Midnight. The end of a day, and the birth of a new. The proverbial darkest moment before the dawn. Stars shone on Konohagakure, illuminating the village with a soft white glow as a light shone strong from the uppermost window of the central tower of the city. While not a common occurrence, it was not unheard of for the tower's occupant to stay late to catch up on work. After all, the Bane of Kage's wouldn't diminish by anything less than overtime. This night however, was for a different form of paperwork entirely.
Namikaze Minato, Jiraiya of the Sannin, and Sarutobi Hiruzen all leaned back with a collective sigh to admire their handiwork. Pulling out a bottle of sake, Jiraiya poured for each of them, as Hiruzen lit his pipe, and Minato unsealed three steaming hot bowls of ramen from a scroll. The three foremost seal masters of their time were taking a break after fourteen grueling hours of troubleshooting their greatest work. Originally designed as a Bijuu containment seal, Minato was planning on using it to upgrade his wife Kushina's seal, which was currently a Nine Iron Chains Seal.
"Minato, my boy, you've outdone yourself this time. Sensei, just look at the brushwork on this." Jiraiya was so absorbed in the seal that he didn't notice the other two just share a look and laugh. However none were too distracted to miss the rumbling explosion or the pieces of ceiling that smashed Jiraiya's bottle of sake, nor the plaster flakes adorning Minato's ramen. Without a word, Minato grabbed the other two and Hiraishin'd to the roof. The sight laid out before their eyes chilled the trio to the core.
"!" Buildings shook and fell from the shockwave of the Kyuubi's roar. Minato's face was unreadable as he watched the beast. His wife was due to give birth to their son any day now, and a Jinchuuriki's seal was weakest at childbirth. His troubled thoughts were interrupted midstream by a hand on his shoulder. Jiraiya glanced at him, then turned back to the Kyuubi as it smashed up the academy.
"Don't worry about your family, right now we have bigger fish to fry. Sensei, you and Enma see if you can get it outside the walls to a safe distance. Minato, you summon Bunta. You're going to need him to take on the Kyuubi." Jiraiya instructed. The Third and Fourth Hokages shared a look.
"And what will you be doing, sensei?" Minato asked as Hiruzen summoned Enma and filled him in.
"Hmm? Oh nothing much, just sage mode, summoning the honored lord Elder toads, and the Great Fire-breathing Mountain Toad" Jiraiya nonchalantly stated while flying through hand seals. A split second later there was a puff of smoke as the two Elder Toads appeared and perched on Jiraiya's shoulders.
"Honored Lord Elders, we're in deep shit. The Kyuubi is loose and attacking Konoha. I need sage mode and fast." Jiraiya told the two before they could speak.
"Hmmph. Kids these days got no manners. Wait, Kyuubi? You did say-"
"!" the Kyuubi's roar as Enma transformed and the two began to push the Kyuubi back towards the wall cut Fukusaku off mid tirade. Almost immediately, Bunta appeared under Minato, and after a second to take everything in, the two were off.
"Alright Jiraiya-boy, what did you have in mind?" Shima asked.
"I need sage mode and fast. We have two minutes, tops, to enter it at full power, then we're going to summon the Great Mountain Toad." Jiraiya said grimly already running full tilt towards the mountains.
"Here? The Great Mountain Toad here? Are you out of your mind boy? There's a good reason no ever summons him completely. He-"
"Do you have a better idea, Shima?" Jiraiya's cold tone when he cut Shima off gave her pause. Added to the fact he used no honorific with her name made her realize just how serious he was.
Jiraiya stopped suddenly, then sat down against a tree. "We're here. Hurry, we have less than a minute left." His features began to change to be more toad like as he felt the Nature Chakra surge into him. His nerves on edge, it was hard for him to maintain the focus necessary to take in nature chakra. The fight growing louder by the second, as soon as a minute had passed and he was almost full strength, he ran out of patience.
"That will have to do, we can't stay out of the fight any longer. Hold on tight!" Jiraiya warned, before vanishing in a shunshin.
Meanwhile…
"Hold still damn you!" Bunta yelled in frustration as he tried to stab the Kyuubi, but its only answer was to swing its tails at him. Almost in the same moment they hit, Bunta felt himself being dismissed, then immediately resummoned. His left eye throbbing, he gripped his sword tighter and as he squinted through the blood, he saw Minato slam a Giant Rasengan into the Kyuubi, then vanished in a yellow flash as it slashed at him.
"Hey, you all right Chief?" The blonde asked, having teleported to the Boss Toad's head.
"I'm fine brat, save it for that damn fox." He retorted.
Both paused to catch their breath as the Sandaime flew past with ANBU following closely behind. The night seemed to become day as a veritable storm of jutsu slammed into the enraged Bijuu. The former Hokage appeared next to his blonde successor in a swirl of leaves panting.
"Minato, where the hell is Jiraiya? We don't have the firepower to bring this thing down, even with the ANBU Black Ops Squads collaboration jutsu's. If he doesn't-" His grilling of the Yondaime cut short by the appearance of a puff of smoke, Sarutobi turned to see a small messenger toad at attention.
"Jiraiya needs the Kyuubi at least another few kilometers from the city. He will be here in three minutes to assist, and at the signal, everyone is to pull back to the city walls but you four." Here the small toad hesitated for a moment and closed his eyes. "Minato-sama, Jiraiya also ordered me to tell you that "the worst has come to pass, you know what to do.""
Minato's eyes hardened as he took in his sensei's words. Turning away to face the Kyuubi once more, a single tear rolled down his cheek. "And the legacy?" he asked quietly.
"Unharmed, upset, and ready. Minato-sama, I'm sor-" the toad started to answer, sensing his summoner's pain, but was cut off with a glance from the Third.
"Understood, tell Jiraiya we'll await the signal." Hiruzen said, dismissing the toad. Saluting again, it vanished in another cloud of smoke.
Enma ended his transformation, appearing by the two Hokages on Gamabunta's head. Sarutobi and Minato shared a glance, then the Sandaime vanished in a shunshin, followed by the Monkey King a moment later. As Minato glued himself to the Boss Toad's head with chakra, Gamabunta leaped away from the battle and the city for a better angle for the next maneuver.
As the ANBU continued their assault, a brilliant flash illuminated the sky. Immediately, they started a full retreat as the Third and Enma arrived at the battlefield, drawing the Kyuubi's attention. With a feral snarl it lunged towards them as the aging duo stood fast.
"Enma now! Collaboration Technique: Flaming Dragon-"
"Mudslide Destroyer!" Enma finished the jutsu's name with a roar, as his combined with the Third's to create a tidal wave of boiling mud that headed straight for the Kyuubi. Screaming in pain, it fell to the ground under the force, and was pushed over to where Bunta and Minato were flying through hand seals.
"Collaboration Style: Storm Bullet!" Minato and Bunta yelled in unison, as a lightning chakra enhanced water bullet smacked into the side of the Kyuubi's head. Momentarily stunned, the Kyuubi failed to see the shadow overhead until too late as a voice boomed out "Secret Sage Summoning technique: GREAT FOOD CART DESTROYER!"
Time stood still as something flashed to above the Kyuubi and erupted in a cloud of smoke that vanished almost immediately. There the Toad Sage Jiraiya stood, Shima and Fukusaku on his shoulders, glaring down at the Kyuubi from atop a toad almost ten times the size of Bunta. They seemed to stand still for a moment before they dropped, slamming into the Kyuubi and driving it face first into the ground, pinning it beneath the enormous amphibian.
All four vanished as quickly as they appeared as a flash of yellow appeared and a giant sealing array started to form, encircling the Kyuubi as it lay in the crater formed by the enormous toad's crashing halt. Scrambling to its feet, the Kyuubi started to charge an enormous ball of condensed chakra only for it to fizzle out and disperse as the ring formed completely, now glowing a bright red. The Sandaime, Jiraiya, and the Barrier Corps appeared as though summoned, and began to reinforce the massive chakra siphoning seal that surrounded the Kyuubi.
One of the inventions of the First Hokage, the seal siphoned off a portion of the demonic chakra weakening the beast until it was absorbed and sealed within the array. The major drawback was that the seal was invariably upon the ground where the beast was defeated, making it simpler for someone to go back after the fact and release the entrapped Bijuu and possibly capture it. Seals not being the Senju's strongest point, the designs and research notes were gifted to the Uzumaki clan head, the first Uzukage, leader of the Village Hidden in the Whirlpools, Uzumaki Yamamoto. Eventually with the death of Hashirama, and the destruction of Uzushiogakure, all that remained was forgotten in the Forbidden Scroll of Seals. As neither the Second nor Third Hokage's were skilled enough with seals to perfect it, the Fourth, Minato Namikaze, not only recreated it from the explanation in the scroll, but modified it for sealing the chakra into a living vessel. Keeping the containment and chakra absorption parts mostly original, he designed and integrated a series of filters that purified the demonic chakra along with a second integral array that was used as a focus for the purified chakra to be sealed into a container with a modified triple Four Trigrams Seal that would slowly release the chakra to be integrated with the host's own at a set pace after a predetermined amount of time.
However, all kinjutsu are double edged swords, and such a complicated sealing ritual was no exception. While the container of the purified chakra wouldn't suffer any ill effects, the beast's will, sentience, and taint are sealed within the user, who will almost always die as their bodies cannot handle the malevolence and corruption of the demonic energy. When Minato initiated the 157 hand seals required for the array, his fate was sealed. The village would be saved but at the cost of the sacrifice of the Namikaze Clan and other prominent ninja.
His famous white cape flying behind him as the wind picked up, Minato's eyes were firm as he flew through the seal sequence almost too fast for even a Sharingan user to follow. He finished with the Dragon seal and his voice was hard as he said "Forbidden Sealing Art: Twelve Maelstroms of Torment Seal!"
The seal glowed an even harsher red as Jiraiya took a soldier pill, ignoring the nagging of the toads on his shoulders. Chakra exhaustion be damned, he was determined to press on with the sealing process, his nature chakra being an important part of the containment seal, counteracting the demonic chakra and preventing it from being molded. He grits his teeth as he glances over at the bottom of the spiral of chakra, where within the secondary focusing matrix a small blonde bundle was crying. Jiraiya knew that the Yondaime was sealing the beast into his own son had to be difficult, but how could he ask someone else? Turning his attention back to the Kyuubi, he noticed it shrinking rapidly as it was sealed, and after one final scream, it was gone. The fiery ring of sealing arrays faded and Jiraiya and the Sandaime were instantly at the blonde child's side, while ANBU surrounded the blonde Hokage.
"Heh…sorry Naruto. I wish I could be there to see you grow up, but I can't. And you won't know how proud I am of you. Be the best damn ninja you can, and surpass your old man." Minato whispered, sinking to his knees. Head splitting and his insides burning, his body was slowly disintegrating from the corruption of the Kyuubi's will. He went into a coughing fit, before spitting out some blood, and continuing "As my last act as Hokage, All information pertaining to what transpired here tonight is classified a X-rank village secret punishable by immediate execution. The only people that are above this rule is Jiraiya of the Sannin, and Sarutobi Hiruzen, and those they deem trustworthy. Secondly, the Namikaze Estate will be held in trust of Jiraiya to be presented when he deems the time is right to Naruto. Uzumaki Naruto is the heir of the Namikaze and Uzumaki clans by right of birth, as such, he will be given access to the clan accounts under supervision of Sarutobi Hiruzen. And finally-"
Another coughing fit erupted and this time he went down to his hands and knees, barely conscious through the pain. "Jiraiya, you will be his jonin sensei when the time comes. Make sure he is cared for. And Hiruzen, sorry, but you're in charge again. By my authority as Hokage and all present as my witnesses, let it be done." Almost as soon as he finished, as if he had been holding it back until now, he went into convulsions, and despite the efforts of the ANBU medical nin, Minato Namikaze was no more.
6 Hours later…
Dawn broke as the citizens of Konoha lined the streets, clad in black. Tears rolled down the faces of the masses as the body of the Hokage was taken to the cemetery from the main gate. A light mist of rain fell from the oppressive gray clouds blanketing the sky, as if the very land was crying with the people. The funeral was short, the coffin nearly disappearing under the white lilies given in remembrance of the fallen leader.
After the ceremony, a light shone bright from the Hokage's tower, illuminating a fateful meeting, one that would forever change the course of history. The newly reinstated Sandaime was relaying the final words and orders of his successor/predecessor to the clan heads, and members of the council. The heads of the Aburame, Nara, Yamanaka, Akimichi, Uchiha, Hyuuga, and Inuzuka clan were there, (with the Third representing the Sarutobi Clan) as well as Jiraiya, Danzo, Homura, and Koharu. When he was finished, there was a moment of silence, before the room erupted with questions, threats, insults, and various yells. A large tick forming on his temple, the aging Hokage used a jutsu favored by chuunin academy instructors. Sarutobi's head grew in size as he thundered "SILENCE!" quelling the growing unrest instantly as all turned to regard him. Satisfied he had the attention of all present, he motioned to Jiraiya to say his piece.
"Now, as for Naruto. If he is addressed as demon one more time, this council will be looking for a new member as your family plans your funeral…if there is enough left to identify you by." Jiraiya said with a feral grin. Checking to make sure that everyone understood, he continued in a more polite tone. "It was Minato's last wish that Naruto, his SON, should be treated with love and care, and not seen as the Kyuubi incarnate. All that he contains is the purified chakra of the beast, and for all intents and purposes, the Kyuubi died with the Hokage during the sealing. There is no risk of the beast being freed, it's gone, and wont reform for at least another few decades if ever. All that's left to decide is his caretaker and living arrangements."
Again the room exploded into debates, only more subdued and thoughtful this time as they discussed the problem. Danzo and the Uchiha wanted him to made into a weapon, the Hyuuga wouldn't take him as he was not of their bloodline, the Inuzuka said it was unlikely he could bond with their familiars. He wasn't suited for the Aburame's bugs, didn't carry the Yamanaka bloodline, and while the Akimichi could take him, the Nara clan leader Shikaku drew Yamanaka Inoichi and Akimichi Choza away from the rest for a moment for a rushed whispered conversation. Jiraiya observed the trio with a raised eyebrow and he and Hiruzen shared a glance as they both thought of what might be to come.
"I'll take the boy. Troublesome as he might be, It's the least I can do." At this statement, all conversation stopped as all turned to regard the shadow user. When Danzo, the councilors, and Uchiha appeared to be about to protest, he continued. "I wasn't asking. Either I raise my friend's son, or the Nara, Akimichi, and Yamanaka clans leave Konoha. Choose."
Sarutobi leaned back in his chair, smoke rising from his pipe as he contemplated the Nara's words. Three major clans leaving Konoha would amount to a loss of over a third of their strength, not to mention having to explain why they left to the Daimyo, and the trouble that would be caused if they went to another village and revealed Konoha's secrets. Just by threatening to leave, all three of the clan heads had technically committed treason, punishable by death. Pondering his words, the Sandaime subtly glanced around the room to gauge the reactions of the other clan heads. The famous Ino-Shika-Cho formation were resolute, meeting the glares of the Hyuuga and Uchiha clan heads, as well those of Danzo and the councilors without flinching, while the Aburame was unreadable as always. The tension was broken, however, as Inuzuka Tsume started laughing, tears forming in her eyes as she clutched her sides, shaking, and wiped her eyes, but regained her composure when she felt the eyes of the rest of the group on her.
"Sounds like the pup will be in good hands if you're willing to go that far for him. The Inuzuka stand with you in favor of your adoption of the boy." She said as she walked up to stand beside the trio with a grin.
"No offense sensei, but as Naruto's legal godfather, I approve of him being adopted into the Nara clan, and will support them as long as they keep his best interests in mind." Jiraiya spoke up, adding his support to group. Uchiha Fugaku looked murderous as he opened his mouth to speak, but Danzo laid his hand on his shoulder, causing him to pause. The eyes of Jiraiya and Hiruzen narrowed at the gesture, and what the underlying meaning of such an action could mean. If the Uchiha backed Danzo…well, sometimes there is no underneath of the underneath and hopefully such a gesture could simply be as it appeared, a senior councilman stopping a clan head from saying something he would regret.
Exhaling a smoke ring and watching it rise to the ceiling, Sarutobi pondered the significance of what he was about to do. "Nara Shikaku, Akimichi Choza, Yamanaka Inoichi, Inuzuka Tsume, Jiraiya, I trust you understand the ramifications of your actions?"
"Yes, Hokage-sama." The aforementioned shinobi replied in unison. Sarutobi sighed again, and took off his hat.
"Then as the Third Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves, you leave me no choice." He said, his voice a stentorian rumble promising doom upon the group in front of him, watching for the reactions of his shinobi. Seeing none wavering, their individual resolve firm, ready to face the consequences of their words, and of trying to leave Konoha for their support of the now orphaned boy, he continued, reaching into his desk and withdrawing a sheet of paper from his desk as he did so.
"Adoption request approved. Shikaku-san, sign here, and put your thumbprint in blood here so you can go explain this to Yoshino-san." The entire room face-faulted at the Hokage's sudden change in mood and how easily he acceded to the Nara's demand. Not one to waste an opportunity, before anyone else had recovered Shikaku had crossed the room, read the paper, and signed it. Next thing he knew, Jiraiya grabbed him and vanished in a swirl of leaves and they were gone from the tower.
"Alright, sense there are no objections," Sarutobi started as he flooded the room with killer intent and glared at the assembled Jonin, " then I declare this meeting adjourned."
"Hiruzen, you-" that was as far as Danzo got before his cane was cut in two by a kunai. Everybody froze as the Sandaime took another puff on his pipe and with a grin said, "I'm sorry Danzo, were you saying something?"
"No, Hokage-sama, I was merely clearing my throat." Danzo muttered as the bloodlust behind the aging shinobi's fake smile was apparent, as well as his message of "I have made my decision, your opinion is of no consequence." That and his speed and aim had obviously only improved with the years.
"Then all of you scat. I need to catch up on some paperwork." The assembled Jonin bowed, then collectively vanished out the door or in a swirl of leaves.
Meanwhile, at the Nara Compound…
Two men stood before gate of the Nara compound, steeling themselves for what was to come. Finally mustering up the courage to enter, they made their way to the central structure, the home of the clan head. Removing their sandals at the door, Jiraiya took Naruto from Shikaku's arms and let him go first. With a mutter of "Troublesome", he pushed it open only to be met with a flying tackle/hug from a dark haired blur.
Removing her arms from around his neck, and drying her eyes she murmured "Welcome home, dear. Thank Kami you're alright, I was so worried." Shikaku kissed he softly before leading her inside, with Jiraiya following at a respectful distance, towards the living room. Sitting her down on the couch, he sat next to her and told her the whole story of what had happened. How the Kyuubi for whatever reason was released from its seal within Kushina and of her death, of the fight to get it away from the city, of Jiraiya's grand entrance to the battle. She glanced at Jiraiya and noticed the bundle in his arms for the first time and as she opened her mouth to speak, Shikaku laid his hand on her back.
"Yoshino, I would like you to meet our new son, Naruto." Shikaku said carefully, watching for her reaction. Seemingly shell-shocked, she stood up and walked up to Jiraiya. Wordlessly, he adjusted the blanket revealing the blue-eyed blonde baby in his arms. As soon as she saw his face, she knew who he was and why her husband had adopted him. As she took the Yondaime's son in her arms, the boy woke up and gazed at her with wide eyes, melting Yoshino's heart and triggering her maternal instincts. She had given birth to Shikamaru almost three weeks earlier, and her hormonal balance wasn't completely back to normal yet, coupled with the stress of the Kyuubi attack, Minato's death, and now the knowledge of the newest member of the Nara clan, so it was understandable as tears started to form in her eyes, smiling and cooing at Naruto as she carried him upstairs to feed him and put him to bed.
Jiraiya and Shikaku made their way to the kitchen, and after Shikaku made a pot of tea and after they both were seated at the table, Yoshino came back to join them. There they sat for a for a few minutes each staring at the cup of gently steaming tea in front of them, not saying a word, nor even looking at the others. Finally, Jiraiya broke the silence by taking a sip of his tea and turning to address Yoshino.
"Yoshino-san, there are a few things you need to know about your son before I leave, so please refrain from interrupting until I'm done. As I'm sure you have guessed, his parents were none other than Minato and Kushina. It was Minato's last wish that Naruto be raised by a loving family, something I could not provide due to my need to be constantly on the move with my work. His heritage is to remain a secret, X-ranked in fact, until either myself or the Hokage says different due to his status. Minato sealed the purified chakra of the Kyuubi into him, and died taking the Kyuubi with him. The seal containing it is the best work I have ever seen, and since it contains only pure, untainted, condensed chakra, there is no risk of the Kyuubi ever escaping, although it will probably reform in a few decades. The boy will have to start training his chakra control earlier than most kids as he's going to have a lot more chakra than the others his age. Heck, his reserves will probably dwarf a Kage's by the time he's sixteen."
Jiraiya sported a cheeky grin as he finished with "Besides, if he's anything like his birth parents, he'll be the first energetic Nara in generations."
At this, Yoshino choked on her tea as she bit back a laugh. Glaring at the Sannin and her husband both, the Sannin for his timing and her husband for being among the "lazy geniuses" the Nara clan was so famous for. Sighing, she put her cup back on the table and stared at it for a moment before speaking.
"Thank you for explaining Jiraiya-sama. Would you be up for joining us tomorrow as we go shopping for Naruto? We need to get him some clothes and his own crib, among other things, and would value your input."
Jiraiya considered her words before replying "Thanks, but I already have plans. I'm leaving on another trip and won't be back for about a year." The Sannin had his spy network to watch over after all, and was constantly traveling to meet his informants and do some research of his own. "I should be back by his birthday , though. Until then, I take my leave. Thank you for the tea, I'll see myself out." As Jiraiya left, Shikaku stopped him for a moment before he got to the door and the few exchanged a hushed conversation of which Yoshino was only able to catch bits and pieces of.
"…but what if…heir to both…so I need…alright…or she'll skin us both…" they stopped at a small spike of killer intent at the last and they both paled. Jiraiya vanished in a small puff of smoke, and Shikaku stammered "I'm g-going to the p-pub with the guysloveyoubye!" Thankfully, she didn't protest, as her attention was diverted by Shikamaru's hungry cry from his room. As she was climbing the stairs to check on him, his cries dwindled to a happy burble. Opening the door, she was greeted by the sight of the two boys staring at each other, Shikamaru had apparently woken Naruto up and Naruto stopped his crying. Leaning against the door frame and watching the two together, she marveled at the pair. Not even a day old and Naruto hadn't cried even once since the sealing according to Jiraiya.
It made her wonder about what the Sannin had said, about being the first energetic Nara in generations. Knowing what she did about the clans history, it would be a safe bet to say he would be the first energetic Nara ever. And if he took after his mother…well best not think of scary things. "At the very least," she mused silently, "This should be interesting."