(Revised and Edited as of May 27th, 2008)
Hello People, and Welcome to Rekindle.
A Couple things to note before I introduce the story. This is most definitely an AU story. It it apparent from moment one. So if you don't like that, I apologize. But this is what came to my mind when I started writing it.
Also, I will admit, I am not a huge fan of the series. I don't think it's bad, but I don't follow it religiously, so if I make mistakes, please make me aware of them. I wish to try and keep it true to the world of Naruto while interpreting it my own way.
And lastly, you may wonder, mostly later on, about character personality. Now, I am not getting into real life views here, but I am taking the view of Nature over Nurture for the most part, so expect Naruto to be a brash, clumsy, and dense boy who is not necessarily the genius his father is. But yes, he will be much stronger, and the same goes for his opponents. He won't be exactly be the same, obviously, but some of his more dominant traits will be the same at heart. It works out in the end. The same is true for other characters who are important to the plot. Pretty much the same people, but with different circumstances thrown on to them.
I can't think of anything else important right now, so please do enjoy the story. The time line starts around the attack of Kyuubi on the village of Konoha.
All rights to the creator of the series, Masashi Kishimoto.
Rekindle: The End of Fire
Orochimaru eyes tracked the ninja who was slowly crawling along the floor towards the Sannin, and Orochimaru felt his disgust well over into his expression. The fool seemed totally incapable of realizing that Orochimaru would not end this ritual and save his pathetic life. The only redeeming quality he could find in the fool was that he had been able to hold his tongue and kept from screaming when the Kyuubi had entered his body and begun the process of destroying the chakra that kept him alive. After 149 of his brethren had fallen before him, the man had become the final step in completing this ritual.
Orochimaru watched as the man began to reach out to grab his robes, and Orochimaru kicked the man away hard enough to send blood flying onto his clothing.
Feeling annoyed at the mess the fool had made, he looked down at his robes and he felt a certain admiration build in him. The blood red color made the robes of the Hokage appear much more sinister and befitting nation run by a truly strong ninja.
While the ascension to the post of Hokage had been temporary, it couldn't have come at a better time for Orochimaru. While that fool Minato and his bitch of a wife were in some god forsaken hell hole birthing his son, he had been able to step in as temporary Hokage thanks to the backing of the council.
Within the first few hours under his command word had arrived that all of his dreams were about to come true. Fast approaching the villages was the most feared and most powerful of the tailed demons, and while many saw it as the beginning of the end for the village, Orochimaru could not help being elated at the chance fate had given him.
Orochimaru tore himself from his thoughts when a deep red pulsing from the seals written along every available space in the room drew his attention. The pulses were a signal to indicate that the ritual was nearly complete, and that the final soul had begun to be sacrificed to bring the mighty fox demon to bear. On the very edge of his hearing he could make out the snarling and growling coming from the weakened demon's spirit as more and more energy from the sacrifices was used to make it too weak to resist the seals Orochimaru had placed in the room.
Orochimaru had promised the villagers the demon's destruction, but he intended to do no such thing to the king of demon's. Not only was it beyond his ability to kill an elemental being such a demon, the fox possessed it's legendary healing ability that would protect it from being destroyed through such actions. In a human, such healing power would be akin to immortality, and no amount of damage or passing of time would cause the holder of such power to grow weak with the demon's power coursing in their veins.
It was the answer to Orochimaru's quest to find a way to live forever.
While those villagers believed he was destroying the demon for their benefit, he was instead sealing it inside of himself, gaining access to the powers the demon held through use of his latest jutsu.
The seals had been a project he had been perfecting over the past few years and were designed for this very purpose, to control and contain a demon's powers within a human host. It had been his luck that the most powerful demon had fallen right into his hands a few short months after it's completion. Even more favorably, the attack had come at a point in time when no one would question the loss of so many powerful ninjas he needed to complete such a jutsu.
Orochimaru smiled as he looked at the seals he had created and designed after so long. It was the most elegant jutsu he had ever designed, and the workings so intricate and well thought out the thought of it made him shiver in delight. It had been designed not to contain the demon when it was at it's strongest, but to weaken it, and force it's power down to a level even a human body could withstand it.
The demon once caught in the jutsu would have little choice but to try and escape through killing those who had caught it, and would be forced to use it's power to burn through every last bit of chakra and life force the summoners held before it could be free. Yet even for a powerful demon lord, destroying such fundamental parts of a person would be taxing, and Orochimaru had hand selected many who possessed a large quantity of both chakra and life energy to be the sacrifices.
Once the demon had been weakened, the seal would begin the next step of placing the demon's power within a human host, as well as placing seals to keep the majority of it's power dormant until such time that the host could assimilate more of it's power without being destroyed. In time, Orochimaru would grow to wield the full powers and abilities of the Kyuubi, and with it his goal of immortality would be realized.
The only other thing that would make his ascension to godliness even better was the thought of how his Sensei would react when he realized what had happened. The man was due to check on them when the ritual was over, and he could hardly describe how powerful it made him feel when he thought of the look that would be on his face when he arrive. The old fool Sarutobi had refused to make him Hokage, and though he had nearly been discovered by him while performing some of his experiments, the man still held hope that he would someday prescribe to the teachings he had always forced on him in his youth. It was nearly blissful to imagine the look of pride on his teachers face turn to horror when he realized the sort of ritual Orochimaru had performed deep within his beloved Hokage tower.
Orochimaru turned his attention back to the task at hand when he saw the body of the final ninja burst into a youki born flame, a sign that the last bit of life had left the man's body and that the time to begin the next stage of the sealing was to begin. The fire, though, caught his attention, and made Orochimaru smirk. Whereas the youki had burned a deep angry red at the beginning of the ritual, it now had weakened to a dim yellow color, a sign that the demon was no longer powerful enough to overcome the next portion of the sealing.
Grinning to himself, Orochimaru began to perform a complex series and hand seals to complete the ritual. On the last seal, he saw the youki rise from the blackened corpse of the last sacrifice and rush over to slam into his body. The Sannin gasped as the youki flooded his system, and though he had made the precautions to avoid being overloaded with youki, it was uncomfortable to have so much of it flooding his chakra coils. He knew this was only a small portion of what was held behind the seals that now covered his body, and the thought made him laugh at how much stronger he would become. In only a few moments, the process was done, and he stretched, enjoying the feeling as a sense of well being he had never known before filled his entire being.
Even with such a small portion of it's power, he had never felt so ALIVE before. It was as if every muscle he had was being strengthened, and every wound healed, not to mention the sheer chakra at his command. And to think, he still had years to absorb the rest of the youki that the seal hadn't let bleed over into him. The thought was enough to make him want to laugh again and rush out to find those fools who had dared defy him in the past and destroy them. He would no longer let anyone dare defy him, and any who did would become food for the crows to pick over.
He was so enraptured he didn't notice when the doors behind him opened to let someone in to witness what he had done. Orochimaru only took note of it when the chakra and blood lust behind him grew to a level it became a slight hindrance on his ability to enjoy the feeling of power. The chakra being thrown his way was enough to leave many ninja kneeling on the floor, gasping for breath under the pressure being put on them. Even an hour ago Orochimaru would have felt a cause for worry witnessing such a horrible anger being aimed at him, yet now things were different. To him, the chakra this old man was using against him was nothing when compared to his own.
Turning around, he let his gaze meet the those of his teacher's, "Hello, Sarutobi Sensei."
Orochimaru could see how his teacher was shaking slightly in anger, and he could smell the sweat coming off the man at the force of restraining himself. "What have you done Orochimaru? What is this madness?" Sarutobi yelled, and Orochimaru gave him a cold smile. Though the evidence that any had died here had been destroyed in the cleansing fire of the kyuubi's youki, the outlines of bodies remained, marked in their ashes. He also respected Sarutobi for his intelligence if for nothing else, and knew the man could deduce the general purpose of the seals all around him, for he was sure the man had an idea what had taken place.
Orochimaru gestured to the room as a whole, "I stopped the Kyuubi, is that not what the Hokage should do for his people?" He was pleased to see the look of hurt shoot across the old man's face, and Orochimaru grinned. The fool's reactions were better than he could have ever dreamed of, seeing his precious dream being perverted so made for the most beautiful expression of anger and shock.
"Yes! But not at the sake of sacrificing those very people he must protect! We listened when you petitioned us to let you handle the Kyuubi before it reached the gates, even though it was Minato's decision. We should never have listened to your sugar coated lies about having a way for Minato to avoid having to use THAT jutsu, and now I see you sentenced many good men to their death's for your own gain." The man took a breath, his face flushed red with anger before changing tact and changing to the look he had given them when he had been their teacher and was particularly disappointed in them. "And you honestly wonder why I chose him over you? As your teacher, you shame me and all those who ever taught you how to be a ninja, Orochimaru."
Orochimaru raised an eyebrow, and even thought he was seething inside, he didn't reveal any of it to the old man. He had been the rightful choice for Hokage all those months ago, and to have it stolen by an upstart was a bitter memory of how his own teacher had stood in the way of his goals.
"That is truly a shame then Sensei. I once respected you for your mastery over jutsu, yet it would seem that we have come to a conflict of ideals that simply cannot be settled through words alone." Bringing his hands up, he began passing through a few simple seals, building a fire deep inside of his belly before releasing it from his mouth. Though his Sensei may have been old, he was still no weak ninja, and before the fire had even made it halfway to him, had produced an intense burst of water to douse the flames, digging his heels in to give his technique more strength with which to combat his fire.
He had no doubt that his sensei had expected his technique to overpower what he had believed was a low level fire jutsu. The water and fireball collided, and Orochimaru smirked as his youki laced fireball caused the water to evaporate instantly, continuing through to hit the old man in the chest. The force of the impact sent Sarutobi back into a wall, where he landed in a grunt of pain as demon fire began to spread from where he was struck.
Had it been any other person, Orochimaru was sure they would have died instantly or been forced to burn to death from the youki blazing around them. Yet Sarutobi got to his feet, and in a series of blindingly fast jutsu put out the fire before rolling to avoid another such attack. From there the game had begun for Orochimaru. Never before had he been able to push his sensei so far in a fight, and though the man was old, he fought with a ferocity and skill that put many younger ninja to shame.
Still, the stronger the opponent, the more Orochimaru could truly begin to test the extent of his new power. It would have been simple enough to end the fight, but the chance to have revenge against his teacher was too sweet an opportunity to let pass quickly.
Orochimaru began to use more force in his attacks, adding more and more of the youki now under his control to his jutsu, and watched as his teacher lost ground. He knew though that despite his advantages he was facing a man with skills to match the most powerful shinobi in all of the continent's history. The frantic struggling of a cornered animal made it do things extraordinarily risky things in order to survive, and this prey was already dangerous enough without being pushed to his limits.
It was for that reason that Orochimaru wasn't surprised to see his sensei put space between them, his hands coming up to form a pattern of seals he recognized as being one of the few hew had to worry about with his new body. A jutsu from which no escape or power existed to overcome once you were caught in it. The damnable upstart Minato had created it as a means to seal or destroy powerful enemies as a last resort should all other methods fail. The Sannin had to admire it's power, though it came a too heavy a price, with the life of the person performing the seals being the cost required to fuel the jutsu.
Dashing forward, he brought his hands up and grabbed his sensei's own before he could finish the final seal, and with a squeeze broke both of his teachers hands in his grip. Letting go, he gave the old man a backhand that sent him careening into the wall hard enough there was an audible snap as his bones broke.
Orochimaru walked over to stand above the broken and bloody man he had once looked up to as a child. Though he was panting for breath through broken ribs, the man still had the vexing self righteous gleam to his eyes as he stared up at Orochimaru. It was a look he had hoped to see snuffed out for years now, and finally the day was upon him to have his dream handed to him. "You know others will come along who will stop you Orochimaru." Sarutobi said.
Orochimaru sneered. "Any who dare attack the new Hokage will die trying. Good bye Old Man." With that, he once more formed the seals for a fire jutsu, this time pouring as much youki into it as he could, before watching it consume his teacher.
X X X
Minato had to stop to catch his breath, placing his hands on his knees and leaning over as he tried to make himself relax by breathing deeply. Even with his famed speed and stamina, the trip had taken him nearly three days of non stop running at full speed to return to Konoha. Now that he was in the forests around his home, he began to wonder about the reports that the Kyuubi was poised to attack the village. No where could he see any damage to the countryside or the village from where he was standing high in the trees.
It was with that small peace of mind he let himself take the small break to catch his breath. He had made liberal use of his Hiraishin technique to cover a lot of ground throughout the day, and had he not been in as a good a shape as he was, or if he were a ninja with smaller chakra reserves, he would have run the chance of dying simply from chakra exhaustion.
The other reason he took a moment to rest was partially due to who he was. Being a war hero and the leader of Konoha, the sight of him ever being anything but calm and composed could cause a panic. Ninjas of the rock would love to capitalize on any weakness he had, and scared villagers did not need to see their leader anything less than ready for battle in a time of crisis. Running through those gates sweaty and shaking with exertion wouldn't be the most awe inspiring image to greet the village with.
Still, he didn't like the idea of waiting any longer to go into town and try and assess the situation. He already had made every effort to get here as quickly as possible as soon as the summoned monkey Sarutobi had sent him had alerted him of the danger. He had also wasted valuable time trying to convince Kushina to stay behind with Kakashi to care for her while she rested after giving birth to their son.
Naturally Kushina had refused, acting like he had insulted her by treating her as weak. Normally even Minato wouldn't want to face her when she was angry, but he just couldn't bear to see her have to push herself on a marathon run after such a difficult birthing. She had made it the first two days without complaining about the conditions, but when she had nearly fallen out of a tree while holding Naruto in her arms, he had finally managed to convinced her to let him go on ahead while she and Kakashi to made it back to Konoha at a slower pace.
He had wanted Kakashi to stay with her for more than just the fact she was weak though. The boy had been crushed by the death of Obito, and while Minato and Rin had both taken it hard at the time, none had taken it worse than Kakashi. He had tried to become more and more like Obito in some odd way of showing respect to the boy. While Minato didn't think the change was bad, they had hoped the outing and the excitement over the birth of their son would be enough to help him let go of the desperate need he was showing to mourn his teammate. Now though he was worried if the boy saw any others close to him dead or injured, it would break him totally before he had the chance to heal from having lost Obito.
Despite the morbid thoughts, though, Minato felt himself smiling at the thought of the beautiful baby boy his wife had given life to. He knew that in the face of impending tragedy for his people he should be more somber, but the idea that he finally had a complete family again made him smile despite his attempts to school his expression into a more serious one.
While he had never been a true orphan, his family as well as his clan had been on a slow decline for many years. With the death of his parents he had become the last of the line for the Arashi clan, and had only had Jiraiya to look up to as both his sensei and a father figure in his life. Though he loved his sensei dearly, there was nothing that could replace the feeling of having a family of one's own to care for. Now that he had accomplished his goals of becoming Hokage as well as marrying Kushina and having a child with her, he knew that his dreams had finally come true.
Still, he knew those thoughts were for neither here nor there. Taking a deep breath, he righted himself and shook off his reverie. He had more important business to attend to at the moment, and it was time to defend all the other families of Konoha from the terror heading their way.
X X X
As Minato passed through the gates of Konoha he was instantly put on guard by the lack of guards at the gate. Normally the gates would be kept open during the daytime to allow foreigners to come and petition the ninja for help with various tasks, but there was always guards on duty day or night to defend the place. The guards would question all who wished to enter the village, and were prepared to handle any attack or subterfuge that could take place on their watch.
Never before in the history of Konoha had the gates been left open with no one to guard them, and he passed through with no little amount of trepidation when he wasn't stopped by someone.
Taking out a kunai, he crept his way deeper into town.
When got closer to the center of Konoha, though, the sounds of noise began to reach his ears, and breaking out into a run, he reached the main town square to see something that left him dumbfounded.
Ninja and villager alike were locked in song and dance, celebrating as if some important victory had been won for the village. Everywhere there were happy people standing in the streets, and many people looked happier than he had seen them since the end of the war with the hidden village of the rock.
On second glance, he did see some people on the outside of the group, faces frozen in looks of grief, occasionally being consoled by family or friends. For all the world, it looked as if a battle had been fought and won, and it struck Minato dumb as to what must have happened in the brief time he had been gone. There was no sign of a struggle with the Kyuubi, and to destroy such a beast would certainly be a cause for celebration, yet there was no way such a beast could be beaten so handily as to make it appear as if nothing had transpired.
Before anyone spotted him, he slipped back into the alleyway, making his way to the Hokage tower. If he was to get any answers, that would be the place.
Landing inside the gates to the Hokage tower, he spied two people making their way across the compound. Given the clan symbols on their clothing, he figured he would begin there with trying to figure out what had transpired. They also appeared to be the best people to ask, as Hyuuga Hiashi and Nara Shikato were the head of their respect clans, and more likely to know the details of what had befallen the village than any other single ninja might have. He had worked with both before and found them to be honest and caring enough individuals, and trusted their judgment.
Running to catch up with them, he placed a hand on both of their shoulders, causing them to jump at the sudden contact. He grinned sheepishly as they both turned to glare at whoever had surprised them by sneaking up on them. Minato would never admit it, but it was a bad habit he found endlessly amusing, being able to sneak up on such skilled ninja and scare them with his presence. He was about to apologize and cut to the point of his visit though when he saw what they were holding each of their arms.
"CONGRATULATIONS!" For a brief moment, all the worries about the village left his head as he wrapped the two men in a giant hug, being careful to not get too rough seeing as they were both carrying newborn children in their arms. Every time a new child to a clan was born, the clan was required to register the children with the village so they could be recognized as a true clan member. Their birth explained they the two men were here at the tower instead of out celebrating or doing whatever it was that the village was doing at the moment.
Hiashi nodded, "I thank you Hokage-sama. More importantly, we're glad to see you back. Is Kushina-san fairing well? We had thought you would be gone longer for the birthing of your child." Minato nodded, "The birth was a bit hard on her, but luckily there was a very good midwife in the town we were in. To be honest, if she hadn't been there, I think she may not have made it through the birthing. I'll have to show you my son someday soon, the both of you." He gave them both his trademark grin before becoming serious again. "But first, what happened? I heard the town was to be under attack by the Kyuubi, it's the reason I rushed back here, yet if I didn't know better, I would think it's like we've won a war, the way people are celebrating out in the streets."
Shikato and Hiashi looked at each other before Shikato sighed and scratched the back of his head. "It was about to. But the Sannin Orochimaru managed to defeat it..." Minato couldn't help but gawk. He had to respect his sensei's teammate, the man had been one of the strongest ninjas he had ever fought. It was only up until recently that he had grown strong enough that the spar he occasionally had with the snake summoner had become easier for him. So if he could beat the Sannin easily now, and on his best day would be no where close to being able to defeat the demon lord, he wondered how Orochimaru had accomplished it. "How?"
Again the two exchanged a worried glance, this time Hiashi spoke first. "That's what everyone else wants to know. He and 150 of the most elite ninjas in the village stayed holed up in the Tower for a whole day. Early on in the day the scouts reported that Kyuubi had disappeared from our borders, but the doors didn't open until that night, and then only Orochimaru emerged. He claimed that the ninjas, and the Sandaime, had given their lives to seal it away forever, but..." He trailed off, seeming to try and find the right words to say. Finally, he shook his head and with uncharacteristic bluntness for a Hyuuga said "But something just doesn't feel right about it. There's something different to Orochimaru. I have always withheld discussing my feelings about the man, but whereas before he could best be described as dangerous, now he seems much more...sinister."
Minato bowed his head and sighed at the loss of so many fine men and women dead. It was a hard blow to have to hear that they had died while he had not been there to help them in their endeavors, but the loss of the Sandaime would perhaps come as the worst news to many in the village. He had not known the man exceedingly well until he had become a Hokage himself, but the man had been seen as a grandfather to many of the village's orphans and would be missed for his compassion as well as his talents.
What truly worried him though was the news of Orochimaru's actions in stopping the Kyuubi. It would take nothing short of the most powerful seals to control and seal a demon such as the Kyuubi, and all such seals possessed a great sacrifice to power them. For Orochimaru to be so non chalant about the loss of so many lives troubled him. For him to walk away uninjured where even the great like Sarutobi had failed, though, brought questions of the nature of his sealing jutsu.
The only way to determine for sure the manner in which he had performed the sealing would be to actually see what had happened for himself. "Do you two think you could take me to where it happened? I know you're here on business, but it's important." Minato gave them both the most serious look he could, and though Hiashi still looked ready to refuse, Shikato nodded his agreement. "He claimed the area was off limit's, but seeing as you are the Hokage, I guess we have no choice, do we?" Minato gave him a small smile, "Thank you. And thank you for taking time away from what you came here to do." Shikato just shrugged before moving the sleeping baby to his shoulder. "As troublesome as it is, I'm curious too. Something doesn't seem right about all this and I guess as a father now it's my duty to keep Shikamaru here from growing up with too many annoying things going on around him."
Hiashi frowned, but nodded in agreement. "I too only want a safe place for my little Hinata and wife to live. I do not trust Orochimaru, and it is my duty to help the true Hokage with his investigation."
Minato nodded, understanding the sentiment exactly. He had taken the office of Hokage for exactly those reasons himself. While he knew that the office meant he would have to face hardships, it would also mean he could create a safe place for many to live. To him that chance to help others had been the biggest reason he had been proud to accept the title of Hokage.
Entering the Tower they began the descent into the basement, all the while he noted a distinct lack of anyone in the hallways. Normally the tower was buzzing with activity night and day, but now the place had a dark and sinister feel to it as they walked through the quiet hallways.
When he inquired about it, he only received the curt reminder that they had been ordered to remain away from the room Orochimaru had used to seal the Kyuubi from Hiashi. They were forced to stop for a moment to settle down little Hinata only once before they made their way to their goal. Rounding the corner to the large antechamber used for complex seals, Minato had to struggle to not vomit at the sight of what the room had been transformed into.
Covering the walls and floor were long lines of symbols used to form a single seal, all formed in now dry human blood. In the corner of the chamber Minato could just make out the remains of a charred corpse. Though it was difficult to tell given the severity of the burns, the size and build led him to believe he had found the remains of Sarutobi. Also, if there was anything else to take away from the scene, it was that the body seemed to still be relatively fresh, and he had to believe it was only a few hours old, meaning that the man had been murdered near the end or after the seal had fulfilled it's purpose. He knew the man would never take part in the perverted ritual the seal spelled out, so he had to believe the man had stumbled upon what had been a horrible scene. The sheer horror he must have felt at seeing what had been done to so many fine men and women by Orochimaru must have sickened him, and he only hoped that he had been able to make Orochimaru pay in some small part for what he had done before he had died.
He was so engrossed in his thoughts that he almost missed the tell tale sound of cloth moving in the quiet room, and only just had enough time to to lean back to avoid being hit with a kunai that had been aimed for his throat. Pushing off the ground hard, he retreated to the far side of the room, yet he felt the presence of his attacker behind him even before he had landed.
Though he rarely cared to boast about it, he was proud of his speed. He was the fastest ninja in Konoha, and probably one of the fastest in any of the major ninja villages. Yet this man put his speed to shame, and it was only through a quick use of his Hiraishin jutsu that he escaped the thrust of the sword that had been aimed at his back by transporting himself back to the other side of the room. Kneeling down, he grabbed the hilt of the kunai he had used to teleport with and slowly looked up into the smirking face of Orochimaru.
"Now I thought that I told people to stay away from here. What might the three of you be doing, then, hmm?" Something about Orochimaru's voice sent a shiver down Minato's spine. It was unnatural, deeper and more guttural than his normally silky smooth way of speaking. He could almost feel the waves of chakra and killing intent rolling off the man. Judging by the seals and the sheer number of sacrifices needed to power it, he had a feeling he knew just what had happened to make the snake summoner so much stronger than before.
"I was under the impression you had sworn your loyalty to the snakes Orochimaru, what are they going to say when they find out you chose to become the jailer for the demon fox?"
Orochimaru smirked, "You always were an insufferable brat, never knowing when to respect your betters. Though, I should praise you for figuring it out so quickly. Sarutobi sensei didn't seem to understand it's implications right until we began our little fight, and it was sweet to see that look of defeat when he realized he couldn't defeat the power of the demon I have under my control now." Orochimaru spoke with such a nonchalant attitude that Minato could feel his anger rising, and it was through force of will alone that he kept his killer intent in check. He could not risk making Orochimaru attack him at the moment by aggravating the Sannin now that he had access to such power.
The two men behind him though didn't seem to realize to just what an extent the Sannin's power had grown, and he could feel their killer intent go unchecked, rising as their anger grew from the retelling of Orochimaru's treasonous actions. Luckily Orochimaru's only rose slightly in response before stopping, and the man made no move to attack. Unsure of what Orochimaru would do, Minato prepared for the worst and tried to ready himself for intercepting any attack the man would make.
Orochimaru grinned again, "Ah yes, it was a very sweet thing to see him die before me, but even better to go to the council with news of my success right afterwards. Can you imagine how pleased they were with me? Enough that you should be bowing to your new Hokage, Minato-kun. Though it will do little to save you from your fate, I can at least promise you a swift death before you die labeled as a traitor to Konoha. Such a shame you felt the need to attack it's new Hokage in a jealous rage and were killed when I defended myself. A pitiable end to your life, yet one I believe the people will come to accept with time."
Minato didn't even grace the taunt with a reply. He was not surprised at the action of the council. They had become corrupted by their status and rarely tended to look past the ninjas ability to the true character, only looking for the strongest ninja to lead the village. Though he was sure he could have their vote overridden, the point was null and void faced with the circumstances placed before him. All that mattered to Minato now was to try and catch the next movement of his enemy. It was that very thing that would decide who lived or died while in his company, and he wasn't going to let Orochimaru distract him from seeing it.
The attack came quickly though, and under the confusion of the two babies letting out cries of fear. They had been awakened by the discussions, and the oppressive feeling of so much killer intent and chakra being bandied about them had no doubt frightened them to tears.
He was only fast enough to partially deflect Orochimaru's lunge, aimed to spear Shikato and his baby through the chest. Instead the blade penetrated Shikato's opposite shoulder, and forcing the Jounin to the ground in pain as the blade cut through his collarbone. Shikato had managed to keep his other arm around Shikamaru, but Minato could tell that he would have no way to defend from the finishing blow in such a position. In a moment of desperation, Minato threw his kunai at the other end of the room again and grabbed both men before transporting them with him away from Orochimaru once again.
He didn't trust Orochimaru, not as far as he could throw him, but he did know the man enjoyed toying with his prey. If he made no real movement to escape, the older ninja wouldn't try to attack them directly. Orochimaru would want to take time to derive pleasure from the fear he hoped to see in their eyes when he demonstrated his power over them.
Kneeling in front of Shikato, he took the now crying baby from the man's arm. "Just hold on, okay? I'll figure something out to get us all out of this." Shikato smirked at that, "Really? I thought we were royally screwed myself, and we both know I'm the genius here."
Hiashi placed a hand on his shoulder before handing him his baby daughter, turning back to face the Sannin waiting on the other side of the hall. "Do not give us false hope Minato. We know this is a fight we cannot win. Of all of us, you are the only one who stands a chance of escaping, and it is you that we are placing the life of our children in the hands of. We will give you the chance to escape. Do not misuse it by arguing with us to the contrary."
Minato looked at the two men before him, words of protest rising to his lips before he looked down at the two crying children in his arms. He wanted to stay and fight and protect these men and the entire village, but even he knew that despite being a more technically skilled fighter, if he stayed to fight, he would only die against Orochimaru and his new power. It was his duty to protect the future generation, and throwing his life away in a meaningless fight would not accomplish that, no matter how much it hurt to leave two of his comrades here to face Orochimaru alone.
He nodded to Hiashi and let Shikato use his shoulder to hoist himself up before taking a step back behind them. As if that were the signal, he could see Orochimaru preparing to attack, his stance deepening in a movement designed to carry him forward in one quick lunge. Securing the babies he placed both of his hands together in a seal, gathering his chakra. He had an escape route planned, but it would drain him of almost all of his chakra to use it over such a distance, and he wanted to make sure nothing went wrong when he was holding on to the two children.
Meanwhile, Shikato had just finished a jutsu as well, the room going dark before his shadow slid across the floor at an inhuman speed, connecting with Orochimaru before he could leap forward, and holding him in place. Yet despite the power put into the jutsu, it couldn't stop the other man from forcing himself forward as he began to walk through the jutsu towards them.
Hiashi stepped forward next, his eyes blazing with the byakugan as he stared down at Orochimaru. "We cannot expect to defeat you here, Orochimaru, but we will make you recognize our power before the end." Sliding into a deep stance used in Jyuuken, he brought both hands up, one leading towards Orochimaru and the other held back by his face. "You have entered the range of my divination. Prepare to learn the true power of the Hyuuga style, 360 Palms."
At last Minato felt the power built up behind his seal sufficiently to work his jutsu, and he felt the pull of his chakra taking him from the room. The last thing he saw before he and the children disappeared was Orochimaru tearing free of the Shadow Bind technique and running forward to meet Hiashi's strikes.
X X X
Minato landed in a slight heap at the feet of his wife and Kakashi. In a moment of foresight before they had left on their journey, he had given both a seal used in his Hiraishin jutsu to be carried on their person in order to either summon him or allow him to move to their location. It was meant to be a safeguard if they were to run in to trouble in any way, but it had turned into the means by which him and the two babies he was carrying in his arms had survived Orochimaru's rage.
He forced himself to look up at their worried faces, and he grimaced. He supposed trying to teleport himself a hundred miles or so in one go was a bit absurd, even with his insane chakra reserves. Not to mention he had done it after running for 3 days straight right into a fight with a demon.
Moving his arms, he revealed the two babies to the other two before closing his eyes. "You have to take us away from Konoha now. Don't stop for rest, and please, keep these two safe, we have to escape for not only our own survival, but for their future, as well as Naruto's, and everyone back home." And with that, he passed out from sheer exhaustion, the thought of what would happen back in Konoha following him into his dreams.
X X X
I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of Rekindle. I am still trying to get used to this style of writing, and found some of the characters hard to get into. Minato is a somewhat simple and noble guy who just wants to help, whereas Orochimaru is a pain to write. He always struck me as a spoiled child who if he didn't get what he wanted would just whine and bitch until he got it, or the person died and he could take it.
Also, this will eventually be a Naru/Hina story. However, Shikamaru is a major character as well. I personally like either Temari, or Ino. Now, I know Ino has as much character as a twig in the original series, but it doesn't have to be like that in my own story. So some feed back is useful.
Other than that, please review. It let's me know what you like and what you dislike. I won't listen to everything you might suggest or say, because ultimately, I write for my own pleasure, but I do want to improve, so it's good to see what people think.
I will try and update as soon as possible, but I am a VERY busy college student, so expect it to take time possibly.