Godparents
“How was your honeymoon?” was the first thing Izumi asked once she stepped past the threshold of the shared home of the Namikaze-Uzumaki couple.
Immediately afterward, she found herself pulled into a tight embrace, familiar vivid red hair tickling her skin while she was being pressed into the figure of her sister. Kushina’s strong arms encircled Izumi’s waist, almost crushing her in the hug. Against her stomach, the brunette could feel the prodding belly of the woman, evidence of the pregnancy.
“You- crushing- me, the baby.” rasped out Izumi once her airflow became more restricted, the need for air growing.
Minato let out a laugh at their antics, watching them fondly. “Kushina, let the poor girl breathe.”
Kushina turned to face her husband and pouted at him. “She’s breathing just fine.”
Izumi shook her head in denial, her cheeks squishing against the shoulders of the older woman.
“Kushina.” repeated Minato playfully, nudging his wife’s side with his elbow.
The redhead relented with a sigh, “Fine,” She released the tight grip she had on the brunette, allowing her to breathe. “This reminds me! Minato and I need to talk to you, urgently.”
While Izumi was happily breathing in the air which she had been missing, her former sensei had other ideas. The older woman leaned forward and grabbed the brunette’s hand tightly, pulling her towards the couch in the living room. Izumi followed as quickly as she could, her steps hurried, leaving her almost stumbling over her own feet. The next moment, a set of hands were placed on her shoulder, gently pushing her back into the soft material of one of the couches. Opposite of Izumi, on an identical couch sat down the happy couple, expressions drawn into lovesick ones.
"Izumi, Minato and I have something to ask of you," Kushina gave her student a loving smile as she leaned her head on the shoulder of her husband. "We want you to be the godmother of Naruto."
"Naruto?" Izumi blinked at the couple in confusion, eyes widening. "You have decided on a name?"
"The name is from Jiraiya's new book. Naruto is the hero of it." explained Minato. He then pointed toward a book laying on the coffee table between them.
Izumi reached forward in order to grab the book The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi, enclosing it in her dominant hand. Carefully she inspected the book, cerulean eyes wandering over the plain cover before she opened it, revealing the first chapter. My Name is Musasabi Naruto …
Naruto, what a lovely name. Peculiar but at the same time, so fitting.
"Jiraiya will be Naruto's godfather."
In an instant, Izumi's snapped up to meet Minato's amused expression. "Eh?"
The blond man in question tilted his head, letting out a chuckle.
"I have nothing against Jiraiya-sensei! Don't get me wrong. But he is away a lot, isn't he?"
Minato couldn't help but smile at the brunette sitting across from him. "Did you hear us properly? Because really, there is no need to worry."
Now Izumi was utterly confused, cogs in her brain turning to keep up. "What do you mean? I know you chose a name and that Jiraiya-sensei will be the godfather."
This time Kushina laughed, shaking her head softly. "We want you to be his godmother."
"Godmother?" asked Izumi, startled.
"We told you twice already, seems like you didn't hear us the first time." teased the blond Hokage.
"But you heard us now," Kushina gave Izumi a smile. "What do you say, Izumi?"
"Why me, nee-chan?" She was honored to have been chosen for such an important position, to be a constant influence in the life of the son of people she considered to be family now. That did not mean she entirely understood the decision.
"It was a tough decision, I have to admit, but … We wanted to choose people who would care for our son and be there for him, teach him to grow up to be a good boy. And we chose you. And also Kakashi, because there needs to be some sort of balance in his life."
The statement made Izumi snort as she knew it to be true.
Kushina continued to smile. "In my vision I saw people be there for our son, care for him and influence him in a positive way. Kakashi provides the seriousness here, he could teach Naruto values, what it means to be strong and clever, to be able to overcome any challenge. You on the other hand could teach him what it means to support others, to be there for a friend and for family. That was the balance I saw between the two of you."
"I like your vision, nee-san. But did you ask Kakashi yet?"
The redheaded woman frowned at the question, looking over at her husband for guidance.
"We did," began Minato softly. "But you know him, he was very reluctant. He hasn't agreed yet but neither has he denied. Kakashi is pretty on the fence about this."
"Oh," mumbled Izumi. "I see."
"It would be nice if you could talk to him about that, Izumi."
Izumi cleared her throat awkwardly. “I can try.”
“We couldn’t entirely convince him, but we think you can.”
“I won’t force him into something he doesn’t want,” stated Izumi clearly. “He’s my friend, and sometimes he can be reluctant, but if this is something he truly doesn’t want … then I won’t force him to accept.” Never would she force him to agree to something he felt uncomfortable with. The boundaries he had were what she respected deeply.
The couple nodded in agreement, their expressions taking on a solemn note.
"You care for him, don't you?" When Minato gazed at Izumi, his eyes held a glint in them she couldn't quite name.
"Of course I do," She proclaimed strongly. "He's my best friend."
Minato let out a soft chuckle, shaking his head. "You care for him as more of a friend, don't you?"
Izumi turned red in an instant. Hysterically, she began to wave her arms around, letting out an embarrassed noise.
“Oh, look, Minato! She’s flustered.” cooed Kushina.
“Kushina-nee,” whined Izumi. “Stop it.”
The redhead only grinned with a glint in her eyes. “Never.”
“We aren’t here to tease you,” spoke Minato calmly. One look at his ecstatic wife told him otherwise. “I’m not here to tease you.”
For a moment, silence reigned in the space between them, the air becoming almost suffocating. Izumi took a deep breath, trying to find a way to properly word her answer, to give them the reply they awaited.
"I'm honestly not sure," Izumi's fingers danced nervously along the edge of her sleeves, pulling at the threads. "When I'm around him, I feel all nervous and have the urge to smile all the time. And he makes me feel good about myself, confident. I don’t feel like I have to act different when I’m around Kakashi, I can just be me , and he accepts it. One of my favorite things in the world is being by his side, talking. But I don't know …"
“You sound smitten.” chuckled Minato.
Izumi frowned at the man. “No I don’t.”
“You do.” agreed Kushina.
“I don't.”
“You do.”
“No.
“Yes.”
“As a teenager, it is sometimes difficult to figure out your feelings,” interrupted Minato promptly. “but you have something special there, so don’t throw it away. Lean into it and allow yourself to figure out what it is that you are feeling, but if I’m honest with you, you most likely already know what it is. You just can’t bring yourself to admit it.”
Did she like Kakashi? As more than a friend?
Yes, her heart immediately supplied. You will ruin something good, said her mind in response.
“Izumi, don’t be scared, okay?” Minato had leaned over and placed his hand on her shoulder, squeezing it gently. “It is a fall, for sure, but it is a trust fall. You two have a strong foundation and I know once one of you two realizes there is something more, you won’t ruin it. Obstacles don’t weaken us, they make us stronger.”
“Okay.” Could she lean into it? Possible, maybe.
Regardless, Izumi was scared.
━━━━
The pep talk which Kushina and Minato attempted to her dragged on for longer than it probably should have. Their advice was filled with the endings of books Izumi herself had already read as ‘examples of how everything could turn out’ and with way too many idioms for the advice to be considered good. Not only that was something she had to indulge in, but also a dramatic retelling of their own love story.
While Izumi couldn’t help but gush and coe at what the married couple had told her, admire the way they physically leaned on each other as they took turns speaking. At the same time, the sight made her heart ache. Was it jealousy consuming her? Probably.
The way the two of them were so dependent on each other was something Izumi also wanted in her life, the ideal couple she had read about when she was a child. Her feelings were not bore in ill-manner, but rather in an idolized way, something she herself wanted too achieve once older.
As much as she wanted to further listen to the two be smitten with one another, the evening was coming to an end announced by the setting sun, the living room in which they sat drowned in soft shades of orange and yellow.
"Thank you two, I-" Izumi could already feel the tears beginning to decorate her lash line. "I can't thank you enough."
"We couldn't think of anyone better to be his godmother." said Kushina, also visibly tearing up.
Minato smiled gently as he placed his arm around his wife’s shoulder, rubbing it in comforting circles. “I have to agree. We have to thank you for accepting, Izumi.”
They stood by the doorway of the home, one hug after the other, already past them. Izumi had thanked them previously before exiting the home, glee the emotion in which she drowned.
“You are family to us, Izumi. We are glad to have you.”
The parting words of the couple left Izumi skipping in her step outside the home, she herself in tune with the emotions she was feeling. While the reluctance she held shone through too, she felt more overwhelmed with the honor bestowed upon herself than anything.
Yet she couldn’t help but wonder: was she fit to be a godmother?
What if they had made the wrong choice in choosing her?
Now that the excitement was dying down, the negative emotions were coming up in tidal waves, wrecking the calm of her mind. She couldn’t do this.
Izumi had always considered herself to be less mature than those her age and those around her, especially than Kakashi. Someone as immature as herself was not fit to be a role model of a child, someone who could easily take over her manners. For Naruto, she would be the worst influence chosen … kami.
“Hey, Izu.” The voice of the silver-haired she constantly thought about startled her, leaving her startled.
Kakashi had settled into step with her, the ANBU mask he usually wore placed against the side of his head, leaving his face for her to see. While his legs had grown longer than hers, he slowed his pace to walk beside her, a nonchalant expression on his features.
"Kashi.”
Izumi was deeply aware of the fact that he had been tasked with the task of guarding Kushina during her pregnancy in order to get him away from the more grueling tasks. She thought it was clever, really, once she had figured it out after sensing the boy outside the window for about half an hour during his first shift, to then be quizzing him about it. During the conversation with the parents to be she had forgotten about the fact, so focused on becoming a godmother that she forgot-
Kakashi was standing just outside, listening.
Izumi let out an uncomfortable laugh, failing to school her nervous expression. "Say, how much did you listen to?"
He couldn’t have heard, or otherwise he would have said something already. Maybe Kakashi would have teased her by now already, making a quip about her crush on him. Or he would have told her already how he did not reciprocate her feeling, about how their friendship had no use anymore, she made him feel uncomfortable. Then she would lose the best friend she ever had and would have to hang out with Sen all day long to be able to bother someone, and then her heart would hurt and-
"Everything."
Izumi felt her face flush in an instant. "E-everything?"
No, no, no!
“Well, not everything,” admitted Kakashi. “I tuned out as soon as they asked you to be Naruto’s godmother. I didn’t want to listen to their talk yet again.”
“And when did you listen in again?” Izumi hoped for fate to be on her side.
“Why do you want to know?”
Izumi let out a sigh. “Just curios.” Her face was still burning up, most likely beet red by now. Even worse for her was the streetlights highlighting that detail, practically showing it to Kakashi.
The silver-haired gently reached out to stop her in her step, letting out a soft mumble of her name, while his hand rested on her arm to pull her near him. As he did so, he cocked his head to the side, inspecting his friend's sudden change in expression carefully.
"Are you okay?" He asked, concern swirling in his charcoal eye.
The brunette could only nod, unable to form a coherent answer. No, she wasn’t okay.
"You sure?" Kakashi was unconvinced by her non-verbal reply. With the hand he had previously placed on his arm, he reached out to feel the heat of her forehead with the back of his hand, placing it on there gently. "Do you have a fever?"
Izumi's face felt only hotter at his question and action, cerulean eyes opened wide to resemble ones of a young doe and mouth agape. Quickly, she reached up with her own hand, grasping the hand of her friend in hers to remove it from her forehead. Unintentionally, she had interconnected their hands.
Now it was Kakashi’s turn to flush. From underneath the top of his mask peeked out a vivid shade of red, his face feeling as though it were on fire. Never had he expected her to do something like that, it left his body shivering in surprise.
He awkwardly cleared his throat, eye fixated on their hands. “Izu.”
In an instant, the brunette jumped away from him, babbling out a constant stream of apologies as he only chuckled, finding her as endearing as ever.
"Let's sit down for a while, Kashi. I'm feeling a little dizzy." It was no lie that Izumi did feel dizzy, since her head was feeling as though at any moment it would either explode or her mind would collapse from the various possibilities running through her head. She needed a moment to calm down.
Kakashi gave his friend another concerned look, but agreed. Similar to what he had done before, he placed his hand on her arm, this time closer to her shoulder, and lead her gently towards an empty bench at the park. Once Izumi had sat down on it, cheeks still flushed, he seated himself beside her, their bodies pressing against each other.
Izumi cleared her throat while she avoided looking at Kakashi. "So, what does everything mean?"
"Wouldn't you like to know?" He teased, earning himself a playful slap.
"Kashi!" She dragged the name she had given him so many years ago almost into a whine, throwing her head back in dismay as she spoke, hoping to wash away her embarrassment. "Come on."
“Once you got up and left. Why are you even asking?” Kakashi’s brows have furrowed by now, his face having taken on a confused expression. Were his Sharingan eye open, he could have discerned every detail in her features, but the exhaustion of the day was too heavy on him to do so.
“Again, just curios.”
It was plain as day that he did not believe her words. Regardless, he hummed in response.
"Can I tell you something?" asked Izumi, glancing over at the teen for permission.
She could do this.
Kakashi nodded.
"When my little cousin Ino was born two weeks ago, she brought so much joy into my life along with her. You suddenly hold this bundle of joy in your arms, this child who is squealing and maybe also grabbing your fingers to hold them," The memory made Izumi smile, the grin of her little niece appearing in her mind. "And sure, she has puked on me several times during her short life span and will probably puke on me several times more, but the joy … it is incomparable. Ino is like a light in my life, whenever I see her I just feel so happy immediately, whether I am experiencing my chronic pains or am annoyed by something, she changes that. I hope that Naruto can be the same for you: a beacon of light and happiness."
Kakashi furrowed his brows, not completely convinced yet. "You think Naruto could do that?"
"I know so. Plus, as Kushina-nee told me, I think he will need some sort of balance in his life that only you can provide for him," Izumi scooted closer to the teen and gently rested her head on his shoulder, leaning against him. "Imagine me caring for a child alone, a disaster. Someone needs to save him from that fate."
The thought made Kakashi chuckle. "A disaster indeed."
"You need to help avoid that. Alone I would probably ruin Naruto, but with you, we will have the best godchild for sure."
Ruin Naruto? The thought seemed alien to Kakashi. "I don't think you would ruin him, Izu."
"I think I would and that scares me."
Kakashi was confused by her reply, the idea seeming unfathomable to him. "Why would you ruin him?"
Izumi shrugged, almost feeling helpless. "I just have a feeling I would. Unlike you, I can't be serious or teach important values, teach someone how to protect himself. Everything I could potentially teach him he will already learn from his wonderful parents. I'm not the most responsible and for sure not the most competent. I don't think before doing most of the time and I'm horribly impulsive and-"
"And all those things won't make you a horrible influence for Naruto, Izu. You are a great person, don't forget that."
"I don't think that is nothing," admitted Izumi, her head turning downward to hide her trembling lips. "I can't do that alone, I'm scared of doing that alone. I'm not mature enough yet, I need you and your help."
Kakashi bit his bottom lip in thought, staring up at the night sky. "What if I can't do it either?"
Izumi lifted her head to admire her friend. "Then we will figure it out together, somehow."
The silver-haired turned to face his friend, only to stare past her figure as he shook his head. "I'm not right for this."
"Kakashi," began Izumi sternly. "I know that sometimes you doubt yourself and your abilities but you shouldn't. Kashi, you are truly remarkable as both a person and a Shinobi. Naruto will need you in his life at some point, maybe it will be to train or for guidance, but you can be the one to provide that for him. Inside you, there is this kindness I can't describe, this something only you have. You have a heart of gold, a heart meant to care, so don't try to act like you don't. You do. I can tell you that one day you will be the best godparent Naruto could wish for and that he will need you in his life as much as I need you," Izumi looked up at the silver-haired, only to find his charcoal eyes already focused on her. Her breath hitched, but she continued. "Hatake Kakashi, you are without a doubt one of the best people I have met, and nothing could ever convince me to change my opinion about you."
"I-" began Kakashi before he cut himself off to clear his throat. "I will agree, but only if you stop saying you will ruin Naruto, because you won't … I'll make sure of that."
“Really?”
Kakashi hummed.
“Kashi, I-” like you. The words died on her tongue, refusing to be pushing past her lips. She couldn’t tell him.
“Yes?”
“Thank you for being in my life,” Izumi told him earnestly. “I appreciate you, I really do. I know I’m not the only one to do so, many do. And trust me when I say this,” She let out a warm laugh, leaning her head against his shoulder further. From her spot beside him, she peered up at him lovingly, absolutely mesmerized by the sight of him. “in this world, you are my favorite person.”
Kakashi could practically feel his heart burst with ecstasy, he just hoped she couldn’t.
“You are my favorite person too.” The words he softly spoke were the most honest words he had spoken in long.