Well hello there! How are you all doing?! Good I hope! Anyways, new chapter is here! And it's another big one! I am so happy to see all of you enjoying this story! And don't worry, I won't fall for that blackmail attempt by that reviewer lol. Now let's see some of the reviews!
Someone mentioned that they found chapter 23 hot, gross, and touching lol. I don't find it gross personally because it just shows much Naruto loves Ai and her him. He wanted to help her move past her fears and he found best way to do it is to remind her that every time she ate rice it would remind her of the kiss.
For the Invisibility Jutsu, yes, I know that a Jutsu exists, but what Minato made is a Seal. Not a Jutsu. A Jutsu would require a person to go though hand signs and cast and maintain it. With a Seal, one can apply it on a person and so long as it's active the Seal will turn the said person invisible. The Seal would be superior in that aspect because anything could be turned invisible.
Also, for all the reviews saying how much they liked this story, thank you! And I just wanted to say to buckle up because we are almost done with the first Arc! Next chapter will wrap it up and we'll be on to the next Arc! So this story has a ways to go before its done!
So, enjoy!
Kana hummed as she looked down at her tablet. She and Ruby had started a YouTube channel to promote their Idol group and with a bit of help from Ruby's mother, the channel had achieved some success in just a few days.
"A hundred thousand subscribers, and with just one video no less. I guess I shouldn't be surprised given that THE Ai was in the video. She hasn't been on any form of media for over a decade and yet she still looks like she's in her twenties." Kana thought. Was part of the reason why they gained so many subscribers because of Ai? Yes, no doubt about that. But it did allow them to get a foot in the door. The more subscribers they had here, the larger the crowd turnout would be at their first concert.
"I wish I had a figure like that…" Kana sighed as she lamented. She was on the more petite side of things, while Ai was not only mature but also drop-dead beautiful.
"Kana, what are you doing?" Ruby questioned her as the redhead raised the tablet and pointed at it.
"I was checking our channel. While we got a lot of subscribers initially, eventually they'll level out if we don't release another video or do something." Kana explained to which Ruby frowned.
"But isn't it good that we got so many people already?" Ruby questioned to which Kana sighed.
"Baka, while the count is nice, only a fraction will actually show up. You think a lot of these people are willing to travel all across the world, let alone Japan, to see an Idol group that hasn't even done one performance yet?" Kana questioned the blonde.
"Well, when you put it like that…" Ruby murmured, must Kana be so harsh with the truth?
"Maybe we should do another video with Ai-san." Kana reasoned that a recurring character might boost their count more.
"Eh, wouldn't that be counter-productive?" Ruby questioned. Kana raised an eyebrow at that. What did she mean?
"I mean, that this is our channel, our Idol group. If we keep using my mama for every other video, people will be more inclined to want to watch her than us. Sure, she gave us a boost, but we need to work on our own for the most part from here on out." Ruby explained as Kana blinked.
"That's actually…very reasonable. Guess there is a brain up there." Kana said with a smirk as she watched Ruby pout.
"Now now, Kana-chan, that's just mean." Ai walked in on the two as Ruby smiled and jumped into a hug, hugging her mother, while Kana stumbled. She had just called Ruby an idiot in front of her mother!
"I, uh, I mean, what I meant to say was..." Kana tried to apologize. The last thing she wanted to do was make her idol mad at her! Ai broke into a fit of giggles seeing Kana's reaction.
"I mean, I'm not all that smart, maybe that's where she inherited it from?" Ai joked much to Kana's surprise and Ruby's frustration.
"Mama~! You're supposed to be taking my side!" Ruby whined at her mother. Ai brought her hand up and ruffled her hair.
"Someone has to keep you humble." Ai joked while Ruby crossed her arms and looked away.
"Papa would take my side!" She countered while Ai nodded.
"That's because he loves to spoil all of your rotten." Her mother simply said. Naruto loved to spoil them all; some might even say that his daughters had him wrapped around their fingers. Not the truth of the matter was that Naruto just loved them that much.
"Anyways, both of you are right. You need to put up another video, but it can't be with me." Ai said, causing Kana to deflate, but she failed to see Ai's smirk.
"That's why I got someone else for you to work with today." Ai spoke up once more as the door opened a very large, muscular man walked in with a…chicken head?
"AHHHH! P-PERVERT!" Kana shouted frantically as she pointed at the man who flexed his muscles. Ruby, however, had a different reaction.
"Oh! Pieyon!" Ruby exclaimed as she walked over to the man and gave him a high-five.
"Yo, Ruby! Wow! Looks like you really did grow some muscles!" Pieyon complimented causing Ruby to blush in embarrassment.
"Hehe, papa's training really pays off!" Ruby responded. While she didn't like the training, she did appreciate its effect. Kana blinked at the interaction before her jaws dropped.
"That's Pieyon?! The same one with over a million subscribers?!" She pointed at him, completely caught by surprise.
"Sure is! Pieyon is actually a family friend! He works out at the Dojo from time to time!" Ruby answered while Ai nodded.
"Not only that, but we also manage Pieyon's channel as well, so he's in our network you could say and so are you," Miyako spoke up as she followed in behind Pieyon.
"Miyako-san?" Kana questioned.
"Pieyon has over a million subscribers, and while your channel is still young, it has gained quite the count, but even then, it'll level out. That's why you're going to do a video on Pieyon's channel. In a way, he is sponsoring you. That'll send people from his channel to yours." Miyako explained to which Ai clapped her hands.
"In other words, collaboration!" She said excitingly as Miyako smiled and nodded. Kana looked unsure, but Ruby was excited along with Pieyon.
"I mean, I guess it can't be that bad." Kana thought. Pieyon was insanely popular, so she reckoned it wouldn't be that bad.
A couple of minutes later:
"I was wrong! I was so so wrong!" Kana shouted mentally as she did various exercises that were pushing her body to the limit along with Pieyon dance. It didn't help that she was wearing the same headgear as the well-built man as well!
"This is so fun!" Ruby exclaimed as she went through the motions. Compared to her father's training, this was a cakewalk!
"Are you insane?!" Kana shouted mentally again. This was not fun, not fun at all!
Over at Mem-Cho's house:
Everyone had gathered over at Mem-Cho's house, just as planned. Already they had begun to get to work, downloading and uploading various pictures. In Kengo's case, he was helping compile good music to go along with it.
"Aqu-tan! Where is your little brother?" Mem-Cho complained, wondering where the blonde's supposed brother was. The only one who had seen his brother was Akane, so they were dying to meet him. Aqua and Akane hadn't said much about him other than he was his little brother.
"He'll be here any moment." Aqua stated as he worked on the computer, he had to thank the fact that he had learned how to edit and clean up footage. Making a video from the various photos the group had was actually a lot harder than he thought. There were countless photos he had to go through and the suggestions the various members of the group were making only added to the delay.
"Maybe I should have done it on my own." He thought jokingly. But, and he'd never admit it, he was having fun right now. Just then the doorbell rang as Mem-Cho and Yuki looked up from what they were doing.
"I'll get the door!" The two shouted as they ran over to the door. Mem-Cho was the first to get to the door and opened it. The second she did, she was caught off guard by a very tall and… handsome blonde-haired man, who's actually Minato. She smirked as she leaned closer to the said blonde.
"How can I help you, handsome?" She flirted, causing Minato to blush at her bold attempts. Yuki pouted as she pushed Mem-Cho over before she sent her most charming smile.
"Hi there! I'm Yuki! How can I help you?" She said politely, but Mem-Cho bumped her shoulders with Yuki's.
"Hey, I saw him first!" Mem-Cho shouted but Yuki wasn't going to back down.
"Ah…excuse me, but is this Mem-Cho-san's place?" Minato asked in a soft and polite voice. Mem-Cho instantly perked up hearing her name.
"Yup! That's me!" She answered as she drew closer almost pressing her breasts up on him.
"Uh, I, um…" Minato was completely flustered at her forwardness. Yuki pouted at Mem-Cho. She had to admit herself, the blonde was extremely handsome, and possibly one of the most handsome men she had ever seen!
"Mem-Cho, can you please stop harassing my little brother?" Aqua spoke up as he walked up to the three. Mem-Cho blinked as she backed up and looked at Aqua and then the blonde man. She did this a couple of times. No way! No way was that tall, handsome blonde is Aqua's younger brother! If anything, Aqua looked like the younger one!
"Ah, Nii-sama!" Minato called out to his brother in relief.
"Eh?! Aqua! You never said your brother was so handsome!" Yuki whined as she playfully hit Minato's chest, which to her surprise was pretty hard.
"Well, excuse me for not divulging my brother's private life." Aqua shot back while Mem-Cho was sweating bullets.
"U-Uh, Aqu-tan, how old is your little brother?" Mem-Cho questioned him as Aqua blinked and thought.
"He's eleven, why?" Aqua answered as Mem-Cho felt like her spirit had just left her body.
"He's only eleven years old?! Oh god! And I was flirting with him?!" Mem-Cho mentally screamed at herself. Oh boy, if they all knew how old she really was, she'd be in a lot of trouble.
"Come on in, Minato, you can set up over where I am." Aqua invited his brother in as the said boy nodded.
"It's nice to meet you, Yuki-san, Mem-Cho-san." Minato sent them a smile. The two girls felt like their hearts were pierced by his charming smile. Aqua rolled his eyes at that. Minato's nature was so damn polite, and his smile was so charming that girls naturally swooned over him.
"Oh, Akane-san!" Minato called out as he saw Akane. The said girl blinked before she smiled and got up to greet him.
"Minato-kun! It's so nice to see you again!" Akane greeted back as she gave the blonde a quick hug which he returned before he gave her a serious look.
"Akane-san, Nii-sama told me everything. Are you ok?" Minato questioned as the girl nodded slowly.
"I'll be ok." She replied. She should have expected Minato to know about it. Minato nodded before he set a hand on her shoulder.
"Don't worry, Akane-san. We'll make them pay. Anyone who hurts a friend of Nii-sama answers to me." Minato said, but what caught her off guard was just how coldly he said it and his eyes reflected that as well.
"You know you don't have to." She said softly. Everyone was being pulled into the mess she had made.
"No, Akane-san. For what they did to you, they will all pay." Minato stated firmly as he set down the laptop he had brought. Aqua walked over and went back to work.
"You got everything, Minato?" He questioned him to which the younger brother nodded.
"Yes. I have all the footage, information, and the like. All I have to do now is to compile it all. I'll be releasing more private information regarding the director and the various crew members on severely different sites, of course, all of it will be from unknown sources." Minato answered in detail as Aqua nodded.
"Wow, your brother sure knows his stuff, doesn't he, Aqua?" Kengo questioned as everyone walked over to watch Minato doing his work.
"Minato has an IQ easily over 200, perhaps even greater than that. What I'm trying to say is, Minato is a genius." Aqua explained as they all were shocked by that tad bit of knowledge.
"Eh?! You mean he's smarter than all of us?" Mem-Cho questioned with wide eyes. Aqua nodded.
"Yes. He managed to skip a lot of grades and is currently in the same grade as me. If he wanted to, he could easily go right to college and complete his education." Aqua responded. Minato simply chuckled at his brother's words.
"Nii-sama, you speak too highly of me," Minato said simply with a smile.
"And he's a hottie!" Yuki said while Aqua gave her a blank look.
"You know he's eleven, right?" Aqua questioned her as she winked at Minato, who looked away, flustered at all the attention he was getting.
"That's ok, I can wait." She said teasingly much to everyone, but Aqua's amusement.
"S-Sorry, Yuki-san, but I like someone else." Minato rejected causing her to almost fall at that.
"Oh ho, seems like you got shot down real quick." Nobuyuki teased as Yuki huffed. Was she not pretty enough?
"Eh, you like someone, Minato-kun?" Akane questioned him as Minato blushed and nodded. This caught Aqua's attention too. He didn't know much about his brother's romantic life, well, more like any of his siblings. That was their own personal life, doesn't mean he was going to not ask.
"Hmmm, did you already get a girlfriend?" Aqua teased as Minato was now absolutely blushing like a tomato.
"Yes, I mean, no, I don't have a girlfriend!" Minato shouted as he lost in composer for once.
"Relax, Minato, I'm just teasing you." Aqua patted his brother's back, who huffed at his brother. Aqua cracked a small smile as he worked on editing the video he was making.
"That's mean, Nii-sama." Minato countered while Aqua shrugged. It was fun teasing Minato from time to time. Minato sighed as he turned to his laptop.
"Nii-sama, why don't you release your own video on the official channel?" Minato questioned causing Aqua to turn to him.
"What do you mean?" He questioned his little brother, with everyone also interested in hearing him out.
"Well, if you release all the information at once, you might cause the show's popularity to fall. Why don't you post your video on the official channels, and then I'll post all their private information separately later towards the end of the show?" Minato reasoned as everyone hummed. That made sense.
"What kind of 'private information' do you have on them?" Kengo questioned, now that was on everyone's mind. Minato returned their question with a smile, a dangerous smile.
"Oh, crap." Aqua thought. Yes, Minato was a perfect child, but in reality, he could also be a vengeful one.
"The kind of information that will destroy their lives socially and make sure they never work in the entertainment industry, or anywhere else." Minato answered with that smile of his causing everyone to gulp. Just what kind of information did he dig up?
"You got all that from hacking?" Yuki asked, kind of scared at what he uncovered.
"Once I knew their names, I tracked down their social media accounts. From Twitter to Facebook and all the in-betweens. After that, it was easy to gain access to all their accounts, including their bank accounts. Beyond that, gaining access to their personal computers was easy." Minato explained with a happy smile as if it was the most normal thing ever.
"Damn Aqua, your little brother's scary." Nobuyuki whispered to Aqua, who nodded. Sapphire could beat anyone up with her fists, but Minato could literally ruin someone's life if you pissed him off enough.
"If only you knew." Was Aqua's response.
With Naruto:
Naruto hummed as he happily made some ramen at his ramen bar. Over the years he had made many investments, for the sake of his family of course. He wanted to make sure that there was nothing in this world that was out of his family's reach. But the ramen bar was his little experiment. He loved ramen; he also loved making ramen for his family. So, he opened up a ramen restaurant where he could make ramen of all types.
"You know, it's rude to ignore a customer." A voice spoke. Naruto rolled his eye and turned around to find his only customer, for now, the so-called Crow Girl. The said girl was sitting, waiting patiently for some food with her normal smirk.
"You're not a customer." He pointed out as she raised an eyebrow.
"I need to eat too." She replied, but Naruto shook his head.
"Aren't you like, ya know, some kind of supernatural being?" Naruto questioned her causing her to chuckle.
"You don't look surprised by that." She questioned him as he made some ramen, might as well give her something to eat if she was going to annoy him.
"After the things I have seen and done, this doesn't surprise me. Not only that, but your presence is… odd. It's not like the humans here or back home. So, what are you?" He questioned her as he poured the ramen into a bowl.
"Hmmm, well, that's for me to know and you to never find out." The Crow Girl answered while Naruto rolled his eyes as he set the ramen bowl in front of her.
"Look, I don't care what you do; I don't even care if you come here to eat ramen from time to time, but if you try to do anything against my family…" Naruto started as he closed his eyes before he opened them up again, the signs of Sage Mode clear as day with the orange pigmentation around his eyes and the toad-like eyes.
"Divine being or not, I will kill you." Naruto threatened to which the Crow Girl chuckled as she slowly ate her ramen.
"This is some good ramen, but no, rest assured I am plotting nothing against you or your family. Well, at least nothing harmful." She complimented his ramen before answering his question. Naruto narrowed his eyes at that.
"And what is that supposed to mean?" Naruto questioned his guard up at that. The girl chuckled at that.
"Relax, I can't directly intervene in mortal affairs." She waved him off.
"Then aren't you directly intervening by just talking to me?" He questioned her with a flat look.
"You're not a mortal." She countered.
"I am." He corrected.
"Ok, you're not a normal mortal." She clarified.
"And what's that supposed to mean?" He questioned her, his guard still up. She finished her ramen and she set the bowl down.
"Well, one, you are not of this world, and two, you have enough Chakra to make you a demi-god, and three, I guess you are what some might call the 'original anomaly.'" She explained causing him to raise an eyebrow.
"Original anomaly?" He questioned her as she nodded.
"In all other realities, your realities, two things happen, either you kill your best friend and save the world, or you save him and save your world. However, you, you are different from all your other counterparts. You ended up here, even if part of the reason was Sasuke, but you are here." She explained as he blinked his eyes at her in confusion.
"Wait wait wait, different realities? My other counterparts? What the hell are you talking about?" He asked her causing her to grin.
"You don't honestly think that you are the only Naruto in existence, are you?" She took her time enjoying his jaw drop in shock before she continued.
"There are countless, and I mean countless realities and existence beyond this one. But as the saying goes, a butterfly flapping its wings can have its effects felt across the other side of the world. Now picture that but on a much grander scale. In some realities you didn't lose your parents, in others, you had a sister, heck, in some, you are a female. The point is, there are multiple realities." She explained while Naruto just looked at her in utter shock.
"So, that illusion you showed me before…" He trailed off as she nodded.
"Was a different time, a different reality of the events that unfolded. In a different reality, you never existed in this world; Aqua and Ruby have no mother." She explained further as Naruto's hand balled into a fist. No, he could never even conceive of a reality like that.
"And you just watch?" He questioned her as she nodded.
"You could say that. But I find this reality the most interesting. I find you and your family interesting. Ai was just another soul in the grand scheme of things that was never meant to live this long, but you, you changed everything. And with all that power, all your abilities, you chose to live as a simple family man. Why is that?" She questioned him. She couldn't see it; she couldn't see his fate or future. He was like a black hole and everyone around him had their own fates and destinies muddled, like as if someone took a bucket of water and splashed it against an art piece that was life.
"Because I don't care about power. Power is meaningless if you have no one you care for. If you know so much about me as you claim to, then you'd know that I only ever sought power to protect those precious to me." Naruto explained as she hummed at him.
"How fascinating. You are so far removed from your world, a god amongst men and yet so humble." She commented as he grunted.
"I only care about my family. And as I said before, I'll protect them from any threat, normal or supernatural. No man, god, or whatever the hell is out there will stop me from protecting my family." Naruto claimed with the fire in his eyes as he looked at the girl. The Crow Girl smirked at that.
"How amusing for a not-so-normal mortal to challenge the likes of the gods. I was right about you; you and your family are amusing. You have Fates ranting about you all the time, and the deities of this region have been anxious about you ever since you appeared here. They don't know what to make of you. I'd imagine some of them will be dropping by eventually." She reasoned as she dropped down from the chair she was sitting in.
"I'd rather they not visit." Naruto countered but she just chuckled.
"I don't care what they do. But rest assured, they won't take direct action, so long as they don't feel threatened." She stated as she left the bar. Naruto sighed as he looked at the ramen he was making.
"Seems like I just can't catch a break, can't I? I just want to live a normal life dammit." Naruto muttered to himself. All he wanted to do was walk up every day with his lovely wife and spend the rest of his life living in peace watching their children grow up. Was that too hard to ask?
Later that night with Aqua:
Aqua sighed as he stared at the computer screen, his eyes had bags underneath them while cans of energy drink laid on the desk. When he had set out to work on the video, he had thought it would have been easy! After all, he did video editing on the side. However, he now realized that there was a difference in editing and cleaning up video's that were already complied and actually putting videos and photos together.
"I didn't realize they took THAT many pictures…" He thought to himself. Between Yuki and Mem-Cho, there were a lot of photos to go around, along with some short videos. And Kengo and Nobuyuki also had quite a bit too surprisingly. If it was up to him, he'd just pick a few and finish it, but it wasn't, it was a group effort.
"Oh! How about this one?" Yuki questioned as she pointed at a photo of the group on the computer. Aqua sighed but nodded. That's how his day had been spent. He'd add some photos and the rest would either veto him or add another different one. He was beginning to realize just why whole crews were needed to compile and edit footages for movies and TV dramas. And he also realized just how well people could stage these photos as well to either put a negative or positive spin on the characters.
"And that's how they showed Akane as the bad guy. All her scenes portrayed her as a jealous type, omitting the scenes where she is kind and honest. Despicable." Aqua thought darkly. With this video, Akane's reputation would be cleaned up, and with the dirt Minato had dug up, they'd ruin the director and his lackeys. After the show had ended that is.
"Akane! I was wondering, maybe you should play as a character on the show." Mem-Cho spoke up as she pulled Akane aside. Akane blinked at that. A character?
"What do you mean?" Akane questioned her. Aqua had in the very beginning also said something along those lines, that she had to become a trop, but with the way things were going for her, she had let that slip her mind.
What she means is if you put on some kind of act, a character, that role will become your armor. Showing your real self will only hurt you more. And that applies to more than just reality shows. It's an important concept when it comes to socializing." Aqua chimed in. Mem-Cho wasn't wrong. Akane thought over that.
"Exactly! Just like Aqu-tan! His acting is several layers deep! On the show he's all smiles and happy, but look at him now! He's all doom and gloom! Can't you open your heart up a little more?" Mem-Cho whined at him playfully, but Aqua rolled his eyes at that. Akane however was thinking differently about what Mem-Cho said.
"No, Aqua-kun's layers aren't so deep. I know that the real Aqua-kun is somewhere in between." She thought as she glanced at him. From what she had seen, Aqua was himself around the people he felt comfortable with. While on the show he took this quality and exaggerated them to where it seemed like it was out of character for him. She'd call him a guarded person, someone who had walls built up that only came down with his family and friends.
"Now now, Mem-Cho-san, Nii-sama is actually a very kind person who's willing to help anyone that needs help." Minato said, coming to his brother's defense.
"Oi oi, don't go saying stuff like that." Aqua told him with a pointed look, but Minato just chuckled.
"But Nii-sama, these are your friends, no?" Minato questioned as Aqua had a small tint of blush on his cheeks, embarrassed by the fact that his little brother was destroying his made-up personality!
"Oh ho? Is that true, Aqu-tan? Hmmm, maybe all your acting isn't just acting." Mem-Cho commented as she poked him on his shoulder causing his eye to twitch at that.
"Weren't you telling Akane to take up an act?" Aqua tried to redirect before he realized his slip up.
"Oh? Akane?" Yuki wiggled her eyebrows at that tad bit of information. Akane blushed at being called that by Aqua while Yuki and Mem-Cho giggled before they turned to Akane, who jumped slightly at the look they were giving her.
"Hmmm, maybe you should take on a different persona." Mem-Cho said as she grinned and looked towards Aqua, oh this will be fun!
"Aqua, what's your type of girl?" She questioned him causing him to shoot out the energy drink he was drinking.
"Baka! Who asks questions like that?" Aqua shot back, blushing mad. No way was he going to tell them his type with Akane present! However, Minato was very much forthcoming.
"Nii-sama likes girls like Kaa-sama." Minato blurted out as if it was the most casual thing to say. The room got so quite that you could hear a pin drop before all hell broke loose.
"M-Minato!" Aqua shouted, now totally underassessed
"Damn Aqua, didn't know you were that type of guy." Kengo said with a whistle while Nobuyuki nodded.
"Aqua likes moms?!" Yuki shouted, outraged while Mem-Cho gave him a teasing look.
"Aqu-tan likes older women, how scandalous." Mem-Cho giggled as she brought a hand up and covered her mouth. Akane just blushed madly at the implications that Minato was letting out.
"What? It's true Nii-sama. You like a girl with a pretty face, smiles like the sun, her performances are perfect. Her speech and behavior are seemingly all-conquering. And that she's blessed with captivating eyes. All qualities that Kaa-sama has." Minato listed off the things that Aqua sought. Aqua in turn grunted in frustration. While Minato was totally wrong, his type was more complex than his mother.
"I also like honest, earnest, confident and the shy type." He added mentally as he quickly threw a glance at Akane, who just so happened to do the same towards him. The two looked at each other before looking away, blushing. Minato might know a lot about him, but he didn't know everything.
"Like Ai-san, huh?" Yuki hummed at that. She reasoned that growing up with such a mother would no doubt have shaped Aqua's and his brother's outlook on the type of women they were interested in.
"Minato-tan! What's your type?" Mem-Cho questioned, now this was something even Aqua wanted to know. He smirked as he looked over at his brother.
"Yeah Minato, what's your type?" He asked him, time for some revenge! Minato blushed as he looked away, Kana coming into his thoughts.
"W-Well, I, uh, I'm much too young to answer that!" Minato defended himself, not wanting to tell them that he liked redheads who were confident, determined, and strong-willed that had strike red eyes and…ok, he just liked Kana. But he wasn't going to tell them that!
"No fair! You blurted out my type! I'm not letting you off the hook that easily, Minato!" Aqua shouted at him as he began to ruffle his hair aggressively. Needless to say, everyone was shocked. This was a side of Aqua they had never seen.
"Aqua-kun really loves his brother." Akane thought to herself with a smile. The interactions between the two were just what she expected between siblings. Aqua wasn't the cold, stand offish boy that he let others belief he was. She knew, after all, he had shown her what he was really like.
"If I can become Aqua-kun's ideal girl…then he'll be happy. I owe it to him! And maybe we can be more than friends…" She thought with determination.
"Wow, look, look! It's Ai-san!" Yuki shouted excitingly as waved her phone. All the talk of Aqua's and Minato's mother got her curious and she decided to check the various social media sites to see if the said women had any presences at all. When she opened Twitter and put in Ai's name in the search, she was instantly hit with a treading video of the said woman, in a malls foot court, sitting on Naruto's lap, kissing him.
"Oh my god! Aqu-tan, Minato-tan, is that your father?" Mem-Cho questioned as she got next to Yuki. Aqua raised an eyebrow before he looked at the video and sighed.
"Yes, that's him." Minato pointed out as the two girls looked at the man and up to Aqua and Minato. They could see the family resemblance.
"You parents sure love to show affection in public." Yuki commented, watching the video of the couple making out. She blushed at the thought of doing something like that. She didn't think she'd ever be so bold to do a make out session in public!
"They are a very… affectionate couple…" Was all Aqua had to say on that matter.
"That's because Oto-sama and Kaa-sama love each other very much." Minato added with a smile. Truly their romance was something like a fairy tale.
"God, this is some diabetic level sweetness." Kengo said as he too watched the video. Apparently, it was trending.
"Can we please stop watching a video of my parents making out?" Aqua requested, still finding it uncomfortable to this day. At home he didn't mind it as much, but when they did in-front of total strangers it was embarrassing for him.
"I wonder if Aqua-kun will like it if we kiss in public like that… no! Bad thoughts! He's just a friend… for now." Akane shook her heads of those thoughts with a deep blush. Lately, her head was preoccupied with the thoughts of Aqua and her.
"Aqu-tan, are you a good kisser like your father?" Mem-Cho teased. Aqua, for the second time, spat out his drink as he stood up.
"Ok, that's it. I'm going home for the night!" Aqua declared as he grabbed his things and marched out, much to Mem-Cho's amusement. Minato gave a sheepish chuckle as he grabbed his own stuff before he bowed.
"Thank you for having me over, Mem-Cho-san. It was nice to meet Nii-sama's friends. I'll see you late, Akane-san!" Minato said his goodbyes as he followed after his brother.
"Minato is such a kind and polite boy! Why did he have to be so young?" Yuki complained with a pout as Mem-Cho nodded. If only he was older, well, much older in her case.
"Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm heading home as well. Gotta work on the music tomorrow." Kengo waved them off as Nobuyuki followed suit. Pretty soon, they all turned in for the night. It would take them a couple of days before they were ready with the video.
With Minato and Aqua:
The pair of brothers walked home silently. Aqua was not only tired, but completely flustered and embarrassed with all the questions that he had been asked.
"Come now, Nii-sama. Mem-Cho-san was just teasing you." Minato tried to cheer his brother up, who shot him a small glare, causing him to chuckle nervously.
"And what was that about you just telling them my type?" Aqua questioned him as Minato waved his hands frantically.
"I meant no harm Nii-sama! It's just that… I don't have any friends outside of Kana-san. I… I didn't know how to respond so I responded honestly." Minato responded, looking down slight. Aqua sighed at his answer. As smart as he was, he was also socially awkward.
"I'm not mad, Minato." He said as he brought his hand up and ruffled his little brothers' hair.
"But next time, don't answer to questions like that. That kind of stuff is often personal." Aqua explained as Minato nodded, filling away that information. The two resumed walking in silence before Aqua smirked.
"Redheads." He said to which Minato raised an eyebrow.
"Excuse me?" Minato questioned him, what was that supposed to mean. Aqua's grin spread as he turned to Minato.
"Your type. You like redheads." Aqua answered causing Minato to blush while Aqua laughed. Apparently, Minato inherited more than just his looks, intelligence, and name from their grandfather.
"H-How did you…" Minato trailed off. He was sure that he kept information like that to himself! Aqua brought one of his hands up.
"One; your favorite color is red. Two; I see the way you look at Kana. Red hair and red eyes." Aqua answered as Minato's blush increased ten-fold at being caught so easily.
"Uh, please don't tell anyone." Minato pleaded as Aqua chuckled at that before he waved his hand dismissively.
"Don't worry. I won't. Who you have a crush on is your business, not mine." Aqua stated as Minato sighed in relief.
"Oh, that's good. Otherwise I would have told Akane-san that you like her." Minato responded with a smile, the same smile that their mother has. Aqua almost tripped at that before he looked at his little brother.
"Is that a threat?"
"I never said that."
"…."
"…."
"Mutually assured destruction?" Aqua questioned as he brought a hand out. Minato looked at it before he shook it with his.
"Mutually assured destruction." Minato agreed as the two shook hands on it, the two coming to an understanding of sorts.
Later that night:
"Ramen, ramen, ramen!" Sapphire chanted as she bounced in her chair, practically drooling at the smell of the ramen being cooked.
"Sap-chan, please close your mouth." Ruby chastised her sister who giggled in response. No way was she going to do that with the ramen in the works!
"I still can't believe you had to do this dance." Aqua muttered as he watched the ridiculous dance/exercises Ruby and Kana had to do. The both of them pulled it off, but by the end of it they were sweating buckets. Kana especially seemed worn out.
"Wow, Kana-san looks so cute!" Minato mentally shouted as he watched the video on his own phone before he discreetly subscribed to the channel. Needless to say, he was squarely within Kana's camp by virtue of having a crush on her.
"Kana almost passed out in the end! Ahahaha! She needs to build up her stamina." Ruby laughed as she recalled how Kana was so tired by the end of it.
"Nee-sama, you shouldn't be making fun of Kana-san. She's a friend you know." Minato pointed out, coming to Kana's defense. Ruby huffed at that.
"Don't worry Minato-kun! I'll have that witch's claws out of you yet!" Ruby declared firmly causing all of her siblings to sweat drop at that.
"Quit being a brocon, Ruby." Aqua said with a flat look, which caused Ruby's eye to twitch.
"I am not a brocon!" She shouted back. The chatter between the four went on back and forth, while Naruto and Ai worked in the kitchen.
"Looks like our little boy has a crush." Ai giggled in her hand as she heard her children's chatter. Naruto blinked at that.
"Eh? Who?" Naruto questioned as Ai rolled her eyes.
"How can you tell that Aqua likes Akane, but not who Minato likes?" Ai questioned him to which Naruto hummed.
"Well, I guess it's the way he talks about her and looks at her." He answered causing her to raise an eyebrow at that.
"Like what?" She questioned him. Naruto smirked as he approached her and lifted her up with his one arm wrapped around her and spun in the kitchen causing her to giggle at his antics.
"Like how I talk about you and look at you." He explained much to her amusement.
"Oh? And what does that look like?" She questioned him again as she leaned her head forward and down. He was holding her up pretty high, thus the result was their foreheads touching as her long hair flowed down around her and around his head, the top of it mixing in with his blonde wild locks. Her eyes stared into his deep blue ones. She could find herself getting lost in them, in a sea of love.
"Love and adoration." Naruto answered with a chuckle as he gave her a quick kiss. She chuckled, a toothy smile forming. She loved these moments.
"Ramen!" They were broken out of their moment with Sapphire's cry for ramen. The two chuckled as Naruto set her down.
"Well, we better get the food out before Hime becomes a ramen demon." Naruto insisted as he started to walk over to the stove, but he suddenly came to a halt as his head jerked backwards.
"Ouch!" Ai cried out as her head was also jerked backwards. The two turned around to find that Ai's hair had become tangled with some of his own. The two blinked at that before they laughed at their circumstance. The two came closer again in a bid to free their hair, but with the ramen still on the stove and no success, they decided to let it be for now.
"Maybe I should cut my hair." Naruto suggested, but Ai frowned at that. Short hair Naruto? Never.
"No." She simply said as she ran a hand through his wild block locks.
"But our hair will keep getting tangled." Naruto pointed out.
"No. Besides, you don't like my hair tangled with yours? I see how it is, Naru-kun. I'll cut my hair then." Ai stated with a huff as she looked away.
"Ahh! No, don't do that! I love your long hair, Ai-chan! Fine, I won't cut my hair then!" Naruto pleaded as Ai smirked in victory. She loved his wild untamed hair and she especially loved how his two bangs framed around his head.
"Good boy, now come on, let's get the food out." With that the two worked together and brought the food out as a team given their hair was still tangled. Ruby and Sapphire giggled at their predicament while Aqua gave them a blank look while Minato kept his smile.
"I don't even wanna know." Aqua said, not wanting to know what kind of flirting led them both to that situation. The two parents giggled at Aqua as the set the food down with Sapphire being the first to attack the ramen.
"Hime! Leave some for me!" Naruto shouted as he hurriedly tried to secure some ramen for himself.
"No way! You've have had enough ramen for a life time!" Sapphire complained. The rest of the family calmly took their portion of the food while Naruto and Sapphire fought over the ramen.
"I still can't believe that Sap-chan looks like mama, but acts like papa." Ruby whispered to Aqua who nodded. Sapphire was the perfect blend between the two in terms of personality and looks.
"Ai-chan! Hime is being mean to me! Do something!" Naruto cried anime tears as he tried to wrestle control of some ramen. Ai looked at her husband with amusement.
"What?! No way! Mama, papa won't let me have more ramen! Do something!" Sapphire whined at her mother at the unfairness of the situation. Ai looked between her husband and her daughter, one crying anime tears and the others fighting with dogged determination. She sighed before a sweet smiled crept up on her face causing both of them to freeze.
"Dear, please let Sapphire have more ramen for the night or else you'll be sleeping on the couch." She threatened as Naruto jaws dropped at that.
"You would never!" He said in shock, point his finger at her. She kept her smile as she nodded before she turned to her daughter, who gulped at that.
"Sapphire, please share some ramen with your father or else there won't be ramen cooked for a month." She laid down the ultimatum as Sapphire was now the one with a jaw dropped.
"Sacrilegious!" She gasped, no ramen for a month? The sky might as well start falling. The two had frozen up and muttered some words under their breath while Ai maintained her smile.
"And with this, I have brought peace, freedom, justice, and security to my dining table." Ai declared as she threw her arms and laughed while Ruby and Aqua sweat dropped.
"Did she just quote Star Wars?" The two twins thought while Minato chuckled at his mother's antics. Just another average family dinner for the Uzumaki's.
An hour later:
Naruto sighed as he lay in his bed, his thoughts preoccupied with what that Crow Girl had revealed to him. Different realities, different him, and different timelines. It was all so much to take him. And him being the original anomaly? And then there was her warning about the deities dropping by.
"I need start putting some serious seals around the house. I know she said they won't do anything, but you can never to be too sure." Naruto thought. While he wasn't the seal master that Jiraiya or even his father was, he still knew a fair bit about seals. After all, Jiraiya did train him.
"Maybe I should have the Four Red Yang Formation seals ready." Naruto thought seriously. The barrier Jutsu that was used by Hashimara, Tobirama, Hiruzen and Minato, and it was strong enough to withstand a Tailed Beast Bomb from the Ten-Tails during the war. Sure, it was Chakra intensive, but he had Chakra in spades. He was so busy within his thoughts that he didn't even notice Ai slip into the bed, not until she had wrapped her arms around him.
"Hmm, what could be more important than your lovely wife?" She whispered hotly to him causing him to chuckle as he turned his head to her.
"Well, you did say that you'd have me sleep on the couch." Naruto answered. He didn't want her to worry about all the supernatural stuff. It was his duty to protect his family after all.
"I did, but I never said I wouldn't be joining you." She pointed it out as Naruto rolled his eyes.
"We broke the bed after our wedding you know. Now you want to break the couch?" Naruto asked her with a raised eyebrow as she giggled, amused at his reaction.
"Well, it's not like you'd not want it." She stated as Naruto grunted, but nodded. He loved doing everything with Ai, that included cuddling, making out, and indulging in their carnal desires. And he was sure that if they went at it on the couch, it would be broken the next day.
"But to threaten me and my ramen with that? How could you Ai-chan!" Naruto whined with a pout as she playfully smacked his chest.
"You know I was teasing right?" She asked him to which he shook his head.
"Your smile said otherwise." He responded, giving her a flat look as she giggled.
"I have no idea what you're talking about." She countered as he narrowed his eyes.
"Oh really? Guess I'll have to make you talk." He said with a grin as she leaned back.
"Oh? And how are you going to do that?" She questioned him as looped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer, their noses touch as he growled.
"I have ways of making you talk." He responded as she shivered at that.
"I'll never talk!" She declared as she tried to wiggle herself free from his grasp, but Naruto kept his hold. He leaned forward and nibbled on one of her ears causing her to freeze before she moaned.
"Oh ho? Then let's test your resolve." He whispered lowly in her ear. His previous thoughts were abandoned as the brought up the sheets to cover them while he discreetly activated a silencing seal, a necessary precaution since his wife was quite the screamer in bed.
With Akane at the same time:
When Mem-Cho and Yuki had told her about creating a character and after learning about Aqua's type, she resolved herself to become more like Ai.
"If I can become Aqua-kun's ideal type, then maybe I have a chance." She thought to herself as she looked up at her computer, going through articles and articles about Ai, both recent and those from over a decade ago. Even as far back as when she was first starting out and was being picked up by the media.
"I've met Ai-san only once, but she seems to be a carefree and bubbly type. Her eyes are definitely a feature of hers." She noted as she wrote down in her notebook. Everything about Ai between now and a decade ago seemed to indicate that she was a happy spirit that loved spending time with her family and especially her husband from what she had seen.
"However, these articles from when she was fifteen…" She muttered. The fifteen years old Ai seemed like a friendless person, it seemed like despite having so many fans and being in an Idol group, Ai lacked a solid friend group.
"What about her relationships before she met Naruto-san?" She tapped her pencil on the notebook. It was evident to her that Ai's education wasn't great, no, there was no mention of her going to any higher education schools. It seemed like she went straight to Idol work from school. Maybe she dropped out of school?
"Emotionally unbalanced…" She muttered as she read article after article. It seemed like Ai craved attention as an Idol. However, being emotionally unbalanced meant that she definitely had sex during her puberty. Understandable given that she had her twins at a young age.
"But… the time between her relationship with Naruto-san and when she gave birth, her behavior didn't change…" She said to herself. From everything she had seen, Ai and Naruto were hopelessly in love with each other. They showed it during the day she went over for dinner with Aqua and when Ai was bold enough to openly make out with her husband in a public place like the mall. So why Ai's behavior was the same until her relationship with Naruto was revealed on her own accord?
"Naruto-san has three whiskers on each cheek. Minato-kun and Sapphire have two on each cheek, though they are faint, you can see them up close. Aqua-kun and Ruby have none…" She wrote again in the notebook.
"Her family environment was not good, not according to her personality prior to her love declaration. When I met her, I noticed that she held her chopsticks awkwardly, developmental disorder? Hmm." Akane talked to herself as she wrote in her notepad again.
"But… she is the confident type. Her eyes show full self-confidence. Everything she does, it's with purpose." She thought. Then she turned her attention to Naruto and any articles about him. She had a nagging feeling, a hunch really, and she wanted to indulge in it. She went through countless articles about him. They all mentioned that he was the famous author Jiraiya; he published his books three years prior to Ai revealing her relationship with him. Which begged the question of why Ai appeared to be careful with money.
"Naruto-san is most likely very wealthy. His novels are popular all over the globe and now with his novels being adapted into other media, his wealth has no doubt increased." She reasoned, but how was it possible for Ai to keep the fact that she had twins at such a young age with Naruto a secret? Even the best of media personalities, actors, and idols slip up, and Ai was no exception, especially given her careless and airheaded personality. Add that Ruby and Aqua lacked the one single feature that their younger siblings had, who were born after Ai's declaration….
"Could it be that…" She trailed off, no, that seemed impossible. The day she spent having dinner with the Uzumaki Family showed anything but that. They were a rowdy and lively family, but they were also loving, kind, caring, and gentle with each other. She got all of that from a single dinner. Her analytical mind was working in overdrive. She shook her head, banishing this line of thought. No, there was no indication of such a possibility.
"The way Minato-kun and Aqua-kun treat each other, the way all four siblings treat each other says to the contrary." She reasoned with herself. The four siblings seemed to love each other very much, well, as much as siblings could love each other. If Minato was willing to go to such lengths for Aqua because she had been hurt, that meant any of them would be willing to back the others up.
"Family…" She muttered. Yes, family. Family meant everything to Aqua, and to the Uzumaki Family. She hummed as she clicked through severely more articles, anything that related to the Uzumaki Family. She had a few days before they had to shoot for the next episode of the show and she wanted to learn everything about not just Ai, but also about the Uzumaki Family.
"I will become Aqua-kun's ideal type!" She declared in earnest. She would get the affection of the boy she liked!
And that is a wrap! I initially wanted this chapter to be 10k, but I was tired and between work and all I was like, eh, around 9k should be fine so here we are lol. Next chapter won't be as long as this, but it'll for sure wrap up the arc. And I know that there will be errors in this chapter, they'll be ironed out when the chapters get updated bit by bit.
Now, With Akane in the know, and with Mem-Cho and Yuki telling her to take on a character, and with her finding out about his type, no thanks to Minato lol, Akane is determined to become his ideal type of girl to get closer to him. I know that this is a slight deviation from canon, where this happens after the video is released, but I reasoned this would be more organic with Akane knowing everything and being involved.
Aqua isn't nearly as cold hearted and manipulative as in canon, especially when it comes to a girl he feels so strongly for. He won't do something so damaging as announcing to the world that she tired to commit suicide. Anyways, that's all for now, I'll see you all next chapter!
