Chapter One: The Day The Earth Stood Still
The death of the Fourth Hokage was a tragic event, not only for the Leaf Village, although they felt it the hardest, but for the entire world. It was tragic, not because of the death of a great man, or the sealing of the Kyuubi in a child, but for the events it set forth.
-October 10th, Konoha-
The trees themselves seemed to shiver as the aura of the Kyuubi washed over the land. The Nine Tailed Fox's roar was loud as he swiped two of his enormous tails through another group of ninja. The sky seemed to darken in the beast's anger, as hundreds of Konoha Shinobi sent volleys of kunai hurling at the beast. The great fox seemed not feel the attack, but he roared louder, the power of his roar slamming an attacking group of ninja into the trees, the force of their impact snapping the trees in two.
Standing in one such tree, Minato Namikaze watched solemnly as wave after wave of his men were slaughtered. He jumped from the tree and attacked the beast, Rasengan spinning in his hand. Seeing their Hokage's famous attack, the remaining ninja began launching various Katon jutsu at the fox, hoping to distract him.
The ruse worked. Somewhat. A red chakra cloak surrounded the fox, absorbing the attack, causing the various jutsu to fizzle out harmlessly. The fox's aura exploded, and wave of pure chakra hit the attacking Shinobi. Minato was forced to dodge using Hiraishin, making a shaky landing in a nearby tree. He winced when his men's screams escalated, as they were burned alive with pure chakra.
A gray haired Shinobi landed next to him. "We're being slaughtered, Minato-Sensei," he said. "We should pull back."
"I know, Kakashi," said Minato, "but we have to hold on 'til Sarutobi arrives." Kakashi nodded.
Minato pulled out several Hiraishin kunai, smiled grimly at kakashi, and together they leapt back into the fray.
Several miles away, speeding quickly through the trees, a platoon of Anbu headed towards the battle site, several of the men trembling in fear as the screams of their comrades echoed in the dense forest. They were led by Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, who carried something peculiar to a battlefield - a child.
The group paused at the edge of the battleground, trembling in shock and fear at the wave of killing intent that washed over them. They watched as their few remaining comrades uselessly launched various jutsu at the enormous fox only to be slaughtered. The air was filled with yellow flashes as the Yondaime attacked, another rasengan in his hand only to be rebuffed. They watched in stunned silence as four of the beasts' tails launched towards him, only to see another flash of yellow as the yondaime dodged the blow.
The exausted hokage reappeared next to them, his breath coming in pants. "Do you have him?" he asked Sarutobi.
Sarutobi nodded, handing him the child. "Minato, are you sure you want to do this?"
"There is no choice, Sensei. This monster must be stopped." Sarutobi nodded in solemn acceptance, and watched as his successor made his way calmly towards his death.
Minato gazed at the child in his arms with sorrow. "I'm sorry, my son," he whispered. Biting his thumb, he swiped his hand over his summoning tattoo. A huge toad appeared in a poof of smoke. Gamabunta glanced around. Spotting the Kyuubi, he sighed, and smoked harder on his pipe. "You don't pick your enemies lightly, do you Minato?" he asked the Shinobi on his head. "I'm sorry, Bunta, but the fox must be stopped."
"How?" asked the toad. "Not even I can stand against the fox for long. His power, it's unreal."
"I have a plan. I just need you to stall the fox while I finish my jutsu."
Gamabunta nodded and jumped to the side, dodging a blast of chakra sent by the fox, jumping in the air the giant toad launched several water bullets at the fox,watching silently as the demon's tails batted the deadly spheres of water away.
Placing his son on his back, Minato began forming seals at supersonic speeds, barely noticing that Gambunta had drawn his giant tanto and charged at the fox, only to be sent reeling by a torrent of chakra. "Finished," he silently exclaimed. A dark shadow, visible only to the combatants, appeared behind the yondaime.
"Why have you summoned me?" the shadow whispered.
"Shinigami-sama, I beg you, please help me destroy the Kyuubi."
"The nine tailed fox is extremely powerful. Not even I can fully contain a soul such as his." Minato let out the breath he was holding. 'I was afraid of that,' he thought, 'no choice, then.' "Then I ask that you seal him inside of my son."
"I can do that, but in return for this service, I will devour your soul." Minato nodded.
There was a flash of light, and the Kyuubi roared anger as chains wrapped around his body. The surprised fox fought back valiantly, his tails batting at the chains. the foxes aura increased, and a large sphere of chakra surrounded his body. the sphere seemed to hold the chains at bay for a moment, before it collapsed . The Shinigami pulled hard, and a huge ball of chakra, the Kyuubi's soul, appeared in his hand. The soul began fighting back, seeking to return to it's body. The Shinigami struggled for a moment, then hastily slammed the soul into the child in the Yondaime's arms. The newborn's body shook for a moment. A bright aura flashed around him before fading
Minato handed his child to Gamabunta. "Good-bye, Naruto," he whispered. he smiled at the child one more time, before waiting patiently as the shinigami moved to consume his soul. There was a small flash of light and the young hokage was dead. Gamabunta placed Minato's body on the ground. "Good-bye, my friend," he thought. As the surviving konoha ninja gathered around their leader's body, Gamabunta handed the baby to Sarutobi and disappeared. "This has been a dark day for Konoha," thought Sarutobi, as he surveyed the battlefield. The bodies of hundreds of konoha shinobi were littered around the forest, most in unrecognizable pieces. Glancing sadly at the child in his arms, sarutobi motioned to the survivors. Carrying the fallen body of their hero, the exhausted ninja headed for home.
-One month later- The hidden mist village-
"Mizukage-sama, I have urgent news," exclaimed a mist jounin, as he bounded into the Mizukage's office.
"What is it, Tetsuya?" asked the Mizukage, as he looked up wearily from the large stack of paperwork that littered his desk. "Konoha came under attack by the Kyuubi. It appears that in the resulting battle, the Yondaime Hokage was killed."
'This is news,' thought the Mizukage. "What happened to the Kyuubi?" he asked. Tetsuya faltered for a minute, then replied. "It hasn't been confirmed yet, but it appears that the Yondaime died sealing the Kyuubi into a newborn child." 'So, he's created a Jinchuriki,' thought the Mizukage. Out loud, He said, "Well done, Tetsuya." The jounin nodded and left.
The Mizukage's smiling facade faded. His one eye twitched in rage and turned a vibrant red. The pupil split into three tomoes. 'So, the Kyuubi failed,' he thought angrily. 'Now my plans will have to be pushed back.' Then another thought hit him. 'Perhaps not. The Yondaime Hokage was an extremely powerful Shinobi, perhaps strong enough to rival myself. Now that he's dead, the leaf village has become much weaker, not to mention all the Shinobi they must have lost battling the Kyuubi.' 'A new plan then,' he decided. He grinned. "Astral projection jutsu."
In a cave located deep in the Land of Rain , two figures, a woman with bright blue hair and a man with spiky red hair, stood waiting. Finally, after several minutes, a shadowy projection of a man appeared. "Pein," said the projection. "Assemble the Akatsuki." "Yes, Madara-sama," said the man.
The projection disappeared. "What do you think he wants?" asked the woman. "I don't know, Konan," said Pein. "We'll soon see." Pein lifted his hand and sent a surge of chakra into the ring on his left hand. He waited a moment, then the silhouettes of eight figures appeared in the room.
"What does Leader-Sama require?" asked the silhouette of a large man holding a huge sword.
"Wait, Kisame, he will be here soon," said Pein. Before anyone could speak, the silhouette of a tall, masked man appeared. "Leader-Sama, why are we here?" asked the shortest silhouette, this one a boy around twelve years of age. "It is too soon to begin the extraction of the tailed beasts."
"You're right, Itachi," said leader, "however, that plan is no longer necessary." The rest of the group looked shocked at that announcement.
"The time is right for us to take over the elemental countries ourselves. we don't need the power of the Biju" Seeing the look of shock on the rest of the members faces, he continued. "Iwa and Suna are still weak from their war with Konoha. Konoha, itself, has been severely weakened from the Kyuubi attack. They lost the yondaime hokage, as well as hundreds of their Shinobi." Here, Itachi interjected. "Weakened though they may be, they still pose a significant threat. The power of their bloodline clans, the Hyuuga, and the Uchiha give them strength."
"I was getting to that. You see, Kumo is gearing up for war. They've had their eyes fixed on the Byakugan for years, and now that the Yellow Flash isn't here to stop them, they're planning on attacking Konoha."
"They'll lose," said another silhouette, this one of a man with pale features and slitted yellow eyes.
"Yes, Orochimaru, they will. And in the process, they will weaken the leaf village even further." The masked man turned to Pein. "Pein, how goes your take over of Amegakure?"
"It goes well. My forces have taken over half the country, however, Hanzo is proving to be troublesome."
The rest of the group twitched at the name. Hanzo the Salamander was not a man to be underestimated.
Leader turned towards the rest of the group. "Sasori, Deidara, and Kisame, will assist in your takeover. You are to crush Hanzo and begin readying Ame for war." Pein looked surprised, but nodded. "Orochimaru, you are to continue building up your sound village." Orochimaru was surprised at the man's knowledge of his secret village, but wisely didn't show it. "Yes, Leader-Sama." "Zetsu will continue his spying, while Itachi will maintain his cover in Konoha." The aforementioned Shinobi nodded. "Hidan, and Kakuzu will continue collecting funds for our conquest."
"What about Kirikagure?" asked Kisame.
"I'll handle that. I have influence in that village," said Leader. "When the leaf/ cloud war has reached it's climax. That is when we will strike." With those words, the masked silhouette disappeared. The rest of the group looked at each other, then vanished as well.
-Three years later-
It was three years later that Madara's plan went into motion. The leaf and cloud village had just reached the terms of a cease-fire when tragedy struck. Ame, along with the newly revealed sound village, attacked Iwa. Iwa, still weak from it's war with Konoha, surrendered when the Tsuchicikage was killed by two Shinobi wearing cloaks with red clouds on them. Next to fall was Kusa, who was attacked by Kiri. Three months later, Kumo surrendered to the combined assault of Ame and Kiri. The Raikage was killed by a man wearing a cloak with red clouds. The leader of this new federation was revealed. His name, Uchiha Madara.
"Hanzo-Sama, I have the report you asked for." Hanzo accepted the report with a grimace. "Thanks, Shinta. You should go." the man nodded. "It's been a pleasure to serve you, Hanzo-Sama." he said before disappearing. Hanzo nodded. He would have revenge, he thought. "That foolish usurper, Pein, thought he killed me, but I will have the last laugh," thought Hanzo, as he turned to the report. There was a list of names. Hanzo smirked. Looks like he was headed to water country.
As Hanzo silently snuck into the mist village, he thought back to the report.
Kimimaro Kaguya, age 7, rumored to have powers never seen before in the Kaguya clan. Kimimaro is considered to be extremely dangerous, even by his own clan. They are so afraid of his burgeoning abilities that the clan has locked him in a cage. never letting him out unless he is needed for battle. "He'll be perfect," thought Hanzo.
He crept silently, until he reached the clan headquarters of the Kaguya clan, located on the very outskirts of the village. Attached to a tree, directly in front of the clan house, was a cage. Inside the cage, sat a young boy, with brilliant silver hair. "Are you Kimimaro?" he asked. The boy nodded. Hanzo twitched his hand and an invisible blade of chakra sliced the cage apart. Kimimaro landed on his feet. "Come with me," said Hanzo, "and I will make you strong."
Kimimaro stared into his eyes, then looked towards the Kaguya compound. Hanzo saw the look and nodded. "I understand. Wait here," he said. Hanzo walked calmly into the compound. There were screams, and five minutes later he walked out. "Let's go."
-Two days later- snow country-
Hanzo and Kimimaro walked slowly on the bridge leading into town. "Who are we looking for Hanzo-Sama?" asked Kimimaro. "I don't have a name," he replied. "The report I received simply said that there is a young girl around here who has an unusual ability. Apparently, several of the locals have been killed with large spears of ice, sent by a young peasant girl.
Kimimaro nodded, and made his way down the bridge. He was near the end of the bridge when he sensed it. A pair of eyes looking at him. Turning, he saw a scruffy girl sitting in the corner of the bridge. He met her eyes, and frowned. "Your eyes are like mine," whispered the girl, smiling at him. Kimimaro stared for a moment, then turned. "Come with me," he said, before making his back to Hanzo who stood watching them. "What is your name?" he asked, without turning around. The girl smiled. "My name is Haku." Hanzo glanced down at the girl, and without a word, the three walked away.
-On the outskirts of the Kumo-
Hanzo had Haku and Kimmimaro wait in a nearby town while he infiltrated the village.
Sneaking past the guards, he henged into a non-descriptive looking man and made his way to the market place. He walked to a nearby vendor, where homely woman sold fish. "Where does the demon live?" he asked. The woman's eyes filled with hatred. "That little bitch usually sleeps in the alley." Hanzo nodded, and headed towards the nearby alley. As soon as he entered, he noticed a young, blond girl slink behind a trash can. "I'm not here to hurt you," he said. "I've come to take you away from this place." The girl smiled softly. "My name is Yugito." Hanzo smiled, grabbed her hand, and with a snap, they were gone.
-On the border of fire country-
Again, Hanzo left his charges at a nearby town as he made his way into the leaf village, being careful to completely mask his chakra. He was making his way towards the marketplace, intending to do the same thing he had done with Yugito, However, before he could change, he saw a small mob chasing a young blond boy. Acting quickly, he grabbed the boy as he ran past, and sunshined away. The boy started to scream, but Hanzo kept his hand over his mouth. "Don't worry, Naruto," he whispered to the boy. I'm here to rescue you from this village." Before Naruto could say anything, Hanzo knocked him out with a light chop to the back of the neck. 'I've got to move quickly,' he thought, as he made his way towards his last, perhaps most dangerous target . The details listed in the report were disturbing.
Yakumo Kurama, age 5, heir to the Kurama clan. Her powers are so strong that she has the ability to make genjutsu take on actual physical form. This was proven when a manifestation of her imagination set her family home on fire, Killing her parents and several other members of her clan. She currently lives with her uncle. He and the rest of her clan are terrified of her. Hanzo quickly made his way to the Kurama clan's compound. Shifting naruto to his other shoulder, he entered the main building silently. looking around quickly he began searching for his target. the house was abandoned, not a soul in sight. 'They really are scared of her' he thought. He eventually found the girl in her room painting.
"Are you afraid of me?" asked the girl without turning from her painting .
Hanzo was surprised she had sensed him, but shook his head "No."
"Everyone else is, including my uncle." "I've come to take you away from here. I can give you a real family, one that is not afraid of you." She finally looked at him and stared at the unconscious blond in his arms. Seeing her look, he smiled. "This is Naruto. He will be a member of your new family." The girl finally nodded. Grabbing her hand, the trio vanished.
-One week later-
Hiruzen Sarutobi read the report in front of him for the fifth time. Every time he read it, it seemed to get worse. First, Naruto and the Kurama heir come up missing, presumably kidnaped. Then, the mysterious alliance issued an ultimatum: the leaf village must surrender or be burned to the ground. Sarutobi dearly wanted to fight back, to show the will of fire Konoha was so famous for.
Unfortunately, reality set in. The leaf village was far too weak to fight any war, let alone one against the entire world. It seemed he had no choice but to surrender. 'But,' he thought, 'I won't give in without some measure of resistance.' "Jiraiya, is everyone assembled?"
The toad sage nodded. A small group of Shinobi entered his office: Maito Gai, two young chunins, Yuhi Kurenai and Anko Mitarashi, his son Asuma, Nara Shikaku, Chouza Akimichi, Inochi Yamanaka, Hiashi Hyuuga and Inuzuka Tsume, along Shibi Abrurame.
"I have gathered you here for one reason. The leaf village is about to fall." No one uttered a sound. "You are the heads of the great clans of this village. you are also the only clans I feel I can trust with a great responsibility." Sarutobi surveyed the ninja surrounding him, " I have one final request." "Gai, Anko, Kurenai, Asuma. This is your final mission. Go with Jiraiya to find Tsunade. She is the last of the Senju clan, and if our enemy is truly Uchiha Madara, then her life is in great danger. Protect her. I leave it up to you fine shinobi to form a resistance against this evil that has poisoned our world. I have chosen you for this mission, because your lives are great danger if you remain in this village. Accompanying you will be three of my most trusted anbu: Gekkou Hayate, Yugao uzuki, and Tenzou."
"It will be as you desire, Hokage-Sama," said Gai, "however, I have one request. I would like to bring my adopted son, Rock Lee, and his best friend, Tenten with me."
"Your request is granted, Gai."
Hiashi spoke next. "I am the head of my clan, so I must stay here. It would draw too much attention if entire clans started leaving the village, however, I have a request." " I would like to send my daughters as well as my nephew, and brother, with Jiraiya. I don't know what the future will hold for this village, but it is certain we are end for some dark times." Hiashi paused " I would like the hyuuga clan to participate in this ressistance, whenever it happens. my children and nephew will be the future of the Hyuuga clan. My brother will make sure it is an Hyuuga clan I can be proud of."
The rest of the clan heads glance at each other. finally Shikaku spoke" we will send our children along as well." Sarutobi looked up surprised." Our clans have long been the foundation of this village and we would like them to be the foundation of the resistance that will one day save it." Shikaku surveyed his fellow clan heads seeing the agreement in their eyes. " I only wish we could go with them." "The Sandaime looked at the group, tears in his eyes. "Leave immediately. May the will of fire guide you." Everyone vanished. Sarutobi signaled the anbu hiding in the shadows. "Tenzou, tell the council my decision to surrender to the Alliance , then leave with them." Tenzou vanished. 'You may have won this battle, Madara,' he thought, "but the will of fire lives on."
A.N. that was a rush. sorry if it was a little boring, the next chapter will be full of excitement. To clear up any confusion. Some of the characters are older than they are in canon, some of the ages at this point.
kimimaro-7
Haku- 7
yugito-6
yakumo-5
Naruto-4
Itachi is twelve.
facts
contrary to canon
the rest of the akatsuki members don't know who Madara is, they just recognize him as Leader, Pein is recognized as second in command.
Hizashi is alive and is going with jiraiya
Remember, Konohamaru doesn't exist yet.
I know that the children left with Hanzo rather easily, but think about it, he offered them what they wanted, plus children are easy to manipulate. He knocked Naruto out to keep him quiet. He snuck into the villages so easily because one he's Hanzo, he's that good, and two, everyone had much bigger things to focus on. If you don't know who Hanzo is, he's one of only two ss class ninja. Him and Minato.. He defeated all three sannin at the same time..
. The people who left with jiraiya are, anko,kurenai,asuma,shino,ino,chouji,shikamaru,hanabi,hinata,gai,lee,tenten,kiba,hana,neji, tenzou, hayate, and yugao and hizashi. The parents couldn't leave but they left their family scrolls with jiraiya.. Sasuke and kakashi aren't leaving because one sarutobi doesn't trust the uchiha clan. As for kakashi you'll find out later.
