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Kushina/Minato pairing

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Seals: At the bottom, it sort of gives something to seals. I'm not going to fully explain how I see it because I'll confuse the hell out of people.

Drifting Blossom Chapter 4

Awkward silence greeted Kushina as she stood in front of the receptionist's desk, her head not even reaching the top of it. She had been left alone when she had arrived in front of Konoha. She had been escorted to the Hokage tower, but Ryuga had finally said his goodbyes, for his family still needed him to protect their Clan.

With a dry mouth, she stood on her tip toes and gazed over the counter, catching sight of the woman sitting there with a bored expression. When she caught sight of the redhead, Kushina could only grimace when she made a cooing noise about a child visiting her.

"What can I do for you dear? Are you looking for your parents? If so, I can help-"

"I am here to see the Hokage…ma'am." She interrupted the woman and she stopped speaking for a couple of seconds before a fond smile suddenly appeared.

"Isn't that cute! You must admire the Hokage very much!" she gushed and Kushina could only stare at her blankly before anger started to bubble up inside her. Kushina's face began to turn red from her frustration and she finally frowned, making it well known that she was not happy.

"I am here to see the Hokage." She snapped, temper getting the best of her. "I am Kushina Uzumaki, Heir to the Uzumaki Clan. I was sent here because Mito Uzumaki has requested me."

Kushina cringed on the inside. That was the first time she had ever mentioned her title out loud. In some ways, it sent guilt shooting through her heart, but she ignored it. She needed to speak to the Hokage and find out where Mito Uzumaki was picking her up. It didn't help that her emotions were being bottled up inside, behind tight walls until she found a place to release them.

When her eyes had first landed on Konoha's walls, she had wanted to burst into tears and blurt out how much she missed her home.

The receptionist frowned and flipped through some papers before she found what she was looking for.

"Ah, yes… Kushina Uzumaki… the Hokage will be speaking to you in a minute. You have all your papers to register as a civilian of Konoha?"

"Yes…thank you…" Kushina murmured before going to sit down.

Her heart lurched in her chest when her name was called and with wide violet blue eyes, she stood up and headed for the Hokage's room. She would finally see the Third Hokage once more. He wasn't dead at this time and he was probably quite young looking compared to her time. With a deep breath, she opened the door and steeling her nerves, she walked into the room, reminding herself not to act familiar with anyone that she might recognize.

Once standing before the Hokage, she bowed, face red from her nervousness.

"Kushina Uzumaki, Heir to the Uzumaki Clan." She murmured and stood up after introducing herself.

Her heart wrenched within her chest when she let her eyes rest upon the Hokage.

He was so much younger looking and alive. He was no longer six feet under or being brought back to life because of the war.

Her mouth went dry and she licked her lips as she kept her nervousness at bay.

"Kushina-san, I am the Hokage of Konohagakure and I am sorry you had to be brought to Konoha under these circumstances." He murmured, a frown upon his face.

Kushina on the other hand, stiffened. She had seen this man so many times in her pervious life when she was young, that she saw him as a grandfatherly figure, but here, having experience with the Shinobi life, he looked nothing like she had placed within her once naive mind.

He was only looking out for the good of the village. There was no guilt in making her the next Jinchūriki. Kushina was only a replacement, brought in from the outside with no connections in the village other than a relation to an unknown Uzumaki.

There were absolutely no feelings for sacrificing a stranger for the village he led.

Kushina felt anger form within her, but she took a shaky breath as she told herself that she needed to deal with it. She could even protect the village and keep Kyuubi from escaping and destroying Konoha on that fateful night that it had been sealed into Naruto.

The Third cleared his throat.

"What you are to soon host, must stay an S-rank secret. No one other than Mito, the Council, and I will know about the Kyubi." He stated strongly and Kushina cringed under his narrow gaze.

"I will have you sign a contract and should you break it, there will be repercussions. When handing those papers in, you'll also be handing in your registration papers as well."

She could only nod her head as she tried to keep herself in check.

"Now, I understand that by Uzumaki Tradition, you are considered a Genin. Here, you are stripped of your status and will go through the Ninja Academy with all the other children. Should you pass the test, then you'll be considered a Genin once more. It was a hard decision, but the Council agreed that with you being able to protect yourself, it will help keep the Kyuubi safe within the seal. As for Mito-san, she is considered a Kunoichi, but she was never trained further after passing the Genin test. She had been restricted in gaining any further experience. That restriction is lifted off of you, Kushina."

Kushina mutely nodded before their conversation was interrupted as the door snapped back in its frame, allowing an elderly woman to walk in with a bright smile on her aged face. Two buns sat upon her head, held by pins with tags hanging from them. The rest of her darkened red hair cascaded down her back. She also wore a simple Kimono.

"Hokage-sama, I'm here to pick up my Clan Heiress."

Hiruzen smiled slightly and nodded his head. "Of course Mito-san. You have the papers Kushina is to read over and sign, other than that, you'll be preparing her to host the Kyuubi."

Mito's smile dropped at the mention of her hosting the Kyuubi before forcing a fake smile to appear on her face.

"Good day Hokage-sama." She murmured before grasping Kushina's hand in hers and swiftly leading them out of the room.

Once out of the Hokage building, Kushina let herself breathe easier. Mito, seeing her unease, gently squeezed her hand.

"You'll be alright dear. Now, I'm assuming, since I don't see any bags on you and since none arrived at the compound, that you have everything sealed away?"

Kushina smiled slightly and nodded her head. Storage seals were one of her favorites that she had picked up. Her medical side had also found the advantages of storage seals, for a medic could never have too many medical items on their person.

The Senju compound was quite large, but not as large as the Uzumaki compound that she had been living in. Kushina truthfully didn't even take in her new home, for she had seen it plenty of times in her previous childhood, even if it was just passing by it.

She was brought to her room and with Mito excusing herself, she quickly began unpacking the things she had brought with her, which was mostly everything she owned.

Hopefully she would be able to get use to this compound.

Oooo

Kushina knew that an Anbu was following her. She just knew it.

A frown slowly came over her face and she glanced discretely over her shoulder before casting her gaze in front of her once more. It would be annoying if she were followed for the rest of her life here. Hiruzen was probably having her followed because of her status as the next Jailer for the Kyuubi. The Anbu though, was most likely only informed that she was the Uzumaki Clan Heiress.

Walking the streets of Konoha though, Kushina couldn't help but feel sorrow fill her. This was her Konoha but at the same time, it wasn't. It hadn't been invaded by Orochimaru, or Pein, so it wasn't rebuilt. This was the Konoha she had been born into, but lost in a sense when they rebuilt many of the buildings.

She spent a bit of time wandering from there, getting use to where everything happened to be. There were quite a couple of stores on this street that had been moved when they had rebuilt.

It was heart wrenching to see this place, but no familiar faces seemed to be around. If there were familiar faces, she probably wouldn't recognize them right away either.

Kushina happened to stumble upon the dango shop after a half hour of mindless walking when she bumped into someone. There was a hissed curse before a loud clattering filled the air and dango covered in sticky syrup hit the ground, rolling in different directions.

"Hey! I…just paid for that…" a feminine voice murmured, sorrow filling her tone at the sight of her treat hitting the ground. Kushina found her eyes landing on a girl at least two years older than her. She had black eyes, black hair, and a pale complexion.

Everything about this girl screamed Uchiha.

"I'm…I'm sorry…" Kushina managed to get out when she shoved her sudden rage for all Uchiha, behind a door. It wasn't this woman's fault Sasuke killed her. She didn't deserve any rage directed at her at all. This was a new start and to cling to any hostile emotions for something that technically didn't happen, would be uncalled for.

"I'll buy you some more." She suggested as the older girl tilted her head to the side to look at her. She then smiled widely while holding out her hand.

"My name's Mikoto Uchiha, and I'd appreciate that."

Kushina stalled as she heard the woman's name. So she was most definitely an Uchiha. With a deep breath, she took hold of the girls hand and shook it.

"Kushina Uzumaki, I just moved here…"

Surprise flickered within Mikoto's wide eyes before she smiled even wider. "Well, then we'll have to celebrate!"

Kushina could only follow the girl to a table, her mind whirling.

This girl, an Uchiha, was absolutely mind boggling. All Uchiha she had met were emotionless and stoic. (Though the last remaining ones were not really some she should base the Clan off of.)This one was bright, happy, and very kind.

Kushina bought the dango and as they sat, eating, Mikoto questioned her about Uzushiogakure. Of course Kushina answered her, but she couldn't fully answer the girl, seeing that she was always kept inside the compound.

"Why were you never allowed out?" Mikoto scowled, her eyebrows furrowed. Kushina pursed her lips and frowned as she looked down at the dango on the end of her stick.

"I'm the Clan Heiress." She mumbled, stuffing the dango into her mouth. Mikoto blinked in surprise before launching into even more questions.

Kushina couldn't help but smile as she realized that she may have just made her first friend since arriving in this place.

Oooo

Papers were strewn out all over the place, seals upon seals surrounding Kushina as she scowled at all these intricate patterns.

"I need to find a way…" she hissed, her eyes determined in finding what she was searching for. Even as she dipped the sumi brush in ink and painted detailed seals upon blank paper, she knew it wasn't what she wanted.

"Kushina-chan?" Mito called from the doorway. Kushina jerked out of her thoughts and she looked up with surprise. "What are you doing dear?"

Could she ask Mito for help?

But how could she, Kushina, ask for help when she was fearing the outcome of having the Kyuubi sealed within her?

'But Naruto and Kyuubi were able to put aside their difference and work together.' Her thoughts hissed, remembering Naruto passing her, glowing a beautiful golden color.

Oh, she remembered him and Kyuubi working together and she was determined to be just as successful as he.

"I'm…" she began, licking her lips as she felt herself become nervous. "I'm searching for a way…for the seal to allow me to access Kyuubi's chakra with limitations on him so he can not harm his host, ttebane."

Mito's face morphed into surprise at the girl's suggestion. She had perfected the seal that she had used on herself, but she never thought of actually using the Kyuubi.

"And how do you plan on making the seal without help?" she finally found herself saying, a smile on her face. "Have you been introduced to Quadruplet and Quintuplet Layering Seals?"

Kushina paused in her writing.

"No…"

She had only been introduced to Single, Double, and just a couple Triple Layering Seals. She had many scrolls going into depth on all of them, but Ryuga and she were working on Double before she was brought to Konoha.

Mito smiled softly at the girl's lost look. She would have to make a Quintuplet Layering Seal if the girl was looking for that kind of access to the Kyuubi.

"We'll work together. Come, we'll make tea and talk about the things you wish for in the seal."

Kushina could only gather her papers and supplies before following Mito with a relieved look filtering over her face.

Oooo

There were too many restrictions on the Jinchūriki.

Kushina was not allowed to tell anyone about her status. It was an S-rank secret.

She was unable to participate in C-rank missions until she was at a High Chuunin level.

She had a curfew. Should she miss it, Anbu will be sent after her without a second thought to drag her back to the compound.

She was not allowed to leave the Village under any circumstances unless the Hokage approved.

Any friends she made were not allowed at the compound. The only reason this one was here was because of the Seals around the place. It only allowed Uzumaki's and Senju's through. Mito had made sure to update them before Kushina arrived as well.

And the list went on. It was silly little things, and some of them just ridiculous, but she had to follow them.

And the one that mentioned her harming civilians was absurd.

The next one caught her eye.

She was unable to enter any kind of intimate relationship without the Hokage's approval and the person's acceptance after they are informed of her Jinchūriki status.

Kushina scowled. Might as well not date at all is what they were trying to say. It was almost like they were trying to tell her to give up on having a life with a significant other.

Another one that had her pausing made her jaw hurt as she ground her teeth together.

Jinchūriki were unable to become part of the Shinobi or Civilian Council.

Mito might be considered part of the council, her voice having a strong say, but she would never be considered one of them. For Kushina, they were turning a blind eye towards her.

Did they seriously expect her to even understand all of this anyways? They knew her age, and if she were anyone else, they would have just signed the packet and have been done with it.

Sighing, she shook her head and muttered about speaking with the Hokage before just signing her name.

Oooo

Kushina was officially a civilian of Konohagakure. She stood within her room, clutching the papers that informed her of her status with tears filling her eyes. She could remember her previous one, and looking down at this paper only made it hurt more.

With a sniffle, she scrubbed at her teary eyes, muttering to herself.

"Stop being so weepy!" she scowled, frowning and wiping her face even harder. She was strong willed and she had done enough crying to last her a life time.

"Get over it! You have a chance to change everything."

With a deep breath, she placed her registration papers in a folder before placing it with the books on the bookshelf. She wouldn't need them until she finally left the village on a mission, which wouldn't be for a couple years.

Oooo

The seal was coming along quite well. Mito had made sure that she included everything Kushina had asked for while improving many of the areas she hadn't even thought of.

The seal would be a Quintuplet Layering Seal, which was the most difficult to make and especially unlock. This seal dealt with an odd numbered seal under an even-numbered seal. Their layering started and ended on an odd numbered seal.

A Quintuplet Layering Seal locked and unlocked rotation wise with a combination of elemental and neutral chakra. Within each layer though, it could hold up to a dozen locking mechanisms.

Sealing the Kyuubi with this would also make it hard at extracting him, for there were plenty of traps within the seal to stop anyone from advancing. Only Mito and Kushina would be the ones able to unlock the Seal without any complications to free the Kyuubi.

Within said seal, there was also a whole Layer dedicated to keeping the Kyuubi from working his way around the seal to get out.

Kushina's Chakra Chains would help hold him back as well, if he broke through the seal somehow.

Oooo

Kushina could feel heat creeping up her neck and onto her cheeks as she stared at the large seal that Mito had finished. It finally hit home as to what was going to happen from here.

"We'll be sealing the Kyuubi tomorrow."

Kushina choked on her fear, her eyes wide and her lips trembling as she shakily reached forward to let her hand rest upon the paper that held the Quintuplet Layered seal.

"I…" she breathed, looking at Mito, who was sitting on her bed. "I can't…" she choked. "How?! Were you terrified to host the Kyuubi?"

Mito sighed as she drew Kushina to her body, letting her sit in her lap. Running her hands through her waist length red hair, she smiled softly.

"We came here to be the keepers of the Kyuubi. He is filled with hatred and you must counter that with love." She murmured. "I know you can do it Kushina dear. You've progressed with your chakra chains quite nicely and they will only get stronger as you grow. Learn and love. Keep him from hating."

"At first, I was afraid that using his power will only make his hatred even more pronounced, but with this Seal, I know change can be made. Kushina-chan, you'll do alright."

Kushina took a calming breath, still feeling fear, worry, and other swirling emotions.

Oooo

The room was sterile, very well cleaned and obnoxiously white. It hurt her eyes as she stared up at the ceiling, dressed in only a hospital gown and underwear.

Her red hair was left free, sprawled out around her head on the table. Mito, from what she could hear, was changing in the bathroom. The Hokage was present, with a couple female nurses and, surprisingly, Jiraiya.

'Seal master.'

He couldn't be a master yet, but he was on his way to learning about intricate seals. Kushina could feel respect for the man fill her being. Now that she had learned about seals, she could appreciate what he had learned, especially without being part of her Clan.

She doubted Mito would help him too, for Clan Secrets would always and truly be, Clan Secrets.

"Are you ready?" Jiraiya questioned, leaning over Kushina with his brow furrowed. She could tell that he was not liking this at all. Kushina could only nod her head, her mouth dry as the nurses hooked her up to a machine to keep track of her vitals.

Mito joined them in the room, being helped onto the bed and going through what Kushina went through, they were set up for the resealing.

"After the Kyuubi is resealed, you'll have to wait until you're six to start at the Shinobi Academy." Hiruzen stated as he watched everyone get into position.

Jiraiya proceeded to transfer the seal over onto Kushina, and she watched his eyes dance in wonder at the Quintuplet Layer Seal. She knew it was the first of its kind, for she and Mito (mostly just Mito) had created it.

Chakra vibrated within the air as they began and Kushina cringed when she felt the first wisps of Kyuubi Chakra enter her system.

Sweat trickled down the side of her face as she bit her tongue to keep herself quiet.

Hours seemed to pass before the last of the red chakra disappeared into Kushina's seal and she barely could register Jiraiya saying it was complete before darkness took her exhausted state.

Oooo

Slowly, weeks passed and Kushina was constantly being checked up on, making sure her new seal was holding up.

Everything was doing alright, but one thing Kushina was cursing at was her chakra reserves. With the Kyuubi added, he had just shot her already small amount of chakra control right through the heart. She could cry, throw a tantrum, but she sucked it up and started working on it the best she knew how to, which was to train.

Mito had told her she would meet the Kyuubi at some point during her lifetime, but she knew not when the seal would permit her to meet him. It was a new seal altogether and it might take until they are both accustomed to each other before she was drawn to where he was sealed.

The resealing of Kyuubi had not killed Mito at all. She was healthy and the only reason for the resealing was that Mito was of a very old age and she didn't know when her time would be up. It was best to reseal than to have the Kyuubi escape if she were to pass away in her sleep.

It was a frightening thought, but it didn't happen so they didn't need to dwell on it.

A couple months passed by and Kushina had just turned six when she found herself standing outside the Ninja academy, clutching papers in her hands.

She had been given the clear by Mito, Jiraiya, Hiruzen, and the council that she was stable enough to sign up for classes.

Glancing around at the groups of children standing with their parent's, she couldn't help but feel empty. Her mother and father had been there with her when she had first signed up at the academy. Here, she felt like she didn't have any, with her father and step mother so far away.

There was a table outside, Chuunin sitting at it, accepting papers and asking for names.

With one last glance around the place, she stepped forward, heading for one of the Chuunin's that was free.

"Name."

"Kushina Uzumaki." She replied, the Chuunin glancing up at her with surprise. It was quite well known that the only Uzumaki within the Village was Mito, but she was mostly known as Mito Senju because of her marriage.

"Do you have a copy of medical and family History?" he continued after he wrote down her name. Kushina nodded while handing over her papers that took her quite a while to get, seeing that Hiruzen was still wary of her being around the children of the village.

They were the next generation of the village, should the seal collapse and the Kyuubi escape, there would be no way to save the villages children.

The Chuunin accepted the papers and placed them in a folder with Kushina's name on it.

"Do you have an idea of what you'd like to follow once you become a Genin?"

Kushina blinked owlishly. She hadn't thought about that one. She had once followed the Medical Nin branch, but now, she didn't know what to do.

A frown appeared on her face as she opened her mouth and shut it. There were plenty of branches to head into, assassination, infiltration, interrogation and more.

"Uzumaki-san?"

"Sabotage. I want to specialize in Sabotage."

She could do damage. She could. Seals could be placed down, especially exploding Seals. There was so much potential in her sealing techniques. She also remembered how to destroy the ground with a simple punch packed with chakra.

Sabotaging would be best, mostly the destruction part.

The Chuunin looked surprised, eyeing the girl before him before writing down what she wanted to specialize in.

Once done, Kushina turned around and had only taken a couple of steps away from the table before her eyes landed on someone standing at a distance.

'Naruto?'

Blonde messy hair, bright blue eyes, and a determined look upon his face, but not dressed in orange.

Her heart lurched in agony. That boy looked so much like Naruto that tears sprung up within her eyes before she shoved them away. It couldn't be Naruto. He wasn't even born yet.

One last glance at the boy and Kushina turned on her heel, heading for the Senju compound so she could continue learning about Layered seals.

If she was heading into the Sabotage branch, then she needed to study everything she could get her hands on, especially Ninjutsu. Placing seals with just a touch was her next course of action as well. Mito might be able to help her with the Single Layered Seals, mostly the ones she already knew by heart.

Anything harder would take time. Single layered seals would be the easiest to place with a touch because it wasn't full of locks.

Though, one thing that Kushina was looking forward to, was actually going back to the academy, even if it brought memories up. The academy was something she missed.

Seals: I have yet to fully think about this Theory (I'm positive that it's not taken, and if at all there are similarities to anyone, then I am sorry and I give full credit to them and it wasn't on purpose) And I doubt I'll ever really actually think them out all the way. This it just to give something to the story, so whatever.

Warning: This might not make any sense at all: It's mostly just so there is something to creating seals than just saying 'Oh, Kushina made a seal and it can explode...'

There are five Layering's. Most work in a Lock and Key type of way and are either layered Odd numbered seal (odd number of locks) over even numbered seal (even number of locks) and vice versa.

Single Layer: Lock and Key technique. The seal is the lock, Chakra is the key to activate or deactivate it.

Double layer: Lock and Key- A higher level of Single Layer. This allows an immediate response or timed response from the Seal.

Triple Layer: Puzzle Lock: Chakra sent through multiple locks to get to the center. Upon unlocking it, on can either deactivate it or activate it. Has the double layer ability of immediate or timed response.

Quadruplet Layer: Compressed Chakra: Small amounts of compressed chakra inserted into the locks grooves. Should it not hold, the person is rejected and injured whatever way the seal describes. Has all three previous layers.

Quintuplet Layer: Most difficult: Failure is usually death, chakra backlash, or coma. These seals lock and unlock in a rotating manner with a combination of Elemental fire, water, earth, air, and neutral chakra. Of the five layers, this last one can hold many sets of locks. Has all four previous layers.