Archive of Our Own ^beta

It was quiet in the corridor. Shadows danced on the white walls of the hospital, and a boy of three stood beside his mother. He didn’t actually understand, but he did realize that his mother was upset. Very upset.

In her arms, she carried two newborn babies. One was a boy and the other a girl. The woman hugged them to her chest, almost crushing them- she hugged so hard.

“It can’t be true!” she shook her head furiously, tears rolling down her cheeks, “Minato wouldn’t leave me!”

Hiruzen could only watch as the woman broke down in front of him. But there was nothing he could say to her. Minato was gone. At least in all the ways that mattered. As the Kyuubi broke free from the seal during the twin’s birth, Minato used a chakra splitting seal to seal the creature into his newborn twins. But as a result, Minato entered a strange death-like state. Not quite dead but nor was he alive. Judging by the jutsu he’d used, and Tsunade’s diagnose, Minato would never wake up again.

However, he didn’t require breathing aid as he breathed on his own, so he wasn’t dead enough to be buried. Nor were people confident enough that he would one day wake up. As such, Minato was placed in a private and permanent hospital room on the top floor of the hospital. He was nothing more than a vegetable.

But the three-year-old Naruto didn’t understand that.

“Where’s daddy, mommy?” he pulled on her sleeve.

The woman looked down at him, sobbed and looked away.

“I-I can’t!” she backed away from him. Shaking her head as tears continued to fall down her face. Hiruzen frowned but nodded.

“Naruto-chan can stay with me for now. But just until you can come to accept this turn of events.” Hiruzen reached down and picked up the confused-looking boy. “Do you want to stay with me for a few days?” he asked kindly.

Naruto tilted his head to the side, “Sleepover?”

The man smiled, “That’s right, Naruto-chan. A sleepover.”

“Is mommy gonna be there?”

Kushina took another step back.

Hiruzen shook his head, “No, Naruto-chan. Just us.”

The boy’s eyes drooped in disappointment. “Okay…”

Kakashi was running as fast as he could through the hospital. He couldn’t believe it! After 18 years his sensei had finally awoken!

The Hokage robe created waves behind him as he rounded the corner and reached a cluster of gossiping nurses.

“Hokage-sama!” they shrieked, quickly stepping aside to allow him through.

“Get back to work.” He had the mind to order. The man turned to the closest door and entered the old hospital room. A room that used to be filled with flowers, but stopped after a decade of no signs of Minato waking up. People had lost hope of ever seeing him 'alive' again.

The room was bare and somewhat cold-looking.

In the middle of the room was Tsunade and Shizune, both conducting tests on the man that was supposed to be over forty- but had in fact not aged a day since he entered his strange coma.

“Sensei?” Kakashi stared disbelievingly at the blond man. He looked confused, perhaps even a bit dazed.

Minato turned to the side, finding a man that looked identical to Hatake Sakumo. “Kakashi…?” his voice cracked from disuse.

“You’re awake…” Kakashi whispered but then quickly turned to the women. “How is he? How is he even awake, why is he awake!?”

Tsunade sighed, “To answer your questions Hokage-sama,” she said while neither of them noticed Minato’s eyes widen in shock, “Frankly, I have no idea how or why he’s awake. By all means, he should be dead. Aside from that, he’s perfectly healthy, and once I’ve run a few more tests, he can leave. Your house, I’m guessing?”

“Yes.” Kakashi nodded. That summary and explanation would have to do for now. He’d get the details later. “Please inform the Anbu outside to set it up.”

“Of course.” She took a bow and left.

“Kakashi, is that really you?” Minato couldn’t believe that the full-grown man in front of him was his former student.

Kakashi looked at him sadly but nodded all the same. “It’s me.” He confirmed.

“How is this possible?” Worry taking root in the blond man’s stomach, “You’re supposed to be 15!”

“Sensei,” Kakashi walked around the bed, took a seat on one of the visiting chairs and looked straight at him, “You’ve been asleep for 18 years.” Minato sucked in a sharp, rattling breath, his heart thundering in his chest as shock overtook him, “Nobody thought you’d ever wake up again. But honestly, we couldn’t be certain considering the jutsu you used. You haven’t aged a day.” Kakashi explained, “A lot of things have changed since then. As you might have noticed, I’m Hokage now.” His eyes crinkled into a smile, “Not that I had a choice, but I’ll survive. I’ve been Hokage for almost six years now, entering my seventh.”

Minato swallowed thickly. It stung, his dream job was in the hands of another man, his former students, and here he sat- like an old abnormal and abandoned relic in a hospital bed. Logically, he knew that it would be ridiculous to think that they’d wait 18 years for him to wake up, but it still made him feel replaced. It really was ridiculous but still… He’d only been Hokage for nine months before the Kyuubi-

“What happened to the Kyuubi?” Minato asked, alarmed and mildly irritated that he didn’t ask about that first, “The twins? Kushina? What about Naruto?”

“Calm down sensei,” Kakashi spoke calmly, effectively shutting the man up. It was almost like being scolded by a parent. “They’re all alive.”

Minato let out a long, relieved breath. Thank the heavens. “When can I see them? How old is Naruto, twenty-one?”

Kakashi didn’t reply. Instead, he clutched the armrests on the chair and grimly wondered if he could make someone else tell him about Naruto and the rest of the Uzumaki-Namikaze’s.

“As I said,” he began quietly, “A lot of things have changed.”

Alarmed and suddenly growing sickly worried, Minato whispered, “Where’s Naruto?”

Kakashi looked up at his sensei, seeing the growing panic and concern, but somehow, he couldn’t find himself to want to sugar-coat the incoming blow. By all rights, Minato deserved the cold-hearted truth. No matter how harsh.

“Naruto is no longer in Konoha.” He explained, ignoring the incoming bombardment of questions, “He left when he became a jounin at twelve. He’s not set foot in the village since. He- “

“He’s a missing-nin? My Naruto? Come on, Kakashi, you don’t expect me to believe that!” Minato laughed dryly, yet his eyes pleaded for it not to be true. He couldn’t even phantom his beautiful son turning into a rogue.

“I never said he was a missing-nin,” Kakashi spoke mildly, much to Minato’s relief. “Doesn’t change the fact that he’s no longer in the village. He’s Jiraiya’s apprentice and is taking over the man’s spy-network once Jiraiya is ready to retire. But he’s not coming back to Konoha again. A lot of things happened to him here that he’d rather forget. And honestly, I don’t blame him. And as the current Hokage of Konoha, I’ve given him explicit permission to take on missions without having to return to Konoha to report or accept them. He takes on the missions I assign him, completes them within the assigned time and never fails to report back through a messenger toad. Naruto mostly takes on the missions that I want off the books or is too harsh for the regular forces. Naruto is good like that, never question orders and simply gets it done. It doesn't matter what it is. He’s a very reliable shinobi.” His eye crinkled with a smile once again.

Meanwhile, Minato’s mind was reeling. Why was Naruto taking missions like that? Why wasn’t he in the village? What happened to him in the village? But most importantly, when could he see him?

“Alright,” Minato placed a hand on his chest, taking a couple of steady breathes so he wouldn’t drive himself into a panic, “I have a lot of questions… I need to understand what’s going on.” He spoke, breathing in and out as Kakashi remained silent and by his side. “First off, where are Kushina and the twins?”

“They’re fine, and living in the village.” Was all he said and Minato could clearly pick up that Kakashi didn’t want to talk about them. Why?

“The twins are eighteen, yes?” he inquired.

“That’s correct. The twins names are Mito and Arashi. Both of them are jounin as of four months ago. They’re still getting the hang of the Kyuubi’s chakra, but they are doing well most of the time. Arashi is a tracking specialist while Mito is a certified medic.”

Minato frowned, that was unexpected. With the Kyuubi’s chakra, the two of them should be ninjutsu specialists at the very least. Heavy combat types. “I can understand tracking specialist… but medic?”

Kakashi nodded knowingly, “None of them likes fighting. I don’t send them on missions like that anymore. It doesn’t fare well for anyone involved.”

“What do you mean?”

The Hokage sighed, fixed the Yondaime Hokage with a steely eye that made a chill travel down Minato’s spine. He didn’t like that look. Not at all. “When Naruto was six, Kushina lost custody of him.”

“What!?” Minato flew up from his bed, standing before he even knew he’d moved, a million thoughts racing through his head as he tried to process what that meant.

“Sit down sensei,” Kakashi ordered. It wasn’t up for debate, and Minato slowly sank down into the mattress again. “When you ended up here, Kushina was left with newborn twins and a boy that looked exactly like you. She was grieving the loss of her husband, so Sandaime took him in for the time being. It was only meant to be for a couple of days so Kushina could gather herself and become well enough to take care of Naruto. A couple of days turned into weeks, months and before long- even a year.” Minato’s eyes were wild, barely believing what he was hearing. “We confronted her about it before we placed Naruto back in her care.” Kakashi grimaced behind his mask, his single eye laced with disgust, “She told him it was all his fault and that she hated him. All the while calling him your name. She called him Minato.”

Minato's heart dropped, and his blood turned to ice. “What…?” That couldn’t be true, right….?

“We had no idea she didn’t feed him and occasionally beat him. We didn’t figure that out until he was five.” Kakashi practically spat, “When Naruto turned six and entered the Academy, Sandaime had had enough of it all. Kushina began to pretend he didn’t exist. When we asked about him, she would always say ‘Naruto-who?’ Like it was some twisted joke. Naruto became a shadow in the Namikaze household until Sandaime finally relieved her of custody. He became the Hokage’s apprentice since he was incredibly talented. Studied hard and was quick to learn- much like you were.” He explained, trying to ignore the paling skin on the blond, “He graduated the Academy at the age of seven and the same day the boy made genin, he went to the Sandaime’s office and handed in a letter requesting his last name to be terminated. It was approved since he was practically an orphan anyway. After that, he became my student, and his apprenticeship with Sandaime ended.”

Minato could see, in a detached sort of way, how Kakashi fondly smiled behind his mask, “He was incredible. Unlike anything I’d ever seen before. He learned so fast, picking up things normal kids his age wouldn’t even notice. I taught him as much as I could, but he became chunin within just a year. Sandaime contacted Jiraiya after that, and he became the Sannin's apprentice within days. Once Naruto realized what Jiraiya did for a living, he wanted to be just like him. He saw it as a way to get out of the village he’d grown to practically despise because of Kushina and his siblings. But he was met with a condition; Naruto couldn’t join him until he made jounin. So, naturally, Naruto did everything in his power to make jounin as fast as possible."

Kakashi's expression then turned grim, "But the day Naruto passed his jounin exam was the day he left Konoha. He was only twelve.”

Tears burned behind Minato’s eyes, “How could this happen? Why would Kushina do that? Naruto was always so…” he clutched his eyes shut, feeling as the tears rolled down his cheeks. There were no stopping them anymore. “He was a ray of sunlight.”

“I know,” Kakashi said softly, “Everyone did. But Naruto is good at hiding things that make him sad. He smiles as an automatic defence, so nobody suspected anything. It was just pure chance that we saw that he missed patches of hair on his head and had claw marks from nails on his arms. Bruises here and there but if it wasn’t for the inconsistency, it could have been played off as practice injuries. When rumours started circulating about Kushina and Naruto, people were up in arms about it.” He said, shaking his head at the memory, “Sensei, people were furious. Arashi and Mito saw how Kushina treated Naruto and how the village began to despise her for her actions. They moved out when they had enough funds, and now they live in a two-room apartment in the shinobi district. Arashi turned to tracking because his dream is to find his older brother and bring him home. Mito became a medic so she could help heal whatever pain Kushina inflicted on him and also to see if she could help Kushina herself.”

Kakashi then sighed, leaning back in the chair as Minato tried to wipe the tears from his cheeks. They wouldn’t stop coming.

“It was worse than we first thought.” The Hokage recalled quietly, “Arashi and Mito were out on a mission around Tanzaku Gai and heard a rumour about Jiraiya of the Sannin being in the area. They knew that Naruto travelled with him so they made a detour on their way back from their mission. They found him, Naruto, and the first thing Mito did was to rush forward and throw her arms around him.” The man then grimaced, running a hand over his masked face, “She ended up with four broken ribs, a broken arm and a concussion. Apparently, with age, Naruto grew to hate contact with women. Especially red-heads. It doesn't help that Mito looks a lot like Kushina. He acted purely on instinct- to defend himself… But Naruto is strong, the strength of a Kage. Just imagine it yourself- what would happen if you threw your arms around Onoki of Iwa?” Minato blanched, despite the tears that continued to roll down his cheeks.

The world had gone to hell after he used that jutsu.

“It wasn’t his intention to hurt her. Mito knows that now. Even Arashi understands that. But it hurts them all the same. They miss their brother, and they love him- but he can’t stand being around them because they look like Kushina. They haven't looked for him after that happened. Naruto scared them, albeit unknowingly. When he gets angry, he gets really angry. Enough to scare even me.” Kakashi admitted sheepishly, noting the disbelieving look on his sensei’s face.

“He’s a Sage, you know." He continued, voice entirely fond. "Seal Master as well. Ninjutsu expert, ungodly stamina and fast as lightning. Even if he wasn’t in the village, people here heard about him. Read about him in the bingo-book. He earned the rank of S at seventeen and received a flee-on-sight order by sixteen. Everyone here wanted him to return to Konoha, to pick up the mantle of Hokage when Sandaime finally decided to retire. Naturally, he refused. Quite literally told them to ‘go fuck themselves’, so that left me. I was the only other choice after Naruto. If I didn’t accept the title, the council threatened to overwrite the Sandaime’s apprenticeship that connected Naruto with Jiraiya and force him back to the village whether he liked it or not. Otherwise, he’d find himself as a missing-nin. I accepted the title because of that. Naruto is like my little brother, and this village has taken enough from him already. We have no right to force him to take up the Hokage mantle after everything that’s happened to him here.”

Minato’s head hung low, long since having left the tears to roll down his cheeks freely. There was no stopping them. All he could think about was his beautiful blond and blue-eyed son. The light of his life. The most expensive and rare of gems. His firstborn and a boy that reminded him so much of himself. His whirlpool. His boy. Minato clenched his eyes shut again, sobbing as the realisation of having lost his son finally begun to take root inside of him. Naruto was gone. His son was gone.

But there were more things he had to know. “Does he know about me?” He finally managed to whisper in between sobs.

Kakashi was quiet for a long moment but nodded, “He does. But he never visited you.” He admitted regretfully, “I tried to make him… but he didn’t want to see someone that was said to look like him and was the cause of all his suffering. Even if you never intended to be seen that way, Kushina made you into a person Naruto grew to hate. He hated being called Minato, to get reminded that he looked like you and that you two were so alike.” Kakashi fell silent for a moment, watching forlornly at his sensei who pulled up his legs to his chest, crying harder and harder as Kakashi’s heart broke for the man. But he wasn't done. “I sent him a message, informing him that you were awake.”

Minato already knew what he was going to say next. He didn’t want to hear it, didn’t want to accept it, “He said he didn’t have a father. I’m sorry, sensei,” The Hokage hung his head slightly, Minato’s sobs becoming even louder, “I’ve tried. I really have… I’ve done my very best, but it’s not enough. It’s never enough. I can’t reach him and neither can Jiraiya. He’s not coming back.”

Minato’s overwhelming grief turned to pain and then quickly to anger. “How could she do this!?” Betrayed by his wife. “How could Kushina do this? Naruto is our son!”

“I can’t speak for Kushina. No one can, and frankly, I don’t want to. If you want to understand why she’s done this- then you’ll have to talk to her yourself.”

That was understandable. Yet, it was so alien. The entire concept of Naruto, his amazing and oh-so-kind son turning out like that… god, he was angry.

He’d get his son back, no matter what!

“I want to speak with her.” Minato finally said, tears dried and eyes brimming with anger, “Now.”

“I warn you sensei,” Kakashi stood up and moved around the bed and towards the door, “She’s not the same. Whatever your supposed death did to her- it changed her.”

“It’s not an excuse.” He glared but not necessarily at Kakashi, “Nobody hurts my son.”

“Then I’ll get in contact with her tomorrow. For now, rest. I have a feeling you’re going to need your energy to deal with this.”

“Please.”

Once Kakashi was gone, Minato dryly mused that the saying ‘hell as no hath like a woman scorned’ had nothing on him right now. Because damn, he wanted to kill someone. His sadness was still there, buried, but there. Instead, it gave way to so much anger, disappointment and fury that if he weren't so damn tired, he would have caused a minor apocalypse in the hospital. Still, the man looked down at his hands; his body seemed to have frozen in time. His body felt the same as it had when he’d used the jutsu to split the Kyuubi’s chakra in half. Curiously, although he already knew what he’d see, Minato stood up and walked over to one of the bathroom mirrors.

His eyes were red and puffy from crying- as was his cheeks and nose. But his appearance was otherwise the same as he remembered. Although, he could use a bath. The only thing different was the eyes, he noticed because he’d never seen himself so angry before. Honestly, he’d never felt so mad before. It didn’t look right on him. Anger didn’t suit him, and it made him want to look away since it scared him to realise that he was capable of such feelings as well.

Yet, the cause of his anger was what truly angered him. Kushina. The woman he’d loved with all his heart. The mother of his children and the most beautiful woman he could remember ever seeing. Now he felt a strange sort of detachment to her name. He didn’t understand how it could happen so quickly, but after hearing what she’d done to Naruto… Something inside of him, something that used to belong to Kushina, snapped. Whatever place she’d possessed inside of him- the things he loved about her, it was all dull and mute at this point.

Because there was not a chance, he could love a woman who’d done something so horrible to his child. And his children took precedence over Kushina. Especially Naruto. Minato had been there when Naruto was born, helped to deliver him. He’d been there when Naruto took his first steps, spoke for the first time and even when he unlocked his chakra. He’d been there for it all- always taking the time out of his day to play with his son in the garden. Teach him how to use his chakra- albeit briefly as he was still young, but he’d been there.

Always.

He loved Mito and Arashi as well, but Naruto was his firstborn. The child he’d seen grow for three whole years while he’d only ever seen Mito and Arashi once before he’d fallen into a coma. He didn’t know the twins, he loved them, but he didn’t know them. He knew Naruto. Loved Naruto so much it almost hurt.

Minato watched how his face morphed into a deep angry frown, gritting his teeth as his eyes darkened, “Someone will pay for this.” He vowed.

The following day it was Arashi and Mito who first made their appearance. Both of them burst through the door to the hospital room, startling Minato who was reading about Naruto’s academy days.

“Dad!” Mito’s eyes welled up with tears as she ran forward, threw her arms around her shockingly young-looking father and bawled her eyes out. Arashi came up on the other side, smiled down at his father who, while surprised, quickly responded by hugging her back.

“It’s about time you woke up.” Arashi grinned, rubbing away a traitorous tear.

Minato looked up at his son, seeing the familiar but obvious Uzumaki traits in his face. “Arashi I take it?” he smiled back.

“I’m Mito!” the girl said against his chest, continuing to cry her eyes out.

Minato let his hand move over her long red hair, stroking it gently, “Forgive me,” he apologised, “For taking so long.”

Arashi shook his head, leaned forward and hugged the young man, “Nothing to forgive dad.” His voice was thick with emotion, “I’ve never been anything but proud to be your son.”

“Me too!” Mito pulled back, a little snot hanging from her nose as Arashi expertly whipped out a tissue that she took without looking. It would seem like it was a familiar sight for the red-headed young man, “But I’m a girl.”

The blond man couldn’t help but chuckle. She was a bit of a knucklehead; it would seem. “I’m happy you’re both well.” He said fondly, “I hear you’ve both turned into fine shinobi too.”

Mito blushed, as did Arashi who grinned a little wider, “Best tracker in the village.” He declared, “The Inuzuka are appropriately jealous.” He watched his father chuckle again, shaking his head it humoured exasperation.

“I’m a medic!” Mito grinned, “I’m Tsunade’s apprentice too. Although she’s kinda scary.” She admitted with a sweat-drop.

“That’s quite an accomplishment.” Minato praised, “She’s hardly the type to take a liking to people. You must have impressed her.”

“More like she wouldn’t leave her alone until she accepted the fact that Mito was her self-proclaimed apprentice until she officially accepted her.” Arashi snorted and then smirked, dodging a swinging fist from Mito, “I believe I remember Tsunade-sama complaining about harassments and eyesores before the announcement was made.”

Minato blinked slowly and then turned to look at his daughter who pouted, cheeks reddening, “Well it worked, didn’t it?” she huffed.

Yup, the former Hokage mentally laughed, they were most definitely his children. Dear god, they reminded him of himself and Kushina back in the day.

But at the thought of his wife- his mood took a darker turn.

“I know we’ve just met again… the last time I saw you, you'd just been born.” Minato looked at his children, both of them taking a seat on his bed, “But I want to know more about Naruto.”

Mito looked down and into her lap, her shoulder dropping. Arashi looked at her knowingly but tried to give his father a reassuring smile all the same. It didn’t really work.

“How much do you already know?” Arashi asked quietly.

Minato sighed, turned to the window and shook his head with something akin to pain twisting his face, “Tell me Kushina didn’t do all those things to Naruto.”

Mito and Arashi said nothing, confirming the man’s fears with their silence. “I-…” Mito wrapped an arm around her stomach, “We tried to play with him once,” A tear rolled down her cheek, “Mother became furious…”

“She didn’t let him out in the garden after that. At least not when we were at home.” Arashi explained and almost cringed at the dark fury that he could see inside of his father's eyes. He could sense anger like a smell in the air, and Minato was angry. Very angry. “She would lock him in the attic sometimes. But either way, we weren’t allowed to talk to each other. Then one day, Naruto just disappeared. He stopped coming home. It took a long time before we understood that mother lost custody of him. It took even longer to understand why everyone would spit on the ground when she walked through the village. People told us that they felt sorry for us,” Arashi frowned at the memory, “To be stuck with such a cruel person.”

Arashi looked up at his father in frustration, “But she was never cruel to us. I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that she was the perfect mother in a child’s eyes. To everyone but Naruto-nii. Dad,” the boy turned to his father helplessly, “She’s not well. There’s no other explanation. The things she did… Jiraiya-sama said that he couldn't get close to women without getting a bad reaction from it.” Arashi swallowed thickly, “He can barely look at us. Much less Mito. She looks way too much like mother. I’ve tried… I’ve tried so hard to find a solution, to bring him home,” frustrated tears welled up in his eyes, turning his vision blurry, “But I don’t know what to do anymore!”

Minato reached out and pulled the young man into a hug, the same with Mito, “Please, leave this to me. I’m not going to lie to you; I’m furious about this. And I want you both to understand that I love you so much… but Naruto is my firstborn. I spent three years with him, watching him grow and walk… talk for the first time. I thought him to read.” He shook his head at the memory, pulling the two red-heads closer to him, “It’s unfair, I know. But I know Naruto already. I have a strong bond with him. The two of you are my children, but right now, Naruto needs me more.” He sighed helplessly, “I feel terrible for even saying this.”

Mito tightened her hold on him, “Don’t. We get it, we really do. Just-just help Naruto-nii, okay?”

“I promise.”

And he did... because there was no way in hell he’d allow Naruto to walk around in a world so dark anymore. He’d be there for his son.

No matter what.

This time Minato stood by the window, overlooking Konoha when the door to the hospital room opened. It was two people this time as well. Tsunade and Kushina. To him, Kushina looked almost the same aside from a few minor wrinkles at the corner of her lips. Most likely from smiling and laughing too much. Any other time that would have brought a smile to his face. But not this time. It felt bitter, seeing that she’d been happy when his son had suffered so much. But seeing Tsunade there was a reassurance. Because if he became too angry, at least the two of them would not be able to hurt each other.

Kushina was oblivious about his stormy dark eyes as she sped across the room and crashed into his chest, hugging him as hard as she could. Minato didn’t move a muscle, didn’t care to respond because if he lifted a single finger right then, he might do something he’ll come to regret. He was better than hitting women. No matter what they’d done.

“Minato!” She cried, “You’re here! You’re alive!” the red-head pushed herself up on her toes, placing a kiss on his lips that made his blood boil.

Tsunade saw it, alarmed and quickly by their side as she pried the woman off his body and pulled her back. She’d known that Minato was angry, but not that angry.

“What? What’s wrong?” Kushina looked between the two, confused.

Minato ignored her, instead, he asked, “Where’s Naruto?”

“Naruto?” she parroted, tilting her head to the side in question.

“Naruto,” Minato repeated, barely hidden fury behind his words.

“What in the world are you talking about Minato?” she furrowed her brows, “Naruto-who?”

“My son!” he growled as Tsunade took a firmer hold of Kushina’s arm, getting ready to pull her to the side if he launched for her.

But Kushina didn’t seem to notice, “Oh!” she recalled and grinned, shaking her head like she’d finally understood the joke, “You mean Arashi-kun? He’s with Mito-chan! Did your memory become all fuzzy in that coma of yours?” she laughed.

Minato allowed his eyes to flicker to Tsunade, the woman’s lips were pressed into a thin line as she shivered at his borderline murderous eyes, “I’ve met Arashi and Mito.” He explained as calmly as he could, “But I want to know where my firstborn son is. The boy with blond hair who looks just like me. The boy who was three years old the last time I saw him and the same boy you pretend don’t exist.”

Kushina frowned, worried, “Are you alright Minato?” she sounded worried, “You’re talking nonsense.”

The man clenched his fists so hard his knuckles turned white. “Where. Is. Naruto!?” he hissed, leaking Killing Intent.

Her violet eyes widened, “I-I d-don’t know,” she stammered, vague memories of Naruto’s face flickering in her mind. Memories she’d tried to forget and pretend were images and memories from when Minato was young, “I- I haven’t seen him in a long time.”

“Why?” he demanded, adding another layer to his already oppressive KI.

Kushina's hands began to tremble, but stood her ground defiantly, “He ran away!” she snapped.

Tsunade turned to her incredulously. Was she joking? “What?” the medic demanded.

“He ran away!” Kushina shouted, “He hurt Mito-chan and Arashi-kun! And me! He hurt me!” Kushina pulled her arm out of the medic’s hand, taking a bold step forward as Minato hissed like a furious cat, “Don’t you see Minato-kun? He hurt me, so he had to go.” She reached out, trying to take hold of his clothes but Minato was seething. So angry and just…

“What is wrong with you!?” Minato finally snapped and shouted. “Naruto is our son! Our firstborn son! Do you have any idea what you’ve done to him!?”

To the shock of Tsunade who’d never seen Minato angry before, the man took a step forward, took hold of the red-heads collar and pulled her towards him with a sharp yank, “You’ve taken my son from me!” He raged.

Kushina’s heart thundered in her chest as fear she’d never felt around Minato begun to take root in her gut, “He hurt me!” she repeated, but at this point, it was a moot and useless argument.

“'Hurt you how'?” he growled, the grip on her collar tightening. Tsunade stood speechlessly at their side, but as long as he didn’t physically harm her, she didn’t care. Kushina needed a rude awakening from whatever the hell she was on about.

The woman raised her hands, placing them on his cheeks and jawline, watching him with so much love in her eyes that Minato was beginning to feel sick. “He looked so much like you.” She spoke gently, fondly. But then she grimaced as if she’d eaten something sour, “He even spoke like you. He would ask about you all the time, and I kept telling him to be quiet. But he wouldn’t. Then he would cry all the time, never giving me any rest so I could take care of the twins. He had to go!” she spat with more venom than she should have been allowed.

Minato was horrified. He watched the woman he’d loved for over half his life turn into a monster in front of his eyes. Someone so hateful and cruel. How could he ever have married a woman like her? “You need help.” Minato pushed her away, allowing her to stumble backwards, “There’s something wrong with you, this isn't the woman I married. I would never have married someone like you.” He ignored the shocked tears that rolled down her cheeks as his words registered in her mind, “If we are still married by law, then I want a divorce. Immediately.” He turned to Tsunade who’s mouth was half-open at that point, “Please, take her away. I don’t want to look at her anymore.”

Her shock slowly morphed into a firmness that only came with business. She nodded, took a firm hold of Kushina’s upper arm and dragged her towards the door.

“Minato-kun! Please, let’s talk about this! You don’t understand! I did it because he hurt me!”

Minato turned his back on her, waiting until the door closed before he sank to the floor, tears gathering in his eyes as his chest ached so much that he could barely breathe.

“Do you have everything you’ll need?” Kakashi asked, eyes on the man in front of him. It was strange, watching his sensei stand at attention in front of him when it used to be the reversed. But then again, Minato was only twenty-four years old. Kakashi was in his mid-thirties this time around. He was older than his sensei now. To Minato, it was barely a few days ago that he’d used the seal. But almost two decades for everyone else.

“I have everything I’ll need,” Minato confirmed with a single nod.

“I take it that you’ll head for Tanzaku Gai first? It’s where Jiraiya is rumoured to be right now.”

The blond nodded in confirmation, “That’s right. I’ll head there first, and if I can’t find sensei and Naruto there then I’ll continue my search in the next town.”

“Very well.” Kakashi allowed, “But I want you to understand, sensei,” he spoke seriously, nothing he said up for debate, “Don’t expect a warm welcome.”

“I understand.”

But Kakashi wasn't sure he did.

Minato met with Jiraiya, finding him quite quickly in the infamous Akasan of the gambling town and hornet’s nest of criminal activity. The two of them sat opposite each other.

One already knew about Minato’s awakening and the fact that he hadn’t aged a day. But it was still quite hard to fathom that it was truly his old student in front of him. Looking not a day older than the last time they’d seen each other.

The other, well, he didn’t think Jiraiya's hair could get any more white than he last remembered- but he was wrong. Add the wrinkles to the mix, and the Sannin truly looked like an old man. The man was almost sixty.

Still, the two of them both knew why they were there, and after the pleasantries were over, it was down to business.

“I want to meet Naruto,” Minato stated firmly, daring the man to try and convince him otherwise.

Jiraiya shrugged, “I’m not going to stop you. You can do whatever you want, but I can’t really recommend it. Not for you.”

Minato frowned, “Why?”

“Because he spits in whatever direction he thinks Konoha is in whenever your name comes up.” He stated simply, Minato’s lips parting in shock, “You’re a hero to many people Minato, but to Naruto, you’re the villain just as much as Kushina is. I’ve tried to tell him otherwise, and he knows that he can’t actually blame you for anything, but he does anyway. Whatever you may or may not have done, you still left him. Your disappearance in his life triggered a disaster and Naruto was left to pick up the pieces of a world crumbling together around him. He’s done the best he can with what he has but he’s angry and bitter. He keeps it well hidden but it’s there, and it’s very much alive inside of him. But at the very least I can say with a certainty that he’d never drop the village entirely and go rogue. Deep down he loves Konoha but not enough to ever want to see it again. He loves the first few memories he has of the place and what it represents to the world- but he wouldn’t be caught dead inside of it anymore. I've tried to get him to go back for a visit. To see his siblings but he won’t have it. And Naruto isn’t a person you push if he gets genuinely angry.”

“I heard Kakashi mention that before.” Minato recalled, “Does he have anger-issues?”

Jiraiya shrugged, “I wouldn’t call it an anger-issue or even a temperamental-issue. He’s very much like you, kind, calm and collected. Smart and borderline genius- but when he snaps,” he grimaced slightly as the Sannin took a sip from his sake cup, “He becomes a very unpleasant person to deal with. Then again, it’s not that different from other powerful men and their temperaments. No sane person would piss off an S-ranked shinobi and expect a warm welcome. Naruto became S-ranked when he was seventeen years old. He’s powerful, by all rights he should be Hokage right now, but he’s not because of the simple reason that he refuses to set foot inside of a village where Kushina is.”

Minato’s stomach twisted painfully but he pushed it aside, wanting to know more about his son. “What’s he like, normally?”

A fond smile spread across the Sannin’s lips, eyes shimmering with mirth and happiness. A sliver of jealousy took hold of Minato's heart, seeing his sensei so happy at the mere mention of his son.

“He’s incredible. I don’t know how else to describe him. He doesn’t like women, stays away from them like the plague but around these parts people know about his aversion to women and are courteous enough to not approach him, and if they have to then they make sure they’re a good distance away from him. Men, on the other hand, is no problems. I’d even go as far as to say he can be a bit of a flirt sometimes. He’s definitely got the looks for it.” He chuckled.

Minato blinked slowly, “He’s gay then?” Not that it bothered him. It was just a bit surprising since it wasn’t something he’d expected.

“Nah,” Jiraiya denied, “He’s not gay. It’s more like he developed an attraction for men because he didn’t like females. It still confuses me sometimes but he can appreciate a woman’s looks, but he’d never touch her. He almost treats them like they're on fire. In some situations, it can be utterly hilarious how he ends up dodging them… but in others, it’s a bit messed up. Did you hear about the time Naruto first met Mito again?”

Minato nodded grimly, “I heard… Not a nice first reunion.”

“That’s putting it mildly. Naruto was hysterical after I managed to get them to leave. He moved on instinct alone and apparently it felt like Kushina’s chakra when she approached. Doesn’t help that they’re splitting images of each other. So, Naruto lashed out before he could stop himself. He simply reacted, and being as fast as he is- he couldn’t stop in time and could only throw off the balance of his body. Otherwise, Mito would be dead right now. He struck her right in the ribs underneath her heart. Those things are K.O hits.”

The blond man was silent. He’d known that Naruto was powerful, but he’d come to realise that he didn’t fully understand how much. If he could land a single punch on a girl and kill her... then his brute strength would be that of a beast.

“Kakashi said that Naruto was a lot like me… what did he mean?”

“Quick to learn,” Jiraiya held up his hand and folded his fingers with each trait, “Handsome- like you became known for, fast, kind, generous, ambitious, determined, stubborn to a fault, always up for a good laugh, a good shinobi all the way through. Honestly, it’s just because people know he hates being compared to you that nobody talks about it anymore. Aside from that, I suppose his appearance is pretty unique these days.” The man mused aloud.

“Unique?” he repeated curiously. He was dying to find out how his son looked.

“Well, he took after my hair-style.” Jiraiya grinned wickedly as Minato sweat-dropped. Of course, he did. “He’s pretty damn tall if I say so myself. I mean, I’m tall, and he’s not far from my height. A good four inches taller than you. That’s Uzumaki genes for you.” He snorted, “He normally wears all black. Most noticeably is his black haori. It’s got the motive of a red sun on its back. Don’t ask me what it’s supposed to represent; I have no idea. He won’t tell me. Aside from that,” he hummed thoughtfully, “Ah! He’s got earrings too. Two black feathers he picked up from somewhere. No clue about those either,” he admitted sheepishly. “I suspect he likes to keep people guessing.”

Minato smiled softly, taking a small sip of his green tea. Naruto seemed like quite the character. “I know you said it wasn’t a good idea for me to see him, but I have to. I have to see him.”

“I know.” Jiraiya smiled sadly, yet fondly at the blond man, “I just want you to know that it can turn real ugly. I have no idea how he will react to you. He might send a fist to your face or he might even pretend he can’t hear you. I don’t know. Just- be ready to hear some harsh things. He’s in a lot of pain even if he tries to hide it.”

“I understand.” Even so, it hurt hearing it. But he couldn’t give up now. Not when he was so close to finally seeing his son again. His firstborn. The boy he played hide-and-seek with, the boy that would pluck flowers for Kushina and give her every morning.

No matter what, he’d see Naruto again. Consequences be damned.

Minato was crouched down on a rooftop overlooking the main street of the Tanzaku Gai shopping district. It was very crowded, lots of children, women and men walking up and down the street to reached their different destinations. It brought a smile to his face- seeing so many people and several of them looking happy. Now all he had to do was wait for Naruto to appear. According to Jiraiya, this was the street and time where he could be seen most of the time. Minato wasn’t planning to reach out to him with so many people around, but he still wanted to see how he interacted with others, to study his character. As such, he watched with bated breath, excitement bubbling inside of him. He was going to see his son again!

Suddenly he noticed something. In the distance people begun to move to the sides, letting someone pass through as many of them bowed politely in recognition. Minato had to such in a sharp, shocked breath when his eyes landed on a man that fit Jiraiya’s description to the letter.

Naruto was tall, towering over many people on the street, a handsome face with electrifying blue eyes, two black feathers handing down from his ears as his hair-style mimicked that of Jiraiya. His long black haori moved in the wind, creating a strange sort of threatening grace to his movement. Aside from that, his pants were long and black, tucked into shinobi boots with covered toes that reached his upper shin.

Minato could, he believed, make out a black-tinted breast-plate. Something that made the man think of Anbu uniforms. On his hips were a couple of pouches and the same on the upper thigh on his right leg where a kunai touch was attached. The only other thing he could make out was a katana flung over his back, a red strap holding it in place across his broad chest. The hilt was red and the sheath black.

It was strange, Minato decided. Seeing Naruto so alive and grown. He didn’t look anything like he’d expected. He could understand why people thought they looked similar, but personally, he didn’t feel Naruto looked all that alike aside from the colouring. His build was bigger and stronger, his face harder- yet a sliver more manly than his own somewhat feminine face.

Minato wasn’t an idiot; he knew he had a pretty face compared to many men. But Naruto just looked like more. More of everything. More height, more physical strength, longer hair, much more vibrant blue eyes, a straighter nose, a sharper chin-

A tick-mark started pulsing on his forehead. Even if Naruto were supposed to be his son, he’d completely decimated him with his looks. That kind of pissed him off. Naturally, he wasn’t going to be all grumpy about it- but it was still annoying. It was like he’d gotten the best of everything their gene pools had to offer.

Abruptly Naruto turned to the left and disappeared down an alley. Frowning, Minato followed without much thought. He didn’t want to lose sight of him, so he hurried, completely disregarding the obvious signs of detection.

Had he paid attention, then he would have noticed that Naruto knew he was being watched by someone. But he didn’t know who.

As such, when Minato dropped down on the ground in the alley, Naruto was on him in an instant- pressing him up against the dark and damp wall, a kunai pressed to his throat while Naruto looked down at the man with alarmingly blond hair.

Naruto took his time analyzing the man’s appearance, coming up with less and less appealing conclusions with each one. The man looked far too much like himself to be anyone but Namikaze Minato. Although he had to admit, he’d expected something more from a legend. Especially in the tracking and trailing department. He’d felt the man’s eyes on him for several minutes, so he'd locked down on his chakra signature and memorised it so he would be able to attack if he had to.

“And down the rabbit-hole, we go,” Naruto's voice was entirely blank, but somehow his voice managed to reveal his disgust anyway. “I expected something more from someone so famous, Namikaze. But I suppose your vacation left you severely lacking. For all your genius, I hope you have a good reason for showing your face here.” He said evenly. Not a hint of anything in his voice.

That scared Minato. He didn’t expect Naruto to be waiting for him, he could barely feel his chakra, but to so blatantly state that he’d been aware of him all along... Perhaps his words held some truth, no matter how much they hurt.

Naruto pressed the kunai a little harder to his throat, watching with a twisted sort of satisfaction as Minato's eyes widened in horror. Naruto leaned downed, placing his face right in front of his. “Stay away from me.”

With those words, Naruto disappeared in a gust of wind.

Minato’s heart thundered, hands and legs shaking as he slowly slid down the dirty wall and onto the ground. That was Naruto, he faintly heard himself think, his son. The man that was meant to be Hokage right now. An S-ranked shinobi, a Sage, a Seal Master, a-… “Naruto…” he clutched the fabric of his vest tightly, his heart pounding painfully in his chest.

After collecting himself Minato did his best to find Naruto again. He did, after a couple of hours of relentless searching. He had to admit; Naruto was hard to find when he wanted to be. Right now, the man was standing in the forest, going through katas of a style he’d never seen before. Honestly, it looked incredible. The lethal grace Naruto carried himself with sending a shiver down his spine. He really was something else.

“At least have the decency to be upfront about your presence.” Naruto suddenly said and startled Minato who was sure he’d suppressed his chakra entirely, “I didn’t peg you for a stalker.”

Minato swallowed thickly but jumped down from the tree branch. “I wouldn’t go as far as ‘stalker’.” He spoke lightly, false cheer in his voice.

Naruto didn’t buy it, merely continued through his exercise while ignoring the now, blatantly obvious, observer.

It was awkward. Minato shifted his weight from one foot to the other, watching the man in front of him that started to feel less and less like his son and more like a stranger. “I wanted to see you.”

“You’ve seen me.” Was his only response.

The Yondaime sighed, tired of their roundabout way of dodging the topic, “I wanted to see my son again.”

This time, Naruto did turn around. However, the expression he had on his face made Minato sick. He didn’t like that look. It was an expression of someone who’d reached the end of a rope and was tired, just as he was, about avoiding a glaring 'problem'... so he was prepared to permanently get rid of it.

Naruto took calm, deathly quiet footsteps forward, stopping to the side of Minato who stood utterly petrified. He moved his arm out, almost in slow motion, and placed it on Minato’s right shoulder and leaned in and whispered in his left ear, “My father died a long time ago, Namikaze. Don’t take credit for something you have no business speaking about. Now, do me a favour and fuck off back to Konoha before I send you back in a body bag.” His voice was flat and cold as Minato’s fingers trembling unconsciously, “We are done here.”

Naruto pressed down a little harder with his hand, making the other man flinch under his merciless hold. But something didn’t sit right with Minato about this whole thing. Even if Naruto hated him, loathed him with all his might, he didn’t plan to give up so quickly, and he refused to believe that Naruto would hurt him. As such, his hand moved in a flash, took hold of the haori on Naruto's chest and turned his eyes to the side, fierce and determined, “No, we are not done here!”

Naruto was surprised. He didn’t expect him to fight back. Frankly, he believed he’d done what he needed to get him off his back finally. But apparently, he’d been wrong about Namikaze. He didn’t like being wrong. Especially not when someone like this was involved in the equation.

The man took hold of the Yondaime’s famous haori, slammed him up against the tree behind them and was shocked to find Minato pulling him along for the ride. Every time that he pressed him harder against the tree, Minato would pull him harder towards him. It became a tug of war that held no winner. Honestly, it was a bit stupid and ridiculously pig-headed.

“Why are you doing this?” Minato asked through gritted teeth. He wasn’t willing to admit it, but Naruto was far stronger than he let it show. He could barely breathe. “I can understand Kushina, I can. But not this. Us.”

“There stopped being an ‘us’ the moment you left me with that witch.” Naruto hissed with venom, voice dropping in volume with poorly concealed anger, “The moment I had to endure what was rightfully yours. When I crawled on the floor in the attic, suffering from hypothermia in December on Christmas day. When she hit me and called me ‘Minato’!” his hand left the white haori, travelling up to Minato's throat as he pressed him against the tree and used all the will-power he had not to suffocate the man in his hands. “I begged whatever God that was out there to make you wake up. To make her stop. But nobody listened. There was nobody there to listen to a half-dead boy who had to eat from trash bins to survive. There is no ‘us’,” he repeated with gritted teeth, “And you’re not my father. You stopped having that right the moment you abandoned me. At best, with your age, you could be my brother. But even that’s a stretch. I don’t want anything to do with a man that’s caused me nothing but misery and pain.”

“Then what do you want me to do?!” Minato pushed against him as hard as he could, forcing Naruto to remove his hand from his throat unless he wanted to accidentally kill him, “I did what I had to do as the Hokage of Konoha! I did everything I could so that I’d know that you’d live to see another day! I didn’t know Kushina would lose her damn mind! I agree, she’s insane!” Minato missed the flash of amusement in Naruto’s eyes at the last statement, “I don’t even recognise her anymore! It feels like just a couple of days ago that I used that damn jutsu and now I wake up, 18 years later, still looking like a bloody woman and my family has been shot to shit!” Minato panted, breathing hard as his eyes widened at the outburst. This wasn’t like him.

But that didn't stop him. “I’m sick of this!” he found himself continuing his rant. Naruto watched quietly from the side, “I don’t even know if I'm awake or if I’m still dreaming!" He took a step forward and turned to Naruto completely, his brain not working fast enough to realise that a fist was heading straight for his face. It struck him square in the face, forcing him to stumble backwards and lean forward, blood dripping from his nose as he covered it with his hands, “Son of a bitch!”

“I am the son of a bitch.” Naruto stated simply, “And hopefully that felt real enough. Otherwise, I’d be happy to do it again.”

Despite it all, Minato snorted, but it sounded more like he sucked in a flood of snot. He straightened his back, leaned his head back and kept one of his hands on the bridge of his nose, “Fine, I deserved that.”

It was against his better judgement, but Naruto felt the corner of his lips fight to pull up with a smile. “It felt good to do that.”

“Don’t look so damn smug.” Minato sent him a half-hearted glare, blood pouring down his face, “I swear if you broke my nose.” He warned but received a single unimpressed risen brow.

“Maybe you should thank me,” Naruto suggested, “A broken nose would do your face some good. You look like a damn woman.”

Minato grimaced. He knew he looked like a damn woman with his feminine features. But it wasn’t his fault! “I’m sorry if my appearance offends you.” He said sarcastically, “Unfortunately I was born this way, and I didn’t get to request certain features, nor absorb all the good genes from my parents like other people.” He glared at the boy, “What the hell is with your height anyway?!” his nose begun to drip again, forcing him to, once again, bend his head back so it would stop and not cover his white haori.

“Milk,” Naruto said flatly, watching as Minato rolled his eyes. “How did someone like you become Hokage? You’re an idiot.”

“Then that makes two of us.”

“I hope for your nose’s sake that you meant being Hokage,” Naruto warned, eyes narrowed.

“I guess you’ll never know.” Minato countered.

The tall man took a step forward, towering over the blond, their eyes locked on each other as they assessed one another. There was an alertness to both of their eyes that showed that they didn’t fully trust one another, that both of them were ready to strike if they needed to. “What do you want from me Namikaze?” Naruto finally asked.

Minato’s eyes softened, “I want to be part of your life. And if I can’t be your father then let me be your friend. Please.”

Naruto’s eyes scrutinised the man, thoughtful as he weighted the pro’s and con’s. “I’m not going back to Konoha.”

“I’m not asking you to.”

A moment later Naruto let out a long-suffering sigh, stepped forward and removed Minato’s hand from his nose, gripping it with his own as he coated his fingers with chakra. Minato could see the chakra turn green and then stared up at the man in front of him. Indeed, if he couldn’t be his father, then he’d be his friend. “You can heal?”

“Yeah, well, it became a matter of necessity.” Naruto’s voice was bitter, but he didn’t stop healing Minato's nose and the busted blood-vessels.

“Sorry,”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Then talk about something else,” Minato suggested.

“You look stupid.”

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.”

Despite the insults, warmth begun to seep into Minato’s chest. Perhaps this wouldn’t be so bad. Technically it could have been worse, Naruto could have killed him. He was obviously strong enough.

“Tell me about yourself?” Minato asked quietly, the sharp ache in his nose slowly decreasing. It was slow going, mostly due to Naruto's immense reserves, but it was still healing.

“I don’t like nosy people.” He answered, receiving a flat look from the blond who managed to make it look rather impressive despite his awkward positioning of his head.

“Alright.” Minato shrugged, “You’re not sociable. Don’t like contact with people unless they are at least two meters away from you. You’re strong, clearly the level of a Kage but you have terrible mood-swings so you shouldn’t be forced to sit behind a desk too long, hazard for anyone I’m guessing-“ Naruto blinked, lips parting slightly as he realised what the man was doing.

“Stop profiling me!”

“-And easily offended.” Minato added slowly, “Doesn’t like to talk about himself,” he began to count on his fingers, “too tall for his own good, snappy mood, quick to throw punches-“

“Do you want another one?” Naruto inquired, trying to ignore that Minato was ignoring him.

“-Prone to violence too apparently.”

“What is wrong with you!” Naruto finally pinched the man’s nose, making the blond wince at the sudden pain.

“What is wrong with you!” Minato countered, “I’m injured!" He then grumbled. You’re supposed to be nice to injured people.”

“You’re impossible, you know that right?”

“I might have heard it once or twice.” Minato agreed, recalling one too many events of that happening.

“I’m not getting rid of you, am I?”

“Not on your life.”

“Great.”

A month later Minato was still sticking to Naruto like glue, asking inane questions for the sake of talking to him and dodging more and more of the punches the man was throwing his way. He didn’t avoid them all, but he found that he was getting better at it. It sure helped his reflexes.

In the end, Naruto had finally had enough. He was way too close to losing his damn mind, and it was high time he smacked the annoying fly that buzzed around his hair all the time.

At the moment, they were at the hot-springs. Jiraiya was peeping on the girls like usual and as such the two of them were alone in the other section designated for men only. It was an odd season for hot-spring, so there weren’t many people. Their side being the more obvious as it was empty beside them.

Naruto slipped into the hot water, soaking and trying to relieve the tremendous amount of stress he was under. Minato was a damn menace and a half.

Minato on the other hand, waited patiently for the man to finally crack open like an egg. He’d gone on and on and on about stupid things to force him to give up and talk to him. But he was too damn stubborn, much like himself. And because of that, it had gone a whole month of constant bullshit flying between the two of them, and Minato was growing sick of it. There were only so many pathetic and dry jokes you could do before you wanted to murder yourself.

“Do you hear that?” Naruto asked, Minato turned to the side and looked at the blond man. His chest was covered in many small scars, much like his own, but it didn’t distract from his annoyingly attractive appearance. The amount of fawning people did over Naruto, both women and men alike pissed him off. Why he couldn’t be entirely sure. Perhaps it was because Naruto gave them more attention than him.

“What?” he asked, throat sore.

“It’s the sound of silence. Learn to appreciate it.”

“Or you could just stop being stubborn and tell me about yourself.” He suggested mildly, too tired to put any force behind it as he usually would.

“There’s nothing interesting to know.” Naruto allowed, much to Minato’s shocked surprise. His head snapped to the side, eyes fixed on the long-haired blond. “My life can be summarised with a few words. 'Shit', 'luck' and 'hard work'.” He then turned to Minato and frowned, “And a massive headache.”

Despite it all, Minato smiled softly, “I know you don’t like talking about it,” he said gently, “But I’m happy to have gotten the chance to get to know you. When I used that jutsu I was certain I’d die. I didn’t plan on becoming some sort of vegetable and cause so many people grief. But despite that, despite how horrible everything became after I disappeared, I’m happy you turned out this way.” Minato looked up at the night sky, missing the widening of Naruto’s eyes, “For what it’s worth, I’m proud of you. I may not deserve the title of a father; I can accept that. I don’t even disagree with it. I’ve done a shitty job so far. But even so, thank you for giving me a chance.”

“Yeah, you’re a pretty shitty father.” Naruto agreed as Minato closed his eyes, savouring the rare and pleasant conversation while it lasted, “The amount of nagging you do is borderline psychopathic.” He smirked, knowing Minato wasn’t watching him. His eyes softened, “But you can be a pretty decent friend when you’re not a pain in my ass.”

Minato quickly opened his eyes, turned his head to the side and stared in bewilderment at the man.

“I can never see you as my father.” Naruto continued, “It's just not possible. Jiraiya is the closest to that. Your age also makes it weird.” Minato could agree with that. It was weird enough with Arashi and Mito, “I don’t know you enough to even consider you family. I don’t have a family.” Minato’s throat tightened, sharp spikes of pain stabbing him in his chest, “But I don’t need one either.” Naruto's eyes softened, “I’m past that stage in life. I came to terms with that a long time ago, and I haven’t regretted my decision yet. And knowing me, I never will. But if you want to be something different from family, I’m willing to consider it.”

“Thank you…” Minato’s eyes turned misty, a bright smile stretched across his face.

It was on a mission that everything changed. Minato wasn’t the Hokage anymore, frankly, he didn’t want to be either. He used to, but not now. After travelling with Jiraiya and Naruto for several months with an occasional stop a couple of times a month to visit Mito and Arashi, he’d come to appreciate the life of a traveller. It was nice, receiving a mission once in a while, setting out to clean up someone’s mess or assassinating some influential people. He could admit, Naruto was good at it. Fiercely good at it. Not he was a slouch either, but they’d found that they made a pretty good team.

This time Jiraiya was stuck in the hotel going over stolen documents and files. The man pouted and complained for hours that he wasn’t going to be allowed inside the club like Minato and Naruto. But they didn’t care. Instead, the two of them pulled on a pair of black leather pants and a pair of shirts, some shiny black shoes and headed out. They had to blend in with the crowd on this one and being in a club usually meant wearing something provocative, hence their clothes.

The two of them entered at different points of the night. Naruto went in first, and two hours later Minato followed.

The plan was to act like regular visitors while at the same time keeping a look-out for their target that was said to move around in the club on occasion. It was simple enough, and since they were in the middle of a country in seemingly nowhere, nobody would be expecting shinobi to stalk the man. This was perfect for Naruto and Minato who were rather easy to identify. Yet unlike most times, they forewent the henge. It just wasn’t needed for this mission.

But still, it would be easier if the two of them could meet inside of the club naturally. Appear to hook up and then move around much more inconspicuously. As such, Minato allowed his eyes to roam over the large crowd of dancing people and the loud music. Neon lights in more places than should be allowed, and more women pole-dancing than he was comfortable with. But it didn’t take long for him to spot Naruto. He was in the middle of the dance-floor surrounded by two men whom he danced with. All things considered, he was blending in and appeared to be enjoying himself. But the sight irritated him a bit. Why he had no idea, but he didn’t like people fawning over Naruto.

Minato walked down the stairs at a leisure pace, moved towards the bar and ordered a drink. He’d need one before the day was over. Otherwise, he’d never get through this with his sanity intact.

The man mingled by the bar for a good half hour before the sheer number of people in the club made him feel like he was a packed sardine. He moved to the side and leaned up against a wall, this fifth drink in his hand as he lazily eyed his surroundings. So far their target had yet to make an appearance.

Just a couple of minutes later, another person leaned up against the wall beside him. He was tall, long blond hair. He was wiping his somewhat sweaty forehead with his white shirt.

Minato found himself staring despite himself. But mostly he tried to stay in character, which he noticed was surprisingly easy with Naruto in front of him. It was also mighty pathetic.

Naruto leaned forward a little and looked down at him, smirking as something shimmered in his eyes. “You look like you’re enjoying yourself.” He said, “Like you just received a big sloppy kiss from your grandmother.”

Minato grimaced at the idea, “This isn’t exactly my scene.” He admitted, glancing around the room, “It’s too loud and way too many people, this is the only upside.” He raised his glass with pale blue liquid.

“Not even the company?”

“Well,” Minato shrugged, “You just got here so I wouldn’t know.”

“Not sure if that means you missed me or if you’re trying to tell me something else. I’ll admit, I’m a little confused.”

A smile tugged at Minato’s lips, humoured by the harmless banter.

Suddenly, in his peripheral vision, someone with white hair made their appearance. Their target. Minato tensed. Naruto saw the man as well and instinctively moved to block the view of Minato. Out of the two of them, Minato was by far the most recognisable. As such Naruto boxed the blond in with his arms on each side of his head.

Minato swallowed, noting that the man with white hair was moving straight for them. Naruto noticed too, eyes flickering into a minor panic- to an idea- and then finally to something that looked like determination.

“Hey,” Naruto moved a little closer, allowing the hand that didn’t block Minato’s appearance to fall to his hip. Said blond looked up, realising what Naruto was going to do but not having the time nor brain-power to stop him. They were pressed for time and options. The nod was subtle but all the permission that Naruto needed.

He leaned a little lower, pulled Minato closer to his body and allowed himself half a second before he kissed him.

Naruto felt their target pause, uncertain. It was working. Encouraged and seeing the situation play into their hands, Naruto moved his hand up Minato’s body until it reached his neck and jaw, tilting his head slightly back and into the perfect angle to deepen the kiss even more.

Minato’s mind was reeling, heart beating so fast he was pretty sure he was going to get a heart-attack. Yet, he found himself closing his eyes, melting into the man’s touch. It felt weird. Weird but in a way that wasn’t bad. But when Naruto tilted his head backwards, deepening the kiss, his toes curled, and a small moan tore through his throat. It couldn’t be heard because of the music, but Naruto felt it, responding to it by slipping his tongue between the man’s lips. Minato wasn’t sure, conflicted as he felt the man’s tongue inside of his mouth. But their target was still watching them. Hesitantly, a little timid and shy, he moved to meet it with his own.

From there, everything spiralled down the drain.

Whatever focus had previously been on their target was lost in favour of the one in their arms. The slow and hesitant kiss turned hot and passionate, hands roaming over and under shirts, seeking contact and warmth.

Nobody noticed them, all thinking the same thing; some gay couple making out in a shady corner of the club. Everyone turned their attention elsewhere. But Minato and Naruto didn’t notice, not even slightly. Both of them were too distracted with each other, the warmth and taste of each other’s saliva that begun to feel electrifying drew their attention to each other like a powerful magnet. Glued together, minutes turned to hours, and before long, the loud music began to shift to something softer, alerting people that the club was preparing to close down for the night.

Naruto- dazed and with pink and swollen lips, looked down at the blond man. His eyes were half-lidded and swimming with desire. Minato looked positively irresistible. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that Naruto had never seen a man so handsome before. So he kissed him again, soft and slow, earning a pleasant hum from the shorter man.

“We missed him,” Minato said softly, eyes finally leaving the long-haired man, taking in the club that barely had any people left in it. “We missed him completely.”

Naruto turned the man’s face towards him again, his fingers underneath Minato's chin as he planted another soft kiss on his lips, “But I bet he can’t outrun us, no matter how much time we give him.”

A smile found its way onto the Yondaime’s lips, “No, I suppose he can’t.”

“So how about we give him a little more time?” Naruto suggested, smiling as he planted yet another kiss on the man's lips.

"I can live with that."