Hello everyone, I'm back. Now I know it's been a rather long time since I've posted anything. I could make excuses like my life's been busy or technical issues but that won't change the fact that it's been a while. I also can't promise that I'll be able to upload regularly or that I'll be able to update any of my older stories in the near future, but I've been thinking about this story idea for a long, long, LONG time. After a few months of thinking and rethinking over how I want this story to pan out I decided it was finally time to start writing again.
Now, since I didn't have enough space for a full summary in the summary description I'll be putting a longer version here.
Minato, in an effort to protect his wife and unborn child from the consequences of leaked information writes up a document that'll give the other nations a reason to stay their hands. Years later this document will be used by one young Naruto Uzumaki to unanticipated results. Chasing after one goal Naruto will visit anywhere and everywhere as he meets new people, forges friendships, and learns about the wonder and horror that his world has.
Unfortunately no one told the village about this and now they're scrambling to find out where their missing jinchuriki is. Tensions rise between the Uchiha and the village as Dan struggles to hold the village together after the Nine Tails' attack and fall of his predecessor, while outside the village Mikoto and her hastily slapped together team rush after Naruto hoping to find him before the worst happens.
Now that that's out of the way, I hope you all enjoy the story!
(Marshalanime does not own Naruto)
How did it come to this? He, along with so many others gone through so much to ensure this never got out. But here he was with his sensei standing before him having just informed him that all that effort was for not.
Leaning back in his chair the blond Hokage, Minato Namakaze, pressed his palms into his temples while stiffing a sigh. "Are you sure?" Minato asked with eyes held shut in some delusional plea in the back of his mind that if he just ignored the reality before him that everything would go back to how it's suppose to be.
"I'm afraid so" the toad sage Jiraiya solemnly told his student. "We're not sure how but there's no question that this has been leaked. It's confirmed that Iwa, Suna, and Taki are already aware of Kushina's pregnancy and it's only a matter of days before it's spread across most of the continent" the man added.
Silence fell over the room as the furrowed wrinkles on the Hokage's forehead deepened in thought. After a few minutes Jiraiya closed his eyes and held back a sigh. Minato needed time to think about this, Jiraiya knew that. So to give the man the time he needed Jiraiya turned and left without another word. Even if it was too late to stop the information from spreading it wasn't to late to find out how it slipped out of their hands. Jiraiya would ensure that whoever it was suffered the consequences.
They had just one more month to go before they were in the clear, just one more. It wasn't uncommon for a Kage to keep at least their first child's birth secret from the world out of fear that past grudges would endanger both the child and mother but his case was even more severe. His wife, Kushina Uzumaki, was a jinchuriki and when a jinchuriki is pregnant the seal holding back their tailed beast significantly weakens as chakra is diverted to the growing child inside of them. Kushina would be at her most vulnerable during childbirth and it was the perfect time for someone seeking the Nine Tails' power to make an attempt at extracting it from the woman.
After sitting in utter silence for who knows how long Minato finally opened his eyes. It might have been a crap shot but he'd come up with a plan. Reaching for a few sheets of paper and his pen Minato began writing out a document to be sent around the Elemental Nations. At best this would only buy them a few months reprieve but that would be enough. He was determined to do everything in his power to make his son's birth come and go without any problems.
Six years. It had been six long years since that dreadful night. The night when the Nine Tails rampaged through the village and left many broken and lost. While the survivors struggled to pull their lives back together the layout of the village itself had been largely redone during reconstruction, or better or worse.
"I'm sorry, could you repeat that?" Haruzen Sarutobi questions as his eyes jolted up to the woman sitting across from him. Since his retirement roughly seven years ago the former Hokage had been taking it easy but he still loved receiving guests. However, it would seem that today's visit wasn't just a social one.
"I want to take Naruto in, to adopt him" Mikoto Uchiha once more said, the look of determination she held in her onyx eyes never wavering as she stared into the eyes of one of the strongest shinobi in history.
Taking a long drag from his pipe Haruzen examined the woman sitting before him. Taking his tabasco pipe out of his mouth the old shinobi set it down on the small table between them as a stream of smoke was blown from the corner of his mouth. "And you've discussed this with Fugaku?" Haruzen asked after a moment of pause. The Third noted how Mikoto's hands gripped tightly to the fabric covering her knees upon hearing the question.
"I've spent the last few weeks getting him to agree. He's still opposed to the idea but said he wouldn't stop me if this is what I truly wanted" the Uchiha said with a softer tone than before as he eyes dropped down to stare at the small table between them.
Haruzen hated himself for this but it had to be asked, he had to know how she felt about 'THAT'. "You are aware of what the boy holds, are you not?" Haruzen asked and Mikoto's hands balled into fists.
"I know how the rest of the village view the Uchiha" Mikoto said. Her voice was quiet but each word held emotion behind it. "I know that Naruto holds the Nine Tails inside him, and I know what others will think if we bring him into the family" the raven haired woman spoke as he fists trembled against her lap. "But... that doesn't matter" the woman said as the trembling stopped.
"Oh?" Haruzen intoned, urging the woman to continue.
Reaching into her pouch Mikoto brought out a photo and handed it over to the old man. "For the longest time I couldn't bring myself to even look at him. Not because he's a jinchuriki but because he reminded me so much of her" Mikoto said as her features softened and she stared lovingly at the photo Haruzen now held. "She was my best friend, someone I could share anything with. We had so many memories together both good and bad, but all of them are irreplaceable" Mikoto said as he gentle smile faded. She wanted to say tat she'd failed the woman, that she didn't deserve to be called her friend, but the words just wouldn't leave her throat.
Looking at the photo Haruzen failed to notice Mikoto's loss of words as a smile tugged at his lips. In it were her two sons, the genuis of the Uchiha, Itachi and her youngest who'd just recently started at the academy, Sasuke standing in front. Next to Itachi was a young girl of the same age, her brown hair differing from the other Uchiha in the photo, Izumi Uchiha. At the back standing behind both Itachi and Izumi was a young teen by the name of Shisui Uchiha with an arm around the two in front of him and pulling them closer, much to the embarrassment of the younger Uchiha. Even if Itachi did a good job hiding his embarrassment. Finally there was one more person in the photo, one who stood out drastically from the others. At the front, standing side-by-side with Sasuke was a boy with bright yellow hair and dazzling blue eyes. The two young boys held each other closely with the arms held around the other's shoulder as they both smiled widely at the camera.
"Shisui was the first to talk to Naruto. I doubt he was expecting the boy to become so important to him but Naruto carved out a place in his life quickly enough. Soon after he started making friends with the others. First it was Itachi after Shisui introduced them. Sasuke was inevitable since they were in the same class, and Izumi was soon drawn in by him" Mikoto told the Third, summarizing what she'd heard from her sons.
"When I first heard that they were friends, well, I honestly had no idea how to feel about it" Mikoto admitted, ashamed of herself for it. "I was happy for the boy, of course, but I knew that I'd have to face him now. That I'd have to face the sorrow that I'd buried deep down. I was scared." As Mikoto spoke her expression remained mournful. She knew her actions weren't just, no matter what excuses she could come up with.
"But then" Mikoto then said, her face brightening as a warm smile spread across her lips, "when I saw that picture I couldn't feel anything but happy. There before me was the face of the boy that I'd avoided for so long and I couldn't stop smiling, and I want to make sure that he can keep smiling like he is in that photo. That's why I want to take him" Mikoto told Haruzen.
Hearing her say this brought a great deal of warmth to the old man sitting across from her. Smiling himself he handed the photo back to the woman. "There are bound to be problems that come from this decision" Haruzen said seriously, getting an equally serious nod from the woman. "But I have faith that this will be good for everyone" the God of Shinobi told her as he reached down and picked up his pipe.
As the man took another drag from his pipe his face showed that he had one more question. "I have to ask though, why bring this to me? You don't need my permission to take young Naruto into your family" Haruzen told the woman. Even if he was still Hokage the final say in this matter wouldn't have been his. Like with any other child it would g through the proper channels before either being approved or denied.
"Yes, well..." Mikoto began as her gaze drifted off to the side and she held the photo tightly to her chest. "There are plenty who feel that the clan is a detriment to the village, that Konoha would be better off without us" Mikoto said before her eye turned to Haruzen, pleading with him for help. "I'm afraid that if it's just making a request to adopt him that I'd be denied because of that mentality. So I was hoping that you'd help" Mikoto told the man.
"Hmm" Haruzen hummed in thought as his gaze turned upward. He could certainly see why she'd harbor such a concern. Regretfully he couldn't help but feel a pain of guilt. It may have been Danzo's idea to section the entire clan off on the outskirts of the village but he was unable to refuse the man at the time even despite retaking his role as Hokage for the few months after the attack. Then and now there had been no solid evidence that the Nine Tails assault on the village was instigated by the Uchiha but circumstantial evidence and the need to restore order as quickly as possible led to Danzo's plan going through. While distrust of the Uchiha has existed since Madara's betrayal his decisions haven't helped to alleviate that feeling in any way.
Glancing back down at Mikoto's worried expression Haruzen gave her a reassuring smile. "I have some people in mind who could help." The moment the words reached her ears Mikoto's face brightened.
"Thank you!" Mikoto blurted out as she bowed her head low.
"Now. Now. There's no need for that" Haruzen waved the display off. "There's a young boy who needs you right now if I'm not mistaken" the Third told the woman and watched with delight as her head shot back up.
"Yes! Of course" Mikoto said as she got up and quickly made her way to the door. Pausing at the doorway mid-step Mikoto took a moment to sincerely say, "Thank you". Without turning to look at Haruzen's face or even waiting for a response the Uchiha woman left.
"Hahaha, I'm sure you'll be hearing those words soon enough" Haruzen chuckled to himself as he imagined Naruto's reaction.
Even though Naruto was only six he lived all on his own on the top floor of an old apartment building. The apartment itself wasn't all too big but to someone so young it must feel massive, especially when you're the only one living there. On a night like this that feeling of loneliness must be unbearable
Standing outside the front door Mikoto found herself frozen in place, her hand less than an inch from knocking on the door. She'd spent all this time convincing Fugaku, and just got finished asking Haruzen for help, she wasn't about to lose her resolve here. That said she still found this nerve-wracking. Even if Naruto had never known his mother Mikoto knew deep down that she could never replace her. What if he didn't like her? What if he said no? Mikoto knew these questions were silly but she still let them get to her.
No!
Shaking her head vigorously the woman set herself right. She came all this way. She wasn't going to fall at the finish-line. And so she knocked.
And then she knocked again.
No response? Something didn't feel right.
Reaching down Mikoto turned the doorknob. It was unlocked.
"Naruto...?" Mikoto called out as she walked into the apartment. As she looked around that sense of unease filled her more and more. "Naruto, are you here" Mikoto called out once more. With hastened steps she started to comb the place looking for any sign of the boy. Someone his age shouldn't be out this late, though some where in her gut Mikoto knew that he wasn't out enjoying a simple stroll through the village.
With worry gripping her Mikoto began to upturn everything in the apartment looking for a boy she wouldn't find.
Several miles outside of Konoha a group of shinobi were heading away from the village as quickly as they could. They had come from the Land of Water hoping that the Leaf could help them with their plight. A civil war had broken out and they faced the military might of Kiri and the Fourth Mizukage. They had powerful shinobi as well but they had to constantly move their forced about to avoid being completely overrun by the village they were fighting for. It was starting to take a toll on them.
They had hoped that Konoha could supply them with shinobi or weapons, at the very least they could take in those who couldn't fight, but they received a resolute NO. They had known that this was a long shot to begin with but it was a heavy blow none the less.
They had resigned themselves to simply returning home and continuing on as they had been when something unexpected happened.
"This is insane! We already have to worry about Kiri but now we're making an enemy out of Konoha!" one man yelled at the man leading them.
"That's enough!" the man in charge barked back. He was a veteran of the shinobi world and knew the battlefield all to well. the left side of his face was marked with countless scars from an explosion that nearly claimed his life years prior and a portion of hair on that side refused to grow on the damaged flesh making his short brown air patchy there. "An alliance with Konoha could mean the difference between victory and defeat and I don't have to remind you all what defeat will mean for us and our families" the man reminded them as he continued to rush forward. "If they wont agree then we'll just have to force their hand" the man said with narrowed eyes.
"But isn't this a bit much?" a young woman with long auburn hair questioned as she stayed in the center of the group. She had one eye obscured behind her hair but the other rested solely on the boy she carried on her back.
With nothing but determination showing on his face Naruto Uzumaki clung to Mei's back with no intention of letting go.