Kushina Uzumaki

Kushina Uzumaki was a powerful kunoichi who was the wife of Minato Namikaze and the mother of Naruto Uzumaki. She was also the second Jinchuuriki of the Nine-Tailed Fox.

She is voiced by Dorothy Elias-Fahn (earlier episodes) and Cindy Robinson (later episodes) in the English version and by Emi Shinohara in the Japanese version.

Appearance
Kushina is a beautiful young woman in her early 20's. She is slender figured and has fair colored skin with dark violet eyes. She also has dark red colored hair that reaches past her knees. In the anime, her hair is waist length. She even wears a small black hairclip where she keeps her hair up on the left side of her face. As a child, she was slightly chubby. She was seen briefly wearing a Konoha headband after graduating from the academy.

Personality
Kushina was described as being a tomboy by both Tsunade and Jiraiya and she even had a short temper. As first seen as a child, she was shy. However, she became more confident and she had the tendency to lash out at people who would annoy her. Like her son Naruto, she even has her own verbal tic dattebane which is a feminine version of Naruto's dattebayo. Despite her violent outbursts, Kushina has a soft and caring side of her and she was very strong-willed which caused her to even risked her life to protect her son and wish the very best of his life.

Background
Kushina was born on July 10th in The Land of Whirlpools and was a member of a clan that founded the land and was greatly renowned by ninjas from all over the world called the Uzumaki Clan. As a very young child, Kushina lived in the time of war were many nations feared her clan and were frequently targeted because of their powerful Sealing Jutsus and long lifespans.

During the wars, Kushina's home village was eventually destroyed killing half the clan members and leaving survivors to flee into other villages from around the world. Kushina's parents were presumed deceased, but Kushina was eventually founded by Konoha Ninjas who took Kushina into the village where she was made a citizen. By the time she was six years old, she attended Konoha Ninja Academy where she met Minato for the first time. Kushina gathered up her courage by telling the class that she was going to be the first female Hokage, which resulted boys teasing her and calling her tomato because of her long red hair.

As the years went by, Kushina had grown much stronger and she started to brutally beat up the boys who made fun of her and she was known as The Redhot Habenero.

A few years later, The Cloud Ninja kidnapped Kushina because of her special chakra that they wanted for themselves. As they were crossing the border, Kushina secretly pulled out pieces of her hair to leave a trial so that the Konoha Ninja can find her. Minato was the only one who picked up the trial and rescued her. Is was there that Kushina admired her hair because Minato noticed how beautiful it was, and that the red strands represent the Red Thread of Fate that lead her to her soulmate and Kushina fell in love with Minato. From here on out, Kushina and Minato became lovers and they were married. Years later, Jiraiya came and visited the couple during Kushina's pregnancy. Minato mentioned how he enjoyed Jiraiya's book Tales of a Gutsy Ninja and how he admired the hero in the book named Naruto and that he hopes to name their child after him. Kushina came in and lovingly agreed that Naruto is such a beautiful name. In turn, Kushina and her husband made Jiraiya Naruto's godfather.

The Nine-Tailed Fox Incident
It was revealed that Kushina was the second Jinchuuriki (Human Vessel) to the Nine-Tailed Fox named Kurama. In truth, Kushina was actually sent to Konoha to become the new vessel because the first jinchuuriki named Mito Uzumaki was a fellow clan member of Kushina and the wife of the First Hokage, and was dying of old age. So the village needed a new vessel with the same amount of Chakra sealing control like Mito, and Kushina was the perfect candidate for this job. Kushina was at first shocked by this and was afraid because of the loneliness that she would had to endure. One her death bed, Mito comfort Kushina and told her that they where sent here to become the vessel, and that if a Jinchuuriki fills the empty vessel with love, then that Jinchuuriki will live a happy life. In that end, Kushina was happy because the love she had for Minato filled her empty vessel, and she happily accepted her fate as being Kurama's Jinchuuriki.

Year's later, Kushina was around 10 months due to giving birth to Naruto, so the Third Hokage and his wife named Biwako made arrangements for her to give birth in secret under the guards of ANBU and using a special seal to aid her in childbirth so that the seal would not be broken with Biwako assisting the birth and Minato doing the sealing. While Kushina and Biwako were walking to the hideout, Kushina met up with her friend Mikoto Uchiha with her newborn son Sasuke Uchiha with both of the women wishing their sons to be best friends.

Kushina came to the hideout and started to give birth to Naruto. Outside, Madara finished the ANBU and snuck into the hideout. Naruto was then born, much to the great joy of his parents. As Minato was trying to finish up sealing Kushina, Madara killed Biwako and Taji (Kushina's nurse) and took Naruto hostage and threatened to kill him if he does not hand over Kushina. Minato tried to calm Madara down, but Madara put explosive tags under Naruto's wrappings and Minato removed the wrappings and saved Naruto, but Madara kidnapped Kushina. Kushina was taken to a abandoned field outside the village were she was bounded to stones with sealings all over her body. Kushina demanded Madara what he wanted. Madara said that he was going to extract the Nine-Tails. Once the Nine-Tails was extracted, Kushina survived thanks to her clan's long physical endurance, but was greatly weaken. Madara took full control of Kurama and demanded him to finish Kushina off but was rescued by Minato and Madara got away. Kushina told Minato that Madara is going to Konoha and begged Minato to protect the village. Minato took Kushina back home so that she can look after Naruto as Minato left to protect the village.

Later, Kushina was summoned by Minato with Naruto. Kushina used her Chakra Chains to restrain Kurama. Kushina with strong determination told Minato that she is going to take Kurama down with her in death. She sadly thanked Minato for everything, and that she wished that she could see Naruto grow up and wished a future for their family of three. Minato decided to use the Reaper Death Seal Technique to seal half of Kurama in Naruto. Furious, Kushina did not wished a heavy burden on her son, and she demanded Minato as to why he is risking his own life for hers and Konoha's sake. Minato answered that deserting a village is just as horrible as deserting a child and that they are all a family of ''Shinobi. ''He even told her that he can never replaced her, since Naruto needed most of his guidance from his mother. Minato declared that by sealing Kurama in Naruto and with Naruto mastering Kurama's powers as an adult, he will stop Madara''. ''Kushina sadly agreed and Minato summoned the sealing alter and placed Naruto on it. Once Kurama (who was no longer controlled by Madara) saw the alter, he tried to killed Naruto so that he would not be resealed, but Kushina and her husband standed in the way and they together took the hit with Kurama's claw piercing though them, severly wounding them in the process. In their last dying breaths, Minato had his Sealing Key sent to Jiraiya as Kushina sadly said goodbye to Naruto and wished the best of her son's future (Studying hard, listening to elders, making friends, making a goal a fruition, spending wisely, drinking occasionally, & marrying the right girl)''. Kushina then died with Minato as they together sealed Kurama in Naruto.''

Naruto: Shippuden
Kushina made her first major appearance while Naruto was being trained under Killer Bee into extracting Kurama's Chakra. In confusion, Naruto mistaken Kushina as Kurama's human form because of her laughing, which caused Kushina to hit Naruto on the head as she used her tic word Dattebane, which caused Naruto to be surprised and confused at the same time. Kushina apologized to Naruto and explained to Naruto that she was always hot headed as a child and hoped that he didn't turn out as her. Just immediately, Naruto tearfully hugged Kushina and recognized her as his mother, much to Kushina's understanding happiness. Kushina then had Kurama stay out of their conversation by using her Chakra Chains to bind Kurama. During their conversation, Kushina explained to Naruto that Minato sealed her Chakra inside Naruto so that when the time comes, she would appear and help Naruto control Kurama's powers. Kushina then talked to Naruto on how she met and married Minato and that Naruto along his father, where the only two men who ever complemented on the loveliness of her hair and told her son she loved him. There, Naruto made a new nickname for himself The Orange Hokage (combining his father's Konoha's Yellow Flash and Kushina's Red Hot Habanero). With new convidence because of his mother's love for him and her help, Naruto was able to extract Kurama's powers and gained new powers from the Sage of Six Paths. Kushina congratulated Naruto and she was able to past on, not before revealing the truth behind the Nine-Tailed Fox Incident to Naruto and how he became a Jinchuuriki from the start. After finishing the whole story, Kushina told Naruto she was so sorry that her and Minato made Naruto a vessel. Naruto said that he forgives her and that he would never blame his parents for what they did. He described that he now knows what a parent's love is like and risking their lives to protect him, and that he is proud to be Kushina's son. Tearfully overjoyed with happiness, Kushina embraced Naruto as she dispersed into the light while thanking him and pasted on peacefully.