Determination Goes a Long Way
Kaa-san pulled her bright hair back as she sat. They were in the living room, a spot on the floor cleared from clutter.
“Kushina, do you know what chakra is?” she had asked.
Kushina loved Kaa-san’s voice. It was so quiet but spoke with so much volume.
“Yes, Kaa-san!” Kushina had looked over that book again, preparing for this exchange. It wouldn’t be a lie to say she bugged Ren about it’s words either. She needed chakra for Fuinjutsu anyway, that was her excuse.
“Alright then, let's start with the feeling.” She shifted closer, poking Kushina in her stomach, startling a giggle from the girl. “If you close your eyes and concentrate on your body and your feelings, you should feel something warm. It feels different for everyone. For example, mine is like the breeze you would feel outside. But, it always feels warm.”
Kushina gave a determined nod and closed her eyes, creasing her brows in concentration. There was something there she’d found before, mostly because it felt misplaced. She didn’t have it when she was Holly.
She didn’t know how to describe the way it felt but she found it. Kushina attempted to grab it, bring it to the surface so she could feel it better. She pulled and pulled and pulled, but it wouldn’t come closer. It kept slipping through her fingers.
She opened her eyes and frowned.
Kaa-san laughed and took small hands into her larger ones. “I’ll help you, just a little bit, but then you will practice by yourself.”
Kushina shut her eyes again, quickly, after seeing her mother do the same. It took a moment before she felt a cooling sensation flow throughout her body.
Kushina pulled on her chakra again, the cold flowy sensation all but guided it and warmth spread through her veins, overpowering the cold.
They opened their eyes and Kaa-san smiled. “Your chakra feels like sunshine.”
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Kaa-san gave Kushina an exercise to practice using her chakra. She was supposed to stick a leaf to her forehead.
She was shown how to do it and she tried… But she failed, miserably.
Again and again and again and again.
She kept failing, and she was frustrated.
She wasn’t even able to do it in the single week Kaa-san was home and few days Tou-san was too. Her parents had said it was because she had a lot of chakra.
That didn’t mean it wasn’t frustrating!
“Oí.” Ren snapped his fingers by her nose. “Wake up, Chicken Scratch. Focus.”
She blinked, then barked, “DON’T CALL ME THAT, DATTEBANE!”
Kushina struck a hand over her mouth; that was a new problem too. Apparently she had a verbal tic.
How annoying…
He only chuckled. “Then prove to me you don’t have chicken scratch, Chicken Scratch.”
She only fumed more.
Ren sighed. As he stood up his knees cracked and he stumbled a bit while walking towards the couch. “Take a break.” She tilted her head. “Go outside, have some fun. No normal child coops themselves up like this.”
The two shared a silence.
Kushina supposed that she didn’t act like the child she was supposed to be, far from it she was sure. Kushina was anything but normal.
But she heeded his command anyway and ran out the door; it would be her first time going outside by herself.
A two year old wandering the streets alone. Ren had such great parental instincts.
Kushina giggled at her own thoughts and threw back a wave. “See you later, Ren-chan!”
◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌◌
Just as it had been every single time she’s walked through its streets, Uzushio was beautiful.
Kushina ran through the dirt and cobble pathways, looking for something to do. Though breaks were always nice, she didn’t really know anything besides learning and working in the new world. That kind of rubbed her the wrong way.
She vowed to make a friend. Kushina didn’t want to be lonely, not again.
So, she decided on the merchant district. There were a lot of people there, right?
She chose the right place. People were everywhere.
Kushina’s short stature both hindered and aided her.
She could easily maneuver around people’s legs, but that was the only thing she could see. Kushina decided to travel the sides of the street, rather than straight down the middle.
Yet, she didn’t think that all the way through.
It took longer than she’d like to admit to find which way was left and right. But, she eventually broke through the thinned out crowd.
Huffing and puffing, Kushina took a hold of a nearby table to keep her balance. Moving in circles constantly made her dizzy…
“Oh my, what do we have here?” a voice rang.
Kushina’s head shot up to the owner of the table— or stall for that matter. An older woman, grayed out hair, hints of red still noticeable.
The woman’s soft green eyes met purple as the two Uzumaki had a silent stare off.
The older party rescinded first, her eyes curling up with her smile. “Are you looking for something?”
Kushina blinked at the question and blurted, “A friend,” with a blush realizing how that may have sounded.
“You're lost?” she asked, only getting a shake of the head in return.
The woman chuckled, realizing. “Well, I’m sorry but I sadly do not sell friends here.” Kushina’s face flushed brighter in embarrassment. “However, if you’d like, I can offer up my own friendship.”
Kushina paused at that, processing. Her face ended up lighting with a grin. “I’m Uzumaki Kushina, dattebane!” She was so ecstatic she didn’t even notice the added tic.
“Minori. Uzumaki Minori. It’s nice to meet you Kushina-chan.” Minori’s smile never left her face even while she reached behind the stall. “Here, a gift of friendship.”
Minori gave Kushina a hair stick, one of many that she was selling. A sun and moon dangled off of it, as well as a single star. It jingled when the charms hit against each other.
Kushina was happy.
Kushina made her first friend.