MINAKO'S POINT OF VIEW

THREE YEARS LATER

"Another successful mission under our belts! Good work you guys!" Minato praised us. It was our third year as a team and honestly, I felt so happy to be with them. I was now eight years old and a chunin, Kakashi being the only other chunin on the team. We both became one at the same time which only sparked our competition more. However,  I started to like Kakashi... As a person I mean! Yeah...Minato was weary about my fierce competitive nature but I needed to prove myself to my crush, Obito, and the world. They needed to learn that my name is Minako Uzumaki and they better not forget it!

I have fallen head over heels for Obito...hard. It made my life difficult because he was my best friend and was totally in love with Rin, sometimes even telling me how he plans on asking her on dates but never got the guts to. It broke my heart everytime he said that but it made me more determined than ever to prove myself to him. I was friends with Rin despite my crush on Obito, but I knew not to blame her, since no one knew about my affections.

"Alright! Hey Rin, wanna go out to eat some ramen?" Obito cheerfully asked her. She glanced at Kakashi who was walking away and sighed.

"Uhm...maybe later Obito. I really need to get home. Bye guys." She said then turned to leave with a wave. Obito started sulking but looked up at me.

"Mina...do you wanna get ramen?" He asked with hope in his voice. I smiled at him and nodded, my hair moving from behind my ear to my face. It was a lot longer now, the fiery ends reached until my mid back. Obito cheered before grabbing my hand and pulling me towards Ichiraku's. I blushed heavily but followed anyway, reaching the stand in record time. We immediately scoffed down some ramen and it wasn't until our second bowl that we began talking.

"I think this year might be the year I finally win Rin over. She's just so smart, nice, and pretty. What do you think Mina?" Obito asked me. I froze and stared down at my bowl of ramen with saddened eyes. I knew he would never love me...I was silly for even trying...who would love a red headed freak like me anyway?

"Hmm? Mina? What's wrong?" Obito asked as he glanced up at me with concern. Should I tell him? Or would it just emberass me?

"Obito...I-I...have been meaning to tell you this for a long time...I-.."

"Oh shoot, I forgot! Hey Mina, sorry I gotta help Miss Shoiji down the road. Umm finish what you're saying tomorrow?" He asked as he threw money on the table and looked at me with those obsidian eyes I loved so much. I sighed and shook my head.

"I-it's nothing ya know..." I mumbled to empty air as he disappeared. I turned back to stare at my half finished second bowl of ramen and suddenly felt full... the young man behind the counter looked at me with all knowing eyes as his toddler daughter played with some strainers on the floor.

"Looks like you're suffering from young love." He said with a small smirk. I glanced up at him and gave him a half smile.

"Tell me about it, ya know."

"Well like my mother always said, it might be the ramen you see in front of you that may be the most appealing, but when you really look on the menu, you find the flavors you never knew you loved all this time." I raised an eyebrow and sweatdropped at the old man.

"Umm...what's that supposed to mean ya know?" He awkwardly laughed while scratching the back of his head.

"Oh...haha nothing...just an ancient ramen proverb." I had two sweatdrops. Ancient ramen proverb, what? That exists? I quickly finished the ramen in the bowl despite my protesting stomach and paid.

"Thanks mister, see ya around." I called out to him. He waved before going back to his noodles. I wandered the deserted streets of Konoha before walking to a training ground by myself. It was almost dark out and Kushina would be mad if I wasn't home soon...it was just that I really wanted to train to work off this feeling from what Obito said to me.

"Am I really not pretty enough? Or smart enough? Am I not good enough?" I growled as I punched a wooden log. I continued punching it until my knuckles bled. Finally, chakra surrounded my fist and I punched through the wooden post, completely destroying it.

"I think you're just fine, jinchuriki." I turned around to see a man wearing all black and a mask over his face. Mine twisted up in confusion before I was hit on the back of the head.

"Jinchuriki-...?" I mumbled before passing out.

~~

THIRD PERSON PONT OF VIEW

Minato was walking to Kushina's house to pick her up for a date. He was carrying a small boquet of flowers while wearing his imfamous smile. He knocked on the door to have it be opened up to a furious Kushina.

"MINAKO YOU ARE- oh, Minato. Is it time for our date already...Minako hasn't come home yet ya know...it's almost eight at night." Kushina gushed worriedly. Minato looked at the woman confused.

"Really? We got back from our mission hours ago, she should have been home by four thirty." Kushina immediately grew pale and became anxious.

"Y-you don't t-think something happened to her...d-do ya?" Kushina asked him nervously. Minato was stern, worried for his little sister-in-law.

"I don't know but let's find out." The two jonins immediately ran around the village, getting Minato's team to look for her too. It was only until they spotted the training field when they noticed a few drops of blood and a destroyed wooden log dummy. Kakashi was the one to realize a piece of her kimono top cloth was ripped on the ground. The grass was slightly trampled, meaning people took her by force. They immediately sprinted to the Hokage's mansion and knocked on the door.

"Lord Hokage!" Kushina called out for him.

"Come in!" Hiruzen said. The group walked into the room, panic on their features. Hiruzen noticed the distraut looks upon their faces and pressed his fingers together.

"Has something happened?" He asked. Minato was the one who replied.

"We believe that Minako Uzumaki was kidnapped from the training grounds sir." Hiruzen's eyes went wide before going to his crystal ball to try and find her. He saw the poor young girl in chains with cuts and gashes all over her while two men in black interrogated her. He couldn't see their location...just the two men.

"I found her but I don't know her location. She is tied up while two men dressed in black are attacking her. I don't think you have much time. Kushina, do you believe it has anything to do with..." Hiruzen gestured to her with a tilt of his head. She immediately nodded with tears flooding her eyes. Her little sister was being attacked because they thought she was Kushina.

"I see...then time definitely is running short. Team Minato and Kushina, I assign you on a mission to find and rescue Minako Uzumaki. If you do not find her soon, I will send a few chunin as well." Minato nodded his thanks and disappeared with his girlfriend and team. They all stood outside of the village and Minato pulled out some headsets.

"Okay guys, put these on so that way we can remain in contact as we split up to look. All of us will go on our own except I want Obito to go with Rin since Rin is a medic ninja and should not have to face direct battle. Report on what you find as soon as you find it and keep me updated every five minutes. Okay, scatter!" Minato shouted. The ninjas obeyed and looked around the area to find no clues to Minako's mysterious disappearance. It wasn't until Kakashi looked in detail and sniffed out a feint sent of her strawberry shampoo that he got a lead.

"Kakashi reporting in, I believe I caught scent of her shampoo."

"Good work. Follow it and we will try to randevezous." Minato replied in the headset. Kakashi looked everywhere in the forest area he was at until something shiny like a ruby caught his attention. Attached to a leaf was a very unique strand of hair, belonging to one girl. Kakashi was the only member to catch onto this and continued following a path of stray hair strands until coming across a small bunker the size of a living room. Kakashi reported it in to his team but they wouldn't make it there for another ten minutes. Kakashi was impatient, the idea of Minako being hurt made his blood boil... He had to stop it, with his team or not.

Kakashi silently assessed the best point of entry and glanced through a glass window to see only two men in black in the building. They had scrolls with bounty figures on them as well as a picture of Kushina. He then looked over to see Minako with her hair clinging to her sweaty forehead, blood and cuts all over her. Her kimono top was ripped to show her torso which made Kakashi furious. He wouldn't let these ninjas leave alive tonight. He listened through the window to hear what they were saying about her.

"I don't know man, doesn't she look a little young to be that chick in the picture?"

"Shut up! It doesn't matter. This guy is paying a heavy bounty for the nine-tails. She looks just like her so she must have it...otherwise we'll beat it out of her."

"My team will save me! Just you wait!" The two men turned to her and snickered before smacking her in the face, making a large handprint like bruise blossom across her cheek.

"Shut up."

"My leader is the Yellow Flash! He'll destroy you! And my teammate is the son of the White Fang! Between the two, you guys are gonna pay ya know! He'll save me!" Kakashi's eyes widened.

"Minako..." He whispered. The men smacked her again.

"Maybe we need to teach her a lesson..." One man growled. Before they could do any more damage, Kakashi broke open the window and hit one of the guys in the head with his feet, knocking them out.

"Who is this!?!" The remaining ninja exclaimed. Minako looked up at Kakashi with a weary smile before slumping.

"Ka.. Ka.. Shi.." She whispered. Kakashi turned to the ninja and growled.

"Who are you!?" The ninja hissed while pulling out his kunai. Electricity gathered in Kakashi's right hand as he growled at the masked man.

"I'm the son of the White Fang, and I will be your end." The man chuckled.

"Young love will be the death of you kid. I will bring that death." The man launched at Kakashi but he was too swift. Kakashi dodged before turning  around and slamming the man with his electrified hand, causing a hole to appear in his back.

"YOU'LL NEVER HURT HER AGAIN!" Kakashi yelled as he went through him. The man girgled up blood before falling on the floor. Kakashi tied up the other man before breaking Minako out of her imprisonment. He cradled her in his arms and analyzed her face for a moment. Her breaths were in pants and her eyes were fluttering slightly.

"How... how did you find me..?" Minako whispered. Kakashi smiled slightly.

"I saw your hair strands leading a path here. I always told you I liked your hair." Kakashi whispered back. Minako gave a small chuckle before burrowing her face into Kakashi's shoulder.

"This.. is so.. embarrassing ya know.." She mumbled. Kakashi smiled while looking at her and swiping the red hair away from her violet eyes.

"I rather you be embarrassed than dead." Minako smirked before allowing herself to rest. Kakashi frowned at the state she was in but was just glad that she was alive. Minato and the others busted into the room to see Kakashi holding Minako tightly. Kushina sighed in relief before she ground her teeth in anger at the knocked out man. Minato put a hand on her shoulder to calm her down. She leaned into his touch until Rin pointed out the other man.

"Kakashi... did... you kill him?" Rin asked. Kakashi nodded before looking at the hole he made in the man. He never used or even seen that technique before. He was just so furious that chakra formed inside of his hand like a lightning bolt. Obito's eyes widened in shock that his friend killed a man. No one protested though because they knew it was to save Minako.

"Alright... let's take her home." Minato said as he tossed the knocked out man over his shoulder to interrogate him back at the leaf. Kushina's eyes were glued to the bounty sheet on the table and she immediately took it, looking at it.

"Let's get her to a hospital, my healing jutsu won't fix all this." Rin said with worry in her voice.

~~

Kakashi stayed by Minako's side in the hospital, despite her telling him it was really late and he should go home. He just shook his head and tried to talk to her so she would relax. The men kept calling her a jinchuriki and the nine-tails, something she never understood. Kakashi knew what they meant but had no idea why they thought Minako would have the tailed beast inside her. Obito and Rin fell asleep in the hospital room while staying with Minako and Kakashi.

In the Hokage's mansion at a late hour, Minato and Kushina stood in front of the aging man with the bounty sheet and a notepad of information recovered from the kidnapper.

"We know why the man kidnapped her. Him and his partner were bounty hunters looking for the Nine-tails jinchuriki. They didn't realize that Minako and Kushina weren't the same person and attacked her mistakenly." The Third looked troubled by this information and shook his head.

"I don't like this... I don't like this at all...Minato, how would you assess her ability right now?"

"Minako is strong when it comes to ninjutsu like the shadow clone jutsu. She is average in her taijutsu but she is fast. Her genjutsu could use some work." The third looked at each of them.

"I see... Kushina Uzumaki and Minato Namikaze,  I want you both to teach her a new technique because I have a feeling this won't be the last time someone mistakes her for you Kushina. She has the wind element right? I think you both can definitely work with that." Minato nodded with a slight smile.

"I know just the thing... I created this jutsu myself." Minato said, his grin growing. Minako was going to have a hell of a training experience when she's out of the hospital.