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3RD PERSON POV

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Kushina held her husband's hand, squeezing it slightly. She looked down, tears streaming down her rosy cheeks. In her other hand, she held a slightly crumbled up piece of card.

She wouldn't look up, she didn't want the ANBU agents standing before her and Minato to see her pain.

'Are you clear on your orders?' Minato asked the ANBU.

'Yes Lord Hokage, understood, we'll report back as soon as we locate the Masked Man and the Blonde,' they answered, disappearing.

Minato put his arm around Kushina and hugged her. He whispered something to her and she nodded, slowly starting to look up. Before them stood a young ANBU agent, without his mask on. He had short, dark green hair, with a floppy fringe that rested just over his left eye. He had chains strapped to his back and side and he wore chain cuffs on his wrists. He bowed to the Hokage and Kushina, smiling weakly.

'Lord Hokage, Lady Kushina,' he said. Minato smiled back at him.

'Rikio, do you understand your mission?' Minato asked.

'Yessir,' he saluted. Kushina's eyes teared up again.

'R-Rikio, please, bring me back my Kasumi,' she whispered. Rikio bowed his head.

'You can count on it Kushina, I'm not coming back without her, he said, and for a moment, she believed him..

'Good luck Rikio, her life rests in your hands,' Minato said. Rikio nodded, a strong look in his eyes.

Minato slowly removed his arm from around Kushina's shoulders and walked up to the ANBU, resting his hand on his shoulder and placing a seal.

'If you get into any trouble, it will bring you back right away, and when you've completed the mission, it'll also bring you back,' Minato explained. Rikio nodded, taking in all this. He understood the importance of this mission, it was his most important mission he'd ever taken on, and it had to be a success. It had to be. Minato stood back and began performing hand signs, Kushina, seeing Minato's hand signs, nodded to herself, carefully put the crumbled card away and began performing her own hand signs. Minato and Kushina mirrored each other's hand signs and at exactly the same second, both of them placed their palms flat on the ground.

'Dimension Bender, SUMMON!' they both chorused and Rikio disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Kushina sighed quietly and looked at Minato who gave her a supportive smile.

'It's going to be alright, Kushina. You know how Rikio is about her, we can trust him to bring her home,' he said softly. Kushina nodded and took out the crumbled card. On it was a photo of the three of them, it was a photo that was taken on Kasumi's 7th birthday. It was one of the nicest photos of the three of them together. Kasumi was grinning at the camera, her eyes wide and happy, her face beaming and her long red hair tied into lots of braids. Kushina placed her hand over her chest, she missed her daughter more than anything and would have given anything to be holding her in her arms again. Minato felt the same, he wanted nothing more than to keep Kasumi at home safe and sound, where he could train her and held her to grow stronger, where he could be there for her and be the typical father if she ever brought home a boyfriend. Minato looked up and let a cool breeze blow over him, before wrapping his arm around his wife's waist and leading her away.

'Let's go home Kushina,' he said.

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Kasumi's POV

'Sakura, you must protect Naruto and Sasuke, while I teach these guys some manners. If I can't hold them off and they break through my defenses, I want you to be ready to fight. Got it?' I asked. Sakura nodded, a determined look upon her bruised and grazed face.

I stepped forward, ready to lay down my life for my comrades. Getting the other scroll was the last thing on my mind at the moment.

'Kasumi! Wait!' She yelled. I flinched.

'A trap, huh? You shouldn't have left it so noticeable,' the enemy with the bandaged face sniggered. A smirk crept onto Sakura's face and I heard a faint swooosh. I leapt out of the way, seconds before a giant-...

'LOG!' the enemy girl with long hair yelled. They all tried to get out of the way as the giant log swung down from the trees above.

I glanced back at Sakura and she nodded at me. Suddenly a load of dirt picked up and gathered around us, thick enough to hide the enemy. I heard the log break and splinters of wood came flying at us. I quickly performed hand signs and summoned an earth wall to rise up from the earth and protect us. When I felt the pressure behind my wall fade, I drew my fist back and punched it lightly.

The strong wall crumbled just in front of my fist, creating more dirt and dust to hang around. But once the dust had cleared, a figure stood between us and the enemy. He wore a green jumpsuit, yellow cheese string leg warmers ((XD)) and had a bowl hair cut.

'Bushy Brows!' I grinned.

'Lee!' Sakura cried from behind.

'That is right. It is I, Rock Lee, the Leaf's most handsome devil and I am here to protect you!' He said, facing the enemy and getting into his fighting stance.

'Lee, don't risk your life for us!' Sakura begged.

'Like I said before, I will fight to the death for you Sakura!' He yelled pulling a youthful face and clenching his fist. A small smile made its way onto my face. Lee-kun. Arigatou...

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sorry for long updates, here you go at last ^^ but who is RIKIO!? Have a guess in the comments :) Find out in the next chapter.