Kushina's Diary

Chapter 100

Haiku

"If we are to achieve this peace you speak of, Uzumaki, with whom am I supposed to negotiate? I do not consider your General's words to be trustworthy. Will Namikaze represent your side?"

Minato stepped forward and gave her shoulder a brief squeeze. Kushina smiled back and suddenly her knees went wobbly. Too many jutsus, too many wounds, too much blood, too much adrenalin, too much death, if she let go right now she might go into shock and collapse. Her Sensei had trained her well. By concentrating her will she could fight all day with trifling injuries like the cut running from shoulder to elbow and the burns on her hands and face. The scorches weren't serious and probably wouldn't scar even without treatment. Softly she repeated a training poem, a haiku from her school days: A ninja's body – Ruled by relentless will – Never surrenders.

Minato, her constant support since the day the walls of the Whirlpool Village were breached, answered for them, "You honor us, My Lord Hanzou, however I am just a lowly soldier in service to my people. Fortuitously, we have present among us the Hokage's councilor. Shimura Danzou-sama has full authority to negotiate treaties with foreign leaders."

"Acceptable. By all accounts he is a reputable man. It has been vitalizing to engage in honorable warfare with the Leaf. If only my own people were capable of such uprightness. As soon as we come to terms I must go deal with some traitors who dare to oppose me." The salamander spun around and within seconds they were out of sight. The remaining Rain ninjas disappeared almost as quickly as cheers erupted from Konoha shinobi.

Kushina began stumbling, but Minato swept her up in his arms. "Red, are you badly injured?"

"Nah, just thinking about what Hanzou said. Before he died, my brother taught me about the Rain Leader's concept of honor. He considers us honorable because we are strong ninja from other countries who face him in open combat. The ultimate in dishonorable activity would be any sign of disloyalty. To become a traitor is to be beneath consideration as a human being. To oppose his rule would bring extreme retribution, the execution of whole families, perhaps whole clans."

Minato shook his head as they approached where their summons were resting. "Disturbing, but the internal activities of other nations cannot be our concern as long as they do not threaten us or our allies... Friend Kumabushi, thank you. Are you badly burnt?"

"Heh heh, I know a pretty she-bear who will spread some salve on the burns. Daughter, this time we managed to defeat him. Your brother would have been proud."

"Bushi, it is having you as a friend that makes me proudest. Gamabunta, well done. I fear that the salamander has left you with a scar. Do you need treatment from a medic?"

"Not necessary. A little toad slime will heal it right up and all the ladies will want to hear about the epic battle where I got it."

Their goodbyes said, Minato carried her over the hill to camp. She knew she should ask to be put down so she could walk, but she was both too tired and to comfortable to think of standing up. They reached the field hospital which had been abandoned only an hour earlier. It was back in business with new patients being carried in from across the battlefield. The blond set her down on a blanket next to the cot where Rin was working feverishly on Kakashi. After a time she stood and stretched her back. "He'll be OK now, Sensei. His ribs are back in place and beginning to mend. The punctured lung is sealed and fluid-free. Otemba, let me look after that arm."

"I'm fine. The bleeding has almost stopped. Save your chakra for the badly injured."

"Nonsense. The cut is into the muscle. If I don't reconnect tissue and nerves immediately you may never regain full strength." As she finished, an orderly came over and handed her a clipboard. She frowned as she read it and passed it on to Minato. "The latest casualty figures, Captain."

His scowl deepened as he read, "Seventeen dead, all good shinobi. I trained most of the ANBU myself. A full 40 percent injured. If we had lost today, tomorrow could have been very bad indeed. Dispatch this report to Danzou-sama at once."

She leaned on his arm as he went from bed to bed in every hospital tent, speaking softly to each injured ninja, gently touching the hand and lending strength to those lying unconscious. As they passed, pained grimaces were replaced by smiles and hope. At the end of a row of cots, Hanami sat holding Kishun Haruno's hand with tears glistening in her eyes. Her pink hair hung down over her face as she whispered, "I'm sorry... sorry Minato-kun... We never meant..."

Kishun adjusted himself painfully, trying to set up in bed. "Captain, I know that it is unfair that I cannot say this to you face to face like a man. It is bad enough that I have done this to a friend, my commander, and a man I respect above all others. In a moment of weakness I have confessed my love to Hanami and she has accepted me. If you must blame someone, the responsibility is mine alone and not hers. This must come as a great surprise to you as no one knew of our feelings for each other. I never thought that I would..."

Minato sternly held up a hand. "I am astounded. I didn't figure you would gather enough courage to speak up until Christmas. Bekkou, what are the results?"

The injured ANBU limped over. "Weasel put his money on the Lieutenant confessing by next Saturday. That makes him our pool winner."

"But how... why? Minato-kun, I swear I never did anything..." Hanami stumbled to a close.

The blond put his arms around her. "Shh, I know you didn't, but anyone could see how you lit up when Kishun entered a room and how you worried until he returned unharmed from a mission. I told you when we started going out that all I care about is your happiness. Being with Kishun makes you happy so that is what I want for you."

She sniffled, "That is so unfair. A good man like you deserves happiness too."

Rin walked by carrying a stack of clipboards and elbowed him sharply in the back. "Either you see who is next to you or I write you off completely."

He smiled wickedly, "Rin-chan is sweet, but I'm afraid she's still too young for me."

Rin jumped up on her toes yelling in his face, "Baka! Not me! Turn around and take a good look at who is standing behind you!"

Minato slowly turned and all of his suave demeanor dropped away, looking like nothing so much as a clumsy little puppy. Blue eyes locked with green. He felt himself swirling down into deep emerald pools as she was bedazzled by sapphires. "Red, uh Otemba-chan, we, you know... Since I met you..."

His stammering allowed her to break his gaze. Suddenly shy, she looked away and noticed everyone staring at them. She mumbled, "Since when has my dating life become an object of general speculation? OK Flash, I will go out with you, but none of this whatever makes me happy. We are stuck together clear until we can't stand the sight of each other any longer." They clenched in a deep and passionate kiss.

Cheers and wolf whistles echoed from the patients and staff. Rin hustled them out the tent flaps, "This is a sick room, not a love hotel. Go find yourself a private tent."

June 30 – The spring rains have faded away and been replaced by summer heat even in these northern latitudes, Nii-chan. The war is by no means over, but a strange lull has settled over the Grass Country. When the Rain agreed to negotiations the Rock army was forced to withdraw or risk being outflanked. Refugees have begun to trickle back through the storms to looted shops and farms which will produce only what crops managed to self-seed themselves last fall. It is difficult to calculate whether it will be enough to stave off mass starvation.

My days are filled with guard duty or leisurely patrols, followed by dinner or long walks with Flash. Every evening we visit the hospital tents. Rin is a miracle worker. Only one more casualty has died since that first day. She never loses a patient that she reaches before major organ failure occurs.

Minato does not appear at all frustrated that our relationship has not progressed further than kissing and some light petting. Unlike others I have dated, he seems content to let things progress at my own speed. Restraint is sexy. He is so easy to talk to and can converse intelligently on any subject from classical music to swordsmithing. He won't tell me about Danzou-sama's negotiations, but he appears hopeful so I take it that the talks are going well. Tomorrow the two sides exchange ritual friendship gifts.

Even this close to the Summer Solstice, the sun had begun to set by the time Minato staggered into the recovery ward. He plopped down heavily on the corner of Kishun's cot and tilted, almost falling over on its occupant. Kushina shook him by the shoulders and yelled in his face, "You are sloshed and it's not even nighttime yet. Why would you do that?"

He held his hand over his eyes and groaned, "Uhhh, please not so loud. My head. After every gift was presented it required a toast. To not empty your glass or leave to use the bathroom would be a deadly insult to Lord Hanzou. I hate diplomacy. So glad we have people like Danzou-sama who are good at it and enjoy the unimportant trivialities. He was perfectly sober after sixteen Kanpai. No... seventeen. This extra present from Hanzou was specifically for Otemba."

Kakashi limped over and sniffed the large silk bag, "Smells organic. Maybe we should have a Hyuuga check it out."

Kushina disagreed, "No one, not even the Bloody Mist would booby-trap a diplomatic gift. Maybe Kakashi's smelling hospital disinfectant. It does slosh like liquid. It could be a magnum of expensive Rain sparkling wine."

Minato groaned again, "Gods and demons, kill me now. Rin, what do you have for headaches? You might as well cut the suspense and open it, Red."

She laughed at him as she unknotted the drawstring and let the silk drop down the glass sides of the bottle. She saw red hair, then the contents slowly rotated revealing blank eyes. Stunned, from somewhere deep in her chest came a rattling moan, "Shiguma-nii-cha-a-a-an."

Kishun whispered to himself, "Uzumaki Shiguma, that explains some mysteries about how such a brilliant kunoichi appears out of nowhere and immediately has the confidence of the highest ranks in the village."

Hanami pondered, "Even isolated in the Mist Village we heard tales of the decapitated prince and his sister, the missing princess Kushina."

The sound of her name seemed to break the genjutsu that had them all mesmerized. She screamed, bringing sentinels ten kilometers away to full alert. Minato folded her in his arms, shielding her from the horror while Kakashi retied the bag. Hanami and Rin led her away to a screened bed while glaring back at the boys as if this was somehow all their fault.

July 9 – Sometimes writing a diary seems insufficient, Nii-chan. To tell your story and Flash's and Kakashi's and all my friends' would require an epic poem, if I had the talent. Unfortunately most days my own life seems more like a dirty limerick. I have forgiven Hanzou of the Rain for your death and for his "gift". I now realize that it was his way of saying that I had restored my family honor, as much of an apology as he is likely to ever give anyone. Still, tomorrow is my seventeenth birthday and just once I wish for it to turn out as I dream, a Love Haiku.

"Are you sure you don't want me to come along? I can keep up." Kakashi had retired his crutch, but he still limped badly.

Rin yelled down at him from the seat of the ambulance wagon, "Baka, you aren't going anywhere until I finish your healing. Besides can't you tell they want to be alone for awhile?"

"Go easy on him, Rin-chan," Kushina advised. "He knows he's being abandoned to the counselors' mercy. They want victory speeches and even a parade and if Flash and I disappear, he and Kishun will be left to bear the brunt of it." She said goodbye to all her friends while Minato took the time to speak to each of the injured warriors, assuring them that in two days time they would be back in Konoha and Tsunade's healing care. She gently patted the silk bag in the rear of a wagon and touched her forehead to it, "Forgive me big brother, but I cannot ask anyone to risk their lives to take you home. As soon as we return from a little time getting to know each other better, we will see that you are properly laid to rest among the Leaf heroes. I know you will like these people. I do."

Kushina and Minato stood watching the last wagon disappear around a bend into the trees, then began walking hand in hand down a small stream. As they strolled along chatting, the stream joined another and soon became a medium size creek. By the time the sun began to lower in the sky they were in the center of a wide river. The channel began to narrow as the water sped up and churned. The whole scene reminded her of the time she had to pull his unconscious body out of a frozen river and they laughed out loud at how very close they had both come to freezing to death in the icy mountains. When the current became too strong they walked along the bank until coming to the edge of a granite cliff.

The mist from the waterfall formed a rainbow framing an untouched valley shining golden in the dappled light of the setting sun. She could have stood transfixed until the last of the magical light faded away, but they both knew it was better to make their way down the precipice before it became completely dark. They soon discovered the only evidence that people had ever previously stumbled upon this unspoiled vale. Situated upon a rise covered with lush grass was a rock lined fire pit. The ready-made campsite was located to maximize the scenic view of the falls while not being constantly drenched by the mist. In the short time it took to start their cooking fire and lay their blankets beneath the stars, the silvery full moon rose above the trees beyond the falls.

After dinner they sat shoulder to shoulder looking at the constellations. As their conversation petered out, their eyes locked and he bent over to kiss her. Close enough to smell her sweet breath... "No."

This was a situation nearly unique in Minato's experience. From the age of eleven when he won the Chunin Exams, girls had been interested in him. By thirteen they began propositioning him and by fifteen he was making the most of nearly every opportunity. Womankind was his smorgasbord and he sampled ever dish before him, young and old, all shapes and sizes, two or three at once. When he discovered to his chagrin that he had a threesome with a mother and daughter in the same week he been with the grandma, he began to question his actions. It was Pervy Sage, of all people, who finally sat him down and made him take a close look at his life and his morals. He realized he had no friends, neither male nor female.

He reestablished contacts with classmates and teammates determined to be the best friend possible to each of them and make amends for his selfishness. He was resolute in never again pressuring a woman for her favors and soon picked out a steady girlfriend, determined to never cheat on her. When inevitably she found herself unable to keep up with his energy or mentality he made sure they parted amicably as friends. In the intervening years, the closest he had come to finding a mate who could keep pace with him was Tsume Inuzuka, but in the end they were just too different people.

Then he made a single mistake and as a result of one drunken New Years he had a child with a girl who could not deal with the dark side of the ninja universe. After that he had been even more careful to only date those he knew well and was certain could handle the death and destruction which was part of his life. And then there was this girl. She had fascinated him since he first saw her almost four years before, a tiny scrap of a tomboy desperately leading grown men in a losing battle against a giant summons.

After that she was always around: teaching genin and schooling generals who had been fighting since before she was born about strategy, helping him perfect jutsus as often as he taught her and saving his life as many times as he protected hers. Then there were the undercover assignments, first as a homeless waif to even pretending to be his wife. Soon he discovered she was capable of standing beside him and never in any task be overshadowed by his natural abilities. He began to think of her in an untoward way, but she was too young and his subordinate and it wouldn't be proper. But now she was a jonin and he had given in to his desire and curiosity, but she had said No. He looked at her quizzically, trying to solve the puzzle that was Kushina.

"Flash, I'm not leading you on or being a tease, really. It's just, my... My first time was after that mission in the ice and I was lonely and the tent was freezing and we just wanted to stay warm in the sleeping bag and I cried and it was kind of a disaster. The only good thing was I truly liked him, but it didn't end well for us. What I'm saying is I don't want sex. I want romance like I dreamed of as a little girl. I want to be wooed."

"Wooed?"

"Courted with flowers and poetry and candy and being serenaded."

"O-Ka-a-ay, candy, got it." He dug into his pack and handed her a wrapper.

"Ration bar?" She tore it open and bit into it. "Jerked water buffalo, dried grain cemented together with vitamin powder, all coated with a nondescript chocolate heavily mixed with wax to keep it waterproof and unmelted. All the nutrients necessary to keep a ninja fighting for eight hours. I'm getting a vision of a blond man sleeping alone far from the fire. What about flowers?"

"You don't make things easy. Finding summer flowers under the trees at night would be almost impossible. Fortunately, Summoning Jutsu. Otemba-chan, meet Gamahanaya, the florist frog." He was bright red with curling patterned green stripes and about the size and shape of a beachball. He hopped over to Kushina and she took a dusky stem from his mouth.

"Ouch! It has thorns."

"Brrup, Black Rose."

By firelight the blossoms were so dark as to be almost invisible. "Thank you Gamahanaya. I've got a feeling that Flash is going to need your services quite often. I thought black roses were a myth, but don't they signify death or revenge?"

Minato replied quickly, "They can also stand for a rare and profound love."

"Good save." She leaned over and gave him a kiss.

"Actually it's a matter of luck. Each day he will deliver a different flower, no matter whether it is in season or not, but it could be the rarest herb or a dandelion. Once he brought a girl a black orchid. Absolutely beautiful, but it smelled like a dead horse that had been out in the sun for a week. Now music." He pulled out a scroll and summoned his 13-string koto which he laid across his lap and began tuning. She snuggled close to him invitingly, "Don't forget the love sonnets. How do I love thee? - Let me count the ways. Only it needs to be in your own words, from the heart."

"Give me a minute to think... OK... How about: There was a young gal from the Leaf - Who constantly causes me grief. - But I love when that Miss - Gives me a kiss, - 'Cause her body is be-yond belief." He leaned in for a smooch, but she turned away.

"With a universe of potential poetic forms, you try to seduce me with an off-color limerick?"

He strummed across the strings and began playing. "It's not so easy. Can you do better?"

"Certainly: Spiky golden hair, - Ninja of great bravery - Flees father of twins."

"No fair. I told you that was just a misunderstanding. We weren't doing anything wrong, but the farmer was completely unreasonable. Haiku hunh? I can do that too... Kunoichi in mask, - feels aggrieved. Water dragon, - Katana of death."

"Really, that's how you think about me? Perhaps you would like me better this way." She rose and began moving with the music. "That is a lovely tune."

"It's a song of springtime called Sakura, Sakura and was already ancient before the demons came. It was also Hanami's favorite."

"Here's another seduction tip. Don't bring up old lovers, even if she is a friend." She shed her shoes, flak vest and uniform pants so she could begin to do flips unencumbered. "Try expressing your true feelings like this: Ultimate ninja, - enemies order'd to flee, - He captures my heart." She began swirling her blouse like a veil, spinning around, granting fleeting glimpses of bare skin. The shirt drifted down across his face as she ran off toward the waterfall, shedding her underclothes as she fled. He followed to the river's edge, playing one-handed.

She danced and spun in the spray from the waterfall. He sat enchanted. The shimmering moonlight backlit her form, showing her in a ghostly three-quarter silhouette as she leaped ever higher. Five water pillars rose around her, framing her like the supports of some ancient temple protecting a holy priestess performing for the gods. Any gods in attendance would have been enraptured.

A mighty column rose beneath her, pushing her form higher than the cliffs and lowering the river level by half a meter. She stood next to the full moon, but in his eyesight it was her flaming chakra which shone the brightest. He tried to stand, only to find the long forgotten koto still in his lap. He laid it aside and covered it with his own clothes and her panties. He stepped out onto the river, but to his horror in that instant the central column collapsed sending her careening toward the jagged rocks below. At the last moment she flipped into an elegant swan dive landing in a mound of water. He never saw where she resurfaced because he had to jump over a giant wave caused by the tumbling water. He looked back, certain his clothing had been washed away, but the tsunami never left the banks of the river. Once again he marveled over her absolute control of her element.

Surrounded by multi-colored moonbows she did a backflip. The image froze in his brain of geometrical perfection, the precise backward bending arc of her body only enhanced by the protrusions of her conical breasts. A double cartwheel through the air left him staggered and breathless. Her arms were spread wide, her legs held in a split and her long hair streaming behind like the tail of a comet. He paused next to the bubble inside which she pirouetted like a ballerina in a snow globe, finally overcoming his desire enough to speak reverently, "Shimmering fountains - surrounding agile nymph dancing - beauty incarnate." Somehow his quiet words reverberated in her heart above the roar of the falls.

He walked through the wall of the globe, becoming soaked, and swept his dancing watersprite up in his arms and tasted her sweet lips. Tongues playfully played tag, but his other senses were too alive to only concentrate in one place. There was also the luscious slick feel of her perfect skin against his arms and chest, the glistening of droplets running down her silky hair in the moonlight, her musky womanly scent no amount of river could mask, and the salty taste of her neck, half pure river water, half sweat from her exertions.

The sphere opened up and he carried her back towards shore, whispering in his fairy queen's ear, "Maiden in moonlight - With identity hidden, - This beauty is mine."

Kushina was in her favorite place in all the world, sheltered within Minato's arms. For the last four years, whenever she was in pain or despair, he had been there to hold her and make her feel safe. In all the ninja world she had found the one equal to her brother. He had gently reminded her of her face mask. Well that was no more. From this day forward they would confront the world together, no longer hiding. She snuggled closer to his muscled chest and kissed him deeply again. Another thing she loved about him, there was no adolescent groping. Oh that was to come. Just as she intended to explore every hair on his body, she would open herself unreservedly to his curiosity and pleasure. All of her considerable mind and talents would focus on keeping this divinity among men satisfied and in love. She answered huskily, "Konoha's kage, - This Leaf Village ninja will - To him surrender."

Sometime before reaching the shore she had stripped all the liquid from their hair and naked skin, leaving the warm summer night breeze to caress their bodies. He laid her down on a blanket and nuzzled the tiny nipples on her perfect breasts. Her skin was flawless if you overlooked the ugly brown scar on her right arm. With proper treatment it would soon fade away to match the tracery of thin white lines which remained from all her previous wounds. Each one made him love her more. They were testament that she was a real working ninja, his equal in all the ways which really counted. His fingertip traced a spiral on her stomach, evidence of an encounter with a tailed beast, and questioned what it might mean for their future, then quickly returned to the present and the joyous task before him. Her skin was red hot as his fingers lightly explored the path from navel to thigh.

Even though his rock hard body was ready to explode, first he had one last task before him. He couldn't let Red have the last verse in their poetry contest. Close enough that she felt the vibration of his recitation upon her own lips, "Perfect pink petals - Impaled by a steel sword; - Supreme ecstasy."

Kushina could only moan in agreement.

… … The End … ...

Afterword

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year!

Yes Dear Readers, except for adding a character list, that brings to a close Kushina's Diary. Arigatou to all who have stuck by me for all 100 chapters, but the size of the epic was getting unwieldy. Now here is the secret: Anyone who cannot get by without discovering what happens when Kushina wakes up next to Minato or whether the story inspires Naruto and Hinata to move their relationship forward under the stern white eyes of the Hyuuga Clan, can read the sequel, Kushina and Minato - a Love Story. (http:/www .fanfiction. net/s/6598772/1/Kushina_and_Minato_A_Love_Story) (Remove spaces)

Once again, thank you for reading and please take the time to hit the review button to tell me how I have done.

Your humble diarist, Starshipw