Chapter 26
(Narrator POV)
Sarutobi Hiruzen was in the middle of dealing with Fujiwara Hana's custody case when Minato burst into his office looking half-crazed and frantic. A part of Hiruzen briefly wondered how Minato got past the ANBU that were usually stationed outside his door. Speaking of the door, the poor thing never stood a chance against Minato. It was thrown open with enough force to splinter the elderly wood around the hinges and left a nice impression on the wall. Obviously Jiraiya told Minato about Whirlpool and he hadn't taken it very well. The Hokage was torn between ordering Minato to wait outside and asking the man he was interviewing to come back at another time.
"Hokage-sama! I…."
The Third held a hand up to silence the frantic man. "Minato, calm down. I should have expected this, but I'm in a meeting at the moment. Give me a few minutes and then I will be able to give you my undivided attention."
The man sitting in the chair stood. "Hokage-sama, please, Minato looks like his reason for meeting with you is urgent. I can gladly wait outside. Our meeting may take a long time."
Minato looked at the dark haired man with grateful eyes before turning back to the Hokage. The elder man sighed deeply before agreeing. "That's very considerate of you, Takumi. If you'll wait outside we can continue later."
Takumi gave the Third a two finger salute before lazily walking out through the ill-treated door and into the hallway where two ANBU guards were trying to stand up after the shock of having Minato rush between them. Takumi raised an eyebrow at both of them before walking down the hall and leaning against the vertical surface. His mind was buzzing with various thoughts and feelings surrounding one little girl, Fujiwara Hana.
Nara Takumi was a cousin of Nara Shikaku and though he didn't possess the same level of genius that Shikaku did, his intelligence was far above average. His intelligence coupled with an active mind made Takumi an excellent code breaker. He spent hours looking through coded scrolls and papers in order to connect the symbols and words together to form messages. It wasn't very exciting work, but Takumi loved it.
At one time, Takumi's ANBU team was one of the best in their line of work. With an expert weapons mistress, a genjutsu master and an excellent code breaker they took espionage by storm and completed most of their missions with high success rates. They were literally living the good life. Then a change happened. The weapon's mistress fell deeply in love with the genjutsu master and the team split. Takumi ruefully smiled as he fingered the ring on his right index finger, it had been a gift from them. The ring wasn't anything special, but it was given in love, which made it all the more important. Memories of happiness flew across Takumi's mind as he thought back over his friendship with Airi and Haru. He was the best man at their wedding and stood in the hallway when their daughter was born. They even named him godfather of the little girl, his little flower. He would even go as far as to say he loved the three of them.
Takumi mentally snorted as he continued his musing, yes, he loved the Fujiwara family like they were his own. It was Airi that shyly gave him his first kiss beneath the sakura trees when they were fourteen and drunk off of sweet sake. It was Haru that promptly punched him in the mouth for taking advantage of their female teammate, when deep down inside they both knew it was just jealousy and not chivalry that drove the boy to punch him. Hana was the first baby he ever called cute and allowed to drool on his shoulder. They were the first family that made him want his own. They were also the first friends to ever betray him and Konoha.
The saddened Nara closed his eyes as he remembered the last time he saw his friends, or rather the severed heads of his friends. Takumi had no idea what drove Airi, Haru and Goro to side with Iwa and he really didn't care to know, but he wished he could have stopped it. If it was money, then why didn't they ask him for help? It hurt to think they didn't trust him enough to let him help them with their troubles. Why turn to Iwa when he was only a short walk away? It hurt even more to think that they left little Hana all alone in the vicious world. It was obvious the girl was taking the blame for her parent's mistakes and the hollow look in her eyes tore apart Takumi's aching heart.
Hana was his responsibility. He had agreed at her birth to take care of her if the occasion ever arose, but with her maternal grandparents still alive Takumi believed she would adjust better to living with them. It seemed almost natural to let Airi's parents take care of their granddaughter and give her the complete family she deserved. Takumi would have given her warmth and love, but he was a shinobi and tended to border sarcastic and downright sadistic on a daily basis. He didn't think he would be the better choice for a guardian over her grandparents. Obviously he was wrong.
According to the Hokage's findings, Hana was being abused in the worst way possible by her grandparents. The mental and verbal abuse was hurting Hana's young mind and the Third feared for Hana's mental state if the abuse continued for much longer. Constantly she was told that her parents never loved her and she should have died with them. Little Hana wasn't able to cope with their harsh words and spent most of her time crying. Hana was also being neglected.
The ANBU stationed outside her bedroom window reported that at night the elders pretended Hana was not there and dared her to leave her room. One night, like most young children do, Hana had an accident while she was sleeping. Her grandparents didn't take too well to that and refused to change her sheets until morning. One of the female ANBU had been so disgusted by the thought of the little girl having to suffer through the night in wet sheets that she broke protocol and changed the sheets for Hana. That was the last night Hana spent in her grandparent's house because another team of ANBU was at the door at dawn to collect her. She was currently playing with the Hokage's youngest son Asuma and being watched by Katsu, the elder Sarutobi boy.
Takumi had a choice to make. He was the legal godfather of Fuijwara Hana and could have full custody over her. All he needed to do was sign a piece of paper and he could take her home with him. The clan would have to review Hana before letting her accept the 'Nara' name, but she would be safe from the hatred of others. Most Naras were intelligent enough to recognize that the daughter was not the mother and father. Hana knew him, so she wouldn't be wary of him, but he would have to change a little to make his lifestyle and home a little more 'kid friendly.'
Takumi sighed aloud before rubbing his eyes, taking on a kid would change his lifestyle. He might even need to find himself a girlfriend or at least learn to cook. Yeah, learning to cook really needed to come before finding a girlfriend if he wanted Hana to survive with him. Airi and Haru may have been traitors to Konoha, but Takumi wasn't going to let his goddaughter be unloved and unwanted. He couldn't help but shake his head at the thought. He supposed he already decided on the verdict, Fujiwara Hana would be Nara Hana before long.
Takumi looked towards the still open door before looking down the hall. He didn't know how long Minato would talk with the Hokage, but he hoped it would be long enough to find Shikaku. If Hana was going to live with him, she was going to take his last name, so the clan needed to review the act. It was better to start the review process as soon as possible so the transition would be smooth for Hana. Perhaps letting the Fujiwara name die out, or at least disappear for a few years, would be best for everybody. Takumi stuck his hands deep into his pockets and headed off in search of Shikaku.
"Minato, you know you're not supposed to just randomly burst into my office like that right? I mean look, the door's going to have to be replaced now."
Minato grinned guiltily, "Sorry Hokage-sama, but after I heard about Whirlpool and Kushina, I just couldn't help myself. I needed to get here as soon as I could. I need to know she's okay. I want to lead a team to see about her."
The Hokage sighed deeply. "Minato, I know she's your lover, but we've got to handle this situation delicately. Iwa tore through Whirlpool and destroyed almost everything in the dead of the night. Jiraiya's informant barely was able to get out himself. Yes, Kushina's belongings were found among the rumble, but that doesn't mean she was there."
Minato nodded, "I know sir! That's why I want to go and see if I can find her somewhere close by."
The Hokage gave him a small smile, "I'm sending a team to Whirlpool tomorrow morning to see if there are any survivors and to look for any clues Iwa may have left behind. You can go with them. You leave at dawn and will return in one week."
The Hokage locked his gaze with Minato. "If you can't find a sign of her within a week, then I have to mark her as 'deceased.'"
Minato broke the gaze to stare out the window. "Yes sir. I understand."
"Good luck, Minato."
Minato stopped before walking out the door and turned around to face the Hokage. "You won't have to worry about marking her as 'deceased'; I'm going to find her alive."
The Hokage watched as Minato calmly walked out of his office. The two ANBU stationed at the door peered in before sheepishly apologizing for not reacting sooner. Hiruzen waved it off before going back to his pile of paperwork for Hana's case. "Send Takumi back in."
(Naru POV)
I hate my Sensei with a passion that rivals the heat of a thousand suns and judging from the look on Kakashi's face, the feeling is mutual. Kakashi is glaring a hole in the back of Sensei's head and looks like he's biting his tongue to keep from cussing the man. I was finally cleared for training a couple of days ago and since then both of our respective Senseis have taken turns handling our training. Currently Kakashi and I were doing push-ups with a starting weight of twenty pounds on our backs. The fun part of this exercise was if we didn't keep our backs straight, he added another pound. The other fun part was that Konoha was beginning spring and with spring came hotter weather. It was growing hotter and we were so sweaty that Kakashi couldn't stand to wear his mask.
"That's another pound Kakashi."
I winced for my friend and watched him stop so Sakumo-sensei could add the extra pound. That brought up his count to twenty-five pounds; mine was at a very uncomfortable twenty-three. Since I was cleared for training and my sessions with Inoichi were changed from once a day to once a week, the reality that we were going to war suddenly became real. I couldn't believe I was going to be deployed as soon as the Hokage gave our team the green light. It was difficult to imagine myself on a battlefield or even what battlefield life was like. I wasn't scared, but I was nervous. Kakashi seemed to take it all in stride though; of course, he had lived through this before.
"Okay you two; break for now and then we'll start again after lunch."
My arms gave out from underneath me and I let the weights slide off my back. It wasn't the weight that got to you; it was the number of push-ups that was performed. The longer you went, the heavier the weights felt. At one point I was sure Sensei was somehow magically increasing the weights from his position on the opposite side of the training field. I know I cleared three hundred and that was about one hundred push-ups ago. Kakashi moved over to the shade and rested his head against the trunk of the tree. I somehow managed to move my body over and sat down beside him. He looked over at me and pouted. I believe I will never get used to seeing Kakashi pout because he was too cute whenever he did it.
"I can't feel my arms."
I couldn't help but laugh. My own arms throbbed and were beginning to lose the feeling in them too. It was a strange, but rewarding feeling. Sensei walked over and tossed us two bentos. Kakashi caught one but couldn't quite reach the other. I simply didn't care; I wasn't even attempting to go after the box. Kakashi snorted with laughter before handing me the bento in his hand and reaching over to grab the other one. I thanked him and we silently began eating. Both too tired to even talk.
All too soon, Sensei called us over to him and instructed us to sit down. We sat and waited for his instructions. "As you both know, we're going to be deployed soon. I hate that it has to happen, but there is nothing I can do to keep you to from having to be deployed, nothing short of trying to get you both demoted and I have a feeling that is not going to happen." He smiled at us before looking over into the trees. "I know training lately has been horrible and hard and long, but there is a reason behind it. Minato and I are not trying to be sadistic bastards." I blinked just about the same time Kakashi did. We had never heard him cuss before. If Sensei noticed our surprise, he didn't say anything. "We want to teach and push both of you because we're afraid that the one thing we don't teach you will be the one thing that leads to your deaths." The clearing became eerily still and silent as he said those words.
Kakashi turned to Sensei. "What more can you teach us?"
Sensei looked at him. "There's so much more you two could learn, but we don't have enough time to teach you everything. You both are excellent shinobi, but even the most excellent shinobi can fall to simple tricks and maneuvers. Our best bet is to teach you what we can now and then coach as we go."
I smiled at Sensei. "Well, teach us Sensei."
Sakumo-sensei smiled, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. "I'm going to try."
(Narrator POV)
Minato was lost. He wanted to go right out and find Kushina himself, but he knew he had to follow the Hokage's orders. They couldn't run blind into Whirlpool because enemy forces could still be there. He hadn't felt this lost and alone since his parents died. Minato ran a hand through his hair before heading towards the training grounds where he could feel the chakra of Sakumo and the kids.
When he arrived at the training grounds, Naru and Sakumo were sparring in the middle of the clearing. Minato stood on the edge of the training ground and watched his daughter dodge and attack Sakumo with a skill unseen in most her age. Sakumo wasn't holding anything back, relentlessly attacking her. Minato knew why too. Iwa wasn't going to be easy on them, so why train the kids like they were? Naru managed to land a hit on Sakumo, but it cost her. He was able to get behind her and pull her into a headlock. Minato shook his head at the mistake before staring in shock as Naru disappeared in a puff of smoke. Sakumo quickly kicked behind him and connected with Naru's chest. Naru flew into the air before flipping and landing on her feet. She instantly propelled herself forward and tried to unbalance Sakumo. She didn't succeed the first time, but the three clones that suddenly jumped from the bushes along the side of the training ground did manage to unbalance Sakumo. He landed on the ground with Naru's kunai pressed against his neck.
Naru grinned at him as he congratulated her. "That's exactly what I want to see from now on. Little things like that can defeat the strongest of Jounin. Never forget teamwork can be used as another tool. You did good Naru." Sakumo turned to the tree line. "How ya doing Kakashi?"
Minato turned to see his student sitting along the underside of a thick tree branch. His eyes were closed in concentration as he tried to keep his chakra at an even distribution through his body, so he would stick safely to the tree. It was an amazing way to practice chakra control and build up chakra reserves. Kakashi slowly cracked open his eyes and answered his father. "I'm good and it's getting easier to multitask while concentrating on my chakra distribution."
Sakumo nodded, "Great. Now switch with Naru and we'll work on your hand-to-hand."
Minato decided now was the best time to interrupt. "Hey Sakumo, can you guys break real quick? I have something I need to tell everyone."
Sakumo agreed and soon Minato found three sets of eyes watching him. "I'm leaving on a mission tomorrow morning at dawn. The mission details are classified, but I can tell you that Whirlpool fell to Iwa a few days ago."
Sakumo's eyes widened. "Did Kushina make it back?"
Minato took a deep shuddering breath before shaking his head. "Her bags were found, but she wasn't. Supposedly there are no survivors. They don't know if she's somewhere in the rubble or was outside the village when everything went down."
Naru looked down at the ground, sadness oozing off of her as she did so. Kakashi shook his head to clear his mind of the surprised haze that had settled around him. In his mind, there was no way Kushina could be dead. She had to be alive.
Sakumo recovered first. "Maybe she left before. Kushina has been known to take off without her bags and have to get them sent to her. I'm sure she got out of there before anything happened."
Minato smiled ruefully, "I can only hope so."
Naru stepped forward and gently took Minato's hand. "Sorry daddy."
Minato closed his eyes and reached down to pick Naru up. He hugged her close to his chest, needing something to keep him grounded. Sakumo sighed, "Training is done for the day. Let's go help Minato pack for tomorrow."
(Kakashi POV)
Everyone was strangely quiet after we returned home. Naru was still keeping close to Sensei and making sure she was either hugging him or holding his hand. Even if Naru never had a family before, she knew that touch would go a lot farther than words because right now there were no words we could say to Sensei that would make him feel better. I wanted to believe that Uzumaki Kushina was okay and fine, but I didn't know for sure. I didn't know if we had somehow changed the future by being here. I didn't know if we had caused her premature death. That raised a question, did this mean Naru wasn't going to be born? Which raised another question, was Naru going to be born in six years or would it be another baby? Thinking about it gave me a headache because there was so much at play. Naru's soul was technically with her, so did that mean another soul would be used for the baby, if Minato and Kushina even have a baby? Would that baby become the carrier of the Kyuubi or was there a way to stop the attack?
I rubbed my eyes in frustration; it was all too much to wrap my mind around at this time. We needed those answers, but the only way to get them would be through Kyuubi or the Third. Naru was too busy with Sensei to bother questioning Kyuubi and the Third was trying to win a war. It was days like these that made me wish I were old enough to drink or smoke. Not that I ever want to touch alcohol again. I still can't remember everything from the hot toddy experience, but what I do remember makes me never want to touch alcohol again.
The clicking sound of nails hitting the floor caught my attention as Aki ran into my bedroom with her tail wagging. She was getting bigger, but she still had puppyish tendencies. She still liked to gnaw on toes and shoes, but she was now following Shiri around like a shadow and learning the rules of the pack. Kane had also taken a liking to Aki, which was surprising. Kane usually treated new members of the pack with indifference. Dad said it could have something to do with it being close to birthing season. Shiri hadn't had a litter since I was two and Kane had always been a softy with pups.
I whistled for her softly and watched as her tail wagged harder than before. She barked a few times before gently nudging my hand with her muzzle. I scratched her behind the ears and picked her up to walk downstairs. It was still bizarrely quiet and empty feeling. Sensei and Naru were nowhere to be seen and Dad was sleeping on the couch. He hadn't been sleeping very well with the insane amount of missions he was being sent on, plus the extra training he was doing and putting us through. I knew he was only getting about four hours of sleep a night.
I put Aki on the ground and walked over to the couch where he was snoring lightly. Thanks to his many years of shinobi training, he knew the exact instant I walked into the room. His entire body tensed before relaxing back into a state of sleep. Even in sleep he was every bit elite shinobi. I smiled slightly and covered him with the old blanket from the back of the couch. He stirred and opened one eye slowly, just to acknowledge my gesture. He reached up and ruffled my hair. He mumbled 'thanks' before drifting back off to sleep. I sighed and walked into the kitchen. I watched the sun slowly set all the while thinking about Kushina.
(Narrator POV)
Minato watched as Naru snored happily on his bed. It was about dawn, the early morning light barely peeking over the Hokage Mountain. He would be leaving soon and hadn't slept at all the night before. His mind was too active and no amount of Naru's bubbly personality could calm him down. He loved Naru, but he loved Kushina too. He needed Kushina to be alive and with him.
Minato sighed before running a hand through his hair and getting ready to leave. He quickly left a note beside the bed, just to let Naru know he was gone already. He just couldn't bring himself to wake her up and he didn't want her to worry. He walked out of his house, but stopped outside to look at Naru's garden. The little flower patch had blossomed beautifully. Naru had been taking care of it after her sessions with Inoichi because it calmed her and helped her think. Minato couldn't help but feel proud at the beautiful display as he walked to the village gates. He had a separate mission than the other members of the team. They were simply looking for any survivors or leads to Iwa. Minato was looking for Kushina. He gave a half-hearted wave to his teammates before walking out of the village gates with them.
His eyes were trained unwavering on the road in front of him when he began to see something red in the distance. Minato quickly rubbed his eyes, thinking his mind was playing tricks on him. The closer he got though, the redder and larger the figure became. Minato felt his heart racing with disbelief as the figure took the shape of a person before slowly becoming more defined into the silhouette of a woman. One of Minato's teammates called his name, but he couldn't make out the words the chunin was saying. His mind was too focused on the woman walking down the road with her hands behind her head and a single backpack strapped to her back. Minato knew it could have been a trap or some type of genjutsu, but he didn't care. He started running towards the woman. He didn't care if it was just a random red haired woman, because there was the chance that it was Kushina. He raced forward and came to a quick stop as the red haired woman, his Kushina, stood there with raised eyebrows and hands on her hips.
"Blondie, what in Hell are you doing running from the gate like that? You completely left behind your teammates." She gave him her signature grin, "Did you really miss me that bad?"
Minato could feel the tears of relief collecting in his eyes as he ignored her squawking and engulfed her in a hug. She flailed her limbs for a few minutes before breaking down and returning the hug. Minato set her on the ground and gently cupped her face with both of his hands. "I'm so happy to see you."
Kushina's face was the perfect example of confusion as she let Minato drag her into a sweet kiss. His lips barely touching hers, almost like he couldn't believe she was there. He was holding her like she would disappear into smoke. Kushina normally wasn't one for public displays of affection, but there was something about the way his arms were enwrapped around her frame and the way she could feel his frantic heartbeat beneath her fingertips that soothed her body into letting him do as he pleased. She couldn't help but wonder why he was so frantic to see her. Yes, she had been gone a long time, but he knew she was coming back.
"Minato, this is a nice welcome back and all, but did something happen while I was gone? Everyone's okay right?"
Minato blinked in surprise before looking closely at Kushina's clothes and seeing their almost pristine condition. "Kushina, when did you leave Whirlpool?"
Kushina laughed, "My dad sent me to Wave two weeks ago for family business and I came directly from Wave instead of stopping back home. I sent the reports back via a messenger so I figured it would be okay to come directly back to Konoha."
Minato sighed deeply before taking Kushina's hand. "Let's go to the Hokage's office so we can straighten some things out."
Kushina wiggled her hand out of Minato's grasp. "Minato, what's going on?"
"Just come on and I'll tell you later."
Kushina glared at Minato. "The last time you said you would tell me later I discovered you had a kid. What are you hiding now?"
Minato frantically tried to look anywhere but Kushina's eyes as he tried to get out of answering the question. He failed when Kushina grabbed his jaw and pulled him face to look her in the eyes. Minato closed his eyes before deeply sighing again and stepping a little ways away from her. He turned back to the team that was waiting on the side of the road. "You guys can go ahead. My mission is complete." They nodded and took to the trees before disappearing out of sight. Minato looked back at Kushina. "Jiraiya-sensei and his informants have been watching Whirlpool for a while because Iwa seemed to be moving in that direction. They attacked Whirlpool a few days ago and it fell to Iwa." Kushina's face paled to a sickly pasty color that made her hair stand out even more. Her green eyes looked glazed over as she took the information in. Then Minato added the final blow. "Supposedly, there were no survivors."
Kushina's breathing became erratic and she started gasping for breath, then suddenly she stopped and stood straight up. She looked at Minato with dead, emotionless eyes before walking towards the village. "Minato, go tell the Hokage that I'm back. I'm going to go home and take a nap."
Minato made a grab for her arm, "Kushina wait…."
"No Minato, I'm going to go home. I can't think about this right now."
Minato watched as Kushina disappeared in a puff of smoke. He sighed before walking to the Hokage's office with the news that Kushina was back in Konoha.
(Naru POV)
I was having an amazing dream where I was the Hokage of Ramen Land and everyday was Free Ramen Day. I was just about to declare all vegetables illegal when I was snatched from the comforts of sleep by the sound of a bowl hitting the floor. Groaning, I got out of bed and walked into the kitchen to see Kushina staring in shock at a huge mess on the floor. It looked like she was trying to make cereal, but something happened and the breakfast ended up on the floor. She was staring at the mess before kneeling down and attempting to clean the split milk with a dishtowel. I noticed she was crying silently to herself.
It tore my heart up. This is my mother, the woman that gave me life. The woman I never got to know because of the Kyuubi. I walked over to her and kneeled beside her to help clean up the spilt milk. She stopped cleaning and looked up at me with wet eyes. I grinned at her and tried my best at making her laugh. "You know, there's no reason to cry over spilt milk."
She stared at me, grinning a little, before finally throwing her head back and laughing. The tears streamed down her cheeks but she laughed so hard and so loud that I feared I had broken her. She then did something I wasn't expecting, she pulled me into a hug and continued laughing until her laughter became short gasping sounds. I once more noticed she was crying into my hair as her body shook from the force of her grief. I pulled away slightly before looking at her.
"You found out about Whirlpool didn't you?"
She nodded, "Two weeks ago I was laughing with my father and mother as they told the old corny stories of my eldest brother's first diplomatic mission. I made so much fun of him because he embarrassed himself in front of the other delegates. Now they're all dead. I've lost everything in the span of five minutes."
I looked up into her eyes. They weren't watery anymore, but they burned with anger. I gently tried to turn her away from her anger. "At least you have those memories. At least you have your life."
"My life? If I would have been there I could have done something! I could have stopped it from happening or at least saved someone."
I shook my head, "You don't know that. You could have been there and done nothing. They could have taken you unaware and ended your life as well. We could have lost you too."
She stopped before sighing and picking the bowl up. She stood up and placed it on the counter. About the same time Dad walked in and immediately pulled her into a hug. I stopped and watched my parents. It seemed almost perfect to see them hugging each other in the kitchen. It was exactly how I used to imagine my family, only this time I actually knew what my parents looked like. I looked back at them before heading to the bedroom to get dressed; they needed to be alone so Dad could help Kushina.
(Narrator POV)
The team sent to Whirlpool returned to Konoha with reports of destruction and no survivors. Konoha hosted a memorial service for those lost at Whirlpool since they were such good allies. While the service was going on, Kushina grieved silently behind closed doors. Those who knew she was from Whirlpool sent their condolences and visited with her, but she refused to go to the memorial service. She needed to grieve on her own and away from people.
Minato helped her out a lot, considering he lost his own parents only a few years before. He knew exactly where she was coming from. He knew the loneliness and anger that came with their deaths. Sakumo helped too. The only family he had left was Kakashi; so he too knew the sting of death. He also had this amazing ability to choose the perfect desert to lift Kushina's spirits and make her smile.
Naru and Kakashi though, weren't really able to help much because the others were so determined to lend a hand. Naru and Kushina did have a couple of good talks where they became closer to each other and Naru shared some of her stories from her original timeline, modified slightly where she didn't give away that she was from the future. Slowly but surely, Kushina started going back out into the village, talking to other shinobi and civilians. She even took a couple of missions and really seemed to be getting her life back together, but she never forgot her anger at the Iwa shinobi.
Another great thing was that Kushina and Naru ended up finding a common interest in the garden. It was Naru that introduced Kushina to the calming feeling that gardening gave. At first Kushina was against the idea, but after seeing Naru so focused and peaceful while tending to her flowers, Kushina decided she needed something like that.
"Kushina? Are you ready?"
Kushina nodded before kneeling beside Naru. She looked at the gardening tools with a raised eyebrow before picking up the hoe. Naru showed her how to till the ground and plant the seeds. She also showed Kushina how to take care of the plants by weeding them.
One day, Kushina looked over at Naru and sighed. "My mom used to garden. She had the same passion for it that you do. My dad used to say that she would have been happier living in a hammock in her garden than in any of the rooms in the main house."
Naru turned and smiled softly. "Your mom sounds like a really cool lady."
Kushina nodded, "She was pretty cool. She raised four kids and still managed to smile and laugh amongst all the chaos. My brothers used to cause so much trouble when they were teenagers that she was constantly having headaches."
Naru grinned cheekily. "And I suppose you were the perfect little angel?"
"Of course, I was the perfect little angel! Can't you see my halo?" Naru laughed with Kushina. "What about your mom, Naru?"
Naru tensed slightly before answering with the best lie she could. "She did as best as she could. She was a free spirit and having a kid slowed her down. Not that she didn't love me, but she was trying to keep me healthy and with a roof over my head."
Kushina nodded sadly, "I hate that you lost her so young. If you ever need anything, you know I am here. I may be just your dad's girlfriend, but I can give pretty good advice."
"Thanks Kushina."
"Well, let's get these seeds in the ground!"
Minato was lightly sparring with Kakashi. They were working on his hand-to-hand combat and trying to strengthen his attacks. Minato couldn't help but feel proud of the progress his student was making. Minato managed to get behind Kakashi and pushed him onto the ground with his hands clasped behind his back. Kushina and Naru had practically ordered them out of the house so they could have their 'girl time.'
"Good job, Kakashi. You're improving greatly."
Kakashi smiled at him before massaging his arms. Minato stretched before walking over to sit beside Kakashi. He looked over at his student. "Hey Kakashi, has Naru mentioned anything about taking my last name? I'm thinking about signing the official papers to become her legal father."
Kakashi shook his head. "No, she's never mentioned it. I'm sure she wouldn't mind though."
"I just don't want her to feel like I'm asking her to give up her mother. I want her to remember her mom, but I also want her to take the last name that is rightfully hers. Do you think she would get mad if I changed it?"
Kakashi shrugged. "Why not just ask her?"
Minato sighed before shaking his head. "I can't do that. That would be pressuring her into making a decision and I don't want her decision to be made because of me."
"Fine then, I'll ask her."
Later that afternoon, Naru came home covered in dirt and with a smile on her face. Kakashi cornered her in the hallway before they went to bed to ask her if she would be willing to take on Minato's last name.
"Do you want to take on your father's name?"
Naru's eyes widened before she nodded her head furiously, "Of course I do!" She dropped her voice before checking for chakra signals. Once she found none, she continued. "Uzu may be a nice name, but it's not my name. I can't have Uzumaki, but I would love to have Namikaze. I didn't get the opportunity in the other timeline."
Kakashi nodded his head before reaching over and ruffling her hair. "Why not ask then? Why do you have to be difficult?"
Naru snorted before pushing his hand away. "I'm not difficult. I just don't want him to believe he has to let me take on his last name. I don't want to push him to anything. You promise you won't mention it to him?"
Kakashi grinned and crossed his fingers behind his back. "I won't mention a thing to him."
Kakashi and Naru went on to spend the next several days on a mission with Minato helping Fuijwara Hana move into the Nara Clan house. Naru grinned as she patted the little girl on the head and gave her a coupon for free ramen at the Ramen House. Takumi thanked the blonde haired girl before calling Hana inside. Shikaku had approved Hana's move and the once shunned little girl now found herself in a loving family. Naru was pleased with the arrangement and couldn't wait to see what Nara Hana would accomplish in her lifetime.
It wasn't until Sakumo received word his team would be deployed in a few of weeks that Kakashi and Naru decided to host a dinner party in memory of Whirlpool, since Kushina missed the memorial service. Naru had talked with Kushina a few days prior and learned the fiery redhead regretted not going to the service and wished she would have went instead of locking herself in the house with a bowl of ice cream and a durable training target.
(Kakashi POV)
Naru's idea was a nice gesture to Kushina and showed that she really did care. I know it was eating Naru up inside to see Kushina so out of character. This was her mother and the one person she had dreamed about knowing. So of course I was willing to cook with Naru for Kushina and besides, who knew when we would get this rare opportunity again. We were being deployed in a matter of weeks and there was no guarantee that we would all make it through the war. The fact that my dad was alive was a relief, but also a constant worry. Some days I wondered if we didn't just prevent his death at home for it to happen on the battlefield.
I sighed before ignoring those depressing thoughts and watching Naru gather together the ingredients to make supper. We were making Ikameshi, which was simply squid stuffed with rice and placed in a sweet soy sauce soup. I'm not a huge fan of squid, but combined with the sweet soy sauce soup, it should be good. Naru had actually picked the dish out because it was one of Whirlpool's most famous dishes. The waters that surrounded the peninsula nation were teeming with squid of all sizes and species. It made getting the meat a whole lot easier since it was literally right in their backyard. We were also going to steam white rice with a side of skinless potatoes since they were in season. Dad even managed to conjure up chocolate cake, which surprised me because usually those didn't last long in our house. Overall it was going to be a good meal.
Naru clapped her hands together happily before turning to the opening between the kitchen and the living room. She placed her hands on her hips and looked at Dad and Sensei, who were sitting on the couch with Kushina. "Okay! I need you two to move the table out of the kitchen and rearrange the furniture in the living room. Then you're not allowed in the kitchen until everything is cooked and we're ready to eat."
Dad grinned as Sensei rolled his eyes at his daughter before doing exactly as she said. Kushina came to stand beside her and nudged Naru with her elbow. She bent down and whispered into Naru's ear, but loud enough so I could hear. "I knew teaching you the 'hands on the hip' pose and the 'authoritative voice' was a great idea. Look at what you've accomplished with just a few minutes of practice. Once I'm through with you, you'll have them whipped into shape."
Naru grinned as I tried to conceal my laughter. "Well Kushina, you did say it's all in the attitude."
Once Dad and Sensei finished moving the table and rearranging the furniture, Naru waved at them before shutting the door to close off the two rooms. I couldn't help but tilt my head and look at the difference in the room with the door closed. I had honestly forgotten that door closed because we always kept it open.
Naru walked over to the bowl containing the squid and peered over into the bowl. I knew from the disgusted look on her face that I would be handling the gutting portion of preparation. "Yeah Scarecrow, I'm leaving that to you. I'll go steam the rice and make the rice balls."
I nodded before washing my hands. "Don't forget about the soup. It has to be boiled with the squid in it."
Naru impatiently waved me off before grabbing a couple of pans and beginning to cook the rice. She stopped short and looked at the door. I turned and watched the door too. A very faint sound of whining was heard from the other side of the door. Naru walked over and grinned as Aki hurried in and took her place by the refrigerator. "Well, it looks like we've got us a helper Kakashi."
Aki barked happily before wagging her tail and pouncing on her toy bone. I looked over at Naru and decided that now would be a great time to get in some teasing. We hadn't had a good teasing session in a while and it was definitely needed. I poured the water out of the bowl before looking over my shoulder at Naru. "Well, at least Aki will be able stomach the squid guts. She's not going to go all 'girly' on me." I turned back around as I felt her chakra turn deadly and saw her back tense. I must be a glutton for punishment because I just had to add fuel to the fire. "Ya know, if you continue acting all 'girly' we'll have to get you a pink strap for your headband."
I turned to smile at her and was met with a face full of rice ball. I blinked the rice out of my eyes before wiping the rest off of my face the best I could. She grinned at me sweetly before innocently chewing on her fingernail. "Did I get rice on you? Well too bad."
I glared at her before picking up the bowl of flour we were going to use for the squid and throwing the flour at her. Her entire face was covered in the white powder and it fell off of her as she shook her head. I dropped the bowl as she opened those blue eyes that burned with mischief and grinned evilly. "This means war."
(Narrator POV)
Sakumo turned to look at the closed door as the suspicious sound of a bowl hitting the floor caught his ears. Kushina and Minato were too involved in their argument over the latest trend in Iwa's marching patterns to even notice the sound. In the back of Sakumo's mind he knew he should go make sure Naru and Kakashi weren't destroying the kitchen, but he ignored it. Instead, he turned to Kushina to agree with her point on the tactical warfare being too planned and not enough spontaneity.
(Naru POV)
I was covered in flour and Kakashi had rice in his hair. It was on! All at once we both went towards the counter for things to throw at each other. Kakashi grabbed the squid and stuffed the slimy creature down my shirt, but I got him with the bowl of soy sauce. The silver in his hair really complimented the soy sauce. Kakashi grabbed a few of the potatoes and mashed them in his hands before smearing the mush across my face. I grabbed one of the squids and slapped him across the face with the tentacles, luckily for me, Kakashi hadn't worn him mask and ended up with a face full of slime.
Aki whimpered pitifully from behind the fallen bowl and peeked over the top of it. She was covered in flour and had specks of rice and soy sauce splattered across her fur. Kakashi looked down at her, which gave me the perfect opportunity to run across the kitchen and grab the picture of water from the refrigerator. His eyes narrowed at me, "You wouldn't dare."
"Oh I dare."
I attempted to pour the water on top of his head, but he moved and grabbed the chocolate cake by the stove. I watched as he scooped some of the cake into his hand and grinned at me. "Want some cake?" He threw it across the room, but I ducked and it ended up landing on the cabinet with a dull bang.
I was across the room and scooping another glob of cake before Kakashi could recover. He ducked as the chocolate glob flew towards his head and landed on the refrigerator. Kakashi grabbed the sugar and walked menacingly towards me as I started laughing uncontrollably. He looked so silly covered in soy sauce, bits of chocolate cake and squid slime. He blinked as I told him, between gasps of air, to look at himself in the mirror. Kakashi started laughing too and as he pulled the mirror off the wall and let me see my reflection, it increased the laughter in the room.
I was a mess. I still had another glob of chocolate cake in my hand and reached over to smear it across his face. I couldn't stop laughing as I did it. Everything was finally breaking. The entire last few months seemed like they never even happened as I laughed harder than I had in a long time. All the frustration and fear was slipping away faster than the slimy tentacles of the squid. It wasn't until Kakashi reached over and gave me a matching streak of chocolate that Sakumo-sensei walked in with his eyebrows raised so far that they blended into his hairline.
"I'm not even going to ask what happened." He promptly turned around and walked right back out of the kitchen. Dad and Kushina peered in for a few minutes before shaking their heads and walking out again.
It wasn't until a few minutes later I heard Sensei. "That better not have been my chocolate cake or there will be a punishment."
Kakashi looked over at me and grinned. "Hey dad, will you come here for a minute?"
I watched with glee as Kakashi picked up the remains of the cake and waited for Sensei to walk back through the closed door. The door opened and the cake went flying. Unfortunately, it was Kushina that ended up with a face full of cake. Kakashi and I both stood still as she tensely wiped away the cake with both of her hands. Dad and Sensei were howling in the background with laughter. Kushina placed her hands on her hips and held up one finger. "I'm counting to one and then you're both dead."
We immediately looked at each other and disappeared from her sight.
(Narrator POV)
Sakumo ended up having to track Kakashi and Naru down after they took off from the house. He secretly agreed with them, he would have disappeared too if Kushina had promised immediate death upon sight. After he found them and took them back home in order to clean up both the kitchen and themselves. They all decided it would be best to change the meal into a picnic and take it to the park. Sakumo, with the help of Kakashi and Naru, threw together some quick bentos and headed out with Kushina and Minato.
After they had finished eating, Naru tried to convince Kakashi to go play on the playground with her. Now Kakashi was still as stubborn and resistant as he was the last time he was there, but that didn't stop Naru. She was determined to get him on the playground.
"Come on Scarecrow, let's go swing."
Kakashi shook his head and crossed his arms. "No. I'm fine right here."
Kushina nudged her lover's student with her elbow. "Go on Kakashi, you're only young once. I mean honestly, do you even know how to have fun?"
Kakashi glared at the redheaded female. "Of course I know how to have fun."
Naru rolled her eyes and tapped her foot against the ground. "Need I remind you of the last time we were at the park? What was it that you said, oh yeah, 'umm wee'?"
Sakumo tried his hardest to conceal his laughter, but failed miserably. Minato joined in, grinning widely at his student. Kakashi quickly stood up. "Fine, I'm going to prove you wrong."
Sakumo raised a finger to stop him. "Kakashi, you're forgetting to remove all sharp, pointy and otherwise dangerous objects from your person."
The glare spoke volumes as Kakashi began removing his weapons and leaving them in a pile on the blanket. Sakumo rolled his eyes at his son before laying back and cloud watching. Kushina giggled as she watched Kakashi and Naru half race across the playground. She didn't know how much longer they would be that carefree, but she was glad she got to see it. Those two had really helped her with her loss. They had somehow wormed their way into her heart and become her new family with Sakumo being the laidback brother-figure and Kakashi being the annoying little nephew. Minato being the charming lover and Naru being the unexpected daughter. Kushina stopped as she thought about the blonde. However unexpected she was, she fit right in with the rest of them. Kushina was happy for the first time since her parents died. She didn't know why, but she felt strongly connected to Naru. Even if the relationship she had with Minato went sour, she knew she would always think of Naru as something close to a daughter. She looked towards Minato and watched as he laughed at Kakashi and Naru as they took turns on the monkey bars with laughable ease. She doubted they would go sour anytime soon. Like she said before, she kind of liked him.
A few more weeks passed and soon Sakumo found himself having to call the introductory meeting for the team he was leading while they were on the battlefield. It was also the day Kakashi and Naru would receive their dog tags. He had both sets sitting inside the top drawer of his dresser because he couldn't bring himself to look at them. He sometimes wondered what Nozomi would say about her seven-year-old having to go to war.
Dog tags were given differently in Konoha, usually only when they were at war. On regular missions, it was easier to either bring the body back or at least the headband. On the battlefield, a shinobi would be lucky to be able to snatch one of the tags from the body before dodging another kunai or jutsu. Kakashi and Naru were getting them because they had never been in a war before. Sakumo hoped he would never carry either one of those dog tags back, but he knew it was a huge possibility that he would.
He called the meeting for early Monday morning and dragged both Kakashi and Naru out of bed. They were still sore from Kushina's training payback regimen. All he could get out of either of them was cliffs, syrup and kittens. Sakumo mentally reminded himself to congratulate Kushina on gaining the title of 'Scariest Lady in Konoha' and then ask for tips.
Shortly after dawn, the entire team showed up at the designated training ground and waited for Sakumo's orders. He greeted the team before starting the briefing with introductions. Kakashi and Naru went first, both groaning as they willed their aching limbs to a standing position. They were a joint deal, both specializing with traps and defense. Kakashi though, was also listed as a strategist. Their sword skill was another check for them. Overall, their teammates were a little wary of having them on their team so young, but recognized their skill level. Soto Ronin was listed as the team's scout. His eyes were still in very high demand. Uchiha Ai was the team's short-range fighter. Her Sharingan was strong and she knew a fairly high amount of jutsu. Yamada Taro was the team's long-range fighter. He had chosen a strange device as his weapon of choice, the long bow. Sakumo actually got lucky with Ishikawa Sai. She was a medic-nin and not every team ended up with a qualified medic. A part of Sakumo wondered if this was the Third's way of saying 'sorry' for sending his two seven-year-olds into battle with him. Inoue Kenichi was the final member of the team and specialized in espionage. He could hold a full body henge for up to two days or longer if it was a simpler trait.
Once the introductions were done, Sakumo began giving out the information. "We're going to be stationed in Kusagakure for the majority of our time out there. Mostly we'll be protecting supply lines and serving as the reserve. We shouldn't be on the frontlines unless something goes wrong." Everyone nodded in understanding as Sakumo took the bag with the dog tags out of his pocket and tossed them to Kakashi and Naru. Naru caught the bag and peered inside. "Those are yours and Kakashi's dog tags. In the event that something happens those will be brought back instead of your bodies." It hurt to say that to his son and student, but he knew he had to treat them like any other member of the team. It was the only way.
Naru pulled out one set and handed it over to Kakashi, who looked at the metal tag and slipped it around his neck. Sakumo wanted to close his eyes and cringe away, but stopped before watching Naru look in confusion at her tags. She tilted her head to the side before looking back up at her sensei. "Sensei? My dog tags are wrong. My last name is Uzu not Namikaze."
Sakumo grinned at his student. "Minato wanted to surprise you. He's officially changed your last name to his, but if you want to keep your mother's last name then that's fine with him. We already have the other tags just in case you wanted to keep your original last name."
Naru shook her head before slipping the dog tags over her neck. She looked at them once more before looking back up. "Why did he do it now?"
Sakumo shrugged. "He said that there was no sense in hiding you anymore. Iwa already suspects you, so they're going to be after you regardless. He figured it would be an even bigger ego smasher for Iwa if you carried his last name."
(Naru POV)
After the meeting was over, Kakashi and I stuck around the training ground to try and work out our sore muscles. I fingered the metal tags around my neck before turning to look at Kakashi. "How did my dad know I wanted to take on his last name?"
Kakashi blushed slightly over the top of his mask. "A little birdie must have told him."
I laughed before walking over and pulling his mask down his cheek a little bit. I leaned over and kissed him firmly on the cheek before pulling away and admiring the nice shade of red his ears turned. He quickly looked away from me and suddenly became very interested in the oak tree beside us. I couldn't help but giggle and playfully bump him with my hip. He turned and chased me around the training ground and through the middle of the village.
As we ran, I couldn't help but notice the people that moved out of our way or waved after us. They were the reason we were going to war because we had to protect Konoha. I jumped over a small boy playing in the street. The children were the future and would one day carry on the Will of Fire. We protected them too. All of Konoha was in need of our protection because all of Konoha was connected to us by bonds. We came to the past, regardless of how strange and unusual, to change the future and make it a better place. We didn't know how much we had changed, but I could only hope it was the beginning of better things to come. Next week, we would be deployed and sent deep into Grass Country.
At this point, not even we knew what the future would hold.
Note of the releaser: We reach the end of part 1. I will stop uploading for a while.
