13

Chapter Text

The Sanbi was rampaging, smashing buildings and their unsuspecting occupants within. Kushina could see their first line of defenders already hard at work engaging the bijuu, attacking with all they had to drive the massive turtle back. Their shinobi struck fast, surrounding the Sanbi on all sides. 

Jiraiya's toad summon managed to get his massive head beneath the underside of the Sanbi's shell, attempting to lift him completely. The toad dug its webbed feet into the ground, grunting from exertion as he finally managed to get the bijuu off his feet. The Sanbi shrieked, slashing forward blindly at the summon. The toad howled with pain, but held his ground until he was bunched underneath the Sanbi completely. Then, he reared up, using the motion to toss the Sanbi forward, completely out of the village and into the surrounding forest. 

The bijuu hit the ground with a massive thud that knocked most of their forces off their feet. Jiraiya's toad poofed away after completing his objective, nursing his injuries. The Sanbi was struggling to get to his feet, frantically trying to roll himself off of his back. His tails flailed wildly, knocking down trees and boulders in his vicinity like they were made of paper. 

Kushina landed in a crouch in the midst of their forces, ready for battle. She spotted Minato immediately, living up to his nickname as he flashed around in a bright blur. The Sandaime was present too, in his battle armor, shouting commands to move their forces into a more defensible position. Kushina also spotted both Sannin, in the thick of everything. Jiraiya was beside his sensei, wiping sweat off his brow after the energy he used to summon his largest toad. Tsunade was helping a group of shinobi lift a massive slab of debris off some trapped civilians. Or rather, she was shoving them aside so she could single-handedly pick up the slab and toss it away like it weighed nothing at all. 

Before she could call out to any of them, the bijuu wailed, flaring his chakra. Her stomach dropped as she realized the Sanbi was gathering energy in its gaping maw. It was preparing to launch a Bijuu Bomb. 

"Minato!" Kushina shouted, getting her husband's attention. 

"On it!" he responded, already flashing through a series of hand signs. 

Just as the Sanbi launched his attack, Minato caught it with his jutsu and transported it. The Bijuu Bomb disappeared mid air, and then there was an explosion of light and energy in the distance. 

Before the Sanbi could launch another attack, Kushina summoned her chakra chains, gritting her teeth against the strain. The golden chains erupted from her body, wrapping around the bijuu and pinning him to the ground. The Sanbi let out another pained roar, struggling wildly against his restraints. She felt a little guilty about the rough handling, but she didn't have another option. She couldn't let the bijuu launch another attack. 

Minato was beside her in an instant, looking her over critically. "Are you alright?" His eyes widened. "Where's Naruto?" 

"With Kakashi," she replied, her voice strained, "and your ANBU guard. They went to a secure location." 

Minato let out a sigh of relief. Then, his expression hardened, back into Hokage-mode. "Can you keep holding him down?" 

"It's not exactly easy, but I can manage," she responded. She'd restrained Kurama when she was nearly dead, afterall. At least this time she was at full strength. 

He didn't want to disrupt her concentration, so Minato didn't offer anything more than brushing his thumb gently across her cheek. "Hang in there, while we figure out how to contain him." 

"Take your time," Kushina grunted sarcastically. 

Fortunately, he did not actually take his time. "Master Jiraiya, I need you with me." Master and student approached the bijuu together, preparing to subdue the Sanbi. 

"Are you going to seal the Sanbi in a new jinchuuriki?" Kushina asked, her voice still strained. 

Kushina tried to ignore the stab of wrongness she felt at re-sealing the Sanbi and shipping him off back to Kiri to repeat the jinchuuriki cycle. Now that she'd gotten to know Kurama, she could no longer see the bijuu as the monsters or weapons that they'd been portrayed as. She struggled to continue to see the justification of keeping them contained within their respective jinchuuriki. 

Minato looked back at her, shaking his head. "No, I'm going to seal him in an item, not a person. We haven't had the chance to talk about it yet, but there's something going on in Kiri. Our sources indicate that civil unrest has broken out, verging on war." 

The Sandaime landed beside his successor and nodded in agreement at the statement. "We must tread carefully with the Sanbi. Kiri is already unstable, and if they think we've stolen their bijuu from under their noses there's no telling how they'll react." 

"The two situations are likely connected," Minato continued, studying the bijuu carefully. "Now to seal him…" he nodded toward his master. 

"I've got just the thing," Jiraiya assured them. He pulled out a sealing scroll. "It's in here somewhere…" 

Kushina wanted to bark at them to hurry up, because the strain on her chakra was starting to get to her. She refrained, only because she was worried that speaking would break her concentration. Restraining a bijuu was hard work! 

Minato's attention suddenly snapped in her direction. "Kushina, behind you!" 

She couldn't move, not without risking freeing the bijuu. All she could manage was to peek over her shoulder in time to see a hand, followed by a head and torso, emerging out of thin air. 

"Obito," she breathed, quiet enough that no one else would hear her. 

Obito was wearing the familiar orange mask from Kurama's memories, and a plain black cloak. He was reaching out with a gloved hand, though Kushina wasn't sure if it was to strike her down or just interrupt her concentration. Regardless, it was clear that she was the target. 

Minato moved in an instant, thanks to one of the hiraishin markers either on her or Obito, intercepting the attack and forcing Obito to remain intangible to protect himself. They passed through each other, neither one able to land a hit, but it at least prevented him from carrying out whatever he'd been plotting. 

The rest of their forces had noticed the new enemy, crying out in alarm and readying themselves for an attack. Minato held up a hand to tell them all to wait. In that moment, Kushina suspected it had less to do with Obito being his former student, and more to do with the potential threat the masked shinobi posed. Normally, when they discussed what to do with Obito, Minato wore a very conflicted, heartbroken expression. This time, however, he was all business. He was facing their opponent not as his former mentor, but as a Kage protecting his village. 

"Is this really how you want tonight to go?" Minato asked, perhaps giving his former student one final chance to see the light. 

Obito tilted his head in response. "Whatever do you mean?" he asked in his fake baritone. "You don't even know why I'm here." 

"Don't I?" Minato responded, keeping himself between Kushina and their foe. He gestured back toward the still struggling bijuu. 

Obito pretended to look surprised by the Sanbi's presence. "Oh, so that's where he ended up."

"Enough with the games. You've now attacked both the village and my own family twice, and that's not something I can overlook." Any lingering hesitation evaporated as Minato held up one of his distinctive three-pronged kunai, ready for a fight. 

"Me? Playing games?" Obito held a hand over his chest in mock offense. "I would never." He waved them off dismissively. "I'm not actually here for you, Lord Fourth," he practically spat the title. "My intentions aren't quite so nefarious, I assure you." 

Understandably, Minato was unconvinced. He remained in his battle-ready stance, not moving an inch from the defensive position he'd taken up. 

Obito was unconcerned about the lack of response. "You see, I'm just here because I was worried." He gestured toward the Sanbi. "I thought the poor thing might be lonely. I thought," he continued, his voice low and menacing, "he might need a friend." 

Minato's eyes widened in understanding, but even with his impressive speed, he was too late. They'd walked right into a trap. At the same moment Minato appeared in front of Obito, the masked shinobi slammed his hand on the ground and shouted, " Summoning jutsu!" 

It was impossible to see what happened to Minato and Obito, because another mass of dust and smoke had kicked up where they'd been standing just moments before. The surrounding shinobi all shouted various exclamations of surprise, and were blown backwards by the equivalent of gale force winds. Kushina tried to stand her ground, but the force was too strong. She was thrown backwards like a ragdoll, and her attention slipped. 

It was enough for the Sanbi to burst free from his restraints with a mighty roar. His chakra flared wildly, and he used his tails to finally right himself. Then, he released a powerful stream of water from his mouth that decimated everything in its path. Trees were shredded, and shinobi were consumed by the deluge. The stream was so strong that it reached part of the village, tearing through a handful of buildings. 

The next time the Sanbi roared, it was joined by a higher pitched wail. The dust started to clear, revealing a towering, gooey slime monster. Six tails waved behind the creature, dripping sludge with each movement. Any shinobi unlucky enough to be in the splash zone found themselves held fast by the sticky goop. 

The Sanbi was bad enough, but now they would have to face the Rokubi too. 

Kushina recalled Minato's words, about the civil unrest in Kiri, and it reminded her of information she'd learned in Kurama's memories. Obito had controlled the Sanbi and his jinchuuriki. Naruto hadn't been particularly aware of the events, given his young age and less-than observant nature, but Kushina had learned at least the basics from Kurama about what had happened. Kiri had been incredibly violent and unstable for many years, because of Obito's influence. Given that Obito had brought both of Kiri's bijuu here, and that Minato had reports of political instability in Kiri, it was logical to assume that Obito had a hand in the conflict here too. The Sanbi may not have been resealed after Rin died, but what about the Rokubi? Had Obito killed the bijuu's jinchuuriki to bring the slime-creature here? And what had he done in Kiri to cause shockwaves all the way out here in Konoha? 

Her questions would have to go unanswered for now, because they had two rampaging, mind-controlled bijuu to subdue. And Obito. They couldn't discount the threat he posed on his own, given that he had put up a good fight against Minato in the past, and could now apparently control two bijuu at once. 

Speaking of Minato and Obito, Kushina was desperate to find out what happened when the two of them clashed. When the dust finally cleared, neither of them were where they'd been before. They were in the middle of a frantic back and forth clash, Obito phasing in and out of his Sharingan's dimension, and Minato using his hiraishin to try to reach him while he was solid. 

The Sandaime realized his successor was occupied, and quickly resumed taking charge of the fight against the bijuu. "Keep them away from the village!" he commanded. 

Their forces were fighting valiantly, sending up earth walls to herd the bijuu further away from civilization, blasting them with fireballs, and taking turns as the primary target. As much as they hoped they wouldn't have to deal with future bijuu attacks after Kurama was released, Minato knew they had to be prepared for the possibility. The village felt powerless after the Kyuubi's rampage, so training for potential attacks in the future was a good way to help soothe some of their nerves. They were definitely more organized in their assault this time, but they certainly hadn't prepared for the possibility of two bijuu instead of one. 

Kushina joined in the fight, ducking under a slimy tentacle. She grimaced as she heard the sound of an unlucky shinobi on her right that hadn't moved quickly enough. They were crushed as the Rokubi slammed them into the ground, not slowing the bijuu down for even a moment. Then, the bijuu rose up to full height and released a plume of pink gas. The shinobi caught in the attack didn't even have time to scream before they were completely disintegrated. Even the ground wasn't spared, cracking and sizzling into nothing as the Rokubi continued pumping out the noxious fumes. 

"Wind style users, to the front!" the Sandaime ordered. 

Their forces formed a line, unleashing their most powerful wind techniques to blow the gas back toward the bijuu. It wasn't enough to disperse the gas, still leaving countless shinobi choking and collapsing as they breathed it in, or dropping dead on the spot if too much of the gas covered their body. 

Tsunade joined the line of shinobi at the front, slamming her hand on the ground to summon Katsuyu. "This kind of shit is why I didn't want to come back to the village!" she snapped, even as she directed the giant slug to shield them. 

Katsuyu was able to cover a large number of their forces until the gas dispersed. Then, she split into smaller clones of herself and started healing as many injured shinobi as she could reach. 

Even more impressive, as the Sanbi tried to crush a handful of injured shinobi under his massive foot, Tsunade intercepted the attack with a chakra-enhanced punch. She hit the bijuu in the center of his foot, forcing him to yank it away like he'd been burned. The Sanbi roared in anger and pain. Conversely, Tsunade was just shaking out her hand like she'd been barely inconvenienced. If there was actually time to gawk, Kushina would have paused to convey how impressed she was with the Sannin's strength. 

Kushina did what she could to support their forces. Her chakra chains were useful even when not used at full strength, allowing her to restrain a leg or keep one of the bijuu from advancing on them. She didn't use the complete technique, conserving her strength as much as possible. They wouldn't be able to kill the bijuu (and she actually really didn't want to anyway), so the goal was to contain them. She may still need to restrain the bijuu so they could be sealed when there was an opening. 

She hoped Minato had a plan to seal them. She tried to find him in the midst of the fighting and chaos, but he was near impossible to keep track of when he was using his hiraishin technique. From what she could tell, he was maintaining the upper hand against Obito, but his former student was making it difficult for Minato to join the fight against the bijuu. Which, she supposed, was likely the point. Obito was clearly getting frustrated, though, unable to hide the increasing tension in his body as he failed to overpower the Hokage. 

When Minato dodged another hit that Obito seemed to expect to land, he snapped, "Let's see how you fare against this!" 

At some unseen signal, both bijuu began readying their strongest attacks, gathering energy for a pair of Bijuu Bombs. Minato noticed, but he didn't have a good opening to get away from his current opponent. At least, not without leaving one of them wide open to a counter attack. 

Fortunately, Kushina had a solution. "Minato! Switch with me!" Kushina called out to her husband. 

He nodded in understanding, but didn't move right away since he was faster than her. Obito tried to keep them from swapping opponents, but Minato still had him outmatched. Even with all his shiny new abilities, he was still young and inexperienced. And now that they knew who he was, it was easier to see echoes of his former self in his movements and attacks and counter accordingly. They didn't know everything about his abilities, but Kurama had given them a huge advantage by telling them what he knew. She could read it in the masked shinobi's body language that he was frustrated that he couldn't get the upper hand like he expected. He may have gotten the drop on Minato last time, but Minato never fell for the same trick twice. 

"Oh no you don't," Obito growled, in a voice much closer to his own. With his increasing frustration, his carefully crafted persona seemed to be slipping. 

There were many things Kushina loved about her husband, and one of them was how easy it was to sync up with him in battle. They only had to share a look to be on the same page. Without saying a word, Kushina threw a kunai, forcing Obito to become intangible to avoid getting hit. It allowed her and Minato to swap out without leaving one of them vulnerable to a counterstrike. 

Once Kushina was closer, Minato disappeared in an instant, reappearing in front of the bijuu. Kushina took his place in the back and forth with Obito, not letting him have a beat of recovery from their assault. The kunai she'd thrown passed through his mask just as she and Minato swapped positions. She saw a flash of irritation in Obito's red eye, barely visible through the hole in his mask. 

"What's the matter, kid? She goaded, not the least bit surprised when her next series of strikes passed straight through her opponent. "Are you choking on another piece of candy or something?" 

Obito practically snarled at her, trying to overwhelm her with speed since she wasn't as quick as Minato. Unfortunately for him, neither was he. She'd been training with Minato since the kid was in diapers, probably. She knew how to counter a speed-based attack, and was used to it with a much faster opponent. 

Kushina made a show of yawning, exaggerating the motion. "Come on, is that really the best you can do? Minato taught you better than that." She sidestepped a very sloppy punch, following up with a slash of her kunai that just barely caught fabric. 

It might be a dirty trick, goading him into making a mistake, but she didn't feel bad about it. Considering he'd brought two bijuu to destroy their home, plus the debacle with Kurama, he was lucky she wasn't saying anything worse. At least not yet. 

In the future, the one Kurama had lived, Obito might be too put together and experienced to fall for such an obvious trick. Here and now, he was still a teenager, and still learning how to play his villainous persona. Beneath the threats and the powerful doujutsu, he was still Obito, and he hadn't quite figured out how not to be. 

Her plan was working. Obito was getting angry, and keeping all of his attention fixed on her, leaving Minato open to stopping the bijuu from launching their attacks. He had already transported the Sanbi's Bijuu Bomb, barely a second after it was released. The Rokubi's attack took a little more finesse, forcing Minato to teleport to a marker somewhere else to catch the attack. A few moments later there were a pair of staggered explosions in the distance, indicating that the deflection had been successful. 

Kushina grinned at Obito's irritated snarl. "Not going like you thought it would?" 

"I'll admit," he growled, using his own voice instead of his fake villain voice, "you're faring better than expected." 

"Maybe you should have thought your plan through a little more. Guess some things never change, huh?" she teased. 

At first, Kushina thought she was going to get Obito to snap. He was practically shaking with anger and frustration, and he had his fists curled at his side. Then, his entire body relaxed, as if he'd just remembered something. Kushina couldn't ignore the pit in her stomach at the sudden demeanor change. 

This time, when Obito responded, he was back to using that fake baritone. He chuckled, low and menacing. "Funny you should say that," he retorted, "because I was going to tell you something similar." He tilted his head playfully, all traces of his previous frustration gone. "Using a seal to inactivate my Sharingan? Really? Although, I have to give you points for getting stubborn Fugaku on board." 

Kushina was so surprised to hear that Obito knew what they'd been working on that she almost gave up ground. He'd been waiting for her momentary distraction, reaching out to grab her. If she didn't have so much experience training with Minato and his lightning fast attacks, she might have been fatally struck. Fortunately, her reflexes kicked in, and she lashed out with a kunai just as she felt the brush of solid fingertips on her arm. Her own attack did land, apparently catching him off guard with her quick response, but he seemed barely inconvenienced from where Kushina had sliced a decent sized gash into his forearm. He leapt back out of self preservation, but there was no blood dripping from his injured arm. Instead, there were a few drops of white goop. 

Obito rubbed at the wound on his arm, like it was barely a papercut. Well, the kid's pain tolerance certainly had increased. She remembered a time when a stubbed toe was enough to bring him to his knees, howling with pain and fighting back tears. 

"Impressive reflexes. I suppose being married to the Yellow Flash has some perks," he mused. 

"Just a few," she replied with equal sarcasm. "Now, are you gonna give me your big villain speech on how you found out our plans? Or should I start guessing?" 

The goading didn't seem to work this time, but Obito still appeared to be planning on revealing his secret. It seemed that even now he still couldn't help but brag when he felt like he had the upper hand. 

"I heard it straight from you, of course," he responded, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Did you know that transplanting a Sharingan doesn't completely sever the original user's connection?" 

Kushina's eyes widened in understanding. "Kakashi–" 

"I will admit that it took me an embarrassingly long time to notice," Obito continued, "but once I did, I was able to learn all kinds of interesting information from you. You sure trust Kakashi a lot, don't you?" He may have sounded a little bitter, but it was difficult to tell. "If I hadn't heard all of you discussing it so openly, I would have thought you knew about the connection and wanted to trick me. I mean, time travel ? The Kyuubi ? It's all pretty unbelievable." He shook his head. "When you said you had someone that knew about the future, I never would have guessed who your source was. I'm still not entirely sure how you got the fox on your side, but it certainly threw a wrench in my plans." 

Kushina could admit that Obito had her at a disadvantage. She never could have accounted for him learning their secret like this. How could they have known? As far as she knew, there weren't any records of Sharingan transplants like Obito and Kakashi, where two living individuals split a pair of eyes between them. There was a lot that they probably still didn't know about the connection. 

"If you know about the future," she said carefully, "then why are you still fighting us? Don't you realize what's going to happen?" In truth, she had no idea what exactly Obito would have overheard. Did he know the full truth, or just enough tidbits to mess with their plans? 

"I'm going to win," he responded smugly. "And you want to stop me before I get any more powerful." 

Either he didn't know the full truth, or he knew but didn't care. "Obito, listen to me. I don't know how much you've already heard, but now that you know our source, we can talk about it. You're being used–" 

"I don't want to hear your pathetic attempts to sway me," he interjected harshly. "I will see this plan to fruition. I will save this world from itself, and free everyone from the hell they are living in." 

"You don't understand," she tried again, "There's a moon goddess, and the end of the world, and–" 

" Enough! " he snarled. "I'm not going to listen to your lies. I'm going to crush you and your precious village into dust, then I'm going to find where Kakashi has stashed the Kyuubi's jinchuuriki." 

Kushina grit her teeth. "There's no reasoning with you, is there?" She didn't bother to rein in her killing intent, which had been well under control until she heard Obito openly threatening her son. She couldn't help the angry tears that formed in her eyes, as all the rage and betrayal that she'd been trying to shove aside for hope came bubbling to the surface. She'd tried giving Obito the benefit of the doubt, that he'd been tricked, manipulated. He was just a kid with a bleeding heart, and had always been naive. She'd been hurt and angry, of course, but she wanted to believe that the sweet, goofy kid that Minato trained was still in there somewhere. 

"How could you?" Kushina growled. "You were supposed to be like a brother to Naruto! He would have adored you. And Minato and I, we–" she felt the words catch in her throat. "We loved you, Obito. You were like family to us." She wiped away a few stray tears that she couldn't hold back. "I can forgive you for attacking us, and even ripping the Kyuubi out of me. I can forgive you for destroying the village, and all the plotting you've done. But if you hurt my son, I will never forgive you." 

Obito did seem to hesitate, but it appeared to be more related to the sudden, intense wave of killing intent that Kushina was giving off rather than a response to her words. "Great speech," he scoffed, "now let's see if you can back it up." 

Kushina ducked under a punch that would have broken her jaw. She countered with a roundhouse that she knew wouldn't land. It didn't matter. Her attack wouldn't be the one that hit. She just needed to keep Obito's attention on her for just a little longer. It broke her heart to realize they were at this step now, but there was nothing else they could do. Obito needed to be stopped before he hurt anyone else. Especially Naruto. 

"You never spent much time training with me," she told him, taking another swipe with a kunai. "I think you're underestimating me." 

Through the hole in his mask, Kushina could see Obito's eye narrow. "Actually, I would say that I–" 

Once again, Kushina was grateful for the silent communication that she and Minato were able to share. He'd acted exactly as she'd expected, appearing out of thin air with an attack already prepared. Even with Obito's dimensional shifting abilities, he wasn't fast enough to dodge. Before Obito even realized what was happening, Minato was behind him, slamming a Rasengan into his back with so much force that it exploded out the other side through his opponent's chest. 

There was no trace of triumph on her husband's face. His expression was forcefully blank as he shoved his entire arm through the ribcage of his former student. 

Obito only managed a cut off gasp, his eye widening in surprise. Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion. Kushina forced herself not to look away from the masked face of the boy she'd thought of like family. She couldn't see most of his expression behind the mask, but she could read the shock and fear in his remaining eye. It made something in her gut twist uncomfortably, but she shoved the feeling down. This was no longer her husband's student; this was her enemy. 

Minato was forced to yank his arm back as a gnarled mass of branches erupted around them, nearly skewering him. Strangely, his arm was not bloody at all, despite being shoved through their opponent's entire body cavity. 

They knew about the Mokuton, so they weren't overly surprised, even if they hadn't necessarily expected it to make an appearance here. It seemed to be more of an unconscious response, perhaps a last ditch effort to save himself. 

Obito was still upright, despite the gaping hole in his chest, but he was swaying on his feet. With all traces of finesse gone, he started trying to swirl away into his personal dimension. Minato's expression hardened, and he flashed forward before Kushina could even blink. They were both gone not even a second later, as if they'd never been there in the first place. 

She didn't know what would happen to Minato if he was pulled into Obito's Sharingan dimension, but she trusted him to be able to get himself out of the situation. And, he probably trusted her to stay and deal with the bijuu. He wouldn't have wanted to leave the battle, but he would have been foolish to let their enemy get away while he was so seriously injured. Given how difficult he was to pin down, it could be their only chance to subdue him. 

Some of their forces were murmuring uncomfortably at Minato's disappearance, but the Sandaime kept them in line. "Keep fighting the bijuu! Minato must be trying to break the masked man's control over the beasts. We must hold out until then." 

The old man caught her eye, and she nodded in confirmation. Although, if the plan she was formulating went well, they wouldn't need to wait for Minato to break Obito's control on the bijuu. She just needed to put a few things in place. 

Kushina caught up to her husband's mentor, who was side-by-side with his former teammate, both Sannin single-handedly forcing the Sanbi away from a line of terrified shinobi. "Master Jiraiya! You need to finish the seal we've been working on."

Jiraiya's eyebrows shot up. "What? Right now?" He shook his head. "There are more important things to worry about!" 

"No, that is the most important thing!" she insisted. "We came up with that idea because we knew it was the best way to subdue him. We knew that his ability was going to make it difficult to defeat and capture him. That hasn't changed." 

Jiraiya frowned, but he seemed to be considering her words. "But–" he looked back at where his student had disappeared, genuinely concerned for his safety. 

"Minato can handle himself," Kushina assured him, barely avoiding boasting about her husband's abilities. "Honestly, I think the rest of us would just get in his way. I mean, how the hell is anyone supposed to keep up with him?"

"Ok, that's a fair point," Jiraiya admitted. "But the bijuu–" 

"I have a plan for the bijuu," Kushina assured him. "Minato is the best counter for Obito, I'm the best counter for the bijuu, which means you are our only chance to get the seal done right now." 

He shook his head again. "Then we should trust Minato to break the control on the bijuu so we can subdue them. Isn't that what he did before, with the Kyuubi?" 

"Yes, but this time is different," she insisted. "And my plan will also take care of the bijuu after they're freed from Obito's control. If Minato frees them before we do, then my plan will still work, we'll just need to enact part of it sooner," Kushina explained. "And I think we should still have the seal ready, even though we managed to injure Obito pretty good. Considering he was still standing after that, I don't think he'll go down that easily. We need to be ready." 

It seemed to pain him to do so, but Jiraiya finally relented. "Fine!" He threw his hands up in defeat. "But we don't exactly have time to test it on the Hatake kid, so I make no promises on its efficacy." 

Kushina nodded in understanding. "Fair enough. Now, get going!" 

Jiraiya was gone before she even finished her sentence. That was one box she could check. As for the next…

Finding her other target turned out to be less straightforward. To be fair, there was a pair of angry bijuu she had to avoid being crushed by. The Sanbi was sending out shockwaves that ripped through their ranks, and the Rokubi was breathing out a stream of acid that burned any shinobi unlucky enough to get caught in the spray. Only a few drops had them howling in pain and desperately trying to get the substance off of them. 

The Sandaime continued to take charge of the fight against the bijuu, and ordered all of their water and earth affinity shinobi to combine their attacks and create a mud pit to dilute the acid. It took more than a dozen high ranking shinobi, and clearly strained all of them far more than it strained the bijuu, but eventually they managed. The pool of acid was rendered inert. In response, the Rokubi screeched in anger, swiping at them with a few of its tails. They all had to duck or leap sideways to avoid a strike. 

Kushina leapt over a puddle of slime on instinct as it plopped down in front of her, dripping off of one of the Rokubi's tails. She didn't stop, sliding underneath the next tail that swung over her head. She kept running, pushing her way through dust and debris, trying to find her target. 

She didn't find the person she was looking for, but she saw a familiar flash of red and made a beeline toward the source. She caught up with the group of unfamiliar Uchiha who were helping fend off a wave of water from the Sanbi. They used a combined, powerful katon to turn the wave of water into steam. 

"Hey!" she called, as the steam started to disperse. "Where's Fugaku?" 

None of them were particularly familiar to her, but she figured that if anyone knew where the Uchiha clan head was, it would be one of his kin. They all exchanged a look with each other, obviously suspicious. She was glad to see that the Uchiha were out on the frontline this time, hopefully preventing any further resentment against the clan. Still, all of the mistrust that had built up between them and the village didn't disappear overnight. They were still wary of the village, and judging by the way that most of the non-Uchiha shinobi were giving them a wide berth, the village was still wary of them too. Seeing a pair of bijuu controlled by someone with a Sharingan certainly wasn't helping the sentiment. 

Still, Kushina knew she was recognizable to them. Not because her husband was the Hokage, but because her best friend was the matriarch of their clan. The recognition was enough for one of them to finally point her in the right direction. 

She found Fugaku in the worst of the fighting, facing the Sanbi head on with a few of the other clan heads. Their combined efforts were enough to push the Sanbi back, causing it to stumble into the Rokubi and throw them both off balance. Both bijuu roared in frustration, but didn't stay down. 

Fugaku frowned at her as he noticed her approach. "Mikoto is not here. She has not seen combat since she became pregnant with Itachi," he told her. "She's helping evacuate non-combatants." 

Kushina wouldn't deny that it was a relief to know that her friend was out of danger. Judging by the look on the clan head's face, he must be having similar thoughts. It was much easier to go all out if you didn't have to worry about your family's safety. That was a sentiment she could understand. 

"I'm here for you, actually," she replied. 

They didn't have much time before the bijuu were ready to attack again, so Fugaku motioned for her to continue. 

"It may be a long shot, but I have an idea," she explained. "They're being controlled." Kushina didn't say by whom, but she knew that the man already knew. His expression darkened in confirmation. 

"I don't think I like where this is going," he responded tersely. 

"You probably won't, but I'm going to ask you to consider it anyway," she replied. "I was just thinking, if they're being controlled by a Sharingan, couldn't another Sharingan break that control? At least in theory?" 

The man's expression completely closed off. "What you're asking–" 

"I know." She really did. 

He shook his head. "I don't think you do. If one of us does this, and I'm not saying we even could, it would just confirm the village's fear about us. That we could control a bijuu. It will be like after the Kyuubi attack all over again." 

"Or," she countered, "it would prove that even if you do have this power, you would never use it against the village. You'd be saving it." 

"It doesn't matter what our intentions are," the clan head insisted. "If they see that we can do it, the idea will be planted that we could do it again. They'll never trust us." 

"You don't know that." 

"And you don't know that I'm wrong," Fugaku insisted. "I can't risk my clan's safety, my family's safety like that. You know better than anyone else what could happen." 

This is why Kushina hated dealing with her best friend's husband; he was just as stubborn as she was. "You're risking their safety by doing nothing!" she insisted, gesturing toward the pair of rampaging bijuu. 

"I'm not doing nothing," he countered harshly, "I'm out here fighting alongside the rest of the village. I refuse to let us be shoved to the sidelines again and then blamed for not doing our part." 

She felt like ripping her hair out in frustration. "Look, I know I'm asking for a lot, and that I keep asking for a lot," she replied, forcing her tone to stay even. "I can't even make you promises or guarantees about what the villagers will think or say. All I can do is ask you to try, because it may be our best chance to protect the village, and maybe even the bijuu too." 

Fugaku looked at her incredulously. "You're concerned about the bijuu ?" 

"After everything Kurama's done for us, I feel like I– we –owe it to him to treat them better," she explained. "He calls them his siblings, y'know? It just doesn't feel right to just beat them up and seal them away." 

Strangely, bringing up Kurama did seem to be causing the clan head to consider her request. He looked conflicted, with a heavy frown (heavier than usual) set on his face. Combined with the blood, dust, and grime from the battle, he looked incredibly worn and weary. 

Finally, Fugaku closed his eyes and sighed, "I owe that fox an unpayable debt. From what Mikoto told me after she spoke to him, he has prevented an unspeakable tragedy. He helped my family, even when he had every reason not to. I would not be deserving of my ranks or titles if I could not bother to do the same in return." 

Kushina sighed with relief. "Thank you. Really, I know I'm asking you to do something insane, but I guess this isn't the first time." She chuckled awkwardly. "So, do you actually have someone that can, you know, do it ? Like, is there someone in your clan–" 

"I can do it." When the clan head finally opened his eyes, his Sharingan spun into a completely different pattern. "Well, I don't actually know if I can . Despite what the village may think of us, it's not actually something I've tried." 

Kushina nodded to show that she understood. "Right. Ok. So, how do we do this?" 

Fugaku was actually considering the question carefully. "One at a time," he answered. "And I think it would be best if the target was still." 

That was something she could do. "Leave that part to me!" She had to be careful not to overuse her clan's signature technique, but she definitely had one more in her. After that–well, she would figure that out if they survived this first attempt. 

She decided to start with the Sanbi, because it was closer, and currently about to crush a group of injured shinobi under its massive foot. Kushina felt the strain much harder this time as she called upon her chakra chains, catching the bijuu mid stomp. She forced the bijuu to the ground, allowing the group of shinobi to scramble away to lick their wounds. The Sanbi howled with rage, jerking and flailing against the restraints. He seemed even less pleased about the restraint this time. 

"I can't hold him for very long!" Kushina warned, but it turned out to be unnecessary. 

From the corner of her eye, she could see Fugaku staring down the bijuu, concentrating intently. The Sanbi kept snarling and struggling, and Kushina felt her chains starting to weaken. A few links were close to snapping. She had to squeeze her eyes shut as dark spots started to invade her vision. 

Just as the first link snapped, the bijuu went completely still. Save for the Sanbi's ragged breathing, he was now completely limp underneath the heavy chains. Her reserves gave out and she doubled over, shaking and gasping for air. On her side, Fugaku didn't seem to be faring much better. He fell to his knees, wiping blood from both eyes. 

"That kid's chakra reserves must be massive," he murmured, more to himself than to her. "How he was able to control two of them–" The man didn't finish his sentence, switching his focus to trying (and failing) to get back on his feet. 

Kushina felt her chains recede, relieving some of the stress on her chakra. It was enough that when Tsunade caught sight of them, she waved the Sannin over to her companion first. Even if she was no longer a jinchuuriki, her natural Uzumaki chakra reserves were very large and very good at bouncing back from heavy use. She would be ok, she just couldn't use that technique again for a long while. 

Free from the restraints, the Sanbi rose to his feet. He wasn't attacking, and didn't seem to fully understand what was going on. As far as Kushina could tell, they'd freed the first bijuu. Now, she just had to figure out how to keep him from rampaging again once he saw all of the heavily armed shinobi surrounding him. 

The giant turtle looked about as confused as a massive being of pure chakra could be. He was glancing around warily, clearly trying to make sense of where he was and how he got there. When he caught sight of the ring of battle-ready shinobi around him, his chakra flared defensively. The Sanbi roared, lashing out at the nearest enemy with one of his tails. 

All of the shinobi tensed as the bijuu struck out at them. They cursed and held up their weapons, or readied their strongest jutsu. The Sanbi didn't miss the aggressive motions, his corrosive chakra flaring again. He lunged with a claw this time, nearly slicing through three shinobi in one motion. 

"We need to strike now!" Someone yelled. "Contain that monster while we have the chance!" 

Hisses of agreement rose in volume until they were fierce battle cries. The Sanbi roared again, as if trying to drown out the chanting, but he continued to remain on the defensive. He tried shuffling back, away from the most forward aggressors, but he was met with an equally harsh response by the forces behind him. 

Couldn't they see what they were doing? There was nowhere for the bijuu to go, but to plow through them. She didn't doubt that he would do so in order to get away from the fight. Even the most powerful, intelligent creatures acted on instinct when feeling trapped. And right now, they had him cornered like hunted game. 

How could they not see that the bijuu didn't want to fight? He lashed out, and would likely kill any of them for getting too close, but he was eyeing every escape route desperately. He wanted freedom. From them, and probably from the sealmasters in Kiri. 

Kushina looked at the Sanbi and all she could see was Kurama, carefully cradling Naruto in his mass of tails. Kurama, protecting Kakashi because he knew he was important to Naruto. Kurama, bickering with her and pretending that they hadn't started to grow fond of each other. She looked at the bijuu and wondered how she'd ever only seen them as mindless killing machines. 

The Sanbi was terrified. He'd been controlled and forced from his home, then woke up in the midst of a battle he may not even remember starting. 

Of all her stupid, dangerous ideas, this one had to be the most stupid and dangerous. 

She glanced around frantically for the Sandaime, who was still undeniably in command of the current situation. He was the next person that she needed to convince. And she was on a roll! 

Kushina spotted the old man easily, and waved him over. She stumbled a little as she met him halfway, slowly recovering from using her chakra chains twice in close succession. Before the Sandaime could order their forces to attack, or start sealing the bijuu, Kushina demanded, "Tell everyone to stand down and back away." 

The old man looked at her like she'd grown a second head. "What?" 

"He's scared. If we keep pushing him, he'll keep attacking," she explained. "But if I talk to him, maybe I can calm him down. I know a lot about the other bijuu, from when I was a jinchuuriki," she lied, hoping the old man would buy her explanation. "The Sanbi is supposed to be one of the most passive and least violent of all of them." The truth was, she knew this because she heard Kurama say it. 

The explanation did nothing to soothe the Sandaime's worries. "Have you lost your mind? This is a bijuu, not a scared puppy!" 

"I know!" she snapped. "But he's not a monster, either. He can think, and feel. And he didn't come here by choice," Kushina reminded him. "He didn't choose to attack us." 

The Sandaime shook his head. "You have lost your mind. Whether or not it willingly decided to attack us, it still caused insurmountable damage and death. That's what bijuu do, that's why they need to be sealed away. They're not creatures you can reason with." 

"You don't know anything about them! I'm the one who had a bijuu sealed in me for most of my life, so don't you think I might have some idea of what I'm talking about?" Kushina argued, unable to keep the frustration and anger out of her voice. "Just let me talk to him." She almost wished she could explain what she knew about Kurama and the bijuu, but it wasn't the right moment. Not only had Kurama specifically said he didn't want the Sandaime involved, they didn't exactly have time to spare for the explanation. "I know it sounds crazy, but I'm confident that I can talk him down." 

The former Hokage sighed, and started rubbing at his temples. "There's no point in arguing with you, is there?" 

"No," she snorted in response. Kushina stomped past her husband's predecessor without looking back. "Leave the Sanbi to me, and keep the Rokubi from reaching the village."

Fortunately, the Sandaime finally seemed willing to listen. "Get back!" he yelled, waving their forces away. "Step back from the bijuu!" 

There were murmurs of confusion from the shinobi forces, but they weren't going to disobey a command from their former Kage. Reluctantly, they all fell back, leaving Kushina alone to face the bijuu. The only two that remained behind were Fugaku, who was still pale and shaky, and Tsunade, who was using her medical ninjutsu to keep him conscious. 

"I hope you know what you're doing," the Sandaime commented as he led their forces to join in the fight against the still-controlled Rokubi. 

Me too , Kushina thought to herself, shoving down her fear and uncertainty. 

The Sanbi did not relax as their forces retreated. He was clearly wary, growling lowly and lashing his tails as his massive head swung around to watch Kushina's solo approach. He roared as she neared him, almost knocking her over with the force of his bellowing. He clawed at the ground, and his lashing tails became more wild, knocking over thick tree trunks without even making a conscious effort. 

Kushina heard concerned shouts from behind her, but she ignored them. She held her hands up to show that she wasn't holding a weapon. "Hey, uh, Sanbi! I know you're probably freaked out right now, but can we talk?" 

The massive turtle stomped one of his feet in a show of intimidation. To be fair, it was incredibly intimidating, considering he made the earth shake with one step. He was still making a low, grumbling noise from deep within his chest. 

She wished she knew the bijuu's name. She knew that Kurama didn't like being called "the Kyuubi", even if he had been too stubborn to share his name at first. Perhaps the Sanbi had a similar level of distaste for the informal address, or at least for the negative connotations that it carried. 

"Listen," she tried again, "we don't need to fight. I know you aren't here by choice, and that you didn't purposefully hurt our village. If we could just talk this out, I think we could come to an agreement that benefits us both." Kushina smiled at the bijuu, hoping it came across as sincere. "We don't want to be stepped on, and I'm sure you don't want to be sealed again, right?" 

It was the wrong move, mentioning sealing. The singular eye that was fixed on Kushina narrowed in distrust, and the Sanbi's chakra flared even worse than before. When he roared again, Kushina had to cover her ears to keep the volume from forcing her to her knees. 

It was time for a different approach. "Wait, wait! I'm an, er, acquaintance of Kurama's!" For a moment, she considered saying she was a friend of the fox's, but she didn't know if that was true. She was fairly certain that Kurama only considered Naruto a friend, and vaguely tolerated the rest of them. 

Like a switch flipped, the Sanbi's chakra calmed, and his tails stopped lashing. He lowered his massive head, so his eye was more on level with Kushina. "You know Kurama?" 

Kushina fought back the urge to do a victory dance. "Yeah, I know him," she grinned. "Big ears, lots of tails, kind of grumpy? Likes to talk about himself?" 

For a few moments, the Sanbi just stared at her. Then, a strange rumbling sound started in the back of his throat. It took Kushina an embarrassingly long time to realize that the Sanbi was laughing. 

"That he does!" The bijuu agreed chipperly. He looked at her curiously, as if trying to solve a puzzle. "Forgive me, I sometimes struggle with human concepts like age or gender, but I thought Kurama's jinchuuriki was a juvenile male of your species?" 

It was a strange, yet somehow accurate description. "Uh, yeah, that's my son. He's a baby. I'm the former jinchuuriki." She wondered if she should have kept that particular tidbit to herself. There was no way to know what Kurama had told his siblings about her. 

"Oh, you're Tomato Head!" the bijuu replied cheerfully. 

Kushina felt her eyelid twitch in irritation. She was going to skin that fox! "Yeah, I guess that's me," she sighed. "But I'd prefer to not be 'Tomato Head'. My name is Kushina. Kushina Uzumaki." 

"Uzumaki? You know, I used to swim in the waters around Uzushio," the Sanbi told her. "I always liked those island-dwellers. They mostly left me alone, but sometimes they would bring me treasure and ask me to ward off a storm." 

She hadn't known that. When she'd come to Konoha, she'd been too young to have learned all of her clan's history. And now, that history was buried under rubble and decaying at the bottom of the sea. It made sense that her ancestors would have found favor with a water-dwelling chakra beast, given that they relied so heavily on the ocean for trade and livelihoods. She was just glad that the bijuu wasn't angry that it was one of her kin that had created the first jinchuuriki. Or, if he was angry, he seemed too distracted by his storytelling to remember. 

"--and it was the biggest wave I've ever seen! It was bigger even than I am. That human ingenuity was genuinely impressive, being able to withstand such a force. I–oh." The bijuu cut himself off suddenly, looking genuinely embarrassed. "I apologize, I seem to have gotten a little lost in my memories. It's just been so long since I've had someone to talk to like this." The Sanbi's entire demeanor had changed, going from defensive to curious and open. "My name is Isobu, by the way. Please forgive my rudeness for not introducing myself right away. I was not in my right mind." 

Kushina was not about to complain about the bijuu being too chatty. "Nice to meet you, Isobu." She glanced around at all the destruction from their battle. "We know that you didn't come here to hurt us on purpose. I need to apologize for my own people being so aggressive." 

Isobu seemed genuinely unconcerned. "All water under the bridge," he chuckled. Though, because of his massive size, the chuckle was loud enough to almost unbalance her. 

"Right," she sighed, "listen, Isobu, I know that you didn't choose to come here or destroy the village, but our people are still scared and hurt. I'm worried they will do something drastic, so we need to get you out of here."

The bijuu blinked down at her. " Oh. Well, I suppose I should apologize, then." Isobu turned toward the damaged village, taking a few lumbering steps that shook the ground beneath him. 

Kushina rushed to intercept him, waving her hands frantically. "That's ok, really!" She stepped in front of the bijuu, trying to steer him away from civilization. "I know you mean well, but when humans are scared they can get a little…" she trailed off with a grimace, unsure how to finish the thought. 

Isobu tilted his head curiously, but seemed to understand. "Ah. I have been on the receiving end of human fear, and I did not enjoy it." 

"Me too," she replied, remembering her own time as a jinchuuriki. She didn't expect Isobu to understand, but when he became surprisingly sympathetic, she supposed it made sense. Afterall, who could understand a jinchuuriki's plight better than a bijuu? 

"Ok then, not-Tomato Head," Isobu chuckled, "what should I do?" 

"You're really going to trust me?" Kushina questioned, genuinely shocked by the ease of agreement from the bijuu. "Just like that?" 

Isobu tilted his head again, seeming confused about her apprehension. "Of course, why wouldn't I? Kurama speaks highly of you, so I know you're alright." 

"Kurama what ?" 

"Well, maybe not quite," Isobu amended, "but I can read between the lines." The bijuu explained, "The fact that Kurama is placing his trust in you means a lot. He doesn't trust easily, especially humans." 

"Alright then," Kushina replied, for lack of a better response. She felt oddly touched by the notion that Kurama had talked her up enough to the other bijuu for one of them to trust her so easily. "I know this is asking a lot, but is there any chance you could help us with your, er, sibling? They are still being controlled. We should be able to free them too, but we have to hold them still." 

She caught Fugaku's gaze, hoping that he actually had enough energy left to free the other bijuu. He looked exhausted, but nodded in agreement. Tsunade grumbled something under her breath about him being at his limit, but she wasn't going to keep him from stopping the rampaging bijuu. It wasn't like they had another choice. 

Isobu looked up at the scene in front of them. The Rokubi was shrieking, oozing a putrid slime that melted anything it touched. "You can help him? Like you helped me?" 

"We can," Kushina promised. 

They were so unbelievably lucky that one of the bijuu they were facing was so agreeable. Isobu seemed to have no problem trusting her, and quickly nodded his assent. "Then I will do what I can. Saiken is stronger than I am, but I am very durable and heavy. I should be able to hold him." 

Without further explanation, Isobu curled into a ball and rolled himself toward the other bijuu with incredible speed. Kushina had to do a double take to ensure that she had actually seen the lumbering bijuu move so quickly. 

Isobu cut through the Rokubi's slime pool without any sign of distress or pain, slamming into the other bijuu at full speed. The Rokubi–Saiken, apparently–made a terrible garbling sound as the force knocked him over. Isobu uncurled and pinned the goo-creature down with his claws and tails. Saiken was struggling and curling slimy tendrils around his fellow bijuu, but Isobu didn't react. His shell sizzled where the goo touched him, but it seemed to be too heavily armored to actually affect him. 

"Calm yourself, brother! My new human friends will free you!" Isobu tried to reason with the Rokubi, but he was still under the Sharingan's influence. 

"Do you really have another one in you?" Kushina asked as she and Tsunade helped the Uchiha clan head along. 

"I think so," he assured her. "But if a third bijuu shows up, I may need to tap out." 

"If a third bijuu shows up," Kushina grumbled, " I'm going to tap out first." 

Like before, Fugaku met the bijuu's gaze. He grit his teeth as he tried to calm the struggling Rokubi. Blood dripped from both eyes again, leaving red tear trails on his face. It took a few moments, but eventually, the bijuu stopped struggling. He didn't have an obvious expression, but he was turning his big, goopy head like he was trying to understand the situation he'd found himself in. 

Tsunade kept the clan head from falling over, getting to work with her healing ninjutsu. Meanwhile, Kushina carefully approached the two bijuu. Isobu was still pinning the Rokubi down, but the other bijuu had stopped moving. 

"Are you yourself again, Saiken?" Isobu asked. 

In a surprisingly high-pitched voice, the Rokubi replied, "Yes. Though I am admittedly confused about how we have found ourselves in this predicament." 

"Ah," Isobu responded, "it is kind of a long story. You see–" 

Kushina cleared her throat loudly, trying to keep the bijuu from going through what she expected would be a very prolonged explanation. She hadn't known the bijuu for very long, but she got the distinct impression that he could be incredibly long-winded. 

The Sanbi appeared to understand her interference. He climbed off his sibling, looking impressively sheepish for a giant chakra beast covered in armor. "Perhaps now is not the time. The important thing is, we're both free!" 

Saiken seemed rather unimpressed with the statement, but it was difficult to tell what the bijuu was thinking. He was definitely more subdued than Isobu, but didn't seem as quick to anger as Kurama. Once again, Kushina was grateful that it was these bijuu they were facing today. They were clearly much more mild mannered than the Kyuubi. 

Their shinobi forces were still on guard, but this time the Sandaime seemed to anticipate Kushina's request. "Step back!" he ordered. "Do not engage the bijuu!" 

All of the remaining shinobi that hadn't already been through the same thing with the Sanbi were muttering in confusion. Fortunately, they weren't about to disobey an order from the Sandaime, even if they were obviously concerned and wary. 

The Rokubi's eyestalks appeared to be scanning the surrounding shinobi, but it was a little difficult to tell. He wasn't continuing to attack, but he was significantly less interested in chatting with them than Isobu was. Or at least, that's what she inferred. It was really difficult to tell what Saiken was thinking. Or if he was even still awake. He didn't have eyelids, and barely had a face. It was mostly just a pile of goo with a mouth. 

Whatever not-face Saiken was making at least meant something to Isobu. He nodded a few times. "Oh, Saiken, look! This is Kurama's Tomato Head! But she prefers not-Tomato Head." With a massive claw, he pointed in Kushina's general direction. 

Saiken remained stoic (maybe?) and kept silent, but his eye stalks did seem to shift in her direction. Kushina just groaned at the awful nickname, realizing that it seemed to have stuck. "Nice to make your acquaintance, not-Tomato Head. I am Saiken." 

"Likewise," she sighed, accepting her fate. At least the battle was over, and they had time to breathe. "So, I guess we should figure out how to get you out of here. Maybe–" 

Her planning was interrupted by a sudden shout. "Lady Tsunade! I need your expertise, now!" 

Kushina whipped around, recognizing the voice instantly. No, please no. Her blood ran cold, because that was Minato. It was Minato yelling for a healer. For their best healer. He would only be that desperate if it was–

Minato had teleported right to them, maybe even using the marker on Kushina, or one of the many he had hidden around. He looked a little dirty and battered, but otherwise unharmed. His Hokage cloak had a tear in the cape, and it was covered in blood and dirt. Overall, Minato looked ok, but the same could not be said for the still figure in his arms. 

"Kakashi!" She rushed over at the same time as Tsunade, who left the Uchiha clan head kneeling on the ground, looking tired but stable. Unfortunately, Kakashi looked far less so. 

The last time she saw Kakashi looking so small, he was seven or eight years old, and hadn't been training under Minato for very long. He was desperate to prove himself, and distance himself from his father's image. He'd trained until the point of exhaustion, passing out in the middle of the training field. Minato carried him back to his own home, unwilling to leave the kid by himself in his empty apartment. She and Minato were still just dating at the time, and she was waiting at his place to have dinner together. When Minato walked in with his tiny student, limp in his arms, it was one of the moments that made her fall for him. He'd looked somehow both gentle and fiercely protective, and something in her mind just screamed, husband material . 

The current situation was definitely not quite so warm and fuzzy. Kakashi wasn't exhausted from over-training, in need of a good nap and a hearty meal. He was pale, and covered in blood, and his chest was eerily still. Even more disturbingly, his transplanted Sharingan was missing, leaving a gaping hole that looked like the eye had been violently ripped out of the socket. 

Minato also didn't have the same exasperated, fond expression that Kushina remembered from that night so many years ago. Instead, he looked completely desperate and panicked. 

Minato gently set Kakashi on the ground so Tsunade could assess him. Her hands glowed green, and her eyebrows furrowed in concentration. She was unsettlingly quiet as she concentrated. 

"What happened?" Kushina asked as she knelt down beside the limp teenager. She checked for a pulse; it was there, but slow and irregular. 

"I don't know," he admitted. "We were in Obito's Sharingan dimension for a while, but he seemed to know that Kakashi was in trouble, and that I'd stop to help him. When we got there, Kakashi was already like this, and Obito used the distraction to get away. All the ANBU guards were dead, and Naruto was nowhere to be found." Minato looked distraught. He fell to his knees and punched the ground with his fist. "Obito must have had someone go for Naruto while we were fighting the bijuu." 

"No…" She held a hand over her mouth, holding back a gasp. 

"I don't know how he did it. I should be able to teleport to wherever Naruto is but it's like the marker I incorporated into his seal has been disrupted. I have a clone looking for clues but I don't–" He punched the ground again. "I failed them. I failed both of them. I'm–" 

"It's not your fault," she assured him. It was unlike Minato to be so shaken. He was normally so calm in the face of adversity. "We'll get Naruto back, and Kakashi will be fine. Right, Lady Tsunade?" 

The Sannin's face remained impassive. "He's been poisoned. And has lost a lot of blood. And exhausted his chakra. He can't–" 

"But you can fix him, right ?" Kushina pressed, desperate. She couldn't lose Kakashi, who was like a brother to Naruto. Who had become family to them. 

Tsunade pursed her lips, and didn't offer a response. She continued her healing efforts, but Kushina could feel the pulse under her fingertips getting weaker and weaker. Minato already seemed to be grieving, looking away from his unconscious student with tears in his eyes. 

"You're just going to give up on him?!" she snapped, her own grief morphing into anger. 

Minato had his eyes squeezed shut in anguish. "Kushina, I–" 

"Keep healing him," she demanded of the Sannin. 

"What do you think I'm doing?" Tsunade snapped, but she looked surprisingly sympathetic. Queasy, but sympathetic. Her hands were shaking and she was resolutely avoiding looking at the gaping, bloody wound piercing Kakashi's midsection. 

From over her shoulder, a deep voice rumbled, "Oh, that human looks familiar." Isobu was eyeing the lifeless Kakashi curiously. "He's not doing well, is he? I can sense his chakra fading." The bijuu leaned forward, examining the wounds more thoroughly. "Is this one important to you, not-Tomato Head?" 

"Yes," she sniffled, her fingers shaking where they continued to sit over Kakashi's rapidly slowing pulse. "He's very important." 

The Sanbi cocked his head. "But this one is not your offspring. He is not a jinchuuriki." 

"He's not a blood relative, but he's–" Kushina failed to hold back a sob. "He's still family to us." 

The bijuu seemed to be considering something. "A jinchuuriki would be able to survive these wounds," he commented. 

Kushina shook her head. "Like you said, he's not a jinchuuriki." 

"He could be," the Sanbi offered, "if you sealed me in him." 

Both her and Minato, and Tsunade, looked up at the bijuu with unconcealed surprise. Kushina asked tentatively, "Are you really offering to let yourself be sealed again? Why? Why would you do this for us?" 

As far as she could tell, the bijuu was trying to smile. "Because you've been kind to us, and saved us from the red-eyed human's control," The Sanbi explained. "I don't mind working with humans, as long as they're nice. Honestly, sometimes it's actually a little lonely by myself." 

Kushina and her husband exchanged a look. She swallowed hard. "I know that it might make things more difficult with Kiri, but–" she looked down at the lifeless teenager. "Minato, it's Kakashi. We have to try." 

Minato looked genuinely conflicted, and Kushina could understand why. As the Hokage, he could be setting them up for trouble. Maybe even another war. It could disrupt the balance of power between the villages, removing a bijuu from Kiri and sealing in a Konoha shinobi. 

After a few beats of silent contemplation, Minato offered a small, sad smile. "Those who break the rules are scum, right?" 

Kushina smiled back, knowing exactly how to finish Kakashi's favorite mantra. "But those who abandon their friends are worse than scum." 

Minato's expression hardened. "Do it." 

Kushina bowed her head at the Sanbi. "Thank you, Isobu. Truly. I can't even find the proper words to thank you."

Isobu nodded his massive head. "Just tell me one thing, not-Tomato Head; is this human kind?" 

"Kind" wasn't exactly the first word she would use to describe the teenager. Not that he was cruel (at least less so nowadays), but he certainly didn't have Minato's easy-going personality. "He can be a little bit of a twerp sometimes, but he has a good heart. He struggles to connect to others, but once he does, he's extremely loyal." 

The Sanbi hummed thoughtfully. "I hope we'll get along, then. Go ahead." 

Minato got to work, recreating the seal that contained the Kyuubi within Naruto. She noticed that he was making some modifications, making the seal a little more…cozy. She smiled at the realization. There would be no dark, uncomfortable mindscape. No chains holding the bijuu against his will. There was still a separation between bijuu and jinchuuriki, as well as safeguards in case the Sanbi tried to take control, but the seal was definitely much kinder to the bijuu being sealed within. 

Like Kurama, Isobu didn't resist as the seal sucked him in. The giant turtle disappeared, his chakra condensing as the seal worked as it was supposed to. The seal glowed once the Sanbi was contained, and then Kakashi's body was surrounded by a cloak of heavy, familiar bijuu chakra. His wounds started sizzling and closing up, as if they were being instantly cauterized. Then, his entire body seized, nearly being consumed by the Sanbi's chakra. He gasped, and it was the most life they'd seen from him, even if it was from the sudden shock to his chakra pathways and body. Kushina had to hold the teen down, gritting her teeth against the burn of the Sanbi's chakra. 

Eventually, the corrosive chakra subsided, and Kakashi went still again. Tsunade resumed her healing efforts, her eyes widening in surprise. "It worked. He's still in rough shape, but he's stable. His wounds are healing, and the poison seems to have been neutralized. Even his chakra is starting to recover. He'll live." 

Kushina couldn't hold back her relieved tears as she leaned into Minato's side. "He's going to be ok," she repeated. 

Minato wrapped one arm around her. With his other hand, he reached down and grabbed Kakashi's still hand with his own. "What did you say the Sanbi's name is?" 

"Isobu," Kushina answered. 

"Thank you Isobu," Minato breathed as he squeezed Kakashi's hand. 

With one crisis averted, it was time for the next. "What about Naruto?" she asked, her heart hurting at the thought of her precious baby boy in danger. 

As if reacting to the question, Kakashi suddenly opened his eyes, gasping for air. Minato gently held his shoulders down, keeping him from sitting up too quickly. Kakashi reached up toward his missing eye, his fingers shaky and expression panicked. 

"Easy, Kakashi! You're ok, you're going to be ok," Minato assured him. 

The voice of his sensei simultaneously seemed to both calm Kakashi and somehow also worsen his panic. "Sensei–" Kakashi was now grasping desperately at his mask. Kushina barely managed to get it off of his face in time for the teenager to roll over and vomit all over the ground. When he was done retching, he barely managed to rasp, "What–I feel–" 

"I'm sorry. You were dying, and we kind of…made you into a jinchuuriki," Kushina admitted reluctantly. She knew that the burden of being a jinchuuriki was not an easy one, even if he shouldn't have to deal with wrestling control from an angry bijuu. 

Kakashi's remaining eye blinked up at her, then widened in comprehension. "This voice in my head. It's–" 

"The Sanbi," she confirmed. "He offered to let himself be sealed to save you." Kushina felt guilty about not giving Kakashi time to process, but she needed answers. "Listen, I know this is a lot, but I need to know what happened. Where's Naruto? How did Obito get to him?" 

Kakashi groaned in pain, but he managed to shake his head. "It wasn't Obito," he responded, his voice raw. "It was Lord Danzo. He took Naruto."

Notes:

Some of you called it! Danzo is scheming, Obito is having a rough day, and Isobu is making friends.

Also I know some people really like Utakata so don't worry, I didn't kill him off screen. idk when he would have actually had Saiken sealed in him so we'll just say it hasn't happened yet. He's totally fine haha

ps I genuinely haven't decided if Obito is going to live or die. I have a couple different versions for the next chapter started and I can't pick which one I like best. So I'm leaving it up to all of you lovely readers to decide his fate ;) If you have a preference, let me know and we'll pick the outcome that way!