[Minato Namikaze[A few hours later]

Ow..ow! I open my eyes to find the ceiling I have become acquainted with, in the last year and a half. Damn... saying it that way does bring into perspective all the times I have been beaten down... The number is...quite a bit more than I would like it to be.

I try to sit up but it looks like my right arm is completely numb. Damn it... I look at my right arm to see it is covered in bandages. Ow... That looks painful to even look at. Hmm... I am waiting for Granny to enter the room.

Honestly it was a bit of a stretch.. that suicidal attempt at a victory but I know that the time for granny's death is approaching fast. I have made my peace with that fact. The 3-4 fights after getting that news, I fought like a complete berserker. Admittedly that style did fit me a little too well but that doesn't mean I would use that style. It still severely limited me in many ways.

I was angry...angry at myself due to my inability to save Granny after the Nine tails extraction, angry at the fucking Nine tails for even existing and angry at Kushina for taking away the latest familial connection I gained. That was highly irrational but I was not in my right mind. Thankfully, Kushina and the others gave me some space as I was just being grumpy and not just raging at everything. It would have been pretty awkward and disastrous had I gone through my idea of beating Kushina black and blue during our Taijutsu matches. Thank god that I am not that much of an idiot.

It took a while but I made peace with the fact. After cooling down, I went into the Fuinjutsu studies with a determination I didn't know I had. I have been trying to find a way to help Granny survive for months... And it has been fucking unsuccessful...Cool down...Deep breaths...

I have been barely able to get past the apprentice rank in all the three major Fuinjustu branches. The ranks in Fuinjutsu are simple: Novice- Apprentice- Journeyman- Master.

To be a Fuinjutsu master, you have to make unique seals of your own. I am considered to be a Journeyman in Fuinjutsu. I am at the stage where I know all the basics of Fuinjutsu and have to research to make a new Jutsu. My idea of making a debug console for seals for safer experimentation and faster results has been... successful but it was made only through the combined efforts of Granny and mine. It should have been my Masterpiece...my Magnum Opus but instead it felt hollow...

Even with the help of my debug console, I couldn't just pull a life saving seal like that out of my ass. The problem is that after the Tailed beast extraction, the Jinchuriki's support system is entirely gone. Jinchuriki have their entire chakra network supported by the incredibly acidic chakra of the Tailed beasts. The extraction of a Tailed is death to any and all Jinchuriki except special cases like the Uzumaki. They have INCREDIBLE regeneration that supports their chakra system for a while before collapsing like the others.

Now, Future Kushina could have survived the Tailed beast extraction if Tsunade had been on the spot as Future Tsunade would have been a medic with 5-10 years of direct experience in the war and because the Shinigami sealing technique which by the way is a last resort technique takes the user's life force as a substitute. But Granny is OLD... She is very very old.

The sudden shock to her system will destroy her chakra network and there are very high chances of total organ failure. No seal master would die for the sake of a retired old shinobi and we don't have medical facilities on the level of preventing total collapse of the chakra network and organ failure. I know Lady Chiyo has that suicide technique but that was invented after she lost her son and daughter-in-law. She hasn't even made it yet. The only alternative would have been... Hashirama Cells.

I won't even try suggesting that. Granny values family above EVERYTHING and I mean everything. She would go to any lengths for family. From what I know from Granny's somewhat censored stories about Tobirama(as that information is restricted to Jonin and above rank shinobi only and she didn't want to implicate me), Tobirama was an amoral megalomaniac mad scientist with Danzoesque delusions(or is it the other way?). I don't know what atrocities he committed and I am not interested in them because surely Hiruzen sama wouldn't have been part of atrocities like those committed by Tobirama and Danzo is...Danzo.

I wouldn't blame Tobirama's crimes on Konoha and hearing about his crimes would make me doubt my own village. I know what happens with people with no allegiances. They die bitter and lonely.I don't have any fucking intention of ever becoming someone like that.

Granny still loved Tobirama till the end. She told me his tale and it was...sad to be honest.


Flashback no Jutsu

"Granny, what about Lord Second? I know it would be a little awkward for you but all the things I have read about him suggest that the content I know is a heavily censored version and he did some things which shouldn't have been done. Sorry if I am...rude but I really want to know about him. After all, most of the things I am learning are from his and your brother's notes, aren't they?"

We are currently having our weekly session of Fuinjutsu. We are on the topic of Explosive seals presently. I kinda want to know more about the genius who is the reason why Konoha has so many powerful techniques like the Shadow Clone Jutsu, the Hiraishin and the fucking Edo Tensei. He is also the reason why I am able to even try to defeat Granny. I know I wouldn't be anywhere near this level(which is still very low on the totem pole) without Tobirama's notes. Guy was a genius despite whatever fuckery he performed. I wanted to hear about him from the woman most likely to actually know him.

Granny looks a little tense and her eyebrows are adjoined. She looks like she is debating whether to say anything on the topic or not. Finally after a few tense moments, she looks like she grudgingly accepts my request. I have become accustomed to reading Granny's expressions. I kinda had to learn to do that because of all the insensitive things I asked in the first week alone. Fortunately, Granny didn't take it to her heart and just beat me up for the insolence except being actually angry about it.

I can handle being beat up by an angry Kunoichi but not a disappointed granny. She looks at me and says," What I am about to say will not leave this room. I am telling you about this because I have started to see you as my grandson by now and I trust you. Please don't abuse my trust."

"My mouth is sealed,Granny. It is totally zipped. Also,don't worry about me abusing your trust,you old coot. You are far too perceptive for that." Her lips curl up in a sneer and she says," Being a smartass, are we? Let's see how you fare in our next 'fight'."

"Bring it on. This time I will definitely beat you!" I answer back with determination and enthusiasm. Granny and I stare at each other intensely before breaking eye contact and laughing boisterously. "Spoken like a true Uzumaki, kid. Just remove that yellow hair and replace it with red. No one will spot any difference between you and any other Uzumaki. You are way too much like us to be anything else. Such a shame no one in your family tree was an Uzumaki otherwise I would have adopted you myself."

Sometimes I wonder if I contracted the shounen disease? Then again my mentor is from the family of shounen characters and I train regularly with the girl who was said to be the copy of this world's shonen protag...just more violent. I was bound to end up being like this. Uzumaki are basically shounen protags...just in a realistic world. They are basically battle hungry geniuses who are obsessed with their family love their family...well any high rank Uzumaki is one.

Granny's smile freezes after sometime and she says," But I am quite serious Minato. This matter will NOT leave this room. Are we clear?" This is serious...

I salute her and say: "Yes Mam!"

Her expression relaxes and she says," Tobi...Tobi is a difficult subject for me. Before Hashi's death, he was amoral but tried to follow Hashi's example as much as he could. He hadn't commited any acts that define him these days. He only really cared for me and Hashi but tried to care about what we cared about. From his birth, he had a hard time caring about anyone other than family but he tried. Kami sama knows he tried his best."

Wait what the fuck? Tobirama was autistic? And he tried to be a good guy despite that. Then why the fuck do everyone blame him? I mean the guy did antagonize Suna but that shouldn't be enough to villify a guy who was clearly struggling with morals and still tried to be a good one. No no...there is something else in play here.

"He was the one who made the plans to set up the Academy so that the children could learn basic skills without having to be put through the things the children of the warring states had to be... He tried to introduce a safe method of teaching children the basics of life without having to suffer abuse throughout their childhood for that...But that all changed with Hashi's death. Hashi's death hit us all hard. Hiruzen was devastated to lose his cool uncle. Tsunade was sad and I actually became a paranoid bitch for a year or so... Maybe if I had handled myself, the situation wouldn't have degraded so much." Granny's breath hitched and I think she started crying a bit. No no no... NO! Why the fuck did I think that asking about her clearly sketchy and 'dead' brother-in-law was a good idea. I am an idiot! I was about to tell Granny to stop if she was feeling uncomfortable but before I could do that, Granny stopped her sobs and continued:

"Tobi...became obsessed with 'helping' Konoha because Konoha was Hashi's dream but he wanted to remove any traces of the Uchiha from it due to Madara being the main reason Hashi fell. The injuries sustained by Hashi during his battle with Madara... They were devastating.The bastard made Hashi heal so much that Hashi's regeneration used his life force to sustain himself.

It made his regeneration cancerous... Then that Kakuzu fellow from Taki attacked Hashi... Hashi fought him off but he should have been in the fucking bed! Not fighting some S class guy. That shit only survived that day due to Hashi becoming rusty. If I ever see that shit, I am killing him. Hashi's condition deteriorated and some years ago he died... It broke me and Tobi. Tobi started a campaign against the Uchiha and dehumanised them as much as possible,even spreading rumors about their civilian based ninjas using tantric rituals with curses which are a load of bullshit." What the fuck? I knew Hashirama died due to over regen but he honestly died due to fucking cancer? That's just...so difficult to wrap my head around. The God of Shinobi, a demigod's reincarnation,died of cancer. That...just makes the deaths so much real.

"During that time I wasn't there to stop him and by the time I got over myself, it was too late. Tobi had committed acts which I don't think I will ever forgive him for but I still loved him. I still loved the brother who was ready to lay his life for Hashi. I still loved the brother-in-law who was always there for me. I couldn't just condemn him. So I did the lesser of the two evils. I supported him till he died.

By the time of his death, a monster had taken the place of my brother-in-law but I could only blame myself for that fact. I know that someday you will know what Tobi did and that day you will be disgusted but remember this clearly. What he did was unforgivable but why he did so was not due to some grand scheme or a resolve to destroy all like the villains in children's books but due to tragedy. So if you ever face a tragedy, stare it in the eyes and spit on it. Don't let it consume you, you hear me?"

"Yes, Granny!" That...was emotional. I wasn't prepared for this when I asked her about Tobirama but I am glad I did. Granny taught me an important lesson. She taught me that good people can be broken down but it is because good people exist. This reaffirms my decision to NOT be an asshole. If the guy with no capacity for morality could do good things then who am I to not do that?

Granny wipes the small tears formed in her eyes and looks towards me. Her face looks free of an invisible burden. She looked nostalgic?

"You know... You remind me of Tobi before Hashi's death. A genius with incredible love towards family. A guy who tries to be good even though nobody would fault you if you aren't. Even your subconscious's attempt at dehumanising people to deny that death exists is fairly similar to Tobi's perception of the world. It is a good thing I stopped that. I didn't want a Tobirama expy after all. You are Minato Namikaze,my first and only grandson ...

I...don't want to travel the same road as him. I could have prevented so much if I got off my ass earlier but I didn't. I don't want to repeat the same mistake with you. That is why I tried to help you with your mental health. If you see it this way, then I am just trying to help myself aren't I?"

Granny laughs a little self-depreciatory laugh. I canf help it and hug her. She hugs me back and kisses me on the forehead. A voice in the back of my head is telling me that this is embarrassing and that I should be an adult. I tell that voice to piss off and enjoy my Granny's hug.

"Oh sod off! I have gotten over that self-hate a long time ago. I do blame myself but it isn't that bad. You shouldn't concern yourself over it. Just you trying to be a good shinobi for Konoha and trying to be a good person would be enough. Kami-sama knows that being a good person and a good shinobi simultaneously is hard. I hope that you can achieve that." Granny smiles at me and I hope that she is right. I would like to make her proud as well

Bonk*

My eyes water suddenly and I hold my head. "Ouch... What was that for, you old coot?" Ow..ow.. Uzumaki strength is fucking unfair.

Granny smiles somewhat... dangerously"Get back to your studies brat. Do you know we wasted an hour because of you? Now go and study you brat.Go!" She says cracking her knuckles. I return back to my study table at superhuman speeds. Granny is fucking scary sometimes. Still, I have a smile on my face. I would definitely make you proud Granny...

Flashback no Jutsu end


Thinking about that still brings a smile on my face. It was the first time someone I loved expected something out of me. I would definitely make my Granny proud but for now I would have to be prepared to be lectured. There she is-

"Sit right up! I know you aren't unconscious so you better not play dead with me or I will break some bones of yours today."

Well looks like she is here and she is pissed. I sit right up using my charred left arm. Ow...It is painful to sit with using it as a support but it is better than using an arm I know has been made numb due to it being too painful otherwise. One of the worst things about having Uzumaki mentors is that their pain tolerance is abnormally high and for Granny it is perfectly normal that I sit using my CHARRED left arm. Of course I could complain but either she would take it as a joke or she would take it seriously and prevent some of my...risque experiments. Both things aren't really productive so I don't even try...

"I wasn't going to play dead, you know." "Of course,you weren't going to do that after using 20 explosive tags in a suicide attack to escape my wrath,am I tight?"

Her smile is a bit too sweet and I know that behind that smile...she is clearly pissed. I will have to proceed...very carefully.

"Look...I can explain-"

"Explain what? That how you were going to get medical help after using an attack that was based on the fact that it was strong enough to wipe out an A class if used in extremely close range?"

"Umm..." The situation isn't looking good and Granny has started frowning AND tapping her feet on the ground. One of them is a sign that she is pissed and I don't know what two of them mean other than the fact that she is utterly pissed.

"Clearly not then! Have you forgotten that our battles were a simulation for actual fights? That these were for both making you better at fights and to teach you how to combat an enemy entirely out of your weight class? How the fuck do you think you will survive if you try and take out the enemy with you?"

"Well, at least a fucking A class threat will be fatally injured with that. If I perfect my storage seals, I could take out S classes with it. Isn't taking out a S class threat with myself a big-"

Sounds of a tight slap*

"Don't you dare! Don't you fucking dare say that. One of the first things I taught you was that suicide attacks are NOT acceptable.Your life isn't worth so less. You are valuable to Konoha and your life means a lot to your friends. So tell me...Tell me the real reason.."

My cheek hurts...a LOT but Granny's words hurt a lot more. I didn't want to say this but I can't let some of my final moments with her be like this...

"I...wanted to win. I wanted to score a win on you. I wanted your last memories of mine to be you being proud of me. I have less than a week with... you." My voice starts croaking but I can't stop. Not now.

"I just wanted you to be proud of me. I don't want to see you go... I don't want to lose my family again. I couldn't do anything to save you, anything! I am fucking useless. I couldn't even save you and I wanted you to be proud of me even in the afterlife. I truly am worthless, aren't I?"

Tears are flowing from my face and I suddenly feel granny hug me. I ...just start sobbing. This isn't fair...This isn't fair at all. Why does she have to go? It's because of those fucking tailed beasts. Who cares if they are imprisoned. Motherfuckers deserve to be imprisoned for all their rampages and all the deaths they caused and now they have to take my Gran from me as well,don't they?

"Shh... Don't cry Minato. I will always watch you from the pure world,you know. You are my precious little grandson. Don't blame yourself for what is happening. I know it seems a bit hypocritical coming from me but you tried your best,didn't you? I am sure that given a few years, you would have developed something to help me. Don't blame yourself.

Also, I couldn't have asked for a better protege. You were fantastic. The speed at which you learned things is frankly monstrous. Give it a few years and you will surpass me. I am proud of you. I will always be proud of you"

My cries continue for sometime while Gran continues to pat me and reassure me. I don't know if I would ever forgive myself for not saving her but I will definitely never forgive that wretched beast for Gran's death. Kami sama have mercy on those beasts cause I won't...


A/N: Okay, so Mito is set to die in a few days due to Kushina becoming the new Jinchuriki. This chapter just wrote itself. Do tell if the chapter felt adequate... The tailed beast hatred was something I came up with in the end due to that providing me with an opportunity to make Minato hate all Jinchuriki except Kushina of course and give me legit reason for Minato to not encourage Kushina becoming friends with Kurama. I don't hate the tailed beasts but I find it difficult to believe that they didn't destroy many families and killed many innocents as well. The conflict must have started due to ninjas being assholes but it couldn't have progressed that far without the Tailed beasts being jerks as well.

Kushina will get OP but I don't want her gaining KCM as that would be fucking with my plans majorly. I kinda wanted to show why Tobirama went all evil megalomaniac on everyone. Of course he was still an assholish monster but this shows that the things that happen are a result of tragedy and not people being assholes for shits and giggles. Next chapter will have Mito's POV on the two incidents regarding Minato's mental health.

Tried to convey that Minato isn't all powerful and even his genius can only extend that much. Becoming a Journeyman in a year may not seem like much but becoming a Seal master requires more than 10 years if you are a genius like Orochimaru and Minato is set to achieve that status in 2-3 years Max... So yeah...

Anyways, hope you all enjoy the chapter. If you all spot any bullshit plotholes, please point them out so that I can patch them up.

If you feel like contributing to the story or you just want to chat normally then you can join my discord server: discord. gg /8uQkj6kJ

Goodbye and stay tuned for the next chapter