Kushina Uzumaki

was the mother of Naruto Uzumaki and the lover of Minato Namikaze. She was a kunoichi from the former Land of Whirlpools.

Background
Hailing from what Jiraiya called the former Land of Whirlpools, it was said that Kushina lived most of her youth being caught-up in war, making her seek for a daily "peace." When she came to Konohagakure and joined the Ninja Academy, she met a young Minato Namikaze and initially thought of him as a wimp. Wanting to making a strong first impression, she proclaimed she will be the first female Hokage. The other kids laughed at her statement, and began calling her Tomato, because of her then-round face and fiery red hair. This prompted her to lash out and pummel each of the kids. This, in addition to her red hair flowing wildly around, quickly earned her the nickname The Red Hot-Blooded Habanero.

One day, she was kidnapped by the Cloud village to make use of her special chakra. She cleverly plucked and left behind single strands of her hair in the hope someone would find her. Only Minato proved clever enough to pick on on her clue and was able to rescue her. Afterwards, he complimented Kushina on her hair, calling it beautiful. Taken aback by someone actually complimenting her unusual hair, which Kushina had always hated, Kushina immediately loved Minato and came to love her hair as it was what led Minato to notice her.

She eventually became renowned for her beauty in later years. She at some point became romantically involved with Minato and they had a son. During her pregnancy, they decided to name him Naruto after the main character of Jiraiya's first book. When Jiraiya asked if they were sure, stating that it was a name he came up with while eating a bowl of ramen, Kushina says that it was a beautiful name. She is assumed to have died sometime after giving birth to Naruto, but not before giving her chakra, together with Minato's, in the process of sealing the Nine-Tails.

Appearance
Tsunade pointed out that Kushina was a beautiful woman. She had long, red hair, hanging down at her ankles, and wore an apron, and was shown in her pregnant condition. Her skin was pale and her eyes appeared violet. In her childhood, she had a round face which with her red hair made her look like a tomato.

Personality
According to Jiraiya, Kushina was talkative and a tomboyish girl, and according to Tsunade, much of Naruto's personality, as well as his style of ninjutsu, was inherited from her. Kushina also had a verbal tic: when she was flustered or excited she would end her sentences with, a trait she hoped she wouldn't pass down to Naruto, who would end his sentences with "dattebayo". As an adult, Kushina was shown to be very level-headed and cheerful. Despite her normally calm and kind demeanor, Kushina has shown herself to still have a slight temper and can lash out from it, not unlike Sakura Haruno.

Abilities
Kushina's abilities are mostly unknown. She was however famous for a unique style of ninjutsu. In her childhood, she showed herself to be deceptively strong and a fierce barehanded fighter, able to pummel several kids for teasing her. Kushina also possesses an unusual form of chakra. While currently unknown how, it is shown great enough to concern the Nine-Tails just from sensing its presence, and during her childhood, make her a target for kidnapping.

Fourth Shinobi World War arc
During his the fight with the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox, Naruto was overcome by the demon's hatred. As he slowly succumbed to the Nine-Tails' taint, Kushina appeared to tell him he belonged "here" while placing her left hand on her chest, parallel to her heart. At first Naruto naively believed Kushina to be the Fox's true form, which caused her to angrily clobber him on the head. After calming down and apologizing, she clued Naruto until he finally realized the truth. Upon this revelation, Naruto quickly embraced his mother with tears of joy in his eyes, to which Kushina happily returned the gesture. This halted Naruto's transformation. Kushina then used her chakra (in the form of chains) to restrain the Nine-Tails, who was greatly startled by her appearance.

Kushina then decided to talk with Naruto, wanting to learn how her son turned out. Naruto quickly asked how Kushina fell in love with Minato, to which she bashfully told the story.

Trivia

 * Kushina possessed a chakra unique enough for the Hidden Cloud to kidnap her.
 * Both Kushina and Kurenai Yūhi are the only characters to be shown pregnant.
 * According to the third Naruto databook:
 * Kushina's hobbies were pulling pranks and chattering.
 * Kushina's favorite food was salt ramen, while her least favorites were coffee and anything bitter.
 * Kushina's favorite phrase was "Don't give up until the end".
 * She apparently became famous because of her strong-willed spirit and for her skill in ninjutsu.

Quotes

 * (To Jiraiya)
 * (To Naruto)