Disclaimer: still don't own it, still don't want it.
Jagged Pieces
Minato stayed outside all week, unable to stand long enough on his own to reach the threshold of the little house. Frustration – and a tidbit of embarrassment too – was brewing in his insides, as he caught yet again sight of Naruto peeking at him behind the window's curtain, a hand pressed against her mouth to muffle her honking laughter. His death glare wasn't affecting her in the slightest as she nearly went rolling on the floor in hysterics.
But the awkwardness apart, it was a good thing for the both of them. Naruto could finally sleep easier, without the constant paranoiac fear of being stabbed by her oblivious father – never mind the fact that she had sealed away all his weapons. There was only one bed in the cabin, and now that Minato was lounging outside, she was able to rest in something comfier than the old padded armchair she found. It did wonder to her straining back, and she wasn't ashamed to admit she almost sobbed with relief as she sank in the ratty but cloud-like mattress.
As for Minato, he was glad to spend his days outside despite the rock-hard bench he slept on. The nights were heavy with warmth, and the morning a bit chilly, making his bones whine in protest when he moved too quickly. Besides, being away from Naruto – a threat, his mind kept supplying – made him focus on getting his strength back. His chakra levels were still low, but he could now summon little toads, even though it left him knocked out for a few hours afterwards. Still, it was progress, and now he could work on contacting the Hokage and eventually get the hell out of Lightning.
Stretching his worn out muscles while breathing in, Minato instantly froze and winced. He smelt awful, only realizing now that he didn't shower since waking up, and Naruto seemed to only have cleaned up his wounds – which was apparently already asking too much from her.
His skin felt itchy and he was sure that his state of dirtiness was a sanitary hazard to his wounds. Call him a sissy, but there was no way he'd stay like that any longer.
Determined, the shinobi got to his feet, his greyish cotton pants clinging to his sweaty legs, and inch by inch, he made his way to the window where Naruto was still staring at him with amusement. Feeling his body protesting against his decision to move, he braced his bare forearms against the wooden frame, and his hazy eyes locked onto Naruto's.
"Giving up already, Namikaze-san?"
Her grin had a malicious edge, and she even leant towards the shinobi, as if to taunt him. She knew he could do nothing right now.
He scoffed. "I don't think so. I just wanted to ask where I could bath."
Naruto nodded with wide innocent eyes. "Yeah, you kinda stink, man."
And whose fault is it? He wanted to growl, but outwardly smiled in the charming way he knew Konoha's kunoichi couldn't resist, head slightly tilted and eyelids at half-mast, his lashes almost brushing against his faintly flushed cheeks from his previous exertion. Minato knew he was good looking, and as his best friend once crudely put it, he could make ovaries explode on sight only. And contrary to popular beliefs, he wasn't above using his advantaging physics to get what he wanted. And now, what he wanted was just a bath and some peace.
"Aah, sorry about that, I was hoping you could help me," he said in a lilting voice.
He wasn't expecting Naruto to cackle so loudly that birds flew from their nests. "God, you're so girly. What was that, a seduction technique learnt in a brothel or something? Or were you in the kunoichi classes, at the Academy?"
The smile melted away so quickly that she had to wonder for a second if it had been a Genjutsu all along. A frown replaced it, a sinister, resounding 'crack' coming from where Minato's hands were digging into the wooden frame. This time, when he looked at her with narrowed eyes, she felt like a mouse waiting to be eaten by the big cat. Her laugh quickly died as the man talked in a deceptively soft voice, "Listen, woman. I'm tired, I feel beyond dirty, and my patience is wearing thin. I'm trying to be nice here, but keep pushing and you'll see why Konoha's shinobi are feared."
The guy was leaking Killing Intent and wasn't showing any sign of falling to his knees despite his condition. She narrowed her eyes and forcefully clenched his chin between her fingers, digging deeply into the barely tanned skin. Naruto then unleashed her own Killing Intent and hissed, "If you think I'm gonna roll over and show you my belly, then you're in for a big surprise. You're alive because of my good will, don't you forget it."
To her surprise, Minato was still standing and a smirk tugged at his lips. They stared at each other for an indeterminate amount of time before Minato cheekily said, a nauseatingly fake grin stretching his mouth while thunder seemed to rage behind his eyes, "So? That bath?"
With a harrumph, she released him and he wobbled a bit. That little pissing contest took a toll on him, but he'd be caught dead before he admitted to being mildly subdued by the blonde's power. She was more and more intriguing. It wasn't something many people knew about him, but Minato could never resist a good challenge, and that made him as much a great shinobi as a bad one: no Kage wanted a maverick as a weapon.
And Naruto? She was becoming a challenge that Minato was eager to take on. Blood was pumping through his veins and his skin was itching. His fingers actually twitched at the idea of battling against the fierce kunoichi, and a confident smirk stretched his lips: he had even more reasons to get back to full strength now.
The woman chose that moment of epiphany to come out of the house, a huge wooden bucket held against her hip. A blue towel hung from the edge and as she passed him, the shinobi spied a bar of soap in the inside. Dread filled him. Was she actually thinking about making him bathe with the ice cold water from the nearby river?
A frown wrinkled his brow and as he opened his mouth, Naruto looked at him with sharp, angry eyes, shutting him up instantly. The river wasn't that far, and they could hear the rushing water barely a few yards away from the house.
It was a short walk, but the man relished in being able to slump against a tree. His breathing wasn't as affected from the exertion as it has been a week ago, proving that he was getting back in shape quicker than imagined. How he wished sometimes to have the famous Uzumaki longevity...!
A splash of cold water wet his calves and he tried his hardest not to throw an annoyed glare at the woman who just dropped the bucket at his feet.
"There. You can take your bath now," she said, casting him the bar of scentless soap. He snatched it in the air and when it became clear that cold water was his only choice, Minato tried his best not to pout. He was a grown man. And a shinobi. He had lived through worse.
Composed, he bent down to test the water with the tips of his fingers, and regretted it. Apparently, his burns didn't agree with the position.
Naruto clicked her tongue. She knew that it eventually would've gone down the humiliation path for the both of them (how would she be able to look her sire in the eye later on without puking of feeling like blinding herself? And how would Minato feel to be treated like an invalid?) With a sigh, the kunoichi tugged on the man's arm to make him sit down on a large protruding root. He did it without complain, face already pale as he gingerly held his sides. Naruto won't say it, but she was a bit impressed – many of her former fellow ninja would've been rolling on the floor crying from the pain.
"Come on, big guy," she said, resigned. "I'll help you get squeaky clean and I'll rewrap your bandages afterwards! Arms up."
Once all the bandages were off, she wet the sponge she brought with her and helped the hurt shinobi in washing away the grime and sweat, letting him handle the more private parts. Naruto tried to do it clinically, thinking of all the times she did the same for her comrades, and sooner than she thought, she was done and didn't even blush once, nor did she feel the need to throw up. All in all, at the end of the day, it was just another scarred body.
Minato was shivering, and Naruto felt a twinge of sympathy. Maybe forcing him to use cold water was too petty… After all, she was indeed the one to make fun of him in the first place, and she knew that in his stead, she would've blown a gasket much earlier! Really, his patience was to be admired.
She sighed angrily at herself. Her emotions have been all over the place these last months, but it was no reason to take revenge on an innocent man. Well, as innocent as Minato could be, what with his death threats and grumpy glares. He was so not getting back his weapons.
"Sorry," she finally mumbled as she patted him down with the towel, trying not to be rough and jostle his wounds. At his confused expression, she added, "For acting like a total bitch. Though for my defense, you've been acting like a huge bastard since day one."
Okay, she was definitely not good at apologizing, but the idea was there at least.
He tensed under her hands and Naruto looked up, intrigued.
"Don't call me that."
The tone was chilly and unfriendly, but the grim effect was lost between his quivering lips and clicking teeth. It was too much. Naruto bit the inside of her cheek, head bowed as she wrapped the towel around the man's broad shoulders, and she completely broke when Minato sneezed.
Her laugh rung through the forest, startling a few birds into a panicked flight.
"Man, you're weeeaaak! You didn't even go into the river, and you're barely wet from washing up!"
He sneezed again. "I slept outside all week, after being in a comatose state for days, never mind the fact that I'm not at the peak of my health. Excuse-me for being affected by cold water, on top of that," he glowered as he sniffled.
Naruto sniggered a bit more before helping the shinobi to his feet. "Alright, let's get you warm. And maybe we can talk afterwards about how to get you back home."
He looked at her with surprise, almost stumbling over thin air, and she only smiled while tugging him towards the little cottage. It's not like Naruto spent the whole time away from Minato without reflecting on their situation. She was in no shape to go back to the ninja village right now, but she could make sure that the ANBU captain was sent back – Konoha needed all its soldiers, after all.
Later, as Minato was finally dry and warmth was seeping into him, a mug of tea clutched between his hands, Naruto laid out a scroll in front of him. "Write whatever you need to, I'll make sure it is sent to your Kage."
He appraised her with his keen eyes, eventually arching a brow. "Don't take it the wrong way, but I don't feel comfortable with you handling confidential documents."
Naruto shrugged, unconcerned. "Fair enough. What do you propose then? I can't imagine you'd be okay with me hiring some Kumo ninja…"
The blond man sipped at his green tea – too sugary, he though while licking his lips – and shook his head. "I think I can manage to summon one of my toads long enough to pass them a message."
It was Naruto's turn to skeptically lift an eyebrow. "Really? You sure you have the chakra needed?"
A smug smile tugged at Minato's lips, and Naruto wanted to slap it off his face. She never remembered her father as being so annoying and obnoxious. Maybe people were wrong back home, and she took more after her sire than her mother…
"You're underestimating me, Naruto-san. I've suffered worst wounds in the past, and still was able to operate at the best of my abilities."
She was about to snort 'yeah, right' when something tickled her senses and she focused. Chakra was being moved around them, and as she finally pinpointed the source, she stifled a gasp. Minato's eyelids had taken an orange tinge to them, and yellow has begun to slip in his baby-blue eyes. All the time they've been sitting there, he had barely moved, gathering Senjutsu without Naruto's awareness. She made a sound in the back of her throat and crossed her arms, petulant. That was cheating. Of course he would be up in no time with the help of natural chakra.
Seeing her sour expression, Minato chuckled, not even bothering to stop at the dark glare the woman threw him. For once, he wasn't the butt of a joke, so she could suck it up. It didn't take long after that for him to summon a small toad who greeted him with excited shouts and tears. Apparently, they've been worried after not hearing from him post battle.
He quickly wrote a succinct note to the Sandaime before tucking the scroll into the toad's pouch tied at its neck. "Stay with him while he writes his answer and comes back straight to me."
The toad nodded obediently before vanishing in a puff of smoke.
Naruto had been worried at first to be recognized by a summon who would've blown up her cover, but it was a red toad she never saw before and relief washed through her. Maybe she should try and summon Gamakichi, to see if her contract was still valid and if so, maybe the toads would've a solution for her time travel problem.
Hearing the Konoha ninja's sigh, she glanced up at him and tilted her head to the side. "Tired already?"
A groan was her answer. Minato's head was thrown back, fingers crossed on his belly and legs spread out under the table. His Adam apple bobbed up several times before he sighed again. "No." A pause. Then a new frustrated sigh. "Yes. I don't know. It feels weird to have so much chakra in me again."
She hummed noncommittally. She had never experienced a chakra drain before, and her friends often depicted her as a chakra tank. To her, it would've been weird not to feel full to the brim with energy.
The silence was broken by a new puff of smoke, the red toad from before jumping on Minato's shoulder to give him the Hokage's answer. Minato straightened in his chair, eyes losing their lazy edge to focus on the scrawled message.
On the other side of the table, Naruto was almost bouncing on her chair, eager to know what it said. She would never admit it, but she felt a bit anxious too. If Minato went away, it would mean that she would be left alone with her dark thoughts. Kurama still didn't contact her, and she was reluctant to go into the seal, too scared to acknowledge the fact that maybe her friend was gone.
When Minato closed the scroll and put it back on his side of the table, chin nestled on the heel of his hand, Naruto gulped. This was it. The moment of truth.
"So? Should I be expecting a horde of ninja at my doorstep tomorrow?" she smiled, crinkled eyes hiding her worry.
A soft hum, then Minato simpered exaggeratedly, "So eager to get rid of me… you're a bad host, Naruto-san."
She kicked his shin under the table while keeping a sweet smile on her face, a vein throbbing at her temple. He stifled a moan as his body went rigid, trying not to jump at the attack. He smiled equally, sickeningly sweet at her, though his eyebrow twitched and a spasm went through his fingers, as if he was about to throttle the kunoichi.
"The Hokage can't spare a retrieval team right now, and since I assured him I'm in no danger whatsoever," at that, he deliberately stomped on her right foot, grinding his sandaled heel on her bare toes as she hissed and gripped the table's edge, "we agreed that my staying here wouldn't be a problem, as Konoha doesn't need my services at the moment."
"So you're basically saying that I'm stuck with you until further notice?" she drawled, sending one last kick at Minato's ankle. Deep down, a sense of relief washed over her. Maybe she could avoid her responsibilities for a bit longer.
"I'd say it's the other way around," Minato complained as he rubbed the back of his neck.
Naruto snorted, and as she stood up to go into the kitchen, readying a new pot of tea, she said, "I'm keeping the bed."
Minato watched her back, his pointy chin cradled between two knuckles of his clenched fist as he leant forward on the table. "I'm the sick one, though."
He kept gazing at her as the kunoichi threw spoonful after spoonful of sugar into the pot as she hummed, "Does it look like I care?"
A defeated grunt was her answer, and a genuine smile crossed her face. The tea was done already, but Naruto kept herself busy, not wanting to turn around and break their amiable moment. It almost felt like being back in her Konoha, enjoying the easy banter as she would with an old friend.
Unbeknownst to her, as light blue eyes tracked her moving frame, a slight grin upturned Minato's lips. He covered it with his fist and turned away to look out the open window, where Naruto taunted him earlier that day. It seemed so far away now. Truly, it's amazing how much the two blondes clashed like a volcano meeting a tornado, and yet could still enjoy a moment of peace together.
As he listened to the clinking of pots and mugs, Minato ended up thinking that asking the Sandaime for a vacation had been a good idea after all. Maybe if he accepted to face the challenge that Naruto has proved to be, his mind would quit harassing him and he'd be able to go back home without feeling a twinge of regret – without being burdened by the inevitable flood of never answered "what ifs".
To be continued…
A/N: I don't have much to say concerning Jagged Pieces itself… Apart from the fact that it's complete self-indulgence. Yep. So I apologize in advance if it ends up not being to your tastes!
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