June 3, 1 bNb
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Izuma was in an excellent mood.
Outwardly, of course, his facade was calm as ever. Internally, however, he was simmering with satisfaction.
I just saved the world, he thought. It came at the cost of child abuse, but sometimes such actions were necessary.
He resisted the urge to whistle a happy tune, casting a guilty glance ahead of him, where Minato's three students walked in silence.
Kakashi moved stiffly, even though Rin had healed his leg. Although Izuma supposed the blame for Kakashi's current battered form could be attributed to his pellets of earth and the pain that accompanied them.
And he wasn't as heartless as the old geezer, who had fired them at him before for "training" purposes, and then claimed he was overreacting when he rolled around in pain. As such, today, Izuma had to reluctantly impart this lesson upon his mentee, who hated him.
That might've been a lie. He took a great deal of pleasure in watching Kakashi squirm in terror just as he had. He blamed the Uchiha genes; he definitely wasn't the type to enjoy watching others suffer the same fate as him. Not at all.
As for the reason Kakashi disliked him, he truly couldn't fathom.
Did he beat him senseless in sparring matches? Maybe, but that was for his sake, to get stronger and all that.
Did he steal his future signature jutsu and improve it, just to use it against him? Potentially. But again, that didn't really count, because he was showing Kakashi how great the jutsu they made together could be.
Did he inherit his father's title and then proceed to be the standard against which Kakashi was measured? Mayhaps. But that was just the village trying to create a friendly rivalry and help them all get stronger.
So, no, Izuma truly could not wrap his head around why Kakashi didn't like him.
Everything he did was to help Kakashi see Mt. Tai!
In hindsight, jokes aside, Izuma was genuinely surprised that Kakashi had not tried to murder him as of yet.
Wait. That wasn't true at all!
Kakashi had just tried to use the Chidori on him, that was practically an assassination attempt! He conveniently chose to ignore his own use of draconic nukes.
Izuma shook his head, ridding himself of his stray thoughts, and let his gaze fall to the next member of team Minato.
Obito had his hands shoved into his pockets, shoulders hunched, and his gaze was locked stubbornly at the ground.
Izuma bit back a sigh. He knew Obito's mood was his fault, but all jokes aside, Obito and Kakashi had been in desperate need of correction.
Despite the many changes he had made in this world, one of the things he failed to change in any regard was Kakashi and Obito's ability to see eye-to-eye. Which was to say, their complete inability.
The two boys were like water and oil in that regard. He dearly hoped Minato could change their dynamic without needing Rin to get captured and nearly killed.
Yet, for as optimistic as Izuma was, even he thought Minato's future was perilous when it came to those two.
He then let his eyes slide over to the last member of the current team 7, and the one he felt the most guilty toward.
Rin walked between Obito and Kakashi, her stare fixed firmly forward. Given her one-word response to whatever question Obito had just asked, she was just as dispirited with her performance as the rest of her team.
Izuma didn't bother holding in his sigh this time—he owed an apology to Rin at the very least. Drawing blood was an unnecessary action, and part of him knew it too, but at the moment, he was far too overcome with anger and fear.
The anger was directed mostly at himself, if he was being honest. He had seen time and time again that, irrespective of his presence, people's personalities wouldn't change without the occurrence of drastic events.
Yet, a small part of him had hoped that, at least in battle, especially one that had so much riding on it, the boys wouldn't argue. Being proved wrong brought anger at his own powerlessness and inability to change such an important future.
Fear, well, that was more of a complicated mess. He was partly fearful of losing the people close to him, such as one hopeless romantic named Obito Uchiha.
Izuma's own current sentiment surprised himself, but not much. When he had still been young—or, younger, he supposed, he wasn't quite Hiruzen's age to be making such remarks—and seen Obito for the first time, he had considered killing him.
No Obito meant no Kamui, which meant no nine-tails attack. That all translated into no near end of the world experience. That thought had promptly been changed after spending some time with Obito.
He was no Danzo Shimura, who had been sinning for decades at this point. Obito was just a young child who had yet to do wrong, and Izuma could not kill an innocent child.
The ethics of preemptive action were something that had been debated for a great deal of time in his last world, and he supposed, his answer to the question, or rather, the paradox that was commonly associated with it, was given.
So he made do with what his morals would allow. Perhaps killing Obito would have removed the dilemma altogether, but, oh well. He had made peace with that possibility long ago, and hadn't he changed canon just now?
He had saved Obito, and by extension all his victims, without having to kill him.
He slowed his pace slightly until he fell in step with Minato, who had naturally drifted back, lost in thought.
The two of them trailed the trio in front of them by a few meters.
"I should apologize."
Minato glanced at him, brows lifting slightly. "For?"
"For overstepping," he said plainly. "They're your students, and I practically forced my own wishes onto them. From the beginning, I think you and I both knew, there was no shot of them retrieving any of the bells, let alone all three."
Minato considered that for a second before letting out a hum of agreement. "You're not wrong."
Izuma considered his justification. He didn't truly need any; he had saved Minato's team and proven their faults, and the man beside him saw that. However, Minato wasn't just someone whom Izuma looked up to, but also, despite a stark age difference, one of his closest friends.
In fact, as sad as it was, he only had a few friends his own age, and even then, that may have been overstating it. A few, unfortunately, meant just two. And those were his old squadmates, at that.
The reasoning was a bit depressing, in all honesty. Everyone his age were more colleagues than friends. Heck, even those older than him. Aside from the oddity who was Minato, there was a gap in generation, and their interests didn't really align.
As for those who were his age, well, they were all his subordinates.
So, Izuma cherished the relationships he had; they weren't easy to come by after all.
"I know how dangerous this mission is," he continued after a long pause. "And after spending time with them, I don't want any fate that could have been prevented to befall them," he shook his head.
"I know I was overly adamant and didn't go about it in the best way, but this was the only method I saw that would help them realize their flaws."
Especially Obito, he added silently.
Minato smiled faintly. "I had my doubts too," he admitted.
"But I still thought their main flaw lay in how prepared they were, rather than their inability to put aside differences in the field. Before, on the warfronts they had been deployed to, they never argued during battle. But, you're right, with stakes like these, if there's a flaw while their training, then it's best they sit the mission out."
Izuma's gaze landed on the trio in front of him again, as he nodded. "All three of them are quite exceptional for their age, even Obito. But, together…" he shook his head, not needing any words to convey his thoughts.
Minato sighed, his shoulders slumping slightly. "Yeah. I can't believe how blind I was to it."
Izuma didn't blame Minato. He was the village's most important piece at the moment, and he had genuinely been stretched thin during the war.
Hey, Minato, I need you to go clean up the mess at this front.
Minato, rescue mission time.
Minato, you're being deployed there.
And so on it went. The blond-haired Hokage-to-be didn't have a moment's rest. As such, it was no surprise that he wasn't able to keep the best eye on his team.
It was more of the village's fault, if anything. But, in their defense, a ninja who could teleport long distances in a flash wasn't exactly common, so, of course, they made full use of him.
Such was war.
After a beat of silence, he spoke again, "Do you want support from the Uchiha clan for the mission? Or just a few of the shinobi already under my command?"
Minato fell silent, likely weighing the two options, and, to Izuma's slight surprise, it wasn't long before he spoke again.
"I'll take the Uchihas, if possible," he said at last. "You need as many capable shinobi as you can get."
"Me? Worry about yourself, old man," he challenged with a laugh.
Minato chuckled. "I have Flying Thunder God," he replied, as if that alone made the need to fret for the safety of oneself obsolete.
Izuma was speechless. But, on second thought, he wasn't wrong.
"Way to rub it in," he muttered, suddenly feeling very jealous of the man beside him.
Minato burst into laughter, making no effort to hide his amusement.
"You should try to learn it again. Who knows, maybe second-time is the charm?"
"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up. You just want to see me fail again," Izuma's words only evoked even more laughter from the blond.
He scowled. "If you keep laughing…I'm going to snitch to Kushina. I'll tell her you're making fun of her dear godson."
Minato's laughter cut off immediately.
He cleared his throat once, straightened his posture, and very deliberately redirected his gaze to the path ahead.
"…There's no need for threats," Minato said mildly.
Izuma couldn't help but laugh.
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Soon, Minato's home came into view, and a faint smell of food wafted through the open window into the afternoon air.
Their quintet had been fractured into the duo of Minato and him.
Kakashi had wordlessly peeled off first, moving toward his destination with a lazy wave toward them.
Minato seemed to consider calling for him, but had thought better of it and relented.
Obito followed a moment later with forced cheer.
His farewell was just as loud as normal, but the three of them who had remained at the time—Minato, Rin, and he—could all see through it.
His exuberance was faked, so they didn't worry about him. In matters like this, Obito was quite sensible; in matters of the heart, however, the less said the better.
Rin remained the longest, but Izuma was sure that was moreso because she was so lost in her own thoughts and was just mechanically trudging along, rather than her truly wishing to stay behind.
He was proven right moments later when she murmured a goodbye and quietly excused herself.
Not a single one of them mentioned lunch.
It was sad. They had failed because they were fractured and proved unable to agree with one another, and even now, after the fact, they chose to process it alone.
Yet, Izuma didn't blame them. Matters such as this took time, and with the lot of them off this upcoming mission, time was perhaps the only thing they had in spades.
As Minato slid open the door, Izuma found himself thinking—somewhat randomly—that he should've brought Itachi along tonight. Kushina's energy could practically revive the dead, and if anyone would have been able to help an emo child, it was her.
But then again, his thoughts had been… occupied.
Saving the world tended to do that.
They stepped inside.
"I'm home," Minato called out.
"In the kitchen!" Kushina's voice rang back immediately, bright and lively as ever.
They found her standing over the stove, red hair tied back, sleeves rolled up, wooden spoon in hand.
She turned toward them with a beaming smile that dimmed considerably as she glanced around in confusion.
"…Where are the kids?"
Minato rubbed the back of his neck. "Ah. About that—"
Izuma stiffened, shooting a pleading look toward Minato.
Surely he wouldn't sell him out, right?
"They won't be joining us tonight. They had a… difficult training session," Minato said carefully. "In which, Izuma helped me see some things I missed."
Izuma cursed inwardly.
Minato, you bastard. Of all the times to suddenly develop tact…
Kushina's gaze slid from Minato to him.
"…Izuma," she said pleasantly.
Minato took one more, very subtle step back.
Traitor.
He cleared his throat. "It was a necessary test."
Her eye seemed to twitch.
"For them to live, I mean," he added hurriedly. "They can't make a single mistake on the mission they're going to go on, lest we have to construct funeral pyres for them. They're strong independently, but they splinter under pressure. Kakashi refuses to listen to any opinion that isn't his. Obito is…well, Obito, and Rin is stuck trying to hold them together."
"So, what I did was very necessary. Unless you want them to, you know…" he made a slicing motion across his throat.
Minato nodded along, wisely staying silent.
Kushina studied him a moment longer before she sighed.
"…You really are awful at delivery," she said.
Izuma winced, but kept his mouth shut.
If he talked back, then he'd hear it from Kushina. Which meant, once he went home, he'd hear it from Mikoto. That's why he had to just sit back and accept his scoldings. After all, being scolded once wasn't all too bad, but twice was irritating.
"But, thank you. Minato and I tried to convince them to sit this one out, but they're all pretty stubborn. But now, knowing they'll be safe in the village, I can rest easy. Thank you, Izuma."
"…You're welcome," he said finally, looking away as he scratched his neck.
"Now, enough of that. Go wash up, you're filthy and dirtying my kitchen. Shoo," Kushina spoke, waving her spoon as she practically herded him away.
He looked back at her with a betrayed look, to which she simply raised a brow, as if daring him to challenge her authority.
He sighed and walked toward the washroom with slumped shoulders. Why did his adopted mother have to be best friends with her?
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Once he finished washing up, Izuma couldn't resist patting his face whilst checking himself out in the mirror.
You did good today, Izuma. You did good.
You saved Obito, which means you saved Minato and Kushina. And they don't even know it.
Next on the list is Itachi Uchiha.
He couldn't help but sigh.
There truly was no rest for the babysitter of the Uchiha clan.
He leaned in closer to the mirror, examining his hairline. He slowly turned his head to the left, then the right. Only once he was sure he looked clean did he leave.
If his hair had been damaged, it would have been a damn shame. He had someone to impress, after all.
Just because it was wartime didn't mean he couldn't try to pull.
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When he walked into the dining room, Minato and Kushina had already set out three plates and filled them each with food. Although they hadn't begun eating without him.
A part of him felt touched at the gesture. He vowed to fight whoever dared to badmouth Minato and Kushina in the future.
"What're you two lovebirds talking about?" he asked, taking his seat at the table.
"I was just telling Kushina about how far you've come."
Upon seeing his confused expression, Minato elaborated.
"I was telling her about how you finished the Chidori," he continued. "And, I was getting to how you even managed to improve it."
Kushina's eyebrows shot up. "You what? Even Kakashi hasn't managed that yet."
Izuma scratched his cheek, internally wincing. It seemed Kakashi couldn't catch a break. "I mean, we came up with it together. He just hasn't mastered it yet because he doesn't have the Sharingan."
Usually, he would have shamelessly accepted the praise. But a part of him still felt quite bad for the son of the White Fang.
And here he was being so nice to someone who had tried to kill him just hours ago.
She stared at him with her head tilted slightly. Her eyes were wide, as if she had just learned of some great secret.
"…No wonder," she muttered.
Izuma frowned. "No wonder what?"
She waved a hand dismissively. "No wonder you're so terrible at fuinjutsu. All your talent went straight into ninjutsu."
Izuma stared at her in disbelief and speechlessness.
Beside him, Minato began to laugh unabashedly.
Izuma rounded his eyes immediately on Minato.
He couldn't snark at Kushina out of fear of her tattling to his mother, at which point he'd be in for a scolding from both of them together, but Minato was fair game.
"Yeah, keep laughing. What was that shit called again?" he scratched his chin, faking deep thought. "Ah, right. 'Halo Frozen Dessert Hair Whorl Jiraiya Twin Formula Sphere'. Genuinely, what the fuck does that mean, Kobe Braynt?"
Minato ignored the name of the eighth-best NBA player—clearly, he didn't know ball—and only snickered even louder.
Once Minato finally managed to rein in his laughter, he mock wiped at the corner of his eye as he leaned back in his chair.
"Oh, you don't get to make fun of my jutsu names," he said lightly, "until you actually master them."
Minato then reached over and patted his shoulder consolingly.
"But don't worry," Minato added. "I'm sure you'll get there someday. You are very talented."
Izuma felt his hand twitch in equal parts irritation and anticipation.
"…Oh yeah?" Izuma said pleasantly, failing to hide his grin.
Minato blinked. "Hm?"
He lifted an open right palm.
Soon, the air began to buzz as chakra surged in a spiral, layers folding atop one another in perfect rotation, condensing into a tight, humming sphere of pure force. The air warped subtly around it, wind tugging at Izuma's sleeve as the chakra stabilized into a flawless, rotating mass.
A Rasengan.
Or as Minato called it: Halo Frozen Dessert Hair Whorl Jiraiya Twin Formula Sphere.
Minato stared at him.
Kushina stared at him.
Izuma basked in it.
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A/N:
3.4k words of slice of life, holy shit. To be honest, this chapter had a lot of stuff that was meant to be added, like Itachi interactions, but was cut out because it was 4 AM, lol. Hopefully, my insomnia didn't lead to a dip in writing quality.
Also, as for the interaction between Izuma and Minato, they're quite good friends, so their interaction is far more jovial.
Now onto the important bits. Izuma refers to himself as Kushina's godson because Mikoto and her are best friends, and he's practically her adopted son. In a roundabout way, it would make Minato, Izuma's godfather.
Nepotism remains undefeated.
As for the Flying Thunder God, Izuma is well-connected enough and meritorious enough to have been given the opportunity by Hiruzen, and a reluctant Danzo and the elder council. However, it should be pretty obvious he failed to learn it.
Izuma's only cheat in this world is being born an Uchiha, and I think it's not really logical for him to get access to Flying Thunder God. Maybe he'll learn it later, but more than likely not.
Anyway, that's about it for this chapter. Power stones and comments would be greatly appreciated.
Discord link: https://discord.gg/s2DVMbqSf4