Disclaimer: I do not own ANY Naruto characters, these awesome characters belong to Kishimoto.

(EDITED 10/17/2021)

The Fourth Hokage's son

Chapter Two

It had been an hour since they arrived at the mission location and the signal for their individual investigation was finally initiated by their current squad leader, the newly appointed Dog — Hatake Kakashi's mask successor. Even the infamous Ibiki Morino was with them, doing a personal investigation on behalf of the Hokage.

Itachi Uchiha didn't really know what he was supposed to be looking for. All he knew was that there had been a report about an incident occurring somewhere near the border of the Fire country and they were sent to investigate what was going on. Though if Itachi really thought about it, he presumed that the Hokage was still looking for a clue regarding his late wife's kidnapping four years ago.

Four years ago, Kushina Uzumaki-Namikaze, the secret wife of the Fourth Hokage had been reported missing after going on a simple B-Rank Mission to a small village near the border of the Land of Fire. The mission was supposed to take at most three days. However, even after a week had passed, there had been no signs of the redhead passing through the gates of Konoha.

The Hokage had nearly gone insane with worry. His killing intent had coated Konoha in a thick, suffocating smog that persisted, day in and day out; simultaneous heart attacks happening here and there due to the all-consuming viscosity of the aura. Because of this, many people had tried to comfort and calm the panicking Hokage; but the man had not been placated in the slightest.

At that time, for the first time in shinobi history; the calm, level-headed, and cheerful Yellow Flash of Konoha looked ready to snap, and that look had frightened those who saw it personally far more than any nation's threat of war.

The Hokage had sent many shinobi to look for any trace of his wife and any possible clues and trails that may lead them to find her. They were all expressly told by terrified Chunin paper-pushers at the Mission Desk, that they must be very thorough in their task, lest the Yellow Flash of Konoha would really snap and go on an indiscriminate killing spree in search of his wife.

Although thorough they were, the result was the same. There was no sign of Kushina Uzumaki. They had managed to find the three-pronged kunai of the Fourth near Nami no Kuni, but aside from that; they had all returned empty-handed.

Fraught with despair, the man didn't even sleep or eat properly for a full month, and still, the following month wasn't even better at all. The young leader buried himself deeper and deeper in his duty as a Hokage, his already impressive skills honed to an even finer razor-sharp edge. Although Konoha benefited from the sudden change of personality from their famed Hokage, the cause was too depressing to warrant a celebration.

Four years later, and the bags under the Hokage's eyes hadn't disappeared or lessened, but with the help of his students, closest friends, and sensei, Jiraiya the Toad Sannin; he pulled through – barely.

He hadn't moved on from his beloved wife, and it looked like he wasn't planning to move on at all. The news put a damper on his fangirls in the village that had gained new hope. Minato Namikaze was determined to love no one but Kushina Uzumaki-Namikaze.

Itachi didn't care much about the fangirls' issues. On the other hand, he certainly cared for the Hokage's health and wellbeing. As one of the Fourth's personal ANBU guards, he was able to witness how hard Kushina's disappearance was for Minato-sama. If Itachi could do something about it, he would do it without a second thought. Minato Namikaze had done a lot for the village, especially for the Uchiha.

Minato-sama had saved the Uchiha clan from their demise when the clan was on the brink of planning a coup d'état. He'd opened up new opportunities and acknowledged their clan by suggesting to Itachi's father that he should permit people outside of the clan to join the Uchiha Police Force; and Fugaku Uchiha, agreed, albeit rather reluctantly.

Surprisingly, in contrast to everyone's expectations, people outside of the Uchiha clan actually started applying more and more to the Police Force Department, from different clans of Konoha to the civilian sectors of the village. The applications to be approved piled up like a mountain in his father's office one day that left many visiting Uchiha elders gaping in bemused astonishment.

And that was just the start of the many developments the Fourth Hokage did for the sake of the Uchiha. Little by little, the citizens of Konoha started to feel comfortable with the Uchiha clan and proceeded to cautiously interact with its clan members. Soon, the members of the clan were not the only ones living on the outskirts of the village that was the Uchiha district. Shinobi of several different clans started living inside the compound and occupied buildings and land that had been empty up until that point.

This was when the previous quiet neighborhood of the Uchiha became a lively district that many villagers visited in order to relax and to explore the food carts and other goods. The Uchiwa fans, especially those that were paper and had pretty designs, were becoming the new trend in Konoha in recent times, and one could only imagine why that could be.

The next thing they knew, the wall that Tobirama Senju, Second Hokage of Konoha, had created to divide and isolate the Uchiha clan from the village, had been destroyed – much to the everlasting joy of the clan and never-ending horror of the elder council.

The peace among the other clans and the citizens of Konoha to the Uchiha clan wasn't perfect, but still, the difference that the Fourth Hokage had created did wonder for the clan's confidence.

The results seemed so surreal that it made Itachi itch to form the hand sign for the Genjutsu release every time he walked his way home from a mission with an air of satisfaction surrounding his body. The peace they were now feeling was sort of a dream come true for the young ANBU.

The Uchiha were now slowly becoming one with the Konoha populace, and he had Minato-sama to thank for that.

So Itachi made it his personal mission to secretly do him a few little favors here and there, such as help with cleaning Minato-sama's desk whenever he fell asleep after reading and stamping a pile of papers on his desk, making him coffee before he woke up and many other small things Itachi refused to mention. He made sure that Minato-sama wouldn't know it was him who was responsible for these little things, yet, Itachi felt like the Hokage still knew that it was his doing - if his small smiles and out of nowhere gratitude was any indication.

So when he stumbled over a four-year-old boy who looked like a complete minified replica of the legendary Yellow Flash –who was at that time, playing with a bunch of what was undoubtedly Kyuubi's chakra —something short-circuited in his mind and the combining effect of the dark, suffocating chakra and the sheer disbelief when faced with the impossible, made Itachi Uchiha, a genius said to rival the likes of Madara and Hashirama… slip.

The instant he started falling, Itachi's reflexes kicked in as he threw out a spool of thin steel wire that quickly coiled around a nearby tree, yanking hard on the wire. Soon after he regained his foothold and gently allowed himself to slide down the tree all the way to the ground.

He had not allowed himself to fall in what seemed like ages, and a sense of shame tickled his neck as he realized he had let himself be stunned enough to lose all of his concentration. He immediately pushed those thoughts aside as he gazed at the surprised blond kid who looked near the age of his younger brother.

'Four years ago,' were the words echoing inside Itachi's mind, many scenarios and possibilities flitting through his mind as he processed this earth-shattering revelation.

The kid looked at him with wonder in those oh-so-cerulean eyes, slightly dazed from the intruder's lightning-fast entrance. But the boy recovered fast and leaped up, grinning and pointing at the equally dazed teenager in glee.

"Hey, are you gonna try to catch me like those other people?"

Itachi blinked in response, opening his mouth to answer but apparently the blink was all the excited blond needed for confirmation, and he took off like a rocket, yelling things like "Catch me if you can!" and "So slow!"

Of course, Itachi quickly leaped in pursuit, but the most bizarre and impossible thing kept happening. Whenever he was sure he was close or anywhere near to the speedy kid, somehow, he kept on escaping his grasp time and time again. It was truly incomprehensible to Itachi how this could even be possible.

It was half an hour later before Itachi gave up, sitting his heaving body against one of the many trees dotted around. If anyone saw how the ever-composed and cool-headed Itachi Uchiha was bested by a four-year-old in speed, he would unquestionably become the laughingstock of their clan and the whole village. His father would undoubtedly look at him with a scandalized expression and immediately restart his training from scratch and he would do it gladly.

Itachi looked up from his quiet musing when he heard a boisterous laugh in front of him. And there was the little devil, cackling at Itachi's suffering while clutching his stomach and pointing a shaking finger towards the Uchiha's prone figure; tears were prickling at the corners of the boy's eyes as he kept on guffawing.

A rare twinge of irritation prickled the edge of Itachi's mind as he watched the little rascal whiz in front of him with so much laughter that it looked like the kid was just a second from rolling on the ground in his merriment.

Realizing his appearance was pretty much in shambles in front of the kid, Itachi grunted in annoyance, and with all the grace of the Uchiha Heir and clan prodigy could manage, Itachi picked himself up from the ground and dusted off the dirt and numerous leaves from his ANBU uniform.

He slowly made his way towards the laughing child and couldn't help but once again, noticed the uncanny resemblance he had with a certain redhead who had been responsible for the countless pranks in Konoha and numerous wreckages until her sudden disappearance four years ago.

Itachi hid his accelerating heartbeat with a blank, stoic face as he knelt in front of the child. The said child had tried to stop himself from laughing by stifling his mouth with both of his chubby hands but was currently failing miserably at doing so.

He could practically see a faint silhouette of the Fourth Hokage grinning sheepishly while rubbing a hand at the back of his head, and by his side was a familiar, mischievous-looking redhead, cackling evilly. It almost like he was seeing a ghost as he slowly touched the boy's whiskered cheeks. The child stared at him in surprise and a small measure of suspicion.

Itachi silently gulped once before he opened his mouth to speak, afraid that his voice would crack. "Hello, my name is…Itachi. What's your name?" he greeted the child, tone gentle, trying to soothe any suspicions that the boy may harbor.

He also knew that he was breaking more than a few rules by using his real name instead of his ANBU nickname 'Weasel', but a nagging feeling that lying to this child would only result in more distrust changed his mind.

The kid scrutinized Itachi with sharp eyes beyond his age, and as if coming to a decision, "My name's Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze, dattebayo!" he greeted enthusiastically, grinning so wide at Itachi that it made his own cheeks feel sore, and at the same time, his entire body became numb. Both last names echoed inside his head like it was an empty cave.

Itachi swallowed thickly again, unbidden hope was slowly creeping into his whole body as he heard the familiar surnames straight from the boy's mouth. He opened and closed his mouth a few times in hesitation before he finally let out the question that he really wanted to ask since he saw the boy which would either confirm or extinguish what his intuition said.

"D-Do you have someone with you?" he asked tentatively, almost dreading to hear the answer but still holding onto a single, thin thread of hope.

"Mommy?" the boy asked curiously, eyes shining with innocence.

Itachi's palms became clammy as he nodded. "Y-yes, do you know what's her name?" He waited with bated breath and felt the world stop as the boy gave him a Minato-like grin while happily answering his question.

"Kushina Uzumaki-Namikaze, dattebayo!" the boy, Naruto exclaimed, punching his fist upward in a victorious pose.

And Itachi's world spun under him as his legs weakened. He slowly sat down on the grass in front of the boy, feeling the weight of the world suddenly dumped on his already burdened shoulders again. Once more, the ironclad chains weighed down on his mind and body. It was almost unbearable.

And yet he kept on going, one stifling step at a time. It was the least he could do for his Hokage. He took off his mask. Another regulation that had been broken, but he was sure that the Hokage would forgive him for this. The ANBU commander, on the other hand, was sure to tear him a new one though.

"Naruto. Do you know where your mother is?" Itachi asked, his onyx orbs looking deep into the boy's eyes, the question seeming casual but the implications reaching deep into his soul.

With that, the child's eyes widened as if he suddenly remembered something. "A-Ah! mommy's hurt! We need to go to the doctor! Mommy said bad people are coming–" And then the boy abruptly stopped and recoiled away from him as if stung. "A-are you a bad guy?" Naruto asked Itachi with fear in his eyes.

Even though his speech pattern seemed incomplete, Itachi understood him clearly. Looking at the innocent child in front of him, his mind settled the mission he had set out for; his heart couldn't help but ache for little Naruto, for his mother, and for the miserable Hokage back in Konoha who wasn't aware that he had been a father for four years now.

Itachi immediately shook his head and gave little Naruto a small smile. "No Naruto-kun, I'm a friend. I'll help you treat your mommy," he grabbed the first aid kit that was strapped on his left hip and showed it to the boy, "See? I have this med-kit to help your mommy. Can you take me to her?" he kindly requested. To his horror though, little Naruto started bawling, and Itachi Uchiha panicked.

'The Fourth Hokage wouldn't punish me severely for making his son cry…right?' Itachi thought, a tad nervous as he approached the boy in a placating manner.

"D-don't cry! I—oof!" Itachi wasn't able to finish comforting the child before he was tackled to the ground.

"Thank you so much, Tachi-nii!" little Naruto exclaimed happily as he tightened his arms around Itachi.

Itachi's big-brother instincts kicked in and he immediately hugged the boy back, if not a bit awkwardly, managing to soothe him just a bit. He prayed to the high heavens that this would keep the boy from crying.

This was a secret that he wanted to take to his grave. That he – Itachi Uchiha; pride of the Uchiha clan, was a sucker for crying children.

He was in the middle of rubbing the boy's back when he heard the tell-tale whistling of a kunai aimed straight towards his unguarded back.

Itachi disappeared so fast one could say he vanished into thin air. He scooped up the child into his arm, disregarding his yelp of shock, and leaped away from their previous position.

Itachi had already landed on top of a tree branch when the seal on the thrown kunai detonated, a large explosion demolishing where they had been standing not a second ago and covering the whole place with smoke. The ceramic mask was securely returned to its position on his face, his eyes flashing dangerously.

Naruto tightened his hold around Itachi's neck as he shook in panic. He seemed to be heavily affected by the killing intent that was being projected towards them. To Itachi, it was negligible, however to a child who only had experienced it a few times, it was a terrifying experience.

"T-the bad guys! Tachi-niisan! It's them!" Naruto exclaimed in horror, eyes wide. Itachi quickly noted the information down, shifting his charge from his front to his back.

"Shh, don't worry…I won't let them hurt you," Itachi murmured as he tightened his hold on little Naruto, not once taking his eyes off the five Iwa shinobi who had ambushed them.

"Bring the kid to us, Konoha scum. Then maybe we will kill you mercifu—" Itachi didn't let the monologuing Iwagakure shinobi finish his speech and swiftly dished out three tagged kunai in front of him, the glinting objects ricocheting off each other towards the offending group.

By the time the sound of a blast rang throughout the forest, Itachi and Naruto were long gone. Itachi hoped the combination of a stun, smoke, and explosive tag was enough to delay them for a bit.

"Naruto, where's your mother?" Itachi asked Naruto as he sprinted away from their pursuers with a few Shunshin – courtesy of his dear friend, Shisui.

"T-there! Inside the big cave!" Naruto answered despite his shaking voice and Itachi nodded, his eyes brightening to a deep crimson red, his Sharingan flitting around scanning the scenery.

Up ahead he caught sight of a subdued spot of familiar chakra, fluctuating agitatedly.

'She's injured just like Naruto said if her chakra is anything to go by,' Itachi thought as he landed at the mouth of the cave.

Without pause, Itachi flitted inside, before stopping abruptly as he stared in wonderment at the sight in front of him. Any remaining strength he had left in his knees after all the excitements drained away, and he subconsciously knelt in one knee in front of the unmoving body.

He would recognize that splash of red hair anywhere, for it belonged to the unconscious body of Kushina Uzumaki, the long-missing wife of the Fourth Hokage.

*END OF CHAPTER TWO*

A/N: Special thanks to my betas! This wouldn't be possible without your awesome help.

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