CH 4: Tsundere Kyuubi & Sharingan

Kushina now stood in a long, dark corridor. The walls were damp and cold, dripping water from the ceiling. Before her loomed a massive iron gate, tightly shut, with a large seal in the center.

She recognized this place instantly.

'This... isn't this like Naruto's subconscious?' she thought in confusion, stepping slowly forward. 'In the original version, I remember Kushina's inner world being cleaner, brighter... so why is it like this now...?'

From behind the bars, a deep growl echoed. Two glowing red eyes glared at her with burning hatred.

A massive, dark-orange—or more accurately, almost blackish-orange—figure writhed in fury. The air around the corridor suddenly grew heavier, as if that hatred had a physical weight.

"You!" the creature roared, its voice booming, full of long-held rage. "How dare you seal me again! Disgusting human!"

Kushina merely raised an eyebrow.

"Hoo? So you're the Yin half, huh?" she said casually, squinting at the dark shade of its fur. "Darker... hmm, that's too bad. I prefer the brighter one. It's cuter."

She shrugged, her expression light, almost as if she were judging a pet in a store.

The Kyuubi's eyes narrowed into furious slits. "How dare you belittle me, human! You think this is a joke?! I AM THE STRONGEST BIJUU, THE BEAST THAT SHAKES MOUNTAINS!"

Kushina stifled a laugh. 'I used to be terrified the first time I saw you. But now... you're more annoying than scary.'

She crossed her arms and stepped closer to the bars, staring directly into those crimson eyes without flinching.

After getting her fill of teasing the tsundere Kyuubi, Kushina eventually returned from her inner world.

'Alright... everything takes time. No need to rush,' she thought.

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The room was quiet, only the sound of brush strokes against wooden floorboards could be heard. The golden glow of dusk streamed in through the window, casting warm hues on the walls and the silhouettes of two figures sitting cross-legged in the center of the room.

Kakashi sat upright in the middle of a seal circle that Kushina was painting. His face showed doubt, one eyebrow raised beneath his black mask. His eyes—one normal, one glowing red—looked at Kushina with visible hesitation.

"Is this really necessary, Sensei's wife?" Kakashi asked, his voice calm but clearly uncertain.

Kushina paused her brush for a moment. She straightened her back and looked at Kakashi sharply, as if his question had insulted basic logic.

"Of course it's necessary, you idiot!" she snapped, her face clearly annoyed. "You think it's just coincidence that non-Uchiha users rarely use Sharingan since the Warring States period?!"

Kakashi looked down, silent. His eyes avoided hers, but he was definitely listening.

"It's not just because they're afraid the Uchiha clan will hunt them to the ends of the world," Kushina continued, voice more controlled but still sharp. "It's because the Sharingan is... greedy. It devours the chakra of non-Uchiha users like you. Don't tell me you haven't felt unusually exhausted in the past two years?"

Kakashi opened his mouth to argue—but stopped. Because what she said… was true.

He remembered the long nights after missions when his body nearly collapsed. Training that once felt light now left him drained. Even at times, he felt like he was running on fumes just from using the Sharingan too long in combat.

His face darkened, and he muttered under his breath.

"…I thought that was just part of getting older."

Kushina stared at Kakashi in disbelief, then placed her brush down with a thud.

"You...! You're not even thirty and you're talking like a retired old man!" she shouted, moving closer with a deeply furrowed brow.

By potential alone, Kakashi should've been rivaling the Legendary Sannin by the time he was in his twenties—but because of the Sharingan, he'd turned into an uncle who tires easily.

Kushina clearly didn't agree with how his character turned out in the original story!

At the very least, Kakashi had to become stronger. After all, Kushina couldn't protect Naruto alone. If there was anyone who would willingly protect Naruto without asking for anything in return—it had to be Kakashi!

Then she took a deep breath and sat back down in front of Kakashi. Her voice was softer now, more serious.

"Listen, Kakashi… Sealing your Sharingan doesn't mean you're throwing away your power. It doesn't mean you're rejecting Obito's gift either." She looked into his eyes, and he met her gaze attentively. "But it will remove the chains you didn't even know were there. You'll be free."

Kakashi didn't answer immediately.

He looked down, thinking about everything he'd been through. Faces of Obito, Rin, and Minato flashed through his mind. Then Naruto—the boy he protected without much reason, other than… someone had to do it.

And now, Kushina. The only person who seemed to understand the weight he carried...

After a few seconds of silence, Kakashi nodded slowly.

"…Alright. I trust you."

Kushina gave a small smile, then returned to her starting position. "Good. Don't move."

The sealing ink began to form a complex pattern on the floor. Kushina painted skillfully, her fingers steady and practiced. A quiet chant slipped from her lips, like a whisper in the wind.

Kakashi sat calmly in the center of the circle. Sweat began to form on his temples—not from fear—but from the uncertainty of what would happen next.

Chakra light began to glow from the seal's pattern, reflecting on the walls and Kakashi's face, now bathed in the soft red of his Sharingan.

"Shisho Fūin."

A blinding light surged from the seal toward Kakashi's eye. He grimaced, enduring the searing sensation behind his eyelid.

The next moment—silence.

The light faded.

Kushina slowly stood up, wiping sweat from her forehead with a deep breath. Her expression showed satisfaction.

"It's done."

Kakashi slowly opened his eye. He touched his left eye, then turned to a small mirror Kushina had placed nearby.

His eye... was no longer red. A faded black replaced the glow of the Sharingan that had accompanied him for years.

Yet his vision remained sharp. There was no pain. Just... a strange sense of lightness.

"I... I feel…" Kakashi looked at his hand. "My chakra... it's no longer being drained. I didn't know I had this much..."

Kushina giggled, patting his shoulder proudly.

"Told you so, didn't I?"

Kakashi looked at her. His eye reflected the sunset pouring through the window. A faint smile curved behind his mask.

"Thank you."