A blond haired man with cerulean blue irises gazed sadly as he saw the great and terrible tragedy befall his village. The Nine Tailed Fox, a monstrous demon nearly thirty stories tall, a natural disaster made unnatural now rampaged through Minato Namikaze's home, which he had sworn that as the leader of the village, as Fourth Hokage, would even die to protect it. As he saw the fighting, he knew tonight would be that night when he would die, but first he had some business to take care of...business regarding that masked man who attacked him and his wife, Kushina, who held the nine tailed fox sealed within herself hours earlier.
"Minato!" a high tenor voice called out to him, and the blonde haired man turned around knowing immediately who the voice belonged to even though he would have preferred that person not to come.
"You're Majesty! What are you doing here? It's not safe!" Minato spoke quickly; he did not have much time to implement what he planned to do.
"Minato, you know you can call me Mickey. You of all people have earned that right, and I can most assuredly take care of myself." Said person raised an eyebrow at Minato's choice of words. Mickey was a bipedal mouse with big round ears and a very thin, long tail that waved around like a baton conducting an orchestra. He was covered with black fur, but his facial area was bare pink skin. He wore a gray, short-sleeved, leather cloth jacket and pants combo that was light-weight and casual along with black sneakers and white gloves. Despite Mickey's more civilian appearance, Minato knew the King's clothes were well armored through the use of his magic. However, what was the most prominent feature was not what he wearing, but the weapon in his hand. The giant Keyblade, a good six inches longer than the mouse's short stature, was deep blue with a mysterious star shaped design imbedded in a swirl pattern within the keys teeth. The handle had an inside grip surrounded by the hilt while dangling at the base was a key chain with the same star and moon design. It looked far heavier than what the mouse should be able to carry, but Minato knew that the keyblade was more than just an ordinary weapon, it, like Mickey's clothes, was magical of the highest degree.
Minato smiled nostalgically, "Sorry Mick…but you know me enough that I had to congratulate you on your coronation since I was unable to make it…"
Closing his eyes, the young King replied quietly, "Thank you…"
Minato then became serious as he turned to the direction of the battle happening on the other side of the village, his eyes narrowed dangerously "Mickey, this was no accident."
"I had a guess that was the case…luckily I had a feeling something was up so I came here as fast as I could. Someone found about your family's secret, didn't they?"
In reluctance, the blonde haired man nodded, "He was a masked man; cloaked in terrible darkness. I am afraid that he is another harbinger of destruction, and on top of that, he knew when to strike. He knew how to break Kushina's seal! He knows what I am! Everything that I did, even with my own keyblade, even with my hirashin kunai, he saw through everything! He took control of the Nine-Tailed Fox, and then set it loose on the village. Luckily, I separated him from the Fox and that forced him to retreat, but even still, he's given me no choice, he's still out there." The Fourth closed his eyes and Mickey's eyes widened as he saw a single tear fall from the Hokage's eye.
"Minato, you're not thinking of doing that are you? If you do that, your son…!" Mickey's eyes widened with shock, unable to finish his sentence because of the horror that the king knew Minato was about to face.
"Mickey, I have to do this…it's my responsibility; as Hokage, as a shinobi, and as a father…" Minato rubbed the back of his head, a habit that he indulged in for the last time and sighed, "I have to reseal the demon inside Naruto. It's the only surefire way to keep it out of that man's hands. Demons are not like the Heartless; you know that. I fear that this is more than what it seems, and to be honest it scares me to death, after what he said." Minato shook hard as he clenched his fists in his anger, "He's definitely after Kingdom Hearts."
Mickey's eyes widened in shock, his face turning a pale white as Minato's words struck his large ears, "No! He can't! Is he working with Master Xehanort?"
The blonde haired man closed his eyes and shook his head, "I don't know. He could be, or he could working by himself, I've never encountered him before, and knowledge of other worlds here is most scrutinized. Very few people actually know about other worlds, but then again this is a larger world than most, so I don't know, I couldn't tell you."
A loud roar was heard from across the village, the two watched as the Nine Tailed Fox was pushed outside the western walls of the village, which were now rubble. Knowing it was time, Mickey bowed his head in his sadness. He did not want Minato to die, but he was the only one who could defeat the demon. "You should go now… they need you."
Minato turned to his friend and his gaze became serious, "Mickey, I need to ask you of a favor, not for me, but for my son…Naruto."
Mickey returned his gaze, staring up at the tall man, and nodded, "Of course, I'll help in any way I can."
Reaching into the folds of his jacket, Minato pulled out a small, polished, wooden box. It was small, but latched shut with a silver lock, one that could only be opened by a keyblade."Take my keyblade's keychain, it is the mark of the Namikaze clan's power. Like Eraqus' Mark of Mastery, passed down by the Masters of the Land of Departure, this same keychain has been passed down in my family. The bond with the keyblade has been one within my family since ancient times, since before the Keyblade War; Naruto will also inherit this legacy as he is my son. His heart will most likely be very strong."
"How can you be so sure? If you seal the Nine Tailed Fox within him, he could go dark, he could lose hope, and the keyblade would never pick him!" Mickey uttered out in disbelief.
Minato paused at Mickey's words, unsure what to say at first, but then he smiled, "That is a chance I'm willing to take, for I believe in him! His life will be harder than most, I know that. He will grow up orphaned and most likely alone. But he's my son, and I know he'll find love to light his way and will be stronger for it." Minato replied determined with a grand fire in his eyes. He had faith in his son, that despite what he was about to do to him, he somehow knew that Naruto would make a difference for the better on his own with the recent events that had been occurring all across the known worlds.
"When the time comes…" the blond haired man turned his determined gaze on the King before him, "…give him that. It's the key to everyone's smiles! He must receive it!"
Mickey biting his lip, nodded hard. Minato's determination to not give up just yet inspired him to accept his mission.
Minato turned to face the battle bowed his head, a small smile on his face, and finally with a sigh, "Thank you Mickey, for everything… I will miss you…" He reached out and pulled his friend into a hug and then with a flash of light he disappeared to fight his final fight.
Mickey closed his eyes, unwilling to watch his friend go to his death, carrying the wooden box close to his heart, protecting it no matter what. A drop of water hit the box's polished surface, and before the mouse knew it, he was struck with a flood of tears that refused to stop. He remained that way for several minutes, until a bright light overwhelmed the sky. Looking up, Mickey saw that the Fox demon had disappeared, now sealed away once again at the cost of his friend's life. Knowing that it was time to go, Mickey fished into his jacket pocket, and he pulled out a blue stone that glowed like a star, and encased him with strange energy. He began feeling himself grow light and he shot up into the stars, returning to the Space between Worlds to find a place to keep Minato's treasure safe.
As he flew away from that world, Mickey whispered, "Goodbye Minato…my friend you will be missed… I promise you, I will end this… somehow…someway..."
