Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, I'd be filthy rich. Last time I checked, I'm not.

Edit: I just realized that in this chapter, the website somehow changed the long dashes into short dashes. I'll try to fix it, but for now, I apologize for the confusion.

Edit (12/30/13): I've changed a couple of things here and there after reading Enigmatic Insignia's amazingly helpful concrit. :)


Konohagakure, the night of the Kyuubi attack

The demon roared, its nine tails sweeping effortlessly through the regiments of perishing shinobi. The ninja regrouped as a formation of ANBU launched themselves towards the monstrous beast, hand seals and blades at the ready. Long-ranged jutsu specialists prepared their best attacks while other jounin and chuunin pelted the beast with barrages of kunai and shuriken.

It wasn't enough.

Kyuubi merely batted away the ANBU with one of its tails while swatting away the jutsu and weapons with a lazy flick of its paw. Simultaneously, it swept dozens of buildings from their foundations with a hind leg, injuring hundreds and killing several with the debris flying from the devastation.

The demon growled, a ball of red chakra building with a horrifying swiftness in its snarling mouth. The ball was identical to the one that had, when released minutes before, ended the lives of many desperate Konoha citizens, a few of whom were merely civilians struggling to escape from the wrath and carnage of the battlefield.

The ninja looked upon this upcoming attack with dull trepidation, fleeting hope completely leaving their defeated gazes.

Jiraiya could only stare helplessly at this scene from his perch on Gamabunta's head, hoping above all hope that his former student, the Yondaime Hokage, would arrive before the beast could release the ball of destruction.

With a flash of signature yellow, he did. Minato Namikaze appeared next to Jiraiya donning ruffled but regal robes of fire, looking every bit the revered leader he was. In his arms, a yellow-haired newborn wailed.

Staring down at little Naruto for the first time, Jiraiya was flooded with both relief and terrible dread. Child of the Prophecy, his instincts whispered to him. It has to be him.

"Are you sure about this?" he muttered hurriedly to Minato.

"I don't have time to decide that," the Hokage answered, his determined gaze flickering with doubt as he glanced at his child.

Quickly spotting the ball of red chakra building in the Kyuubi's mouth, Minato squared his shoulders and set down his child on Gamabunta's head.

"Better hurry," the boss toad croaked, his voice cracking with emotion.

Minato did just that, and Jiraiya could only watch, helpless again, as his student met his fate with naught but steely resolve and the Will of Fire.

He could only watch, frozen in despair, gaze clouded with horror, as the Hokage sacrificed himself for Konoha, the Kyuubi's attack interrupted halfway with a waft of terrible sealing power. He could only watch, insignificant, as fire roared and the baby Naruto was condemned to a life of hatred and isolation.

And when the flames cleared, the Kyuubi and the Hokage were both gone, leaving behind a wailing baby whose stomach was lit with a single burning, damning seal.


"I say we get rid of the demon completely! Kill the baby before it's too late!" an enraged civilian council member screeched, face twisted with righteous hatred.

"Exactly!" another civilian council member agreed. "Who knows how long that seal will last? Do we want a repeat of the destruction experienced today?!"

Jiraiya stood to the side of Sarutobi's seat, quietly observing the chaos of the "damage-control" council meeting instigated after the Kyuubi attack.

"Quiet!" the Sandaime growled. "As per our emergency election, I am in charge here. The baby will be left alone!"

"Why, though?" the first council member demanded. "Wouldn't it be safer if we eliminated the threat entirely? It makes no sense to keep that monster alive! Tell us who the container is so we can kill it immediately!"

Danzou, aware of Naruto's identity, opened his mouth to reveal it. Like the other council members, he was fully supportive of killing the beast to protect his beloved Konoha from further demolition.

Jiraiya's eyes narrowed, taking a menacing step forward. He was stopped by Sarutobi's arm as the old Hokage began to speak again.

"The identity of the container will be declared as an S-ranked secret! Whoever reveals the identity of the container will be sentenced to death. I assure you that the Yondaime's seal will not fail." The man's steely glare bore into the civilian council member and Danzou, both wavering under the eyes of the God of Shinobi.

There were no more complaints as the rest of those in the room quietly mourned for the loss of their beloved hero, the Yondaime Hokage.

"Now," Sarutobi continued, "let us discuss the matter of building repair and reconstruction."

The meeting continued without further incident. Jiraiya did not comment throughout, his mind occupied with thoughts of Minato and his son, Naruto, the innocent baby unwittingly facing a life of endless hatred.


When the meeting reached a conclusion, Jiraiya confronted Sarutobi in the Sandaime's new-but-old office. Sarutobi offered a genial but bittersweet half-smile as he glanced around the familiar room.

"I want to be Naruto's guardian," Jiraiya blurted suddenly.

Sarutobi paused and glanced up at him with a raised eyebrow.

"I mean, I can't stand the idea of the boy facing such an isolated and hate-filled life, which seems unavoidable, if that shitty meeting was anything to go by," he continued. "Minato and Kushina wouldn't want their son to go through that, either. I'd provide for the boy as best as I could, because I know your life would be too busy, and Kakashi's young and still dealing with his grief—"

"What of your life, though?" the Sandaime interrupted. "What of your spy network and the traveling that comes with maintaining it? Have you taken into account your duty as the Toad Sage, as well? Though it is wonderful for you to offer, do you really think you would be able to handle raising a Jinchuuriki with the life you lead?"

Jiraiya snapped his mouth shut at that. He'd been so overwhelmed with the situation that he had failed to consider those factors.

"I have already thought about the future situation of Naruto," Sarutobi went on. "I will assign ANBU to watch over him at all times and place him in a well-chosen orphanage that will treat him as any other boy. When he is six, he will attend the Academy along with his peers and lead the life of a normal—"

"Are you fucking delusional?!" Jiraiya snarled. "That sounds all well and good, but do you really think an S-ranked secret declaration will stop the knowledge of Naruto's identity from spreading? Danzou's a crafty bastard, and I wouldn't be surprised if half of Konoha already knows who the container is. Even ANBU might not be able to protect Naruto from extremely determined assassins wanting revenge against the Kyuubi for their messed up lives. Who knows- maybe the ANBU themselves will try to kill him!"

"I can assure you that the ANBU I choose will be of the utmost quality and trustworthiness," Sarutobi rebuffed. His eyes gleamed with fondness, but also with growing annoyance.

"Even if Naruto's life isn't in danger," Jiraiya continued with building desperation, "he'll be miserable! If people can't kill him, they'll find other ways to fuck up Naruto, who they think of as the leftover reminder of their suffering and loss. He'll be scorned, feared, and hated by the very villagers his father died to protect! What would Minato think of that?"

Sarutobi's gaze wavered slightly and he moved to tidy the Hokage's desk, fondly gazing at a picture of Minato and Kushina sitting on the corner away from the piles of unfinished paperwork.

With a sigh, he turned towards Jiraiya and asked, "Why are you so dead-set on becoming Naruto's guardian?"

The Toad Sage grinned bitterly and answered, "There's something I need to make sure of. And plus, who would be a better sensei for Naruto than the sensei of his father?"

Sarutobi sighed again. "Fine, then," he relented. "I don't have much time to argue with you, with Konoha in this state. What's your plan for Naruto?"

"I'll take him with me while I travel, raising and mentoring him while managing my reconnaissance, until he reaches Academy age. We can leak a story saying that the demon container has been killed, which will satisfy those bastards." Jiraiya glared at nothing in particular. "Anyways, by the time he's six, Konoha would have likely forgotten about Naruto, so he can enter the Academy like you wanted. We'll have him under a henge, though, and pretend he's an orphan from some other village that Konoha was oh-so-kind-hearted enough to take in. The villagers love that sorta crap. They'll buy it and treat Naruto well. I'll go off and continue doing my spying and whatever, while Naruto will live a normal life."

"A normal life?" Sarutobi asked, amused. "With you as his guardian for the first six years of his life? Konoha will be left to deal with the biggest pervert in the history of the Elemental Nations."

"Like you're one to talk," Jiraiya retorted with a smirk. "Anyways, I'm not done yet. Well, the only reason I'm going to drop him off at the Academy is because... well, I think there's gonna be something I need to take care of then. Plus, this way, he won't have to live like a missing-nin. He'll have a fake identity to fall back on if he wants to live like an average shinobi. After he graduates, well, we'll see."

Sarutobi sighed, face becoming serious. "I honestly do not believe this will be good for Naruto. He would be living a fake life. He would have to take on a fake name and assume a fake face. Do you really think we should put him through that?"

"It's better than living a life full of danger and hatred," Jiraiya answered. "Like I said before, he'll be targeted and treated like trash if we go with your idea." Here, the Sannin scowled.

"I don't know why you're so concerned about him now if you were willing to put him under those conditions." Sarutobi seemed regretful.

"If I raise him and we go with this plan, we can tell Naruto who he really is and give him someone to really trust, because I'd be there to help him deal with the demon and tell him stories of his parents without fear of others finding out. He'd constantly be on the road and in the shadows with me, so we'll be safe."

Sarutobi sighed and relented. "Fine, then, but there are still some holes in this plan. Do you truly think that Danzou will believe us if we say Naruto's dead? He is, after all, a 'crafty bastard,' in your words. He will know that we are not telling the truth. The only way he will be convinced is if he sees Naruto dead with his own eyes."

Jiraiya felt a little stupid. "I'll figure it out, though! Can't be that hard too fool the old bastard."

"In addition, you will have to keep him under a permanent henge during the time you raise him, as well. If anyone sees what could very well be Minato's reincarnation, attention will be drawn to him."

"I can put some seals on him for that." Sarutobi acknowledged this with a tilt of the head, but still continued.

"Besides, Naruto will require official documents if he is to be admitted into the Academy. What village would he be from? What would be his name? We have to create a profile believable enough to pass through Konohagakure's security and the scrutiny of other suspicious shinobi and officers. We are, after all, a shinobi military village— in fact, we are the strongest in the Elemental Nations. It is not so easy to sneak in an unknown boy, no matter what large influence we might have."

Jiraiya felt a little stupid now. "Right... Well, I'll figure it out when the time comes."

Sarutobi sighed. He sighs a lot these days, Jiraiya mused. "Actually, if we are to create a false identity, I believe we should set it up immediately. This way, records can be traced back to the appropriate time."

"I guess I could go do that. Actually... what if we made him a straggling survivor from Uzushiogakure?"

And so, the two shinobi continued to plan, until another meeting finally pulled the Sandaime away. Jiraiya walked away from the office, head and papers full of plans that he would immediately carry out. Right after...

"Wait, where is Naruto?"

After attempting to enter the meeting room and being blocked by ANBU (But I'm Jiraiya of the Sannin! —Sorry, Hokage's orders.), Jiraiya realized that he would need to find Naruto himself. Cursing the old man under his breath, he went off to search for the boy, summoning a few toads to help.

Soon, he located Naruto in a small hospital crib in the same room as many other newborns. A dozing nurse guarded the infants, and Jiraiya quickly bypassed her to retrieve his charge (though first leering at-ahem, observing-the nurse's rather, erm, ample assets).

Jiraiya quickly whipped up a couple of protective seals, slapping them around Naruto's crib. Just in case. Now assured of the baby's safety, Jiraiya set off to execute his plans.


Kirigakure, six years later

"Yo, Ero-sennin, where are we going now?"

"What did I say about calling me Ero-sennin?"

Jiraiya sighed and glanced wearily at the aggravating young boy swaggering behind him. During the past six years, he sometimes regretted his decision in adopting Naruto. The six-year-old grinned up at him, blond hair and blue eyes sealed to be red and green, respectively. His facial features were altered to resemble Kushina's more than Minato's. That blinding smile was completely that of Minato's, though, and Jiraiya felt an old ache tug in his heart once again.

"Konoha," Jiraiya replied. Naruto stared incredulously. "Remember that false identity I had you practice with?" The boy nodded. "Good. We're putting that into use now."

"You're actually gonna leave me there at that shitty Academy?" Naruto demanded. "What about that new jutsu you said you were gonna teach me? Rasengan, wasn't it? I'll never progress in that dingy ol' place!"

At this comment, Jiraiya smirked rather pridefully. (He ignored the swearing. He'd be a hypocrite if he commented on it, anyways.) Naruto was really fast at picking things up. His abilities probably rivaled that of a chuunin already. He seriously was ready to learn the Rasengan. He already had the basics of summoning down pat! Just like his father, Jiraiya mused. Though, his attitude could use some work.

"Like I told you already, think of it as reconnaissance training. Find out as much as you can about the political and economical situation in Konoha and send the information to me in every letter. I'll be busy taking care of... matters that you don't need to be concerned with."

"Yeah, yeah," Naruto muttered. "'Find ways to learn new things yourself, Konoha has a vast array of knowledge for those that can unlock it,' yadda, yadda, yadda. I don't want to be some pansy-assed 'Naoki Uzumaki!' Seriously, if you're gonna give me a fake name, make it cool!"

Jiraiya sighed. The trip to Konoha was going to take a bit, so ignoring Naruto would be next to impossible. "You should be grateful. 'Naoki' is as close to 'Naruto' as I'm willing to get, so you shouldn't have trouble adjusting to it. Plus, Uzumaki was your mom's last name. You already know that."

"And maybe acting more mellow could do you some good. You sure need it." The last part was muttered under Jiraiya's breath, but Naruto's sharp ears caught the comment. He stuck his tongue out at the Sannin.

"I'm awesome, though, and you like me anyways!"

"Kami knows why," Jiraiya groaned, fondly flicking the brat on the head. "Anyways, let's go over the cover story again. Remember, get into Konoha by climbing over the wall in the manner of a civilian."

Naruto pouted but conceded, quickly assuming the persona of "Nao Uzumaki" while Jiraiya took the role of the official that would confront him.

The rest of the journey continued in a similar manner, occasionally interspersed with complaints from the terribly bored Naruto.


When nightfall approached, Jiraiya realized that he had been so absorbed in reviewing with the brat that he had forgotten to find a place to stay the night. The forest ahead seems like a good enough place to camp, Jiraiya mused. It was close enough to Konoha that the possibility of rogue ninja or bandits was extremely low. He hacked through the underbrush while Naruto chattered behind him about the boy's favorite subject: ramen. I guess it was unavoidable, with how much his parents loved it, Jiraiya thought exasperatedly.

"Oi, brat, get up here and clear the underbrush. It's good training for future missions."

Naruto narrowed his eyes at Jiraiya and crossed his arms. "You're just too lazy to do it yourself, Ero-sennin."

Jiraiya sighed in mock defeat, raising his hands. "Alright, ya got me. But you're still doing it. Punishment for that 'Ero-sennin' comment."

Naruto pouted but conceded, complaining up a storm the whole while.

Suddenly, both of their eyes narrowed. Naruto glanced up at Jiraiya, who nodded minutely, his fisted hand doing a quick twirl.

Naruto disappeared with a wisp of smoke and a log, reappearing moments later behind a shell-shocked, mask-donning ninja who quickly leapt away, pulling out his tantou with a shing. Naruto swiftly pursued, bringing out handfuls of shuriken to launch at the masked man and forming quick hand seals. "Kage Tokeru no Jutsu," the boy whispered, melting into the shadows.

As Naruto chased the ninja, Jiraiya hung back with a frown. That was a ROOT member—he was sure of it. The tantou was a distinctive sign. Sarutobi hadn't warned him of this... However, the ROOT ninja didn't seem to have the intention to engage—only to observe. Naruto had pursued only to gather potential info on the ninja's goal, and, perhaps, his abilities. He (hopefully) would not attempt to fight the ninja—the results would not be pretty. Observation would be easy, though, with the jutsu Naruto used.

The Kage Tokeru jutsu was developed by Naruto (with Jiraiya's help, of course) and allowed the user to resemble his or her surroundings, provided that the surroundings possessed enough shadows. Such a shame that the shadows were required... Jiraiya could think of many other ways he could put that jutsu to use...


Meanwhile, about a kilometer closer to Konohagakure

Naruto scowled at the swift, black-cloaked ninja he was tailing. The bastard wasn't revealing anything! Damn, fast, too... He didn't know if his Kage Tokeru would hold for long if he had to constantly travel at this speed.

The six-year-old was tempted-very tempted- to just ambush the jerk and give him a piece of his mind. But he recalled the signal that Jiraiya given him. The fist-twirl had meant do not engage, only observe. Naruto grudgingly admitted that Jiraiya might have a point. He continued to leap after the ninja, shadowy footsteps creating naught a whisper of sound as they passed by tree branches.

Unexpectedly, the masked nin came to a complete stop, and Naruto almost tripped in an attempt to do the same. The ninja glanced up at Naruto's location, and the boy mentally panicked.

Crap, he noticed me! Naruto wondered how this was possible. His jutsu was flawless, and Jiraiya had spent some painful years training Naruto in the art of stealth. Unless he's a chakra sensor...?

"I know you're there, demon," a cool, calculating, female voice intoned.

He's a she? Never mind that, she knows what I am? Naruto narrowed his eyes.

"I had hoped that I would not have to engage such filth," she continued, "but I cannot allow a monster to follow me."

Geez, this woman was rude. Hmm, she didn't seem to have any specialties, from first glance. He could probably get away with a long-distance Kawarimi. The observation would be somewhat unsuccessful, but at least he found that she knew about Kyuubi.

Naruto quickly formed the hand sea—

"You're not getting anywhere!" the woman snarled, launching dozens of kunai at him.

Fast! Rather unnerved, Naruto leapt up to avoid the kunai... which promptly followed him. Damnit! Knew I shouldn't have underestimated her!

Naruto pulled out his own kunai, throwing them and knocking the animated kunai out of the air, imbedding them in nearby tree trunks. The supposedly subdued weapons then pulled themselves out of the trees and continued to speed towards Naruto.

Seriously?!

Naruto continued to dodge, attempting to form hand seals but thwarted every time by the nimble kunai. How is she controlling them?

The kunoichi then formed some seals, and suddenly the kunai were crackling with electricity. Simultaneously, she leapt towards Naruto, seemingly dancing around her kunai and slicing at the boy with her tantou.

Naruto was struggling to keep up. It was all he could do already to dodge the kunai, and now? The tantou whipped past his face once more, and a sharp sting told him that it had met its mark.

"Ha!" the kunoichi exclaimed, continuing to slash her blade at the panicking boy. "Take that, demon! How do you like to be the one suffering?" More cuts appeared on Naruto, leaving small trails of blood as he scrambled to avoid the infuriated kunoichi and her electrified kunai.

"I should kill you here and now," she said with a particularly nasty slash. "It wouldn't be far from what the eventual goal would be. I'd be welcomed back to RO-"

Suddenly, the kunoichi froze completely along with her kunai, which dropped ungraciously to the forest floor. Naruto desperately leapt back, finally forming the hand seals for the Kawarimi and disappearing, leaving behind a log that crashed into the woman and knocked her to the floor, making her land harshly on her now-non-electrified weapons.

She glared with intense hatred at the droplets of red raining down upon her, the only remnants of the revenge she was so close to achieving.


Naruto appeared, panting and covered in blood, next to a shocked Jiraiya, who had been peacefully lounging about a quickly-set-up camp site. The Sannin leapt to his feet and rushed over to the boy, inspecting him for serious injuries.

"What happened?!" he demanded of Naruto. "I told you to only observe him!"

"Her," Naruto corrected, quickly recovering and sitting up. "It was a her. She discovered and attacked me. That kunoichi was fast. And she had this weird technique that could animate kunai. I barely made it out alive."

Jiraiya sighed in relief when he found not a single scratch on Naruto-which was a little odd, with all the blood and torn clothes. "Tell me what happened," said Jiraiya.

Naruto launched into a tale (starting with exaggerated bragging of his stealth skills, as usual), and Jiraiya listened with a frown on his face as Naruto revealed the ROOT member's knowledge of Naruto's identity as the Kyuubi's container, which seemed to be how she noticed his presence. The Sannin raised an eyebrow at the description of her kunai technique-Danzou's teaching chakra strings now?-and scowled when the boy told him about the mention of an "eventual goal." He wasn't surprised but rather thankful about the ROOT member's paralysis that allowed Naruto to escape.

"Ne, Ero-sennin, why'd she freeze up like that?"

Jiraiya sighed, annoyed. He then contemplated whether or not he should tell the brat about ROOT. He'd already warned Naruto of possible assassins, so telling him about a specific group wouldn't really be necessary. Plus, if Naruto did know about ROOT, the impulsive brat would probably attempt to expose or ruin it himself. Too risky.

"How should I know?" Jiraiya decided to answer. "Just be glad she did, or you'd be rotting in a pile of leaves right now."

"True," Naruto admitted sheepishly. "She completely screwed me over! I shoulda been more quiet. I guess my stealth needs work. And my speed, and my defensive techniques, and my hand seals..."

"No, it's my fault," Jiraiya interrupted. "I should've known this might happen. She probably sensed you because of the Kyuubi." The fuuinjutsu master rubbed his forehead. "I'll have to make some more changes to your seal, brat. If we're going to carry through with this false identity, we have to cover everything. I'll try to completely block the fox's chakra from you."

Naruto shrugged, putting his hands behind his head. "Go ahead." Jiraiya figured that he was only so compliant because the Kyuubi hadn't really done anything for him. The Sannin hadn't attempted to get Naruto to learn how to use the demon's chakra, deciding that the boy was still too young for that.

Naruto then glanced down at his bloody and torn clothes, narrowing his eyes. "Wait, does that mean that my enhanced healing will be gone, too?" Jiraiya startled. Enhanced healing? Well, that explained Naruto's lack of injuries... Wow, that was useful.

"Probably," Jiraiya answered regretfully. "But if you did have that, people would be suspicious. Also, if everything goes well, you likely won't need it, anyways."

Closing his eyes and laying down, Naruto conceded. "'Kay then, I guess."

"Hold on, don't sleep yet. I've taught you enough fuuinjutsu that you could learn something from this." Naruto scowled but sat up, eyes occasionally drooping as Jiraiya pulled out scrolls and ink, proceeding to start a long lecture about the Awesome Art of Sealing.

Engrossed in fuuinjutsu, Jiraiya could hardly be concerned about the long-forgotten ROOT member, who was currently speeding back to headquarters after her paralysis had worn off.

"Danzou-sama will be displeased..." she muttered. Suddenly, a smirk formed behind her white mask. "But he will be pleased to know that the Kyuubi has finally returned to Konoha."


A/N: Thank you very much for reading!

This is rather AU. The characters are OOC, too, I guess- sorry, it's my first time writing a Naruto fic. This is sorta what might've happened if Jiraiya was present when Kyuubi attacked. The Sannin would've summoned Gamabunta, so Minato couldn't summon him, and he'd have to go directly to the demon with Naruto in tow. Also, since it's AU, I felt like I wanted to include a council. I know there are likely TONS of holes and inconsistencies... I'd be really grateful for any suggestions. ^~^; Also, if you find any grammatical or spelling errors, please tell me. This is not beta'd.

Please let me know what you think, and whether it's worth continuing or not! I really appreciate it.