Uzumaki Naruto cursed the world. Only fuzzy images were visible through the sticky red blood that ran over his face, blinding him somewhat to the fists, feet, and whatever other weapons were being directed at him. There was pain, and it was warm, he was acutely aware of the beating of his heart, the precious life-giving blood that was pumping through his veins while simultaneously spilling out of a wound on his head.
"Why? … Why me?" the boy thought, as his eyes winced closed. There was a savaging ripping sound, someone had sliced through his stomach.
"Please just let it be over… I don't want to feel anymore…"
Paint chips, small rocks, and gravel crumbled to the floor as the Third Hokage slammed his fist through the wall. He might have been getting on in age, but there was a reason he was still Hokage, and that shinobi the world over still revered him as the 'God of Shinobi'. All that reverence and power was useless to him as he stared through his crystal ball, watching helplessly as the drunken and hateful villagers took out their vengeance on an innocent seven year-old boy.
The ANBU stationed in the office wisely kept his silence as the Hokage clenched his teeth and his fists. These were the villagers that Minato and Kushina had sacrificed their life and child for? The Will of Fire? What was it worth, what were the life, blood, and tears shed by his students, comrades and teachers for if the people of the village so easily gave themselves over to blind hate and anger? If they could not separate the Kyuubi from the innocent boy that protected all of them, how could they truly see?
"Leave me. Go see to Naruto's wounds. If he dies…", the Third Hokage's voice trailed off threateningly as his ANBU guard disappeared.
Alone in his office, the Hokage's shoulders slumped as the silence became oppressive. The emptiness of the room seem to fill the ghosts of long-gone shinobi mocking him for his failures. It was the fate of all who held power without being corrupted by it. The taunting of history, the questioning of their own choices and the guild of their own failures. While the Hokage was old physically, it was only in these moments of lonely vulnerability that he truly felt old mentally.
"It is done." Came the hollow voice of Uchiha Itachi. It was a broken sound, filled with barely contained grief and guilt overlapped with the emptiness of man who had just sacrificed everything for his village.
Turning around, Sarutobi's heart was broken again as he saw the state of the Uchiha clan genius. Itachi's face was tear-streaked, his eyes were a hollowed shell in comparison to the eyes of the bright young man who had stood in front of Sarutobi as he was made Chunin at age 10. His slack shoulders spoke volumes of the man's spirit and resolve. Uchiha Itachi was crumbling into nothingness.
"I am so sorry Itachi-san. I wish there could have been a different way. Danzo has tied my hands and has wrestled support from the civilian council and a good number of the clan heads. Nothing I say can make up for what I have ordered you to do, and I beg your forgiveness." Said Sarutobi as he bent down and prostrated himself before one of the last remaining Uchiha.
"Please stand Hokage-sama. The fault is not yours, you tried your best. I know that. Both Danzo and the elders as well as my clan put us in this situation. I do not blame you." Said Itachi softly as he knelt to hold up the Hokage.
As the two men stood up, a swirl of leaves notified them to the arrival of Sarutobi's most trusted ANBU, with Naruto Uzumaki's bloody, beaten, and unconscious form in his arms. He gently set Naruto down before taking off his dog mask with red and black markings.
"I am sorry Hokage-sama. I could not hold back after seeing the sight of what those… those scum did to Minato-sensei's son. I have disposed of their bodies." Said Hatake Kakashi, spitting out the word scum with enough venom to surprise even the Hokage.
"I have asked more from you than any man could give Itachi-san, but now I must ask you for more." Said the Hokage as he brushed Naruto's bloodied hair out of his face. "You must take Naruto-kun with you as flee the village tonight. He must not stay in Konoha another day."
Kakashi and even Itachi looked surprised as the Hokage turned to address the Uchiha in front of him.
"But Hokage-sama, he is Minato-sensei's son! Regardless of how badly the villagers treat him, this is his home." Said Kakashi. "If it's a matter of looking after him, I've told you I will adopt him, I can raise him, protect him, give him a home! Please let me do it for Minato-sensei."
The Hokage sighed sadly as he closed his eyes and breathed deeply before opening them again. "What I am about to tell the two of you is an SS-ranked secret that must never leave this room. Itachi I give you permission to tell Naruto if you decide but I leave that up to you."
Sarutobi continued after both men nodded, "I have been lax and Danzo has been far busier in the shadows of this village than I thought possible. He has made it so I will lose the position of Hokage if I or anyone else attempts to protect Naruto-kun. He wishes to have the villagers' cruelty paint Naruto black before claiming him as weapon for himself and the village. He wishes to transform Naruto into an obedient, jinchuuriki killing machine and I will not allow that."
"Naruto is the child of prophecy. He is the one that will bring peace and stability to this rotten and war‑torn world of shinobi. What I am about to tell you not even Danzo knows or he would have acted much sooner to claim Naruto. From his mother's side, the Uzumaki clan is descended from Senju Hashirama‑sama. He is directly linked to the First Hokage by blood. From his father's side, I traced Minato's heritage and found that his ancestor was the bastard child of Uchiha Madara, born out of wedlock." Both Kakashi and Itachi's eyes widened at this revelation.
The Hokage continued without acknowledging their surprise. "In addition to all that, he is the jinchuriki of the Kyuubi. In Naruto lies the potential for uniting the two legacies of the Sage of Six Paths as well as more potential than any other individual born since the creation of shinobi. Do you understand Itachi-san? I entrust to you the raising of a child on whom the hopes of this world rest. He must not be tainted by Danzo, or anyone else."
"I understand Hokage-sama. I will not fail you or this world." Said Itachi solemnly as he picked up the boy and cradled him in his arms. Before leaving, Itachi turned to face the other two men. "Kakashi-san, Hokage-sama, please do not tell Sasuke about the truth behind tonight. I want him to grow up believing the Uchiha were a glorious clan, I want him to come and kill me so he can restore the clan's honor and be hailed as a hero in Konoha. Please allow me this much."
"I understand Itachi-san. I promise, I will train him as best I can." Said Kakashi softly.
"Goodbye Itachi-san. Thank you for your sacrifice." Said the Hokage.
The Uchiha and Naruto disappeared in murder of crows.
"Now steel yourself Kakashi… We are about to wage war with the rotten and festering roots beneath the tree of Konoha. There will be no quarter and this shadow can only end with my death or Danzo's." said the Hokage steely.
"Hai."
Naruto did not know how long he had been out, but the soreness in his body suggested that this time, he had been unconscious for quite awhile. He had not died it seemed and that meant it was time to stumble back to his hole of an apartment and try to sleep and recover. He noticed however that he was already in a bed and that his wounds had been cleaned and bandaged.
"Good morning Naruto-kun." Came a soft voice to his left.
Naruto looked over and saw a man sitting beside him, leaning back so that his face was obscured by shadow and only his eyes were visible.
"W-who are you…?" asked Naruto weakly.
"From today on, I will be your older brother, and I will protect you." Said the man in a kind voice.
Two sets of red eyes with black tomoes pulsed in the darkness.