#thelegendaryfourth

*Stares*

         Busy. Minato was exceedingly busy that day. Between demands from their neighboring villages and dealing with the coup d'état that was on the rise by the Uchiha Clan, he hadn’t really paid much attention when the door to his office opened. It wasn’t until he heard the voice of a little girl speak that cerulean eyes lifted from his paperwork to look at the newcomer.

         At his office door stood a young girl of maybe six or seven, her brown hair pulled into tiny twin buns at the top of her head. She was looking at him with curious brown eyes, her head tilted to the side. The Yondaime Hokage blinked once, twice, three times before he beckoned for her to come forward. She did, stopping just in front of his desk as he stood before kneeling down so that he was eye-level with the little girl.

         “Not as scary as the stories in the textbooks, huh?” Minato said with a smile, his hand coming to rest on her head. “I’m glad you think so. I’d hate for the children of the village to be afraid of their Hokage. What’s your name, little one?”

Her teachers had spent hours talking about the great feats of the Yellow Flash. The battles he’d won, the war he helped to settle, his deadly jutsus and strategies. Walking around the village, Tenten had even heard two ninjas talk about the man’s stats and commentary in foreign Bingo Books - whatever that was -, which labeled him as ‘flee on sight’.

From her old and crowded second-year classroom, the Hokage seemed to be a dangerous and terrifying shinobi, one you didn’t want to anger even in your worst nightmares. Still, as the little girl stood in front of him, staring at his calm and amused demeanor, none of that made sense. He wasn’t scary at all! How could people say such a thing?

“I’m Tenten!” She beamed, pronouncing it with pride. She just loved how it sounded. As the child looked at him, her gaze traveled from his cerulean eyes to the unusual color of his hair, one of the reasons she wanted to meet him in person so badly. Tenten’s hand slowly rose towards his yellowish bangs:

          As a child, Naruto always wondered what it would be like if he had, had a father to tell him how proud he was of his accomplishments. And a mother to smother him with love at every turn. And that’s why, he really hoped that what was happening now wasn’t just some dream he had conjured up after falling asleep at his desk.

          He couldn’t believe his eyes. Was his father really standing right there, close enough that he could reach out and touch him? Or was he really dreaming? Was this one of those fantasies his mind would conjure up on occasion when he longed to feel the joy that came with having a set of loving parents? Was he trapped in a genjutsu? There were so many possibilities…

          His bandaged hand reached out, placing itself on the Yondaime’s shoulder. The body was solid, warm. This shouldn’t have been possible. But somehow, his father was here with him right now.

          Tears began to well in the blonde’s eyes as he took cautious steps forward. Strong arms wound themselves around the other blonde, his chin resting on his father’s shoulder. He felt like such a small child, crying at the sight of a parent after a long absence. But he was allowed that privilege since he had to grow up without feeling the warmth of a parent’s love.