Sword of Ninjutsu Love

Starlight fell, spilling across the land of the shinobi.

Silver moonlight streamed through the window, gently landing on Naruto as he lay in his small bed. The moonlight was so cold, quiet and still; yet also so gentle, silent and unnoticed.

Scattered across the room—on the desk, the chair back, a milk carton, the bowl rim, the walls, the floor, the lampshade, the bedsheets, the fridge, the discarded clothes—were crooked black curse marks, here and there.

Failed Flying Thunder God Technique.

Naruto lay on the small bed, hands behind his head, staring blankly at the ceiling.

What was that, really...

He recalled again the faint, unusual presence he'd sensed when he said goodbye to his mom, Kushina... He was sure of it—that presence didn't come from outside; it was inside him!

Kurama, didn't you notice anything?

Not at all... Are you just being paranoid? The Nine-Tails yawned. Now that there was no cage in Naruto's inner world, the great fox felt a lot more comfortable.

Naruto said nothing and turned his head.

Outside the window, the starry sky and the black night were suddenly crossed by a shooting star—

"Rasenshuriken!" Seizing the moment, Naruto sent a massive chakra shuriken blasting the Nine-Tails back. Chains of chakra burst from his back, yanking a huge mass of golden chakra straight out of the Nine-Tails' body—

That chakra was so pure, so beautiful, so powerful, brimming with the breath of life.

"Hmph..." The Nine-Tails let out a weak grunt. With the chakra suddenly torn away, its form shrank slightly.

Little Naruto grinned happily. "I win, Kurama!" He raised his hand, and from the enormous chakra mass floating in midair, a wisp drifted toward him... Boom—Naruto was bathed in a golden glow.

He looked at his hands, then at the mysterious black markings scattered across his body.

"Just like in the memory, huh..." Naruto muttered, then turned to the Nine-Tails with a sheepish grin. "Sorry about that, Kurama!" He spread his hand toward the golden chakra mass and swept his arm—the chakra flew straight back to the weakened Nine-Tails—

The Nine-Tails absorbed the chakra back into itself, its form swelling instantly. It even let out a burp...

"...Well, see you later." Naruto closed his eyes, and his consciousness returned to the space where his mother was.

"You did it, Naruto." Kushina looked at her son with relief.

Naruto scratched his head sheepishly. "It's all because Mom's amazing... and the future me who gave me this memory." His tone dipped almost imperceptibly. "I'm just... walking the path he already walked..."

Kushina couldn't help but pull Naruto into a hug. This sealing jutsu's chakra was nearly spent—the time she could see her son was down to just a little more... How she wished time could stop here, that they could be an ordinary family, doing chores, having arguments, sharing more happiness...

But, but...

Kushina quietly wiped the tears from the corner of her eyes, pushed Naruto back, and smiled. "There's not much time left. Let's use it, mother and son... to talk about the things a mother and son should talk about!" She unconsciously added a verbal tic as she spoke.

Naruto lowered his head, rubbed his eyes hard, then looked up cheerfully. "Okay!" He asked curiously, "But Mom, what are the things a mother and son should talk about?"

Kushina was stumped. She pinched her chin, thinking, then frowned. "Right... what are they..." The carefree former terror could never handle such a complicated question! Since she couldn't figure it out, she just stopped thinking!

She pulled her son to sit down. "Let's talk about how you've been all these years, okay? Have you been eating breakfast on time? Getting along with your friends at school? No drinking before you're eighteen, got it? Oh, and... is there a girl you like?"

Actually, Kushina's chakra had been inside Naruto all these years, so she'd picked up bits and pieces of this information. But what's a mother if not someone who nags about these things?

Naruto swung his legs, thinking as he spoke. "I've been doing okay... I eat breakfast on time... and yeah, I get along with my classmates at school, though some people are really hard to deal with! And after I started becoming the top student, it felt like there were fewer people I could talk to..."

He emphasized, as if asking for praise: "Top student, Mom! I'm first in my class at school! My grades in basic subjects aren't bad either!"

Kushina saw the "praise me" look on her son's face and, with a mix of exasperation and affection, ruffled his hair. "Alright, alright, that's amazing..."

Naruto grinned happily, wrinkling his nose. "Well, I am the Fourth Hokage's son, after all! Can't embarrass Dad!" He didn't even notice how long it had been since he'd acted this childish...

In front of a mother, even the strongest person becomes a child.

"And what about the three shinobi prohibitions? Stay away from them, got it? Absolutely!" Kushina warned her son.

Naruto scratched his head. "I won't drink, I stick to milk... I don't get gambling either... As for someone I like... Mom, you know there's a girl at school named Hinata Hyuga?"

"Hm? What about that girl from the Hyuga Clan?" Kushina leaned in with a gossipy grin. "Tell me, are you secretly crushing on her?"

Naruto blushed and protested, "It's not a crush! Mom, you know... in the memory I got, when 'I' was fighting an enemy who almost destroyed the whole village, Hinata risked her life to come save me... She even said she liked me the most..."

"But is that like the way she likes ramen?" Naruto scratched his cheek, totally confused. He seemed naturally dense about this kind of thing...

Kushina was almost furious at his cluelessness. How did she end up with such a blockheaded son? She tapped Naruto on the head and scolded, "You idiot! A girl does all that for you, and you think it's like liking ramen?"

There was a hint of helpless laughter in her voice. She never imagined that Minato, who was so smooth with her, and her own son would both be so dense about love.

"Heh... really..." Talking about this with his mom made Naruto a little shy.

The time left for mother and son was truly short.

So short that when Kushina's form began to fade, they both felt like it had only just begun! Kushina's heart raced—she still had so much to say, so many nagging words left, and she... wanted to hold her child one more time...

Tears streaked Naruto's face as his mother's chakra rushed toward him, dissolving into specks of starlight.

It was all like a beautiful dream.

He wiped away the tears, holding back the sting in his nose. Naruto knew he had to be strong again.

Just then, he glanced around in confusion. This was probably the deepest layer of his consciousness, but while he'd been talking with his mom, he'd vaguely sensed another presence...

The feeling was faint, like waking up from a dream and not being able to recall a single detail. Naruto tried hard to remember, but in the end, he couldn't be sure if it was just his imagination.

Early the next morning, Naruto slung his backpack over his shoulder and walked to the village gate, where Jiraiya was already waiting.