Masked Koi: Chapter 15. "Secret"

D-Rank missions had taken a toll on Team 7 over the past few months.

"I believe that weeding and carrying groceries and catching stray animals over and over, week after week, has gotten old. Hokage-sama, I would like to request a C-Rank mission," Naruto said with a distant tone, but his words were as polite as one could get.

"Sure," Minato said without even looking at Kakashi to see if Team 7 was ready. Kakashi was a bit flummoxed but he kept his shock well hidden. Ino and Haru openly gaped at Naruto, as if he were flaunting some invisible power. No one noticed the strange look on Minato's face. Naruto stared straight ahead, his skin crawling. He needed to get away from the blonde man.

"The client will explain the mission," Minato said, trying to get his son to smile at him. Minato felt like he was fighting a losing battle. "Kazan-san, you may enter."

"Thank you, Hokage-sama," Kakashi said. Naruto remained silent and oblivious to his father's attempts to get him to smile. Kakashi had thanked his father for him so there was no need to say anything. Naruto slipped his hands in his pockets and felt the scroll he planned to study and practice from after missions.

Team 7 turned to see a young woman about Kakashi's age enter. She wore light, summery colored clothes and brilliant green eyes hid behind a pair of sunglasses, which her slick jet-black hair hung daintily over. One thing was sure: the woman had never seen death.

She smiled brightly at them. "Oh, well aren't you cute," the woman patted Naruto's head. He reddened a bit and dodged her next attempt to squeeze his cheeks. She looked up at the Hokage. "They are to escort me until I reach my hometown."

"Good luck, son," Minato tried to smile a bit more. Tried to reach his son. Naruto's eyes glazed over with a sheen of indifference. He bowed and followed his team out. Minato didn't know if he was imagining it or not, but the door slammed a little louder than it usually did.

As the Konoha group was walking away from Konoha, the woman decided to strike up a conversation. She looked like the talkative type if her bright and loud clothing was any indication.

"I'm Ninomiya Kazan," she smiled.

"I am Elite Jounin Hatake Kakashi. This is Yamanaka Ino, Namikaze Naruto, and Haru," Kakashi said, gesturing to his Genin at each of their names.

"Namikaze, huh? That's the Hokage's name isn't it? You're his son, aren't you?" Kazan smiled even brighter.

Naruto didn't think it was possible. But she did. It was as if she'd taken the sun and polished her teeth with it. He squinted to try to lessen the brightness and strange joy in her voice.

"Yeah," Naruto said slowly. His mouth had tried to reject forming that word, but if the client were happy then the mission would be completed more smoothly. She seems so shocked and somehow so excited that I'm his son. It's like all those girls in the Academy who liked me, among other reasons, for my heritage to Minato. But, Kazan seems different. Like the simple fact that the Hokage has a son and she met him is exciting. What am I, a celebrity? I'm just a Genin…

"Kazan-san, your hometown is where again?" Haru asked.

"The Land of Rivers. It's west of Konoha, between the Land of Fire and Land of Wind," she said brightly. "It's really pretty with tributaries and a huge river running through the village. We've got a bridge connecting it, though."

"Do you have ninja there?" Ino asked.

"Not really. We're a nation, but we don't have a village. Our leader decided he didn't want our nation to be prosecuted for a silly reason like power so he didn't establish a formal ninja institution. The only downside is the fact our entire land was burned to the ground several times during the last War," Kazan said. "Do you want to live where there are no ninja? Or is that just too bizarre for you?"

"I'd rather live with ninja. So I'm protected," Ino said sheepishly. Haru shrugged, and Naruto didn't respond. Kazan pouted. "Naruto-kun, you're the cutest one here and you don't even respond to my question. That's mean."

"What Ino said," Naruto mumbled.

After a day and a half, the Konoha group arrived. The crowds of bustling people suddenly stopped and moved to either side of the road. There was an air of awe, as if Kazan were royalty. Small children waved at her and she waved back, making them hide behind their mother's yukata or try to run up to her.

Suddenly, the child stopped and slid back into the crowd. Naruto looked at the child and saw a strange tint to her cheeks. They were almost purple. Like a powdery dusting of makeup or if they'd eaten purple yam and smeared it on their faces and didn't wipe it off cleanly.

The royalty part proved to be true. Kazan arrived at the entrance of a huge castle. Guards stood at attention and the gates opened to reveal a paradise of flowers, trees, and wild animals that roamed around freely. Exotic birds were kept as well, with a rope tethering them to a post, but allowing them to fly far enough.

The Genin were swept up in the sights. They'd never been out of the village before. Kakashi looked around with mild appreciation. He'd never been into plants or animals except his ninken summons and that strange plant in the windowsill that Koi had given him for his seventh birthday. He didn't know how it stayed alive, but it did. He never watered it; he used water for coffee. It seemed to just thrive after nineteen years without his attention.

In the castle, the ninja were shown their rooms. Each was given their own room and Kazan changed into a kimono.

"Dinner is in two hours. I hope you all like bamboo shoots," Kazan smiled. "Please, enjoy my castle."

"Kazan-san, are you…royalty or something?" Haru asked. Her voice was hopeful and her eyes cautious.

"Yes. I'm the daimyo's niece," Kazan kept smiling. Naruto was beginning to get sick of it. The woman was annoying, but she wasn't like Mikiko, thankfully. Kazan looked at the two girls. "Would you two like to see my kimono?"

"Yes!" Ino cried out. Haru nodded.

Next to Kakashi, Naruto leaned against the wall, thankful the woman was gone. "Ne, Kakashi-sensei. That girl that tried to run up to Kazan had this weird shade on her face. It was purple, like makeup, but it looked like it was in her veins."

"Oh? That's interesting," Kakashi said, reading his book.

Naruto glared at him. He's not listening. The boy got up and explored the huge castle. There were servants and maids that scurried this way and that way and gave him strange looks. It wasn't like Konoha, where Naruto got the feeling they didn't like him, but it was out of disbelief. Like his very existence was shocking.

"Now where did that cute boy go? His red hair was so nice," Kazan said. "Maybe he doesn't like menma."

"Kakashi-sensei, where did Naruto go?"

The man in question shrugged. "Naruto said something about strange people with strange purple faces and then left. Maybe he's decided his career as a detective was a better option as a shinobi. Don't worry; Naruto can handle himself. He'll come back eventually."

Haru wasn't convinced. She trusted his strength, yes, but she wasn't entirely sold on Kakashi's reason for Naruto being out.

Frog looked at Fox. Neither of them could tell face expressions behind ANBU masks, but posture mostly gave it away if one knew how to look for it. Fox was the leader of the squad and Frog was in charge of the strange Jounin that the Kazekage had decided to force on this A-Rank mission. And strange Jounin was not here.

Not that they cared, though. She wasn't from Suna anyway. She was an outsider that had smooth-talked her way to citizenship, an apartment, and a Jounin rank all in one day. She was a leech and everyone knew it.

"Fox-taichou, what should I do with him?" Frog asked.

Fox bristled. "What do you think you should do? Have a tea party with him?"

"N-no, sir. I-I was just confirming," Frog said.

"I'm going back. You're to do as you're instructed and wait here for leech to come back. For as long as she takes," Fox said and vanished.

Frog moaned in despair. "They never told me what to do!" He looked at the kid, who was just as bristling and angry as Fox. "What am I supposed to do with you?" It wasn't really a question.

Leech came back in the blink of an eye. Frog didn't notice her. She crept up behind him with a grin and wrapped her fingers around his neck tightly. He screamed loud enough for Kumo, and Fox, to hear and flailed about.

"I heard what Fox said," she said quietly. "I don't give a damn what that tight-ass thinks of me. But, I do care about what you think. You've got no experience with interrogations, do you? Don't tell me you feel bad that this is a kid. This kid is no different from other kids. Kids are easy to manipulate," she let go of his neck. "And easy to control."

Naruto glared fiercely at the two. The woman, leech—he didn't know what else to call her—just smiled at him. It wasn't the airhead smile that Kazan had; it was the kind of smile that made your skin crawl.

"Here. You look hungry," she said, unwrapping a pastry. She took off the cloth that was kept over his mouth and before he could scream any obscenities at them, she shoved it in his mouth.

Naruto spat it out, hitting his target at point-blank range. The pastry that had bite marks and was wet with saliva on one end had hit her square in the face. She was shocked for a moment, before looking at Frog. "He's your responsibility."

"Nori-san, please instruct me on interrogations," Frog bowed deeply.

"Nah, it's too much fun to see you squirm," she cackled. Frog felt as if his whole world had shattered.

"You bitch! If you don't tell me right now, I'll kill you and that boy!" Frog yelled. It was an empty threat, of course, but he felt cornered and needed help. The Jounin slowly turned around, a mocking smile on her face. Frog suddenly felt like an ant beneath a foot about to stomp down. He didn't dare breathe.

"Have you noticed how his right hand keeps flexing? He's very used to kunai. Do you see how the distance between his hand and his holster keeps getting smaller? Every time he moves, he inches closer and closer. Soon he'll break out of his bonds and because you're nothing but a frightened coward, he'll beat you to the ground. I don't know how you managed to get accepted into ANBU and not thrown out on your first day, but I can assure you that you're going to be thrown out as soon as I tell Kazekage-sama of your weakness and cowardice. He might just strip you of any shinobi title, seeing that a Genin beat you. The Hokage's Genin," she said.

"H-Hokage? That's his son?" Frog asked.

"Yep. Every nation knows his face. Merchants are excellent reconnaissance people," Nori said. "And, because on paper we're Konoha's ally, we get to know basic details about him, if we decide to inquire. I sent in an inquiry last month and it came yesterday. Really, I'm surprised the Hokage even released this to a no-name Jounin like me."

"W-why did you inquire?" Frog blurted. A few nervous beads of sweat ran down his neck and he didn't move to wipe them away. Nori's eyes, at times, reminded him of a cat's, watching him and his every move and analyzing it before pouncing and sinking her fangs into him, like when she'd tried to fake-strangle him. His heartbeat pounded in his ears.

"I have a Genin team," she replied with a duh tone of voice. Frog didn't seem to understand. "Three annoying twelve-year-olds. One of them is Kazekage-sama's daughter. I want to prepare my team for the Chuunin Exams in about four months or so. And, I'm very glad I did. Young Namikaze Naruto is Konoha's next taijutsu master. He might even be more skilled than Maito Gai or Hatake Koi, in time. Frog, you better be careful around him. Unless you want your head to pop off," Nori smiled.

"How many inquires have you submitted?" Frog asked, out of curiosity all of a sudden.

"It's only one inquiry per Jounin. The Chuunin Exams are supposed to be unpredictable and interesting. Plus, my team is absolutely unbearable to be around. They keep whining and fighting amongst each other. I lied to them, of course, about Naruto's skill level. I did prepare them by having them brush up on their kunai and shuriken skills, but that is it. I simply said that he is good at hiding and terrible at taijutsu," Nori replied.

"Sadist…" Frog said.

"Well, it goes like this: you make my life miserable and I ship you off where you could lose your life and be absolutely terrified for five days straight. My Chuunin Exam…it was…" Nori frowned. "I have no idea." I don't remember…I can't remember my Genin graduation, my Chuunin promotion, or anything past four years ago. Why haven't I noticed this earlier? I knew I had Jounin skills, but I didn't think about what I didn't know. The truth is, I don't know what I don't know, no one does. I was so focused on rent and then burdened with Gaara that I never thought about it.

"What does that mean?" Frog asked. "You forgot?"

Nori ignored him. She pursed her lips and all emotion drained from her face. She bent down slightly, eye level with Naruto. Her hand shot out from her side and she gripped his hair, slamming his head against the tree. He gritted his teeth to prevent himself from yelping and glared into her eyes.

"Naruto, according to your records, you are very skilled at taijutsu to the point it was compared to your Konoha legends by your higher shinobi. I am Suna's top taijutsu shinobi. Would you like to fight me? If you land one hit on me, you can go back to your team along with a complimentary box of Black Thunder. If you don't land a hit on me within ten minutes…" Nori smiled. "Well, we'll find out, won't we?" She cut the ropes that held him tied down to the tree and released her hold of his red hair. Naruto took a step forward before turning and running as fast as he could, away from her. She made no move to stop him, watching him get further and further.

"Nori-san!" Frog cried out.

She crossed her arms smugly. Three…two..one… Naruto slammed into…nothing. He got up and beat his fists on the air. He growled and allowed flames to come to his fingertips.

"Oh, Naruto-kun, you shouldn't do that. I might tell my team that you're a fire specialist. Be careful what you show to your enemies. I have four months but within moments, I could think of counters, as any enemy could. Do you want to get killed in the future because of silly mistakes and your stupidity, or get your team killed? And, a barrier surrounds us. My jutsu," Nori said.

Naruto turned around. "Why are you doing this? Why do you want to fight me?"

"Cause I felt like it and I can," Nori quipped, biting into a Black Thunder. With half of it sticking out of her mouth, she dashed towards the Genin.

"Kakashi-sensei…" Haru said weakly. "I can't…move."

Kakashi looked over at his student. Team 7 had decided to all share a room earlier. She lay under her blanket, looking at him with fear in her eyes. "Sensei, what's wrong with me?" The Jounin was alarmed by the sluggishness of his movements and looked at his hand. It looked fuzzy.

"Haru, I believe we've been poisoned," Kakashi said. "Where's Ino?"

"With Kazan. Has Naruto come back yet?" Haru asked.

"I'm going to look for him. Don't move from here. For now, eat this," Kakashi gave her a chakra pill. "It's a chakra pill that will expel your chakra from all your chakra points. It'll leave you with only enough chakra to perform a henge or create a clone, but it might help slow down the effects of the poison. Just sleep for now. I'll be back soon."

Kakashi stood and the whole world seemed to sway and develop in his eyes a lot slower than it used to. His headache was getting unbearable and his chakra was feeling more and more distant. He managed to get down the stairs and grip the handle of the door. Sweat poured down his neck and he panted hard as he pushed the door open and tumbled down the stairs that led to the garden. He pulled himself up with the aid of a bush and staggered towards the gates.

His breathing became more and more ragged and he had only two more pills, in case Naruto was affected as well. I knew I should've asked Shikaku for more…

His eyelids became more and more heavy and he felt the cool night air as if it were ice on molten metal. He shook violently from the chills and his vision swam. He could only focus on each step forward, one after the other. Kakashi felt his body burn up inside and he let out a strangled cry.

When he reached the gates, there were no guards. He pushed past it and found himself at the intersection of two roads that seemed to go on forever. He took a chance on not going on either and simply going forward.

He could barely stand as he stumbled past trees that were simply dark tall things that stood in his way. He kept going until he finally sensed chakra. He looked past the tree line and there was an open area where two figures were fighting. Kakashi's eye tracked the shorter one and a glint of red hair from the moon confirmed it. It was Naruto.

He eventually got closer and closer until he saw that there was a barrier preventing him from moving forward towards his student.

"Naruto!" Kakashi yelled.

The boy's focus was broken and he was kicked in the chest and sent flying in the air. The other figure appeared above him and a leg knocked down into his stomach and sent him down into the ground. The ground shook and a plume of dust rose up. The figure kept a weak guard up, with an arm raised.

Naruto rose from the cracked ground and threw himself towards Nori. Nori simply sidestepped his punches and kicks and jumped up into the air as he tried to roundhouse kick her. His leg was caught and he was thrown up into the air. The figure vanished and reappeared in the air beneath Naruto. Naruto's eyes widened as Nori gripped his body and sent his him headfirst spinning towards the ground. Naruto cringed, knowing that it would hurt. He had only seconds before he'd make impact.

Suddenly, Nori let go and caught him in a swift motion. Her arms were slender but strong. She let the boy down onto the ground and frowned at him. "Ten minutes are up and you didn't land a hit on me. Now, tell me what you've seen at Kazan's castle."

"Why should I?" Naruto glared out of both anger and pain.

"Well, it's not like I had just given you several pointers and tips and new taijutsu moves to practice and your sensei isn't over there looking pitiful or anything," she shrugged. "He's been poisoned. I could kill him in an instant."

"How do you know he's been poisoned?" Naruto demanded.

"It's my mission. Don't tell me a smart and arrogant boy like you didn't notice the strangeness around this place. The faces, the reverence, the water," Nori said sarcastically.
"I haven't eaten or drank anything since coming here," Naruto said. "The purple tinted faces? I thought it was strange so I came out here to see if I could find out why."

"Smart boy," Nori patted his head lightly. "Now, where does Kazan sleep? Which floor? Which room?"

Naruto thought about it. "Why?"

"Tell me and I'll give you one," Nori offered a Black Thunder. "You can't have a box because I bought all of them because they don't sell it in Suna since chocolate melts. Now, tell me. I won't hurt Kazan." Nori bit her tongue. Her mouth felt bitter, as if she'd lied.

"The first floor, the corridor on your left at the end of the hall with some kind of gold decoration on it," Naruto said. "I…can't eat that."

"What?!" Nori cried out. "Blasphemy! You dare defy the Black Thunder God?! You dare refuse this heavenly confectionery?"

"Y-yeah," Naruto looked away. Nishiki-sensei liked those too…this weird lady is trying to give me it and I can't eat it. I don't want to be reminded of Nishiki-sensei's smile or I might just lose it.

"You will like this," Nori said firmly. She unwrapped it and shoved it into Naruto's mouth. Naruto choked a little and threw it into the trees. Nori gaped at him, turning paper white. She dropped to her knees and began to cry dramatically. "Kuroi raishin-sama!" (Black Thunder Kami-sama!). "You've killed him! Naruto, you've killed him!"

"H-hey, it's just a candy bar. You bought all of them, didn't you?" Naruto held up his hands in a placating way. He didn't know how to console a dramatic Jounin who could've killed him if she wasn't keeping her speed to high Chuunin low Jounin level to match his low Chuunin level. He scratched his head, not sure of what to do.

Nori suddenly stood and gave him a proud smile. "You fought well. Now, your sensei is poisoned, right? Where is he?"

"Over there," Naruto pointed. "Outside the barrier."

Nori made about fifty hand seals and then slammed her palms on the ground. There was a change in the ambiance of the air and Naruto sighed in relief. Nori turned her head towards Frog. "Frog, go to Fox. That is what you're instructed to do. Information relay, idiot."

"Yes, Nori-san!" Frog said and vanished.

Nori body flickered to Kakashi, whose breathing was shallow. She made a face. "You're stupid. You must've been hungry and thirsty. Those bamboo shots that grow everywhere here are watered with poisoned water and it's the same poisoned water that you drank. You should've listened to your student, Kakashi. However," Nori paused in her berating of the Copy Ninja. "I owe my life to you and Shisui-san."

Nori unsealed a small cup and filled it with water from her canteen. She took a small bag with green powder in it and poured some in the cup. With a delicate finger, she mixed it until it was well incorporated. With one hand, she supported Kakashi's head and with the other, she put the cup to his lips to drink. He gave her a skeptical and untrusting look. She rolled her eyes. "I won't poison you. Kami knows war will break out if I did. I trusted that you and Shisui-san wouldn't kill me, so trust that I won't kill you."

Kakashi yielded. He drank the liquid. He turned his head and coughed. He sent her a scathing look. She held up her hands, innocently. "I never said it would taste good. What do you want Kakashi-sama, strawberry or matcha or chocolate flavor?"

Nori slung the Jounin over her shoulder, ignoring the retch Kakashi made. "The effects won't kick in until an hour. For now, the symptoms will be reduced a little. Are your students affected as well?"

"Yeah, the other two," Kakashi said.

Nori hummed a little. "I have enough for them. Naruto, lead the way."

"Who're you?" Haru asked quietly as the woman turned to look for the other girl. Nori smiled. "I'm Nori."

Naruto brought Ino from her room. Nori administered the bitter liquid to Ino as well. Ino was unconscious but she tried to fight Nori in her sleeping state. Nori held her down with the help of Naruto. Nori seemed to hear something, as she looked up.

"Team Kakashi, I suggest you leave this castle. Your mission was only to escort her here, right?" Nori asked. Naruto nodded.

"Why should we leave? We don't have anywhere else to stay," Haru said, looking a bit green from the nauseating effect of the antidote.

"You should try staying in the woods for once. You'll do that a lot as Chuunin and Jounin. Might as well get used to it as soon as you can. You shouldn't stay here anyway. It was because of the water and food you ate that you were poisoned. If you were exposed to it enough, you could've died," Nori said. Her mouth felt bitter, like if she'd lied.

Haru nodded. Kakashi looked at Nori, who stuck out her tongue. She certainly did lighten the atmosphere. Kakashi felt as if he could sleep without fear even though he'd been poisoned with her here. He sighed and packed up his things. Haru did the same for her and Ino's things. Naruto followed suit and Team 7 headed for the door.

"Kakashi, I might need your help. Meet me by the lake in ten minutes," Nori said at the bottom of the staircase.

"Roger," Kakashi said and his team walked out.

Nori turned around to see Frog and Fox. She narrowed her eyes at Frog. They were a day away from Suna. That was enough time to discipline him and his civilian-like ways. She just hoped she wouldn't end up killing him. The other Jounin in the village who also led a Genin team said that she had quite the temper.

"Did you get everyone out?" Nori asked.

"And we killed those loyal," Fox said. Nori nodded. "Let's finish this."

Outside, Naruto looked at Kakashi. "Kakashi-sensei, why is she here? How do you know her?"

"I don't know why she's here. Maybe she's on a mission for Kazan as well," Kakashi shrugged. "Maybe she's here to tell Kazan that the water and food supply is tainted. You should ask; we're meeting her in ten minutes here anyway," Kakashi gestured to the lake that spread out as far as the eye could see, next to where they stood.

The castle that Kazan owned was white on the outside. The four Konoha ninja looked at it as they waited. The windows all glowed with a soft orange glow. As time went on, the air around it seemed to turn black.

Kakashi's eye widened. They're burning it!

The castle suddenly exploded in flames and black smoke billowed out from it. The Genin watched in horror. "What about Kazan?" Ino cried out. "She can't be dead! She was so nice and her kimono were so high end!"

Kakashi closed his eye. So that's how it is…

A few minutes later, Nori came into view. The ANBU were waiting for her in the trees, hidden in the darkness. Nori's black hair and clothes smelled of smoke and there was blood all over her Jounin vest.

"What happened? Where is Kazan?" Ino asked, throwing herself onto Nori. Nori looked down at her, mildly shocked the girl was so close. Nori pushed her off and gave her a hard look. "Kakashi, they're already ninja. If you thought they were ready for a C-Rank, they should've been ready for what being a ninja meant! They're not ready, obviously. They should've stayed for just D-Ranks."

"Nori," Kakashi said seriously. "For one thing, they're my Genin. And, no one's first kill is easy. I can imagine yours must've been just as terrifying as it for everyone. You remember, don't you?"

"…" Nori looked away for a moment. No. "S-sure." Her mouth felt bitter again.

"Where's Kazan?" Ino asked again, tears in her eyes. Nori pursed her lips.

"Nori, don't," Kakashi warned. "She's not your student. She's not from your village. This isn't a matter you can meddle in."

Nori sighed. "Fine. I need for you to release as much lighting as you can into the water on three," Nori knelt and placed her hands on the water's surface. Kakashi hesitated for a moment, anger in his eyes, but then complied.

"One, two," Nori grinned again. "Three."

Lightning exploded from the two Jounin's hands and the water lit up in blue and white electricity, from Nori and Kakashi respectively. The Genin and two ANBU looked on with awe but the ANBU were more subdued about it. Kakashi had to stop before Nori; he didn't have very much chakra after the antidote. It had eaten a good portion of his chakra, but not as much as his pill had for Haru. Nori was left to sent electricity through the water, her blue currents making a blue glow on everything.

There were no fish in the lake because it was the reservoir for the town.

"Why did you do that?" Haru asked. "With the lightning."

"The water was contaminated. That's how you got poisoned. I supposed it would kill the bacteria or whatever is causing the illness," Nori explained. She gave them a warm smile despite the smoke in her clothes and ash on her face and blood on her vest. Ino still didn't understand.

"It was nice meeting you all, Haru, Ino, Naruto, Kakashi. Get ready for the Chuunin Exams. My team will be there too, so make sure Kakashi trains you until you drop. Kakashi, give Shisui-san my regards," Nori said and vanished to the Suna ANBU.

Fox looked at her. "Why are you so friendly with them?" he admonished. Nori shrugged nonchalantly. "They're nice kids and Kakashi is a friend. What's wrong with talking to friends?"

"You know why," Fox said.

"I do," Nori agreed. "Let's go home."

Fox nodded. "A-Rank Mission: kill the impostor of the daimyo's niece and purify the town's water. Completed."

Team 7 saw the gates of Konoha in the distance. They felt a little more at ease, even Kakashi.

"Ne, Kakashi-sensei. What happened to Kazan? And what Chuunin Exam?" Ino asked.

Kakashi winced. "Kazan is dead. I assume the flames got to her. Don't worry about Kazan, Ino. We completed our mission and we all got home safely, and that is what really counts. As for the Chuunin Exam…don't worry about it," Kakashi eye-smiled. Damn, I've got four months to prepare them. It's a lot of time when you say that, but in between regular missions is going to cut that time to only a month or a month and a half in total hours. Ino and Haru need work on their chakra control. Maybe I could have them do the tree-walking exercise and water walking. As for Naruto, I could teach him a jutsu.

At the gates, there were a few people waiting. Minato waved. "Welcome back, Team Kakashi, Naruto."

Naruto walked past his father, as if not hearing him. Minato felt a pang in his chest. He turned around and placed a hand on his son's shoulder. "Hey, Naruto. I took the day off so we could do something together. What do you—"

"Please don't touch me, Hokage-sama. Unfortunately, I'm busy today. I don't want to impose or keep you and your wife and children waiting," Naruto said, closing his eyes to keep himself from seeing the blonde man. Then, Naruto vanished in a shunshin.

Minato could feel Kakashi's eyes on him. Minato balled up his fists and looked at where his son had been standing. "Kakashi, why is he like this?"

"Ask Koi," Kakashi said and went off to submit the mission report. Minato was left alone in front of Konoha, his chest hurting and his heart aching because he didn't have anyone to lean on. Not Mikiko and not Yori. He bit his lip. The only people he could lean on were Kushina and Koi and they were dead. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and went home and sipped tea while he watched his children draw all over the walls.

The next day, Naruto walked into his office. Naruto had walked in on not his father, but a raccoon with blonde hair and vaguely blue eyes. Minato seemed to come to life when he entered. Naruto didn't smile back at the plant that acted as if had just been exposed to sunlight all of a sudden when Kushina's son walked in.

"Here. Please sign this, Hokage-sama," Naruto said, handing him a form. Minato smiled at him. "Of cour…"

Minato read it. It was a rental application. All Genin needed their living guardian to sign, or the Hokage if they didn't have parents and were too old for the orphanage. For Naruto, he had no choice. Minato held back a sob.

"Naruto, do you know what his means?" Minato asked quietly. "It means I won't be able to tuck you in at night or make you lunch or see you in the morning!"

"Hokage-sama, please sign it," Naruto said. "I would be very grateful if you did." Naruto made an effort to conceal the venom in his voice. But Minato was a Jounin. He heard it loud and clear but didn't understand why.

"Naruto, you're my son. I love you," Minato said, feeling himself shake with sobs. "Naruto…"

"Hokage-sama," Naruto said harshly. His eyes burned with hate. "Sign it."

"No! I can't lose you like I lost your mother!" Minato cried out.

Naruto turned on a heel and left Minato's office. Then you shouldn't have gotten married again, idiot. Naruto had a backup plan anyway. The door clicked softly, as if nothing had ever happened. Behind the door, Minato sobbed on his desk for the first time in twelve years, when Kushina died. What went so horribly wrong? What did I do?