HSA: The Inseparable 3 [Part E]

"The Kyuubification stopped," Yamato said as both he and Killer-Bee stared at a motionless Naruto on the ground. He was still sitting down crossed-legged, his body enveloped in half the Third-Tail's cloak and half the Fourth-Tail's cloak.

"Yamato, did you do something?"

"No, it seems like it stopped by itself." He frowned. What happened?

Naruto released Kushina with a grin, fists clenched like a happy and hyperactive child promised sweets by mom. "I have so many things I want to ask you!"

"Hn!" She smiled sweetly. "I'll answer all of them. But, before that," she veered her head to the side, her expression serious now. "We have to calm down the Kyuubi."

Back inside Naruto's mental battleground, silver chakra chains with pointed, kunai-like tips flew out from his torso, coiling around the Kyuubi's tails, legs, torso, and neck then jabbing into the ground, sealing the beast there on its back.

"This chakra... Kushina, huh?"

"Minato sealed some of my chakra within you," she explained, sitting beside Naruto in their serene world. "All so that I could help when the time came for you to take control of the Kyuubi's power."

Naruto couldn't control his grin, couldn't help but savor the melody of her voice and the symphony of her words. Her presence made him so giddy and overjoyed. Her ravishing beauty was like a breath of fresh air; she was so radiant and lovable.

"Are you listening?"

He raised his hands in glee and laced them behind his head. "I'm so happy that my mom's a hottie!"

She heaved an open smile, her radiance even more breathtaking. "Well, thank you," she giggled. "You got your hair from your dad, but you've got my face. Sorry about that, Naruto."

"Mm? Why? If my mom's a hottie, then that would mean that I'm handsome!" He rested a curved index finger below his chin. "Besides, your hair is straight and has a beautiful red color. I'm sure I'd look nice with that, too."

Kushina giggled, staring up unseeingly into the sky. "You're the second guy to compliment me on my hair."

"Really? Then, who was the first?"

She giggled again and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Your father, of course."

"Oh, I see," he drove the bottom of a fist into his palm as a more intriguing question came to him.

"About what?"

He grinned excitedly, his eyes beaming. "See... See... there's something that I absolutely wanted to ask, if I met you. How did you and dad fall in love with each other?"

Her cheeks brightened cutely, and she cupped the back of her head. "Th-That's kinda embarrassing, y'know..."

"Hah! You said 'y'know' again! You're excited!"

"In this case," she asserted shyly. "It's more like being shaken up, y'know!"

"You said it again!" He laughed, pointing at her.

She grinned, and then her blush lifted as she allowed her mind to drift to the past. "Well, yeah...

It all started the first day that I came to Konoha. In the Ninja Academy, our form teacher presented me to all the students in the class. He had an attentive hand against my back, as I looked up anxiously at all the unfamiliar faces.

Out of everyone, only one person caught my attention. He had spiky, shoulder-cropped hair of a golden hue and deep, mysterious blue eyes. That was the first time that I met your father, Minato. He was so handsome that I couldn't hold his gaze for more than a few seconds.

'Well, this is our new transfer student...' the teacher said, his high-pitched voice failing to clear the blush from my cheeks, nor the nervousness that had my heart in palpitation.

'I'm Uzumaki Kushina, y'know,' I shouted impulsively, as if that sudden outburst would drive off the nervousness and the embarrassment.

I slapped my hand over my mouth with regret, but the unrefined words had already slipped out; I had already made a fool of myself and the students began laughing at me.

'Look at that hair!' Someone said mockingly.

'I can't believe it!' Another agreed.

'How did it get so red?'

'That hair is so weird.'

'Hey, hey, be quiet,' the teacher instructed. 'I said be quiet!'

I trembled as they continued to taunt me — hurt, angry, frustrated. 'I... I will become this village's first female Hokage!'

Finally, there was silence — and, I have to say, I derived great satisfaction from everyone's shocked faces. Minato, however, wasn't shocked in the least. He pushed to his feet with a gentle smile and pressed a fist to his chest. 'I also want to become a great Hokage, respected by all the villagers.'"

Naruto smiled warmly, his eyes soft as he thought about that. "A Hokage respected by all the villagers, huh?"

"Back then, I used to tease him that he looks too feminine and unreliable, so there's no way he would ever become Hokage."

"Eh? But dad looked so strong!"

"Yeah, but back then, I was still very immature and didn't understand much." She giggled and looked to Naruto, winning his utmost attention. "I had just moved there from another village and I was already saying that I'd become Hokage. Man, I was cheeky. All the boys started teasing me.

The nickname they gave me was...

'Tomato!' A boy mocked, pointing at me. His other friends were pointing and laughing, too. 'From today, you'll be known as Tomato. With a fat round face and red hair, you're just like a tomato! As if a tomato could become Hokage! I hate tomatoes!'

'Me, too! If I get any in my salad, I just leave it!'

The ringleader laced his fingers behind his head. 'If you're a hated tomato, then there's no way that the people of the village will ever acknowledge you!'

The all laughed together."

"I see," Naruto beamed. "So dad was the one who protected you from those bullies! Right?"

"No, not at all." Kushina heaved an open smile, slowly raising a trembling fist imbued with her wrath. "Tomato... when they called me that, even I could see why. It was so embarrassing that the name fit me perfectly.

'Oh, and it's even ripening!' One of the boys said, pulling a fistful of my hair. 'Time for the Tomato Festival! Time to start harvesting!'

'Who's a tomato?' I sneered, grabbing his wrist so tight that he had to release my hair. 'Just for your information, I hate tomatoes, too!'

Without warning, I lifted and spun him around — as if he weighed no more than a leaf — clobbering all the boys that surrounded me. Then, I sat on top of the ringleader and began pounding him atop the head. 'If you're gonna keep calling me a tomato and making a fool out of me, I'm gonna make you regret it, y'know!'

As always — like the disciplined and quiet student he was — Minato was sitting by his desk, watching. But, this time, he was smiling, too.

'What are you laughing at?' I shouted in the midst of my sweet revenge. Minato was so shocked that he averted his head in a sudden cringe.

Kushina was still holding that trembling fist and cool visage. "I would always beat the crap out of the boys who called me a tomato and made them look like smashed tomatoes, instead. With my long red hair flying around, while I beat guys half to death, I soon got a new nickname. That nickname was: The Red Hot-Blooded Habanero!"

Naruto swallowed, petrified by the woman's suddenly deadly aura. Kiba and Shikamaru were right when they said that moms are scary.

Kushina was calm again, her eyes a bit sad. "I was always fighting. Of course, I was the Habanero-sama of repeated victories, but...

One day, as I was jogging along a remote path — rows of cherry trees in full bloom on either side — I came across one of the boys from the academy. He was the ringleader, and he wasn't alone. I frowned as they grinned heinously at me. I understood immediately what their intends were.

'So you're the one who's always making my little brother cry?' They approached me in an amble stride, finding confidence in my clear disadvantage.

Regardless, I threw my arm forward in an accusing gesture, refusing to give them the pleasure of basking in any level of my fear. 'That's because he's always messing with me, y'know. Even though he's just a wimp.'

Ashamed, the boy veered his eyes away as his older brother's gaze sought to confirm the truth of it. Then, he was looking down at me again with an arrogant smirk. 'I'm a Genin!' He pointed at his shinny forehead protector. 'Pretty awesome, huh? I have to teach the bad people who bully my brother a lesson.'

When he cracked his knuckles menacingly in his palm, I tried to make a run for it in the canopy of the trees. Being a Genin, it was very likely that I wouldn't have stood a chance against him in a head-on fight; I was still just a fledgling at the academy, after all. So I took my chances and fled, instead — but even that alternative didn't guarantee success.

And I was right. The moment I leaped from the limb of the fourth tree, he was already there, and he threw a kunai at me. I saw just in time to dodge, but I was still shocked that a real kunai had been targeted at me.

Right then, something clicked inside me. I must have realized I wouldn't have been able to escape unless I immobilized or defeated him. So I maneuvered around on a tree trunk and tackled him in midair but, when he fell to the ground, it turns out he had used a substitution technique.

By the time I noticed, he had already sneaked up behind me and delivered a karate chop to my neck and a kick in my back. I fell to the ground, but I wasn't just about to give up.

The Genin cruelly clasped the end of my hair and pulled me up to my knees. 'Can't you even recognize a substitution technique?' He gloated, and his younger brother watched in evident delight. I wanted to punch him. 'Looks like you're just a brat. But man, this thing is red,' he pulled my hair harder. 'It looks like thread, and it's all stiff and starchy. This hair is an eyesore!'

'Serves you right!' The ringleader teased as tears trickled down my face. He must have wanted to see me cry for the longest time.

'I... I... I hate this hair, too!'

They were surprised by my words, and even more so as I struggled to break free. I kept marching forward until my hair tore, leaving pure strands between his fingers. He was obviously shocked by my feat, but mere shock wasn't enough of a compromise to appease me.

I wanted to hear him cry out in pain and desperation while his annoying little brother watched. How dare they mock me! How dare they laugh at me! I wanted to beat them up so hard that my hair would never again become the subject of ridicule.

While the elder brother was distracted by my recklessness, I turned around and gave him a few good punches and kicks. And once I got him on the ground, I stormed his face with my knuckles. 'But... even if I don't like it, it's a part of me! There's no helping it, is there?'

'It's the Red Hot-Blooded Habanero!' The younger brother cried, making a run for it. I wanted to beat the hell out of him, too, but there was always tomorrow.

As soon as I was out of breath, I pushed to my feet and stepped away from the sad excuse for a Genin.

'Outsider!' He bellowed in his frustration, chucking the strands of hair into my face. 'As if an outsider can become Hokage!'

He wiped his mouth and left.

I had somehow turned the tables and secured my victory but, deep down, I felt that I had lost. His words took something precious from me and I wanted it back. Suddenly sensing someone above me steered my thoughts away from that loss, however. It was Minato, standing in a tree, and his nonchalance was disarming, as always. I could never tell what he was thinking behind those enigmatic blue eyes, and it always frustrated and irritated me.

'So, you won't help me 'cause I'm an outsider?' I was livid, especially because my heart had disobediently gone and made me like him.

'I...'

'You think so, too, don't you?' I didn't give him a chance to answer. I was much too consumed by my sadness and my rage.

I turned on my heels and ran off with my head down, the errant wind carrying off my salty tears. I wanted to run forever; to run away from all the incongruity and the grief, but spying the lofty stones heads of the previous Hokages stopped me dead in my tracks.

'I don't want to be an outsider. I want to make this village my home.' I frowned at the truth of that. 'That's why I said it. Who would want to become Hokage, anyway?

I really hated it, this hair," Kushina looked to Naruto with a smile. "Then, a certain incident happened, and I started to like my hair."

"A certain incident?"

"Autumn was still in full swing, and the cherry blossoms looked especially beautiful as they drifted in the breeze, illuminated with a soft saffron hue by the evening's twilight.

'I'm home!' I called as I stepped into the house, but there was no answer. I strolled along the porch to the back of the house, calling again with no response. 'Is anyone here? Nobody?'

I wasn't a paranoid person but, at this point, I was already suspicious that something was out of place. I could feel a bad omen — a bad aura hanging over the mansion and I followed a trail, which could have well been a byproduct of my delusion until I was at the kitchen's door.

Despite the sunset and the splash of vibrant colors, the kitchen looked awfully dreary — and the dark silhouettes of trees drifting back and forth outside the widow didn't contribute positively to the ambience.

My blood turned to ice in my veins and I almost fainted when I saw three unfamiliar shinobi appeared from the shadows, as if they had crawled out from another dimension. And the sinister smirks on their faces told me their ambitions weren't even remotely beneficial on my part.

'Someone! Help me!' I made a run for it but was caught and held down at the end of the corridor, like quarry by a trio of savage hunters.

Before I knew it, I had been taken far outside the village. We traveled in single file, according to their plans. And my hands were bounded behind my back with rope extending to one of the shinobi's hand.

I have a special type of chakra, so I was kidnapped by Kumogakure, who were after it. I was beaten, dehydrated, and driven to despair. Still, as they were taking me away, I pulled out strands of my red hair, to leave behind as a trail. I made sure that the enemy didn't notice.

But I was an outsider, so I didn't really expect anyone to come to my rescue. Just as we were reaching the border and I was about to lose all the remainder of my hope, a golden knight, an angel, descended from the heavens.

It was a much too beautiful night to be taken prisoner, and the full moon that sat in the vast sky illuminated the forested path upon which we traveled, bestowing the wary warriors with decent visibility. But the golden knight knew better than to make his move when the elements were not in his favor — and the tides shifted rather quickly.

The moment we entered a section of the woods with thicker forestry and canopy, and the thick, silver clouds eclipsed the moon, he quickly took out the shinobi at the far back and then masked his location again. Before the other two men could ascertain what was happening, with impressive speed, grace, and maneuverability, the knight descended once more and took out another Kumo shinobi with a lethal kick to the nape.

Startled, the third man took to the trees in a hasty retreat, to gather his bearings. But his speed was ridiculous in comparison to my savior's. Like the others, his fate was also sealed, and he slammed into the trunk of a tree and plummeted to the hard ground, like a rag doll, as he was vanquished by a kunai.

I continued to walk on unsteady feet, completely oblivious as to what was taking place around me. I was so distraught that it took a while before this stranger's words could register in my mind, or that I knew someone was standing before me. I stopped.

'Are you hurt?'

Finally, the clouds slinked on and the moon was free to shower the land with its rich glow once more, illuminating the dreary path before me, as well as my golden knight, my handsome savior.

'I came to rescue you.' His voice was as soft as his smile.

Life returned to my eyes and color, to my cheeks. I beamed at him, relieved, and then suddenly the toll of my exhaustion washed over me. But he caught me just before I could fall to the ground.

'It's okay now,' he reassured sweetly, scooping me up in his arms.

'Hey, wait...' I uttered shyly, feeling a sudden rush of excitement.

But he ignored me and flew off into the sky, like a super hero. But, unlike those chivalrous heroes that saved the day and then withdrew in a blaze of glory, he took me along with him.

Time seemed to slow as I gazed up at him, captivated by his cool countenance against the soft glow of the full moon. It was the very first time that I felt butterflies in my tummy. I couldn't tear my eyes away from his face, but then I noticed strands of hair locked between his fingers.

'That's...'

'It's very beautiful hair, so I noticed immediately.'

I pouted in my embarrassment and averted my eyes. 'But, you never help me.'

'Well, that's because I know that you're strong, both in power and spirit.' He landed atop the very peak of a tree, surrounded by the mountain ranges and the valleys, the ever vigilant moon and the stars, but the mesmerizing blue of his eyes was all that I saw; all that I cared about. 'However, this is a matter between villages, and different from all your other fights. That's why...'

'That's why...?'

His eyes half-lidded softly. 'I didn't want to lose you...'

My heart fluttered wildly at his words, and I couldn't hide the blush that crept into my cheeks. I frowned a little. 'Even though I'm an outsider?'

'Why? You're living in Konoha — that makes you one of us.' He beamed.

'At that time, I saw Minato as a great ninja. I thought he was the man of my dreams. He changed me; this red hair that I hated so much brought me the person I was destined for. It became the thread of destiny. So, I started to like my hair, and I fell in love with Minato."

Naruto grinned widely. He couldn't contain himself, his excitement, and he rocked back and forth, like a baby, as his mother beamed at him.

"There are some special words that I'll give only to the men who compliment me on my hair. Naruto," her voice was quiet. "Will you receive them?"

"Hn!"

They shared a cosmic moment, eyes filled with affection. "I love you."

The words settled on Naruto's swollen heart and he felt a wave of warmth that left him overwhelmed and flustered. His eyes quivered with delight, and he couldn't keep them steady.

This love was different from the one he shared with Hinata; this was the love and affection between a mother and child — a feeling he thought he would have never received the pleasure of experiencing. And it was far more fulfilling that he ever imagined.

Kushina poked his chest gently. "When you combine the Yellow Flash of Konoha with the Red Hot-Blooded Habanero..."

Naruto giggled and pushed to his feet, clinging to his jacket. "You get Konoha's Orange Hokage, y'know!"

"That's really cool, y'know!"

They shared a brilliant grin.

"Hokage... your dream is the continuation of my and Minato's dream..."

"Yeah, I'll never let Mom and Dad's dream end!"

"Naruto..." she beamed at him, unshed tears sparkling in her eyes.

Suddenly, he was wearing his battle-face again and a nonchalance that reminded her of Minato. "But, before that," he veered his gaze to the left, noting the faint roar of an enraged Kyuubi.

Kushina followed his eyes, knowing what had to be done.

The Demon Fox could sense the return of its Jinchuuriki. The creature didn't want to admit it but things were not going in its favor. It was already difficult enough to deal with Naruto with all his newly acquired powers, and now there was Kushina's binding techniques to deal with, as well.

A low, nasty growl bubbled up in its throat as it struggled to lift its head. Just a few more centimeters and it would've been able to fire off a beam from its mouth, vaporizing the pest in an instant. But Kushina did well to restrain its neck, knowing the beast's mouth was its most dangerous aspect.

I love you, Naruto heard his mother's voice ushering him from his trance — a fitting croon for his grand awakening. "Somehow... I feel completely relaxed."

I love you, her soft voice resounded in his mind again, and he could see her face, see her warm smile and her encouraging eyes painted vividly in the forefront of his mind. "I feel completely happy."

Something erupted inside of him, then — an invigorating and overflowing force born of love and determination. Naruto roared passionately and the Kyuubi could only curse Kushina as the Orange Hokage exerted his power, his chakra pushing back the malicious one that enveloped his.

On the outside realm, Killer-Bee and Yamato celebrated as the Kyuubi's cloak lifted from Naruto's motionless body.

"My chakra's repressing the Kyuubi for now, but it won't last long," Kushina explained solemnly. "Now's your chance!"

"Right!" Naruto returned coolly.

Inside his mental dimension, where the creature lied, our valiant warrior formed his trademark seal. "Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Over fifty-odd clones spawned and stood strong behind him. "Let's go!" They all charged toward the gigantic beast.

"Little brat!" The Kyuubi bellowed sinisterly, using one hand-like paw to yank and break the binding chains in its rising fury.

Kushina smirked. "It really is very strong."

"Eat this!" All of Naruto's clones forged a Rasengan.

"Don't get cocky!" The Kyuubi poised for an attack. Standing upright on its hind legs — with one mighty sweep of its hand-like paw — the creature was able to crush more than half of Naruto's Rasengan-infantry, as they leaped into the air on the offensive.

Kushina frowned. "I've still got some power left in me, y'know!"

There was one last chain coiled around the creature's leg and she poured the remainder of her might into that chain, reinforcing its power. Then she pulled, rendering the Bijuu unbalanced and sending it toppling to the ground on its back — flustered and defenseless.

Now! Naruto murmured inwardly.

"That's... Sage Mode!" Yamato exclaimed as the motionless body made the epic transformation.

The remainder of Naruto's Rasengan-infantry inherited the Senju Energy and their destructive sphere grew a hundred times its original size. "Sage Art: Ultra-Big Ball... Rasengan Combo!"

Shaken and disheveled, the Kyuubi sat on its furry behind — propped up on its hands — paralyzed in place by a mixture of fear and rage. It couldn't comprehend what Naruto had conjured to guarantee his victory. There was absolutely no time to defend, and nothing formidable with which to defend. So, instead, the creature merely gazed up at the instrument of its imminent defeat. The glowing spheres looked like twenty full moons that were close enough to be plunked — but by no means were they also as kind and majestic as the gentle female deity.

The Kyuubi knew the truth of it when they collided into him with the force of an iron wall, pushing the creature backward with tremendous force and velocity. But the most fearsome and supreme of the tailed beasts — the legendary Nine-Tailed Demon Fox — was tenacious and, somehow, it had managed to regain its footing and stopped itself once the barrage of Rasengan had exploded and dematerialized.

However, our brave golden knight and Hinata's man was tenacious, too. "Here's one more!" Zipping out from the concealing wall of water created by the Kyuubi's abrupt stop, our hero ran up to the massive beast and slammed a Rasenshuriken into its face.

What kind of power is this? The fiend exclaimed in a flurry of pain and disbelief as the sphere expanded, violently pushing him back and separating him from his chakra that a horde of Naruto's clones were pulling on.

"You did it!" Kushina cheered. "You dragged the Kyuubi's chakra out!"

All of Naruto's shadow clones dispelled then, and the transparent silhouette that was the embodiment of the Bijuu's charka slowly poured into him, merging with that of his own.

The warrior was awestruck by the sudden transformation induced by his new acquisition. From head to toe, his entire body had taken on a brilliant golden hue with orange flames waving and flickering upwards around him, like a barrier. And intricate designs in black were etched on his body.

Kurama's eyes flashed.

Traveling at full career across the open seas atop his back, Hinata felt a subtle force ripple throughout the furry deity. "Ku-Kurama-kun, what's wrong?"

"Just now... Naruto took almost all of my chakra to achieve a new form."

"Na-Naruto-kun did? A-Are you in pain? Will Kurama-kun disappear?" Her voice was dejected, panicked.

"No. This form has its own individual chakra reserves, so I won't disappear."

Hinata sighed a breath of relief, clinging tighter to the Bijuu's lush fur.

"We should hurry to the island. Knowing Naruto, he will be anxious to make his way onto the battlefield to aid his friends, after attaining this new power."

"H-Hn!"

Rendered weak and skinny by its chakra being extracted, the Kyuubi struggled to push its body up off the ground to glower at the newly born hero. But, to the fox's dismay, Naruto was busy assessing his glowing body with astonishment.

"Is this... the Kyuubi's power?"

"Naruto..."the demon's sinister quirk extended all the way down to its snout, and its veiny crimson eyes were sharp and menacing. "How dare you... how dare you anger me, Naruto!"

Despite its fatigue, an enraged and emaciated Kyuubi attempted to fire off another gigantic Tailed-Beast Ball, but its attack was almost immediately dissipated as Naruto used a new, stronger seal to imprison the weakened beast once again.

Is this the Rikudou's?

You really are something; I can't believe he still had that much in him...

"I'll remember this, Naruto." The fiend closed its eyes, disappearing in the darkness of its newly constructed cage.

I'm sorry, Kyuubi. But I won't treat you badly. So just stay there for a little while. In any case, I'm still curious about what I felt — apart of you being near Hinata.

Inside Kushina's realm, Naruto opened his eyes to find her cupping his hand with both of her own. She was smiling happily. "You did it, Naruto!"

"Yeah." His voice was but a whisper, and he squeezed her fingers, his expression pale. "Where will you go now, mom?"

"I can finally go to where Minato is..."

Naruto's eyes widened, and then slitted morosely as he tried to digest the bittersweet reality of that. He knew this moment would come but it was so hard to accept. His heart was breaking.

"There is something I must tell you before I leave, however."

He held her gaze.

"It's about when you were born, sixteen years ago, Naruto. I'll tell you what really happened."

"What really happened sixteen years ago?"

"I was the Kyuubi's Jinchuuriki before you. That's where the story begins."

"You were the Kyuubi's Jinchuuriki, mom?" Naruto couldn't believe it, nor was he pleased. Just how much had his family suffered overall?

"Yes. Before I tell you what happened sixteen years ago, I want to tell you more about my story. I was chosen to be the second Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi. In fact, I was brought to Konoha for the sole purpose of becoming the Jinchuuriki. I was from the Whirlpool Country."

"Why?" Naruto was livid. "Why did they have to choose someone from another country as their Jinchuuriki?"

"As you said, I was from another country, another village. They may have been from two different countries, but Konoha and Uzushio shared a deep bond.

The Senju Clan from Konoha and the Uzumaki from the Whirling Tides where distant blood relatives. My people were known to live for many years, so our village also came to be called the 'Village of Longevity'. Sealing techniques were our clan's forte. We were a bit rowdy, though.

The Four Symbol Seal on your stomach was actually developed by my clan. I was also the one who taught sealing techniques to your father, Minato."

Naruto smoothed his palm over his belly.

"And, that symbol on your back... that's the symbol of Uzushio. As a sign of that friendship, the symbol is still worn today in Konoha, isn't it?"

"What happened to your village?"

Kushina bowed her head. "It's long gone. Because our sealing techniques were feared during the war, our village was targeted and quickly destroyed. Those who survived chose to hide themselves across various lands."

"But why did they choose you?" Naruto asserted.

"I was apparently born with chakra powerful enough to suppress the Kyuubi — a rare ability, even within my village."

Naruto bit his lip. That wasn't reason enough to subject his mother to the same loneliness and grief he faced.

"Have you heard of the battle between the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama-sama and Uchiha Madara?"

"Yeah," Naruto nodded.

"The woman who was the Kyuubi's Jinchuuriki before me became the First Hokage's wife. Her name was Uzumaki Mito. To help Hashirama-sama, who had obtained the Kyuubi during his fight against Madara, she sealed the Kyuubi within her body and became its Jinchuuriki. After that, Konoha was always in possession of the Kyuubi.

But, when Mito-sama neared the end of her days, they brought me there, as a vessel for the Kyuubi."

Naruto couldn't stand what he was hearing. "So they treated you like an object!"

"At first, I didn't know why they had brought me there, so I was quite shocked when I found out. It was all kept secret, of course. The only ones who knew were the Third Hokage and a few high-level officials. Not even the Sannin knew.

I felt as if I was being crushed by the pressure and loneliness of being a Jinchuuriki. But, Mito-sama, my predecessor, called for me. She was a nice lady — quite motherly, and could completely relate to what I was going through. She would always listen to all that I had to say and give me advice.

She told me that, while it was true we were vessels for the Kyuubi, there was a way to live happily, even as a Jinchuuriki. And that was to fill those vessels with... love. That's what Mito-sama told me."

"So you were happy, even as a Jinchuuriki, mom?" Naruto was anxious to learn the truth of it.

Kushina smiled warmly, her cheeks pink with all the fond memories she made with Minato and all their friends. "Yup!"

Naruto's eyes widened, quivering, and tears quickly spilled over onto his face. From the bottom of his heart, he was truly happy. He knew what it was like to be shunned as the host of the notorious Kyuubi — a fate he wouldn't have wished onto his most hated enemy.

Kushina giggled. "What are you crying for, Naruto?"

He cleared his tears. "Huh?"

"What is it?"

"But the Kyuubi attacked Konoha sixteen years ago. Dad told me a masked man from Akatsuki was behind it. How did you still have the Kyuubi, then?"

Kushina averted her eyes. "I guess your father didn't tell you the whole story. I'm not surprised. When you met him, your father didn't have as much time to talk to you as I have now.

It is true, though. Sixteen years ago, that masked man manipulated the Kyuubi and attacked Konoha. But, right up until then, I still had the Kyuubi within me."

"Then how?"

"I don't know how, but that masked man knew."

"Knew what?"

"He knew the one moment when the seal that kept the Bijuu inside the Jinchuuriki weakened. He planned to steal the Kyuubi during that moment."

"The one moment when the seal is weakened?" Naruto reiterated. "When is that?"

"During childbirth."

There was a moment of silence.

"During the ten-month period, when a female Jinchuuriki becomes pregnant and gives birth, the energy from the seal is transferred onto the child in her womb, thus weakening its hold on the Bijuu."

"You mean..."

"It was October 10th, sixteen years ago:

After receiving the splendid news from my pediatrician that I was pregnant, I hurried back home to tell Minato. We were both thrilled beyond words. We were going to be parents!

Your father took exceptionally good care of me throughout that time. He took over the duty of cooking and cleaning, insisted that I took it easy, and refrained from over-exerting myself. I got so frustrated of his excessive caution that I just eventually surrendered and allowed myself to be spoilt. It was awesome!" She giggled naughtily.

"Nine months later, we were summoned by the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen-sama and his wife, Biwako-sama, and informed about the Kyuubi's seal weakening during child's birth.

It had been decided that I would have the child in secrecy outside the village within a barrier. And there would be ANBU bodyguards, directly under the command of the Third Hokage.

Childbirth was just as painful as I thought. But, before I could see the fruit of my labors for more than a minute, the masked man somehow made it passed the guards and the barrier. In an instant, he killed Biwako-sama along with her friend and held you, a baby, hostage.

Minato had to abandon suppressing the Kyuubi and overseeing the seal to save you. He teleported you to safely but, by the time he returned for me, the masked man had already broken the seal and released the Kyuubi under his control.

Once Minato came back for me, the man took the Bijuu to Konoha where he unleashed its fury upon the village. The Third Hokage quickly took command of the shinobi and launched a counter-strike against the beast. But the Kyuubi was proving to be more than they could handle. Many people lost their lives in the chaos, both civilians and shinobi alike.

Meanwhile, Minato was engaged in a fierce fight with the masked man. It turns out he could also use space-time techniques, which is why he was able to bypass the powerful barrier at the cave where I was giving birth to you. Nevertheless, Minato was able to relinquish his control over the Kyuubi and overpowered him to the point where he retreated. But not before leaving an ominous threat.

Minato regrouped with the Third Hokage and the army of shinobi under his command just in time to teleport the Kyuubi away, before it could fire off one of its deadly blasts in the village. And the only location he could take the beast was the safe haven he had taken you and I. But he also teleported us outside to safety before the Kyuubi's blast could affect us.

In turn — despite my exhaustion — I used my sealing technique to immobilize the Bijuu. I told Minato that I would use my remaining chakra to pull the Kyuubi in and die along with it, but he didn't agree.

Kneeling before me with a baby Naruto in his hand, I watched as Minato frowned behind his tears. 'Kushina, there's no reason you should have to die together with the Kyuubi. Use what little chakra you have left to ensure a reunion with Naruto.'

'Eh?'

'I will seal all of your remaining chakra into Naruto.' He slowly wiped away his tears, his features illustrating his conviction now. 'I'll be part of the Eight Trigram Seal. I will take the Kyuubi with me. Since I'm not a Jinchuuriki, I'll use the only option I have left: The Shiki Fūjin!'

My face suddenly turned pale. 'But after you use that seal...'

'Also, I will only seal away half of the Kyuubi.'

The Bijuu snarled, eyes narrowed to dangerous slits.

'It's physically impossible to completely seal it, away. It's not a wise strategy, either. If you take the Kyuubi and its seal with you, there wouldn't be a Jinchuuriki until it was resurrected and the balance between the Bijuu that countries have would be ruined.

The Shiki Fūjin will seal half of the Kyuubi with me for eternity. The other half... I'll seal the other half in Naruto with the Eight Trigram Seal!'

I gasped.

'I know what you're thinking. But, remember what Jiraiya-sensei said about the world's revolution and all of the catastrophes that will accompany it.

I realized two things today: first, the masked man that attacked you will surely direct the world into chaos. Second, the one who will stop him... is our child! This boy, Jiraiya-sensei's godchild, will clear the way for a future as a Jinchuuriki. I just know he will.' He smiled reassuringly as he placed our baby down on the ground, wrapped in his blanket.

'But, Minato...'

He pushed to his feet and flew through the hand seals, summoning the deity associated with the Shiki Fūjin at his back. 'We have to believe in this child! After all, he's our son!

After I've used the Shiki Fūjin, I'll seal your chakra into Naruto. I want you to be there to help him out, when he attempts to control the Kyuubi's power as a Jinchuuriki.'

'But he's our... he's our son!' I asserted, unable to accept his resolve, however rational it was. 'I'd never want him to live while carrying such a burden!' There was a moment of silence. 'Why are you using the Shiki Fūjin? Is it just so I can see him when he's grown up? It'll only be for a short time, anyway! There's no reason for you to die!

I want you to stay by Naruto's side and watch him grow up! Why then? To maintain the balance between the Bijuu? For the sake of the country? The village? There's no reason to sacrifice Naruto for that! There's no reason for you to sacrifice yourself for me!'

Minato was calm. 'Abandoning one's nation and abandoning one's village... it's the same as abandoning one's child. You should understand, since your nation was destroyed. You know how harsh life can be for someone without a nation. Besides, we're a family... of shinobi!

Even if I were to live, I can't compete with you.' He stooped down a bit in front of me, capturing my eyes with his. 'Even if it's only for a short amount of time, there are things you, as a mother, can tell him that I cannot — that's a mother's duty.

I'm not doing this just for you; I'm doing it for Naruto, too.' Kneeling, he gently took our slumbering child into his arms, his eyes soft and sincere. 'I'm willing to die for my son — that's a father's duty.'

We shared a moment's silence, our eyes locked for the longest moment, and I humbly conceded to his wise and noble decision. Minato had never disappointed me before and, despite the height of the stakes, I confided in him. He always knew what was best... my decisive husband.

Quickly sealing half of the Kyuubi's chakra, despite its growling and words of contempt, Minato placed his palm to the ground and summoned a ritual pedestal. 'Good, now for the Eight Trigram Seal.' He sauntered over to the pedestal and gently rested baby to lie down on the cushion. 'I'll seal the Kyuubi inside Naruto.'

A ritual pedestal? The Bijuu's teeth were bare, eyes sharp and unswerving. Does he plan on sealing me again? In that baby, of all things?

I tried to crawl over to the pedestal, to look at my beautiful baby boy one last time, before he had become a vessel for a creature that I loathed. But my body wasn't in any condition for even that meager level of effort. I began coughing.

'Kushina, are you okay?' Minato exclaimed, rushing over to me.

The Kyuubi's eyes flashed with sudden malice and it capitalized on the fact that the baby had been left unprotected and drove its claws forward for a fatal attack. Summoning every ounce of energy we had in a sudden spasm of adrenaline rush, both Minato and I intercepted its attack. The Bijuu's claw pierced us both in the process, Minato and then me, but we were able to stop it just before Naruto was injured.

'I told you... this was a father's duty,' Minato chided softly.

'Then all the better, since I'm the mother,' I smiled disobediently.

'You bastard!' The Kyuubi wasn't pleased.

We ignored him, and I struggled to catch my breath. 'This is the first time I've lost an argument to you. I understand now how serious you are about this.'

'Thank you, Kushina.' He grinned, and then wiped a speck of blood from his mouth to his palm as retribution before forming the seals to perform a summoning. 'Kuchiyose no Justu!'

Gerotora appeared from the smoke and almost keeled over in shock when he saw a most unenthused Kyuubi sprawled out in front of him. 'The Kyuubi? And you, Fourth, what the hell is going on?'

'Gerotora, I'm giving you the key to the seal. Take it to Jiraiya-sensei immediately and store it within him.'

'I see...' the Third said, restricted outside my barrier. 'Minato plans on making his child the Jinchuuriki to save the village!'

'I've got the key,' Gerotora said, furling the scroll back into place around its torso. 'I'll leave now.'

And he was gone.

'That's taken care of,' Minato whispered with a smile, and then noticed that the Shiki Fūjin deity was getting impatient. 'Kushina, I'm almost out of time. It's time for the Eight Trigram Seal. I want to put some of my chakra into Naruto, as well. It'll be a while before we see him, so say what you want to say.'

'Naruto...' we both gazed affectionately at our sleeping child. 'Don't be picky about your food. Eat lots so you can grow big. Take a bath every day, and stay warm. And don't stay up late at night; you'll need your sleep. Make friends. You don't need a lot of them — just a few that you can really trust! I'm not one to talk, but do your best in school and ninjutsu. Everyone has their own strengths and weaknesses, so don't feel down, if you're not good at something. Respect your teachers and seniors at the Academy.

Oh, and don't forget the three shinobi vices. Be especially careful when lending or borrowing money. Make sure to save the money you earn from your missions. Don't drink any alcohol until you're twenty. Drinking too much is bad for your health, so do so moderately. And, as for women... I'm a woman myself, so I don't know much about this, but there are only men and women in this world, so it's okay if you become interested in a woman, but don't go after a bad one; find someone just like your mom!

Speaking of vices, watch out for Jiraiya-sensei, y'know!' I took a few shaky breaths, clinging tightly to the claw penetrating us both. 'Naruto... you will face a lot of pain and suffering in your life. Believe in yourself. Believe in your dreams... and believe that your dreams will come true!

There's many, many, many, many, many, many more things I want to share with you,' I couldn't help but cry, knowing the end was now. 'I wish I could stay with you longer! I love you.

I'm sorry, Minato; I spoke for too long.'

He shook his head with a smile, his nose brushing my hair. 'Don't worry. Naruto... my advice as your father... is everything your chatty mother just said.' He winked, and then closed his eyes in an echo of mine and whispered: Eight Trigrams Seal..."

Kushina cleared her eyes, failing to wipe away the sting of guilt. "I'm sorry for making you the Kyuubi's vessel," she apologized quietly. "I'm sorry for making you bear our burden. I'm sorry I couldn't live by your side. I'm sorry I couldn't shower you with love."

Naruto lowered his head, eyes half-lidded and calm. "Don't say 'sorry'. I went through some tough times because I was a Jinchuuriki, but I never blamed you or dad for any of it."

Kushina's eyes widened.

"Also... I don't really know what 'being-loved-by-your-parents' means, because you and dad were never around but, I managed." He rested both hands on his hips with an appreciative grin. "I know now that you and dad sacrificed your lives for me. I know that, before I took in the Kyuubi, I was filled with your love for me! That's why I'm happy!"

Kushina couldn't control her tears and she was certain she was crying for her and Minato both. Her heart beamed at their son's words, and she could feel a perpetual joy replacing the guilt and grief she had bottled up inside.

"I'm glad I'm your son. And it turns out that I've been following your and dad's advice all along: I have lots of great friends who support me and I've found the girl I love. Her name is Hinata, and I proposed to her a few weeks ago. We'll get married, after the war.

I wish you could meet her, mom."

Time slowed, and then Kushina lunged toward him as her body began dematerializing. Are you listening, Minato? Our love reached him! "Naruto!" She hugged him. "You've grown up so much! I'm so happy that you've found love and friends that you can lean on.

Thank you for making me a mother. Thank you for making Minato a father. Thank you for being our child! From the bottom of my heart... thank you!"

Naruto closed his eyes as tears rippled down his face, reveling in the soft echo of her voice and the warm beams of light that wafted passed him, carrying off his mother's spirit to her final resting place beside her loving husband — wait! But first, a detour...

Hinata gasped. All of a sudden, she wasn't on Kurama's back anymore. All of a sudden, she could no longer hear the lapping of the waves and smell the crisp salty air of the open seas. This realm was quiet. There were no clouds — an entire world stretching outward into infinity, painted entirely of a splash of gold and grey. But Hinata's attention was especially drawn to the lovely woman standing before her. She had long, reddish hair and wore a pretty dress and a warm smile.

Was this an illusion? Genjustu?

"Mmm..." without a word, the woman slowly circles around the anxious princess, assessing her lean figure with fierce female-scrutiny. Then, she abruptly groped her from behind with a playful giggle, massaging her breasts until the girl surrendered to a cute whimper.

Flushed scarlet, Hinata hugged her chest shyly and pursed her lips, pulling away from the woman's bizarre and inappropriate means of introduction.

The stranger grinned. "You have a stunning body, y'know. As expected from Naruto — he reeled in a real looker, and a Hyūga at that!"

Hinata's eyes widened a tad. "Na-Naruto-kun? You know him? Who are you? And where am I?"

"My name is Kushina, and I'm Naruto's mother. You must be Hinata... my soon-to-be Daughter-in-Law."

For a moment, the princess couldn't find her tongue. She had a hard time believing anything, from what she had seen to what she had heard. "Ho-How is any of this possible? Where am I?"

"We're inside a part of your subconscious mind. I'll explain..."

Hinata was evidently anxious.

"Sixteen years ago — when the Kyuubi was sealed inside Naruto — some of my chakra, fused with my consciousness, was also sealed inside of him. This was for the purpose of my aiding him, once he had decided to try to control the Bijuu.

Moments ago, Naruto succeeded in attaining the Kyuubi's power, and he's told me about you. As to how I found you... while I was in contact with the Kyuubi, I sensed an extension of its entity in a different location. It was a very thin link, but I was able to trace the thread that connected the two and made a connection with you since you both are currently in physical contact.

I don't know how it's possible for the Kyuubi to be outside the seal, in any shape or form but, I don't sense any malice emanating from its chakra."

"Hn! Kurama-kun has been protecting me since Naruto-kun left the village." Hinata beamed, her eyes glossy with fiery excitement. "Is it true? Has Naruto-kun really succeeded in controlling the Kyuubi's power?"

"That's right."

Then Kurama-kun was right about what he said before...

Kushina inched closer, rendered emotional as the girl heaved a smile of relief and struggled to wipe away her tears. "You really love him, don't you?"

She sniffled. "More than anything. I don't know what I would, if anything were to happen to Naruto-kun. I want to be by his side and protect him."

Kushina lightly cupped the girl's flushed cheek as she sought her eyes. "Continue loving him, Hinata..."

The princess's eyes quivered.

"Shower him with the love and affection that his father and I didn't get the chance to give. Filling a Jinchuuriki with love is the best way to make him or her happy. And I'm sure Naruto will make you happy in return."

"I will," she whispered behind her tears. "I promise..."

Kushina smiled, and then slowly veered her palm from the girl's cheek to chest. "It's faint, but I can feel a power lying dormant within you — a power that will help you in your endeavor to protect him."

Closing her eyes, the woman took a few deep breaths — finding her center — summoning the unique powers of her Uzumaki bloodline. Chakra converged in her arm in a cool, controlled stream, flowing into Hinata with delicate precision to coax awake her latent abilities.

The princess took a breath, as if finally resurfacing after being submerged under water for far too long. She could feel the change; feel the new chakra-nature coursing fast and cool through her veins. She felt invincible — capable of performing the unimaginable. With this boost in power, she knew with great certitude that she would be able to protect Naruto and to help pave the path to their dreams.

Kushina opened her eyes and allowed a sweet smile as Hinata looked down at her hands with astonishment, sensing her newly found element. "I've also infused the remainder of my chakra inside you. I hope it will be of some use during the war."

"Kushina-san..." tears pooled in her eyes again. "I-I don't know how to thank you."

"Thank you for loving and looking after my son, Hinata."

"Kushina-san..."

The woman pulled her into a motherly embrace. "He misses you," she whispered to her ear. "Go to him, and look after yourself in this war, Hinata... for his sake, too. He'll need you by his side to win this revolutionary movement to change the world as Jiraiya-sama said he would.

I'm glad he chose you to love and entrust his heart to. I wish I could stay to see you both get married, but you have my blessings. I love you both — now, go out there and show the world what you're made off! I'm rooting for you!"

"Hn!"

Hinata felt as the woman's touch vanished, her body disappearing into a sparkling stream of warm light. Then, suddenly, the young kunoichi was back in the outside realm, the dark blue ocean spreading out all around her. And, in the distance, a tiny spot appeared in their range of sight.

"Is that..."

"Hah," Kurama answered coolly, still pelting forward at full career. "That's the island where Naruto's located. We'll be there in a few minutes."

"Hn!" She frowned with a mixture of emotions.

"...What did she tell you?"

The question took Hinata by surprise, but she didn't dwell on the unknown. Her eyes narrowed with a warm gleam. "That we should win the war!"

Kurama heaved a wolfish grin. "I'll be at your side, through thick and thin."

Naruto smiled, the tail of his forehead protector waving in a gentle breeze. Mom... from now on, I'll stop eating only ramen and start eating vegetables, as well. Though, Hinata already makes sure of that.

I love taking bathes, so don't worry about that. I even go to hot springs pretty often. And I always sleep a lot. Actually, he chuckled. Maybe I sleep a bit too much...

Regarding friends, I've met a lot of awesome people. I wanted you to meet them, as well, especially Hinata. However, there's one guy I don't really get along with...

When it comes to studies, I'm afraid it's just as you feared. Of course, I won't let that get me down. During my Academy years, I met lots of teachers and seniors that I now greatly respect.

Jiraiya-sensei taught me all about the three shinobi vices. He was just the kind of guy you said he was but, he also taught me how to live as a shinobi. He was a great shinobi himself. Something tells me he's still alive out there somewhere, though.

I am Uzumaki Naruto — a ninja of Konoha. My dream is to inherit the title of Hokage and to surpass all the Hokages who came before me! He drove a fist to his chest. "To become an even cooler man than my dad! And to become an even stronger shinobi than my mom!"

Akatsuki's Animalistic Spy & Hinata's Arrival

Killer-Bee and Yamato stood silent, towering over a motionless Naruto. Standing on the razor's edge in anxiousness for so long had them numb in the toes. It had been a while since the Kyuubi's cloak dissipated. Had this meant that Naruto had turned the tables in his fight against the vicious beast? Or had the prolonging of his endeavor meant that something terrible had gone awry?

Suddenly, a smile stretched our hero's lips and his eyes opened in a flash. "Right on!" He raised his arms high in an exuberant cheer.

Yamato almost had a fit in his shock, while Bee merely grinned, never doubting him for a second. Yeah, right.

"What happened?" Yamato approached him, inquisitive. "Did everything go well?"

"Well, a lot happened." Naruto looked to Bee, bumping fists.

"Yo! Oh, so that's what happened? Got it!" Bee nodded with a smile, sharing his fellow Jinchuuriki's evident glee. "Your face, right now, coolness!"

"What about the Kyuubi?" Yamato pressed. "Did you manage to control it?"

"Well, you did great!" Bee bumped fists again, as if enhancing their telepathic Jinchuuriki-connection. "Especially back then when you did that, yo!"

Naruto giggled while Yamato looked from him to Bee in his frustration, impatience eating him from the inside out.

"Hey, Naruto! Don't tell me..."

He heaved a goofy grin, mirroring that of his new best buddy. "Yeah, that's right!"

Yamato was breathing deadly fire by this point. "Come on, tell me what happened already! 'This, that, there.' I don't get it! On purpose! You're doing this on purpose! That I do get!"

Sometime later...

"Don't worry, Yamato-taichou," Naruto reassured, sitting crossed-legged before both him and Bee. "The Kyuubi's chakra is now stored in a separate place within me. It's not like I'm always using it."

In a separate dimension, from the one that housed the Kyuubi, Naruto looked up at a colossal orb of pure energy. It hovered in the air above four red gates that formed a square, each wooden structure sitting at a right angle.

The composed knight looked up at the vast reservoir and, with a mere lift of his arm, the chakra extended in a slender stream into his palm, giving him complete access to the overwhelming measure of natural energy.

Killer-Bee and Yamato watched in silent astonishment as Naruto was suddenly enveloped in flames before their very eyes. Powerful chakra emanated from his body in an upward wave of pure awesomeness. There was no heat, no crackle — but they could tell he had once again ascended to a new pinnacle of power, raising the bar once more for his peers, seniors, and teachers.

"This is how I felt when I used the Kyuubi's chakra."

"Unbelievable..." Yamato muttered, watching as the wooden totem statues he had created towered high into the air, sprouting thick limbs and branches, as well as lush leaves as they basked in Naruto's energy. "It's full of life force. For my Wood Element to be so influenced by it..."

Suddenly, Naruto felt a telling prick — his complacency jostled by the alarm his newly found sensory abilities raised.

"What is it?" Yamato and Bee noted the abrupt shift in his mood, and followed his eyes as they veered to the animalistic sword strapped to a certain someone's back.

"Do you really think you can hide from me like that?" Naruto drove his fist into his palm; nonchalant and ready to test-drive his newly attained form.

Yamato broke into a sweat, looking around apprehensively, eager to have the preemptive strike. "What, can you sense someone else's chakra?"

Bee struck a few cool poses despite their predicament. "So you can feel it — another being? For me not to notice — so embarrassing."

Impossible, Kisame snarled, folded in an anatomically impossible fashion deep inside Samehada's belly. My chakra is the same as Samehada's; there's no way that he'd notice.

"It's not chakra," Naruto explained coolly. "I'm feeling something more gloomy and evil... there! That!" He pointed at the sword.

"The sword?" Yamato pivoted around to look at it.

At the same time, the weapon flew off from Bee's back and Kisame pushed his grotesque head out of the creature's mouth, tearing through the coils of cloth that wrapped it. "Seems like you can sense evil or hatred."

Naruto frowned.

"That is not something regular sensory-types can learn. I suppose it's the power of a Jinchuuriki who has managed to control the Kyuubi." Kisame was awfully calm despite the bind in which he was tangled.

"You're that shark bastard from Akatsuki," Bee dissed. "Why? I'm sure we chopped his head off!" He remembered when he, along with the Raikage, performed their notorious Double Lariat to separate the shark's head from his shoulders. "How did you escape our tag-team attack?"

"I just switched places while we were fighting in that mass of water; you chopped my clone's head off."

"A clone disappears when you kill it," Bee retorted. "There was a corpse. I'm having doubts. Plus, if someone had transformed, our seer would've noticed. Different problem."

"It was a very special clone, you see — a parasitic clone that can be remotely controlled. With that said, I suppose our chat is over." Without averting his gaze, he moved a little to the left with a grin. "Still, with the situation I am in, facing two Jinchuuriki and a Wood Element user, to be frank, I'd say it's quite harsh."

One of the spikes extending from Samehada pressed a small, circular switch on the floor, opening the only door leading out of the room.

"What?" Bee frowned behind his shades. "How do you know how to open the door to this room?"

"What a foolish question," Kisame smiled mockingly with two rows of razor sharp teeth. "I entered here as a spy, you see."

He began his hasty escape toward the exit — crawling using the spikes at either sides of Samehada's rectangular form, like a cockroach. Naruto's eyes narrowed and, almost instantaneously, he was there, delivering a fierce downward punch onto the fiend's back, shattering the earth beneath them.

Yamato gasped.

"The Body Flicker Technique?" Bee exclaimed, gesticulating with style. "From where I'm standing, just like a Yellow Flash!"

He's fast, Kisame snarled inwardly. I never expected...

He spat up a mouthful of blood — an indicator that withdrawal had suddenly become top priority. And, without looking back, he continued his escape, slipping speedily through the door.

"My foot," Naruto grunted struggling to pull it out of the hole he had made upon dropping in on Kisame. "I used too much power, so I got struck! Dammit!"

"Seems like you're not at the Fourth's level just yet," Yamato commented. "Bee-san, please go after him! I'll help Naruto!"

"Leave it to me!" He made a sporty dash toward the exit. "I'm in hot pursuit!"

In the event of a cataclysmic nuclear explosion, cockroaches are one of few insects that are likely to survive; therefore, Kisame couldn't allow himself to be captured and taken out by such a minuscule force.

He blazed down the corridor at breakneck speed toward the waterfall with Bee hot on his tail.

Meanwhile...

"What? Your true self will appear if you sit down in front of the waterfall? Is that really true?" Gai's Springtime of Youth was blazing with curiosity.

"Yeah," Motoi replied. "Naruto also defeated his own true self at this very spot."

"Why don't you give it a try, as well, Gai-san?" A fellow Konoha shinobi suggested playfully.

"D-Don't be ridiculous!" Gai retaliated in his panic. "Supporting Naruto takes priority! I came here as a sensei to protect him!"

"No need to get so upset..." the man returned quietly. "The truth is that you're just afraid of what your true self might be, right? By any chance..."

Gai giggled awkwardly, like a braying donkey, sweating bullets. "What? You-You think I'm scared? No problem!" He leaped onto the spot of earth in the water.

"I was only joking!" The man admitted with raised hands. "Although, I do get the feeling that your true form won't be human."

The Jōnin laughed aloud, while Motoi quietly withdrew into his invisible shell, merely a passive spectator without any commentary. Drama obviously wasn't one of his most favored pastimes.

"No need to take this so seriously..."

The man's voice dwindled as Gai closed his eyes and quickly slipped into a trance. When they snapped open, he saw a silhouette behind the falls, proceeding ever closer with beastly strides.

"Honestly," the voice was low and saturated with ridicule. "Should you be blabbering only about 'youth, youth' all the time? If an old-timer like you keeps pushing himself all the time, he'll end up destroying his body, you know.

I understand that you have to keep it up in front of Lee but, do you really think anyone likes that faked youth that you're forcing upon yourself?"

"Show yourself!" Gai was livid, pointing with a sneer at the obscured imposter. "Come and say what you want to my face!"

"Fine. It's time for you to know your true self..."

Just before the silhouette could walk through the cascading water and proceed to beat the so-called immature Jōnin into shape, Kisame busted through in his stead.

Gai cringed, his eyes popping. "That is the true me? A rare bug!"

"If I'm not mistaken, that's the rare beast," Kisame said to himself.

Gai took an offensive stance. "Me-who-has-forgotten-youth... I shall beat you into shape with my guts!"

"Gai-san!" His fellow shinobi called. "That's not your true self!"

"Be careful!" Motoi warned.

With fire in his eyes, Konoha's Green Beast sprang into the air and attacked an airborne Kisame with an elbow and kick combo, sending him crashing into the face of the mountain with destructive force. "Leaf Rock — Destroying Rise!"

At the same time, Bee cautiously exited the cave.

"Eh?" Gai swiveled his head to the side. "It's not my true self?"

"Take a closer look!" His comrade instructed. "There's no way that could be you!"

"The instant you open your eyes, you exit the Waterfall of Truth," Motoi informed, assuming a battle-ready posture like everyone else.

Gai turned his attention to the cockroach again. "This guy... if I'm not mistaken... he's a blowfish?"

Everyone looked at the full-ass-grown Jōnin with shock and disbelief.

Gai cupped his chin. "Or maybe it was a balloon fish."

"Well, there are a lot of funny-looking creatures around here," his comrade agreed. "Is that really a blowfish? I've heard they taste delicious!"

"Are you being stupid on purpose?" Motoi snapped, tempted to pound him a top the head.

Kisame grinned. "As always, it seems like your brains are below that of a rare beast."

Bee began rapping coolly, determined to squash the cockroach before it could flee any farther. "This guy, a spy, an Akatsuki fly. If we let him escape with our intel, we'll all be put to shame."

At the sound of its master's melodious voice, the animalistic sword undid the fusion and separated itself from Kisame, skipping atop the water's surface to reunite with its delicious chakra source and friend.

"Damn you, Samehada..." Kisame sneered, emaciated from having to shrink his body to fit inside the organic sword.

"This guy... I'm certain he's the shark man who was partnered with Itachi." The Konoha shinobi disliked the situation more by the second. "Although, he seems to be weakened."

"How did he get in here?" Motoi wondered.

Samehada crawled up against the Jinchuuriki's torso, snuggling against him, and Bee grinned, baby talking the creature. "Oh, I see. He forced you. That must've been harsh on you, huh?"

Samehada vibrated and made some throaty snarl by way of communication. Wait, did Bee really understand all this?

The Konoha shinobi frowned. "That's pretty disgusting..."

While everyone was distracted, Kisame took the opportunity to slip into the water without a sound, using his affinity with the element to swim against the current and taking a hold of Samehada's hilt without notice. The creature writhed in discomfort at the connection, biting seemingly with harmless fun on Bee's arm.

"Hey, hey, you're playin' rough!" The Jinchuuriki rapped coolly. "Bein' popular — that's pretty tough."

Motoi cringed, while the shinobi from Konoha in his dark shades veered his attention back to Kisame, who was already gone. "Shit! He went underwater — and he's a Water Element user!"

"I know," Motoi gritted his teeth, and then looked to his old childhood friend. "Bee, watch out!"

But it was already too late. Kisame had already started absorbing the Jinchuuriki's chakra by using Samehada as the medium. His once emaciated body regained its vitality — biceps, triceps, abs, pectoral muscles and the like grew and went rigid with power.

He grinned slyly.

"He's absorbing your chakra!" Motoi alerted, running over.

"Dammit!" Shades frowned. "Why are the strong ones always this stupid?"

Gai blinked obliviously — a total goof ball.

"Oh, stop it!" Bee giggled. "You're so cute, and I'm losing strength."

Kisame released Samehada's hilt, poking his head above the surface with his trademark grin. At the same time, Bee collapsed to his knees, robbed of most of his energy.

"Gai-san, support me!" Glasses exclaimed. "I'll try to get intel from him, instead! Secret Technique: Stone Needles!" He threw a pair of kunai suspended by wires, which Kisame took in his forearm, to protect his face.

The man grinned, carefree despite falling victim to the attack. A technique that paralyzes by injecting chakra into the target? However, to me, that's quite convenient.

Glasses grunted, his knees buckling beneath him. So... he's absorbing my chakra, instead. Such absorbing power... he fell flat on his face.

"Leaf Whirlwind! In the same beat, Gai pounced on the bastard with a powerful roundhouse kick to finish the job but to no avail — the man effortlessly blocked the strike, and drove Gai back to boot.

Kisame grinned, always grinning. I've regenerated enough chakra, he gloated inwardly and then slapped his palms together in an ominous seal. "Water Element: Water Shark Bullet Technique!"

Water suddenly enveloped him then morphed into a large shark, encasing the fiend in an almost impenetrable body of water. Gai was knocked mercilessly out of the way, as the water-forged titan shot into the air, like a bullet.

"Shit, he's getting away!" Motoi swore in his frustration. "He's fast! If he crosses the barrier surrounding this island, we're done for! If we don't stop him before that, even I won't be able to sense him!"

"I'll stop him!" The spotlights were all on Gai now, and he was ready to make up for his blunder by stomping the former cockroach. "Eight Inner Gates!" His knees bent a tad as he unlocked and exerted his power, the water and immediate wild life trembling by the spiritual pressure thick in the air. "Sixth Gate: Gate of View... Open!"

"Let yourself be captured by my Hachibi arms, my odd beastly friend!" Bee was also eager to contribute toward the hunt, and he tapped into his Jinchuuriki powers, transforming his right arm into that of the Eight-Tail's. "I'll throw ya away in the direction of ten!"

"Don't sacrifice the truth for the sake of a rhyme!" Motoi chided, pointing to the sky. "The direction is two o'clock!"

Ignoring the ranting man, Gai jumped into the giant hand and allowed himself to be catapulted into the air after Kisame. Afterwards, Bee fell flat on his face. Samehada approached him with what sounded like a worrisome snarl.

"Bee, are you okay?" Motoi called.

"I'm okay," he raised a wary arm, pointing to the sky in style. "Be back in a sec..."

"You've lost a ridiculous amount of chakra!" Glasses took his turn to chide. "Still, it seems like we can still stop him." He pointed to the waterfall. "Naruto and Yamato are behind this waterfall, right?"

"O-Ouch..." Naruto whimpered as Yamato slowly wrapped a length of cloth around his ankle secured with a splint. He was sitting down, no longer in his new mode. "Can't believe I twisted my ankle." I can't afford to make such pathetic mistakes if I plan to protect everyone in this war.

"Make sure to control your strength from now on," Yamato advised as he completed the delicate task. "Okay, let's go."

"Yeah," Naruto nodded.

Gai was rapidly losing velocity, and he clicked his tongue as the wind pressure continued to oppose him, quickly forming hand seals to summon his old turtle friend. "I'm counting on you!"

"Here I was, thinking it's been a while, but mid-air?!"

"I'll borrow your back!" Gai ignored him, using the creature's sturdy build as a foothold to launch himself into a high arch in hopes of completing his aerial journey.

The turtle plummeted down to earth in a violent spiral, withdrawing into its shell before colliding into what appeared to be a massive boulder before hitting the ground. The poor thing landed on its back. "That Gai — using me as a stepping stone..."

After a moment of struggling, the reptile finally turned over onto its four stubby legs and realized that what it had collided into was in fact a massive turtle and not lifeless landscape. "O-Oh, hi there..."

The creature cast him a curious gaze, munching on some greenery.

Kisame surfaced from the dark depths of the ocean and looked around with that customary grin, scouting the surrounding area. Good, seems like I've lost them.

Biting his thumb, he formed the seals to summon a large blue shark and then followed up by regurgitating the scroll he had swallowed and placing it into the fish's mouth. Then he pressed a hand to the creature's body, as if telepathically instructing the predator what to do with the intel it had received.

Gai landed atop the water in that same instant, green chakra radiating from his body with fierce intensity, stirring the salty tides around him.

"You sure are persistent!" Kisame exclaimed, molding chakra for an impending strike.

"I saw it!" Gai frowned. "That scroll you put inside that shark was intel, right? I won't let you escape!"

"Oh, can you stop me?" Kisame challenged coolly. "You see, I'm at an advantage here." He raised his arm and then threw it downward, initiating his move. "Water Element: A Thousand Feeding Sharks!"

The sea responded to the villain's command, lifting a thousand ravenous sharks far into the sky, to ride upon a fierce tidal wave with their summoner. But Gai held his ground, like a boss, standing firm before the might of the sea and the man-eating sharks that threatened to crush and devour him.

"Now I don't know which shark is which..." he obviously wasn't worried about being crushed and/or devoured. "Then, take this!"

The spirited Jōnin leaped into the air and began throwing wild punches in the face of the approaching tsunami. His hands were like that of machine; moving so fast that they were merely a blur. Then there was fire — hundreds of hurtling beams that shot out from the shockwave of his punches, subduing the giant wave and obliterating majority of the shark clones.

Where's that scroll? Gai pondered as he plummeted back down from the sky, looking down at the fleeing sharks beneath the ocean's surface. Dammit. There's too many of them. There's no helping it; I'll just have to take care of them all in one blow!

He allowed himself to fall and slip beneath the water's surface, intercepting the school of ravenous beasts before unlocking another critical gate. Seventh Gate: Gate of Wonder... Open!

Kisame grinned. "You won't even let the sharks in the water get away, eh? Fine. I'll just have to mince you into pieces, then."

Instinctively, the sharks homed in for a quick feast but the spiritual pressure gushing out from the man's body proved too much to challenge and endure. Even the very water was being driven away from him; repelled by his chakra's intensity as though he were using Pain's notorious Shinra Tensei.

"I see..." Kisame murmured, his hands pressed together as he molded a large amount of chakra for his next move. "A taijutsu that defeats the opponent by hitting them with shockwaves created by striking the air so hard it catches on fire. You truly are a rare beast; to find a shinobi capable of such levels of taijutsu is indeed rare.

For me, it's a third time, but..."

"The next taijutsu is so strong, the previous one can't even be compared to it," Gai warned, poised to unleash hell and then some. "A one-shot-certain-death-strike. Something you don't see very often."

Kisame seemed more exhilarated than apprehensive. "To think that your blue chakra would push away all the water..."

Gai was silent, ready to blow away the man's imminent attack.

Kisame laced his fingers. "Water Element: Great Shark Bullet Technique!"

Daytime Tiger!

With two rows of sharp teeth on both the top and bottom of its jaws, Kisame's shark was bigger and fiercer than the last. But Gai's white tiger didn't shy away. The shape-manipulated beasts charged toward one another in a powerful tackle, wresting viciously to overpower the other for dominance.

Kisame heaved a sly grin. This Great Shark Bullet is no ordinary jutsu. The technique itself absorbs chakra, and then becomes greater and stronger. The stronger the opponent's technique, the stronger it gets.

But, despite his theory, his shark didn't seem to be getting any stronger — and the man's Tiger didn't appeared to be losing any strength or backing down. Instead, it was gradually piercing through his struggling shark.

"What's going on?" He panicked. "It should have deflected his technique already, but the Great Shark Bullet won't get any bigger! It should have absorbed all the chakra... it's not made out of chakra?" He bellowed in disbelief, wide-eyed.

"Howl, my youth!" Gai gave one final push in his intention to dominate. In response, his tiger grew five times its original size, amassing more power and velocity as a result and effortlessly devouring Kisame and his vile horde of sharks.

The sea thrashed about in resistance as the beast cleaved through the unruly waves with graceful ease. The force of the attack kept expanding rapidly, enveloping any stray sharks that tried to escape and repelling any clouds that dared hung too close.

Naruto, Bee, Yamato, Motoi, and Glasses struggled to maintain their balance as the blast threatened to swallow up the entire island.

"What the hell is that?" Motoi asked in his shock.

"That's... Gai-san's Eight Gates Release technique: Daytime Tiger!" Yamato was flustered.

"Daytime Tiger?" Naruto reiterated curiously, watching as the blast slowly crept slower toward the island. "I didn't expect such a melancholic name from Gai-sensei with all his 'vigorous youth' talk."

Yamato cringed in defense as the shockwave reached the threshold of the island. "This is no time for idle talk! Daytime Tiger's force spreads rapidly over a vast distance; we need to brace ourselves!"

In that same instant, the blast hit them with powerful wind speeds of up to 82 knots — most of which being absorbed by the surrounding forestry. Leaves and debris blew past the gang as they struggled to defy the hurricane-like force and the nearby trees and ferns shook and protested so violent that Naruto thought they would've been uprooted and swept away in the current.

Gai was standing over a motionless Kisame by the time the blast's repercussions had calmed, the scroll perfectly secured in the master's hand. "Don't move," he warned quietly as the cockroach — lying flat on his back atop the water — slightly tilted his head to look up at his formidable adversary.

"This technique... it wasn't a blast of chakra. And that blue aura..."

"Daytime Tiger isn't ninjutsu made up of chakra," Gai enlightened. "It's taijutsu — it's simply a punch. However, it's an incredibly quick punch. The punch concentrates pressure in a single point. After this compression, the pressure is suddenly released.

The aura that surrounds me is not chakra. One who has opened the Seventh Gate of Wonder releases blue sweat; it is the evaporation of one's fervor."

Kisame grinned. "No wonder, then... I thought it was a blast of chakra, although I saw it getting smaller. This is the third time I've fought you, yet you were still hiding such a technique. You don't seem to remember me, though."

There was a moment of prolonged silence. Then, despite the man's warning, Kisame's thumb twitched beneath the water. Instantaneously, Gai brought down a fierce punch in his gut with the same destructive force of a cannonball.

Blood spewed from his mouth.

"I said, 'don't move'," Gai reminded coolly.