The Nine-Tails' roars had finally gone silent. The smoke that hung over Konoha took days to fade, but the weight of loss never did.
The Fourth Hokage was gone. His wife, too.
At least, that's what everyone believed.
The funerals were swift, grand, suffocating in their grief. I stood near the front with Naruto swaddled in my arms, the village's eyes heavy on me. Whispers carried through the crowd.
"That's Kushina's sister, right? Poor girl…""She'll raise the child now, I guess…""At least the boy isn't completely alone."
It worked. Perfectly.
Naruto whimpered against my chest, too young to know the village already saw him as a burden. Too young to know how much weight I'd just placed on my own shoulders.
I tilted my head back and stared at the stone faces of the Hokage Monument. Minato's wasn't there yet, but someday it would be. The hero who died protecting his people.
A lie.
And yet… one that kept him safe.
That night, when the village was finally quiet, Minato appeared before me in a flicker of yellow light. Kushina followed, hidden by my seal's pull.
"Flying Thunder God worked perfectly," Minato said, glancing at the seal he had placed on my collarbone earlier. His gaze softened as it drifted to Naruto. "If you or he are ever in danger, I'll be there. Always."
I smirked faintly. "Good. Because I put my own seal on you and Kushina. A two-way link. If I need to bring Naruto here—or myself—I will. No questions."
Kushina chuckled, brushing Naruto's cheek gently. "You're scary when you talk like that, Akari. But… thank you. You've given us something impossible."
Her words almost warmed me too much. Almost.
The next day, a new shift.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, the old Hokage once again, called me into his office. His pipe smoke clouded the air, his eyes sharper than his frail body let on.
"Akari," he said slowly, "you've shown an unusual gift. One I don't think even Minato had the chance to report properly."
I didn't flinch. "What gift?"
His eyes narrowed. "Wood Release."
Silence stretched between us. He leaned forward, hands clasped. "That ability only ever belonged to the First Hokage. Do you understand what this means? The village will see you as… valuable. Very valuable."
I tilted my head, feigning confusion, but inside I smiled. Minato had hidden it well, but someone must have seen me during the chaos.
"I'm not a weapon," I said firmly, my voice low but steady.
Hiruzen studied me for a long moment, then exhaled a thin stream of smoke. "Perhaps not. But the village will expect you to train, to strengthen that power. For now, I'll keep it quiet. But be careful, Akari… secrets have a way of slipping out."
I bowed politely, but as I left the office, my thoughts sharpened.
He wasn't wrong. Secrets slipped. Which meant I had to grow stronger, faster, and stay two steps ahead.
That night, back with Minato and Kushina, I told them what happened. Kushina's fists clenched.
"They'll come after you if they know what you can do. Like they did to me, for the Nine-Tails."
I shrugged. "Let them try."
But Minato's expression was serious. "You should be careful, Akari. With power like yours, they'll either want to use you… or fear you."
I smirked faintly, rocking Naruto in my arms. "Then let them fear me. As long as they never touch him."
Minato didn't argue. He just placed a hand on my shoulder, the weight of it heavy but reassuring.
For the first time, I realized… maybe he didn't see me as Kushina's "little sister" anymore. Maybe he saw me as something else entirely—an equal standing in the shadows.