OK readers, I'm back for the next chapter. Now I have a few expectations to be met here for a few reviewers. Some are concerned that I sacrificed character development for a faster pace. Some are concerned that my priorities are the reader's opinions. That isn't the whole truth. I rely on the reviews of you all to improve my writing, earlier I had said I had to rewrite my reference sheet, to me a reference sheet is basically notes that I write in the direction of a story. A dull, piss poor outline of a story that pretty much only relies on actions. But there were large clots of info for clans that I had planned to write out that took up a large majority of my reference sheet.

But someone still questioned my priorities, I see stuff like that as a challenge. I won't bore you guys with any more An and we will be skipping review corner for now. All reviews will be posted next chapter.

"you said you would think about."

The words came out as a whisper. The tone held a lot of confusion, sadness and other mixed feelings.

"And we did, we decided to train Kanna. We felt that it would endanger you further if you were trained. Kanna hasn't been put under a Genjutsu like you have. You are being targeted by someone for something, until we can find out what that is we can't train you for not just your safety, but for the villages.

'He's lying' A voice whispered in the back of Naruto's mind. It sounded strangely familiar but he couldn't quite remember where he heard it from. "Can't or won't?!"

"Naruto, you need to calm down!" Minato said a bit harsher than he meant to. Naruto slightly flinched at the harsh tone his father used but didn't back down. There was a burning sensation in his chest that bubbled up his throat. His face felt hot and his head hurt. He didn't know what was going on but he did know one thing.

He was angry.

"No, no, I deserve training just as much as Kanna does! You can't do this to me!"

"Naruto!" Minato snapped. "I am your father, you will not raise your voice at me anymore than you already have. I understand you're upset but screaming like a spoiled brat isn't how your mother or I raised you! Now we'll talk about this later, go up to your room and calm down. Your mother or I will be up to talk to you about this later when you're calm. Don't leave that room until you're mother or I say so."

Turning away from Naruto his gaze met Kushina's. He really didn't like what he saw in her eyes. Untold fury, and a promise of pain and suffering if he didn't properly explain why he did what he did just now at a later time.

He wanted to argue, kami knows he did. But his father's tone had grown several degrees colder as his harsh reprimand continued until finally he couldn't even recognize him. The person who was scolding him wasn't the goofy dad he remembered from this morning. That warm feeling of fatherly love his father aimed with his gaze was gone. Replaced by two cold chips of ice that hurt to hold for longer than a second. It honestly scared him.

So he turned away, and even then he had to suppress the urge to shiver from the gaze he could feel boring into his back, walked back into the house and up to his room. Even now sitting against his door in the cold dark room he remembered the feeling.

Those eyes simply wouldn't leave him alone. "W-who are you?" he finally choked out in a whisper. "T-tou-san would n-never look at me like that." Finally the emotional storm that was his mind settled on three feelings, hurt, sadness and dejection.

So he did what all kids did when they feel wronged. He cried himself to sleep still leaning against the door on the cold, hard, unforgiving floor.

*Break*

When he awoke it wasn't in his bed, nor was it on the floor of his room. But it was on a pristine sandy beach with sand almost as white as snow. The loud crashing of waves and the salty smell of sea water. This was the first sight that greeted his opening eyes.

"Huh? Where am I, how'd I get here?" wanting to learn about his new surroundings Naruto put his hands down on the sandy ground and pushed. Only for his hands to sink all the way up to the shoulder. Now being a bit freaked out he tried again only this time he actually started to sink.

"H-help! Someone anyone! I'm sinking!" He was now officially angled to where he would be standing if he were on solid ground. But he was still sinking and his struggling only made it worse. It was up to his head when a that familiar voice from before reached his ears.

"Stop struggling child. You are only making it worse." Hearing the source from behind him he did as instructed and immediately noticed the change, instead of the quick sinking it was now a lot slower. He dared not move, even to see the person who helped him.

"P-please help me, I'm scared." All was quiet for a moment before a tired sigh came from behind him again.

"I cannot, this place holds a lot of power. More than I currently have at my disposal. You will have to get yourself out."

"I c-can't" Naruto whimpered out with the little hope the presence behind him brought being shattered like so much glass.

"Listen child, this place is ruled by emotion. The ground is only as stable as the one who stands on it. You are troubled, speak to me your problems and allow me to help you solve them."

Naruto didn't know what the stranger meant but since he felt like he was going to sink anyway he might as well talk until then. "Today was my birthday. This morning I asked tousan if he would train me and Kanna to be Shinobi. He said he would think about it. But later on at the party he told me he was only going to train Kanna. Why, why only her? I was the one that asked."

"So you wish it was you who received training instead of your sister? That is very selfish of you child."

Realizing how what he said would sound in the ears of a stranger panicked a bit. "N-no, never! I love Kanna, and only meant that we should have been trained together! I would never ask for her to be ignored for me."

The voice was quiet for a moment before he heard a hum, whether it was of approval or not remained to be seen. "I see, so you're angry that your father didn't choose both of you. Do you know why he didn't?"

Naruto watched a Bible of sand pop in front of him and gulped. The sand while slow was still consuming him, though now it was inching it's way up his neck. "H-he said that training me would put me in danger. He said that some guy who used a gejuzu on me would come back if he did."

The voice humed again before sighing. "He was afraid of the possibility of what could be done with you." That brought Naruto's attention away from his current predicament and tried to turn his head a bit to look at whoever was behind him.

"Tousan was afraid of me?" His sinking quickly forgotten for the new conversation. In his peripheral vision he was able to spot a blur of white but no major detail.

"Not of you specifically boy. But what you could do if this person who used a Genjutsu on you managed to bring you to their way of thinking later on down the road. He let his fear of a possible future cloud his better judgement. He reared what could come from losing you to his enemies. Do you remember, Naruto, what I told you when we first met?"

"What are you…?" From his peripheral vision the white blur moved, floated, from behind him to the side, and even more until the source from the earlier voice now SAT floating in mid air in front of him. An elderly man with spiky white hair and a pair of horn protruding from his forehead dressed in white priest robes.

"Y-your him, that guy I saw! You're the reason Tousan isn't training us both!?"

The elderly sage opened his once closed rippled eyes and stared down into the boy's own. "Am truly to blame? Yes I cast the genjutsu on you so we may talk without interruption from those around us. But I was not the one who decided it would be best to abandon you for your sister. That is how you feel, is it not, abandoned?" Both went quiet at the sage's words.

Finally after a minute had passed the sage continued again. "You never answered my question Naruto Uzumaki. Do you remember what I told you the first time we met?"

Naruto stayed silent for a bit trying to remember what the sage had said. Finally after what felt like minutes he felt the memory surface. "You said to look for things others can't see."

The elderly sage nodded minutely at his words. "Specifically I had said to 'Keep your eyes open. If you do you may see something not many are privileged to.' but close enough for one your age. Remember all that was said during your argument with your father. Did he perchance mention the village at any point during your argument?"

Thinking back on it he did remember saying something about the the village. "Yeah, but why is that important? Hey, wait a second!" He finally realized trying to bring his hand up to point at the old man only to remember his current predicament. "Who are you!?"

The elder gave a sad smile while his rippled eyes shut briefly. "I am just an old fool looking to fix my past mistakes young Jinchuriki." At the mention of his shared status with his twin Naruto merely blinked.

"But if you wish to know my name allow us to finish our earlier conversation. In exchange, when it is finished I will tell you my name. Deal?" The sage didn't even wait to get a response.

"Did your father mention the safety of the village specifically?" Naruto wondering where the floating old man was going with this 'conversation' merely nodded to confirm the question. "It was a slip of the tongue for a man like him, young Jinchuriki. Not all of the pieces of this puzzle have been gathered so the picture it will paint will be very vague. So until you understand everything please be silent."

Naruto obviously wanted to say something but the commanding tone in the elderly man's voice held his tongue. "minato Namikaze is a man seen as the strongest Shinobi since Hashirama Senju. But strength can not be described just one way. Strength of will, to stand against overwhelming odds and return the victor. Strength of mind, to understand the way all life works and follow the path that leads to the greatest outcome. Strength of heart, to follow your ambition to the very end regardless of the obstacles you face. Strength of body, to be able to move through life's obstacles with brute force. What Minato Namikaze lacks, is the strength of will."

"Hey wait a minute you teme! Tousan is a good person, even if he isn't gonna train me he still protects me with everything he has!" Here the elder sage narrowed his rippled eyes at the boy.

"I suppose it is to be expected that is what you believe. So allow me to enlighten you, boy. But be warned, what you will soon learn will break you. It will force you to question everything you have ever known to be true." So with that ominous warning he finally began, revealing a side of Konoha's Kiiroi senkou that no one outside of the shinobi council has ever seen.

With but a wave of his shakujo a mirror appeared in front of Naruto blocking off his view of the great sage. After a moment of looking at his reflection the mirror's surface rippled and the image shifted. Where he once saw himself he saw a room that looked vaguely familiar. If he remembered right what he was seeing was the spitting image of the Konoha council chambers. He has only been in it a handful of times for when his mother had been too busy to watch them and Minato had to take them to his office while working.

Looking closer he could see his father standing in the middle of the 'U' shaped table with a strange look on his face while gazing into the filled seats of the entire council. "What is this?" He found himself whispering not expecting an answer from the mysterious sage.

"What you see now is an event in the life of Namikaze Minato. This event took place a day after the Kyuubi attack. I will fill in anything you miss after this plays. So watch carefully. This may reveal a side of your father you didn't know existed."

*Break*

(Konoha council chambers, October 11th)

"Hokage-sama, the reports from the Kyuubi's assault had been handed in to me earlier today if you wish for me to read aloud." Saying so as if requesting permission without actually asking.

"Go ahead Takehito-san"

"Hai Hokage-sama, *cough* due to the Kyuubi's rampage the damage report centers around two hundred acres of the Nara's five hundred acres forest with an extra hundred acres being exposed to the Kyuubi's poisonous chakra thus slowly dying. All of the deer within radius of ground zero and the poisonous chakra are either dead or dying duo to chakra poisoning. Due to a strong wind coming in from Suna the airborne chakra of Kyuubi had also been blown into the socialist district leaving buildings unharmed but countless bodies have been and, still are being, recovered." The man briefly paused to let this morbid news settle in the hearts of all present.

"Due to this the death toll has been set at 20% civilian and 35% shinobi population." Worried whispers began breaking out amongst the council while Minato narrowed his eyes in thought. An elderly man sitting two seats to the left of Minato gripped his cane tight enough to strain the wood. "Casualties are another staggering 10% civilian and 40% Shinobi populace. 5% of the civilian casualty population is gravely wounded and dying while the remaining 5% had only received career ending injuries. The Shinobi population has 30% gravely injured and another 10% with career ending injuries and below." The whispers got a bit louder until Minato raised his killing intent sharply, purposely silencing the entire council in moments.

"Continue Takehito-san"

"Hai, the corrosive chakra of the Kyuubi has several crippled the walls of Konoha, recommendation from the head foreman suggests tearing down the worn section of the wall and rebuilding it. The foreman says that the wood holding it together is hollowed and dried out and a majority of the stone was turned to dust. Reports state that several businesses and restaurants have been destroyed. The estimated total cost for repairs tallies to 50,000,000 Ryo. That is all"

With the reports given the room went deathly quiet with the only thing moving being the pacing Hokage. When he had started to pace no one knew. All that could be focused on now was the predicament they found themselves in and what it would mean to their way of life. Traditionally it was the Hokage that would speak to the people and give them hope, but with Minato currently lost in his thoughts another had to take a stand. Particularly a crippled old man that hardly anyone in the room liked but begrudgingly respected.

"So what" The silence suddenly being broken brought the attention of the entire room.

"Konoha has lived through two world wars, this wouldn't be the first time we were caught unprepared. We do as we always have in such situations. We pick up the slack our dead left for us and we move on. We need a way to show the world that while Konoha is weakened it is far from defenseless. Luckily for us our beloved Yondaime has gifted us two somethings. Yesterday our Yondaime sealed the yin and yang halves of Kyuubi's chakra into his new born children. With them as deterrents for war we have at most 20 years to regain our previous strength."

"No Danzo, I will not allow it. My children are just that, children. They don't even perceive the world around them yet and you ask me to turn them into the villages weapons? Have you gone mad!?"

Danzo tapped his cane lightly on the floor and focused his single good eye in meeting Minato's gaze. "Would you have us sit here and have us caught by surprise again them Hokage-sama? With repairs taking up the remainder of the genin and a portion of the surviving chuunin roles and the ranks of our Jonin devastated we are stretched thin as it is. Look beyond your love for your children Namikaze Minato. To protect them would be to train them as soon as possible. If we don't have a deterrent then you are inviting war into our nation. Would you want for your children to be captured because of Kumo desiring an Uzumaki much like they attempted with Uzumaki-san?" He knew he had won when the tightly suppressed killing intent of the Hokage was felt. From the man's shaking fists it was easy to see he had hit a nerve in the seemingly impenetrable man.

"I will release their status as Jinchuriki to the public later today. But when they will be trained, how they will train and how they will be treated is left to me, understood?"

Danzo rolled the thought around for a moment before nodding his head. "Agreeable Hokage-sama, you will have your way. If I may make a suggestion?"

Although weary of what else the old warhawk would try he nodded his head. As much as he didn't like what Danzo had suggested and wished he could have the man executed he knew that if word reached the Daimyo of an unlawful execution done by his hands it could mean his tenure as Hokage being terminated within days after he was sworn in. A dictatorship it may be but the Daimyo's alliance with the samurai of Iron country and their numbers would be the end of Konoha.

"Even with the borrowed time being given to us using Konoha's Jinchuriki there is no absolute guarantee that we will be back on our feet before a more ambitious hidden village makes an attempt at stealing our place as the strongest hidden village. In order to account for this I would like to suggest lifting the order to disband my Root Anbu so as to infiltrate, gather information and, if necessary, eliminate any discovered threats to Konoha and it's recovery." Minato didn't even hesitate to deny the man his request.

"Denied Shimura Danzo, your root has proven time and time again that it is only loyal to you and only you. Not only that but your methods of 'creating' them are inhuman. The only reason Sarutobi didn't shut you down sooner was because at the time of Roots creation Konoha was on the verge of destruction. We are not yet at that level of desperation Danzo and if I have any say in it then we never will. Now if that is all then you are all dismissed. I have papers to sign and deals to make with a few foreign emissaries."

*Break*

The area was quiet for a bit but the sage found now an appropriate time to speak. "Do you see know, young Jinchuriki?"

The mirror had gone transparent when the sage tapped its surface allowing both people to see each other. "No, tousan did what he did so we could live safely. Why are you against that?"

The sage frowned with a mix of frustration and disappointment. "Naruto Namikaze, do you know why your father was chosen to be the Hokage?"

At this Naruto smiled a bit "well yeah, tousan talked about how he inspired people to fight with him. How he lead them through the armies of evil to protect everyone in Konoha!"

The sage shook his head to negate the child's words. "That is not the whole reason, merely half of it. A Kage as you would call it must be very powerful. Every Kate is powerful in their own right but even most Kage's cannot stand against an army along with another foreign Kage. They would be overwhelmed given enough time. Your father is the exception to this fact. My eyes have seen what he has done in his short life. His existence alone is a deterrent for war. The holder of the title army killer belongs solely to your father Namikaze Naruto." He tapped the mirror again causing the mirror's image to shift again.

"This Namikaze Naruto, is another achievement made by your father. The very battle that gave birth to the title Kiiroi senkou. This is the battle for Kanabi bridge in the third great shinobi war. Here your father brutally butchered thousands of men and women. Leaving their families without mothers and fathers. Leaving so many children without parents. This, child, is one of the horrors that could have been avoided had the world been different."

With that the image began to play and what had been shown would forever scar Naruto to the very depths of his soul.

*Break*

*Slam* A door being slammed shut echoed through the entire house as Minato was led through the house by his angry wife. In all honesty he had never seen her this angry. There were times where his perverted teacher was caught peeping on her, by her and she beat him senseless. She had been so angry that her hair had started swaying around that reminded everyone of the Kyuubi's nine tails flailing about angrily. She had been so angry that she literally have heart attacks to untrained civilians with the level of her Killing intent on accident. But all those times he had seen her angry pale in comparison to what he witnessed now.

The moment Naruto had left the garden Kushina had been visibly restraining herself from tearing Minato apart limb by limb and holding her Killing intent so she didn't accidentally kill her daughter and the children present so she did the only thing she could do at the time. Asked everyone as kindly as a pissed off mother could be to leave and for Kanna to go to bed a bit early.

Not a moment had her request been made that the room was cleared. Even Kanna usually one to argue against going to bed could tell now just wasn't the time and had promptly vacated the garden. Leaving Minato alone to face his wife's fury.

When the two finally reached Minato's study Kushina promptly slammed the door shut, locked it and non to gently forced a passive amount of power into a seal on the door. A moment later and the walls of the room flashed blue before returning to normal. The moment that happened Minato was sent crashing into a bookshelf from a right hook to the jaw.

This was no coordinated attack pattern, no practiced Taijutsu forms or Katas. This was simply an old fashioned beatdown.

Not a moment after he crashed into the bookshelf was Kushina on him again, this time with a hard jab in the gut knocking the air from his lungs. Next thing he knew he was on his knees with Kushina standing in front of him, staring at him coldly. The aura she held now was unlike anything he had ever felt from her, Kushina's fiery temper had always been the thing that people recognized her for. Uncontrollable, fiery, loud and brash, these were the words used to describe Kushina when she was angry.

But the anger he could see in her eyes right now, as his gaze met hers, was enough to let him know that he wasn't getting out of this unscathed. That cold fury she seemed to radiate, like saying someone is so angry that their calm. As confusing as it sounds it's the only way to describe what he was seeing. "You better have a damn good reason why you just lied to our son's face like that. I didn't agree to this, you filled my mouth with lies Minato! You do not go behind my back and make decisions about MY kids without me. You may have donated the sperm Minato Namikaze, but it was me that developed them for eleven and a half months, CARRIED them for eleven and a half months and it was me who gave birth to them. It's my ¾ the work to your one Minato. Start talking before I castrate you."

Minato finally able to breath spoke in a shaken voice belaying just how much Kushina's punches still hurt even after close to seven years of inactivity. "K-kakashi gave me his theories on Naruto's earlier abduction. He thinks that whoever put him under that genjutsu could have been targeting Naruto for longer than either of us know. Meaning that not only is he at risk at being brainwashed to leave Konoha for kami knows where, but with our blood in Naruto's veins he could take whatever jutsu from the vault he wanted and be gone before we knew what was happening if what I feel happens comes to pass." he took in another shaky breath. Kami her punch really felt like it knocked something loose.

"We can't let that happen Kushina. If Naruto is brainwashed then if he were trained by us it would only set us up for total takeover in the future. At least with this you got what you wanted with the least amount of risk. Kanna hasn't been targeted, so she should be able to be safely trained without the threat of being turned against us in the future."

Kushina was quiet during the entire explanation. Her face blank but her eyes projecting how little Minato's explanation comforted her. If anything she looked angrier. "What you did, Minato, was the same as abandoning your son if Kakashi's theories are true. You've just said you have decided to throw your own son away for the future of the village. What about Naruto Minato? If he really is being targeted he should be trained to where he can resist brainwashing and any attempts at kidnapping!"

Minato finally being able to breath easily huffed. "Kushina, I love Naruto, I really do, but I'm the Hokage. I have an entire village to look after. I have to consider every possibility in situations like this. I have to think about the 'what-ifs', what if Naruto isn't strong enough to resist in the end and leaves even with the training we give him. What then?"

Kushina looked at Minato with disbelief. "That's a load of shit and you know it Minato! What about Anko!? She's always under Orochimaru's influence with that damned cursed seal will you throw her away if she shows signs of giving in to it?!" She was shocked again when Minato responded without missing a beat.

"Yes, but I have faith she won't. She had been receiving training in to resist temptation since before she had received the seal. She is different than Naruto simply because she has had that curse mark for close to eight years and hasn't used it once. Naruto doesn't have the training, and he's already been influenced by the genjutsu. We don't know what genjutsu was used so we don't know the effects it had on his mind and sending a Yamanaka to check is too dangerous with his status as a Jinchuriki. You remember what happened with Yama when he was assigned to check on your mental stability after the war. Sending a Yamanaka would be the same asking a green as grass genin to fight a battle hardened Kage."

Kushina flinched at the reminder of Yama. "Minato, you're sleeping on the couch for the rest of the month. And this." Kushina walked up to Minato and did two things. The first was another painful punch to the gut and the next was Kushina grabbing his shoulders when he was bent over and knees him in the crotch.

Minato's eyes widened with pain at the assault but couldn't do anything as Kushina at him crumble to the floor. He squeaked in pain while curling up into a ball on the floor.

Kushina glared down at Minato before stalking back to the studies door and before she walked out she turned to address Minato once more. "I won't let you throw Naruto to the wolves Minato. You may have given up on him, but I haven't. I won't let my baby be taken from me without putting up a fight!" With that Kushina flipped her hair over her shoulder and left the room slamming the door in the process.

Leaving Minato to his punishment.

*Break*

(AN: I didn't do the battle of Kannabi bridge because I really don't know what took place there other than the fact Minato slaughtered Teuchi non by the dozens. I have no knowledge over the specifics of this battle and can't think of anything good to make it AU. So I am forced to skip it until I can find info on it. Please note that this specific section will be updated later on.)

When the images on the mirror rippled and turned transparent once again the clearly shaken visage of Naruto was the first thing the elderly sage saw. Naruto's pupils were shrunken from fright and even up to his neck in quicksand you could see Naruto shake. He was also noticeably pale.

The sage sighed, he really didn't like showing these things to a child but as far as he could see there was no other way. "Naruto" he intoned trying to get the child's attention. But the lack of focus in the boy's eyes showed he wasn't heard.

"Naruto" he tried again his voice raising slightly. It did the trick because Naruto's once unfocused gaze zeroed in onto his own.

"W-why? W-why did you show me that!?" He shouted, his voice shaking with a mix of terror, revulsion, and confusion.

The sage closed his eyes. "I needed to show you what your father was capable of. You saw first hand why he is the only shinobi in this day and age that holds a flee on sight order in what you would call a 'bingo book'. Now you know, your father is capable of destroying armies in mere minutes. Now tell me, why would he need you and your sister as a way to prevent war when the entire continent fears him for what he can do?" Naruto's eyes looked left and right for a way to avoid the question but when he accidentally looked in the sage's eyes he couldn't tear his gaze away.

"Your father does not have the will to deny Konoha what it wants. He knew that Konoha wanted you and your sister, not as shinobi, but as weapons. He could have mentioned himself as a deterrent but he didn't. Do you know why young Jinchuriki?"

Naruto stayed silent. But his eyes beginning to water was enough for the sage to know he was getting through to the younger boy. He just needed to push a bit further. "This world is ruled by one thing child. Priorities, a priority is how much someone feels someone or something is important. As much as it pains me to say this, especially to a child, it must be said. Minato Namikaze holds the well-being of Konoha over his own family. He was asked to make his children weapons and he could not deny it. He would not go against what he felt as more important."

Naruto couldn't refute the old sage's claim. The term 'the proof is in the pudding' came to mind. Every time Naruto came up with an argument to the sages claims on his father the sage had a counter argument ready to be used.

Finally Naruto's head fell while his eyes closed as wet tears of sadness ran down his cheeks. He didn't even realize that the ground he was once stuck in had pushed him back out. So now he stood in front of the sage crying his heart out. "Why are you doing this? Why tell me tousan doesn't care about me? Why are you hurting me!?" He finally cried out with sorrow and anger.

The sage watched the boy let out his sorrow intently. He had finally broken through the wall of ignorance all children build from the day they are born. Now he just needed to make sure the pieces of what was left weren't put together improperly.

"To explain why I have done what I have I must first tell you of who I am. My name while I was still a denizen of the world was Hagoromo Otsutsuki, but the people of today refer to me as The Sage of The Six Paths. The first wielder of Chakra and the founder of Ninshū."

When the sage finished speaking he looked into the sorrowful blue eyes of the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki. "The beginning and middle of my story is unimportant to your situation. But to understand why I have done these hurtful things to you, you must understand the end of my story. You have listened and learnt the truth of your father for this long. Will you listen to me again before you curse me for everything I have done to you?"

Naruto wanted so much to deny the old man. To shout at him and curse him for hurting him. But something in the old man's gaze made him pause. He didn't know what it was. Perhaps it was the tired look in the elder's eyes, maybe it was the almost unnoticeable tone of begging in his voice. But whatever It was, it made him nod his head in agreeing to listen.

The first time since he met the elder, he saw him smile, as small as it was. A mere twitch of the lips in fact but it was still their. "Thank you young one" he intoned with gratefulness.

"It all started with myself, laying on my deathbed and my sons Indra and Asura…."

End

Well guys, this is it. The next chapter and the long awaited meeting between Naruto and Hagoromo. I put a lot of thought into this one.

If you love it I invite you to talk to me about it. If you hate it I implore you to tell me why and how I can make it better. I tried not to put too much unneeded information in the chapter but I felt all of it was important.

I am almost positive a lot of people will be flaming me for the 'bashing' of Minato. So I'll address that first.

Minato was praised as a genius by his peers, his home, and the shinobi that worked under him. It was one reason he was given the title of Hokage in my opinion. On and off the battlefield of the 3rd shinobi war he had to have made a lot of strategic decisions that greatly benefit Konoha. So how was it that his strategic mind wasn't able to predict how his own son would be treated after he died sealing the Kyuubi into Naruto? I don't think it would have mattered if people knew he was their son or not, because at the end of the day people do what makes themselves feel better. They don't care if what they do hurts other people, they don't care if it's a little boy or girl. They do it because they feel that they can and get away with it.

Minato had to have known what would happen. He fought in a war and saw the worst of what humanity had to offer. War brings out the worst in everyone no matter who they are.

Kushina doesn't seem like the strategic type. From what we can see Kushina is a person driven by emotion. Whether she was like that as a kid or if it's a coping mechanism she developed during the war was never made clear. But it doesn't really matter, what does matter is the fact that she is like that whenever we have seen her.

She's a loud, brash and very spontaneous person. She makes decisions on a dime if it involves someone she loves and cares for. With her tomboyish, take no shit attitude I can't see her NOT hurting someone if they tried to dictate the fate of someone close to her behind her back. Even more so when it's her own kids involved. So with her reputation for reacting violently to people making fun of her hair you can only imagine what she would do if she caught someone making fun of her kids.

So mixing the Minato who cares more about Konoha than his own family, and Kushina who is driven by emotion would be an explosion waiting to happen.

So it wasn't really bashing in my opinion. It was more like Kushina acting on her emotions. Hope what I said made sense.

Well now that that's out of the way I'd just like to say I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Now considering tomorrow is Christmas I won't be working on any stories. So I want to say this now and get it over with.

Have a Merry Christmas, happy hanukkah, etc. To all who celebrate tomorrow. See you guys and girls next chapter.

Remember to R&R