Author's Note: Hi! Sorry that the first chapter was a little generic, I'll be getting to the plot in the next chapter I promise.

I don't own Naruto or any of the characters.

Chapter 2 Pains

Nothing. She couldn't feel anything. The pain and exhaustion she had expected didn't course through her body and leave her wishing she was dead or unconscious. In fact, she felt warm and comfortable. Intrigued, her eyes slowly peeled open.

Green cloth hung above on poles and string and sloped down to the ground by her cot. A tent. And a large one at that. More cots were arranged in neat rows, bodies wrapped in fresh bandages and tucked under blankets. Medic-nin scurried across the expanse of the tent, tending to people and bringing reports. The smell of antiseptics and disinfectants reach her nose and made her wince. She hated hospitals. There was no way a place that smelled so clean and was so white should exist. At least this place was a light shade of green.

The redhead tried to sit up, but cursed when her wounds made themselves known. "So I guess you finally decided to wake up." She whipped around at the voice, hand instinctively reaching for her missing weapon pouch. The man seemed to notice this and smiled. "Sorry. Weapons aren't allowed in here. For obvious reasons of course."

He was average height, no taller than 5'9'. His bronze hair was windswept and fell into his eyes and over his ears. His amber eyes lit up with his smile and wrinkles formed around them. He wore the standard shinobi pants but had altered them into shorts. He had a white short-sleeved shirt on with a blue jacket over it. His headband was loose around his neck and shifted every time he moved. He had bandages wrapped around his wrists and calves but she figured they were more for support than because he was wounded.

"Where am I?" The man laughed and walked over to a table where several files were placed. He selected one and sat on the end of her bed and opened it, careful not to sit on her feet. Frustrated at being laughed at and ignored, she scrunched up her face growled. "Don't just ignore me you punk! Where am I and who the hell are you?"

The brunette turned toward her and chuckled. "Sorry. Noone told me you had a temper," he said in wonder. Shrugging, returned back to the folder. "But then I guess we couldn't really tell when you've been playing sleeping beauty since you got here. I'll make sure to warn the others." Blood rushed to face, turning her vision red and her fists clenched. She opened her mouth to retort when another voice interrupted her.

"Ryou what did I tell you about terrorizing the patients?" The man turned to face the speaker and grinned.

"Terrorizing? Me? Come now Lady Tsunade. I was merely talking to the girl. No harm do..." A wrapped fist connected with his face and he toppled off the bed. The newcomer, Lady Tsunade, looked shocked and turned to get a better view of the boy's attacker.

The girl turned to face the Legendary Sennin. She was dressed in the usual Konoha shinobi outfit. Her blond hair was pulled back into twin ponytails that cascaded down her back, and she had the customary headband on her forehead. Over all she looked eerily normal, nothing like how Kushina thought one of the Legendary Sennin would look.

"Nice hook. We need more kunoichi. Especially ones who aren't afraid to stand up for themselves, but I would appreciate it if you would not hit my medics, we are shorthanded as it is." The woman walked around the bed and took the paperwork from the man who was moaning on the floor. Flipping through it, she glanced up at the redhead in the bed. "No life-threatening damage. A few deep cuts and bruises, but nothing serious. Your knee was fractured, but it's healing well. You won't be able to train for a while and walking will be hard for a few days. Healing fractures and broken bones takes longer than normal even for medic-nins like me. If you don't do it right, you can cause more harm than good. So any questions...?" She paused as she searched for the girl's name on the file.

"Kushina. Kushina Uzumaki." Tsunade looked up and nodded, adding the name to the blank slot in the file. Ryou chose this moment to sit up and glared at the redhead.

"Damn girl! You hit almost as hard as Lady Tsunade." He clutched his head and winced. Facing the blond, he smiled sheepishly. "I guess you took care of everything here." He blinked and looked at the older woman curiously. "Why are you here anyway? Aren't you in charge over at the Critical Condition section?"

Gold eyes glared at the man. "I can go where I want Ryou. But since you asked, Minato asked me to look up on the girl for him." A knowing smirk crept over Ryou's face and his eyes lit up at some unknown joke. The blond just scowled at him and shooed him away. "Now get back to your job brat. We don't have enough manpower for you to be lallygagging." The man nodded and turned to leave, looking over his shoulder as he did so.

"So I guess what they say is true about redheads and their tempers, I'll have to warn the rest of the crew." He was gone before Kushina could retaliate with another well-aimed punch. The blond held her down with a hand on her shoulder, meeting the redhead's eyes with a stern expression.

"Don't overexert yourself. I didn't heal you just so you could hurt yourself doing something stupid." Looking back into the medic's eyes with fire in her eyes, she wriggled out of the blankets.

"I can't stay here. I need to move," she cracked her knuckles as she look at the direction the brunette had gone, " and maybe punch something while I'm at it. I'll be stir crazy within the hour if I don't stretch my muscles. They feel like I haven't moved in a week." Tsunade's expression didn't change, but she stood up and nodded.

"Alright girl. Just for a little while. I'll get you some cloths. Don't go past the tree line. We're still trying to figure out who's here. We don't need people wandering around. And don't overexert yourself!" She left and a nurse brought over a pile of clothing a minute later. Someone had recently changed her bandages as they were free of any blemishes and were tightly wrapped so her clothes easily hid the cloth. She had been given a loose grey shirt with loose black shorts. The shoes she had been given, like everything else, were to big so she skipped those, deciding to go barefoot. The nurse brought her over to a place she could change, careful to make sure not to jar any of injuries. Walking was painful and her knee threatened to give out as she put weight on it, but her legs screamed for movement.

The sun felt good on her skin, having been inside and under the shade of the forest had deprived her of sunlight for the last few days. The day was perfect, the total opposite of the girl's mood. Clear skies were colored a pale azure and the yellow sun sharply contrasted with it. A small wind gently played with her chin length hair and rustled the leaves of the surrounding forest.

The field the Konoha nin had decided to make camp at was once a training ground. She had trained here several times before the attack and knew the terrain well. She set off in the direction of one of the small waterfalls in the area, hoping for some privacy and time to collect her thoughts. Her feet crushed the soft grass as she walked, tickling the bottoms. Tents had been erected in small groups across the large plain and blocked her path several times. Shinobi gathered in groups gossiping and planning search parties. She went relatively unnoticed though as she made her way to the far side of the grounds.

Though still within the major boundaries of the camp, the waterfall was hidden in a small alcove of trees thick enough to hide it from anyone who happened to pass by. She ducked into the shade of the trees and trod into the heart of the woods. The ground sunk down about 20 feet, the slope slight and easy for her leg. A boulder jutted out of the slope and into the pond. Several other rocks of different sizes were scattered around the pond, partially shielding it from view. Water cascaded down the large boulder, fed by a small stream that had broken through the stone.

Hobbling down the slope and passing the incomplete wall of rock, she settled down by the water's edge. The mist moistened her skin and clothing. Most of the blood, sweat, and mud had been washed off, probably when the medic-nin had healed her, but she could still feel the grim on her. Oh, what she would give for a warm bath! She scooted forward and submerged her feet.

"It's nice isn't it?" She twisted around and glared at the speaker. This was her spot. Why was hehere? She bit her tongue when she saw the yellow hair and cerulean blue yes. Green eyes quickly examined him for any threat, and her eyes widened as they landed on his hand. A kunai? This was why you were told to run when you saw the Yellow Flash. He was too unpredictable to trust. Her knee throbbed as she faced him. She wasn't in the shape to fight, but she would if she had to. Her fingers flew together as she built up her chakra. He saw her and moved to stop her. "Wait! No!"

"Water Vortex Jutsu!" The water beside her began to swirl. The newly created vortex leapt out of the pool and lunged at the man. Blue eyes widened as he tossed the kunai in her direction, though it missed by two feet. As the water crashed down on him, there was a shimmer of yellow and the man disappeared.

Senses detecting the blond's presence, Kushina was too slow to stop the strong arms from holding her arms close to her body and keeping her mouth shut. Visions of the lecherous Stone nin flashed past her eyes and she struggled as much as his arms would allow. "Please calm down! I'm not trying to hurt you!" The Yellow Flash hissed in her ear, his hot breath making her shiver. Since it worked last time, she followed instinct and opened her mouth as wide as she could, biting down on his palm.

He cursed and instantly released her. She fell forward and rolled out of his reach. The Yellow Flash held his hand, looking at the bleeding teeth marks in his skin. "I don't care who you are or what your reputation is! I'm going to show you I'm not some weak little girl you can push around. In fact, the name Kushina Uzumaki will go down in the books as the person who beat the famous Yellow Flash!"

"Please calm down and listen to me," he begged. "You're injured. I don't want to hurt you." The redhead scoffed.

"Like you can!" Her outward appearance never changed, but her brain was screaming at her for her stupidity. This was they guy who had evaded her attack like it was nothing. The man's eyebrow rose at the unspoken challenge.

She quickly went through the hand signs again and conjured another vortex. The blond bent down and grabbed the kunai he had thrown earlier.

The vortex swooped to the left, attacking him from his right. It skimmed over the grass and toward its target as if it was conscious of its actions. The man rolled forward and mid-roll flung the weapon at her. She jumped backward to avoid the knife and felt her back connect with one of the boulders. There was another flash and the man was standing in front of her, kunai at her throat. A small trickle of blood dribbled down her neck.

"Now are you ready to listen?" She looked up into his eyes and saw the concern and guilt behind the blue orbs. Glaring in defiance but not struggling, the weapon was removed from her neck. Her injuries and exhaustion finally caught up with her and she slid to the ground.

The man kneeled down in front of her. Her eyes met his and she was mesmerized how expressive they were. Shinobi often locked their emotions away, with the work they did it was better not to be able to feel anything. However it wasn't as easy as it sounded and many shinobi went insane after the stress of holding back their emotions got to them. To find eyes that showed so much emotion, especially on a shinobi as esteemed as the Yellow Flash, was rare. Most of the more powerful shinobi came off as cold and distant. The more powerful, the more they see, and the more they lock it away so they don't lose their sanity.

"I'm sorry about earlier. I didn't expect anyone to be here." He rubbed his neck sheepishly and grinned. "I didn't expect to have to get into a fight either." Kushina tilted her head to the side. Was this guy for real? There was no way this guy was sane. He was too innocent and carefree to be one of the top killers in the war.

"Who are you? There's no way you can be Konoha's Yellow Flash." The question seemed to take him by surprise. His brows came to together in confusion before a blush crossed his cheeks.

"Sorry. My name's Minato Namikaze. Nice to meet you." He held out his hand which she hesitantly shook. His grasp was strong and his palm was calloused from innumerable battles and training. "I guess you could call me the Yellow Flash, but I prefer Minato." His eyes redirected to her leg and his face scrunched up in concern. "How's your leg? I didn't hurt it again did I?" She scoffed and smirked.

"I told you. I'm not some pathetic weakling. You're just lucky I'm injured, otherwise I'd have kicked your ass!" The Yellow Flash, no, Minato chuckled and she felt her temper flare. "What's so funny? Is it because I'm a girl? Huh? You'll see! As soon I'm healed I'll beat your sorry ass so bad you won't be able to sit for a week!" The blonde chuckled again and stood up.

"I'll take you up on that offer Uzumaki- san." He grinned and stood, offering her a hand. Whether from pride or distrust she ignored it and carefully pushed herself from the moist ground. The blonde's hand fell limply back to his side, his brows together in spite. "Come on. We should have Tsunade look at your knee. Just for precaution." A scowl pulled at her lips.

"I'm fine! It takes a lot more than that to hurt me. Why can't you get it through it your thick skull?" Someone chuckled and the two teens spun around to greet the new arrival. Kushina felt her temper flare at the sight of the annoying medic from before.

"Sorry Namikaze. Seems I didn't get to you in time. I was going to warn you about her. Got a temper like a dragon that one does." Ryou strolled casually down the slope, choosing to ignore the death glare sent his way. "Should've known she'd be with you though. When are ya going to tell me how you're such a chick-magnet huh? Whoa!" The brunette yelped as a fist flew over his head. The redhead let loose a scream of frustration as she kicked out with her uninjured leg, her wounded knee shaking from the extra weight.

The medic-nin scurried away from the foot and over to where the blonde stood in surprise at the sudden attack. "Told you." Minato shot a disapproving look at the man next to him and sighed. He felt the girl move closer for another attack.

He turned and caught the moving fist in his palm, hiding the wince. She was strong for someone so scrawny. Meeting Kushina's eyes he chuckled. "I take it you've met before huh?"

"Oh, we've met."

"I've got the bruise to prove it." The girl growled and moved to hit him again. The brunette moved behind the Yellow Flash and smiled angelically at the raging girl. "I only came to see if you were alright! Even if I was forced to, its my job to take care of my patients." Minato dodged below the swing and sent a scowl at the medic.

"Bull! More like its your job to annoy them." She made another move to attack but the blond stepped in between them. He grabbed her wrists in his palm and struck out with his other. Before she could dodge it, his hand contacted with a pressure point on her neck and the world began to darken. She glared at the apologetic smile he sent her and cursed him to hell as she lost consciousness.

--

She felt cold. Hollow. Empty. The sun shined brightly down on her but did nothing to uplift her mood. To her, the world might as well have ended. In fact, she was pretty sure it had.

Her eyes stung but she refused to let the tears fall. A shinobi must not show emotion. That was the rule, but she had never been one for following rules either. Wiping furiously at the offending drops, she glanced around at her surroundings.

The Village hidden in the Whirlpool had been destroyed, completely and utterly destroyed. The cavern the village had been located in was starting to cave-in. The docks leading out to the ocean lay in shambles, wood and pieces of boats lying scattered by the high-tide mark. No building had been left intact. They lay scattered across the streets, lone walls laying testament to what had once been her home. Everything was gone. Only the fresh blood smeared on the ground showed that this had been a thriving village only a week before.

"Miss Uzumaki?" She looked up at the jounin standing a few yards from where she had sat, the extent of the devastation overwhelming her. "Miss Uzumaki, we should report back to the camp soon. Lady Tsunade instructed you to return after an hour. We shouldn't keep her waiting." Kushina felt like screaming at him to 'shut the hell up', but her voice seemed to have been stolen along with her wits.

Why had she asked to come here? She had only woken up four days ago, she wasn't ready for this. When she had woken up, making sure to let the two idiotic boys know just what she thought about them knocking her unconscious, she had demanded that she be allowed to visit her village. After some negotiating, Tsunade had assented and assigned a guard to make sure she 'didn't let her stupidity get the better of her'. She had talked to the villagers that had survived the attack and knew it wasn't good, but she had needed to see it with her own eyes. What had all their fighting been for? Was her sensei and teammates' deaths for nothing?

The jounin who had escorted her here shifted and looked toward the entrance to the cavern. She heard someone walk across the stones littering the ground and the man greet whoever had arrived. At the moment she didn't care. Someone came behind her and sat next to her on the broken wall.

"Sitting here and wallowing in your misery isn't going to do anything. Its not going to change what happened, and its not going to bring them back. So suck it up." The redhead straightened and turned angrily toward her companion.

"What the hell do you know anyway? My entire village was wiped out as if we were nothing but insignificant insects! I don't care if it won't do anything! I'll sit here and die for all I care!" Lady Tsunade faced her, anger burning in her eyes.

"Do you honestly think you're the only one you is suffering? There are shinobi and villagers at the camp who are all going through the exact same thing you are! You're not the only one who lost someone in this war!" The woman's hand unconsciously went to the necklace handing around her neck. Her voice quieted but did not loose any of its assertion as she looked over the destruction. "I know how it feels to lose someone dear to you Uzumaki. I know the pain and emptiness you feel, like life doesn't have a meaning or reason anymore. It shows how strong a shinobi is when they can put the past behind them and move on with their lives."

The redhead's gaze softened at the woman's tone and hunched over, kicking a pebble away and sighing. "Why do you care? Why single me out?" The blond scoffed and stood up, silently signaling for the jounin to return.

"Don't get your hopes up girl. I moved on and found more precious people. They don't fill the void, but they gave me a reason to keep going. I'm checking up on you because you are my patient and as a favor to one of my precious people." She turned to leave but stopped and smiled. "You've also got potential. I'm not about to let someone destroy themselves when they can live and make the deaths they mourn mean something." With that, the Sennin left, her golden hair swinging behind her with each step.

Turning back to the village, Kushina frowned and prodded at the ground with her foot, absently scratching at the splint around her knee. She lost track of time as she thought, her talk with the blond Sennin replaying in her mind. It shows how strong a shinobi is when they can put the past behind them and move on with their lives... I'm not about to let someone destroy themselves when they can live and make the deaths they mourn mean something.

It was an hour later when she finally stood , fire burning in her green eyes.