Epilogue – Butterfly Effect
Butterfly effect is a scientific theory that a single occurrence, no matter how small, can change the course of the universe forever.
Namikaze Minato sat reading through his tower high stack of papers. There was just so much to read through. If he'd known just how much of his job would be dedicated to sitting on his ass, he wondered if he would've been as determined at accepting the job as jōnin commander.
The ultimate goal was of course to become Hokage, but that position was still occupied— though he had it on good authority that Hokage-sama was considering naming him his successor whenever he stepped down.
He looked over at the photo on the desk next to the hundreds of papers. Only a few years old, it was a picture of his girlfriend, now wife, and himself sitting together outside on the training field. He would have to change the photo soon: one with all three of them would be nice.
He was wondering when he'd get the time to take that photo though; as long as daylight was out he was usually busy. While he speculated about using his lunch break for such an event, someone knocked on the door and Minato jumped in surprise. Recollecting himself quickly he told them in a professional voice to enter.
He was pleased, and relaxed instantly into his chair when he noticed it was Kushina. She was holding their newborn who was wrapped in an orange knitted blanket securely in her arms. The blanket was given to them by Senju Madoka, the great grandson of the first Hokage, who knitted it for them as a sort of experiment. He'd been going for a sweater, but had given up and made a blanket instead.
"Dear, are you not ready? We're supposed to be there in five minutes you know..." She told him while he smiled sheepishly back.
"Sorry, Kushina. I guess all this paperwork made me forget the time. Thanks for coming by, I'm really happy to take a break from this." He chuckled and got up while packing away all sensitive information.
It was against the rules for people without the clearance to see what was written on fifty percent of the documents, though it wasn't such a huge deal if Kushina noticed that Uzu was participating in the upcoming chūnin exam. They, just like most of the other hidden villages, had done it for as long as most could remember, and it was her home village after all. She'd be more shocked if they didn't.
That reminded him that most of her absurdly large family was coming to see the baby next weekend— all five siblings, her surprisingly well preserved grandfather Kurou plus her parents under one roof, which meant more stress. Wonderful. It was a good thing the aunts and uncles had decided to pay for a hotel.
He picked up a specific item and was just about to walk over to his wife when her scolding voice hit his ears.
"You can't do the Hiraishin now, Minato! Our child has never done it before and will get sick or start crying again. We need to keep the baby calm for this visit. You know Madara-sama is ancient in years. He's even older than Jiji! A crying baby wouldn't help with his condition on top of so many barging into his house." Kushina explained heatedly. The lack of sleep wasn't helping her temperament very much these days.
"Right, of course I know that. I just thought I'd take the kunai with me." Answered Minato uncertainly, letting his hand raise to the nape of his neck and rubbed it sheepishly. It was an old habit he had never been able to shake off.
"Why? So that the kids could eat it by accident?" Accused Kushina with her free arm on her hip. Yep, she was still very tired.
"Eh, if Fugaku... you know… Decides to challenge me to a spar again, I need to come prepared." He fumbled to answer while his wife rolled her eyes and marched out of the office. Minato took a quick moment to release a relieved breath before hurrying after her.
After they'd made their way down to the crowded street they walked together and chatted about the upcoming meeting. Some of their friends who happened to walk by waved to them, congratulating them on the baby.
They soon came to the ninja compound of Konoha. The civilians liked to have the ninja living a little away from themselves. It made for less nightly noises from ninja jumping on their roof tops, or doing an impromptu spar next to their windows. Not every ninja lived in this district though, but most of the larger clans did. The Senju, Uchiha, Hyūga, Yamanaka and Izunika especially liked to stay here.
The only worry Minato had was the dwindling number of people who wanted to become ninja. The occupation was becoming less and less needed, and many chose to go into business rather than martial arts these days. His biggest fear to date was that one day the noble art they practised would one day become nothing but some afternoon sport, but he still crossed his fingers and tried to find new uses for ninja.
There was still a fair amount left though. Old traditions was hard to squash out completely, so there were still a market for ninja missions but they were far from as dangerous and violent as they'd been back when Konoha was founded. It had been a decade since anyone had died as a result of a mission, and that had been through a freak accident with some explosive tags and a bonfire.
Walking towards a simple two story house with the Uzumaki swirl painted on the door, Kushina knocked and waited next to Minato while cooing to the baby who giggled back.
The door opened and a man about the same age as themselves opened the door. He smiled brightly when he saw who it was. The grin was so wide there was a chance of his face splitting in two. Minato still had problems understanding how this man could be related to Uchiha Madara.
"Minato-sama! Kushina-san! I almost thought you had forgotten, dattebayo. You're usually on time, but I guess the office must keep you busy Minato-sama. And this must be the new addition to your family, right? Let me see the little one." He exclaimed and took the baby from Kushina who told him to mind the head and be careful.
"Ah… The baby has the same eyes as you, Minato-sama!" Uchiha Shiro exclaimed and gently rocked the baby back and forth. "And the whisker marks… They're just like baa-chan ones." He whispered while smiling down at the child. He seemed to momentarily go deep into his own thoughts before snapping out of it and look eagerly from one to the other.
"Come in, come in. He's waiting for you, and the others are already here. Do you want some tea?" He asked and ushered them in.
As they accepted the offer and walked into the house, the new parents looked curiously around. Neither had been there before, and it was an unspoken honour to be invited. They followed after the Uchiha and came into a crowded room where they saw who else had been asked to join them today.
Fugaku and Mikoto sat with their children on the couch while their eldest son held his younger sibling in his lap. The baby was laughing while Itachi made funny faces repeatedly.
They already knew the Uchiha couple would be there, but not their kids. What surprised them more was to see Hatake Kakashi sitting out of place on a chair next to the ancient Uchiha.
"Madara-sama! You look well. I heard the doctors told you to stay in bed. Are you sure you're up for such a large visit?" Asked Minato as he came into the room and bowed with his wife for the respected Uchiha.
"Minato, Kushina. I'm glad you came. Sit down please, I'm well enough for this. Can I see the child?" He asked and Kushina nodded.
"Sure! Shiro-san, why don't you hand the baby over?" Kushina said while smiling, but fussed while Shiro carefully placed the baby in Madara's frail arms. Worried her child would be dropped because of the man's failing strength. Minato just stood and made sure everything went okay. If the baby was dropped he was sure his Hiraishin would make it in time.
After the child was securely placed and comfortable in Madara's arms, Shiro headed into the kitchen. For a long time the old Uchiha didn't speak, only looked wide eyed at the child's face; the short blond hair, the three whisker marks and the blue curious eyes looking up at him. While he seemed engrossed in the child, everyone else was watching the Uchiha elder with curiosity.
"It…. It's a boy." He muttered while stroking his blond head gently.
"Yes, he'll be a little prankster I'm sure. He's already tried to turn over the paint box earlier today. Not that he had much success with that. He is only three days old after all." Said Kushina and laughed while giving her son a proud look.
Minato chuckled uncertainly.
"And I haven't seen your baby yet, Mikoto! Can I?" Asked Kushina and walked over to Itachi who was still entertaining the two months old baby with vigorous energy.
Reluctantly Itachi let Kushina hold the baby, even if it was only done when his father had given him a stern look.
"Oh, my! Is it a boy? He's so cute!" Exclaimed Kushina, making the baby Uchiha fuss and turn restlessly.
"Ah... no. It's a girl." Said Mikoto tiredly and a little offended. Minato guessed Kushina wasn't the only one to make that mistake.
"She's precious, Mikoto. What did you name her?" Asked Kushina and stroked the child's cheek.
"Well, Fugaku was convinced it would be a boy, so he asked permission from the Third to name him Sasuke. You know, after his father Sarutobi Sasuke. But it's a girl, so we went for Setsuko." Explained Mikoto and smiled with growing energy now that they were talking about her daughter.
"It's a girl?" Asked Madara surprised, making both of the child parents twitch but not comment on it further. No one talked back to Uchiha Madara since the man was very well respected. Not to mention scary...
"Actually Madara-sama, we're so glad you invited us over today. We have a question to ask you." Said Minato looking over at the wrinkly white haired man who was still looking down at their little boy.
"Ask away, Minato-kun."
"Is it alright if we name our child Naruto? After the Nidaime?" The blond asked Madara seriously. Kushina, who was still gently rocking Setsuko, looked quickly up and paid attention now that the question was out in the open.
When Madara didn't immediately answer, Kushina started rambling. "We know it's a little strange to name him after a woman, but Naruto goes well with a boy too. And she's a wonderful role model. They share the same birthday you know. Tenth of October! He also has the same whisker marks and blond hair. I even recall Naruto-sama had very clear blue eyes. We think the name fits him well don't you think?" Asked Kushina nervously, handing back Setsuko to Itachi who eagerly took back his baby sister.
Madara didn't take his eyes off the child, but slowly he smiled and nodded. "Yes… She had very beautiful eyes… Just like your son. He'll make a great ninja one day. Maybe become Hokage like Naruto. The name suits him well." He said and let Kushina take her son back.
Minato thought the old man looked tired where he sat looking at Kushina and Naruto.
Not only old, he was eighty eight by now and the oldest man in Konoha, but almost sad. Maybe bringing Naruto had been a bad idea after all. Their son reminded everyone of the Nidaime, and he was sure Madara-sama missed her very much.
Everyone who'd ever met Naruto-sama missed her, himself included.
He had often seen her when he was young. She had even given him instructions on how to use the Rasengan before he'd even started the academy. Telling him if he trained hard he'd learn it in no time. The Nidaime had always been helpful to everyone, and a no name kid like himself hadn't been an exception. If anything he felt he got more attention than most.
Minato had always assumed that was because of the strange coincidence with their names. Namikaze. Back then he'd been under the impression she was an Uchiha though, so it had taken him a few years before he realised there was a possibility that they were distantly related. It was around that time he started dreaming of becoming a Hokage.
"Thank you so much, Madara-sama. Em… But you asked us to come because there was something you wanted to tell us right?" Minato asked as Shiro came back and indicated for them to sit down like the rest while he poured them tea.
"Yes… I just wanted to see your child first… I realise now… I might have waited longer then I needed to. Delayed too long. Naruto used to say I was too stubborn for my own good." He chuckled but his smile didn't reach his eyes.
"Why are you here, Kakashi?" Asked Minato with a smile towards the teenager, the boy shifted uncomfortably.
"I'm not sure, sensei. Dad told me to come here because Madara-sama had asked me to, so here I am." He said and straightened his mask a little, making sure it covered everything but the eyes and up.
"It's because he has as much reason to hear what I have to tell you as Itachi over there does. What I'm going to say is a secret, but some already know it. Like my grandson here." He said and pointed to Shiro who nodded and winked to Itachi.
"Every member of the Uchiha main family has been told when they were old enough." Madara explained tiredly.
"Then why are we here? Itachi hasn't even started the academy yet." Asked Mikoto and looked down at her children. "We're not part of the main family after all." She added.
"It still concerns you and you will understand better as I explain. You will have to forgive me for not telling you sooner. But I hoped she..." He looked over at Kushina and the baby. "It doesn't matter. I'll tell you now instead."
"What will you tell us, Jiji?" Asked Itachi eagerly.
The young boy loved hearing his clan elder tell stories about his youth, especially about the fights with the Shodai and Nidaime, both against and together with them.
Itachi often visited the Uchiha elder whenever he could. Helping out with the beautiful garden or learning whatever the man felt like teaching.
Shiro was usually there too. As the second child it was his sister who one day would become clan leader of the Uchiha. She was usually out on missions and their father was also busy. Therefore Shiro had to spend a lot of time taking care of Madara since his health had been failing for many years now. He had never minded looking after his grumpy grandfather though.
"I'm going to tell you about the life of my wife, Uchiha Naruto, or as I knew her first, Namikaze Naruto." He said and smiled more genuinely towards Itachi. "She did a lot more than what the history books have recorded. And while she might not have agreed to my telling you this, I still feel she deserves to be remembered for the things she accomplished. Which is far greater than what Hashirama and I managed combined." He said and closed his eyes. Thinking back and getting lost in his memories while they waited.
Kushina wondered if he'd fallen asleep, he was very old after all, but then he opened his eyes and started talking.
"My wife… was born on the tenth of October in Konoha just before the Kyūbi attack. The village was both much the same and very different from this one..." He started telling them while everyone listened with rapt attention.
Five hours later the two families and Kakashi left the house in silence. Eventually Shiro had chased them out smiling apologetically. Madara was at the brink of falling asleep from such a long day and he needed his rest more than answering questions.
Most of them were still trying to convince themselves that Uchiha Madara had gone senile with a very vivid imagination. But the proof he'd showed them was still burned to the back of their minds.
Half way through the story, about the time Madara was talking in his rough hoarse voice about Naruto falling back in time, Kurama had started cursing.
Kushina had caught it, and after a few questions the fox had eventually confirmed what Madara was saying was true.
The old picture of the young Naruto with her genin team, showing an older Kakashi as their sensei, also shook them all to the core.
Minato and Kushina were looking at their son. Trying to envision what it would have been like if he had been forced to live the life which had been given to the Nidaime.
Alone, targeted and thrown back in time. Kushina was remembering the time she'd met Naruto herself. When she'd been only eleven and terrified because she was becoming the next jinchūriki.
Konoha had singled her out and asked for her specifically. Naruto had been the host of the Nine Tailed bijū, but also had some of the chakra of all nine demons, making her a meeting place between them all. Currently Kushina was the last jinchūriki, and was only allowed to be the one because the five Kage had agreed to it. Kurama had once said this was done to make sure Naruto's work was fulfilled. But back then she hadn't understood, though now she did.
Her mind went to the old lady who had been so happy to see her while Madara sat pale in the corner of the sun filled room.
How comforting and familiar she'd been with her and all the encouraging words Kushina had taken from the meeting. Used them over and over again while she tried to get to know the stubborn fox who seemed to still miss Naruto immensely.
Naruto had been sick, and being so old she was barely hanging on when Kushina came before her. She had still never shown her pain, only tried to comfort her.
Kushina wasn't aware she was crying before Minato dried the tears away from her cheek with his thumb.
His expression was grim as they stopped walking. The Uchihas halted and looked back at them with similar expressions on Fugaku and Mikoto's faces.
Itachi on the other hand stepped forwards, a wide smile on his face as he looked at baby Naruto.
"I've decided! I'll become just like Jiji! I'll protect the Hokage and Konoha and become strong for the sake of my precious people! Just like Naruto-sama was! Dad!" He said and abruptly pointed to his father while clutching his sister to him with his remaining arm.
Mikoto huffed at her son's careless action. "I want to start the academy tomorrow! In the other time line I was already almost a genin at my age!" He ordered.
He then looked at Kakashi. "And you were a jōnin! You should try and take the chūnin exam soon Kakashi-san."
The Hatake grunted and nodded reluctantly.
Kushina chuckled as Fugaku explained that Konoha didn't allow children to start before they were seven years old, which was only a few months away for Itachi. It was also impossible to graduate before you were thirteen. It wasn't necessary since they hadn't seen war in more than fifty years.
The red head looked searchingly up to the Hokage Mountain where the faces of the Hokage looked over their village. The Shodai Hashirama, Nidaime Naruto, Sandaime Hiruzen and last the Yondaime Orochimaru.
Her gaze trailed back to the Nidaime.
Uchiha Naruto.
Namikaze Naruto.
Uzumaki Naruto.
What had she felt? Could Kushina even start to imagine what she had gone through for them all? The idea of the world Naruto had grown up in made chills run up her spine. Being so lost the only one she could confide in was herself and Kurama.
What had she seen? Who had Minato and herself been to her? What must she have been thinking back when they met in that room, watching the girl who had once been her mother cry in her lap in despair? What was Kushina's pain in comparison to Naruto's?
Nothing.
Kurama was kind if not still in mourning, and privately, Kushina thought he always would be.
Looking down at her son she smiled as he fussed. "You're going to grow up happy, Naruto. Your dad and I will always protect you, we'll never leave you, and even when we're no longer here we'll always be in your heart. And it's all thanks to your older sister that you will never have to live through the hardship of this world, dattebane." She trailed off as tears pressed against her eyes again.
"Thank you..." Kushina muttered while Minato held her and hugged them both.
Their thoughts lingered on a blonde girl who had lost so much for the sake of peace. They were more resolved than ever that they wanted to follow and protect her legacy for the next generation to grow up safe and inherit the Will of Fire.
Minato smiled sadly and murmured softly in his wife's ear. "Come on. Let's go home."
That night Madara slept deeply. In his dream he was walking with Naruto on top of the Hokage Mountain with their young son.
They were showing him the view for the first time while he clung to Naruto's side. When they stood on top of Hashirama's head, looking down to the village below, the man the face belonged to met them together with his wife, Izumi.
As the sun rose slowly over the horizon they talked about the latest happenings. How Hiruzen had finally made genin, how Hatake Sakumo was too smart for a six year old boy, and how they had finally made a peace treaty with Sunagakure.
From down in the village Izuna waved up at them before walking towards the academy where he yet again had been roped into teaching the little brats.
His brother loved it, but Madara was the only one who'd been allowed to know that fact.
As Naruto leaned in and gave a chaste kiss to his lips he smiled and took a hold of their little boy, securing him in his arms while looking up into the sunrise.
Madara smiled in his sleep, his heart glad and at ease as he slept on.
When the arm of the clock reached the number one, Madara took his last shaking breath.
And while his head was filled with the many adventures of Team One, he finally joined his precious people at last.
Second Wind
Second wind is a phenomenon which occurs when a person finds him or herself out of breath and is too tired to continue, then suddenly finds the strength to press on with less exertion at top performance.
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The end, Dattebayo!
Author note: I can't believe I've finished this… And today is exactly four months after I posted the first chapter of Second Wind. Hm... that wasn't actually planned.
It's been so fun to write Second Wind, even if it was frustrating at times when I tried to get things to add up.
Thank you so much to those who has followed the story, and everyone who came with encouraging words and reviews. I truly appreciate it and you made it so much easier for me to get this written down and posted. I really hope you enjoyed it.
And thank you Jayden-the-Jaded who has both given me tips on my continuing grammar mistakes and is betaing this monster of a story. It turned out so much longer than I expected. The last time I wrote a story I was ten and it was about six pages long…
I could have written a very long chapter for this epilogue, listing off what the consequences of time travel had done to more of the characters we know from canon, but I felt some things were just better left unsaid.
Second Wind is a Konoha centric story, and I refrained from dragging in the other great nations on purpose. I needed to focus and keep to the plot, and not get distracted about Ōnoki or similar characters. If I did it would be a separate story, and who knows, if I ever feel like writing a sequel at least I would have something to use. But that will be much later, if at all. Right now I need a long break from the clan warring states.
I've also posted a new story. I started drafting it back in January, but it's been slow going and a lot of conflict about what was going to happen. It's called 'After the Rain' and its another time travelling story with femnaruto going back to the third ninja war. (it's less angst filled though) If you feel like taking a peek you can find it on my profile.
A few Second Wind trivia facts you might have missed or wasn't included:
- I gave Kurou his name because it means 'ninth son' in Japanese, which refers to the fact that he is the ninth child in his family. It's also because his sister, granddaughter and great granddaughter was jinchūriki of the nine tailed fox, so I thought it was symbolic... His older twin brother Hachirou means 'eight son'.
- Katsu means 'victory', I thought it would be kind of ironic because of what happened to him.
- The souls of everyone returning is meant to be the same as Hagoromo does to bring back the past Kage while Kaguya is sealed by Naruto and Sasuke.
- I struggled with what clans the rebels would be from. In the end I made the Yuki, Akebino, Terumī and Hōzuki clans the rebels. They are all clans picked from characters seen in canon. From the Yuki clan there is of course Haku. The Akebino clan has a member named Akebino Jinin, who was one of the seven swordsmen of the mist. Terumī is the same clan Mei the fifth Mizukage is from. And Hōzuki is the clan Suigetsu is from. All of them are born in Water Country, so I thought they'd fit.
- The scroll Mito and Naruto went to get back from the Yuki rebels after they stole it from Uzushiogakure, was the same one they used later to capture Chōmei and Saiken. Black Zetsu was the one to give them this idea after he made sure the three tails rampaged their village. Naruto and Mito saved Sarutobi Ren from being held hostage, but they never got back the scroll with information about sealing a bijū. (ch. 8 – Flow)
- Tobirama's nose became crooked, and remained so for the rest of his life, because of the punches Naomi hit him with in ch. Seven – Lahar. He also had several scars that never disappeared. In the previous chapter Itama had a training accident, which made them switch shifts. I envisioned that if the attack had happened in canon, Tobirama wouldn't have been present and never got injured at all. Itama's presence changed a lot of their experiences.
- All the chapter titles has a symbolic meaning to something that happens in the chapter. For example chapter ten – Bigot, refers to both Madara and Naruto and their stubbornness to not listen to others opinions in that chapter. They both believe they're right and wont change their mind when the other has a different point of view.
- Madoka, the great grandson of Hashirama, means 'circle'. I thought for some reason that was fitting… While I'm sad I had to kill off Mito, I still wanted Hashirama to move on, so he got remarried eventually. He also grew an intense disliking for Ketchup.
- Hashirama figured out that there was something going on between Naruto and Madara fairly quickly. He just chose not to get involved in the drama since they were all friends.