Son of the Sannin
By: drag-eart and Ld 1449
Chapter 1: Prodigy of the Snake
A soft cry was heard from the lithe form of a child that lay in the middle of the room, located in the lowest parts of Hokage Tower in Konoha. A number of candles lit the four corners of its bedding, illuminating the vicinity around it. The small figure rolled in its small basket like crib. His tiny face bared three scars that ran across each of its porcelain cheeks. It was an imprint of his imperfection, a curse he had no choice to bear, the demon's mark. His eyes fluttered slightly, showing a quick glimpse of his gentle cerulean blue eyes. It only lasted for a moment in time, and just as quickly as it emerged, it soon disappeared under the baby's eyelids.
A soft wind began to pick up in the accommodated abode of the child. It sang its heavenly song, caressing his fuzzy blond hair and making him coo happily. A few minutes later, the gentle breeze stirred the child from its sleep and awoke him to the world around him.
Eerie shadows met his gaze as they danced around the candle light, as if playing with the very fire they were created from. The walls, where their home lied, reflected their devilish silhouette contours. They became the tortured, malignant souls of the beasts that were once human in Konoha. They wanted retribution for their untimely death, desiring the fall of the Kyubi no Yoko's jailer. And though this little tot had yet to grasp the concept of fear, these dark apparitions of the night were enough to make him cry.
The blond haired child wailed for the warmth of his mother, for the nourishment and comfort that lied in her bosom. But the room laid in silence, with only his cries making any form of sound. The flickering movements of the dancing flames that came from their cylindrical mass of wax, were the only companion to the youngster.
Intricately black ritual marks burned brightly on the belly of the child, as if revolving in a cycle of a never ending spiral. Around the basket, another set of similar, but crude imprints that seemed to contrast with the infant's own markings, were drawn in blood beneath it. A moment later, the mystical seal on its belly began to mysteriously disappear slowly until a dim afterglow was left on the child's belly, receding back to the infant's complexion.
It was at that time that golden slit eyes stared from the shadows.
In an instant, a dark and impetuous wind manifested itself in the small room, growing more violent and turbulent with each passing second. The light's caress and the soothing harmony were no longer in synch. The peaceful surrounding environment was no exception either, changing into something ominous and ugly.
Three of the candles were extinguished as the junctures passed. It pulled the baby further into the void of darkness that started to engulf him, until a single candle glowed in the entire room. The waxy post shed light on the child that lay crying, as if it was protecting him and guarding him from the murkiness of the night.
The body that was attached to the golden slit eyes slowly and attentively made its way to the small figure in its bed. The shadow of a man began to form and yielded himself in front of the crying infant. He bent his head slightly to let a part of his facial features shine in the fleeting light. It was as if he was allowing the wailing child to see part of his visage, to ingrain himself into the baby's memory.
The blond haired child instinctively reached out for the man out of necessity, his pure and innocent mind not knowing of who the golden eyed man truly was. A wicked smile crept on the pale features of the man, as he let out a chuckle that seemed to be laced with irony.
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"So, it's finally done…" A man said to no one in particular. His head was downcast; his white trimmed hat hid his expression from the entire world to see. He interlaced his fingers and looked through the open crevices, as he stared at the door in front of him.
'You've truly done your job as leader of this village my young friend. And I've done my part to finish the sealing of the Kyubi. But aside from that, you also left another ordeal that I must deal with. You left me to decide the fate of this child and our village. I'm not blaming you for it. You did what you had to do so that we could live. But I wish that fate wasn't as cruel to us as humans.' He thought dismally.
After he breathed in a long sigh and exhaled with a ragged breath, the man stood up from the chair he was sitting in. He walked around his desk and stopped abruptly, taking one last glance at the portrait of his successor, the Yondaime before he departed. 'Now I must go issue that order, for the welfare our village. I hope that you won't think less of me for it, my young friend…' Sarutobi thought as he released an exasperated sigh.
Pulling his gaze from the frame, the Sandaime Hokage stepped outside his office. With his head still slightly bowed to cover his eyes, he walked the darken corridor of the hall. Shadows began to flicker in the moonlight, casting shrouded voids and illusionary beings that were disturbingly more human than shadow. It reminded him of the attack and the deaths that came to pass now more than ever.
He made his way up the steps to the roof where his loyal warriors awaited him. The proclaimed Professor clenched his hand when he reached his destination. He paused for a moment as he took one last glance behind him. Then he peered ahead and looked at the stars that shined in the clear night sky.
Even as a child, Sarutobi always enjoyed looking at the little sparkles that shimmered quietly in the air like a beautiful tapestry. It always eased his mind and in a way assured him that tomorrow would be better than today. He truly believed that, and he needed to believe it, for the sake of the village and for his own sanity.
With renewed courage, he continued on and walked up the last of the steps. He stared at his 'family' that consisted of the ranks of jonin, chunin, and genin. They stood at attention when they saw their leader, as they waited for their orders. The Hokage lifted is head and tilted his hat slightly to have a better view of his shinobi as he began to speak.
"As all of you are already aware of, I have been reinstated as Hokage once again. And now I have come to give a special order, so all of you listen well. Now you already know the crisis we have endured because of the Kyubi. And because of it, we have many wounded and those that were KIA, more so in the jonin rank. That is why I have called you all here today," The Sandaime stopped for a brief breathe before continuing on.
"Before I begin, I want to say I'm sorry to all the people that have lost loved ones in this struggle. It deeply pains me that we had to witness our children of the leaf pass on from this world. But unfortunately, our time is dire and we cannot grieve right now. The loss of the Yondaime and the deaths of many of our shinobi have left us prone to an attack from our enemies. Now more than ever, we must protect our village from disintegrating, which is why I have summoned all of you to answer that call!" The Sandaime Hokage said with fire in his eyes. Taking a moment to clear his throat, he continued.
"The Kyubi no Yoko has weakened our number of shinobi significantly. And if rival nations have any hint that we are at our lowest right now, they will attack us with no hesitation. So regrettably, I must have you take missions that are even beyond your class. Let us show them that we are ready, willing and able to protect our own!" He decreed. As the older shinobis and kunoichis cheered and their faces shone with pride, The Hokage looked mournfully at the fresh faces of the newly instated genins as they trembled before him. It made him feel like he was sending them to their death's, it twisted his stomach in knots, and brought a nauseous feel to his stomach as he realized he most likely would be doing just that.
"As of now, all of you will be doing the following kinds of missions until further notice. Please listen to your rank. Jonins will take the majority of the S and A-rank missions. Chunins will occasionally take High rank A missions, but it will be in teams of two or three. A and B rank missions will be done solo. Genins…" He stopped for a moment and looked at the young ninjas once again. As powerful and fearless as he was as a Hokage, the human side of him couldn't bear to watch the horrified faces of the children that were barely twelve years of age.
He turned away from them and looked out at the Hokage monument, as if he was silently asking his mentors, the Shodaime and Nidaime, for guidance. His hands, which were behind his back, wouldn't stop shaking from the unbearable sorrow and pain that he was feeling. But as much as he wanted to, Sarutobi knew he couldn't show weakness in front of his men. For better or worse, he was their pillar, their foundation, their leader. But for a brief moment, he truly cursed the position of Hokage as he did at that moment.
"Genins will take the remaining A-rank missions left from the ones taken by jonins and chunins, in a team that will be led by a chunin. B rank missions will be paired with a team consisting of at least two to three at the most. And finally, C-rank and below missions will be done solo." He finished after he gulped to remove the lump that was forming in his throat. The Sandaime looked once more across his shinobi that was his family. Some were pale and sickly. Others were strong and enduring. And the last of them were emotionless and demure, waiting to grieve when the time came that they were home alone.
The professor knew he should have given them the order in the morning. No, the week after would have been the better decision in his opinion. Many villagers, civilian or ninja, lost families overnight; Sons, daughters, wives, husbands, lovers, friends, nothing was forgotten when the most powerful biju in existence attacked.
They deserved to mourn, to grieve, and to comfort and soothe the pain of the ones that were alive, along with themselves. But precautions had to be taken immediately. And the protection of Konoha was, for the moment, the most important matter. Such is the burden of a ninja village.
"Now that my special order is said and done, you all have a duty to carry out. And that duty is to secure and protect our village. You all have remaining orders for the rest of the night, am I correct?" The Sandaime asked them.
"Hai Hokage-sama!" The shinobi of the leaf announced as they all stood upright.
"Report anything suspicious to your captains or the ANBU commanders in your vicinity, do you understand?" Sarutobi inquired as he turned to them with a steely gaze in his eyes.
"Hai Hokage-sama!" They all replied in total unison.
"Very well then, you are dismissed! Scatter!" He said. And with a wave of his arm, the warriors all disappeared in a swirl of leaves. Once they were gone, the Sandaime let a pregnant, exhaled breath escape him, as if he was holding it in all this time.
His hands were still shaking, even after he clasped them to calm himself down. His white robes billowed in the cool night air and he stared up into the night sky again at his longtime shiny friends. Along with the moon, they glowed a little more brightly for him, as though they were trying to give a shred of hope for the village, and to their gazer.
Several minutes passed, and the Sandaime turned away from the night as he made his way to the stairs. 'Now for the child.' He thought as he stopped suddenly during his descent.
"Asuma and Kurenai." Sarutobi called out.
"We're here Hokage-sama." They said in unison as two blurred figures appeared from thin air on one knee with their head bowed to their leader.
"I need you to gather all the clans. Tell them that it's in regards to the fate of the child. They must come at once. Now go!" He commanded.
"Hai! It will be done Hokage-sama." They said simultaneously as both of them left, leaving a steady wisp of smoke that trailed in the wake of the midnight air. The Sandaime continued his trek down the stairs and corridors, towards the Yondaime's Isan.
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"Wh-, what the hell happened here?" A horrified shinobi of the leaf said in disbelief, as he looked at the dead faces of his comrades. "Who did this?" He thought out loud.
The platoon stood over the fallen men who had ghastly white faces adorning their features. Their mouths were agape in terror, as if they suddenly died of fear. Their weapons were clutched securely in their hands. No signs of cuts, wounds, bruises, blood, or guts were on their bodies. Who could have done such a thing?
To take them out so discreetly, without so much a noise, a crash, or anything at all to alert and call upon their other comrades who patrolled the walls. It was undeniably eerie and terrifying to the group that looked down at them. After all, these men were considered the masters of stealth and the removal of their enemies, the ANBU.
"Hmm…It looks like these guys have been dead for at least an hour at the most, so it couldn't have been the Kyuubi. This leaves us with the conclusion that we have an intruder in our midst. Right Taichou?" Another ANBU soldier deduced as he inspected one of the bodies.
The captain of the group nodded silently and gave a grunt in agreement as he contemplated his choices of what to do. He then turned abruptly to a man with a dog-mask on.
"Kakashi, you are the fastest one out of the group. Head to Sandaime-sama and tell him what we found." The captain ordered him.
"Understood…" Kakashi simply said. The ANBU leader then turned around to fully to address his squadron.
"Alright, listen up you lot! This part of my faction will head back and inform the rest of the captains of this incident. It may be a full scale attack of a village or mercenaries trying to pick up on our time of weakness, so the rest of you cover Kakashi and make sure you hang back from him. Protect him with your life, at all costs. If he falls, then make sure the remainder of you gets the news to Hokage-sama. Am I clear?" The captain commanded.
"Hai Taichou!" The ANBU soldiers answered.
"Go with Haste!" He said. A second later, the ANBU of Konohagakure no Sato scattered for their assigned duties. Unfortunately, they failed to see a snake protrude from the mouth of one of their dead comrades.
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"The jinchuriki of the Kyubi no Yoko. My…prodigy…" The mysterious man with the golden eyes said in dark tone as his fingertips started to glow. His hand descended slowly towards the infant. The little tot looked at the figure above him and gurgled with his tiny arms outstretched, until the enigmatic man's fingertips hit its mark…
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AN: Check out our other works. I posted a new story so check it out. And Ld 1449 a new chapter. Huge Thanks to our beta Mr. Lee.