"Why?!"
Naruto and Chiharu's faces fell in unison, their expressions transforming from excitement to confusion as they stared at their parents with questioning eyes.
The pain reflected in Minato and Kushina's faces was genuine. As parents, nothing would have pleased them more than spending this precious time with their children, creating memories together away from the daily responsibilities that consumed their lives.
But they were far from an ordinary family.
As the Fourth Hokage, Minato couldn't simply abandon his duties and leave the village for an extended period. The safety and wellbeing of every Konoha citizen rested on his shoulders—a burden he had willingly accepted but one that came with significant personal sacrifice.
Kushina's situation was equally complicated, though for reasons unknown to the children. Both she and Naruto carried half of the Nine-Tails sealed within their bodies. This arrangement, designed to protect both the village and their family, meant that whenever Naruto left the village boundaries, Kushina needed to remain within Konoha as a safeguard.
Throughout the ninja world, very few individuals outside of Konoha's highest echelons knew that Naruto also served as a jinchūriki. This secrecy provided him with a level of protection that Kushina didn't enjoy. Ironically, this meant that Naruto could travel beyond the village boundaries with significantly less risk than his mother.
As Minato and Kushina observed the disappointment swimming in their children's eyes, a profound sense of guilt settled over them both.
"The protective barrier surrounding the village has reached its scheduled maintenance period," Minato finally explained after a moment of hesitation. "Your mother will be overseeing the restoration process starting tomorrow."
The siblings nodded in understanding. Even at their young age, they were aware that within Konoha, only two individuals possessed the necessary expertise in advanced sealing techniques to maintain the village's protective barriers—their parents.
When Naruto was just three years old, Kushina had undertaken a similar barrier repair operation. Though young at the time, the memory remained clear in his mind.
"Oh," both children responded, their voices tinged with disappointment, though neither complained. Even at their tender ages, they understood the importance of their parents' responsibilities.
Dad and Mom were doing everything in their power to protect the village—the place where they were born, raised, and where all their friends lived. How could they possibly resent them for that dedication?
Kushina trembled slightly as she watched her children's brave acceptance, her heart aching at the necessity of disappointing them once again. Sensing her distress, Minato reached out and gently clasped her hand, squeezing it reassuringly. Only upon feeling the warmth of his touch did Kushina's tension begin to ease.
A heavy silence descended upon the family, broken only by the soft ticking of the clock on the wall.
"Dad, you should eat quickly before your food gets cold," Chiharu suggested, her perceptive nature allowing her to recognize the emotional undercurrents in the room. With innocent determination, she tugged at Minato's sleeve, guiding him to his chair.
"Thank you, sweetheart," Minato replied, his expression softening with gratitude. He couldn't help but reflect on how his children's personalities had developed. Naruto had inherited Kushina's fiery spirit and determination—sometimes to a fault. Chiharu, on the other hand, mirrored Minato himself, both in natural talent and in her thoughtful, observant demeanor.
"If we can't go with them, who will accompany Naruto and Chiharu on their trip?" Kushina asked after regaining her composure, her eyes meeting Minato's with maternal concern.
Within the borders of the Land of Fire, they might be relatively safe. However, venturing beyond those boundaries would expose them to potential danger if their identities as the children of the Yellow Flash became known. During the Third Shinobi World War, Minato had accumulated a staggering number of enemies. In a single confrontation against Iwagakure forces, he had single-handedly eliminated nearly eight hundred Stone ninja—creating countless grievances that might extend to his family.
Minato, who had just picked up his chopsticks to begin eating, looked up with a reassuring smile. "I've already made arrangements. Jiraiya-sensei will arrive the day after tomorrow to accompany Naruto and Chiharu."
With one of the Legendary Sannin as their guardian, surely no one would be foolish enough to target Minato's children as a means of revenge.
As soon as the words left his mouth, Minato's body stiffened, and his eyes widened in alarm. The temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees as Kushina's expression darkened dramatically.
"Ah... ha..." Minato stammered, the chopsticks slipping from his fingers and clattering onto the table. "Kushina, don't look at me like that!" He waved his hands frantically, a nervous laugh escaping his lips.
"I've already discussed your concerns with Sensei," he hastened to add, understanding precisely why his wife appeared so distressed. "He's promised to exercise appropriate restraint."
To Minato's surprise, Kushina's severe expression softened, though reluctance still lingered in her eyes. "I know," she conceded with a slight nod.
Kushina was nothing if not pragmatic. She recognized that in all of Konoha, Jiraiya was perhaps the only individual who possessed both the necessary strength to protect their children and the flexibility to be absent from the village for an extended period.
Seeing his wife's understanding, Minato finally released the breath he'd been holding.
Naruto and Chiharu exchanged bewildered glances. From their very first encounter with Jiraiya, their mother had explicitly instructed them to maintain distance from the man whenever possible. Yet, wasn't Jiraiya their father's beloved teacher and mentor? The contradiction puzzled them.
"However," Kushina continued, shifting the conversation, "I'm still concerned about entrusting two children solely to Jiraiya-sensei's care." Her brow furrowed slightly. "Especially since Chiharu is a young girl—there are certain matters that would be... inconvenient for him to handle appropriately."
"I'll speak with Lady Tsunade tomorrow about joining the group," she proposed.
"Excellent idea," Minato agreed without hesitation, immediately recognizing the wisdom in his wife's suggestion.
Tsunade had dedicated years to expanding and enhancing Konoha's medical infrastructure. A brief respite from her duties would be well-deserved, and her presence would ensure both proper supervision and medical care if needed.
"Then it's settled," Kushina concluded with a satisfied smile. With Tsunade accompanying them, her concerns about Jiraiya potentially exposing her children to inappropriate influences diminished considerably.
The following day at the Academy, Iruka announced the comprehensive assessment results for the academic year.
To no one's surprise, Sasuke secured the top position with perfect scores across all three examination components.
The second-place ranking, however, once again defied expectations. Sakura Haruno claimed this honor, having achieved perfect scores in both the chakra control assessment and the theoretical knowledge examination.
Naruto, despite his excellent performance in taijutsu and reasonable showing in chakra control, found himself ranked only in the upper-middle tier due to his blank theoretical examination paper.
On the morning of the third day, the travel party assembled in front of the Namikaze residence.
"Is he coming with us too?" Naruto asked incredulously, arms crossed defensively as he observed Sasuke standing a short distance away, his mother Mikoto's hands firmly planted on his shoulders.
Sasuke appeared equally displeased with the arrangement. He looked up at his mother imploringly. "Mom, do I really have to go?"
"You've earned this vacation, Sasuke. You should take this opportunity to relax," Mikoto replied with a gentle but unyielding smile. Her grip on Sasuke's shoulders remained firm—a subtle reminder that despite his prodigious talents, he was nowhere near matching the strength of a former jonin like his mother.
"But my training schedule—" Sasuke began to protest.
"I've already consulted with your father and Itachi," Mikoto interrupted smoothly. "They both agree that you need proper rest."
Standing nearby, Minato and Kushina exchanged knowing glances, their eyes twinkling with amusement. There was absolutely no possibility that Fugaku Uchiha would have volunteered such an opinion—unless he had been thoroughly persuaded by Mikoto first.
This realization brought Minato a strange sense of solidarity. Perhaps the challenges of balancing family life with professional responsibilities transcended even the differences between the Namikaze and Uchiha households.
Sasuke looked genuinely stunned. "Father really said that?" he asked, disbelief evident in his voice.
"Indeed. He's quite pleased with your first-place ranking," Mikoto confirmed, her expression warm with maternal pride. She then turned toward Jiraiya and Tsunade, who stood nearby observing the family interactions.
"My lords," she addressed them respectfully, "I entrust my Sasuke to your care as well."
"Leave it to us," Tsunade responded with a confident smile. She approached Sasuke, placing a hand lightly on his shoulder. "Don't look so glum, young man. You've packed your things, so let's make the best of this adventure."
Before Sasuke could formulate another objection, he found himself gently but firmly guided by Tsunade's hand—a hand whose legendary strength could shatter mountains with a single blow.
"What incredible power," Sasuke thought, recognizing instantly that resistance would be futile against one of the Legendary Sannin.
"Let's get moving," Tsunade announced, waving her free hand toward the village gates. She cast a meaningful glance at Jiraiya, who stood nearby with a complex expression—appearing simultaneously pleased with the assignment yet somewhat apprehensive about the responsibilities it entailed.
"Time to go," Jiraiya confirmed, glancing first at Naruto and Chiharu, then back to Minato and Kushina. "We'll take good care of them."
"We're counting on you, Sensei," the Namikaze couple responded in unison.
Kushina stepped forward, bending slightly to address her children in a hushed tone. "Remember everything I told you earlier," she whispered, her voice carrying a mixture of maternal concern and subtle warning that neither child misunderstood.
Naruto and Chiharu nodded solemnly. "Goodbye, Dad. Goodbye, Mom," they called, turning to follow Tsunade and a reluctant Sasuke down the path that would lead them beyond the familiar boundaries of Konoha and into their first great adventure.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Support me at p@treon.com/goldengaruda and check out more chapter of this or more early access chapter of my other fanfic translation.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~