"You know, Mito was really easy going. Yes, she talked to me like I was a mindless beast but she was soothing. And Kushina, that seal business not included, could actually be funny. You? You're just entirely too troublesome. Asura was never that troublesome."
"Kurama, w-what happened?" Naruto said, blinking rapid to adjust to the light in his mindscape.
"What do you remember happening?"
"I was talking, well arguing with my mom about Minato. Suddenly it felt like I couldn't get enough oxygen but also I didn't have enough space even though I was outside. It all became too much. I remember Minato showing up, we flashed away and then… oh shit, did I try to kill my dad?"
"Eh, I saw the fight and while there may have been some desire I don't know how legitimate an attempt it was. You abandoned your ninjutsu pretty quickly and never unsealed your blades."
"Ok, this is… shit, Kurama what happened? Why did I spaz like that?"
"You remember when you have to confront your darkness?" Kurama asks and seeing Naruto nod his head, continued, "Well, you may have felt complete after that but we both neglected the reality that just accepting your darkness didn't heal the damage done to your psyche you had managed to suppress for nearly a decade. The events of the night along with your prolonged exposure to Minato had you spin out.".
"So, I'm going crazy?"
"I've seen your childhood, you should already be crazy but no, you just need help Naruto. You were saying things to Kushina you hadn't said since you were a small child." Kurama and Naruto continued to speak about the causes and timeline of his episode while Kurama looked and sounded visibly concerned about his friend.
"Ugh, well, I better wake up and deal with the fallout." Naruto said as he disappeared from his mindscape.
Naruto slowly opened his eyes to see he was in his room. He also recognized the effects of forced unconsciousness and wondered if he had been given a sedative. His third realization is that he was restrained to the bed with chakra dampening shackles. Fighting back the impulse to be angry, acknowledging he did attack Minato unprovoked he went about calming himself and remaining perfectly still. Moments later he activated sage mode and used wind chakra to cut through the restraints. He barely had enough time to get off the bed before he felt the rush of several chakra signatures to his door; five in total.
"Hey mom, Kaa-chan, nee-chan, perv, Minato. Oh, sorry about attacking you, Kurama thinks I might have been having a dissociative episode. Hope I wasn't too much of a bother. Do we have something to eat, I'm rather hungry and why are you all staring at me?" Naruto fired off quickly.
"Naruto, how did you get out of those restrains, they were chakra suppressing." said Tsunade.
"I'm a sage and you can't suppress nature, Kaa-chan. And no, Jiraiya, I don't need Kurama to enter sage mode. So, food? We never really settled on that."
"Food later, Naruto, we need to talk." said Minato in a no nonsense tone of voice.
"Oh… are you and mom getting a divorce? Nooo, think of the kids! Wait, I'm your only kid, think of me!" Naruto said, not caring at all about Minato's mood.
"This is serious, Naruto. Cut the crap." replied Minato.
"Or what? Don't let managing to hang with that half crazed version of me get to your head, Hokage-sama." Naruto said, his eyes closing to slits. Seeing this was about to head somewhere bad, Kushina stepped in.
"Alright you two, calm down. Naruto we really do need to talk to you, you said Kurama thinks you may have been experiencing a dissociative episode? Why is that?" she asked.
"When I confronted my inner darkness during my training trip Kurama and I both assumed that was the end of it. Naruto was a real boy. Apparently my inner darkness had some unresolved issues but because none of the circumstances were triggering them it just never really came up. Yesterday just happen to be a sufficient mix of things to set me off."
"So, because of what we were talking about you started having a breakdown?" asked a sullen Kushina.
"Yes and no. I think that idiot at the bar kinda started it and it just devolved from there but it isn't your fault mom so please don't blame yourself." Naruto finished.
"What bar? What happened before I saw you two?" asked a curious Minato.
"Tsume and I were out. I started venting about things, some jounin heard me and started to run his mouth. I was getting ready to deck him when Naruto made his presence known and scared the man shitless."
"So, that's why you left in such a rush?" asked Jiraiya.
"Yep. I know we said we'd wait on the food but could I at least get some tea? I feel tea is reasonable."
"Tea can wait Naruto, we need to get to the bottom of this." said Minato. Naruto bit back a snarky response, finding a renewed desire to hit the man.
"What is there to get to the bottom of? I'll consult a mental health professional so this doesn't happen again now that I know the issue. I'll provide reports to Kaa-chan to chart my progress and we just move things along. This is standard, let's not treat it like something wholly unique just because you're involved."
"Naruto, it isn't that simple. You stated you thought I wanted you broken, I requested Hiruzen release your status knowing the reaction the villagers would have. You told Tsunade you needed to protect them from me. I need to know why."
"You want to know why, you don't need to know it but fine. I have very little reason to trust you or take your stated motivations at face value. It would be foolish to not consider alternative interpretations for your actions and plan my response should said interpretations ever be proven correct. Also, understand something, even if I had twenty-seven voices in my head and half of them lived under a purple sky, my reasons for the way I feel about you aren't entirely irrational."
"Naruto, what do you want from me? I can apologize until I'm blue but it won't matter if you don't care. So, what is it that you want?"
"Nothing. I'm fine. You want something from me. Same as mom, you want me to forgive you so we can be a real family. But you didn't treat me as real family so isn't this just the consequence of your choices?"
"Naruto, look at all you have, at what you've managed to become. If you could rise above the hatred you could be a beacon to so many people. You choose to wallow. You'd rather stay angry and resentful instead of finding the strength to be something more."
"Minato!" yelled Kushina.
"Hehehehe… hahahahaha… HAHAHAHAHA!" Naruto cackled. "You're so full of your own bullshit it's amazing you can function. Rise above? How convenient you make me ultimately responsible. Was I supposed to show the village they were wrong about me? Earn their respect? You dumbshit. They were wrong about me but it was up to them to reach that obvious conclusion. I'm not here for them, I do not exist to make others better you insufferable prick. I am a person, my pain, my desires, my everything is just as fucking valid as anyone else's! I do not exist for them, I do not exist to suffer on their behalf. My body will not carry the scars of other's pain just so they learn a lesson. This is why I'll have nothing to do with you. I'm not a person to you. I'm something else, less than human."
"No, I thought you could be something more. A light for the world and you could be, you just refuse to be. It's like you hold yourself back, you won't be a comfort to those you deem unworthy. They messed up Naruto, they wronged you and no one denies it. I messed up but we can't change that.
I'm sorry I can't convince myself to allow thousands to die. I'm sorry I trusted Jiraiya and Hiruzen to do the right thing. But because of what you went through you understand people in a way many don't. You, the boy who had nothing are on a first name basis with most of the Kage, you've managed to befriend people across the nation. But you come here and you're barely seen. The people want to make it up to you Naruto, I do as well. Stop hiding from us."
"I'm not hiding, I just want nothing to do with them nor you. Why should I? How does it benefit me? I can't compare to Konoha. You don't deny it, you just want me to be ok with it. These people are cowards, many lacking any internal strength. I don't respect them. They were given ample evidence that I was no harm to them. Gaara went from psychopathic pariah to a Kage in under three years. Konoha couldn't stop fucking with me in ten; not until after the invasion. Do you see? How weak your chosen people are? Yet you claim I wallow. No, I see them. I see the lack of substance in them. Cotton candy people, they'll melt at the first sign of pressure. And you are their king, Minato. Their god, the strongest of them, selected by them. You are truly the only Hokage chosen because you were acknowledged by the people. What does that say about you?"
"It says they trusted me to protect them, to guide them to a better path. Something you could do, it would be so easy for you, too. You don't see it because you've decided the villagers are beneath your notice but I see it. The look as if something is lacking inside them and they know it. They know they failed. Not me, Naruto, but you. You could move with them, come to peace with the past and build something great. I know you could if you'd just give them a chance."
"This is getting us nowhere. Minato can you and Jiraiya let us talk to Naruto alone?" requested Tsunade.
"No. He needs to hear this. It's one thing to attack me but what if it had been a civilian? I won't let you give him permission to be less than he could be."
"You forget yourself. You're in my house, Minato. My asking you to leave was a courtesy. You don't let me do anything, I don't need your permission. Leave, now!" Tsunade forcefully replied.
"C'mon, kid, let's take a breather." Said Jiraiya as he placed his hand on Minato's shoulder. When the pair exited the compound Kushina was the first to speak, walking over to Naruto.
"First of all," she says before punching the blond on top of his head, "don't you ever ask me if I'm giving up on you, dattabane!"
"Kuso, that hurt" Naruto said clutching his head. "Why did you hit me, dattebayo?"
"I told you why. Accusing me of giving you an ultimatum, I should kick your ass, dattabane."
Shizune whispered to Tsunade, "How long before they just repeat their verbal tics exclusively?"
"A minute thirty tops."
"Wanna bet?"
"Oi, I can hear you two, datte… to hell with both" Kushina said blushing mildly.
"Well, if you're done beating up on our son, Kushina, we can continue. First of all, sorry for knocking you out, Naru-kun."
"It's fine, I wasn't really behaving like myself so it was for the best."
"Good. Something that I've realized is that you've been forced to be reactive for awhile now so I'd like to ask you something, what is it you'd like to do? I recall you used to have aspirations of being something more than just a standard jounin, or even the strongest one in the village. So, what is it?" Tsunade asked and saw a smile spread across Naruto's face.
"What is it about family that makes you attempt to say the most reasonable things in the most unreasonable way possible?" asked Minato?
"I don't know but you really stuck your foot in it." replied Jiraiya.
"Thanks for the support, sensei. You're always there when I'm down to offer a swift kick."
"Because I know you'll use the momentum to get yourself up again. But seriously, Minato, what the hell was that?"
"I don't know, I'm just so frustrated. It's like he knows just what to say to make me feel like he's rejecting everything I stand for and is right to do so. I know I'm asking a lot but he could actually do it if he wanted to. It just hurts to see him give up on the village, on making a difference."
"You haven't exactly given him a reason to do so."
"I've given him every reason I know to give. I know he suffered and they were so wrong that words can't do it justice. I.. I just thought he'd be the kind of person that could overcome it."
"He has overcome it and became a damn fine man, Minato. You want him to be some kind of savior. I wanted it too but Naruto is not going to play that role. He has no interest in it. Hell, he'd likely rather spend his days chasing his cute, little Hyuuga. And given the effects of his childhood, Minato this isn't a simple issue of willpower."
"You're right, sensei. I just, why am I so bad at this?"
"Because you need the sacrifice and all the pain to be worth it. Minato, you're not going to redeem yourself or the village through Naruto's choices. No matter what he should accomplish in the future, you can either live with what you did or you can't. Hoping Naruto brings peace to the lands so you can point to it as proof you were right is stupid, frankly. More importantly, do you realize how close you came to Tsunade punching you into oblivion?"
Minato took this moment to look a little sheepish. "Yea… I'll apologize. But it wouldn't have been that bad, she used to hit you all the time for being a pervert."
"It amazes me how unobservant most people are. Tsunade can kill with one punch, Minato I'm a tough bastard but I'm not that tough. Her punches don't severely hurt me because she disperses the chakra different when she hits me, it's more like a strong push. The two times she's ever hit me seriously I almost died the first time and she broke my ribs the second."
"Oh… I dodged a kunai."
"Assuming Kushina isn't mad at you."
Minato didn't respond, he just simply paled while Jiraiya laughed at his student's plight.
"So, how was he?" Jiraiya asked shifting topics.
"Given his mental state? Good, better than someone not fully in control should be."
"Think you could take him?"
"I think it'd be a hell of a fight." responded Minato smiling.
A short while later, Naruto was making his way to the Hyuuga compound to talk to Hinata over what he discussed with his two moms and Shizune. As he approached the entrance to the grounds, Naruto noticed the guards giving off some strange vibes, humiliation and mild panic.
Without even having to request it the guards escorted him into the compound and as he made his way to Hinata's study, he was stopped and hugged by Hiashi. He wondered if he were losing his grip on reality again when one guard whispered that Hiashi had been in an abnormally good mood since his mom left the compound yesterday. Finally, arriving to see his beloved, he was happy to escape the parallel universe he had just temporary walked through. Naruto then proceeded to tell Hinata about what happened when he returned last night and the discussion, up to what he spoke with Tsunade and company about.
"So, are you alright?"
"Physically I'm fine and as for the other stuff, I'll be attending to it soon enough."
"You never told me what you decided on?"
"Oh, right. Well, short term, I'm taking on a team of brats. Figured since Hanabi will be graduating with this next crop, I'll see if I can get her on my team."
"Really?"
"Yea. And kaa-chan said my mission load will decrease so I can get myself straight and start preparing for that and my other plan."
"You finally told her about it?"
"Yea, it didn't take much pitching since I had been sitting on the research for so long but she liked the idea. The goal is to get my team up to chunin level as fast as possible since they would be some of the first Konoha representatives if we can get the other villages to agree."
While on his training trip with Jiraiya, Naruto had really started thinking about chakra and its potential. He had become dismayed with the fact that ninja think of chakra and ninjutsu almost exclusively for combat applications. While, the bent toward combat would likely never change, Naruto wondered if the balance could be tilted. It was on one of his solo journeys from the mountain that Naruto came across a bridge that had been damaged in a storm. The bridge had been the main transport route between two villages and each were hurting from lack of goods. It was a rather simple application of doton jutsu to create a workable stone bridge. Some durability seals to help protect against erosion and other damage and the bridge would have a long life.
It was that simple event that sparked the idea of a joint disaster relief effort between villages since none of the elemental nations had a dedicated service for that, mostly villages just had to make due the best they could. With very little relative costs to the respective Daimyo, a small organization of shinobi could make a world of difference in relief efforts and if shinobi of rival villages see people helping their people it was bound to breakdown some of the barriers between villages. It'd be slow but the sphere of influence would spread and because each village would be invested in the organization it would help diminish future conflicts by uniting them with a shared goal. The sell to the other kage would be difficult but much of the logistics would be solved via summoning seals that could get rapid response teams to disasters areas swiftly.
What Minato and Jiraiya never seemed to get is that Naruto had no issue with seeking peace, he just didn't believe it should be achieved by a single great man, a charismatic leader heading the charge. Individuals are fallible, and if a goal is worth achieving then mobilizing as many people to your cause as possible should be your aim. Naruto's way would be slower and there would be bumps along the way but if it succeeded not only could there be peace between shinobi villages but they could help people that needed assistance and gain a different perspective on chakra. Tsunade promised Naruto she would go over the proposal with Hiruzen and Danzo to iron out the finer points while leaving him available to speak with the kage should they need more convincing.
"There was something else we talked about" Naruto said.
"What was it?"
"Well, Kaa-chan really doesn't want to wear the hat any longer than she has to. If this works it'd have my name attached to it and without the threat of war,, none in our generation, nor any either side would match the accomplishment. Also taking into account I'm currently the only S-ranked shinobi amongst our graduating class and Team Guy…"
"You're going to be Hokage?"
"Yea… Five to seven years is how long she's giving me. With you and Neji being the closest to S rank distinction, I offered to train you up. You'd make a good Kage."
"Nooo, no, no. I have enough to deal with as clan head and not all of us can shadow clone our problems away."
"She didn't really entertain the alternative anyway so it's a moot point."
"I'm glad you're getting a chance at establishing your relief organization but I'm disappointed she attached such a condition to it."
"She didn't. She would do the program anyway, it's just… who else? You and Neji could become strong enough to be at least low S rank. Shikamaru and Shino are smart enough certainly but the issue becomes if you're standing in a room with me, who are the other kage going to be looking at? They'll either assume you're puppets or that I'm liable to do whatever I want regardless and that'd diminish the office. She also countered my strongest argument"
"Nuh uh, don't wanna!"
"What are you, two?" asked Shizune, and Naruto stuck his tongue out at her in response.
"Well, that's too damn bad, Mister man!" Tsunade, deciding to match his level of immaturity, as a kage should. "I didn't wanna either but some chubby cheeked brat came into my life and turned it upside down and now here we are. Besides, you want to save your kaa-chan from that evil paperwork, right?" she said, adopting the puppy dog eyes.
'That is excellent emotional manipulation, Tsunade's a natural' Kushina thought.
"Fine, I'll be the stupid Hokage and do the dumb paperwork." Naruto said and was immediately glomped by the women in the room. Once said glompping had ended Tsunade continued.
"Naruto, I can't disagree with much of what you've said to Minato, even if it was hard to hear. I'm not asking you to forgive or forget the past but I am asking you to look toward the future. To those generations that haven't learned to lean entirely on the strength of their Kage. Konoha had been lacking something maybe before Minato and Kushina died and I think you see that more clearly than anymore. Learn from our mistakes, show them the virtue of being a gutsy shinobi."
"Ha, you've been hanging around Pervy Sage too long."
"Maybe but you have no idea how much Jiraiya brags on you. It makes me want to punch him. 'Oh, Naruto can use mokuton Tsunade, what can Sakura do?' It'd be really annoying if you weren't my son."
"He does?"
"Of course. He's incredibly proud of you, we all are. Always know that" Tsunade said and kissed Naruto on the forehead.
"Yea, so I have a few more years of freedom before I'm chained to a desk."
"Well, it won't be all bad. Just think, we'll eventually get to break in your new office." Hinata said.
"Oh, I like the way you think."