he could help it because the only concrete memento he had of his parents was a single photograph of the family and it was the very same one he'd shown his sister.

His parents' several expressions were among those particular moments—not the smiles immortalized on film, but the faces they revealed when praising him or sharing a joke. The ones they'd displayed when comforting him when he'd fallen and gotten hurt. The ones he'd been frightened of because he'd done something wrong and gotten in trouble. The ones he could never share with Namie.

He remembered his fathers roguish, slightly mischievous grin, and his mother's livid, terrifying glare that had his knees quaking most poignantly because they'd both been from the day his father decided to go under his wife's nose to teach him how to throw shuriken. He'd earned a few scars and spilled a few more tears, and when his mother found out she was furious. Yet despite her anger, she'd also comforted him with her famous sunny, dimpled smile as she dressed his wounds.

Beyond that, there was only static. His most recent memories of his parents included Namie—unborn at the time.

He recalled his father's final words, from the day he'd departed to the battlefield that also served as his grave:

Take care of your mother and sister, Minato. Help her grow into someone we can be proud of, as we are proud of you. So, so proud. You're going to become a great Hokage one day—that's still your dream, right?

He recalled the final words his mother had spoken to him, only moments before they'd received the news of his father's death:

What do you think your sister should be named, Minato? I'm still not sure, and Sei and I just can't settle on one we both like. If you pick one, I'm sure he'll agree no matter what. So, what do you think?

After cleaning his mother's gravestone, Minato set a small bouquet of white anemones beside it. They were her favorite flowers. It wasn't often that he was able to come and visit, but when he did, he was sure to bring them. Earlier that day, he'd gone by the Memorial Stone to visit his father since he lacked a grave of his own and left his favorite snack as an offering. It was habit by now to bring small gifts to entertain their spirits while he updated them on daily occurrences.

"Hi, Mom." He began, a fond smile on his lips as he knelt beside the stone slab. "It's been a while since last time. I'm a chuunin now. Didn't Dad also make chuunin by my age?" His question was met with silence, but he believed that his mother could still hear him, wherever her soul may be. Namie also spoke to the graves when she visited, he noticed, so she must have thought the same.

"Jiraiya-sensei's taken me on as an apprentice now. He's going to let me sign the toad summoning contract. As for Namie…" he paused, briefly wondering at her change in attitude over the past few weeks. She seemed a bit ill, and was often taken to the hospital for appointments. "She's in her second year at the Academy. I'm taking care of her, and so is Taji, but I wish I could be around more. She's really talented with taijutsu. But, sometimes I'm a little worried. She doesn't really have any friends…Well, there's one, but she's not her age. She's actually, well…"

He continued on, giving the same report to her as the one he shared with his father, concerning daily life, how many missions he'd completed (he was assigned his first official A-rank just today and was preparing to depart with Ayase and two other chuunin) and how his teammates were faring. He also shared news of Kushina, albeit in vague words. Most of what concerned her was confidential information and could not be treated lightly. But he did, at least, mention how he'd oftentimes seen Namie and Kushina running together around Konoha.

At first, learning that the two were acquainted had been quite the shock. The two, while somewhat similar with their tomboyish ways, couldn't be more different. Kushina was a spitfire and Namie was practical and a bit reserved. Not to mention the age gap. But, despite the odds, the two had come to accept each other. It was no wonder Namie was improving so rapidly in the taijutsu field.

He still wondered if Namie ever planned to share that friendship if he hadn't found out on his own.

He also wondered whether or not the redheaded Uzumaki had some sort of magnetic effect on the Namikaze siblings. What were the odds that they would both be attracted to her, although in different ways? He'd never met another Uzumaki, but it was quite possible that they all possessed a special property that had certain people gravitate towards them.

He wondered, idly, whether or not his parents would also feel the same way towards the girl, and a brief loneliness seized him when he realized he would never know.

Minato was pulled from his thoughts by a familiar presence lingering near the cemetery's entrance.

"Minato? Sorry to interrupt, but are you ready for the mission? We're meeting at the front gate in ten minutes." His Hyuuga teammate called, mindful that there were no other visitors she would disturb with her voice.

"Right. I'm coming." He replied, rising to his feet and brushing off his pants. He glanced once more at his mother's memorial before hurrying towards Ayase.

It was silly to feel lonely.

Even if his parents were gone, he wasn't alone. He had Jiraiya, and Ayase, and Ginta. He had Taji. He had his sister.

And now, he had Kushina.

A/N: Quick update for the short interlude and quick note as well. Next chapter will probably be up in a week or so! Review replies for both the previous chapter and this break chapter will be posted on my dreamwidth journal (kettobase) sometime before the next update because summer allergies and headaches have thrown me for a loop and I haven't had a chance to get those done yet.

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