Straw Hat Ninja

Questions and Revelations

Kushina was in Naruto's hospital room, watching his body miraculously heal itself at a quick pace. Minato and Inoichi, Ino's father, had visited to work on the investigation and get Naruto's point of view of what had happened. After going inside Naruto's mind, Inoichi had revealed that Naruto never knew how or why Ino would have the memory tablet. Inoichi had also mentioned that the Straw Hat Pirates had attacked him, mistaking him for Ino, and scolded him for allowing his daughter to do such an act, even getting death threats from them.

Inoichi then said that the Straw Hat Pirates had shown him most of Naruto's memories, only for Minato and Kushina to be appalled by their own behavior back then. "Naruto," said Kushina as she carefully rubbed Naruto's hair, "you've been in so much pain and your father and I...no...Minato and I have never even given you the proper love that you needed. If we had, then maybe Kurama may still be alive, or maybe help you with your powers. Then maybe such a beast like the one from your fight may not have to exist."

Minato was sitting outside Inoichi's office as Inoichi was going through what information he had gathered Ino's mind after she had confessed that she was forced to destroy Naruto's memory tablet of the Nine-Tailed Fox by Uzume. At first, Minato didn't want to believe that Uzume would plot against her own brother, but if not for remembering how Uzume had attacked her brother because he had power that she didn't, Minato wanted Inoichi to not just through Ino's mind, but Uzume's as well. I should have been a father first, then Hokage, Minato scolded himself, knowing that something like this could have been avoided, Then maybe Naruto would not have been in this situation.

Inoichi also had to tell his daughter that she had been stripped of her rank and is to have her chakra sealed as well as pay for property damage. Still, seeing Ino in such a condition was bad enough for her father, but this act was downright shameful. "So what did you find out?" Minato asked with slight fear and guilt. Inoichi shook his head and said, "Ino was telling the truth; your daughter, Uzume had threatened her to use that memory tablet as a bargaining chip in order to learn about Naruto's power. If Ino had refused, Uzume would have convinced everyone in her personal fan club to stay away from Ino and treat her like an outcast." Minato was sickened by what he had heard; his own daughter using her influence to use her friends just to get to something. "ANBU!" shouted Minato as five masked ninjas appeared, "Bring Uzume Namikaze-Uzumaki here this minute. I don't care if she's eating, training, or even taking a shower, bring her here THIS INSTANT!"

The masked ninjas quickly vanished and returned just as instantly with Uzume. "Daddy, what's with the meaning of having ANBU take me from the house and bring me here?" asked Uzume as she tightened her grip on the towel. Minato pointed towards an empty chair and ordered her to sit, shocking not just Uzume, but the ANBU there as Minato had never 'ordered' his own daughter. "ANBU," said Minato as he continued to glare at his daughter, "go back to the estate and look for something on Naruto so that I can get to the bottom of this investigation, and take your time." The members of ANBU quickly left as Minato gave Inoichi a signal to go into Uzume's mind.

Five minutes had passed as the ANBU members returned with two small books. Minato decided to look in one of the books while Inoichi examined Uzume's mind. Minato quickly discovered that both books were Naruto's journals as both of them had his name in them. Minato read how both he and Kushina had not just neglected equal training for Naruto, but other things as well; the beatings Naruto had received, how Uzume use him for target practice for what both Minato and Kushina had taught her...even his own birthday. Minato then reached a page that had tears staining it and read the contents:

June 5

I couldn't believe it. Kurama's dead and it's all because he couldn't regain enough chakra for his soul to live, even with him absorbing some of mine. I remembered how he had looked; blood was dripping from his mouth, his eyes where glassy, and his fur was pale and I could only imagine that his skin was paler than a Hyuga's eyes. He told me that I was the only mortal he saw as his own kit, and truthfully, I have always seen him as a father, more so than my biological father, the Fourth Hokage.