Summary: Eyes glistened with a golden hinge, blood dripping out of her nose. She would save them, even if it killed her. Slight SI. Third War Era. OC AU

….

Chapter 4: Promise

"The truth." Dumbledore sighed. "It is a beautiful and terrible thing, and should therefore be treated with great caution." ~ J.K Rowling, 'The Sorcerer's Stone'

….

"So where were you when the attack began?" Mitsuko found herself questioning the white haired sannin one evening about two weeks later. The details from that night still mostly blurry for her. Kushina and Jiraiya had decided to stop by her apartment to check up on her.

While she would be fine Mitsuko was once again on a no chakra use permitted treatment, but at least this time around she was home. Her body needed the break. Hence the mandatory bed rest. She wasn't going to complain because it meant she had time to catch up on going through the ROOT files.

Jiraiya scratched the back of his head. "Well…" The man trailed off at the look Kushina was giving him. "Where do you think he was Mitsu-chan?"She snickered at the sannin, he'd never live that one down.

Her nephew sleepily opened his eyes, she blinked down at him. "Hello Naruto-kun." Mitsuko cooed at her nephew. The baby yawned before he closed his eyes again. She looked almost put out.

"Shina-nee should he sleep this much?" Mitsuko questioned as she readjusted the sleeping baby in her arms. Kushina hummed from where she was fixing lunch in the blonde's Kitchen. By the sound of it she was making enough to feed a small army.

"He didn't get any sleep last night, so it's fine. Just let me know if he gets fussy when he wakes up again." She nodded her head absently but then remembered Kushina's back was to her.

"Sure thing nee-chan." Mitsuko said as a sort of afterthought. She looked back down towards the sleeping child. There was a knock on her window, it interrupted her bubbling thoughts.

Jiraiya looked towards the sound before gently taking Naruto out of her arms. Mitsuko stood from the couch shakily but she headed towards the window. Sparrow came through the window as it opened for him. Her brow raised at him. "You're going to want see this." His tone was dark, it promised terrible things. She snatched the file from his hand before heading back over to the couch where Jiraiya was giving her a concerned glance.

"Thank you Sparrow, you're dismissed." Sparrow bowed his head and went back through the window. He knew she wouldn't be happy with it.

Mitsuko flipped through the file with a horrified expression. Kushina walked over to let them know lunch was ready and stopped half way through her sentence when she saw the perplexed look on her imouto's face. "Mitsuko-chan?" The anbu captain looked up then, her eyes landed on the concerned expression of Kushina.

"I'm sorry Shina-nee I can't say." She closed her eyes as she spoke trying to rid her head of the blossoming mental Image for what she had just read. Mitsuko closed the file with every intention to burn it so this information never saw the light of day.

Kushina looked almost sad. But not for the reason Mitsuko was thinking. She was sad for the seventeen year old who had been in this life for so long, for the barely adult who had to keep so many secrets. "Well go put it away then and we'll eat luch. Besides I have something I want to talk to you about anyway." Mitsuko nodded her head at the order before standing again to take the folder to her room.

Minato was sitting at her kitchen table when she limped back into the room. She spared on glance at her brother holding his son and sank down in the chair across from him. "Did Sparrow bring you that folder?" He wondered out loud his brotherly intuition sparked from her submissive behavior. Mitsuko nodded her head as Kushina placed a bowl of rice in front of her.

"Enough talk of anbu business at the dinner table, we have something we want to talk to you about." Kushina hands were on her hips, she had a vaguely annoyed look to her. Mitsuko decided then was a good moment to stick a spoonful of rice in her mouth. Jiraiya bit back a snicker from his spot at the end of the short table.

"I see you still use the same diversion tactic Mitsuko-chan." Mitsuko shot a glare at the sannin and then swallowed her rice.

"What do you want to talk about Shina-nee?" The teen asked the Uzumaki woman as she sat down next to her husband.

Kushina folded her hands in her lap as she thought about how she wanted ask her question. Minato had let her choose this part, and even though their son was already tied to this woman by blood Kushina felt like the blonde teen deserved more than that. Because if anything ever happened to her or Minato, she'd want Mitsuko to be one of the people responsible for making sure Naruto had a good life. "I don't know if Minato told you but we asked Jiraiya-sensei to be Naru-chan's godfather." Mitsuko set her chop sticks down by the bowl, she turned to look at the sannin and offered him a smile.

"I didn't know, but congratulations Jiraiya-sama." Jiraiya gave her a sheepish grin and rubbed the back of his head. He still wasn't sure why she was being so formal with him. Kushina waited for Mitsuko to refocus the attention back to her. Once she was certain she had the teen's full attention she started on her next spew.

"Anyway, Mitsuko-chan your brother and I would like you to Naruto godmother. I want him to stay with you if anything happens to us, because I know that you'll love him like we would." Mitsuko was not crying, there was just some dust in her eye. The girl smiled through the tears her blue eyes shown for the first time in a month with a new life to them.

"Of course, I'd be honored to be Naru-chan's godmother. But you two better not go off and do anything stupid that makes me have to be the one who raises him." Her tone was light and teasing, but she meant every single word. Kushina smiled back, now that that was settled she took a bite of her lunch.

…..

Mouse was back in her office, she had Sparrow and Raccoon with her. "What are we going to do about that boy?" Sparrow questioned finally after a long moment of silence. His captain shot him a pointed look through her mask. He couldn't see it but he certainly felt the look. Raccoon snickered at him.

"Get Dog and tell him to bring Tenzo with him. We'll let the boy decides what he wants to do." Mouse stated firmly. Sparrow nodded his head before leaving the small office. Raccoon shot her a look, Mouse sighed before taking a seat and removing her mask. She half banged her head on the desk.

"Mouse?" Raccoon asked after the woman looked up, a disgruntle expression upon her face.

"Sorry Raccoon, I'm just tired." The medic gave off a concerned vibe to her captain.

Mouse just shook her head, she really didn't want to put up with this shit. However since it was her squad that had been investigating the now deceased elder she got stuck with everything that might have been related to it. Plus they were now down two squad mates. First with the late Hawk and now with Stag being placed on the Hokage's guard platoon. So it was a little overwhelming at times.

"Besides us Mouse who knows about him?" Raccoon questioned knowing she wasn't going to get anything more from the woman on her sleeping habits. She should know better, Mouse after all did not have many good habits.

"Sparrow, Dog, Stag, the Sandaime, and the Yondaime. Far as I know anyway and who is still alive." Whatever Mouse was going to say next was stalled by the reappearance of Sparrow accompanied by Dog and the former ROOT operative. Mouse stood then threw the file at the Mokuton user, her mask back in place.

The boy raised his brow at her. She shrugged and made motion for him to read it. Dog made a discreet hand sign at her that she simple just ignored. This matter needed to be resolved and it needed to be resolved soon. "I see." Tenzo spoke softly, his eyes downcast.

"I can give you two option. You can either join mine or Dog's squad's or we can seal you wood release and you can live a civilian life. You do understand, right?" Because someone with ties to a monster like Oorochimaru had to be watched. Tenzo seemed to ponder his options for only a second.

"You'd allow me to join your squad?" Mouse nodded her masked face.

"Hawk-tachio had allowed Sparrow. Tenzo you have a chance to use the Mokuton gene for good, your life will always be in the shadows but your free to be whom you are." Well it was obvious which one Mouse favored. She honestly just didn't want to see a skill like that go to waste. He took her words into account before nodding his head.

"Hai Tachio." Mouse smirked at Sparrow under her mask. He pinged his chakra at her in annoyance.

"Great! Since you've chosen anbu Dog will pick a mask for you, and I'll make housing preparation for you. For now you'll be with Dog's squad. He'll help you figure out you place." Dog nodded his head at the obvious order.

With Hawk gone Mouse was one of most senior members of anbu, she also the captain with the second most seniority right under Lizard. She sank back down in her chair as Raccoon signed for her to 'take it easy'. "Alright now unless you're helping me with this mess get out." Well that was an obvious dismissal for Dog and his new squad mate. Raccoon took that as her cue to go get them lunch. Sparrow accepted a new file to sort through before taking a seat on the floor leaned against the desk.

She almost wanted to bang her head on the desk again, she didn't think they'd ever get through this. Sparrow reached backwards and gave her leg a sympathetic pat then went back to his file. Most days Mouse didn't know what she'd do without his silent sarcastic encouragement.

….

Kakashi didn't always know what to think of his teacher's sister. The first time he met her he had assumed she got special treatment for being the Yellow Flash's little sister. Then he learned she was probably smarter than him and was already a chunin and had been one for two years. Later he learned that her whole genin team had been killed on a mission during the end of the second war. She became a jonin before him too. Namikaze Mitsuko was a mystery to him on most days.

He knew the anbu captain Mouse better than he knew the woman behind the mask. Mouse respected him as a fellow captain despite his young age. Because she knew what that was like, she'd been in anbu since her chunin days and was well acquainted with the feeling of being looked down at for age. However Mouse wouldn't tolerate any insubordination and her squad respected her for it.

So he was rather surprised with the choices she presented Tenzo with. Surprised that neither involved killing the boy. He was content with looking after the mokuton user now because he had a feeling that Mouse would probably want him back eventually. Until that time Kakashi would make sure Tenzo was ready for it, the boy would become a great asset under their watchful eyes.

Now the only thing he had to do was pick a mask for him. How hard could that be? The answer harder than he anticipated.

…..

Mitsuko threw herself onto her bed after she finally made it home. She heat the leftovers from the lunch Kushina made a few days prior up later. Because the only thing she wanted to do was lay in her bed and pretend that nothing mattered.

A picture caught her attention. It was a picture she tried to avoid looking at. Her genin days, though short lived were not something she liked to remember often. Slowly she stood, walking over to the framed memory. Mitsuko pulled the frame down she stared at the faces of the long dead.

Her finger traced over the image. Hawk tachio's grumpy unmasked face stood out among the four. Next were cheerful green eyes smiling wilding, the boys arm was slung around a much younger girl's shoulder; her shoulder. She could feel the tears pooling in her eyes. Team Two could have been something special. Eyes drifted over to the other male genin, Mitsuko let out an ugly sob.

She carried the picture with her over to her bed, it had been over ten years since she thought of her genin team. Ten years she had avoided looking at that framed picture. Kushina must have hung it for her when they moved her in the apartment.

The first boy with the bright green eyes and wide grin had been Hikaoru's older brother. He had just turned twelve when he died it took him two minutes. Her other teammate, with his brown eyes and serious expression took three days. They had gotten separated from Hawk- no he wasn't Hawk-tachio yet not to her at least. His name wasn't really important now but she couldn't think of his as Hawk back then because in those days he was just sensei.

Mitsuko set the picture down in her lap she cast her gaze to the ceiling, did she truly want to think on these things now? Honestly she couldn't tell you. Your genin team was an important piece of who you became as a shinobi. Her genin team was dead because she hadn't been able to save them back then, which caused her to be fiercely protective of her fellows and squad mates. She would never let what happened to them happen again to the people she loved.

She cast aside the picture, placing in her bedside table's drawer. Mitsuko would revisit this memory when she was in a better place emotionally to deal with it. Until that time she didn't need to see it. So she got up from her bed and headed towards the kitchen she should probably eat something.

….

Mitsuko should have never introduce Kaoru to Rin. Because at this very moment she was regretting it. Kushina had decided they needed a girl's day out plus Naru-chan and Mitsuko had made the mistake of asking if she could invite the only other females she was close too. Her sister had readily agreed, more the merrier. Now she was the subject of the two medic conversation.

"I honestly don't know how she's still standing." Rin finally said, Kaoru nodded her head in agreement. Kushina snickered at the blonde girl from her spot on the couch. They had ended up going shopping and then retiring back at the Namikaze house so Kushina could put her son down for a nap.

"Luck mostly." Kaoru told teams seven's medic a small smirk directed towards her anbu captian.

"I hate you both." Mitsuko spat in a grumpy tone over her shoulders, she was searching for Kushina's box of ninja grade nail polish. The red headed woman offered her no help either, something about post pregnancy brain and a short attention span. Which translated to her the box had been misplaced a while ago.

"I think your brother put it away last." Kushina told the pouting teen as she slunk into the couch next to her. Mitsuko's arms crossed over her chest as she gave both medic's a defiant look.

"Then their defiantly no hope to finding it." That gained interested looks from the other girls.

"What do you mean by that Mitsuko-chan?" Rin questioned innocently.

"Your sensei has the great power of misplacing almost everything he touches, and if you ask him where it ended up nii-san won't remember. When we all lived together before Naru-chan was born, Shina-nee made a list of where certain things went. So instances like now wouldn't happen. By the way Shina-nee why did he have it anyway?" Mitsuko turned the question back on Kushina who half shrugged before responding.

"He helped me touch up my toes during the last month of pregnancy." Well that explained why he had put it up. Mitsuko threw her head back into the couch.

"I'll get you some new polish Shina-nee. We're never going to find it." Mitsuko swore dramatically. No one noticed Minato as he came through the front door.

"Find what?" She looked up at her over the back of the couch.

"The box of nail polish nii-san." Minato had a blank look on his face, Kaoru tried not to snicker at her Hokage.

"The Shinobi Grade Nail Polish?" He asked, Mitsuko nodded her at him. Minato turned to head towards the small library/office. When he returned there was a box in his hand, Mitsuko shot up from the couch her eyes narrowed at him.

"Where was that? I've look everywhere for it!" She demanded quietly cautious of the sleeping baby. Minato raised his brow at her.

"Where it always is Mitsuko-chan, are you sure you looked everywhere." Kushina laughed, she didn't have to restrain herself like the two other konoichi's this was her husband and his sister after all. Mitsuko glared at her laughter. Minato patted the top of her head affectionately before heading back to his office.

"Did you forget something?" Kushina wondered out loud when he reemerged from the office and walked over to where she was sitting.

"Yeah, it's something for Jiraiya-sensei to take to his Ame students." Minato held up what appeared to be a storage scroll. That piquet Mitsuko's interest.

"Is Jiraiya-sama going back to Ame?" Minato nodded his head at her question before frowning.

"You've never called him that, why now?" Her brother asked suddenly. A thoughtful look on her face, Kaoru groaned from her spot. The Namikaze siblings turned to look at her. Mitsuko raised her brow at the girl.

"Our previous squad leader told her she was being disrespectful so he made a bet with her." Kaoru frowned at the memory. Because it hadn't been a conversation between Hawk and Mouse. No it had been a conversation between a Jonin-sensei and his former genin student. It had been hard to watch.

"How long until she finishes the bet?" Minato asked while tucking the scroll under his arm. Kaoru took a moment to calculate, she then gave her anbu captain a toothy grin.

"She's past it by like three months." It was Mitsuko's turn to groan. Minato laughed, his sister had a terrible sense of time it seemed lately. He said his goodbyes after that and used the hiraishin seal left in the Hokage tower because those things were literally littered everywhere, and he was gone.

The two medic let out the laughs they had been holding. Mitsuko did not however miss the sad look the lingered in Kaoru's eyes.

…..

Mitsuko yawned as she walked into the Hokage's office several days later. Mouse had finally made a breakthrough with the files late last night and Mitsuko had suffered the consequences. Her brother was giving her a concerned look she waved it off as she slumped down into the couch. She briefly wondered where this had come from because she didn't remember the Sandaime having it.

"So I might need you to take a message to Jiraiya in Ame." Mitsuko raised her brow, there was no might.

"Might?" Minato was giving her a semi apologetic look, she wasn't buying it.

"He needs something that I don't want sent via toads." But why was he picking her, she hated Ame's weather. Or at least she assumed she did because she had been told it was similar to Kiri's and she hated Kiri's weather. It was way to freaking wet. So she asked.

"But why me?" She did not whine, that was Mitsuko's story and she was sticking with it. Minato raised his brow at her. He didn't feel like the Hokage at that just the annoyed older brother who wasn't being listened too.

"Because it's more or less about you Mitsuko." Her expression flattened out at that. What was he talking about?

"About me?" Minato rubbed the bridge of his nose exasperated. He held out a file to her then since trying to be secretive wasn't going to work with her today.

Mitsuko stood walking over to his desk and taking the offered file. She flipped through it quickly, glancing at every third line. Her mouth gaped open, they knew something about her trick? "So will you go?" Minato questioned.

"Yeah, sure why not." Well that was the end of that. Minato let out a sigh.

"Pack for a month, Jiraiya's female student said they'd consider it a mission if it made it any easier." Mitsuko shook her head and offered her brother a wide grin.

"Not my line of work nii-san. But I'll go anyway, just let me make arrangement for Raccoon and Sparrow." Her brother dismissed after that comment. Mitsuko decided to go home and pack. This would be louds of fun. She though ever so sarcastically.

….

Ame was just as she expected it to be. Raining, and wet. Two of her least favorite things. At least now she was finally inside what vaguely reminded her of something she'd seen before. And after the week long journey she was glad to be somewhere dry. It had of course rained the whole time.

Jiraiya's female Ame student was the one to great her upon arrival. Something about seals and someone named Nagato. "But I would imagen you are used to it." Mitsuko nodded her head in response. Minato and Kushina did odd things when it came to fuinjustu and often got caught up in it so she didn't put it past her brother's teacher to be the same way.

"You have no idea, thank you for sending message to my brother. We've been trying to figure this thing out for years." Konan nodded her head in understanding.

"Jiraiya-sensei mentioned that. Hopefully Yahiko will be able to help you." She wondered then how they even had this kind of information. Because if Jiraiya hadn't found anything when talking to the toad's how could these three orphans know something about her. Mitsuko was not being biased, just very realistic. Besides his former students seemed nice so far.

Konan lead them to a small communal area within the tower. Jiraiya was sitting on a couch with a fuinjusta array laid out before him on what appeared to be a glass coffee table. She wasn't sure which boy was which but the Uzumaki red hair gave her a bit of a fright. Mitsuko remembered Kushina telling her once that she was most likely the last Uzumaki. "Is he?" Escaped her lips before she could stop herself, Jiraiya laughed at her.

"Most likely. Nagato, Yahiko this is my student Minato's little sister Mitsuko." Mitsuko gave a small bow of her head in return to being introduced. The boy with the orange hair stood from his spot to shake her hand.

"We are glad you could come Namikaze-san." He was obvious the leader of the little group, and in a way he reminded her of Minato.

"Please you can call me 'Mitsuko' that goes for the both of you as well." Jiraiya was smirking, well wasn't she just charming. If Minato could ever convince her to retire from Anbu he's have a great diplomat. But Jiraiya knew the likelihood for that was slim to none. He sighed.

"Alright kids, let's get down to business." He clapped his hands together. Mitsuko eyed him wearily. It seemed someone was just as egger as she was to learn what this was.

Nagato offered to go make tea, seeing as this would take a while. The offer was also greatly appreciated seeing as the blonde was still somewhat shivering from the rain. Mitsuko got comfortable sitting on the floor leaned against the bottom of the couch. Konan sat on the opposing couch her legs crossed, she looked almost amused by the blonde teen.

"Hai sensei." Yahiko, the orange haired one spoke. He took his previous seat back and pulled a scroll out of seemingly nowhere. Mitsuko wondered briefly where it had come for before she was distracted by Nagato handing her a cup of tea.

"Thank you." She spoke before sipping the tea slowly. Once Nagato had handed tea to everyone and taken a seat Yahiko began his explanation for her gift and how they had come across it.

Mitsuko stared wide eyes at him several minutes after he finished his explanation. That was probably the craziest thing she'd ever heard but what was even crazier is that it made perfect sense. "So let me get this straight. Because the Sage of Six Paths fell in love with a mortal he gifted her with the ability to sift reality and bend time so she could be with him?" Yahiko nodded his head and motioned for her to continue because she still looked very confused.

"But the woman couldn't love him and it became a curse because she still aged while he was mostly immortal, everything I'm saying is correct right?" He nodded again, she looked up to Jiraiya for help but he was rubbing his chin. Mitsuko covered her face with her hands and let out a sigh.

"Eventually the woman died of old age, she gave her gift to a child who had been kind to her. And that ability hasn't been seen again since then. Until now." Her head hurt, that was a lot to take in. It sounded even crazier once she said it. Jiraiya sat forward and patted her on her head then looked at Yahiko.

"Does anyone know of this?" His tone serious. Yahiko shook his head, he wondered what was going on in his sensei's head.

"Just the three of us, the person who told us is long gone." Because Nagato had killed her after she tried killing the three of them.

"Good. Can we keep it that way? For Mitsuko-chan's sake. It wouldn't go well for her night job if people believe the Yondaime's kid sister had some other worldly power. "Mitsuko felt like she couldn't breathe this was too much. She stood suddenly and left the room as fast as she could. Emotions had gotten the best of her, and she ended up lost in an unfamiliar place with a lot on her mind.

Jiraiya found her thirty minutes later sitting against a wall with her knees pulled up to her chest. He sat down next to her. Mitsuko looked at him with a red rimmed eyes, she at some point had been crying. She leaned her head on his shoulder. Neither spoke for the longest time until Jiraiya couldn't stand to see the teen upset any longer.

"No one has to know the truth Mitsuko-chan, besides what Yahiko told us could just be legend." She snorted, her eyes peered up at him.

"Doubtful. The rinnegan alone says it's possible." Mitsuko pointed out dryly. Jiraiya couldn't help but to chuckle at her tone.

"Either way Mitsuko-chan you shouldn't worry over things you can't control." He told her solemnly, and she wondered how many times he did the thing he just told her not to do. Jiriaya was the time of person to let most things go, but every now and again he held deep on things that he knew were out of his grasp.

Mitsuko adjusted her head again, this time to lean in back head against the wall looking up at the ceiling. How had it come down to this? She felt like she was slowly losing the pieces that made her Mitsuko. But what bothered her most by the whole thing is that she couldn't escape the feeling of doubt growing in her heart. Was what she's doing enough? Her memories made her think it wasn't. That even with how hard she was trying, she'd still lose.

Madara being out there still unnerved her, he was the biggest problem now. And if she couldn't shake her doubt how would she protect her godson. Mitsuko shook her head, she promised her team that she would do better be better. It was about time she lived up to that promise. Determinedly she stood. Jiraiya giving her a shocked look.

"Well if I have the ability to bend reality I better learn how to use it properly. First things first I got to learn as much about that woman as possible" He smiled, that ah girl.

Mitsuko made a new promise then. She promised herself she'd protect them, all her precious people. No matter what cost. With her every breath she'd do her best to ensure the world her godson lived in was a good one.

XOXOX

Full story for Mitsuko's ability.. eh maybe later.. This chapter was super hard to write because I needed it to be light at the beginning so it could get emotional towards the end. Raccoon/Kaoru's look will be elaborated on probably next chapter.

And we've learned several things about Mitsuko in the chapter. Poor girl she has a lot going on.

So as always please let me know what you think I love hearing from you! To the reviews I've gotten so far I am so thankful that you took your time to let me know what you think! And to answering the pairing question.. I'll think about it, heh.

Thank you so much for taking your time to read this!

Sincerely, La'Rae

Music Inspiration

Trisha's Lullaby from Fullmetal Alchemist : Brotherhood(piano cover) –TedescoCreations

Let it Go- James Bay

Not About Angels - Birdy