A/N: A look into Kushina's tumultuous mind. And then...

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As they begin to spar in earnest, Kushina Uzumaki is woefully distracted. Despite telling Naruto to come at her with everything he has, she’s certainly not capable of doing the same. Not right now. Perhaps not ever when it comes to him.

… She wishes she could blame it on Kurama. She wishes she could say it was all that bitch of a fox’s fault. But Kushina was self-aware enough to know that wasn’t at all true. Kurama was just coaxing out what was already there. The simple truth of the matter was that Kushina Uzumaki was a lecherous pervert. There was no denying the lust she felt for Naruto. It was merely amplified by Kurama’s… antics.

The worst part was, Kurama hadn’t been lying earlier, when she’d told Naruto that she thought he’d broken Kushina. While Kushina’s irritation and concern WERE real, her first impulse upon seeing ten of her new apprentice standing before her had been… debauched. For a split second in her mind’s eye, she’d been taken back to some of the fun she and Minato had gotten up to back in the day.

However, even Minato had had limits. He couldn’t manage more than two copies if he wanted them to stick around long enough for that sort of vigorous action. Naruto on the other hand… if he could summon a thousand clones without breaking a sweat, then he could almost certainly summon half a dozen who were strong enough to…

No, she couldn’t let herself think about that sort of thing. That was what Kurama wanted, damn it! And it didn’t matter if it was what Kushina wanted as well, if the demon fox wanted it, then it couldn’t be good… right? The truth was-

Kushina blinks as she suddenly finds herself on her back between one moment and the next. She’d let herself get so distracted that Naruto… had managed to take her down. Looming over her, a concerned look on his face, the blond shinobi holds out a hand to help her up.

“Err… Sensei? You okay?”

Kushina takes the offered hand and lets Naruto lift her to her feet, blushing slightly as she feels his physical strength through the momentary contact. She could hardly believe it. It was one thing for Naruto to have gone behind her back, learning to modify his own seal. But to learn that Kurama had been training him as well…

Sure, Kushina had been distracted, but there was no way that a Genin should have been able to get the drop on her, not even while her attention was split. Even a Genin with all the extra years of Academy Tutelage under her new system shouldn’t have been able to catch her off guard. The only explanation was that Kurama hadn’t just taught Naruto the Shadow Clone Technique, she’d also been training him to fight as well.

“I’m fine Naruto. Let’s go again.”

Naruto still looks concerned, but nevertheless nods as the two of them square off once more. This time around, Kushina puts more of her focus on the actual fight, rather than letting herself get distracted. Or at least, that’s how she starts out anyways. As the two of them exchange lightning fast blows, Kushina’s lips grow thin and she finds herself almost grimacing as stray thoughts enter her mind.

… Tch, was it wrong for Kushina to say she was jealous? And not just jealous of Kurama, either. No… she was a little jealous of Naruto as well. Because before the Nine-Tailed Fox was in Naruto’s belly, it had been in hers. Before Naruto was the Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi, Kushina had had the role first. And yet… and yet, Kurama had never once been anything but an adversary, as far as Kushina was concerned.

She still remembered, so long ago, what Mito Uzumaki had told her regarding the Kyuubi. She’d advised Kushina that the only way to tame the Nine-Tails and overcome its hatred… was love. Kushina had always interpreted that as her needing to find something or someone to love so much that it kept the Kyuubi’s hatred at bay. And even now, she was pretty sure that was exactly what Mito had meant too.

Well, Kushina had certainly loved. She’d loved Minato Namikaze from the moment that he’d rescued her from those Kumo ninja and complimented her red hair. She’d come to love Konoha as much as both Mito and Minato did as well, and she’d fought for the Hidden Leaf Village with everything she’d had. She’d even accomplished her rather silly childhood goal of becoming Hokage, and she’d done everything in her power to lead this village well for the last decade and a half.

But… the cost of becoming Hokage was her beloved Minato. Kushina had always privately been a little thankful that she’d lost the Kyuubi on the same night that she’d lost Minato. In the days following his death, latching onto Naruto had mostly worked for keeping her sane, but if she’d still had the Kyuubi messing with her mind, she’s not sure she could have resisted its malevolent hatred.

Now however, as she exchanges pointers with Naruto and they fight back and forth across the private training field located within the Uzumaki Clan Compound, Kushina wonders if perhaps there had always been another way. Naruto’s way. Was it possible that the archaic seal that she and Mito had used, along with Kushina’s signature Chakra Chains, which she’d constantly used to keep the fox under control in her mind-scape, had both proven detrimental to ever forging a deeper bond with the Tailed Beast?

Kushina had never stopped to think about where the fox’s hatred stemmed from before. You didn’t hate as powerfully and as strongly as the Nine Tails without having what you considered a good reason, at the very least. And yet… Kushina hadn’t ever asked. She’d just kept the fox bound and all but enslaved and hadn’t even considered that there might be a better way until… until Naruto proved there was one.

She’s doing better this time. Actually showcasing the skills of a true Hokage, rather than letting herself get laid out flat on her back by her Genin Apprentice. Sure, she’s still incredibly distracted, but not so much so that Naruto can get the drop on her, thankfully. That said… the two of them are more evenly matched than Kushina would have guessed.

Just how strong is her new apprentice? How much training did Kurama give him when Kushina wasn’t looking? How badly had she failed Naruto as a mother, that he’d grown this much while her back was turned?

With an explosive breath, the Fifth Hokage brings their sparring session to a close, catching Naruto’s fist in her hand but not retaliating with a blow of her own. Seeing this, Naruto pulls back, correctly deducing that they’re done for the time being.

“Well fought, Naruto. You’re far more advanced than I anticipated. In fact… you’re better than both I and your father were at your age.”

Naruto’s eyes widen at that, recognizing what high praise that is. After all, by the time Kushina and Minato were Naruto’s age, they were both Chunin in their own rights under the old system. Kushina was deep in her apprenticeship to Mito, while Minato was deep in his apprenticeship to Jiraiya. But… it’s the truth. Both she and Minato were already well on their way to becoming the powerhouses they would grow into, but when they were Naruto’s age, they didn’t have nearly the strength or skill he had.

For some reason, rather than being pleased with Kushina’s observation, Naruto looks a little flustered and embarrassed. Letting out a sheepish laugh, he rubs the back of his head for a moment before shaking it.

“Ah… I’m sure that’s not true, Sensei. You’re just talking me up!”

Kushina furrows her brow, and shakes her head.

“No, I mean what I said, Naruto. You don’t have to lie to me anymore… the Kyuubi already admitted that she trained you. I imagine she didn’t JUST teach you the Shadow Clone Technique, did she?”

Naruto winces… and then tilts his head to the side and grimaces in a way that Kushina recognizes quite well. Mostly because she herself was once a Jinchuriki of the Nine Tails, and she knew full well what it looked like when the Kyuubi was trying to talk to you in your head.

“What’s she saying, Naruto?”

Kushina can’t help her curiosity, and while Naruto does freeze up for a moment at being called out, in the end it doesn’t matter. Kurama appears beside him a moment later, a vulpine grin on her beautiful dark-skinned face as she crosses her arms under her chest in order to lift it up and show it off.

“I was just telling him that he should have held back more, if he didn’t want you to have your suspicions~”

Growling, Naruto glares at the vixen of a kitsune.

“Shut. Up. Kurama.”

Kurama just rolls her eyes, even as Kushina looks back and forth between the two of them, trying to interpret the exchange. She already knew what sort of relationship Naruto and the Tailed Beast had. If Kurama hadn’t taken on the form of a gorgeous fox-woman, Kushina might have been more concerned. Also, if she hadn’t watched Naruto positively rail Kurama into his bed, dominating the Nine Tails like it was nobody’s business but their own, she also might have been more concerned.

As it was, her level of concern regarding their sexual relationship wasn’t nearly as high as her level of concern regarding Kurama’s knowledge of her peeping. In fact, as Naruto turns away from the kitsune and looks back to Kushina, Kurama takes the chance to make an obscene hand gesture in Kushina’s direction, her eyes dancing with mischievous delight as she mimes sex by pushing her finger through a hole she’s making with another finger and her thumb.

Kushina blushes intensely, even as Naruto sighs and finally nods.

“… Yeah. Kurama played a large part in who I am today, mom. Sorry for keeping it all such a secret from you.”

Kushina just shakes her head, trying her hardest to ignore Kurama’s provocations. In fact, best to just move on as far as she’s concerned.

“It’s okay, Naruto. But this does mean I really don’t have an idea of exactly where you’re at or even what you should be learning. Your foundations are incredibly solid already, far more so than the last time we sparred… but then, that WAS years ago, back before you decided you needed to ‘be your own person’ and step out from under my shadow.”

Teasing Naruto a little bit felt… safe enough. Though Naruto doesn’t get nearly as red as she’d hoped. In fact, he takes her teasing a lot better than he would have back then, letting out another sheepish laugh and doing more back of head rubbing.

… He really has grown up when she wasn’t looking, hasn’t he? He’s become a bright, strong, capable young man without Kushina’s input. He’s so much like Minato it hurts, but she… she can’t allow Kurama to trick her into confessing her feelings. The Kyuubi must have some plan there, even if it’s just something as simple as her wanting to see Kushina cry after Naruto almost certainly rejects her as a pervert and a deviant.

Breathing in and out slowly for a moment, Kushina rolls her shoulders.

“That all said… I should just ask, shouldn’t I? What is it that you want to learn from this apprenticeship, Naruto?”

At that, the blond perks up, his big blue eyes identical to Minato’s coming to life. He opens his mouth to tell her exactly what he’s hoping to learn, but before he can get a single word out, they’re interrupted.

“Ho there!”

Kushina blinks in surprise at the familiar voice, and she, Naruto, and Kurama all turn to regard Mikoto Uchiha and Hanabi Hyuga as the pair step out onto the training field and make their way over to them.

The Fifth Hokage hasn’t gotten a chance to talk to her best friend since she sent Naruto and Hanabi over with that letter of recommendation, but she’s happy to see Mikoto taking the new apprenticeship seriously at least. Honestly, she’s happy that Mikoto decided to take Hanabi on altogether.

“Lady Uchiha! Hanabi!”

Naruto sounds surprised to see them, but also pleased. And Kushina catches the way he’s looking at Hanabi… and the way Hanabi is looking at him. She realizes then and there that there’s something between the two young people. Something beyond just their friendly rivalry that Kushina had seen build over the years. No… this is something new.

So distracted by Naruto and Hanabi making eyes at each other, Kushina doesn’t notice Mikoto and Kurama exchanging meaningful glances either. As they all come together, Mikoto clears her throat and then smiles.

“It’s just us out here, Naruto. You can call me Auntie Mikoto.”

And then, with serious tonal whiplash, Mikoto turns her attention towards Kushina and sketches out a quick, respectful bow.

“Lady Fifth, I was hoping to speak with you in private. I figured Hanabi and I would find you here, and that our two apprentices could catch up with one another and go over their basics together while we talked. Is that acceptable?”

Kushina raises an eyebrow at Mikoto’s formal tone. To be fair, it wasn’t fully out of the ordinary for her. Her friend had always been a bit more uptight than Kushina was, and while she’d loosened up a little bit over the years, the Uchiha Massacre hadn’t helped matters one bit. That said…

“Of course it’s acceptable. You guys go ahead, get some self-driven training done! Mikoto and I will be right back!”

“Yes, Sensei!”

“Of course, Lady Hokage.”

Kushina grins at how cute Hanabi is. Heh, she’s just like her mother, isn’t she? Ah… she’ll be good for Naruto. Better than Kushina could ever be. Yes, it was good that he was with kunoichi of his own age. Far better than being with her…

As Kushina leads Mikoto into the Clan Compound’s main building and to a side room where they can talk, she has to scrub her mind of the mental images of Naruto… with her. Of her being in Kurama’s place on the bed, or maybe bent over her desk, or… on the ground, defeated in a spar. None of that stuff is appropriate. She needs to put it out of her mind. Fortunately, she can focus on Mikoto and what the Uchiha Clan Head needs from her right now. First though…

“I just wanted to say thank you for taking Hanabi as your apprentice by the way, Mikoto. I know you wouldn’t have done it JUST as a favor to me, but it still means a lot.”

“Mm. You’re right, if we hadn’t been compatible, then I wouldn’t have taken the girl on. But she has all the makings of an excellent apprentice. In fact, perhaps I should be the one thanking you.”

At Mikoto’s subdued tone, Kushina just laughs and waves a hand dismissively.

“Don’t mention it! Now, what brought you out here? What did you need to talk-mmph!”

Kushina finally turns to regard her friend, only to be cut off by Mikoto lunging forward… and planting her lips on Kushina’s in a kiss that is most decidedly NOT platonic. Especially not with that much tongue.

What the fuck?!

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[X] Kushina is surprisingly into it and deepens the kiss - 87%