Prologue:
A Different Past…
A yellow haired figure stood worriedly in a hospital waiting room. His wife was giving birth, but that was not all. The worst demon mankind had ever seen, the Nine- Tailed Demonic Fox, was in a rage and heading directly for the village he lived in. He was a ninja and his duty was to protect the village. But how do you stop a demonic beast?
A battered and bruised ninja ran through the doors and entered the lobby.
"Lord Hokage-" the fellow began.
"Has it arrived?" the ruler of the village asked. Yes, this yellow-haired ninja was known as the Hokage- Konoha's Yellow Flash- Minato Namikaze. The young genius found a way to defeat the beast, but it had devastating consequences.
"Yes, my lord. The Fox is outside the village and engaged in battle with our forces."
"I suppose the time has come, then. Thank you, Kaito. It was a pleasure to work with you. Now, I must say my goodbyes." Minato said. The ninja nodded and shimmered back to the battlefront. Minato turned and went around a corner to come face to face with some people he knew well.
There was Tsunade, the world-renowned medical ninja and world's strongest lady. She was like a mother to him, one of the three legendary Sannin, and the nurse taking care of his wife.
There was Jiraiya, the second third of the legendary Sannin and the one who was a sensei to him. Minato viewed him as a father.
There was Kakashi, a young teenager who was a Jonin and one of his students. The boy lost his father at a young age and looked to Minato as Minato did to Jiraiya.
Minato expected Nagato to be with them. Nagato was his own flesh and blood, sole possessor of the famous Rinnegan and- though a teenager- a Jonin.
The fifth member of the party was the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi. He had been the processor of Minato and the longest-reigning Hokage. Now, he was a ripe old age, but Minato knew he could still fight.
The final group member was someone Minato didn't expect to be there. It was Orochimaru, the third and final member of the Sannin. He was doing evil things and turning to the dark side before Sarutobi busted his operation. Sarutobi convinced Orochimaru to get some mental help, and after a year or so, he was completely on Konoha's side. He was a very useful ninja and close friend of Minato.
The six of them gazed sadly at Minato for a moment until Tsunade spoke up.
"Would you like to see the boy?" she asked. A grin broke out on his face. He had another son. "Shizune is taking care of them."
"Why, of course I would! This is great news!" His moment of joy was spoiled, though, at that moment because of what he had to do next. "Of course, that means he'll be the container, but…"
"Listen, Minato." Jiraiya started. "You don't have to do this."
"Jiraiya- sensei, I've read every book there is to read about demons, and there aren't any other options." he said.
"Actually, there is." Orochimaru piped up. "We found it minutes ago. No body needs to die," glaring at Minato here, "and your son won't become a Jinchuriki." Minato's face lit up instantly.
"Dad, it's very easy, but hard to perform. Since demons subsist, gods subsist. So, you must pray to Kami for ten minutes and … well, Kami comes down and beats the Fox." Nagato said.
"What are the drawbacks?" Minato asked.
"Obviously, we need to distract the beast and stay alive long enough to carry out the plan. We can't do the prayer, because we're needed outside. A citizen has to do it; five ninjas must guard them. The beast can't see them or the prayer has to be restarted. Then, you have to wait two minutes. After that, it's all clear." Kakashi said.
"Hmmm…" Minato contemplated this idea for a minute before making a decision.
"Alright. Kakashi and Nagato, get a citizen and three ninjas to guard them. Stay with them. Go inside the Second Hokage's face on Hokage Monument, and hide them behind the left eye, where nobody can see them. The rest of us will hold off the beast. But first, let me see my son."
Tsunade nodded, and the group of seven shuffled of to room 203. They walked in quietly as a sleeping boy with Minato's shockingly yellow hair slept peacefully in Shizune's hands. Kushina was also sleeping; the birth had taken a lot of her energy. Minato swiftly walked over to the boy.
"Hey there, Naruto." Minato said. The name had already been picked before the birth; the main character from Jiraiya's first book was named Naruto, and Minato and Kushina liked the name. The baby subconsciously grabbed Minato's nose for a moment, but then let go. Minato handed it back to Kushina after another couple minutes.
"Let's go." Minato motioned to the group. The seven of them disappeared and reappeared on the roof. Minato turned to Kakashi and Nagato.
"Be safe." he simply said. They nodded. Nagato hugged Minato, and Kakashi nodded respectfully. The two 'brothers' dived downward onto the ground, while the other five shimmered out of existence as if they were never there.
Minato and the group landed on the front lines. It took a few seconds for the ninjas to realize, but once they did, applause went up and the morale was boosted sky high. They were silenced, however, when a roar of the Nine-Tailed Fox rang out. Each member of the group did hand signs.
"Summoning Jutsu!" they all exclaimed. Gamabunta, Manda, Katsuyu, Gamahiro, and a giant ape named Hashie appeared below Minato, Orochimaru, Tsunade, Jiraiya and Hiruzen respectfully. The Fox roared and fired a beam of unadulterated power at Gamahiro.
"Jump!" Jiraiya ordered. Gamahiro obeyed and jumped over the ray. It went flying over the Hokage Monument and into the heavens and possibly above.
"Gamabunta, use Water Style: Gunshot!" Minato said. Gamabunta's chest popped out and when he discharged, four giant water blasts flew from his mouth. Minato himself jumped and, in the air, watched three connect head-on with the beast and the fourth detonate next to it, knocking the Fox over. Minato quickly made hand signs.
"Lightning Style: Electromagnetic Murder!" he exclaimed. A huge wave of voltage surged from his palms, through the air and to the Fox. When it connected, electricity visibly arced up and down his body. The Kyuubi roared in fury, making a sound so earsplitting that it blew Minato back.
The beast picked up about fifty trees in one tail, and it used four tails. As a result, two hundred trees went flying through the air. Katsuyu spit acid that burned through some, Manda chomped them and both Gamabunta and Gamahiro sliced n' diced them, but it wasn't enough. Orochimaru started to slice, and Tsunade blasted then to smithereens, while Sarutobi burned them with Fire jutsu. Minato flipped in the air and jumped off of one, speeding through the air and using the trees as launching pads. The ones that weren't destroyed crashed into the village or the surrounding area.
Minato flew at the beast with a Rasengan in one hand and a seal in the other- a seal he used for the Flying Thunder God in the other. The Fox charged up a Nine Tailed Menacing Ball and fired it at Minato. Minato threw the seal at the blast and teleported it to some distant body of water. He continued flying downward uninterrupted. That was true until the beast swatted Minato out of the air with one of its tails.
"Tongue Tooth Sticky Acid!" Katsuyu said. Acid shot out at the Kyuubi. Normally, the target would've disintegrated on the spot, but the Kyuubi was chakra. It merely shook it off and kept moving. Minato retreated back onto Gamabunta, while Gamahiro moved forward and sliced the Fox twice, then jumped away from the Fox's bite. Then Manda did something new.
Manda spit poison out of his mouth. It landed around the Fox and created a puddle. The Fox was forced into the puddle by a Water Style: Gunshot bullet from Gamabunta. It sizzled around its body. After nine minutes of battle, Minato got an idea.
"Hiruzen! Tell them to stop praying! I've got the simplest idea." Minato said. Hiruzen nodded and shimmered away. Minato drew another seal and told Gamabunta to hold the Fox's attention.
"Sure, Minato. What in the world are you planning?" Gamabunta asked. Minato didn't answer; rather, he skirted around to the backside of the Kyuubi.
The Fox attacked Manda, and Minato saw his opportunity. He tossed the seal toward where it would land. Sure enough, the seal attached to one of the wild tails. Minato performed the Thunder Flying God- but used the Fox as the traveler and Shinigami's place as the destination.
Eerie silence hung over the village. The next day, joyful shouting and prideful comments were heard through the village as it celebrated Minato's defeat of the Fox. Two days later, the healing process began.
Three years went by since the Fox was defeated. Minato sat at his desk, stressed out. The village was going through tough times; ninja reserves were down, the economy worsened and there wasn't enough room in the village to accommodate new- coming citizens. To relax, he decided to take a midnight walk around the nearest ninja estate- the Hyuga's compound.
He hopped from the office onto a building and from there onto a tree. He then traveled tree-wise around the perimeter until he came across a disturbing sight.
Konoha and Kumogakure, the Village Hidden in the Clouds, were undergoing peace treaties. Yet Kumo's head diplomatic ninja was running down the Hyuga's exit. He appeared to be carrying something- no, carrying someone. They looked to be about three or four. It was a case of kidnap.
Minato hopped down and blocked off the ninja's pathway. The ninja skidded to a halt and put the person down. It was a girl- by the looks of it, a knocked-out girl. The ninja drew a kunai knife.
"Well, Mr. Hokage? What do you do? Kill me and start another war, or let me go?" he eccentrically asked.
"What are you doing?" Minato asked with a sigh.
"Taking Hiashi Hyuga's daughter to my village! We'll breed this bitch and have her fucked over and over until we have our own Byakugan! And I'll be my village's hero!" he said madly.
"I won't let you." Minato said.
"Oh yeah? Well, I have diplomatic immunity. Touch me, and you start a war." he said. Minato twitched for a second. Apparently, that was all that the man needed. He lunged at Minato with a kunai. Minato jumped backwards and quickly did some hand signs.
"Lightning Style: Electromagnetic Murder!" he exclaimed. A wave of lightning flew from his palms, with enough voltage to knock the intruder out. The ninja, still trying to recover his balance from his lunge, was blown backwards through a wall and along the ground. He was clearly out cold. Minato put a chakra draining seal on him, and then took the girl to the branch family's house. They gladly took her in.
By a month's time, the whole incident had been sorted out.
Four years later, and Minato was in his office yet once more. A masked ANBU captain spoke to him, confirming his worst fears.
"Itachi, are you sure they're rebelling?" Minato asked. The teen took off his mask to reveal two fully matured Sharingan.
"Yes, Hokage-sama. My clan-" Itachi began.
"You can call me Minato." the Namikaze said.
"Well, Minato, I can tell you much. The Uchiha clan prepares a rebellion as we speak." Itachi said.
"Besides you, who else is against it?" Minato asked.
"My father, mother and my brother, Sasuke don't like it. My father doesn't think we can take on the whole village, my mother just doesn't participate in Uchiha plans anymore, and Sasuke… he's too young to understand." Itachi said. Minato nodded in apprehension.
"Well, the peace talks have failed. It appears there is only one choice left. Itachi, get your family to leave the compound for an hour, at 10:00 p.m. I'll gather some ninjas. The Uchiha clan are too dangerous to be left alone… it's the only option." Minato proclaimed. Itachi nodded.
At 9:55, a Jonin reported seeing Itachi and company leaving the compound. At 10:00 on the dime, Minato, Tsunade, Jiraiya, Orochimaru, Nagato, Kakashi and about 500 other ninja raided the compound. By 10:45, there wasn't one person of the Uchiha clan left alive. At 11:00 when Sasuke and the family returned, they found the remains.
At first, they couldn't believe it (except Itachi, of course). But Minato kindly and patiently explained what happened. Though they were sad, the family understood immediately. Sasuke was just glad that his immediate family was still alive. He lived a happy life, not an emo-kid.
A year later, Minato walked downtown with his eight year old son. Today was the first day of school at the Ninja Academy.
"So, dad…" Naruto began casually. For an eight year old, he was extremely talented and mature. "I'll be alone for the first time, I guess."
"Yes, son." Minato absentmindedly replied. He was focused on the fact that they were at the academy. Minato bent down.
"Have a good day, my boy." He said with a hug. "I love you."
"I love you too, dad." Naruto said, returning the hug. He walked to the man at the door, while Minato watched.
"Sir, I need to get to my class." Naruto said. The man looked down.
"Are you the Fourth's child?" he asked excitedly.
"Yes." Naruto replied. The man smiled and looked at the list for a good second.
"You're in room three; your teacher is Iruka Umino." he said.
"Thank you, sir." Naruto said. He turned and waved to Minato, who waved back. He then plunged into the school.
When Naruto entered the room, there were about twenty kids in the room. A teacher with a brown ponytail and a gash across his face stood smiling at the talking kids; Naruto could only guess him to be Iruka. A separate instructor with periwinkle hair sat behind the teacher's desk, sorting out papers.
Iruka turned towards the door and saw Naruto. His face lit up instantly.
"Hi, Naruto!" Iruka said. Of course he probably knew him; he was the Hokage's second-born. "Please, take a seat where you want." he offered. Naruto ended up sitting at a desk to the right of a boy with the Uchiha crest on his back, a girl with no pupils to his left. A dark haired boy with a collar covering his mouth and sunglasses covering his eyes sat in front of him, while a girl with blond hair sat behind him.
Several more people poured in. Among them, a boy who fell asleep as soon as he got to his desk; Naruto recognized him as a Nara. A boy eating out of a seemingly never ending BBQ- chips bag sat next to him; he had to be an Akimichi. A loud pink haired girl sat near him. Finally, Iruka cleared his throat.
"Welcome to the Ninja Academy! I am Iruka, and he," motioning to the other instructor, "is Mizuki. We are your senseis. Why don't we go around the room and get to learn each other? You know, stuff like your name, likes, and dislikes? Let's start with you." He motioned to the dark haired boy in front of Naruto.
When it came to Naruto's turn, he stood up coolly and started to talk.
"My name's Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze. I'm the second son of the Fourth Hokage and the Princess of the Whirlpool Village. I like becoming stronger and hanging out with friends, and I don't mind teaching them things I know as well. I don't like jerks, traitors and anything that's big and man-eating." Naruto stated bluntly. He sat down to many stares of wonder or amazement.
As Naruto listened, he learned about others. For one, there was one Aburame in the class, an Akimichi, a Yamanaka, Uchiha, Inuzuka, Hyuga, and a Nara. Naruto planned on making friends with them. The teacher suddenly shook him from his thoughts with a sudden question. Apparently, it was Mizuki who asked the question.
"Who here knows any jutsu?" he asked. Naruto, along with several others raised their hands.
"Iruka, could we have them… ah, show us their jutsus?" he asked.
"Why, of course. Please class, let's move outside." Iruka said. Naruto and the rest shuffled off. Naruto accidentally ran into the Uchiha boy.
"Sorry." he quickly said.
"No, it's fine. You're Sasuke, right?" he asked.
"Yes." he answered. "I'm pleased to meet you."
"Likewise." Naruto said as they shook hands.
"So… do you know any jutsu?" Sasuke asked.
"About 20. And you?" Naruto asked.
"Around 15. By the way, I'm a Fire and Lightning type." Sasuke said.
"I'm a Lightning, Fire and Wind type." Naruto said.
"That's amazing!" Sasuke said. "I've never known a person besides my older brother Itachi-"
"Your brother's Itachi? I know him… he's a friend of my brother, Nagato." Naruto said.
"Really? I know Nagato too. If I'm correct, then he told me about you. Can you really-" Sasuke began. They had, however, reached the field where they were going to demonstrate. Iruka told them to be quiet.
"Okay… Shino, you know a jutsu, right?" Iruka asked. Shino nodded.
"Can you show us?" Iruka asked.
"Well, I need a person to perform it on." Shino said.
"Very well, very well… Sakura, go be his victim. I mean helper. NOT victim, helper." Iruka said. Sakura, the pink-haired girl, gave him a weird look but started forward. Shino put his arms out.
"Parasitic Insect Jutsu!" he exclaimed. Bugs- thousands of thousands- came out of his sleeves and quickly surrounded Sakura. She screamed, but when they left, nobody noticed anything wrong. That's when Shino explained.
"The Aburame clan uses bugs for battle. This particular jutsu sends my bugs to my target and drains them of their chakra. No offense, but my bugs didn't get much at all." Shino said. Naruto, Sasuke and a few others laughed, understanding that each bug received an equal amount of chakra. If they didn't get much, she didn't have that much chakra.
Iruka nodded and called forth the Nara boy, whose name was Shikamaru. He yawned before stepping forward and doing some hand motions.
"Shadow Possession Jutsu." he said sleepily. His shadow crawled along the ground and grabbed Mizuki's shadow until they were one.
"Sensei, can you move your hand?" he asked.
"Why of course I can. See, look." he said. For some reason though, he didn't- but looked like he was trying. When Shikamaru made a banging motion, however, Mizuki copied him.
"My Shadow Possession Jutsu allows me to control how my opponent moves. It's very strategic, because if it is a battle and something like a two-on-one, I just hold them in place and whoever's with me does the rest." Naruto nodded in understanding. Iruka nodded as well and called up the Hyuga girl- Hinata, if Naruto could recall correctly.
"Byakugan!" she said. Veins popped out from her eyes. She described what it did and how its uses were good. Sasuke stepped up.
"Sharingan!" he said. His eyes turned blood red, and three tomoe appeared in his eyes. He as well discussed in vivid detail how it worked. Finally, it was Naruto's turn. He closed his eyes for a moment.
"Rinnegan!" he said. Gray rings appeared in his eyes. He too discussed what it did and what its benefits were. With that, the jutsu presentations ended. Naruto and Sasuke became friends through that little door incident, and soon the girl named Hinata joined them. They were a friendly trio. This brought the remaining Uchihas, Namikazes and Hyugas closer together.