Raising Naruto ( Minato x Kushina )

[Damien_Akira]

It began with a secret. A secret best kept far away from the prying eyes of the general public. The wife of the Yondaime, a jinchurki known as Kushina Uzumaki was due to give birth to their son. A nameless youth who was to be born in cave on the outskirts of the Hidden Leaf village. No one knew of this save for a select few. They were Kakashi Hatake, Hiruzen Sarutobi & Biwako, Hiruzen’s wife. The biting chill of the October air swept over the cave’s entrance as Minato carefully monitored the marking on his wife’s belly, regulating it with the warmth of his chakra radiating from his palm- ensuring the seal on its vessel wouldn’t break. “Hang in there, Kushina.” Minato encouraged her, “It’ll all be over soon enough.” It was imperative that The Fourth maintained stability over the Nine-Tails’ seal as it was at its weakest during childbirth; and the beast inside Kushina could potentially escape, ultimately resulting in her death.

Outside a handful of guards, Anbu, setup and defended the site with a barrier that served to keep out intruders. However, it was to no avail. A masked individual -lurking in the shadows- had slipped passed its veil. One-by-one the sentries posted at the mouth of the cave were slaughtered mercilessly by this assailant. He had picked the perfect opportunity too. Their offspring had just been born unto this world; and already he was faced with certain death. Without warning the assassin entered the cave, picked off the midwives, including the Third’s wife, Biwako and snatched the innocent infant- who was bundled in an orange blanket- away from them; and threatened to kill the child if Minato even dared to restore the seal placed upon Kushina.

Conflicted, heavily weighing his options between the life of his wife and his newborn son; they had aptly chosen to name '"Naruto". Minato selected to save his son first. Surely, he- “The Yellow Flash”- was fast enough to rescue both Naruto and Kushina, right? Wrong. The masked man had seemed to anticipate his actions and rigged the baby’s blanket with explosive tags. Stricken with disbelief, Minato looked to Kushina before activating his “Flying Thunder God” technique to take their son to safety, reluctant to leave her behind- at the hands of their attacker.

That’s when it happened. All hell broke loose. The corporeal fox-demon, Kurama had been extracted from Kushina Uzumaki- sealing her fate. She was going to die, unless the Kyuubi was sealed into her core once more. This was no easy task. Minato had his hands full. He now had to fight not only this stranger, but a demon that leveled the tallest of mountains as though they were merely sand castles on a beach- all while protecting his son, Naruto. Minato could only imagine how things were going through Kushina’s eyes.

 

[Kushina]

If only she had more time to pester Mikoto about the woes of childbirth. Biwako, as saintly as she was for overseeing the birth of Kushina’s child, was far from a kindly midwife, and with a stern command had rushed Kushina along at the fastest speed the expectant mother could waddle at. As nice as it would be to have a proper room in the village’s hospital, aided by the topmost medical equipment, they couldn’t risk such a quaint luxury. With a jingle of her bracelet, Kushina ghosted her hand along her extended stomach in the gentlest notions of a touch. Today was going to be the big day, marked months in advance on the calendar both she and Minato fretted over and flipped with excitement and anxiety. They were going to be parents.

They were going to be parents!

Kushina wished she could have told everyone and anyone who would listen to oh-so-happy news, but she knew how important it was to keep the exact day of the birth a secret. Yet despite everyone’s carefulness, despite all the precautions, how had it all gone so wrong?

With shallow breaths, Kushina’s lungs filled with oxygen, and just enough to let out a weak sob. The stranger stood between them and happiness. He had their son – he had their Naruto. “Minato,” she whispered—no, begged, of her husband with his name alone. Her eyes, wet with tears, pleaded with him to do something. Their child was at risk, her well-being be damned! She could barely sit up from the delivery table, let alone stand, and with just enough strength she witnessed Minato secure they’re child and vanish in a flash. The explosion from the many tags strung on his blanket shook the cave, but despite the stranger’s trick, the two were safe somewhere.

Which was more than could be said for her.

“Thank goodness,” Kushina breathed, her arms giving out and forcing her to collapse back down onto the table. Her bright red bangs clung to her sweat slick forehead, her exhaustion practically palpable as the stranger drew near. Tired eyes struggled to stay open, and in the dimly lit cave whose light was slowly being blocked out by the stranger’s hand being placed over her eyes, she told him, “You won’t win.”

It was unfortunate that the deck was stacked against them like this. Kushina wasn’t one to gamble, but even she could see how cruel fate was being with the hand it dealt her. After undergoing the stressors of childbirth, she was forced to endure even more pain as the beast inside her was freed from her singular form. Kyuubi’s bindings destroyed, the stranger’s intent made reality… It was a miracle she’d survived, and despite Minato’s quick save, she thanked him instead for allowing her to see their child once more. She feared, above all else, that this would be for the last time. Delicately cupping such small red cheeks, Kushina gathered the infant to her with a pathetic sob. She was stronger than this—better than this—and even in her weakened state, she would show that.
She would protect her child.

And she would die doing so.

Or so she thought.

Her eyes had never felt so heavy in her life, and even with her impressive strength and resilience, it took an eternity for her to open them properly. A white ceiling greeted Kushina, blank and indistinguishable. The air around her smelt sterile, laced with the pungent smell of decaying flowers, and aside from a distant, patterned beep, she heard no other sound. Really, she felt as though she were in a dream, heavy and lightheaded all at once. Kushina tilted her head, let it fall heavily to the right and provide her with a better view of part of her surroundings. Dozens of bouquets and vases of flowers stacked a mile high on the nightstand beside her bed and even crowded the windowsill. She couldn’t even name half of the blossoms she saw, too distracted by their various colors and shapes for her addled mind to work. Were they for her? She couldn’t recall, but they looked so lovely framed by the setting sun.

With a cringe, Kushina turned her head to her left and blankly took in the sight of the IV bag dangling beside her, pale eyes roving the cord as it twisted to her arm like a full creek winding through a forest. She moved her arm a fraction to get a better look at where the syringe nestled into her arm and didn’t seem to quite understand why it was there. Fingers twitched, turned over and grazed the white blanket covering her stomach. Still distended and heavy with—

Kushina shot bolt upright, regret immediately biting into her as shocks of pain littered her abdomen. She couldn’t help but hyperventilate as her shaking hands rove over the somewhat smaller circle of her once pregnant stomach. Every breath was difficult to take, but she ignored the shallow pain as shock set in.
Her baby was gone.

Her baby was gone.

Had she enough oxygen, she would have screamed along with her heart rate monitor as it beeping went ballistic to match her fear. Frantically kicking off the blanket, Kushina hiked up her hospital gown over her protruding stomach and let her quivering fingers dig into the bandages wrapped around her torso. “Naruto,” she murmured to a child she knew wasn’t there. She’d given birth to him in that cave… Where was he?

She scratched at the bandages just as two nurses rushed into the room, the door being flung open hardly distracting her from trying to remove her bandages. One gripped her left wrist and pinned it back with concern, the other returning to the hall to call for help before assisting the other in trying to restrain her. “Kushina, please, everything is all right!” One tried to console.

“You need to calm down! You could open your injuries!”

“Where is he?” Kushina demanded, her eyes wild and brimming with tears. “Where is... he… They…” She took ragged breaths and swallowed hard around the lump in her throat. “Where are they? W-Where’s Minato? And… And Naruto… They…”

She couldn’t seem to settle, even as the nurses tried to guide her hands from her bandaged torso.

 

[Damien_Akira]

“Thank goodness. Naruto isn’t hurt.” Minato sighed in relief. In his arms was a crying newborn. Before he could take a good look at his own son- a sharp pain piercing through his foot caused him to gasp. It was a large chunk of wood from the explosion the masked man had caused. The injury instantly brought Minato’s mind back to what had taken place just moments ago.

‘He forced me to use the Flying Raijin Jutsu... His target is Kushina… and he managed to sucessfully separate us.’ Minato calmly processed as he removed the sliver of wood from his limb and flung it into the air. ‘I must hurry.’ By time the wood had struck the dirt, Minato was gone. The Yondaime later reappeared in a safehouse to place Naruto inside of it. “You’ll be safe here.” He told the boy, a warm reassuring smile crossing his lips.

The wind howled half-heartedly, wisping through Minato’s golden locks.
It carried a song of death with as it gradually picked up its tempo and beat a storm all the way up into the clouds. Towering before him was The Nine Tails. Its enormous claws only seconds from flattening a weakened Kushina. The ground shook. Dust and rocks were sent flying about at random with the landing of the its paws. “I must say, you’re as quick as your nickname.” The masked man commented. “But you’re too late.” He added, as he watched Minato escape with his wife.

~~

Minato brought Kushina back to the safehouse- where Naruto was. He’d be damned if Kushina died without seeing their son once more. Cradling Kushina in his arms, he walked her over to the large bed where Naruto was resting. “Just stay with Naruto.” He told her. As Minato laid her in the bed with their child, he could see that Kushina’s eyes were wet and flooding with tears. It had been ages since he’d seen her this vulnerable. The scene threatened to bring a stream of tears flowing down his own cheeks. It took everything within him to resist the very notion of it. Instead the feeling of sadness transformed into anger as she whimpered, “Naruto.” His fist were now trembling violently at his sides.

The sound of a closet sliding open in the room was made audible as Kushina said, “Minato, Thank you. Good luck.” Minato’s back was turned to her as he had now donned his cloak which were embroidered with the kanji, “Fourth Hokage”. …Kushina’s parting words made it seem like this fight could be his very last. However, they only served to strengthen his resolve as Minato replied, ”I’ll be right back.” Kushina had previously informed him of where the masked man was headed next.

The Hidden Leaf.

----

Back in the Leaf Village, The Nine Tails had been summoned and was now terrorizing its denizens. The Kyuubi was on a warpath- destroying everything in its sight. The population panicked as they were sent fleeing from their shattered homes, and places of work. Some narrowly escaped with their lives. ‘Was Kushina’s seal broken?...Despite all precautions, have we failed?’ Hiruzen questioned as he put on his uniform. Plumes of smoke filtered the night air, as explosive tagged kunai were being hurled at the beast-detonating on impact. A small team lead by Lord Third was doing everything in their power to prevent the demon from killing off those who were evacuating the village.

---

A silhouetted figure in the distance landed atop the precipice of a mountain, surveying the nightmarish scene before him. It was Minato.

‘As Hokage, I will protect the village, my family, right now. This is what I need to do. I will not allow it to do what it pleases!’ The blond vowed. Suddenly, the beast turned and began snarling in his direction. “So you’ve noticed.” Minato stated firmly, as the beast charged a ball of violet colored chakra between its maw and launched it at him like a cannonball. Unwavering at the massive size of energy hurling at him. Minato flexed his fingers into a series of hand signs activating a ‘Teleportation Barrier’. “Do not fuck with me!” Minato warned, brandishing his trademark tri-tipped kunai betwixt the palms of his hands. He watched as the attack against him mowed down several homes, and business establishments as it drew closer and closer to him.

“I have to be careful where I send something like this.” Minato said thoughtfully, taking the villagers into consideration.

Once in range, the ball of chakra slowly sunk into the mountain side through a teleportation seal. A few seconds later it reappeared outside of the village as a colossal explosion.

“I must report all that’s happened to Lord Third immediately.” Minato gathered as he stared down the scarred, barren path of land that was once filled with buildings.

A hand crept up behind Minato slowly going for the collar of his cloak, prompting the Yellow Flash to turn around- striking kunai first. Reaming the blade through the temple of this man’s skull proved to be futile. It had appeared that his target’s body was intangible. The blade continued to drive on through the void, until Minato was being held by his wrist and facing the masked individual from before. Surmising that Minato was at a clear disadvantage, the assassin declared, “ I’m your opponent and it’s all over.”

The only option was to retreat back to Naruto’s birthplace...

--

‘My attack missed’ Minato groaned as he fell to the ground. ‘What is that jutsu?’ Minato pondered. The masked freak had tried to drag him into some otherworldly dimension, but he made it out in time. The jutsu the stranger used rivaled- No, it was better than both his own and the Second Hokage’s jutsu. Suddenly Minato gasped, and let his eyes widened in disbelief as the man materialized out of the spiralling thin air before him once more.

“I won’t let you get away.” He taunted. “Are you Uchiha Madara?” Minato inquired. At the mention of Madara’s name, the man removed his hood and let his sleeves fall to his sides. “No, That’s impossible. He’s dead.” Minato continued. The figure cocked his head to the side and responded, “I wonder about that.” Minato, growing frustrated with this shinobi’s games cut straight to the point, “At this point it doesn’t matter who you are. But why are you targeting the Hidden Leaf?” …”I could say I did it on a whim, or that I planned it, or that it’s war, or that it’s for peace.” Chains rattling to the ground fell from his right sleeve as he shook them loose- forcing Minato to grimace and brace for an attack.

‘Whatever the case, he’s no ordinary man! He can control the Nine Tails and his jutsu surpasses mine and Lord Second’s. And he has some dangerous ideology.’

'I must deal with him now.' Minato concluded as transporting to the Leaf would be far more chaotic than engaging him here; and he’d have to handle the situation quickly because not only was Kushina’s life still on the line here, but if this guy was anything like Madara- Then it wouldn’t long until the Kyuubi broke free of the Summoning Jutsu Minato placed it under.

Entrusting the village to Lord Third was all that he could do now. Charging full speed at the man who claimed that the people of the Leaf had no hope left. Minato plunged his dagger into yet another optical illusion. He anticipated as much though, but the twin layer of iron snaking around his waist and tightening against his abdomen came as a bit of a surprise to him. Still, he managed to escape its bindings as his body flickered away from them. Analyzing the situation Minato realized that his opponent was not only stalling for the release of the Nine Tails, but this battle ultimately would come down to whoever could strike the other first.

Minato dashed madly at the chain user to appear as though he were going to cut him, yet again, but this time he flung his tri-tipped kunai through the forehead of their crescent patterned mask. When they were within an equidistance, a foot away from each other. Minato vanished. A bright blue hue of radiant energy illuminated the forest clearing. It was positioned directly above the kidnapper, held in Minato’s right hand, in the shape of a whirling cyan colored sphere. The assassin muttered, “I win.” As he reached out for Minato’s cloak, but Minato teleported to the kunai he had previously throne, and warped behind him-crushing the masked man with enough force to decimate the landscape with relative ease.

“That was my Flying Raijin Level 2.”

The Fourth told him as he marked his body with a seal. Minato wouldn’t let up this time. He would instantly transport himself to wherever the man was, which was high above the crater he now stood in. A fine mist of dust obscuring his position. “This is what I meant by elusive. I should have never let my guard dow-” Minato didn’t let him finish. He was now right in front of the man’s chest- close enough to hear his heartbeat, his palm fashioning a Contract Seal on his target's body.

“With this, The Nine Tails no longer belongs to you.” Minato affirmed. “The mask man then leaped away to escape and foreshadowed his vengeful return with these words. “The Nine Tails will be my plaything again. I will take over the world; and there are so many ways to go about doing that.”

‘That tone...He was not joking around.’