I was sprawled out on the deck, basking in the warm sun. Naruto and his clones were hopping all over the place, trying to do something to help out. They were determined to not just be sitting around, waiting. I couldn't blame them, really. I wanted to be active—to do something, but I knew better.

I had to conserve my strength. I had to place all my effort into creating more chakra seals, and each seal I made drained me of my chakra for a few days. It was a tiring process, one that left me wincing and cringing, but I pressed on with it anyway. I didn't want to run the risk of running out of chakra trying to accomplish all of my goals in the war—especially considering how costly my teleportation technique was.

I had just made another seal that morning, so I felt particularly lethargic, and decided to just relax on a towel in a swimsuit on the deck. Jiraiya was sitting next to me, scribbling away at his manuscript for the next dirty book.

He had recovered nicely since his mishap with Pain, and regained full use of his vocal chords by this point. The only thing left to remind him of that day, was a nasty scar that glowed dully right next to where his heart was, and another one that criss-crossed across the front of his neck.

So?

Hmm?

We can't hold off discussing this any longer, Kurama. What are you going to do about Naruto learning to control your powers?

Hmm... All things considered, I guess I don't have much say in the matter.

You do. If you're so opposed to the idea—

I'm not.

What?

I'm not completely opposed to the idea. Naruto will need to use my power in the war. Even if our plan goes without a hitch, it'll be too risky for him not to know how to use my power.

Then... then you'll let him?

... I suppose I will. He's not a bad brat, just an idiot. Besides, he is... entertaining... to annoy.

I inwardly laughed at that. That's... I'm glad, Kurama.

Aa. Besides... this'll give you brats more time to focus on learning from your parents. In canon, they had to use up all their energy to suppress me. That energy should be better spent for them on prolonging their time with you, and teaching you what you need to know.

Kurama...

Don't even start with that sappy talk, brat. I'm just being practical! Your fool of a father mastered the Hiraishin, didn't he? And yours still uses up a lot of chakra—he should show you how to properly use it. And that mother of yours... she can use chakra chains, yeah? Well Naruto and you should know at least a little about it.

I mentally pictured myself hugging Kurama—knowing full and well he could see the image. I could feel Kurama's embarrassment at the image, as it rolled off in waves. I could just see him pulling his ears back, and baring his teeth.

Stop that.

I just giggled.

('･ω･')

With a tired yawn, at a lackadaisical pace I crawled out of my comfortable spot from below. The boat was swaying dangerously, and I had to send chakra to the bottom of my bare feet to stay gripped on it. It was still fairly early in the day - as far as I was concerned, at least, so I hadn't taken the time to get dressed in my kunoichi attire. I still wore my comfortable, if a bit raggedy, long blue sweatpants, and one of Kakashi's oversized shirts I stole a while back.

I heard Naruto's yelp of surprise, but judging from the warm waves of amusement I felt rolling off of Kurama, I knew he wasn't in any actual danger.

Taking a step up onto the deck, I awarded my brother a bemused look. "Stop playing with the squid, Naruto."

"I have to be sure!" Naruto shouted back. "It could be the octopus Jiji talked about!"

Before I even bothered to make a move to slice the squid up into mincemeat, Gyūki, appeared and deftly delivered with a sound punch straight into the squishy squid's face.

"You better squiddadle, or I'm gonna make ya!" shouted Killer Bee from Gyūki's form.

"It's an octopus! This time it's an octopus!" Naruto cheered as the squid released him and he dropped back onto the deck.

Jiraiya let out a booming laugh. "Well, I'll be, if it isn't Killer Bee, jinchūriki of the Hachibi."

As if on cue, the man himself appeared from one of Gyūki's tentacles. "Ya'll are late, bitches." With little to no effort, Gyūki merged back into Killer Bee, and the man hopped easily onto the ship's deck, as the squid slowly sank back into the ocean.

"Thanks for the help, Octopops!" Naruto cheered.

Killer Bee frowned momentarily, pulling out his notebook and crossing something out. "Will I get along with this kid or not? I don't know but he'll probably just be a squat. Wee. I'm a brat hating o-u-t-l-a-w."

I resisted the urge to cringe from the horrible offbeat Killer Bee rapped his words in. Enka-rap or not, it certainly wasn't something pleasant to listen to in person.

At least we're finally here.

('･ω･')

Once back on land - I changed as soon as I could - I walked behind the group, taking in the surrounding with warm eyes.

It reeks of Gyūki's scent. That boring wretch has been spending a lot of time here.

It has a surprising gentleness to it, though. It reminds me of where you had taken me, although a bit more... rustic. There's this overall sense of peace on this island; seclusion.

I suppose. All I can smell is Gyūki and animals.

Is that such a bad thing to smell your little brother?

Bijū do not have siblings, we are...

Please. You're so siblings. Don't even try. You even bicker with each other like siblings.

Shut up, peasant.

As we continued along our walk, one of said animals had the audacity to jump out and roar at us - a monstrous gorilla that stood taller than our apartment. A few of them shouted in surprise, while I repressed my desire to laugh. Such a simple animal could never be a threat to me - to Kurama.

Careful, my ego is starting to rub off on you, Kurama purred.

And my humanity is rubbing off on you.

Kurama fell into a petulant silence from that remark, clearly insulted.

"Relax," Motoi said to everyone, as Killer Bee moved forward to calm the beast. "Killer Bee-sama is here, so no animal would dare to attack us. He's at the top of the hierarchy on this island. He's not only tamed all of the animals here, but he's even tamed his bijū, the Hachibi."

Naruto laughed. "Oh, great, another Miwako. Is his bijū an asshole, too?"

"Excuse me?" Motoi blinked in surprise.

"Our little Miwa-chan made the kyūbi her little bitch a while ago," Jiraiya snickered, reaching over and patting my head.

SHE DID NO SUCH THING, Kurama screeched; even Naruto winced from his incessant roaring, but instead of seeming to mind the yelling, a smirk grew on his face in triumphant for baiting the bijū.

"We're friends," I insisted. "Neither of us commands the other."

"That is... impressive," Motoi managed, before he turned to Naruto. "And you? Have you befriended the kyūbi?"

"His name is Kurama," Naruto corrected, and immediately I felt proud at that, "and no way in hell. He's an asshole. Like, the biggest asshole I have ever met, and I have met a lot of assholes. He's the king of assholes. The god of assholes."

Good to know you think of me as your god, peasant, Kurama mocked.

Naruto ignored him.

"So you cannot use the Ky - er - Ku-Kurama's powers?" Motoi inquired.

"Not... without losing control," Naruto admitted.

Jiraiya grinned. "But, that's part of why we're here. Who knows, maybe Naruto can convince Killer Bee to show him a few tricks."

"Why not ask your sister?" Motoi asked.

"Kurama lends me his power because he actually likes me," I explained. "And we have come to our own agreement."

I do not like you. I just tolerate you better than other humans.

Of course, tsundere.

I will break you.

('･ω･')

I sat my stuff down in my room, stretching my arms up high. Let me know when Naruto has mastered his dark side.

Will do. He should have it done by today - he's already knocking Gyūki's bitch's door.

I have everything else ready... all that's left to do is... wait.

('･ω･')

He's ready, Kurama's voice rumbled deep inside my head, awaking me from my cat nap. With groggy hands, I rubbed at my tired eyes and rolled off the bed. Jiraiya is coming to you now. They're going to take the two of you to the training room and you are to help subdue him if he loses control.

I smirked.

('･ω･')

I entered the room behind Jiraiya, finding that Naruto, Yamato, and Bee were already there. Naruto was sitting criss-cross in the center, while the other two stood in front of him. Naruto waved a hello to me, smiling brightly.

I smiled easily in return, moving to sit across from him. "You guys don't really need to be here. We can take it from this point."

"We?" Jiraiya inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm ready to kick some Kurama ass," Naruto cheered. "That'll make him respect me."

"He's too much of a sore loser for that," I dismissed, ignoring Kurama's indigent humph from the back of my mind. "Just close your eyes, Naruto, and meditate, and most importantly - trust me!"

Naruto gave a shrug, closing his eyes and easily slipping off into a meditative state. Yamato brought up four wooden pillars around us, and I reached out my hand to grab my brother's. It was easy to enter the shared mindstate between us.

I stood in the cage with Kurama, peering from behind the bars at Naruto who stood on the opposite end. Naruto had his hands shoved into his pockets and he was looking up at the cage. "This'll be interesting."

"Very," I said, smiling. "Hurry up and release Kurama, Aniki! We've got a surprise for you when you do."

"I see," Naruto said, grinning easily in return.

('･ω･')

Naruto stepped into the newly released cage, looking around at the warm environment Kurama had created. This time we stood in a vast field of orange and golden flowers. There were pools of water so wide and still that they reflected the sky perfectly, creating a dreamlike world where it seemed we were in the sky.

Naruto whistled. "Pretty."

"Aa," Kurama said, eyeing Naruto. "Naruto, I decided to show some kindness to you. You should be grateful to me that I am granting you the right to use my chakra. You have already mastered your dark side, so there is no need to drag this lesson out longer than necessary."

Naruto's eyes bulged. "What? You're serious?!"

"Of course. Do you remember when Minato came to you during the invasion? Well, both of your parents stored chakra inside of the seal, and only a quarter of your father's chakra was used up during yours and the other brat's encounter. It would prove more advantageous if you spent this time learning from them rather than wasting it fighting me."

"Kurama..." Naruto trailed off, completely in awe at Kurama. "I... I don't know what to say. I..."

"Thank you would suffice for now, you moronic brat," Kurama snapped. "And stop your Sage-damned sniveling! That's disgusting. Now get out of my sight, you pests. Go talk with that ugly mother of yours, and that fool of a father."

With a great huff, Kurama abruptly turned away from us and laid down in a bed of flowers. "I'm going to take a nap, so you brats better keep it down, too!"

"We will," I promise, grabbing Naruto's hand. "Come on, Aniki, let's go."

"Mn," Naruto said, smiling so widely and warmly. "Maybe you were right, Miwa. Maybe Kurama's not a complete asshole."

"Get out of my sight, you ungrateful brat," Kurama growled.

Naruto only laughed. "I can't believe I got all pumped up to fight him to make him respect me and it's taken care of so easily!"

The two of us continued walking in the mindscape, knowing that they would come to us soon enough.

"Naruto, Miwako."

We both stopped, whirling around in the same instant. There, in all their wonderful glory, was Kushina and Minato.

A heartbeat passed before Naruto hurtled himself at Kushina, and I threw myself at Minato. Minato laughed, picking me up and twirling me around, while Kushina squeezed the every living life out of Naruto. Soon, all of our bodies became entangled in mass of happy crying, joyous words, tight hugs, and long hair.

It lasted far shorter than what I would have liked, but...

Kushina kissed each of our cheeks. "I'm so proud of both of you, dattebane!"

Minato gripped each of our shoulders. "We both are."

"I wish I could tell you all exactly how proud I am of you," Kushina murmured, her eyes downcast, "but we don't have that luxury. I'm grateful enough we can have this time together, thanks to the - er thanks to Kurama, I mean. All the more reason not to waste it."

"But there's so many questions I have for you, Kaa-chan," Naruto interrupted, his eyes wide.

"Then ask them," Minato said, "while Miwako and I get to work. There are some things only a mother can pass on to her children, and likewise for a father. We'll swap as soon as we're done, and then together, we'll pass on everything else they need to know."

Kushina nodded in agreement, before giving Naruto a warm smile and grabbing his hand. "Let's go over here. I love daisies."

Papa smiled brightly, taking one of my hands, and gently pulling me down. "While your mother hogs Naruto, I'll go ahead and hog you."

I beamed. "Mn!"

"You've done a good job with the Hiraishin," Papa told me. I blushed, pleased. "But, I couldn't help but overhear yours and Kurama's conversation. I've seen the seals you used, and I think I can offer some alternatives, so you don't waste so much chakra."

My eyes lit up. "Oh, yeah?"

"Mn," Papa said, squeezing my hands. "Though I'll have to be brief in my explanation. There's a lot your mother and I want to tell you about before we have to go."

"Okay. Please, show me what you can."

"The most important thing I need to tell you about the Hiraishin is that your current seal is completely overcomplicated and as a result, it forces you to use a staggering amount of chakra."

I tilted my head. "What do you mean?"

With a wave of his hand, Papa summoned the basic sealing of the Hiraishin that used. I had to, somewhat, recreate my own Hiraishin from Papa's notes. The basic structure was written down, and with Jiraiya's help, I was able to rebuild it.; however, it was certainly not the same as Papa's, as Papa's sealing was under a chakra-binding seal—meaning only Papa's chakra could unlock it and reveal all of the complex layers beneath it. Without Papa's chakra to do so, only one layer could be seen—one tiny little piece of a 700-pieced puzzle.

"Sealing is all about balance, and keeping it simple," Papa began, "without a proper balance of all the materials used, there can be no seal. Not only would it not work, it may not work in a very lethal manner. If you over-complicate a seal, not only are you wasting your time, but you run the risk of the seal growing unstable, or being worn down more easily with the added burden. This is one of the reasons why sealing can be described as artwork—why there are geometric shapes and drawings, and patterns found within it. Your Hiraishin is no exception to this, however, you have added unnecessary traits to it that cause it to require more chakra to activate—which causes you to transfer more energy than what is needed.

"Say you are trying to draw a tree. It doesn't have to be a pretty drawing, but simply a drawing of a tree to get your point across. All you really need to do, is draw a rectangle and then a bush on top, and you have a tree. What you are doing, Miwako-chan, is adding details such as roots; each individual leaf; color; shading... all of which might look nice, but ultimately is unnecessary. You have added those extra layers which, while pretty, and help with the balance, really just add more to the sealing than you need."

My eyes widened. "Really?"

Papa smiled. "The Hiraishin has no less than two hundred layers exactly. You have three hundred and thirty three."

I flushed. "That's... that's a big difference."

Papa laughed jovially. "It's to be expected. I may have prepared in case of my death for you and Naruto, but I couldn't run the risk of an enemy stealing your blood and uncovering Hiraishin. I had faith you would recreate it given your own time. And I still believe that even without me helping you today, you would have discovered the truth for yourself."

I smiled, my heart fluttering warmly at the praise.

"But, since this opportunity has arisen..." Papa trailed off, his smile stretching. "Let's get down to business, shall we?"

I brought up all the layers of the sealing in the mindscape, and an ink brush for Papa. He gave me a wink and a grin before he began to meticulously cross out some of the seals.

('･ω･')

When Papa was done remaking my Hiraishin - it amazed me at the speed of which he reproduced it, and amazed me even more that I understood what he was telling me about it (a far cry from that little girl after the chūnin Exams), it was time for Kushina to hog me.

She fiddled with my hair, her eyes soft. "I love how long you've let it grow."

I blushed. "I... I always wanted long hair."

I never really had hair since I was three.

"What... What did you want to say to me?" I asked, suddenly feeling very shy under her tender gaze.

"First, I wanted to apologize for leaving you both," Kushina said quietly. Immediately, I reached for her hand, taking it in my own and squeezing it tightly. "I know you and Naruto don't blame us for an instant, but as your mother it's my job to worry about this kind of stuff, dattebane!"

"I know," I told her. Her eyes warmed and twinkled, and she reached forward and took my face in her hands.

"There are so many things I want to tell you," Kushina said softly, "but the most important thing you need to know is that you are loved, Miwa. You are loved so very dearly. We waited so anxiously for you to come into this world and we were so happy to finally meet you. No matter where life takes you now, no matter how much time has passed since we've left you, never doubt that we love you. We cherish you. We accept you."

My eyes burned and I squirmed underneath her warm gaze. My stomach flip-flopped and I felt like something that had been squeezing my heart for so long finally melted away. I reached for her, blindly at this point from the hot tears, and squeezed her tightly. Kushina pulled me into her embrace, holding me tightly in her arms and whispering over and over again: I love you. I am so proud of you. Thank you for being my child. Thank you for being born into this world. Thank you.

Not enough time passed, and Minato and Naruto rejoined us.

We pulled apart, wiping at our eyes while the men sat down next to us.

The four of us sat in comfortable silence, no one wanting to say what had to be said next: it was time to go.

"Before you go," I said quickly, my voice surprisingly still hoarse, "I wanted to ask you... how do you use the Uzumaki chakra chains?"

"Chakra chains, huh?" Momma mused, brushing back a strand of her red hair behind her ear. "There's not much I can teach you about them, I'm afraid. It's all instinctual, and it's not always guaranteed to manifest in every Uzumaki. The chakra chains will come to you when you need them, and once they come for the first time, you will always know how to call upon them."

"Hmm," Naruto hummed. "That's kinda vague, but... you say they'll come when I need 'em, so I'll just have to trust that."

Momma smiled sheepishly. "I'm sorry I can't be much help in those regards, but... before Minato and I need to go... we need to tell you... What exactly happened on that night."

Naruto and I straightened.

Papa gave a sigh. "That night... sixteen years ago... the night the two of you were born."

"I was the jinchūriki before you two. Truth be told, I was brought to Konoha for the express purpose of being the Kyūbi's jinchūriki from my homeland. And it's true, the fact that, sixteen years ago, a masked man was manipulating the Ky—er—Kurama when he attacked the village. But, moments earlier, I had Kurama sealed and in my possession," Momma said.

"Then what happened?" Naruto asked.

"That masked man... I don't know how, but that masked man knew about the one chance had to weaken the seal. He waited for that moment to ste—ah—kidnap—Kurama. That time is during childbirth. During the approximately ten months from the time a female jinchūriki gets pregnant and gives birth, the seal weakens proportionally as the energy normally used to maintain the seal is directed to the growing baby..."

('･ω･')

(FLASHBACK)

"Congratulations."

"Huh?"

Kushina sat, back straight, in a small stool chair in a doctor's office. Her fiery red hair was left long and loose, and fell to her hip. She had part of her bangs tucked behind her ear, and she kept a gray-blue barrette on either side to keep her bangs in place. She wore a long, forest-green apron-like dress, with a white short-sleeved blouse underneath it.

The doctor's office was a pale green and white, and the doctor herself sat at a large desk, overlooking a clipboard. The doctor brushed her long black hair back, looking over at Kushina and smiling warmly. "Your due date is October tenth."

As realization came to Kushina, her face lit up with excitement, and a faint, pleasant blush dusted her cheeks. Her grey-blue eyes were sparkling with joy, and she gave the widest grin. "Oh!"

"Huh? A baby?" Minato echoed, slowly stepping out of the kitchen to greet his wife at the door. He was carrying a bowl, and was in the middle of making lunch for the two when she had returned. They had a good-sized home that was furnished with warm, and pale colors. Minato was wearing his Jōnin shirt and pants, but he had discarded the vest and his hitai-ate.

Kushina had finished taking off her shoes at the door, her expression no different from when she had first received the news. She was resting one of her hands on her stomach, and with the other one she pointed at herself. "I'm going to be a mother, ya know!"

Minato dropped the bowl, his eyes lighting up and his cheeks slowly turning a pleasant red. Half of his expression conveyed a level of disbelief, but the other half seemed to show a more ecstatic side. "And... I'm going to be... a father."

"A mother, ya know!" Kushina exclaimed excitedly, stepping towards Minato.

"I'm going to be a father!"

"A mother, ya know!" Kushina repeated, brimming with happiness.

Minato's eyes took a bright shine to them and he moved to embrace his wife. "Imagine that, I'm going to be a father!"

Kushina leapt at Minato and he caught her with ease, twirling her around.

Sarutobi Hiruzen, the third Hokage (now retired), sat across the table from Kushina. His wife sat beside him, and they were both dressed in similar robes. Hiruzen's face was grave, and there were bags under his eyes. His brown hair was messy and spiky, but he didn't seem to care. His wife, in contrast, looked crisp and clinical, with her brown hair pulled back into a perfect bun and her sharp eyes taking everything in.

Minato stood at Kushina's right side, his arm placed protectively around her. The atmosphere at the kitchen table was tense, and somber.

"Kushina, there is something I must explain to you," Hiruzen said, his tone grave. "It happened with Mito-hime, the previous jinchūriki, too. During her labor, the Kyūbi's seal was nearly broken. I'm sorry, but as a precautionary measure, we're going to ask you to deliver the child somewhere away from the village, inside a barrier."

Minato gave his wife a comforting smile. "We have the seal to think of, so I will be accompanying you."

Kushina smiled warmly at Minato.

"Minato, and Taji from the ANBU Black Ops, also I will send my wife, Biwako, to be with you. This is to be done in the utmost secrecy. Naturally, I will assign bodyguards, but they will be ANBU Black Ops under my direct orders."

Minato placed his hand over Kushina's, and she turned to him. He gave her a confident, gentle smile, his eyes soft. "I'll go ahead and prepare everything."

"I will take you there," Biwako said.

Kushina placed both of her hands on her large stomach. She stopped momentarily in her tracks, glancing around at the village. The sun was beginning to set, painting the sky a pale orange that melted away into a rich indigo. There were many others mingling about the dirt street, but none of them seemed to be in any rush to go anywhere.

Kushina picked up her pace, trailing behind Biwako as the elderly woman led her through the village to the secret area where she was supposed to give birth. Kushina stopped again when she saw her old friend, Mikoto, carrying an infant in her arms. Mikoto smiled at Kushina.

"Oh, my," Kushina said, peering at the infant. She beamed at Mikoto. "Was it a girl?"

Mikoto laughed lightly. "Boy."

"He's so cute," Kushina cooed. "What's your name, little one?"

Biwako turned back around at the duo. Mikoto answered, "Sasuke."

"Oh, so he was named after the father of the Sandaime," Biwako said, smiling at the child.

"Yes, so that he will grow up to be a strong and fine shinobi," Mikoto said, beaming. "You will be giving birth soon, too, right, Kushina? You should pick a name in advance."

"I already have," Kushina said, laughing lightly. "The boy's name will be Naruto, and the girl's will be Miwako. Sasuke-chan, I hope you'll be good friends with them. Ah, by the way... does it really hurt?"

Mikoto laughed at her friend's worried expression. "So there's actually something that scares you, Kushina?"

"Let's go, Kushina," Biwako said, grabbing Kushina's hand and pulling her away. When the two women were out of earshot of Mikoto, Biwako scolded her, "You mustn't talk with everyone, Kushina. No one is supposed to know your due date, or where the birth will take place. You can't tell anyone—including your friends."

"Yes, yes," Kushina mumbled, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly.

A pained scream pierced the night air. "It hurts, dattebane!"

Kushina was laying down on her back on a flat table in the middle of a well-slit cave. The torches' fires flickered and wavered, but held strong to cast an orange-ish glow upon everyone in the cave. Biwako stood at the end of Kushina, crouching down in preparation of receiving the first of the children.

Minato, his face creased with obvious worry, hovered around Kushina's side, with his hands placed firmly on her belly. There were seals marked all around her belly—the first layer of the seal to keep Kurama inside of her. Minato was in charge of making sure the seal didn't break.

"U-Um..." Minato began hesitantly, tossing Biwako a concerned look. "I've never seen Kushina in so much pain. Is she... alright?"

"She's alright," Biwako said brusquely. "Never mind that. Just stay focused on the kyūbi's seal."

Minato couldn't take his eyes off his whimpering wife. "But she's..."

"You're the Yondaime Hokage—act like one! A man would have dropped dead from such pain long ago. But, women are strong."

Minato's gaze snapped down towards the seal, as it began to fluctuate. Inside, Kurama roared with rage. Kurama was pinned against a rocky sphere, hovering in the air. At the end of each of his tails, a pole pierced through and pinned them to the sphere. The same was true for his hands, and his feet, and the center of his chest. Various chains were wrapped around him, limiting his movement even further.

He's strong, Minato grimaced, focusing his chakra to enhance Kushina's weakening seal. The kyūbi is struggling to get out. Hang in there, Kushina.

"Hang in there, Naruto, Miwako!" Minato whispered, his face screwing up in concentration.

"I can see one of their heads. You're almost there, Kushina," Biwako said.

The seal wavered and Minato struggled to uphold it. It was like he was bracing a cracking damn with a torrent of water constantly slamming against the other side. "Hurry up and come out, Naruto, and Miwako. kyūbi, you stay put!

A second cry pierced the air, and joined with Kushina's.

Biwako wasted little time in handing the child off to the only other medical-nin there. "That's one. I can already see the head of the girl."

Kushina's whimpers turned into tired groans.

"Come on, Miwako," Minato whispered. "Hurry up and join your big brother!"

There was this tiny little gasp, and Kushina's cries softly died out into exhausted wheezing. Naruto continued to cry as the medical-nin cleaned and dried him. Biwako took Miwako over to the table and mimicked the actions while Minato slowly pulled his hands away from the seal.

His eyes were watery, and he wore a wobbly smile. Kushina wasn't able to hold back her own tears, as they silently slipped out and ran down the side of her head. Naruto continued to cry, while Miwako remained silent, although she shifted anxiously.

Minato raised his left arm and wiped it across his eyes, letting out a watery laugh. "They're here. I—I'm a father today!"

"They're healthy babes," Biwako said, holding one of them. The medical-nin held the other. Biwako carefully placed Miwako in Minato's excited, and out stretched hands. The medical-nin gently placed Naruto beside an exhausted Kushina, who feebly turned her head to face him.

Tears ran down Minato's face, as he stared at his daughter. He swallowed down the lump in his throat, and he whispered, "Hello, Miwako-chan."

"Naruto," Kushina whispered, tears falling out of her own eyes, "I can finally see you."

Biwako held out her arms to Minato, and Minato hesitated a good moment before placing Miwako in them. "You'll have plenty of time later. Let's finish getting them cleaned up."

The medical-nin took Naruto away, as well, and the two brought the babies over to the table to finish cleaning them up.

Minato approached Kushina and gently placed his right hand over hers, smiling softly at her. "How are you feeling, Kushina?"

"M'Okay."

"Thank you," he whispered.

"Minato..."

Minato brightened and punched the palm of his left hand. "Yosh! I know you've gone through childbirth, but I'm going to completely seal the kyūbi!"

Suddenly, Naruto began crying again and a scream rang through the air. Minato turned around, his eyes widening in surprise to find the two nurses falling over, dead, and a man cloaked entirely in black holding Miwako in his right arm. His left hand hovered above her face, and his expression was entirely unreadable behind his mask.

"Yondaime Hokage Minato, get away from the jinchūriki. Otherwise, this child's life will end at the tender age of one minute."

Minato's face darkened as he turned to face the masked man. How did he get past the barrier? This guy... he's no one ordinary.

Kushina cried out as the seal's second layer began to unravel, stretching across her skin and signifying the weakening of it. It was rapidly decaying.

"Kushina!" Minato cried out, snapping his head back around to look at her. The kyūbi's seal is weakening quickly.

"Get away from the jinchūriki," the masked man warned, pulling out a kunai from inside of his sleeve. "Don't you care what happens to your kid?"

"Wait," Minato said quickly, holding out an outstretched hand. "Just calm down."

"Speak for yourself, Minato," the masked man returned evenly. "I'm as cool as can be."

The masked man then tossed Miwako up in the air.

"Miwako!" Kushina screamed.

Minato reacted without thinking. As the masked man leapt up, his kunai pointed directly at the falling child, Minato flickered towards Miwako and grabbed her in his arms. He landed on the ceiling, upside down, as his eyes quickly scanned over her.

"Well, I must hand it to the Yellow Flash," the masked man demurred, falling back down to the ground. "But I wonder about the next one?"

There was a sizzling noise beneath Miwako, and Minato paled as he realized that explosive tags were slapped on the back of her blanket. Minato leapt back, teleporting in the same instant as he grabbed the blanket, and threw it off in the new location he had teleported to.

He held Miwako close to his body, and hurled himself out of the safe house he had gone to, just as the explosive tags went off. Minato curled around Miwako, doing his best to protect her, as his back slammed against the ground outside. Debris and smoking planks of wood flew around them, as the duo skidded a bit further.

Miwako shivered in his arms, and Minato sat up. Minato's gaze was soft as he looked down at Miwako. "Thank goodness... Miwako isn't hurt."

He stiffened, when he realized that a piece of wood had lodged itself in his right ankle. His eyes hardened, narrowing into dangerous slits. A dark look crossed over the normally charismatic Hokage. One that promised a very painful demise to the one on the receiving end of that look.

I was forced to use the Hiraishin. His target is Kushina... and he succeeded in separating us.

He pulled out the piece of wood and flicked it up.

I must hurry.

Before it even hit the ground, he and Miwako had teleported away.

Black sealing chains shot out of the battered Kushina, chaining her to separate stone pillars. She and her kidnapper were in the middle of the forest outside Konoha, a good distance away from the cave.

"Just... what do you want?" Kushina panted.

The masked man stared at her. "I'm going to pull the kyūbi out from you and destroy Konoha."

Kushina's eyes widened. "What?"

"Minato's teleportation jutsu allows him to move instantly between locations marked with jutsu formulas—or anchors. He made sure to mark your own sealing formula with it, too, in order to protect you. However, I managed to put a distance between you. Furthermore, the kyūbi's seal has been weakened from childbirth. Do you know how long I've waited for this moment?"

"You'll both be safe here," Minato said, placing Naruto beside Miwako. Naruto stopped sniffling, as if realizing he was beside his sister and he squirmed to try and face her. Miwako fidgeted, almost worming herself closer to Naruto.

When Minato had returned to the cave, he found that Kushina and the man were long gone, but thankfully Naruto had been left untouched. He wasted little time in grabbing him and teleporting back to their home, and putting him beside his sister.

"Just wait a while," Minato murmured, pulling the blanket up to the both of them and tucking them in. "I have to go save your mother.

The once rocky sphere that Kurama was pinned against was slowly turning into lava, and beginning to drip down.

"You're..." Kurama snarled from inside of Kushina's seal.

The masked man's Sharingan whirled behind the single hole in his mask, as he stared directly through the seal and into Kurama's eyes.

Kurama stiffened, and the moment he made contact with those eyes, he was lost to the world. He was nothing more than a savage creature now, and he tore through the chains that had once pinned him back.

A red cloak of chakra surrounded Kushina in the outside world, bubbling and burning. Her eyes were rolled back, and her mouth hung open in a silent scream of pain, as she became completely helpless to the unraveling seal. More and more layers of the seal were peeled back, crawling across her skin before evaporating entirely.

At the center of her stomach, a large black hole whirled around.

"Now then... Come on out, kyūbi!" the masked man demanded, his hands held in a single handseal. His chakra fluctuated as he began to pull Kurama out of the seal. From that one black hole, Kurama began to crawl out of it. Growing bigger and bigger as he freed himself. A feral roar echoed throughout the night, when he was finally free.

Kurama now gone from her, and the seal entirely broken, Kushina fell forward as the most draining exhaustion fell over her. She struggled to move, and she could already feel her own heartbeat slowing.

A jinchūriki could not live without their bijū.

It was only a matter of time before she slipped off.

"Good," the masked man said, looking up at the roaring Kurama. "Now I'll go straight to Konohagakure.

Shakily, Kushina pushed herself up. Sweat dripped off her, and dark bags hung under her eyes. Her voice was drawn out in a low hiss, "Hold it."

The masked man paused, but did not turn around. "Uzumaki are amazing. You don't die right away after the bijū is extracted. You were the jinchūriki of the kyūbi. I'll use him to kill you."

Kurama turned towards Kushina, raising a massive clawed paw.

He slammed down his paw.

On the tip of a nearby tree, Minato teleported, holding Kushina in his arms bridal style.

"I must say," the masked man murmured, "you're as quick as your nickname. But you are too late."

Minato looked down at Kushina, taking in her completely battered state. "Minato... are they...? Is Miwako and Naruto... safe?"

He gave her a reassuring smile. "Yes. They're fine."

"Thank goodness," Kushina whispered shakily. "Minato... you must stop that man... and the kyūbi right now. He's heading for Konohagakure."

Slowly, Minato began to turn his head towards the masked man. The gentleness that was once in his eyes was now completely gone, replaced with cold, thunderous, murderous intent. His face was dark, shadowed by his bangs, and there was a new glint in his eyes.

The same glint in his eyes that he held when he butchered a thousand Iwagakure shinobi in a scarce few minutes in the last war.

Merciless.

He teleported away.

He landed in the middle of the room with Naruto and Miwako.

"Why?" Kushina whispered tiredly.

"Never mind that," Minato murmured warmly. "Just stay with Naruto and Miwako"

Minato gently set Kushina in the bed, laying her on her side to face their two children. Kushina's eyes watered, and her bottom lip trembled. She shakily raised her arm and brought the two children closer to her. She buried her face against the top of their heads, biting back a sob.

"Naruto... Miwako..." Tears sprung from her eyes, falling down freely. Naruto was fast asleep by this point, but Miwako shifted and made a quiet noise—almost a cooing sound.

Minato turned away, his heart breaking from the scene.

These were the only moments their children would have with their mother in this lifetime.

('･ω･')

I closed my eyes, as I continued to listen to their story, imaging every scene. As the story went on, Kushina had reached forward and grabbed both of our hands. Minato had wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulder.

When they were done, we lapsed into another comfortable silence.

Minato reached out to Naruto and me, pulling me into his and Kushina's embrace. Softly, he kissed the top of both of our heads. "We've used up our chakra. It's time for us to go."

I squeezed onto their forms, hating the fact that they would soon disappear.

"Thank you," Naruto rasped, "for being our parents."

"Thank you," Kushina whispered shakily, "for being born to us."

I kept my eyes closed, choosing to savor this moment for all that it was worth.

And knowing that I couldn't bear to watch them disappear before my very eyes.

('･ω･')

When they were gone, Naruto and I lingered in the field for several moments before he cleared his throat and said he was heading back to reality.

I told him I would catch up to him shortly, but I first had to speak with Kurama.

"Hey, Kurama," I said, looking up at my dear friend. Kurama cocked his head.

"What is it, brat?" Kurama asked.

I turned to face him fully, a large smile on my face. If it looked a bit mischievous, Kurama didn't comment. I raised my right hand and beckoned him closer to me. "C'mere. I have something for you."

Kurama dubiously lowered his head, until his eyes were level with mine. Then, as my smile widened considerably, I leaned over and kiss the tip of his nose.

His reaction was immediate. He balked, brusquely sitting upright with his ears turned backwards, a snarl on his face, and his eyes narrowed and glistening. "What the fuck was that? What are you doing? Are you an idiot? You perverted brat! I never gave you permission to do that. You fool! You moron! You brat!"

I just kept smiling at him, as Kurama continued to howl insults. I knew better than to actually be offended by them. Instead, I just waited for him to lose steam. It didn't take too long, actually. Soon enough, Kurama was just glowering silently. His ears were still pulled back and his eyes were narrowed, but his snarl was gone.

If he was a human, I knew what his face would look like. I could practically see the embarrassed blush on his cheeks.

"You know I love you," I just told him. "I just wanted to show it, is all."

"Moron," Kurama hissed vehemently.

"I know you love me, too," I reassured him.

"Idiot!"

I held up my hands in a peaceful gesture. "Relax. I won't do it again for a while."

Kurama's expression soured. "Good. Who the hell would want any kind of affection from you? I-Idiot."

I peered at him. "Unless you're just being a tsundere again and you secretly want me to."

"I don't," Kurama insisted.

"Mm-hmm," I dismissed. "Well, that's all I wanted to do. I'm going to head back out into the real world, again. I want to talk to Naruto about something."

Kurama huffed. "As if I care."

"Although..." I paused, looking back up at Kurama and smiling tenderly. "I hope you realize, Kurama, that it's you and me. We're partners. Until the end of time."

"Until death do us part," mocked Kurama, a sneer on his face, although his ears cocked forwards towards me. "Stop being so sentimental, and get out already."

I chuckled, pulling out of the seal and walking quickly down the hallways. Within minutes, I had reached Naruto's room and I entered it. Naruto was in the middle of pulling a shirt on when I entered, and I waited for him to finish.

When he was done, he turned towards me and gave me a lopsided grin. "Hey, Miwako. What's up?"

"I've finished testing out the new Hiraishin," I told him, "and now I feel confident enough that I can... that I can pass it on."

Naruto blinked at me. "What?"

I held out one of my special daggers to Naruto. "Naruto, I want to teach you the Hiraishin. I've already drawn up the seals for you to use, it's just a matter of you marking them as your own seals for you to use. And, of course, of you being able to use them. There isn't a doubt in my mind that you won't get this down."

Naruto's eyes widened hugely, and he gaped at me. "Are... are you sure?"

"Absolutely," I told him firmly.

He grinned. "Then I want to teach you the Rasengan!"

I didn't hesitate.

"Mn! It's a deal."

His grin went supernova.

Well it's about damn time.