Last Time:

"Out already?" Naoto questioned as he watched Toneri come out through the double doors. "I was sure you were going to go all the way with her."

"These things take times," Toneri told him. "She's newly single and it's going to take time until she's ready to date again. Plus, I don't have all the time in the world to focus only on Hinata-chan. With Lady Kaguya's latest endeavor, our hands are full."

"Does she really think we can take on Whirlwind?" Naoto questioned and grunted when Toneri's smacked the back of his head. "What the hell was that for?"

"You talk too much," Toneri said. "And have some faith in Lady Kaguya, she knows what she's doing," he checked his watch. "It's a process."

Opposites Attract: Chapter 35 – "The Abridged History of Namikaze Minato"

"What're we doing here?" Naruto questioned as he slid into a booth with Minato. Naruto had agreed to go to lunch with his father, but he didn't expect him to bring him to an old hole in the wall diner in the tourist part of town. It was virtually empty despite it being peak lunch rush hours.

He looked around and liked the aesthetic of the diner that seemed frozen in time, but his eyes landed on a picture that hung over the counter. He recognized the image of Jiraiya despite him being nearly forty years younger in the picture and out of a suit. He wore an apron and the diner's uniform, and his grin was the same.

"Grandpa used to work here?" Naruto questioned as he looked at Minato.

"Yup," Minato answered with a smile. "Back in Kumo, I told you that we had some things to talk about and I had promised to tell you everything."

Naruto remained silent. They'd been back from Kumo for two weeks and he was sure Minato had forgotten. He had wanted to ask Minato about it but considering that Minato was usually swamped with other things, he didn't bother him and focused on studying, entrance exams, and apartment hunting. It was already February and graduation was literally around the corner.

Minato wore a bit of a somber expression on his face as he tapped his fingers against the booth's tabletop. "We should've had this conversation much sooner, but I guess I was too worried about how you'd look at me if you knew the whole truth."

"The whole truth?" Naruto repeated.

"Yes." Minato nodded. He reached into his inner jacket pocket and removed his wallet. He opened it and reached into one of its many hidden pockets.

Naruto watched as Minato placed a worn picture that was probably older than him on the table. Minato carefully slid it over to him and Naruto picked it up with care. The woman in the picture was beautiful. She was blonde like him and had eyes lighter than Minato's. "Who is this?"

"My biological mother," Minato answered.

"Huh?" Naruto looked at Minato. Growing up, Naruto knew that asking about Minato's past was off limits. And he knew that asking about either of his biological parents was strictly off limits. As far as he was concerned, Minato's life began when he was adopted by Jiraiya.

"Her name was Takahiro Nami," Minato began. "She was from a rice farming village from Eastern Fire Country, and when she was seventeen, she moved to Konoha with her older brother Hibiki. Of course, with them being from a farming village, they were poor so moving to the city landed them in worse part of The Whirlpool. Nami wanted to go home after they struggled for a few months, but Hibiki was determined to stay and make it in the city."

Naruto could hear the strain in Minato's voice as he carried on with his story. Naruto handed off the photo back to Minato and watched as he carefully slid the picture back into his wallet before tucking his wallet away.

"Some asshole passing through The Whirlpool looking for a prostitute saw Nami waiting for the crossing sign on a street corner and mistook her for one," Minato rubbed the palm of his hand as his brow furrowed. He rubbed the bridge of his nose before letting out a heavy sigh. "Hibiki had been there and in that moment, saw his cash cow. He forced Nami to prostitute herself after that."

"Otou-san," Naruto breathed.

Minato continued, "It basically went downhill from there for Nami. Hibiki got her hooked on cocaine and heroin and just kept using her like she was some doll or something. And in case you haven't figured it out yet, my father was one of Nami's clients: Ouma Shouhei."

"Ouma Shouhei?" Naruto repeated. "Wait, isn't that…"

"Yup," Minato confirmed. "The very same one."

"Oh," Naruto leaned back in his seat.

Ouma Shouhei served on the Supreme Court of Fire Country.

"Anyway," Minato shrugged, "I was three when my mother died of an accidental overdose. I remember her having the most beautiful voice. She wanted to be an actress and a singer; even a bit of a fashion designer and model. She just wanted to be famous, but she realized quickly that it wouldn't be possible. She accepted that and when she was in her right mind, she would put on small shows for me. Singing, dancing, modeling; all of it."

Minato smiled a bit now and Naruto couldn't help but do the same.

"When she died, Hibiki disappeared and left me on my own," Minato informed Naruto with a bit of a sigh. "Luckily, I was used to being on my own with my mother working all the time and Hibiki not being any better than any other man that passed through my mother's bedroom. So, for two years, I lived on the streets of The Whirlpool and managed to survive. Some people were kind to me and would watch me, but no one wants a street toddler long term."

Naruto pursed his lips together.

"One night," Minato looked around the diner, "I ended up in the dumpster behind this diner and while I was rummaging, Jiraiya had come outside for his smoke break. He heard me in the dumpster and thought I was another animal that'd gotten in, so he kicked it and scared the crap out of me." Minato laughed, "I jumped out and scared Jiraiya just as badly as he scared me. I tried to run away but Jiraiya caught my leg and held me upside down like I was some old rag doll or something. I weighed practically nothing at that point, so it wasn't surprising he picked me up so easily."

"Wait, this diner?" Naruto looked around.

Minato nodded before tapping the table. "And this very table. He brought me in and sat me down where you're sitting and brought me out a burger bigger than my head. I wolfed that thing down in record time and the whole time, Jiraiya just sat where I'm sitting now and watched me. When I finished, I got up and was about to leave but Jiraiya stopped me and asked me where I was headed.

"I told him I was going to find a place to sleep for the night and I think it was then that Jiraiya decided to adopt me," Minato said. "But, after I said what I said, he told me that I had to go home with him because it was the middle of winter and I'd turn into a popsicle if I tried sleeping outside. He took me home and he didn't let me leave. Every time I 'ran away,' he seemed to find me without a lot of effort and drag me back to his apartment."

Naruto chuckled. "That sounds like Grandpa."

Minato smiled and nodded. "And Tsunade always had to remind me that I could stay for as long as I wanted. I finally understood what that meant after about my twentieth lecture and I stayed with them."

"Wait, where did you get your last name?" Naruto questioned. "It's not Grandpa's or Grandma's, and it's not Grandma Nami's?"

"I made it up," Minato answered. "Nami- for my mother and kaze because she always told me about how she loved the feeling of the wind against her skin back home in the village where she grew up. So together, you get Namikaze: a wave of wind."

Naruto smiled. "I like it."

"Me too," Minato agreed.

A waitress came up with an order and placed it on their table. Naruto saw the way that the waitress affectionately rubbed Minato's cheek much like Tsunade or Kushina rubbed his own. She did the same to Naruto before patting his shoulder and walking away.

"She owns this place," Minato informed Naruto. "She was here the night Jiraiya adopted me and when Jiraiya was still working nights here and going to school, he would bring me with him and I would hang out in this booth all day. Considering how much she fed me, it's a miracle I'm not bigger than Chouza."

"She seems nice," Naruto said.

Minato nodded. "She is. Jiraiya comes in occasionally to sit and talk with her."

"How often do you come here?" Naruto asked.

"Once a week," Minato admitted. "Don't tell your mother though; she'd kill me if she found out I was here that much. She's starting to talk about putting me on a diet and changing what I eat, and I'd rather not go down that road yet."

"Your secret is safe with me," Naruto swore, the two of them laughing together.

"By the way, the burgers here are better than the burgers at Fire Shadow," Minato declared before taking a bite.

Naruto paused before he bit into his burger. He eyed his father before raising an eyebrow. "Better than Fire Shadow?"

Minato chewed happily, proud of his statement. Naruto eyed the burger before taking a cautious first bite. And then a much less cautious second bite. Minato snickered proudly before sipping his soda and swallowing his mouthful of food. "Say it."

"You were right," Naruto muttered through a mouthful of food. He swallowed before looking towards the kitchen to see the owner in the order window. "Oba-chan! Your burgers are the best," he called.

"Thank you, Sweetie," she called back, proud.

"Can I bring my friends here?" Naruto questioned.

Minato nodded, "Of course. This place is twenty-four hours. Just a warning, this place is pretty packed after ten."

That explained why it was empty now. It was one of those places you stumbled upon when most of the restaurants nearby were already shut down for the night. But then you found a hole in the wall burger place and could satisfy your stomach.

The two of them continued to eat. Minato asked about Naruto's studies and how he was feeling about entrance exams and graduation. Naruto's nervous laughter wasn't exactly reassuring but Minato understood.

"And how's Hinata-chan?" Minato questioned.

"She's good," Naruto answered, and he meant it. Despite the two of them breaking up, Naruto still made sure to check on her and from what he could tell, she was good. "She's almost done with her competition; next week is the last round and she's already in first place with a huge lead so she's expected to stay there."

"Good." Minato smiled. "Are you going to be able to go? It's in Iwa isn't it?"

Naruto nodded. "Yeah. I already got my ticket so I'm flying out Friday night and coming back Sunday night."

Minato nodded. "Good. Make sure you keep up with your studies though. Your entrance exams are in two weeks."

"I know," Naruto assured.

They were halfway through their burgers before Minato dabbed away at his mouth with a napkin. Naruto already felt himself in need of a nap, but he was desperate to finish his burger. He sipped on his soda and then saw the look on his father's face. Part two of their conversation was about to resume.

"At the meeting," Minato began, "you became overwhelmed with anger because of what Karui had said, right?"

"Yeah," Naruto answered.

Minato sighed and scratched the back of his head. "I'm not sure how to tell you this, but that's my fault."

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked.

"I'm technically a mild schizophrenic," Minato answered, and Naruto was suddenly a bit more attentive. "Do you remember what you saw when we were in the meeting? How I seemed to change a bit?"

Naruto shivered slightly at the memory.

"Well, that was that," Minato explained. "When I was younger, a little younger than you – about thirteen to fifteen – I was angry all the time. It was like my mother's death hit me all over again and I was angry at Hibiki and Shouhei and every man who used my mother for their own personal satisfaction. I would get so angry that I would blackout and when I came to…" Minato sighed, "it was a nightmare."

Naruto's palms began to sweat.

"As I got older, I learned how to," Minato paused as he tried to think of the right words, "hone it, I guess. Instead of blacking out, I used that anger to my advantage and I learned that people fear a calm anger more than they fear a screaming idiot who's red in the face."

Naruto nodded in agreement. He had definitely feared his father despite him not directing that anger towards him. And the fact that he had managed to get Ohnoki and A to apologize – two of the most stubborn men Naruto knew existed – definitely meant something.

"Anyway, I had hoped you didn't pick that up from me but here we are," Minato sighed. "We can set up an appointment with my psychiatrist, get you examined, officially diagnosed, and get you prescribed something but that's only if you want to."

"Do you have a prescription?" Naruto asked.

"I do," Minato admitted. "I don't take it regularly and it serves more as a safety net or regulator I suppose. It took me a while to have some control over my anger but there are some times where I can get triggered by small things. Those are the days when I take my medication and keep myself in check for the day."

Naruto thought for a moment.

"It's not going to be easy, you know?" Minato told him. "It's scary sometimes too because you become this person you almost don't recognize. I know I scared myself and sometimes I wonder which side of me is the real me. But at the end of the day, I remember that they're both me, they're both what make me, me. I wouldn't call it a flaw but just because you have it doesn't mean you have to start shutting yourself out from the rest of the world."

"And you can help me?" Naruto asked.

Minato nodded, "I can."

"Okay," Naruto agreed. "How soon can you get me an appointment?"

"As soon as the early part of next week," Minato assured him.

Minato's phone rang. He tapped his ear piece, "Yeah?"

Naruto watched as Minato sat and listened. And as Minato listened, Naruto saw the way his eyes darkened, and his jaw clenched. He couldn't think of anything that would make Minato become that angry that fast.

Minato hung up without saying a word and removed his Bluetooth. He clenched his jaw tighter and grinded his teeth. He scratched the back of his head and chuckled a bit before sighing and shaking his head.

"Otou-san?" Naruto called.

"I'm fine," Minato assured him. "We have to go pay your grandfather a visit."

"Grandpa? Is he okay?" Naruto asked, concerned.

Minato threw cash onto the tabletop. "Wrong grandfather."

Naruto hadn't figured out Minato meant Kushina's father until they crossed into the Fourteenth Ward. He should've guessed as much considering Minato was clearly not on speaking terms with Ouma Shouhei but even Minato had met the man a few times at charity events. Whether Shouhei knew he was shaking hands with his son was a question Naruto would need answered later.

And in Naruto's seventeen years, he hadn't stepped foot in the Uzumaki Complex once. But now he was standing on the porch while Minato politely rang the doorbell and used the door knocker three times. As they waited, Kushina's car came to a screeching halt next to Minato's and she was halfway up the steps before the door opened.

Standing in the doorway stood an older woman who was the spitting image of Kushina. Her red hair was longer than Kushina's and it was draped over her right shoulder in waves of curls. She had blue eyes that were the same shade as Kushina's and her skin was just as fair. The longer that Naruto stared at her, the more he realized that this woman was older than Kushina.

Kushina cleared her throat as she carefully walked up the rest of the steps and stood beside Minato. "Okaa-chan."

To Be Continued…