I do not own Naruto or any affiliated characters in any way, shape, or form. Hope you enjoy!
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First Arc: Ripples in Time
A single change in a time line of events is like a snowflake alighting upon a still pond—ripples of change fly outward, disturbing the calm waters. A simple change would not cause a great ripple; this case however was a tsunami of chaos.
The night of the Kyuubi attack, the Sandaime managed to make his way to Minato's location before the barrier was created. As Minato Namikaze faced down the lord of demons, the God of Shinobi stood by his side, providing the necessary seals and sacrifice to contain the foul presence.
That night, Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki did not die. Rather, the former Hokage of the village hidden in the leaf, Shiruzen Sarutobi, died. He gave his soul to seal the demon in the new-born child, trusting the young man and woman beside him to usher in a new age.
The seal quickly set, the bond forming over the young infant. Minato sealed away the other half of the demon with the toad Gamatora, the legendary scroll toad. As the light faded from the eyes of Sarutobi, Minato and Kushina wept over their child, and the great burden they had placed upon their son. The next day, October 11th, the Fourth Hokage of Konoha spoke to his people. His speech, and the changes to destiny that occurred the prior night, marked the beginning of the Age of Change in the world of Shinobi.
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Minato looked nervously out over the crowd, unsettled by the task that lay before him. He could still see sections of the village that lay in ruins, the sound of workers and repairmen already starting to fix the damage.
'They have no idea why the fox appeared. They know nothing of the true history of this village.'
Sighing, he looked over the speech that had been prepared for him by the council. He already knew that he was going to ad lib from the dictated words. 'Hell, to be more accurate I'm going to throw the whole damn thing out.'
Rage boiled through the man as he thought of how the council had wanted to silence the whole ordeal, to call it a random act of nature. Still, it did hold some appeal compared to the life to which he was about to submit his firstborn.
'Naruto…I hope you forgive me for what this might cause. Still, your mother and I will be here to see you through it, at least for some of the journey.' He heard the door open behind him, and knew the measured clip that paced towards his desk. Turning, the young lord took in the appearance of a silver haired youth, his only living student. He was dressed in normal mourning robes, but had a simple black mask covering his mouth and an eye patch covering his left eye.
"So, they sent you to come collect me, huh? I would have thought it would be Homura or Koharu…"
"Those two are beside themselves at the moment. Currently, they are sitting silently by the coffin of their teammate. No one's talked to either one yet, mostly because they aren't sure how they'd react." The silver-haired man shrugged, his hands placed in his pockets, even as his eyes studied the floor.
"That bad huh? Well, guess I better go face the music with you." Minato turned, grabbing the official robes of his office from the chair. Securing the hat over his head, he proceeded out the door, the silver haired man leading the way. "Kakashi, if anything happens today…"
Kakashi cut him off quickly. "Don't worry about it. I already talked to Kushina, and agreed to watch over Naruto should anything come of today."
Minato sighed in relief. "You know, after I won that first argument with her, I had hopes that she would be doing things behind my back a little less. Guess that was too much to wish for, huh?"
His student smiled back at him through his mask, his eyes curving up in silent agreement. The steps of the duo echoed off the stairs as they ascended to the height of the Hokage tower. As Minato turned towards the dais, he saw his wife and newly born son, along with several of the clan heads. He noticed the frown adorning Uchiha Fugaku's face and felt his own face tighten.
'He was very outspoken about either raising Naruto as a weapon and keeping his birth a secret, or outright killing him. He, and Danzo.' A scowl started to form on Minato's face, before he noticed his student's hand resting on his shoulder.
"I know it may be difficult to speak in front of everyone about Naruto, but this is for him as well. He is family, and family means just as much as a teammate, right sensei?" Kakashi spoke in a comforting tone, trying to ease his teacher's nerves. Minato nodded briskly, proceeding to the podium. As he approached, people stood, acknowledging his presence and leadership.
"People of Konohagakure. Last night, a terrible secret was unleashed upon the people. From the time of the First Shinobi War, there have been those who live amongst you who have protected the populace of the hidden village. These individuals are known as Jinchuuriki. They are human sacrifices, giving their entire lives and beings to the purpose of containing one of the legendary tailed demons. The wife of the first Hokage, Mito Uzumaki, contained the nine tailed demon fox. The container to come after her was Kushina Uzumaki, my wife."
At this point, Minato paused, looking out over the crowd. There was a decided quiet that surrounded the area at this point. The audience seemed struck by these revelations, but was confused as to what they meant regarding the funeral. Minato realized there was a building tension, so he forged ahead to break off the trouble.
"As many of you know, the first Hokage did not conceive with his wife. That is because during birth, there is a weakening of the seal that contains the tailed beasts. My wife was deemed strong enough to contain the beast through childbirth, but she still chose to conceive far from the village, in a desire to protect the people. Last night, we were attacked by a mysterious ninja, powerful enough in his own right to challenge your Hokage. He did this after defeating several of our top ANBU operatives, stationed as our guardians. Following the birth of my son Naruto, this ninja separated himself and Kushina from the rest of us, and managed through some unknown method to remove the Kyuubi from her keeping. This man led the demon fox to attack and destroy Konoha, and it was through the actions of brave shinobi and kunoichi that we all stand here today."
Minato paused for a moment, looking down. He forced back the tears that threatened at the edges of his own eyes. He was known for his resolve though, and brought it to bear at the moment.
"The bravest of those was Sarutobi Shiruzen. He has been hailed as the God of Shinobi, called The Professor, and to some was known by his most precious title; father." A tightening look came over the assembled Sarutobi family at this, tears trailing down a few faces. Minato nodded to them, silently consoling, before continuing his speech.
"Last night, he performed the most powerful sealing technique this village has, but it came with a price. It required he sacrifice his life to seal away the demon. My wife was too weakened to take up the mantle of Jinchuuriki again; it was passed to the only remaining kin of the Uzumaki clan, the only one who might be able to contain the power of the nine tailed fox. My son, Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto is the container for the most powerful demon in this village, and is the son of your Fourth Hokage. On October 10th, Sarutobi Shiruzen knowingly sacrificed his life to protect this village during his fifty sixth year of life. On October 10th, Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto unknowingly sacrificed his life to protect this village during his first day of life. Those two shinobi, along with all the other brave shinobi and kunoichi were taken from us in the defense of this village."
A sigh escaped the Hokage that belied his age. It seemed to hold far more weight and baggage than thirty years of life should have held. He looked up tiredly at the crowd facing him. Many wore troubled expressions that showed conflicting emotions. Several were drawn back in visages of neutrality, little emotion betrayed. Many more had their heads bowed, struggling to deal with conflicting feelings of loyalty and fear.
"The travesty of yesterday was an attack on our village. It was an attack led by an individual with no name, no face and no village. We will find him, and we will prevent this from happening again." Minato paused to look over the crowd, getting some to raise their heads and look him in the eye. When they did, he watched as they ended their internal conflict and would smile back, agreeing with their leader. Ending the silence, Minato looked down solemnly before continuing his speech.
"The final words of the Third Hokage must be the foundation of this village: 'When tree leaves dance, one shall find flames. The fire's shadow will illuminate the village, and once again, tree leaves shall bud anew'. Even in his final moments, the man was a professor, and a teacher. His words hold special meaning for our village. The dancing leaves are the life of the people, their flame the will of fire. That will of fire is what pushes our people to succeed and persevere in the face of danger. The fire's shadow is the Hokage, and by the protection of the Hokage, life again returns to a village. Today, we pay honor to the sacrifice of the Third Hokage, who gave his life such that our village might prosper. Today, we pay honor to the sacrifice of the countless other Shinobi who helped to limit the destruction of our village. Today, we mourn; Tomorrow, we begin looking for the man who attacked our village." Nods and murmurs went throughout the crowd. Fugaku Uchiha stood slowly, and Minato felt his stance stiffen. Then, as one, the rest of the village council stood. Fugaku Uchiha bent at the waist, and the rest of the council followed. Before long, the rest of the village stood and paid respect to their leader. As the entirety of Konoha bowed to the leader, he felt himself smile lightly. 'Guess they'll still stand by me even now. Thanks for all the help old man.' Minato smiled out at the crowd, and gave a small bow in return. A ripple ran through the crowd, and one by one they straightened.
The crowd standing as one, looked to their leader, their eyes all set into one of rage. These were eyes that would follow a leader into the depths of hell and back again. Together, they would seek vengeance against one who would attack their village. But first, they would mourn. The Hokage walked forward, nodding somberly to the two surviving teammates of the great Professor. He placed a single flower upon the grave, a simple white rose. Namikaze Kushina was next after this, her own white rose lying down next to her husband's, while her braided red hair billowed over her simple black robe. The babe cradled in her arms slept soundly, whisker marks clearly showing on his face. His eyes were closed, and his face turned towards his mother's breast. Countless others streamed past her and her husband, sending her the wary look, both respectful and afraid of the bundle she held. It was many hours later that the stream of individuals trickled down, till none were left standing around the casket but a small family of three, a student, and a teacher.
"Jiraiya, thank you again for coming on such short notice. I have a feeling that we'll need the use of your contacts sooner than you had originally planned." Minato turned to a tall, broad shouldered man with long spiky white hair. His hair was set in a ponytail, and his face held eyes that spoke of a great pain and sorrow. A weathered hand reached out, softly touching the framed picture before the giant of a man. A light rain had started to fall, and with it, streams painted down the face of the white haired man.
"I understand Minato. The death of Sarutobi, combined with the sudden departure of my former teammate, only suggest ill tidings for the village. I just wish we all had longer to mourn." The blond nodded his agreement. None dared speak, lest the moment of sorrow be broken. The only sounds were that of the rain, and the mewling of the young babe.
"Minato, I want to take Naruto in from the rain. Can you get away from the council today? If not, I'll see if I can stay with Hannah and Hiashi…" Kushina's voice was very weak. She had fought against him to be there for the ceremony, but even now she had difficulty standing. The biggest sign though was her lack of enthusiasm. Usually, nothing could calm the red haired kunoichi.
"The council can wait till tomorrow. As I said, today is a day of mourning, but tomorrow we act." Minato turned to his wife, flashing her his rare grin. She caught it, her own smile creeping onto her face. "Besides, I'd like to spend some time with my newly born son. It's not every day a man becomes a father, you know?" His smile brought a heat to her face, causing Kushina to duck her head quickly.
Kushina smiled down at Naruto, a blush adorning her face. No matter how terrible she felt, Minato could always bring that out in her. 'Still, he has a village to run and things to do. What am I doing being a complete stick in the mud?' Setting her face in a scowl, Kushina fixed her husband with a stern glare. "Listen here you! You said that you were going to be a Hokage that the village would respect one day. The best way for you to do that right now is to go and be with your people and their council. You can't stay at home! You have to help them all, because their all hurting just as much as we are, dattebane!"
Minato blinked at his wife for a moment, caught completely unaware. A snort was heard coming from the tall white haired man next to him, which quickly became uproarious laughter. "Haha, heh, sounds like she really does have you whipped, huh Minato? Heh, makes me glad I never got Tsunade to settle down with me, you know?" Minato looked at his teacher with a pained look on his face. The snickers on the other side of him informed him that his own student was also having a good laugh on his behalf. "Look, Kakashi and I here will take care of Kushina at your own estates. You however get the unenviable task of dealing with those council blowhards. Who, by the way, are sure to notice you deviated from that lovely script of theirs…" Jiraiya's face was in a schoolboy grin once more, his eyes twinkling with mirth. Kakashi shook his head at being roped into babysitting, but gave his former teacher a thumb's up. In a flash, the three of them had disappeared.
'They didn't even wait to see if I would argue with her…' Minato thought despondently, his face in an uncharacteristic puppy-dog look. Sighing again, he straightened before turning to face the steps down into the tower. The council room waited for him at the very bottom, where he was sure a full meeting was just waiting for his appearance. Fondling the handle of an oddly shaped kunai, the blonde smirked. 'Well, no time like the present to make an appearance.'
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Well, there's the first chapter everyone, hope you like this little introduction. Before any of you ask, I have to set the stage for the few changes having a family will have on Naruto's life before I get into the meat and potato's of the Alternate Universe development. Make no mistake, there will be some serious changes to the normal development of the series, though I'm loathe to give anything away just yet. Drop me a review and let me know what you think, I look forward to hearing more. As for the eventual couple pairings, well, those will arise naturally over the course of the fic, so be patient, and give me some trust okay? As I'm on break now, I plan on writing a lot (hopefully enough that when school starts I can still post one a week despite some exams) but college is a deadly environment for fanfics. Leave me a review and let me know what you think though, I look forward to hearing any and all comments. Thanks and catch you next time!