Spring Break seems to do wonders for my story productivity, so here I am with another chapter all ready for you: the conclusion of Ino's time in Naruto's mind.
BrokenSexedUpBloodyKitten: Unfortunately, Ino can't free Minato. She can defeat the smaller snakes but the big one that has Minato is far out of her scope. Don't worry Minato will be saved soon.
Karishiana: I both like and dislike Sasuke. I like the 'good' Sasuke, but from the start of the story, I set him up as bastard!Sasuke, so I'm sticking with that way of characterizing him in this story. In another story, I might do something differently. (actually have one planned out using good!Sasuke in the making).
HikariNoTenshi-San: I have to say I love the way you think. You got me totally hyped up when I saw what you pointed out in your review. It does make an odd sort of sense, doesn't it? Tying Heaven, Earth, and Hell together with these three clans. Now I wonder what we consider the Uzumaki clan *snerk* It would be fun to use that in the history of the clans in the side story, what do you think?
Wolfenden: You'll just have to see, won't you?
CreatedByInsanity: I'm glad you chose to give the story a chance. Minato's in the seal, trapped like Kyuubi, just a bit differently. I showed him in the chapter, didn't I?
Hitsugayatoushirou1220: Happy Birthday! I'm glad you liked the chapter.
Kyuubiforevr: I don't think I've ever had someone use the word 'creepy' so much with any of my chapters before, but I have to admit, it was pretty creepy when writing it too. Madara came out a lot more deranged than I'd previously imagined. You'll see more of that later… Poor Minato…
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Chapter 22: Mystery Solved
Minato rushed back to where he'd left Kushina and Naruto. Unfortunately, the sight wasn't as comforting as he had hoped.
Kushina lay on the bed, looking very pale and breathing heavily. The sheets underneath her were drenched with blood.
"M-Minato…" she stuttered out with relief as she caught sight of him. She was glad he was safe.
'What's wrong with her?' a concerned Ino inquired.
~Complications at birth that went unchecked by Madara's attack,~ Kyuubi replied gravely.
"Kushina," Minato murmured, eyes shining with worry.
"W-what are you doing here, bastard? You need to deal with Kyuubi," the red-haired woman stated. "You're the Hokage."
"But…" Minato protested. He didn't want to leave his wife in this state.
"I'll still be here when you return," Kushina promised. "I'm way to stubborn to go out like this."
Minato managed a small, sad smile. "Too true…" he agreed. "I'll finish this as quickly as I can."
"You better," Kushina replied. "Now go."
Minato nodded before he used Hiraishin to get to the village.
'Where are you, Minato?' Sarutobi wondered as he commanded the shinobi forces to hold back Kyuubi's approach. He was getting way too old for this…
There was a distinct yellow flash and many of the shinobi turned to see the telltale signs of their Hokage arriving on the battlefield. The Yondaime was perched on one of the spikes of his own stone head.
"Took you long enough…" Shikaku muttered at the sight of his friend. "Troublesome blonde."
'Funny…. Shikamaru likes to call Naruto that too,' Ino mused to herself.
~Serves to show how history repeats itself in a way,~ Kyuubi added her two cents.
'Wait a minute, the Yondaime and Shikaku-ji-san weren't…' Ino began, seeming a little disturbed at the thought.
~No, they never held feelings for each other the way Naruto and Shikamaru do,~ Kyuubi reassured Ino. ~They were just very good friends.~
Ino breathed a sigh of relief. It would have been weird otherwise. She had no problem about Shikamaru and Naruto but thinking of her dad's best friend like that wasn't a welcome idea.
The sight of their Hokage visibly raised the hope and morale of all of the shinobi present.
This was Minato's greatest strength as Hokage. As skilled as he was, what everyone treasured most about him was his ability to inspire everyone around him. Ino marveled over it.
'Naruto definitely inherited that from him,' she thought.
Kyuubi turned to face Minato, sensing a new threat. Snarling, the Bijuu aimed a devastating blast at the Hokage.
Minato didn't even flinch in fear as the devastating attack approach him. He just brought up one of his kunai and used his time/space jutsus to divert the blast elsewhere.
'I've got to get Kyuubi away from the village,' Minato plotted before making a series of hand seals as he summoned GamaBunta.
"Why have you called me here, Minato?" the Toad Boss queried before he saw the Bijuu. He figured out what Minato wanted. "You ask a lot of me, Hokage-gaki."
"Just trust me, Bunta," Minato urged.
"Fine," the giant toad responded reluctantly. "But you owe me."
"I know," Minato replied with an apologetic smile as he got onto GamaBunta's head.
"I won't be able to hold him back for long," the Toad Boss warned.
"It will be enough," Minato assured his summon, eyes glowing with determination.
"If you say so," GamaBunta replied before lunging for Kyuubi, pinning her down with his weight.
Kyuubi snarled ferociously and began to struggle. She didn't appreciate the assault.
"Whatever you plan to do, Minato, hurry up!" the toad exclaimed, straining to keep the Bijuu subdued.
"I'm on it," the Hokage reported as he set up his next jutsu. This was going to take a lot of chakra…
In a large flash of light, Minato was gone… and so was Kyuubi.
'Wow… he took you along for the ride?' Ino commented in awe.
~An impressive feat, I must admit,~ Kyuubi conceded, smirking to herself. She had picked a fine mate.
Minato and Kyuubi reappeared on the outskirts of Konoha and in that time, the Hokage had retrieved Kushina and Naruto.
"Kushina, I know it's asking a lot but could you…" Minato began before Kushina complied to his request without needing to hear the rest.
Chains burst out of the red-haired woman and trapped Kyuubi where she stood.
"I've got your back," Kushina told her husband, giving him a shaky smile. "What's your plan?"
"You're not going to like it," Minato replied, hair shadowing his eyes.
Kushina frowned. "Tell me," she ordered.
Taking a deep breath, Minato conveyed his idea.
"I intend to seal Kyuubi… after splitting it in two. The Yin chakra into myself, and the Yang chakra into Naruto."
'He split you in two?' Ino voiced in surprise.
~Yes, it was a smart decision. Neither he nor Naruto would have been able to handle the entirety of my chakra at this point in time. He wanted to spare Naruto the full burden until Naruto was older and strong enough to withstand it. Minato's intention was to take my Yin chakra with him to the grave, stuck inside the Shinigami's stomach.~
'I take it that didn't go according to plan?' Ino remarked. 'Considering the Yondaime Hokage is not where he's supposed to be.'
~It didn't,~ Kyuubi agreed. ~The Shinigami threw a wrench in those plans.~
"You can't be serious!" Kushina protested Minato's decision. "You intend to turn yourself and our son into Jinchuuriki? How can you think this is a good idea? You'll die and our son… he'll be alone and subjected to a cursed life. Do you really want that?"
"Of course I don't!" Minato exclaimed, surprising his wife with his vehemence. He was never one to show such strong emotions openly. Tears appeared in Minato's eyes before he diverted his face away from Kushina. "I want us to be a family, Kushina. I want Konoha to be safe. I want Naruto to have a normal, happy life… but we can't have that. Not now."
"Why not?" Kushina demanded.
"Because he's still out there," Minato stated. "He's a danger to us all. In the future, he will return and I want to ensure that Naruto will be strong enough to survive. That is my job as a father. He may hate me for it… but I will do everything in my power to protect him, even sell my soul."
Kushina deflated as she saw Minato's reasoning. "Why does it have to be you? I'm dying anyways… let me do it. Naruto will need his father."
"You don't have enough chakra to do it," the Hokage pointed out. It was taking everything out of the woman to restrain Kyuubi.
Kushina looked devastated and Minato moved to comfort her.
"Everything will be alright, my love. We'll get to see our son again. I'll make sure of it," he promised, planning to incorporate it somehow in the seal.
Speaking of the seal… he would have to make sure to add something else to it too… he wasn't going to let any of the power-hungry Uchiha come after his son. They wouldn't be able to steal his chakra like Madara had tried with him. He would be untouchable… and the only way to do that… was to seal away the Namikaze-born chakra, to hide it from sight until Naruto was fully capable of using it and preventing anyone from taking it from him.
Eyes hardening, he stood up to start the sealing. "Shiki Fuujin," he called out after he made the necessary hand seals.
Ino gasped in horror as the Shinigami appeared behind Minato. 'That can't be what I think it is, can it?'
~It is. Technically speaking, the only ones who should be able to see the Shinigami are the one doing the sealing and the one being sealed. However, as you are viewing a memory, you're able to see him as well,~ Kyuubi explained.
'I wish I didn't,' Ino thought. She'd have nightmares about him for weeks.
Ino winced in sympathy as the Shinigami's arm ran through Minato's stomach and latched onto Kyuubi, siphoning her Yin chakra into Minato's body.
Minato let out a pained moan, trying to stifle the excruciating pain he was going through. His body didn't appreciate the malicious chakra coursing through it. Now he looked like he was dying too.
~You don't need to watch anymore,~ Kyuubi urged Ino. This wasn't something someone as young as her should see.
'I need to,' Ino responded. It was horrifying but she couldn't tear her eyes away from the Yondaime Hokage's last stand.
Kushina groaned as she had to readjust her binds as Kyuubi shrank. She was barely hanging on.
"Just bare with this a little while longer, Kushina," Minato pleaded, hating to see her in pain. He moved stiffly as he forced his rebelling body to return to her side to collect his slumbering son. "I'm going to perform the 'Eight Trigrams Seal' now."
Creating the ceremonial altar, Minato placed Naruto in the cradle as he began to cast his jutsu.
"Your life will be hard, Naruto… forgive me for that," Minato spoke as he worked. "Just know that we love you more than anything else. No matter what anyone may tell you… you're loved. Never forget that."
Now Ino understood the full depth of Minato's sacrifice as he gazed down at his son with tear-filled eyes. "Goodbye, Naruto," he bid the baby farewell. "Fuuin."
A bright light filled the air and Ino found herself back in Naruto's mind.
After seeing all of that, her entire world view had been altered.
"Yondaime-sama… he did everything for Naruto and the village… to protect our future. I knew he was a hero, but I never understood just how much he gave up for us. What we all know is a lie," she muttered to herself, processing the situation.
"Are you happy now that you've got the truth?" Kyuubi inquired.
"How can I be happy having seen such a tragedy? One man ruined any chance of Naruto living happily with his family… and Naruto suffers because of it because the villagers are too blind to see the truth! How unjust is that? It makes me so angry!" Ino raged.
She was surprised when Kyuubi began to chuckle.
"What's so funny?" she frowned.
"I'm simply glad, that's all… to know you're not the type to turn your back to the truth. Can I trust you to support Naruto now? He has a difficult destiny ahead of him. He will need all of the help that he can get." The Queen of Demons commented.
"I'll do what I can," Ino promised before looking ashamed of herself. "But I've been nothing but horrible to Naruto so far… will he accept my friendship?"
"You'd be surprised. Naruto's very forgiving. As long as you are sincere in your efforts to befriend him…" Kyuubi remarked.
"Do you really think so?" Ino inquired hopefully.
"I do. He forgave me, didn't he?" Kyuubi confirmed. Ino smiled. She was hoping for the chance to redeem herself to Naruto. She would make up for everything that she had done. She wasn't like the other villagers. She knew the difference between a demon and its container. She would prove to Naruto that she was honestly sorry… and she knew just where to start.
"What are you doing?" Kyuubi asked as Ino began to force the rocks away from the cave entrance.
"More than he needs his friends, more than he even needs Shikamaru… Naruto needs the two of you. He'll never love anyone more than you and his father. The least I can do… is to try to bring all of you back together. I can't save you… but at least I can help speed up the process!" Ino explained, eyes burning with passion.
"…You're something else," Kyuubi remarked, voice filled with admiration. Ino had really shaped up after having her eyes opened. She had a feeling she could really warm up to the no-longer-a-fan-girl kunoichi.
"I'll take that as a compliment," Ino grunted as she continued to clear the entrance.
"I'll help you from this side," Kyuubi decided before there was a flare of her chakra. Ino yelped, startled, as some of the chakra grazed her and seeped into her skin. She quickly relaxed. The chakra really didn't hurt her… it felt rather warm, actually. Not letting it hinder her, Ino continued to assist Kyuubi. The rocks began to shake and dislodge as the Bijuu rammed into that which trapped her.
"Now we're talking!" Ino cheered in triumph as the rocks got easier to move.
With their combined efforts, the barrier was demolished in no time.
"F-finally," Ino panted as the last of the rocks were moved aside.
"You did a good job," Kyuubi stated as she walked out. "What?" She wondered why Ino was gaping at her.
"You look so human," Ino commented. "For the most part."
Kyuubi smirked. "It's easier to move around like this," she admitted before giving Ino a sly wink. "Plus, Minato-kun likes me better this way."
Ino began to splutter. "Y-you mean that you and the Yondaime…?"
Kyuubi laughed. "Not quite yet," she pouted before grinning. "But we will be."
Ino couldn't help but admire Kyuubi's confidence. It looked like Naruto wasn't the only whirlwind around.
"You should go back now," Kyuubi told her. "You've been here long enough. I'll go save Minato-kun from the evil clutches of that wretched snake." It totally figured that Minato ended up being the damsel-in-distress and she was his knight-in-fiery-armor.
"Good luck," Ino told the kitsune before she dispelled her jutsu.
'Interesting girl,' Kyuubi thought before turning her attention to the flickering golden light. 'I'm coming for you, my wayward mate…'
"What a horrible match up," Shikamaru winced in sympathy as TenTen was so quickly defeated by Temari. "A weapons mistress against a wind mistress… the winner was clear from the start."
"Fret not, dear TenTen-san," Lee tried to cheer his teammate up. "You are still the most youthful kunoichi I know… aside from Sakura-chan of course!"
Sakura flushed in the background, both embarrassed and flattered.
People turned away from the weapons mistress and her rambunctious teammate when Ino woke up with a gasp and Naruto snapped out of his trance, looking very groggy.
Kakashi instantly went to his younger brother's side while Team Ten focused their attention on Ino.
"Are you alright, Ino? You're not hurt, are you?" Asuma asked his subordinate, eyeing for anything odd. He didn't know what to expect from her having been inside a Jinchuuriki's mind… especially for so long. "We were going to call your father in if you'd remained unconscious for any longer."
"I'm fine…" Ino responded, looking a little disoriented. Her eyes fell on Naruto, who was looking at her curiously. Without another word, she stood up and approached him with a serious look on her face.
Everybody watched the two of them with bated breaths, not knowing quite what to expect.
Ino ended up surprising them all when she fell to her knees in front of the blonde.
"I'm sorry!" she exclaimed loudly, tears streaming from her eyes. "Please forgive me… I've been such a bitch! I didn't know! I am so sorry!"
She felt so horrible for everything… buying into the adult's hatred like that. Naruto didn't deserve any of it.
That solved the mystery for the Jounin. She clearly knew… but at the same time, she didn't seem to fear Naruto over it. That was a good thing at least.
'The question is… just how much does she know?' Kakashi thought to himself. Does she know about the Yondaime?
Alarmed and concerned over Ino's hysteria, Naruto quickly helped her to her feet. She immediately threw herself into his arms, pleading for forgiveness.
'She's traumatized,' Shikamaru realized in shock. Just what had she seen inside of Naruto's minds? His eyes fell on the blonde male who was desperately trying to comfort his fellow blonde. He was becoming more of an enigma with every passing day.
"Take her outside, Naruto, maybe that will help," Kakashi suggested, realizing that the conversation that was about to take place was best done away from everybody.
Naruto nodded in agreement before coaxing Ino to follow him outside of the arena.
"Are you sure it's a wise idea to send him away? He may get called up soon," Kurenai pointed out.
"He's safe for the time being," Kakashi responded simply, gesturing to the board which had set up the next match.
Subaku no Kankurou vs. Akiyama Osamu
"Two Suna nin in a row? This will be interesting," Asuma mused, once he was certain that Ino was in good hands. The Suna nin so far appeared to be very formidable. He was looking forward to seeing what the other two were capable of.
Jin gave Osamu a stern look. He better win this match… he was representing Iwa, after all.
Naruto took Ino to a small hallway within the arena and sat her down. "What's got you all upset?" he asked her in concern. "Why are you asking me to forgive you? There's nothing to forgive."
Ino looked up at Naruto in surprise. "'Nothing to forgive?'" she repeated. "How can you say that when I've been so horrible to you? If I were in your place, I would hate me!"
Naruto glanced at Ino, in amusement. "Just seeing how sorry you are is enough to show me that you feel remorse for it. I don't blame you for your actions. You were just falling in with what the adults' beliefs," he remarked.
"Their beliefs are wrong," Ino declared. "How could they ever think that you're a monster? How can they be so blind?"
Naruto looked down for a moment, contemplating how to answer that question. When he'd first learned about the Kyuubi, he had wondered the very same thing. With time, however, he was able to understand their reasons a bit better.
"Grief makes people irrational," he pointed out. "So many people lost their family and friends that day… they needed a scapegoat as a way to cope with their pain and who better than me? I was the constant reminder of what happened that day and that made people angry."
"That's still no excuse for what was done for you," Ino argued, pissed off with all of the adults. She didn't know what to believe anymore. "If it wasn't for your father…"
"If it wasn't for him, I would be dead," Naruto admitted. "Or at least a lot more different that who I am today. I don't know what I would do without him." His eyes dimmed as he thought of his absent father.
"You'll see him again," Ino stated with conviction, reading his emotions well enough now that she knew to look past his mask. "Now that she's free, I mean."
Naruto looked up at Ino in surprise. "She?" he repeated in confusion.
Ino gave Naruto an impish look. "You know who I mean… she's the feisty vixen who lusts after your father," she whispered in his ear and realization hit Naruto like a brick.
He stared at Ino with wonder. "You mean…"
"I freed her. She was the less guarded of the two of them. She'll be able to save your father with no trouble," Ino spoke up confidently. "It was the least I could do after everything."
"I-I don't know what to say," Naruto stuttered, overcome with emotion.
"Just say 'Thank you, Ino. You're the best,' and we'll call ourselves even," Ino joked and Naruto smiled.
"Thank you," he responded honestly before pulling Ino into a tight hug. "You have no idea how much this means to me."
Ino was surprised by his affection but quickly warmed up to it and returned the embrace. "Actually… I think I do," she responded, remembering how far Minato had gone to ensure Naruto's safety from the moment of his birth. She knew how precious they were to one another.
Neither of them noticed Shikamaru watching them, fighting back the slight sting of jealousy at seeing their closeness. A simple mistake had allowed Ino to worm her way past Naruto's tight defenses faster and more efficiently than any of Shikamaru's sincerest efforts. Where was the fairness in that?
A/N: I have a question for you. I'm going to show the entire Kyuubi saving Minato scene, but would you rather see that in the mainstream story or the side story? I have no problem doing it either way but I wanted to see what you guys consider more popular a choice.
Also, I'm trying to come up with an idea for a SaiNaru story to cheer up one of my friends. Do you guys have anything you guys would like to see in such a story? Trying to pinpoint one plot to work with but it's harder than it looks. *sheepish*