"Perfect!" The bun Mikoto was sampling made a pleasant crunch between her teeth. "Itachi better bring Sasuke-chan home in time for lunch."
Mikoto was not the clingy sort of mother that fussed over a little dirt or shadowed her children everywhere they went. While not as uptight as her increasingly moody husband, Mikoto did enforce a few family basics that were to be abided by with the exception of emergencies at the station for her husband or missions for her eldest.
Rule number one: you forget to take off your sandals, you're mopping the floor by yourself. Three-year-old Sasuke-chan had already experienced that particular joy; in fact, Mikoto had hung a visual, framed reminder of the subsequent meltdown on the wall for all of their family to see. Needless to say, her little Sasuke had never broken the rule again.
Rule number two: three meals a day. While attendance could not be mandatory in the world they lived in, Mikoto had been known to pop into Fugaku's office at work and give the man a verbal thrashing if he had not fed himself properly.
Rule number three: chores and homework must be completed before play. No issues there and no foreseeable problems in the future.
Rule number four: kunai must be placed where Sasuke cannot find them. One trip to the hospital was quite enough, thank you very much!
Humming lightly to herself, Mikoto did a rapid kunoichi style clean up of the kitchen. A little wall walking to dust a fixture, a quick-fix sharpening a few dull-edged kitchen knives, and a duster thrown with enough force to return it to its place in the upper cabinets.
Flicking away invisible particles of dust from her pink apron, the housewife's keen ears detected hints of laughter. Outside the walls of the Uchiha compound, such sounds were commonplace, but inside...most people were far too reserved and focused on emotional repression-there were days she contemplated pointing out that emulating the Hyuugas lacked imagination, but she doubted the stuffy elders would validate her point of view.
Curiosity tickled, Mikoto executed a light shunshin and reappeared on the front steps. When she saw exactly who it was accompanying her sons, Mikoto's legs almost crumbled beneath her. The only thing that kept her on her feet was her pride and the voice in the back of her mind screaming that she was a jounin-albeit retired-of the village.
...Kushina...Kami...
Very few individuals remembered Uzumaki Kushina and fewer still would have tied the vivacious redhead to the proper, dignified wife of Uchiha Fugaku. Mikoto had never forgotten. As genin, they had shared the same sensei and the same dream. No one else would have worked so hard to draw out her laughter, but Kushina did. They had faced death together on the battlefield and come out victorious. Mikoto had even been told in a hushed, fearful whisper about her best friend's jinchuuriki status-that day had ended in shared tears and tight embraces. The day Mikoto went into labor with Itachi, Kushina had shoved her way into the delivery room, still covered in mission grime, and planted Fugaku faced-first into the ground with a well-timed fist after he had been foolish enough to stop her; needless to say, her best friend had been the second-after herself, of course-to hold her firstborn son. The war had kept them from seeing one another with any regularity, but Mikoto had been there the day Namikaze married her best friend and they remained close friends even when they only had the chance to catch up over lunch. Then October tenth arrived and her best friend was lost forever.
And now, seeing Naruto walking toward her, the Uchiha woman wondered how long it would take Kushina to come back and 'kick her ass' for not stepping up and doing something. The Sandaime's law had been the perfect excuse to pass the buck to someone else, while quietly promising herself to check up on him once the boy entered the Academy.
Mikoto had never noticed Naruto around the village personally, but with over thirty-thousand occupants, it was reasonable that she had not seen him. Of course, Naruto was only four so he would be living at an orphanage.
But in Mikoto's wildest dreams, she could never have prepared herself for how bad the boy's situation must be at only four years old. Now, she was frozen like her feet had been nailed in place, watching a miniature version of the Yondaime bounce along next to her petulant son with Kushina's cheesy smile plastered from ear to ear across his face. Except the mother took a look at the sandals that were absent of tread, the threadbare shirt, and the hair that looked like it had never been introduced to a brush in all his life. Most notable of all was the thinness of his frame that fed the growing lump in her stomach.
Now Mikoto felt very lucky she had refrained from eating lunch. Throwing up was hardly going to improve the reality of this situation.
"Kaa-san!" Sasuke noticed her standing there and jogged up to greet her with a smile that was brutally suppressed. Boys, she thought, reaching out to place a kiss on Sasuke's silky, black hair-and steal a moment to prepare herself.
"Welcome home, Sasuke." Looking past her youngest, her eldest eyed her with a shocking level of suspicion that rapidly replaced with a blank, disinterested look. The prowess of her son at concealing his emotions was positively frightening and if she had been anyone else, they would have been fooled. "Itachi. Are you going to introduce me to our guest?"
A flicker of surprise appeared and vanished in the blink of an eye and Mikoto counted that as a success.
"Aa, I made some new friends at the park." Friends as in plural, interesting. Even more so that he had not volunteered additional information. "I told the dobe that he could eat lunch with us."
"Ha!" The blonde screeched at a truly frightening decibel that made the group collectively wince and a cat wailed from down the street. "You practically begged me to come you stuck up teme!"
Kushina-chan...definitely your gaki.
"Boys!" Mikoto called out in her most commanding tone. The two youngsters drew up short, staring at her quizzically. She crouched down in order to meet both their eyes and smiled softly. "No name calling, it isn't polite, ne?"
"Sorry?" Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly while Sasuke merely gave her an Uchiha "Hn."
Deciding to return to this lesson later, Mikoto took initiative and introduced herself.
"Naruto-kun, you may call me Mikoto-san, ok?" Feeling that was cleared up and needing a moment to hide and collect herself, she turned to head back inside only to pause and call to the boys. "Sandals at the door, boys. Itachi, make sure they wash up while I make up some plates for everyone."
Mikoto made quick work in the kitchen: it was her domain after all. She heard the boys come inside and slip into chairs. Taking a moment to consider, she only took three plates. There was no chance she was going to be able to eat right now.
"Sasuke, your house is really nice." Not much of a surprise there. "Is the water supposed to be warm when you wash your hands though?" Right. Wait. What?!
"The temperature of the water is purposefully higher in order to effectively eliminate germs." At least Itachi was clever enough not to question anything.
"Oh." There was a pause. "What's a germ?"
Oh, Kami. Out of self-preservation, she tuned out her eldest's response and bit her lip.
Mikoto slowly filled three identical cups of water, aware that her hands were a little shaky. Carefully, the mother carried in the drinks, and set them on the table to pass around. A quick trip back and she returned with a plate of vegetable wraps and her onigiri triangles and deposited them in front of each boy.
"Wow!" Naruto was literally drooling like a starving dog. "This looks amazing Mikoto-san."
"Thank you, Naruto-kun." She smiled faintly, somewhat enjoying the way the blonde's cheeks turned a bright pink despite the fact that her heart was racing far too past to be comfortable.
"Itidakimasu!" The chorus sang.
Mikoto hesitated, but finally dropped into a seat, nearly freezing in revulsion at the way the blonde was shovelling his food in his mouth. The blonde was consuming food the way someone might if they weren't certain when they would have the opportunity to eat again-common during wartimes, but not so common anymore. The lack of manners, while distracting, particular to Sasuke who had abandoned all pretense of furtiveness and was openly staring aghast, might be explainable. Naruto was still quite young after all and growing up in a hostile environment had likely not been conducive to learning.
"Ah so," Mikoto spoke, making a note to pull the blonde aside for table manners someday. "Where do you live Naruto-kun?" There were three orphanages that she was aware of and she would certainly make sure he got home safely. And perhaps give whoever was in charge of the kitchen's a good tongue lashing for good measure.
"Jiji got me my own place close to the park." He grinned, exposing a deplorable amount of chewed food for all to see. "It's pretty nice."
"Your own place?" She parroted. Somewhere there had to be someone playing a practical joke on her. Or a really horrid genjutsu. Kushina's son was a mess!
"Hmm yeah," Naruto paused in eating, for which Mikoto was incredibly thankful for, and looked a bit uneasy. "People don't seem to like me much so they kicked me out of the orphanage."
"You're my age!" Sasuke looked particularly vicious, slamming his fist on the table. At any other moment, Mikoto would have reprimanded him, but she could not find the heart to do so when he was doing what she wanted to do. "They can't do that!"
"They did." Naruto's response was even quieter.
"Then it is rather fortunate that Naruto-kun has found a comrade in you, otouto." Itachi remarked quite calmly and logically. Sasuke stared at his brother uncomprehendingly while Naruto just looked like a startled animal unsure whether to stay or flee. "When one's comrades are facing daunting odds, what will you do Sasuke? Will you abandon them? Or will you choose to walk a different path and support your friends?"
"I'm not afraid of anyone," Sasuke retorted, looking rather cross. "Naruto is my friend and I don't really care what anyone thinks."
"Then my statement stands," Itachi remarked gravely, before sticking out two fingers and poking his little brother, earning a moue of displeasure for his action. "Naruto-kun is lucky to have you and by turnabout, you are lucky to have Naruto as your friend."
Mikoto bit her lip.
Namikaze-sama, Kushina-chan, have I abandoned your son simply because it was the easy way out? I didn't want that to happen...but...perhaps I failed too.
"That's right dattebayo!" Dattebane! Mikoto was going to do better...she had to. "Say, how come your brother talks so weird, Sasuke?"
"You're the weird one, dobe." Naruto reddened like a tea kettle about to erupt! "And you're louder than Minato and Hinata combined."
Minato? Hinata? The first name automatically conjured an image of a smiling blonde who died with her best friend. Hinata...if she was not mistaken...that was a Hyuuga name.
"Sasuke made more than one friend today." Itachi offered, suggesting he really could read her face to an advanced degree. It was less informative than she would have hoped, but she let the matter slide for now. There were more important matters to attend to.
"How about we do some reading!" Mikoto clapped her hands together. Itachi, clever as a whip, disappeared to obtain the reading materials requested. Such a good boy.
Turning back to the boys, Sasuke looked resigned but not exactly disagreeable. Naruto...looked uncomfortable. Mother's intuition knew that something else was awry. They were both silent as she ushered them gently into the living room. Naruto looked afraid to touch anything and that twisted the knife just a little deeper in Mikoto's heart.
Itachi returned with a pile of reading materials and deliberately gave Sasuke 'the look." Her youngest grumbled, but inevitably settled on a cushion defiantly a seat away from his aniki. Naruto took a seat next to Sasuke but did not move to reach for a book.
Plucking one from the pile, Mikoto offered Naruto one of Sasuke's favorite stories about the ninja that rescued a daimyo's daughter.
"Here we are. Give this one a try, Naruto-kun."
Her smiled faded when Naruto went rigid, fingers squeezing the cover of the book but looking like he was going to his execution rather than reading a simple book.
"Is this one not looking good? We can always choose another if you like." She laughed gently, ruffling the tangled blonde strands gently. To her surprise, the boy leaned into the touch slightly before pulling away and looking at her with eyes that shined a smidge too much to be normal.
"Mikoto-sama...I...well, I mean..." Naruto began, staring at her with a helpless desperation that squeezed the breath from her body.
Oh no. This was...this seriously could not be right. Hiruzen would not dare to tolerate this sort of neglect. The fallen Hokage's son...her best friend's son!
"Naruto." Itachi must have sensed something in her voice because his pretense of reading vanished and he was staring in her direction like a tense line of ninja wire. "You haven't learned to read yet, have you?"
Voicing the confession must have been too difficult because the blonde vigorously shook his head and was doing his best to look anywhere but in her direction.
A fire was roaring to life inside the Uchiha matriarch's belly. The woman that had been one of her village's top kunoichi returned with a vengeance and determination. Heads were certainly going to roll tonight and the first one down would be her husband if he even voiced so much as a whisper of protest! Uchiha Mikoto had possibly more political clout than Fugaku because while the man was a jounin and would almost be guaranteed to win in a fair fight, Mikoto was far cleverer.
There was no making up for not checking up on Naruto sooner. If she had just opened her eyes instead of conforming to her role as the perfect housewife, perhaps things would be different. That no longer mattered. What mattered is that Mikoto refused to keep her head buried in the sand any longer and Uzumaki Naruto deserved better than to live in the sorry state of existence he was currently in.
There may be some concessions, but Mikoto was determined to get her way.
"Naruto," she used her not inconsiderable strength to hoist the youngster onto her lap. To her surprise, Sasuke shifted so that he was sitting a little closer. The little blonde was frozen, but slowly she felt the poor thing relax against her. "How would you like to learn?"
The deafening cheer was worth the ringing in her ears simply to experience the rapture of a happy child in her arms. This was going to make all the hassle and the upcoming disagreements worth it.
From the opposite end of the couch, Mikoto never noticed Itachi observing her blankly nor did she note the slight upturned curve to her eldest's lips.
"You enjoying yourself, squirt?" His leg was tapped lightly by a finger and Minato squirmed slightly. If he was ticklish, he certainly would not want a trickster like Shisui to know about it.
Rather enjoying the cool breeze after escaping the frying pan, Minato hummed in agreement. From his Uchiha perch, the Senju had a decent view and was able to enjoy the sights of some familiar individuals and many more new faces in the crowds. Businesses sporting new paint and the occasional familiar twinge of chakra.
When Minato concentrated, his sensory abilities extended like a web allowing him to identify the chakra signatures of individuals he was familiar with. Now, Shisui's signature was branded in his memory and Hiruzen's was rather unforgettable since the Hokage's dwarfed nearly that of everyone in the village. Of course Naruto and Sasuke were easy to discern a few blocks away.
'I can't believe you allowed that man to send us into this viper's nest!' An enraged bijuu was no laughing matter, but Minato had spent nearly two decades with his fickle friend so the air of menace around the fox did not fool him for an instant.
'Kurama, what would you have had me do? Tell him that you threatened to kill the lot of them? Somehow I think we would have ended up in a cell rather than released and placed into protective custody.'
'Except the ease of access that despicable clan will have when they decide to make their move.'
'It's not going to happen again. We're here to change all that.'
'I'm not helping that filth. Do what you like, but mark my words, a single one of them flashes their Sharingan at me...I'll gut them.'
'Thank you, Kurama.'
"Will everyone be okay with me coming with you?" Minato asked, rather curious to hear what Shisui's response would be.
"Not to worry, little silver. The Hokage is going to have a chat with Fugaku-sama and let him know you're going to be staying with us." The sudden buildup of chakra in the Uchiha's body was his only warning before Shisui darted forward with a chakra enhanced leap. The chunin under him chuckled when his lax fingers tightened to a death grip around the high collar of the Uchiha clan shirt. "So sorry. I guess I must have forgotten to tell you to hold on tight."
Yeah, like Minato was about to believe that it just slipped his mind. Did normal children really fall for that?
"I don't want Naruto to stay by himself." Minato smirked when the hands holding his legs tightened slightly. "Can he stay too?"
"Not to worry." Shisui was quick to reassure him and the former Kage made a mental note to take advantage of the sympathetic tendencies. "Blondie can always crash on my sofa or bunk with us. It'll...it'll work out."
Shisui waved at a guard and Minato mimicked the gesture, rather pleased with himself when the man did a double-take and stared at the Senju boy with a confused look.
"Is there something wrong?" Minato asked Shisui innocently, well aware of exactly why the guard looked two-shades of pale from a stroke.
"Oh, it's just been a long time since a Senju gaki hung out with us Uchiha." Shisui laughed and deftly changed the subject. "Sasuke's house is right up there. You ready to go play with those two?"
Minato was aware of the hushed whispers coming from behind as a few clan members exchanged words. No doubt Shisui wanted to avoid a converging crowd as his pace had upped a notch until he was just below a jog.
The large clan head's home, that Minato was intimately familiar with, came into view. Shisui tapped his ankles lightly.
"I'm going to shunshin to the backyard. I think the boys must be outside. Hang on, little silver."
Minato did, enjoying the thrill of the high speed motion that was too fast for his scarlet eyes to keep up with at this juncture. In a burst of green chakra, they reappeared at the back of the massive property, the sound of running water tickling Minato's ears. Shaking his ears to relieve the buzzing sensation, he caught sight of Itachi resealing some reading material out of the corner of his eye and approaching Shisui.
Waving slightly to the approaching Uchiha, Minato traced the sound of running water to his left. His friends were crouched next to a massive koi pond that was not shy on depth or width; Minato imagined it must have taken specialists in both doton and suiton ninjutsu and perhaps the green thumb of a Yamanaka to together such a massive landscaped area.
Naruto and Sasuke were oblivious to his arrival and the blonde looked two seconds away from diving in head first. Of course, such a mesmerising sea of such amazing creatures would be exciting for any child. That and the poor kid had probably never been allowed near anything like this in his short life.
"Wow Sasuke! I can't believe you have a fish pond in your back yard! I bet these guys make some tasty sushi rolls!" Sasuke snorted in disbelief and Minato almost face-planted in despair; of course Naruto would only see the prospective buffet instead of the aesthetics. He really ought to have known better by now. "Oh, let's catch one for your mom! I bet she'd appreciate the help!"
What? What?! Could Naruto even swim?!
"Naruto wait!" Minato shouted: too late.
The hyperactive knucklehead lunged at a speckled, scarlet fish. Shisui busted a gut laughing, Itachi sighed, and Sasuke dove forward to catch the back of Naruto's shirt. Too slow, the blonde's momentum somersaulted the pair over the rocky lip into the pond with a noisy splash.
Colorful fish scattered in all directions, but Minato was already moving. Taking advantage of Shisui's lax grip on his ankles, the Senju twisted like an eel and planted his feet on the sputtering teen's shoulders. Treating Shisui like a springboard, Minato launched himself down and forward; the descent was not the Yondaime's typical, coordinated movements and his landing was far from graceful, but the Senju landed on his feet with only a light stagger before shooting forward toward the pond.
Vaguely he heard Itachi and Shisui speaking behind him, but Minato shoved that thought aside as he reached the pond's edge-just as the surface erupted to spit out two sodden youngsters. Algae strands were clinging in clumps to both of the boys' heads and Sasuke was furiously batting water out of his eyes and throwing off the lily pad clinging to his ebony locks.
"You moron! Look what you did!" Sasuke looked at Naruto like he had murdered his family right in front of him. "This pond is for decoration! We don't swim in this and we don't eat the fish either!"
"You're the one who pushed me!" Naruto choked, spitting out something that may have just hopped away. Minato swallowed and resolved not to mention this moment to Gamabunta-sama in the future. "And how the heck was I supposed to know that you don't eat these fish? Why would you want to have a bunch of fish that you don't eat anyway?"
"Um, Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun, I'm back!" Minato performed the smile and greet that had worked like a charm on many occasions with Kushina's friends.
The argument faltered and the boys both turned at his greeting, Naruto lighting up like the sun and Sasuke's anger quieting as he gave an awkward wave.
"Minato-chan!"
To his credit, the former Yondaime did not bat an eyelash this time at the honorific. Naruto was just trying to be affectionate and he would live with it. He would!
"It must be cold," Minato squatted down and extended his hand. "Let me help you guys get out."
"Not a chance, little silver." Shisui's voice was an ominous whisper from right next to ear. "This is for using me as a trampoline!"
The bottom of a sandal made contact with his rear and the Senju child shrieked as he was literally booted into the Uchiha's koi pond. At the last moment, Minato managed to twist midair to avoid a belly flop but he still fell hard, hearing the outraged shrieks of his friends as the murky depths swallowed him up. Inevitably, the water was cool but not freezing but at least the pool was deep enough to prevent knocking himself senseless on the bottom. But within a second of landing, two pairs of arms grabbed him firmly and dragged him upward.
His eyes burned and he was thankful for the surprisingly sturdy hands holding him upright. Shisui was a dead man walking. Hacking up another lungful of water, he nearly went under again, but Sasuke and Naruto proved tiny could be mighty and stood strong.
"You alright, Minato?" Sasuke's voice had a soft inflection, reflecting the other boy's genuine concern.
"I'll live. Thanks for the rescue, guys." Minato mumbled, shaking the water free of his ears and shivering forcefully as the wind gusted. "I thought Shisui was nice, but I may have to rethink my opinion."
"Yeah, that gumhead is a real jerk. We're gonna have to get that guy good." Naruto's voice adopted a chilled, almost bloodthirsty tone that defied the fact that his lips were blue; and beyond that, Minato could have sworn he sensed mild killing intent emanating from the vengeful four-year-old.
"Don't worry." Apparently Sasuke had inherited some of Madara's more interesting personality quirks because Minato blanched slightly at the venomous glare aimed directly at Shisui. "We're going to take him down a peg. Maybe something a little more permanent than gum next time."
"Naruto-kun seems to have a very creative personality." Naruto puffed up and Minato carefully disengaged himself from their support, flicking the water with his finger. "He might have an unorthodox idea that we can put to good use."
It was a bit frightening. An Uchiha, an Uzumaki, and a Senju united together under a banner of vengeance. Somehow, Minato imagined this was not quite what Nidaime-sama had in mind about changing the future, but one could hardly question results.
"I know just the thing!" Naruto crowed, sloshing around a bit in the cloudy water. The blonde startled and bumped into Minato when some of the fish regained their courage and swam close enough for their slimy bodies to tough them. "Eh, right! Paints?"
"I like it." Sasuke admitted, turning a nasty glare toward his supervising brother. "Are you going to warn him, nii-san?"
"No." Itachi replied blankly and spoke without turning. "Kaa-san, shall I bring towels?"
"Please." A motherly voice called out calmly.
It was his first time seeing Mikoto-san in a long time. While Kushina had been bright and flaming like the sun, Mikoto belonged to the hazy glow of moonlight. The elegant woman was unchanged with her dark flowing hair, unlined face, and the graceful motions of a kunoichi that had seen combat time and again and come out on top. The woman walked toward them with the grace of a panther and the former Kage was certain she was armed, though the matriarch had done an excellent job concealing that fact.
There was some indecipherable emotion in the woman's eyes that Minato did not feel confident speculating on. Mikoto definitely gave him a once over-as much as one could when confronted by a soaked child in a fish pond-before turning to look over Naruto and Sasuke each in turn, but lingered the longest on his son with a hardened sort of determination about her.
"Do I want to know how you three ended up in there?" Mikoto folded her hands, a mother's patience returning to the Uchiha woman.
"Ehehe," Naruto scrambled up and out, Sasuke on his heels. Instead of continuing, Sasuke paused and reached out and gripped Minato's hand, planted his feet, and helped pull him up. The grip was a bit suspect duty to the slime and water, but the Senju clambered out and flashed a wide grin at the solicitous Uchiha. Atypical behavior for a youngster, but definitely a sign of a good heart.
"Thank you, Sasuke-kun." The other boy's ears flushed pink and he nodded once before following after Naruto, Minato close on his heels.
There was no sign of the damaged young man that had arranged for the resurrection of Konoha's Hokage. This Uchiha had not lost his loved ones, nor spent his life chasing a brother that had willingly played the role of executioner. The Sasuke of the future was tainted and perhaps beyond the ability of anyone to reach except Naruto. But...Minato hoped he never had to see that destiny again.
"-said you were gonna make sushi!" Naruto pointed to the pond, looking desperate for the Uchiha matriarch to believe him. "So, I thought I better catch one of the fish for dinner...Sasuke told me after we fell in that we don't eat them."
A bark of laughter cut off further apologies and a pale hand covered her mouth in a desperate aim to suppress a line of giggles.
Mikoto's sons looked unsure of precisely how to react, but Naruto just grinned sheepishly at the dark haired beauty whose eyes were sparkling with amusement.
"Naruto-kun, I haven't laughed in a long time. Thank you." The Uchiha matriarch smiled before she placed her hands on her hips. "So, you must be Minato-kun. My name is Uchiha Mikoto. Shisui just finished telling me that you'll be staying with us."
Manoeuvring himself past his friends, Minato bowed politely. "My name is Senju Minato. I apologize for the intrusion but-"
"You're not staying with me?!" His son's appalling lack of manners-not that Minato placed a lick of blame on Naruto-made a thunderous reappearance that looked one part heartbroken and the other part resigned.
"Not to worry." Mikoto appeared to sense the brewing storm and was quick to smooth things over. "I already intended on having you stay the night with us Naruto-kun."
"You...you want me to stay?" The disbelief staining the blonde's words was palpable and Minato had to restrain himself when the blonde became rather misty eyed. The possibility had never occurred to Naruto and Minato found himself unspeakably thankful to Kushina's best friend.
Sasuke appeared to be taking the news well. The other boy looked confused, but not really displeased. Minato settled for counting that as a win.
"We do." The mother said firmly before shooting Minato a look both calculating and cautious; the former Kage understood that Mikoto saw his presence as more political in nature than anything, but the woman's perspective was likely effected by his interactions with Sasuke and Naruto. "You are both welcome here, Naruto and Minato. Although, I think the three of you need a thorough cleaning. You smell like fish."
"Yes." Itachi deadpanned from where he had reappeared at Sasuke's elbow holding a stack of neatly, folded towels. Without missing a beat, the older brother agilely avoided a punch from Sasuke and poked his brother on the forehead. "Sorry, Sasuke. I can't play with you right now...you smell offensive."
"We should prank him too." Naruto muttered darkly.
"Hn."
"Thank you, Mikoto-sama!" Minato bowed again, knowing well the Uchiha Clan's appreciation for customs.
"No need for such formalities, Minato-kun." The matriarch replied kindly, rapidly folding each of them into a towel and ordering them to strip. "I'm going to have the two of you borrow some clothes from Sasuke for tonight. We'll see about tomorrow. But first...let's get you boys cleaned up."
Now that did not sound ominous at all...right?
Dinner was sushi, but fresh from the market and definitely not from the pond out back. Shisui had pretended not to notice the three youngsters shooting him nasty glares and had a primarily one-sided conversation regarding Shisui's shunshin ability that supposedly had earned him the moniker of teleporter. No knowledge was useless, so Minato had stored that tidbit of information away for later consideration.
Mikoto had brushed all of their hair, Sasuke's returning to a natural, almost avian shape that Minato definitely did not comment on. Naruto's honestly did not look at that different except that the mother had obviously taken scissors to the sides so the blonde's spikes looked less unkempt. Minato had frozen like someone petrified but had quickly relaxed until he was like a happy pile of goo; the Senju was shocked by how awesome it felt to have someone comb your hair. No wonder Kushina had always asked him to brush her hair for her. It was amazing!
Not even Shisui had escaped hair duty. Mikoto had bullied him until he sat down and now the Uchiha was sporting a buzz cut and was mourning his hair with a few actual tears. Minato actually smirked when Mikoto brushed off his whining and told him to train harder. Vengeance should not be the answer, but the Senju felt a little entitled at this point.
How many of these shirts did Sasuke have? Minato, Naruto, and Sasuke were all wearing identical sets of black silk pajamas. Naruto had fidgeted with the buttons, but had quickly stopped after seeing how irritated Mikoto was. It rapidly was becoming obvious that Naruto would rather set himself on fire than displease the clan matriarch.
Minato did not quite pin down precisely what was bothering Naruto until the bouncing human sunshine willingly crawled into Mikoto's lap after dinner to look at a children's story and he watched the woman ruffle the blonde's hair and painstakingly sound out the characters in a book.
It hit Minato then that Naruto was craving the contact that only a mother could provide, that Kushina was unable to provide.
Obito, how could you allow Madara to twist you into such a shadow of the boy you were? I don't know if I'll ever understand and perhaps it's selfish, but I don't want to.
Minato was more than a little drowsy after playing with his new friends, the inquisition at the hospital, and cleaning Naruto's apartment-which had probably been a big waste of time if his gut instinct regarding Mikoto's behavior was a sign of anything.
Shuffling to the couch, he felt a moment of longing as he looked at the image of a parent and child that was painful to look at simply because it reopened old wounds. Minato could never begrudge his son the joy of a mother especially if Mikoto was willing to assume the role, but moments like these reminded him of how much he had been lost.
Namikaze Minato had used all his anger up a long time ago, but his son deserved to be sitting with Kushina in front of their fire place. Naruto should have been able to sit at the table and make his first stab at fuinjutsu with him.
Except Senju Minato was wasting his regrets on possibilities that were never going to come to be no matter how deeply he wished otherwise. Turning away from the tender moment between the two, Minato hopped up next to Sasuke.
The other boy grunted in acknowledgement and tipped his book slightly so that Minato could see. Mumbling a thanks, he rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand tiredly and settled into to read over Sasuke's shoulder.
Before he knew it, Minato felt his perception fade to an artificial darkness and in the next instant he was sitting next to a restless Kurama whose chakra was noticeably more full like a wilted plant that had perked up with a bit of sunlight.
'Kurama?'
'We're in enemy territory.' Kyuubi rumbled in displeasure. Minato ignored Kurama's rage and moved forward until he was sitting down, head resting against Kurama's fur.
'I know you don't like the Uchiha Clan, but we have bigger concerns.'
'I don't like this.' The rattled bijuu hunkered down until he was resting on the cool floor of their mindscape, tails swishing behind him like a nervous feline. 'But you may be right. Outside of your mindscape, for every moment that passes, perhaps five minutes pass here.'
'That's perfect. We need to discuss what little we know about the future if we want to change the future.'
'That's rather limited, isn't it? Why don't you just focus on becoming stronger than you were before and motivating your gaki and a few of the rest into training hard for what you know is coming.'
'Not so easy. Okay, so I know that Orochimaru killed Sandaime-sama during the Chunin Exams in Konoha that Naruto participated in. So...that was eight or nine years from now?'
'That may not ever happen,' Kurama effortlessly burst his bubble. 'With you pinning Orochimaru for his future crimes, Konoha may decide to move against him sooner.'
'I had considered that.' Minato remarked, shifting closer as he cuddled into the fox's fur. It had been a problem in his old body and it was just as troubling in his new body, but he loathed the cold and Kurama radiated warmth. Obligingly, the bijuu flicked one of his tails over top him and the Senju snuggled into the fur. 'But, I thought I should at least put it out there.'
'That brilliant Itachi gaki wiped out the Uchiha.' The bijuu definitely sounded proud of that little genocide.
'Yep, adding that to the list of things we absolutely need to change.' Kurama huffed angrily and Minato tried to appeal to the fox's logical side. 'You know that a few talented Sharingan users would be a significant help against Obito's forces.'
'Fine. But don't expect me to be happy about it.'
'Oh believe me, I don't.' Minato closed his eyes only to sputter when the tail flicked again, batting him in the face. Dragging down the twitching limb, Minato sighed. With Kurama, retaliation was simply not an option. 'Anyway, we saw some of the skillsets from both Sasuke and Naruto in the future, so I should be able to assist in their development with some of the things I observed. But Sasuke mentioned that Danzo confirmed Itachi's role in the massacre. Therefore, we can safely assume that Danzo played a role of some sort in planning it. Though with Shimura Danzo, I'm inclined to believe there is more that we don't know than even Sasuke would have suspected.'
'I know nothing of this Danzo character, but if he is as dangerous as your emotions suggest...I will be able to locate him quite easily should it become necessary. And with your evolved, Senju sensory capability, you'll be closer to the level you were at when using my chakra.'
'As we are now, we are no match for a genin.' Minato murmured, bowing his head in thought. The mirrored surface of the water reflected back at him. 'But it's nice to have options.'
"We know Obito is using that Zetsu creature infused with the Shodai Hokage's vile chakra." Kurama remarked, obviously unsettled. 'And that someone other than Orochimaru used Edo-Tensei to resurrect Madara.'
'I think the individual responsible must have been from Konoha itself or an associate of Orochimaru's afterward. We don't have enough information and that person is hardly the real issue here. The real issue is preventing the Edo Tensei altogether or creating a counter-measure. The fact that Madara dismissed the counter is also worrying."
'I would rather not bring this idea up because it goes against the very laws of nature, but could you Edo-Tensei someone?'
'In theory...maybe, but would I actually want to do that? It did not seem to help us that much anyway.'
'To save the world?' Recalling souls of the deceased was an unpleasant reality that Minato would rather not deal with, but as a last resort?
'I'll think about it, but I would rather avoid doing so unless there is no other way.'
'Aside from your battlefield observations of various shinobi and the fact that the nations actually managed to set aside their differences, however temporarily, I think we know very little.'
'A lot is changing though,' Minato protested. 'I have a feeling that Tsunade was not present in the village at this point. And Naruto will certainly have a lot more help this time around. You and I will make sure of that. But, if there is a chance that you can speak to your other half?"
'For all that a few years have passed, your seal that you put on Naruto is still quite raw. You created the seal to allow a steady flow of chakra to mix with Naruto's over a period of time, but the sealing itself weakened my other half stronger than normal simply because you ripped off my yin chakra.'
'I'm sorry about that, Kurama.' Minato apologized, not for the first time, and far from the last time. 'I just did what I thought I had to.'
'You did what you felt was right.' The fox hardly sounded happy about that, but neither did it incite him to rage as it once did. And after all this time, they were certainly friends. 'We have been over this more times than I can recall, Minato. Save your apologies for someone that cares to entertain them, that certainly isn't me.'
'Kurama, I know you just said you could not contact your counterpart yet,' Minato began carefully, aware of the slit pupil following his motions. 'But can you make contact with the other bijuu?'
'I was afraid you would ask that.'Kurama muttered, flexing his claws. 'I never should have told you about our communication ability.'
'It would certainly be a great benefit if your siblings were not captured, Kurama-sama.' Minato wove only the barest bit of diplomacy into his tone. The bijuu was not easily impressed by formalities, but he was inclined to give it a shot anyway. 'I know that you really care for all of them deep down even if it's been a long time since you were all together. You once told me about the Sage's house.'
'I barely remember that.' It was a weak protest. Kurama knew it. Minato knew it. And Kurama knew Minato knew. Nevertheless, neither of them said a word for a few minutes.
"You told me once that there was only one human you had ever respected, ever loved." Minato coaxed gently, scratching one of Kurama's oversized ears in one of his favorite spots-though the task was much more difficult now that Minato was so much smaller. 'Don't you think he would have wanted you to save your siblings?'
'Very well.' That was unexpected. Minato had been expecting more of a fight. 'Gyuki and Matatabi will be safe enough on their own for now. That Killer B individual was fighting with Naruto at the end. I will not contact them anytime soon.'
'What about the others?'
'Isobu I dare not contact. I can sense the foulness of the Uchiha's genjutsu clouding the turtle even from a distance.' Obito had gotten one so early? How on Earth had that happened? 'Kokuo and Son Goku have containers from Iwagakure. For your safety, Minato, I refuse to contact them until later.'
Minato was not sure he agreed, but he could tell that Kurama was serious so simply agreed and backed off the issue. For now.
'Saiken and Choumei were some of my more pleasant siblings," Kurama admitted, a foxy grin flashing a maw full of fangs. 'I could speak to them without fear of being compromised.'
That was a better response than he could have hoped for. Despite the numerous negatives, there were at least two bijuu his old friend had agreed to communicate with, but was there not one missing?
'What about the Ichibi?' What was his name again? 'Shukaku?'
'That tanuki is more trouble than he's worth. Forget it.'
'Kurama!' He scolded his old friend, honestly disappointed in the abrupt refusal. 'No one is perfect. He's your brother and he'll need your help.'
'No.'
'Why not?'
'That sandy bastard is already mostly insane. If I offered to tell him anything at all, he would accuse me of trying to one-up him. I hardly need to try to do that.'
Feeling like he was the millennia old being instead of his stubborn companion, Minato sighed and prodded his furry friend carefully. 'Perhaps you should approach him in a different way. You've said before that Shukaku has small-dog syndrome...perhaps use that. Challenge him instead.'
'Challenge him?' Hook line and sinker. Minato mentally cheered.
'If he isn't rational, appealing to reason won't work.' Minato tucked in the reminder. 'But if you anticipate his reaction, it should be simple for his big brother to play on his insanity and manipulate him into doing what you want him to do.'
'I'll consider that.' Probably the best he was going to get out of the situation. 'I'll try to contact Saiken first. I find him the least disagreeable of all of them except perhaps Isobu. My concentration will be elsewhere so don't expect to hear from me for a while. Good luck, gaki.'
'Thank you, Kurama.' Daringly he wraps his arms around a massive paw and buries his face in the fur. Then he disengages himself from his furry comrade and ends the shared mindscape.
He has been gone barely a few seconds and he is thankful for that. Minato is able to focus on the pictures and writing with little trouble and followed along, finding himself surprisingly engaged with the simplistic, but engaging story about a wolf cub that travels across the elemental nations searching for his father.
"Alright everyone! Bedtime!" Mikoto lifted a shocked Naruto up with her when she stands, but Minato is prepared and merely smiles encouragingly at the confused looking blonde.
"I'm going to put Naruto in his own room for tonight," Mikoto announced, turning while still carrying Naruto who had wound his arms around the tolerant mother's neck like a monkey. "Minato, I'm afraid you'll have to bunk with one of the boys. You can sleep with whoever you're most comfortable with, though I should warn you that Sasuke-chan is like an octopus."
"Am not." The four-year-old griped petulantly.
"If Naruto doesn't mind sharing again, I'm happy to stay with him." The Senju muffled a yawn sleepily.
Mikoto hums in agreement before ushering them all toward the bedrooms. It actually caught Minato off-guard when he is pressed into a soft pillow, not recalling the journey to the room nor being lifted up. Blinking, it is Itachi's face above his looking startling young with a furtive smile on his face.
A finger poked his forehead and the Senju blinked muzzily at the Uchiha heir.
"Goodnight, Minato-kun."
A more vocal protest is voiced next to him and Minato relaxed a fraction when he hears Naruto muttering a protest.
"Goodnight, Naruto-kun."
"Night, Itachi-san." Minato murmured, eyes drooping.
"Tomorrow is going to be a big day, you boys better get some sleep." Mikoto, Minato places the voice. He is too far gone to catch the rest, but Naruto's chakra has warmed like a spring bursting with joy.
It was a pleasant emotion to fall asleep to.
Uchiha Mikoto braced herself as she studied her reflection in the mirror. It had been years since she had donned her kunoichi battle dress. Her leggings were wrapped, kunai were hidden in holsters under both legs, and her old flak jacket was on. Instead of long flowing hair, a serviceable bun reinforced the point she was going to drive home.
For a moment she hesitated on the sheath of the katana that Kushina had bought for her with the promise to teach her. The Habanero had made good on her threat; Kushina had drilled Mikoto for hours in the Uzumaki style of kenjutsu claiming it was important for Mikoto to have a fall back if her genjutsu failed since her taijutsu was 'bad enough to make a Nara look good.' Mikoto would never be called a kenjutsu expert, but her body remembered the Uzumaki style and she was the only person in Konoha that could pass on the art to the last living descendent. Quietly adding it to the ever growing list of things she would need to teach Naruto, Mikoto attached the blade without another thought.
Finally, she looked at her old hitai-ate and ran a finger over the surface and remembered the oath of service. Even if it was just for tonight, Uchiha Mikoto was a proud kunoichi of Konohagakure no Sato.
Decisively, she tied it on, gave herself a final critical once over and strode toward the front area. Itachi was at the stove, hand poised over a mug of tea, but he faltered once when he saw her.
Without waiting for him to speak, Mikoto crossed the distance between them and pressed a kiss to her son's forehead.
"You intend to adopt Naruto-kun." There was no one as perceptive as her son. Mikoto warmed with pride. "Father will be displeased."
"Some things that are worth fighting for are more important than the approval of another person." Mikoto responded honestly, knowing her son would see right through a deception. "Seeing Naruto has reminded me of the person I used to be. Your father will understand. Will you and Shisui be alright with the boys?"
"Yes."
"I'll be home soon."
A shunshin carried her outside the compound and onto a rooftop. The sun was disappearing behind the clouds. Fugaku would no doubt be meeting with the Hokage by now. Time was of the essence. A few rapid bursts of speed had Mikoto wondering how she had ever chosen to give this up. The wind in your face, the chakra pumping pleasantly through her feet-this was life.
At the Hokage Tower base, Mikoto strode briskly inside, a few Chunin quelling under her cool stare. Her ascent to the office was efficient and quick and she left behind trails of whisper and gossip that would no doubt have flooded the village by sunrise. Instead of annoyed, she felt strangely excited by the fact. She had spent enough years being quiet and she could definitely say it was overrated.
As she walked down the final hallway toward the Hokage's office, she felt her resolve harden and her anger that she had been holding in snapped like worn thread. With a spurt of chakra, she raced toward the office, ignored the protests of the Sandaime's incompetent secretary, and threw open the door.
Taking in the Hokage behind his desk and her husband opposite him, Mikoto dashed forward leaking killing intent and slammed a kunai into the wood. A few ANBU appeared like shadows waiting for an order from the Hokage. Fugaku, still in uniform, had taken an unconscious step backward and looked like he had never really seen her before.
Good, she smirked inwardly as her husband balked. Fugaku knew there was a new alpha in town.
"Hokage-sama," Mikoto flashed Hiruzen her most devastating smile. There was a reason she had a reputation for 'killing sweetly.' "I've just put three little boys to bed so I'm afraid I can't stay very long. But I came here to inform you that Uzumaki Naruto will be living with us from now on. So please, kindly sign over guardianship before I lose my temper!"