For Someone Important
Was it the right thing to do?
That question repeats itself in the mind of the man standing in the middle of a half-ruined village and the sound of the pounding rain surrounding him. His ridiculous blond hair still stood up even from the hard-hitting rain, his eyes downcast, looking at the ground.
Namikaze Minato, the Yondaime Hokage is a lost spirit wandering in the world of the living. He's been aware of that when he saw the ANBU ninjas carried his corporal body away for the preparations of his funeral and the fact there's an odd chain attached to his chest. He noted it was odd seeing the chain eating itself slowly. Guilt, regret and hatred coil his entire being for what he has done almost a year ago now when he sealed the Kyuubi no Kitsune in Naruto.
Naruto.
His own son.
An orphan now without a father and a mother to watch over him as he grows up in the future; Minato could only idly stand and now watch the villagers screaming and voicing their opinions in killing the boy he requested to be known as a hero in keeping the demon at bay. He screamed and yelled just as loudly back at the villagers, but it was futile as nobody could hear or see him. They call his son a demon and they were wrong.
Minato is the real monster here, he sealed the being in his own son and he's the one to blame.
Already half the chain have been corroded, he mildly wondered what would happen if the entire chain were to disappear. At the same time, he didn't want to know. A part of him screamed that something very bad would happen soon if he doesn't figure out what the chain means soon.
"I finally found you," a voice broke through the man's thoughts of despair and regret. "So you're the one I've been sensing these past several hours…and it seems that your chain is still intact, that's a good thing." The man turns to the look at person addressing him only to find nobody. "…Look down." The voice ordered, this time it sounded a bit annoyed. The man did and find old, wise teal eyes looking back at him. To the blond's surprise, it was a boy wearing a black robes and a white haori over the black with a blade strapped onto his back with a green slash. The child had white hair spiked up, kind of reminding him of one of his pupil and the boy seem be frustrated at him for some reason. "You're the one with the high reiryoku." Minato was confused. Half surprise the boy could see and talk to him. He is dead, after all.
"Reiryoku? What are you talking about?" he asked. "Who are you?"
"A shinigami," the boy replied. The man's confusion deepens.
"The last shinigami I saw looked was a monstrosity. It's impossible for you to be one." Minato commented, he didn't notice the sudden tension surrounding him and the kid that claimed he's a shinigami, or maybe he's just imagining it. "Why am I still here? I expected to be in the belly of a shinigami..."
"It must have been the doing of this world's shinigami; maybe he must have foresaw something from you to release you," The boy plainly stated and he unsheathes his sword. "Or it could be the fact you subconsciously somehow used your reiryoku to protect you. As of now, I'm taking you to Soul Society to learn how to control your power, it would be unwise to keep your abilities uncheck."
"Soul…Society?" By now, the Yondaime Hokage was confused to the point his head throbbed as if there's a hammer banging his skull from the inside.
"In your words, it's heaven." The boy explained. "I'm going to do a konsoh – a soul burial- on you now. You'll be in Soul Society and your life will reset from there."
"I deserve hell," Minato states, his mood turning gloomy again. "Just leave me be."
"If I were to not guide you to Soul Society and let you stay here, that chain on your chest will disappear in time. Once that's gone, you'll become a Hollow – an evil spirit that will prey on the living and dead souls that have a high spiritual pressure like you do." That made Minato flinched but the boy didn't seem to care. "Hollows…they want nothing more to fill the emptiness…they'll start with family, then friends and then anybody they could get their hands with." Minato tensed up pretty quickly.
No, he didn't want to hurt his child…not…Naruto. Minato's despair came back at him with full force. He couldn't…wouldn't take the life of his own son…will he?
"I have no choice…do I?" Minato asked.
"It was never a choice to begin with," the shinigami replied curtly. "But it's the only way for you to not attack your son if you were to become a hollow." Minato looked pained. There was no way out of this. He stare down at his chain…the accursed chain that is a ticking bomb. It didn't take him too long to debate with his inner turmoil, he finally nod to the short shinigami, complying. He'll leave…in order to protect his son.
"What's your name?" he asked.
"Hitsugaya Toushiro, juuban tai taicho of Seireitei" Minato noticed the confidant tone the boy has. "You?"
"Namikaze Minato," Minato replied.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Namikaze," Hitsugaya nods. "Hopefully this will not be our last encounter." He performs the konsoh and Namikaze glowed lightly and his body began to fade.
"Yeah…same here," Minato said. He felt the hilt of the sword touch his forehead and felt his body envelop in light. He closed his eyes, feeling the warmth wash over him and he thought only of his son before he lost himself in the light.
"Goodbye Naruto."
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