Hysteria
Chapter One: Death and Birth
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Not even a little bit. Nothing at all.
A/N: Hello and thank you for coming to read my first story. Expect errors here and there, though I will try to ensure they are not overly common. Any form of review or comment is important to me as they help me grow. Regardless, you have not come to read an Author's Note. Please enjoy.
"Yondaime-sama! Yondaime-sama!" the honorable title was called out in rapid succession for several moments after the first two. The volume of that very voice carried all through the empty Hokage tower, reverberating off the walls and ascending up the spiral like staircase. The owner of the voice was a middle aged shinobi, hair hanging loosely over his face and a headband fastened firmly to his head. Without knocking in the slightest, he kicked down the door to the office of the Hokage, urgent news it would seem.
It took him a moment to catch his breathe before he was even close to being able to properly form words. "Yondaime-sama, the...its...Kyubi...its here!" The one being addressed with the lavish title stood facing the window of the office he was currently in, the moonlight accenting his blonde hair and white overcoat. This news came as no surprise to the Fourth Hokage. He knew of Kushina's current condition of near death from her seal breaking. Its actually why he had come here.
(Flashback-25 minutes ago)
Minato, the Fourth Hokage, was on his way home from a rather busy day at the office of the Hokage. However, since they were recovering from the current war with Iwa, the paperwork for new supplies and benefits for veteran Shinobi all took its toll on the Hokage. It was nothing that he minded doing of course. These people had earned their worth and then some. Having to grow up in a time of constant war and death was not easy. He would know, he grew up in it.
Though on this moment, there was something seriously off about his house in which his wife, Uzumaki Kushina, slumbered and cleaned. She was preparing herself for when the time came for her to be a mother, something that Kushina and Minato had been talking about but never exactly had the time to go through with it yet. Though he had taken off a week from the office with the curtsey of the Sandaime Hokage. Apparently the old man had understood exactly what was going on and agreed to help. Though it didn't stop him from teasing Minato.
Normally around this time, Kushina was out at the front door waiting for him to come home with a lovely and wide smile on her face. Today he received no type of greeting. That was his first sign as to what was wrong. 'Maybe she's asleep? She does love her naps.' he thought to himself as he approached the building. It was nothing special in any sense of the word. That was just how he preferred it to be. A simple circle ceiling, one story, home. Painted a light tan color with a vibrant red tile roof.
Unlocking the door and stepping in to the house he quickly found out what the second problem of the day was. The house was an utter wreck. He didn't really care all that much about it but he knew that Kushina did indeed care a lot about keeping things clean when she had the time to do such. He didn't know of any plans that she may have had this day so what could have happened to the place?
In fact, the more that he looked at the room the more looked as though Kushina had been in a fight of some sorts. Holes were in the walls and furniture was busted in half. Some pieces of the carpet were burnt while other pieces had been torn out completely. If he didn't have the feeling that something was horribly wrong before, he certainly did now. When his eyes caught glimpse of something with red hair and a notable amount of blood surrounding it along with the bodies of two dead Anbu members.
"Kushina!"
Minato cried out and ran over to the center of the living room where his wife currently lay. Her limbs were sprawled out among the fabric of the mangled carpet. Who or what could have done this to her? Worse yet was the fact that the mid-section of her shirt was torn open and left to leave her stomach bared to the world. Or at least to the walls and paint in the room. Concern became etched on his features as he knelt next to her.
"Kushina...what happened? Are you alright?" A lightly tan hand rested softly upon the olive forehead of the Uzumaki, generally curious and concerned for her well being. What the hell had happened here? His ocean blue hues searched around the room intently. Possibly for reaffirmation that what he originally saw was correct and to make sure he had not missed anything vital. He glanced back down at her seemingly lifeless corpse and felt his heart tighten before a thought hit him.
If all of this seemed unnatural, then chances are that it was. And in his line of work, that meant that there was a Genjutsu in place that needed to be broken. He hoped that this was the case. Charging up his chakra for but a moment, he pushed it out of his body and allowed it to go about the surrounding proximity. Much to his ire, not a damn thing had changed. His wife still lay limp and his house was still a wreck.
He couldn't believe it. In the span of one day he had lost everything that he held dear to his heart during this time. His heart, once like a war drum at the sight of his most beautiful wife, now ran silent. As if the heart itself was shedding tears of blood. The pain that gripped his being was almost too much for him to bear. As if the weight of the world has suddenly and inexplicably dropped on his shoulders and his back.
"M...Mi...Minato? Is that...you?" Such a delicate voice, were the Heavens now taunting him with his recent loss by having the haunting sound of his wife's voice. Tears sprung from his eyes as his mind entered a delirious state of mind. Slowly but surely he turned his head to look in to her eyes. They were such a pretty color of—wait...her eyes. They were open and she was breathing! Perhaps the Heavens weren't mocking him but instead were rewarding him.
"Minato..." He couldn't believe his ears. Not even for one moment.
"K-Kushina? What...what happened here?" It was the Red Head's turn to look shocked and mortified. Apparently whatever had happened here was enough to make even her turn white as a sheet. Of course that could be from the blood loss she was suffering at the moment. "I was...attacked by...a man. I couldn't see who but...he was strong. Stronger than me...He...took the Kyubi out of me, Minato. That Bastard knew how to...break the seal."
This was bad. No, scratch that. This is really, really bad. The Kyubi on the best of days was a nightmare from hell to witness. And now that power was in the hands of some random assailant who was already strong enough to subdue the container of said demon? "Where is this man, Kushina? Where is the Kyubi?" Minato asked with a depraved uncertainty about his voice. His hand applied pressure to her bleeding wound to keep her from dying but he knew no jutsu that could heal. He damned himself for not taking advantage of Tsunade's offer to learn a few basic ones when he had the chance to do so.
Kushina paused for a moment, a look that resembled thinking appeared upon her, facial expression contorting to match her mental state. What did happen after the Kyubi broke free. "I...don't...know. I think...he sealed the Kyubi away in...something. It won't hold for long. That's too much chakra...for one item. He will be back." That was more than enough information to give Minato pause about what to do.
The way that he looked at it, he had two problems to worry about. First and likely the biggest one of the two, both in size and severity, was the fact that the Kyubi was stolen right out of Kushina. Second was the man that had killed the Black Ops bodyguards he had in place for Kushina and wounded the aforementioned red head to a high degree. If it weren't for her bloodline and natural healing ability this surely would have been her end.
His mind made the choice for him in a splendidly quick manner. Since the Nine-Tailed Fox wasn't currently destroying anything, all of his efforts would go towards finding this man that had attacked his family and stole the a Village treasure. "We'll find him, don't worry." Flashing her a wide smile like was known for. With his free hand, he made a hand sign and an Anbu arrived from the shadows of the house.
"Yes, Yondaime-sama." Minato turned his head to find the man dressed in a hawk mask. "A medic immediately for my wife and two more Guards. This assassin may attempt on her life again." Wordlessly, the Anbu member vanished and went about his task with the utmost speed and grace that he could muster out of his body.
Minato, being the Hokage of skill that he was, could sense when the Anbu had gather the necessary people for the job. It was then that he stood to his full height and glanced down at his blood soaked floor. Who ever had come in here and done this would pay a hefty price of their life. He would make sure of it. "Be still, Kushina. It'll be over soon." As the Anbu arrived, he had left. They were tending to his love and that was enough for him to feel slightly better about himself.
He had but one destination in mind. The Hokage's office. Reason being is that he needed to get a hold of the Sandaime who was there currently. At least he hoped that he was. He needed him for what was about to come, if the feeling in his gut held any sway for the real world affairs. He sped along the rooftops with blazing fury with far too much on his mind to use the Hiraishin no Jutsu.
With a barely covered presence, Minato rushed through the door with a worried and slightly panicked expression on his face. But it was one that was resolute and ready in a sense. The Sandaime, old as he may be, instantly caught on to the look and stood from his chair. "Minato? What is going on?" Said blonde Hokage gave him a brief look before explaining.
"Kyubi was extracted and taken from Kushina by a man. This man sealed the Fox away in an item which wont hold for very long. We need to prepare Konoha for the likely even that the Fox will come back and attack the village. Do you think you could help gather the shinobi forces and get them ready?" The old man nodded of course, why wouldn't he? He knew the gravity of the situation. He knew how bad it would be if they didn't prepare.
"Of course Minato. I'll get on it right away. What about you? I understand if you want to go back to your wife, I've been there before." That, it seemed, was the question of the year. What would he be doing?
"I need to find the attacker. If...if I can't find him I'll be joining you against the Kyubi if it comes here." His tone was greatly saddened but held firm. Hiruzen, the Sandaime, couldn't help but to feel pain for the younger Hokage. To lose a family before it had even begun was something no man or woman should have to endure. It put a sad look upon his stone like face.
Without another word, the elderly man vanished from sight and Minato turned to face the window in his office. So much had changed already. And he was prepared to end anything in the event that the problem made itself known.
"Yondaime-sama! Yondaime-sama!"
(Flashback End)
–
Another sigh parted the lips of the Hokage as he turned to face his loyal subject. "Thank you Tarashi. Dismissed." Those seemed to be the words he was looking for because the moment they left Minato the man was gone from view. Blinking at this, he normally would have at least chuckled. This time was obviously way different with the news being as heavy as it was. Turning his head back to the window, he looked to see if what the man said was true.
Indeed it was. In all its glory, the Fox was now free upon the Village of Konoha with all the power that it had at its disposal. Which was the power that could level mountains in one swipe or crush villages with one mighty roar. Such a fearsome and wild animal that it was. Yet it held a certain appeal to it. To think that theses were one of the beasts that were created by the Sage and tamed by the Shodai Hokage, if only briefly.
Regardless, it was his duty and honor as the Hokage to defend his village from all threats. Right now, in the absence of the mystery man, the Kyubi was his greatest threat to handle. A small frown formed on his face at the visible destruction that the beast was causing already. Wasting no more time, he built up chakra and prepared to use the-
"Hello, Yondaime."
Minato froze at the sound of that deep and rumbling voice that came from the shadows. Instantly drawing a three pronged kunai, he spun to face the direction of the voice. Deciding to reveal itself, the owner of the voice stepped forth and revealed himself in the limited moonlight setting. There were only two things that really stood out to the Hokage. One was the fact that he had on a bright orange mask. The second was he only had one visible eye and it was a Sharingan eye.
"Who are you?" Minato asked the figure whilst remaining on total alert for anything the stranger might try on him. Though he was serious, the stranger seemed to laugh at him for everything that he was doing. Maybe he found it ironic that he didn't know who he was or maybe he was just plain out of his mind. The Hokage hoped that it was the second one.
"You should know me but that doesn't matter now. What does matter is that you have a choice." The man responded to his question. Minato blinked at the calm intensity of that voice. Should he know him? If did know him then who could it have been? He didn't know any of the Uchiha members that one had one eye. The only one that did is long since dead now.
"What choice?" Minato grounded out through his teeth, enticing the other being to mock him with a type of amused laughter.
"The Nine-Tails currently lays waste to your village. You can either leave this area here and go to attack it, possibly saving your village in the end. Or you can attack me, the one that ripped the Fox from your wife's belly."
So it was him that attacked Kushina? Minato felt his blood run colder at the news that was given to him. The desire to attack this man now was almost staggering from where he stood. Still, he couldn't make any rash decisions. He had to think this out properly. He knew that Hiruzen would be gathering up the shinobi for combating this beast.
With Konoha defending itself that would leave Minato to defeating this man before him. The one that had attacked his wife for no other reason than for power. Who was attacking his village for almost no visible reason unless he held a grudge against the Hokage for whatever reason. Maybe this was a war effort from Iwa in an attempt to get back at him.
So many things circled around in his head at the moment. So many worries and concerns for everything happening right now. From his wife and her current health state. To Hiruzen and his war effort. To this vile man before him. Everything was piling up on him and he needed to act quick if he was going to salvage the day and make things right.
"Oi, I've made my choice." His voice came out plain but determined. The Masked Man tilted his head towards the Hokage.
"What is it?"
Minato's reply came not in the form of words or facial expressions. It came only in a single action. His palm lifted up from his side, open and facing the ceiling. Within moments of that, a bright blue ball seemingly sprung forth from his hand and hovered slightly over it. The Rasengan, as it was called, was the second signature move from the Hokage.
'Old Man, I'm counting on you.'
"Let's go."
(With Hiruzen and the Konoha shinobi forces)
–
The Sandaime Hokage stood tall on a building with a battle hardened expression upon his elderly features. In his hands was a staff. Not just any staff but a summoned animal of legend that transformed himself in to this staff to better be of use to the man that brought him to this world. The two had seen many battles before and had been through situations that most would have perished in. Yet they have never faced anything quite as deadly or as powerful as the Kyubi.
Behind them stood the main chunk of the shinobi battle forces that Konoha could muster. Anyone Chunin and up was out in full display. Ready and waiting for the moment they could be of some help to bring down this beast. "We have to hold the Kyubi back until Yondaime-sama can come and help." Everyone knew the risks. This would not be an easy feat.
"Hai, Sandaime-sama!" A chorus of battle cries were heard behind him. The ex-Hokage remained impassive to the cheers. His full attention was focused on the large red demon-like beast. It would seem that the Kyubi did not care for the rally cries of the puny humans. In response, it released a hellish roar that shook the ground.
The war cries died in their throats and all was silent for about all of a moment.
Crack!
A loud smacking noise was heard and all that were in attendance visibly gaped at what had happened. There Hiruzen stood with his staff slowly shrinking back down to normal size. The Kyubi's massive head was now slanted slightly at a downward angle. The Sandaime had shut the Fox up as if he were taming a disobedient domestic house pet.
Hell, even the Fox himself couldn't believe it!
"Roar all you want, the Will Of Fire will never break because of it." The stern voice was heard in a wide range. Turning around, the Sandaime faced his loyal shinobi. "We have to move it out of the village. The longer its here the more people it kills. Those that can use Katon jutsu, do it. Those that can't use explosive tags. On my mark."
They all nodded with their headbands shining in the light of flames around them. Ashes blew in the faint wind around them, the little gust carrying the evidence of this incursion all over the forests that surrounded the area. Each and every man and woman there was ready to lay down their lives to defend this place. Their home.
A fireball was expelled from the mouth of the Elderly man. The Kyubi looked at the offending ball of flames and snorted. They thought that this little speck of chakra was going to even come close to harming him? The mighty Kyubi? Insolent mortals. Truly they did not understand the gravity of their situation.
That was, until that little ball of flame was no longer alone. No, like fireflies in the field of a summer night, multiple lights burned brightly and silently sailed throughout the night. The flames cast their light over the surrounding area and reflected the metal that accompanied the balls of fire. In one spectacular fashion, all the objects collided with the skin and fur of the Kyubi. Such resounding force when put together was enough to make the demented beast relent and be pushed backwards.
It may have only been a simple slide on the Kyubi's part but for the warriors of Konoha it meant so much more. This thing, this Fox, could still be hit and could still be overpowered. Even if it took a whole village to be able to do it. Together they were strong. Together they could stall. They could win this.
The Sandaime knew this wasn't enough and it angered him. They had to keep this up. "Fire!" He barked out his stalwart command to the horde behind him. And fire they did. A second wave of inflamed air and explosive metal flew at the beast and once more it was pushed back. It still wasn't enough.
The old man cursed his old and tired body as it was sluggish to respond to his latest command. Regardless, it did eventually follow the order that was given and took to the air in a high jump. He may have not have been as young as he used to be but he wasn't that old yet! Bringing his knees up to his chest, he shifted his weight forward and brought the staff down in an overhead strike during a front-flip like motion.
The Staff must have known this trick for it grew to the proper size needed to hit the Kyubi firmly on the crown of its head. A victorious crack was heard throughout the battle raging on. "Don't let up!" He had to keep morale up. If he didn't this battle would not last long enough for Minato to be able to help them. There wouldn't be enough of them left to help.
Whilst still in the air, the Sandaime wrapped his arms around the hefty staff and brought it all the way up in to the air, having it stand nearly straight up and down. With a grunt of effort and battle cry, he brought the black metal staff straight down on the same spot. He wasn't done, not by a long shot. There was still time to stall.
He took this time to look back at the forces of Konoha. Poor souls. They were doing everything they could to damage the Fox. Each attack pushed the beast back further and further. It gave his heart hope to see them all united as one. Even if it took a moment as colossal as the Kyubi destroying everything to achieve such. Baby steps.
This would have to be his last strike before finishing the push to get the Fox out of the village walls. Gripping the staff tightly, he spun from left all the way around and kept going until the tip of the staff met the jaw of the Fox and summarily knocked the Fox on to his left side. Brief but potent cheers were heard as the Sandaime landed back on his feet.
Staff shrinking slightly, he pointed the tip at the chest of the now standing Tailed Beast. Enma, the summoned staff that Hiruzen held on to, opened its eye at Hiruzen. The man nodded to his staff. "Go!" He said aloud and the staff responded with extending rapidly and poking the Kyubi directly in the chest. This was no ordinary poke though. No, the strength of this poke was more than enough to bowl over the Kyubi and force the creature on its back.
"Yeah! Take that!"
"Konoha won't fall to you!"
"Sandaime-sama still got it!"
"It can be hurt!"
These were the types of conversations that gathered around the ex-Hokage. Enma, having used up most of his energy in that attack, shrunk back down to normal size in an attempt to recover some spent chakra. Even the Sandaime allowed himself to smile just a bit. This was going well for their first attempt at fighting a Tailed Beast. If only they knew how wrong they were.
The Kyubi, after being tossed around like that, let out a fearsome roar as it stood back up on all fours, snout facing the defiant ninja. Begrudgingly, he would admit that this was the first time in a long time that any village had put up a fight. This would only make their destruction all the more satisfying to him. The Fox grinned to himself.
Parting his slightly sore jaws, the beast began to charge up a mix of both normal chakra and his own chakra in to what appeared to be a black and purple ball. Cheers abruptly stopped and everyone looked around in panic. They didn't need to be sensor shinobi to tell how dangerous this ball of chakra was. They needed to do something.
Sarutobi Hiruzen gave a glare to the Fox. They had to hold on. Even past a blast like this. "Enma, go now. You've helped enough." The staff didn't talk but Hiruzen could tell he felt uneasy about leaving him like this. "Don't worry old friend, I'll see you again. Either in heaven or next time I need you." The next moment, the staff puffed away in a cloud of smoke.
The Fox lurched his next slightly and fired the Tailed-Beast Bomb. Hiruzen did the only thing he could think of doing at the moment. He ran through a set of hand seals before slamming his open palms on the ground with a shout of the jutsu name.
"Doton: Doryūheki"
The moment the ground met his hands, it sprung up in surprisingly quick fashion and formed an extremely thick wall in front of the shinobi forces. He knew it wouldn't be enough but this would stunt the blow somewhat. It had to. If it didn't...there was no telling what might happen.
Within moments the two opposing forces met.
The Sandaime's sight was reduced to a blinding white for a minute or so. Was he knocked unconscious by the blast or had the worst happened and he was dead? No, he could feel his chest rising and falling still. Then what had happened? Did the wall hold up? As if to answer his questions the white the occupied his vision slowly began to fade away.
His right hand came up to his chest and brushed the rubble off of his body. Sitting up, he looked around, though he sorely wished that he hadn't.
All around him was the evidence and answer to his questions. People lay scattered about the area. Some had bits and pieces of building material on them, others were covered by the Earth Wall that crumbled. Others...there wasn't enough of the others to tell. The only thing they left behind were blood splatters.
Worse yet, the Kyubi was entirely undaunted by the resistance. It was like the previous attacks amounted to nothing. It shook his faith in himself. Why fight? They wouldn't be able to best the creature. It was simply too much. His life appeared to be at the closing point as he looked at the second purple ball that the Kyubi had formed in its maw. Sarutobi willed himself to rise to his feet. If he was going to die, he would do it with pride.
His arm was warm and slick. He glanced down at it and noted the blood that coated the black material. His left hand covered the wound as he slowly walked over. His body felt heavy and tired after all that exertion. He came to a stop directly in front of the Kyubi and glared at the beast. The moon was still high in the sky. A lovely night to die on, it would seem.
From behind him, a few Jonin and Anbu members came stumbling to stand side by side with their leader. No words were said yet they all stood resolute. Just as it looked like the beast was about to fire and finish them off, something happened.
'Gold chains? Its…'
"Kushina?"
(With Minato – Ruined Hokage Office)
–
This was taking too long for him to deal with. The man before him could turn his body intangible any time he wanted and only precise and perfectly timed attacks could get him. But that isn't what was bothering him, not at all. This man was difficult to deal with but Minato had the speed advantage on him and that made it easier on him.
No what was bothering him was the fact that he wasn't able to help his village. Not as long as this man was in front of him. Minato had attempted to leave to go and help when he felt the power of the first Tailed-Beast Bomb forming but he was stopped nearly dead in his tracks by the aggressive assault of the masked being. He was left with only one choice: He had to end this in a quick and deadly fashion so he could get out there and help.
And he knew just how to do it.
Taking a kunai in hand, his infamous tri-pronged styled one. Without warning he threw it directly at the man. This was a trick that he had used before on him involving his Hiraishin to get behind him and hit him with a Rasengan. This time it would be different. As expected, the kunai sailed right through his body and came out the other side. And as expected, he turned around.
What he probably wasn't expecting was what Minato did next. Instead of having a kunai in hand or a Rasengan. No, what was there was a weird series of black ink markings stretched across the air like it had always been there. The Masked man thought he would be able to turn around and grab Minato before he could hit him. He wasn't able to stop his momentum and ran headlong in to the strange seal.
Within moments he was launched from Konoha and ended up somewhere else surrounded by trees. He couldn't tell if he was near Konoha or not. Either way, it didn't matter. His task was there was finished in a sense.
"Well done, Minato-sensei. I wonder what you'll do next."
(Back with Minato)
Releasing a sigh of relief, he looked around his office. There were holes all over it and kunai slashes littered the wooden walls. That took far more of his strength then he needed it to take but he had dealt with the man. On the Positive side he had placed a seal on his body so he could go and finish the fight once this business with the Fox was handled. If he was even still around by then.
Bursting through the window, he hopped from the tower and began hauling his body down to the fighting zone. Though he didn't note it at first, there was something holding the Kyubi in place. Something golden and faint. As he got closer still, his eyes widened to the point where they may have popped out of his head.
"Kushina!"
What was she doing out here after receiving such an injury? She should be back and recovering from her fight. If he wasn't any bit as good as he was when Minato fought him, then Kushina would have had a hell of time without his speed and teleporting jutsu. Knowing her stubborn nature and will to never give up he should have known she would be here.
With this thought in mind and his wife on the front lines, he had no choice but to speed along with spectacular speed that he was known for in this life. Though his body was moving at the speeds of sound, figuratively, his mind was running even faster than his legs. He had to figure out a way to bring the Fox down.
But before he could do that, he had to move the colossal beast away from his village. He could use the Hiraishin on it though that would consume so much of his chakra that he wouldn't really have many options after that. Either way, it was not as though he had a choice in the matter. It had to be done for the sake of the village.
Luckily for him, the chains were holding the Fox perfectly in place for the time being. Giving him just enough room to land on the head of the Fox. The sight of their beloved Fourth Hokage coming to the battle rallied the forces of Konoha. Most of which were able to recover from the deafeningly powerful bomb that hit them. Only about a fifth of them had died in actuality.
For her part, Kushina was extremely confused. What was Minato doing on the head of the Fox? Did he have a plan for dealing with this creature? She opened her mouth to voice he questions but they were never heard as her world was suddenly transported far away from where she currently stood. When she looked around now, she noted the trees that were sprouted in every direction.
"Minato…? What happen-"
"Kushina, listen there isn't a whole lot of time here. You remember that sealing jutsu you taught me?"
Indeed she did remember. Though it was one that she had hoped he would never use unless the situation called for it. She guessed this counted but still!
"You can't be serious! Use a different sealing!"
"Like what? There isn't any other choice. And before you say it, I'm not getting a baby from the Hospital. We are not putting a family through what we couldn't do. This is the only way to go about it."
"Minato..." Kushina's voice was full of emotions. She didn't know what she was going to do about this. She...she had to help but...she didn't want to lose him. Fresh tears burned at her eyes and threatened to slide down her cheeks. "What do you...need me for?"
"I...need you to do the sealing with me. I only have enough chakra and strength to take a half of the beast with me. Even at half of its power, its more than enough to crush our home. We have to do this. To protect the future..."
Kushina slumped to her knees in anguish. Why did fate have to be so cruel as to rob them of their chance at happiness. She gave a weak and meager nod to her Husband, turning her body to face the Fox. Minato went first, performing the hand seals at a nearly blinding rate of speed before the area around them went cold with the chill of death creeping in.
"Shiki Fūjin!"
The cold hand of death lunged through the body of the blonde Hokage and sped forward towards the target of the Kyubi. The Fox, having never seen anything like this before, had no fear of the hand that came at him. He considered himself above death and should never fear such a thing. How wrong he was. Death's hand gets everyone and everything. No matter what.
When the hand gripped on to his fur and proceeded to rapidly retract with a piece of his soul in the hand of the Death God, he let out a roar of pain and shock. No longer did the Kyubi look as though it was a well fed animal. But now looked anorexic and a light shade of orange. If looked closely at, they could see the rib bones.
The Soul came blazing back and was summarily sealed within the body of the Hokage. "Wow...so heavy...there's...so much of it..." One eye was closed shut in concentration of the new feeling. The other blue orb shifted over to his wife. Whom of which had just finished preparing the hand seals for her half of the jutsu.
"Shiki Fūjin!"
Just like before, Death arrived and plunged his hand through her belly. The hand grasped the Kyubi and drug the other half of its being in to Kushina and re-did the seal that had been broken. A light smile was on her face as she placed a hand on her belly. He was very upset with her at the moment and was making his suffering known to the woman who was once again his container.
Together, the two of them fell back and laid in the soft grass for their dying moments, hand in hand.
"Hey...Kushina..."
"Hm?"
"I know you...said you'd think...about it but...what about Naruto?"
"Mn...I like...the name..."
"Heh...me too. Me...too."
The two of them laid in comfortable silence for the reminder of the night. That was, until they were found by the Sandaime and the others. Orders were to preserve the bodies and give them an honorable burial in the Hokage section together. This was accepted. This was the way it had always been known to be done.
What they didn't know, was that they had a visitor. A silent watcher of what had happened.
(Several Months Later)
–
It was in a dark lab that lay in the ground. The room was nothing special, a quaint little room with only one thing in it. A tube. A light green light lit up the tub of water and thus gave the nearly pitch black room a slight amount of illumination. In front of the tube was a male. The light reflected off his glasses and silver hair and gave him a rather sinister look about him.
"How goes the subject's progress?"
A slippery and eerie voice could be heard through the darkness as the another being joined the silver haired male with the glasses. This one had golden snake like eyes and wore a smirk that promised pain in all sorts of manners.
"As well as can be, I suppose. This would be easier if the items were harvested while the parent donors were alive at extraction. Bringing everything to life is not an easy task."
"Kukuku, yes I suppose. But I don't think they would have just handed their DNA over, do you?"
"No, I suppose not. If I may, my Lord, what is the purpose of this project?"
"I have found the secret to eternal life by transferring my soul in to other bodies. My soul is strong and will eat away at the body within a certain time. Strong beings may last longer. I intend to create a being that already has a part of my DNA in them. This will make the body last far longer than normal."
"Then why go through all the trouble of collecting his DNA?"
At this, the golden eye man faced the tube and smiled at the little blonde baby that floated peacefully in it.
"I will destroy Konoha, as promise, with a relic of their greatest hero."
"Did you come up with a name for it? I'm not partial to names but loyalty is more easily secured when one has a name."
"I overheard something, it will do. My little project. My Naruto."