Growing Pains

now

The first few months of Minato raising Naruto were nothing short of hell on earth . More times than Nanami could count on both her hands, the exhausted blond had found his way to her doorstep with a child with equally blond hair, one that was wailing without pause. The man couldn’t even rub his tired eyes as he stood before her, the deprivation of sleep caused by his child obvious on his sunken features.

Nanami ushered the man in quickly, closing the door behind the three of them to ensure no sound of Naruto’s wails would awaken her neighbors. Even in the warm home, the little blond continued on with his screaming, most likely causing himself a raw throat in the morning.

As soon as Minato had entered the quaint home, he allowed the bag he carried with him to fall to the wooden floor with a harsh thud . The moment the crying Naruto was taken out of his tired arms, he let out a deep sigh before groaning, stretching his limbs as he stood. He was pretty sure that with every stretch, his joints clicked loud enough for Nanami to hear.

“Your joints need some oiling, Minato. Wouldn’t you agree?” Nanami teased with a sly smile.

In her arms, she gently rocked Naruto, who began to calm down by now. While his wails continued to echo throughout the living room, they had quieted down. As he always enjoyed doing, the small bundle of joy reached out for her hand with his small one, grasping one of her fingers once he got the chance to. Each time he did so, Nanami giggled at his actions, allowing him to cuddle against her finger as she held him tightly against her warm body.

“You’ve gotten soft, Nana-chan.” Minato teased back, still stretching his limbs as he stood a good distance away, his shoulders sagging dramatically.

Nanami let out a scoff. “Not on you.” Then she looked down at the child in her arms, giving him her divided attention again.

Minato’s exhausted expression soften at the sight of his son calming down after hours of screaming. “Naruto has you wrapped around his finger.”

“I think he can wrap anyone around his finger,” Nanami said, her lavender gaze fixated on the little blond. “or more so, his hand. He’s a little charmer, that’s for sure. Too adorable to look away, really.”

“A charmer like his father, eh ?” The Namikaze quipped, regaining his usual energy.

 A light flush coated her cheeks at his words. “Keep dreaming.”

He let out a tired groan. “If I could sleep, I would,” Hastily, he made his way over to the new couch occupying the living room, only to flop down on it dramatically once he had arrived. He stretched his limbs above his head, letting out a relieved sigh as the tension in his muscles eased. “Naruto isn’t exactly making it easy.”

Nanami gave him a pitiful look.

“I can feel your pity from all the way here.” Minato said, waving his finger in the air dramatically as he spoke.

“Well, you do look like a mess, Minato,” As much as she didn’t want to tell him, he truly did look like a mess. His hair was tousled completely and sticking in various directions and his features were sunken as was his skin. “That’s not very Hokage of you.”

On the couch, Minato shook his head. “Don’t remind me.”

Minato allowed himself to nestle against the soft cushions of the couch, his exhausted electric eyes traveling over the light shades of yellow the cushions were. Somehow, the color calmed him down significantly and left him with more exhaustion in his bones before. His limbs were spread all over the couch and his back had already relaxed against it, his eyes fluttering shut at the lack of crying in the background.

Ever since he had taken on his role as a single father to a mere baby, sleep had not come easy to Minato. Often enough, he had spent his nights laying on the floor in Naruto’s room, right beside his crib in case he woke up. The morning after, his back would always be sore and tense, his muscles tightening uncomfortably as he sat in the Hokage’s chair during the day. The best sleep he got was when Nanami was by his side, helping him take care of Naruto.

When he was alone, Minato was at his weakest.

“Thank you for your help, Nana .” Minato spoke softly.

“Of course.” Nanami responded with a tone just as soft.

By now, Naruto had calmed down fully, only letting out small cries every once in a while. With a giddy smile on his chubby cheeks, he allowed himself to be rocked in a steady rhythm by his godmother, who occasionally also hummed soft tunes. Rather quickly, the blonde woman had found herself lost in the rhythm she kept, mindlessly rocking the child she held while standing in her living room, only paying attention to the sound he made.

It was also why, only as faint snores rang in her ears, that she noticed that Minato had fallen into a deep slumber on her couch, his child still in her arms. With one glance downward, she noticed that Naruto, too, had fallen asleep. Unlike his father, though, Naruto was more of a quiet sleeper who only let out the occasional gurgle instead of snores.

Nanami clicked her tongue at the two sleeping blonds before shaking her head in resignation. “ Of course, he would fall asleep on my couch.” ‘ Idiot could at least take the bed and get himself a good sleep ’, she thought.

The fact that Minato was able to somehow fall asleep anywhere and everywhere was something that used to greatly annoy her back when they were on the same team. It meant that she held the first night guard alongside Jiraiya-sensei, who occasionally got her to proofread the script he had been working on. In the mornings, she would complain to him about it, telling him about how difficult it had been to read the white-haired’s chicken scratch in the dim light of the fire. In response, Minato had only laughed, promising her that next time he would take on the first shift. Fact was, he never did, always falling asleep before she did.

Nanami shook her head at the surge of memories, muttering a quiet ‘ idiot ’ underneath her breath as she made her way over to the sleeping figure on her couch. Careful not to wake the sleeping Naruto in her arm, she used one arm to stabilize him and the other to pull a soft blanket across Minato’s form, making sure to properly tuck it in. For a moment, she found herself mesmerized by his calm features and the way his lips parted slightly as he slept soundly. Quickly, Nanami looked away, making sure to not linger too long around Minato before going to bed herself.

Quietly, Nanami stepped away from the couch, picking up the bag Minato had taken with her before turning off the lights in the living room. Then she made her way to her own bedroom, Naruto still in her arms. He continued to sleep just as tight as his father did, even as she placed the child down on the sheets of her bed, and even as she unpacked what was in the bag. Nothing seemed to disturb the slumber Naruto was in.

Nanami let out a long sigh as she rubbed her eyes, tired from her own sleepiness. Wistfully, she looked over at the sleeping Naruto, making every few seconds sure that the baby wouldn’t somehow roll off of her bed. She knew him to not be a still sleeper, constantly moving. Several times already when she had shared the bed with small Naruto, he had proven himself to be quite restless, even punching her once.

To say the least, his tiny fist was stronger than it looked to be.

The golden blonde chuckled for a moment before continuing to unpack the last diapers crammed into the bag, making sure to place them on her dresser for her to be accessible in case of an … emergency . She cringed at the memory of one of them but quickly willed the thought away, focusing on getting herself ready for bed without waking up Naruto.

On her dresser lay her sleeping clothes, as she had always laid them out to be there. The fact made it also easier for her to slip into them without having to take her eyes off of Naruto for more than a minute. With many careful strokes through her hair with her brush, Nanami was ready to close her eyes and end the day with her godson sleeping in her arms.

And that was exactly what she did. Underneath the soft sheets of her bed, she quickly tucked Naruto into a comfortable position so that he wouldn’t roll off of the bed when he was getting restless again. With her dominant hand bending awkwardly, she clicked on the alarm on her nightstand, making sure to turn it on. Then she allowed her eyes to flutter shut, sleep overtaking her.

*****

In the morning, Nanami found herself being awakened by the persistent ringing of the alarm she had set. With a soft groan, mindful to not wake Naruto, she stretched her arm out to hit the snooze button to turn the noise off.

A quick glance down greeted her with the sight of Naruto cuddling into her side, his tiny fists gripping onto a fistful of her shirt. His legs were stretched out against the rest of the mattress, his body hidden underneath the blanket. At the sight of him, she let out a small giggle as she attempted to get her shirt out of her grip without disturbing his sleep too much. For a child, he was quite stubborn in his sleep.

How adorable , she thought.

What wasn’t adorable were her many futile attempts to get out of bed without waking up Naruto in the process. Every time she had managed to remove his grip from her shirt, he either renewed it or held onto another part of the fabric. Once she managed to get up, Naruto still wouldn’t let go of her, leaving her with the only option available: to take Naruto along with her.

It was how she ended up standing in the bathroom with a baby in her other arm while with her other she brushed her teeth. Nanami found it rather funny how such an ordinary task could turn into that much of a struggle if paired with a child in hand. Not that she minded the sleepy blond clinging to her shirt. However, she did mind the fact that soon she would have to switch his diapers, judging from the carefree expression Naruto suddenly took on.

While for Nanami it wasn’t unusual to help take care of Naruto during the days, taking care of him in the space of her own home wasn’t a usual occurrence. More so, she came over to Minato’s house in order to help him out there.

At the moment, the golden blonde was just glad that she had a day off. Otherwise, getting Naruto ready properly on a time limit of things would have really soured her mood. Starting work at six am with a child as part of your morning routine was something she did not look forward to, with no prior warnings. Waking up much later in the day, at about eight am, as she did now, was much more tranquil on the other hand.

Regardless of when she woke up, she craved her coffee.

With quiet steps, she stepped into the living room to find her sleepy best friend still fast asleep, his limbs awkwardly spread all across the couch. The immediate comparison her mind drew to his son made her laugh a little as she shook her head, making sure to let him sleep just a little longer. For sure, Minato looked like he really needed his precious sleep.

Nanami continued her way into the kitchen to make her coffee, Naruto still sitting in her arms. Now with a changed diaper, the small child was not as restless anymore and instead stared up at her wide-eyed.

“You know, when you are older, I can’t carry you like that anymore,” Nanami told him jokingly, using her free hand to poke his cheek. “that would be the death of my arms, buddy .”

Naruto let out a giggle, his one hand reaching out for her finger.

“I need my finger, Naruto. You can cuddle with it later.”

The small blond let out a sound that sounded sadder than it should for a mere six -month-old.

Nanami raised a single eyebrow at him, waiting for another reaction from the baby. When none came, except for his wide-eyed stare at her, she turned her attention to her coffee machine, placing her mug in it to get her morning energy ready.

“I would offer you a coffee … but … that wouldn’t be good for you.”

She couldn’t believe that she was talking to a baby that couldn’t understand her. At least he listened without much of a complaint.

“I would like a coffee.” Minato drawled from behind her, his voice coming out deeper than it usually was.

Nanami turned on her heel to find a sleepy Minato standing in the entryway to her kitchen, his hair tousled in a way she always found too ridiculous to actually be possible. Underneath his eyes, the eye bags of yesterday had faded the tiniest bit but were still prominent, only highlighted by the light of the kitchen. With a yawn, he rubbed his eyes, swaying the tiniest bit on his feet.

“Good morning, sleepyhead,” Nanami teased. “you for sure look like you need it.”

Minato let out a groan. “I feel like I need it.” He again rubbed his eyes, shuffling further into the kitchen and over to his son. With his finger, he reached out to gently pinch Naruto’s cheeks, greeting his son with a gentle smile. “Did you sleep well?”

Naruto let out a giggle.

Nanami shook her head at the cuteness of the child and took a sip of her milk coffee. “Naruto slept well. Too well , I would say. He wouldn’t let me out of bed. He has a tight grip, that’s for sure,” Then she reached behind herself and grabbed a mug, holding it out to an expectant Minato. “Your coffee, Hokage-sama .” 

Without many complaints, Minato took the coffee into his hand, practically nursing it.

“Thank you, Nana .” Minato smiled softly.

Nanami could feel the flush rise to her cheeks at the sight of simply him . The entire scene felt way too domestic to her, and the thought made her stomach churn, her grip on Naruto tightening as she held him closer to her. The way he stood before her barely awake and smiling like that, ruffling his hair with his other hand as he yawned, was something different from their usual dynamic.

“Only for you.”

She had to get over him, somehow .