Tsuchigumo

I Don't Understand

Fortunately for Naruto, he does not have to write 2000 words within a day perfectly or repeat the process. But he is being banned from doing missions for a while even after a week long break that is mandatory for Shinobi after every outside of Konoha missions. This is because it helps with mental and physical health to rest after a long mission. It is also to help with personal relationships. Bonding with family after days or months away is extremely important. Of course, those that had taken year long mission or missions that take them years away from are also advised to take a much longer break to balance out their life between work and personal.

But for Naruto, he cannot do mission for a week after his week long break. This means helping around the house and catching up with non-combatant friends. Of course, being a born and bred Shinobi, he is restless because he is forbidden from training too. It won't be much of a punishment if all he get is a longer break, now is it?

Kushina chuckles as Naruto sighs for the nth time that morning, "Have you done marinating the meat?"

Naruto shows her the giant containers of marinated meat, "I have..."

She nods, "Close them up in the airtight bags,"

At the moment, he's busy helping Kushina prepping the food for the coming graduation party of the twins. They had also asked for a meat themed food party like the one Kushina made for Naruto, giving her some of the recipes that they had received from the traveling Jiraiya to try out. Naruto sighs, putting the meat into the airtight bags carefully one by one, vacuuming the inside with a straw before sealing them up and putting them aside in another container.

Kushina sighs in contentment, "It sure is nice having two extra pair of hands to help getting this done, dattebane!"

Naruto hums.

She looks at him, "Naruto..."

He glumly looks at her with pout, "I'm going to be left behind..."

She shakes her head, "You and your dad are the same, always eager to train," She smiles as she caresses his braid, "Then again, so do I. With Karin's mom in town, we have been helping each other with the clan's techniques. Karin had even managed to bring out her Kongo Fusa, dattebane!"

He blinks, "She still wants to be Shinobi?"

Kushina nods, "Kirara is a little worried but she does not want to stop her. After all, she is free of those...mean people in Kusa. Karin should be free to make her own path in life too, dattebane!"

Naruto looks down, his hands continue to work, "...even Karin..."

He had seen her around town. It seems that Minato had put her into the Academy once she is sure that she wants to become a Konoha Shinobi. Obviously she will be older than her peers but she will have a better chance now that she is actually taught something properly. Her mother, a frail lady named Kirara, is now working as a receptionist for Tsunade's office at the hospital. Although she's not trained properly as a nurse of the like, she can still do some office work. She would have taken other career path but the ordeal of being repeatedly being used as an easy way to heal had strained her health.

He heard that Tsunade was furious when she finally arrived in Konoha with Jiraiya. Apparently, her chakra had been overused to the point that a few more months and she would have died. They came just in time to reverse the worse of her condition but her body will, sadly, remain frail for the rest of her life. The few times he had to go see Tsunade to make sure that everything inside him is in order, she had looked happier and healthier than the first time he saw her in the hospital room with Karin by her bedside day and night. He was there to give the bag of things Kushina had asked him to bring them.