Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Kishimoto. Ramen belongs to Naruto. Enough said.

Chapter 2

In the office of the Hokage, while sitting in his comfy chair the proclaimed God of Shinobi faced a dastardly foe, a foe which like the un-dead kept coming back no matter how many times you killed it. Glaring hatefully at the stacks of paperwork "I swear Iruka got poison on purpose just to avoid the graduation paperwork from the academy," thought the Sandaime as he unconsciously release his KI at his desk making his Anbu guards wonder if their leader is all there.

Suddenly the doors open with a bang and an orange ball of energy called Naruto walks in like he owns the building.

"Hi Jii-san," greets Naruto as he came to a stop in front of the desk.

The Sandaime looks at Naruto as he signaled for the Anbu guards to leave. "I will be with you in a moment Naruto," he said as he moved from behind his desk and began activating seals around the room that the Fourth left for this day. Naruto observed his Jii-san as he move about his office. "Those must be hidden seals he is turning on," thought Naruto as strange glowing symbols would appear after Jii-san passed by their locations. "What requires all of those seals," Naruto was wondering as the Sandaime finally returned and sat down at his desk.

Looking upon the orange clad boy, one Sarutobi Hiruzen felt the weight of his years upon his shoulders. "I can't believe this day is here; I followed your plan as best I could. I hope you knew what you were doing, Minato," he thought as he retrieve a letter from a hidden blood seal on his desk. "Naruto," he said. Hearing his name Naruto snapped out of his thoughts and brought his attention back to the Hokage.

"Naruto, now that you know about the Kyuubi I am required by the Fourth's will to give you this letter; read this first then you can ask your questions, though this should answer most of them," he said as he gave a wide-eyed Naruto the Fourth's Letter. Naruto couldn't believe it, here in his hands is a letter to him from his biggest hero; with shaking hands he carefully opens the small scroll.

Dear Naruto if you are reading this then you know about the Kyuubi being sealed in you. This means the worst has happened, the Kyuubi was released and your mother and I died sealing it in you. First thing you should know is your mother's name was Uzumaki Kushina and she was the previous and second holder of the Kyuubi. The wife of the First; Uzumaki Mito was the first holder of the Kyuubi. The Uzumaki clan has always held the Kyuubi because of their unique chakra and their skill in fujin-jutsu. Naruto as you are no doubt blaming yourself for our deaths forget it; if the Kyuubi was freed then it was because someone attacked your mother and forced the Kyuubi out of its prison.

Second thing you should know Naruto is that I have entrusted you with the Kyuubi because I believe you would use its strength to protect Konoha and because I knew you could bear the weight of its stigma without breaking. I apologize for this burden I place upon your shoulders even as you drew your first breath; I hope the village will fulfilled my request to see you as a hero, but I know holders of the Tailed Beasts are hated where ever they go. Do not let this discourage you Naruto, your mother overcame the stigma and found happiness in her life, so has the holder of the Eight Tails.

The Third thing I have to tell you is; you are my living legacy, where I failed you will succeed; my dreams, my honor, and my strength are yours. I have two request of you my young hero, first; live a full and happy life with no regrets, the second is; prepare for war, for the darkness that attacked your mother for the Kyuubi will return for you, hopefully the plans I came up with for the event will have delayed it long enough for you to prepare.

The last thing to tell you is that you have a Godfather, he is the Sage of Perversion, he has not been there for you because of orders I gave him. He has been working in the shadows to hinder the enemy and gain information to help you in your task. Your Godfather and the Sandaime have also been building the Ark of Fire; a fallback in case some events I predicted happen. The Sandaime was order not to let you know about your parents or the Kyuubi to protect you from those who would use that information for your harm. Trust the Sandaime for he has deep wisdom from all he has seen in life.Showthis letter only to him.

There are two blood/chakra seals that only the Sage of Perversion and the Shinobi God can open; they contain detailed plans I laid out to help you prepare to lead the fight against the coming Darkness.

Know this my Son, I am Proud of you
and that you are Loved.

The Sandaime looked carefully at the face of Naruto as different emotions flashed across it as he read the scroll until finally the blood drained from his face. "Naruto are you okay?" he asked gently as Naruto sat down heavily in a chair.

"Yes Jii-san, you need to read this," said Naruto quietly as he handed over the scroll.

"Are you sure Naruto, this is for your eyes only even I don't know what is written within," spoke the Sandaime worried about Naruto's demeanor and at Naruto's nod he took the scroll and proceeded to read it.

With a deep sigh he set the scroll down. "Damn you Minato, between this and telling him he didn't graduate, plus more paperwork oh Kami take me now, "thought Hiruzen as he tried to rub away the oncoming headache."Do you understand the actions I have taken, Naruto?"

"Yes, but why tell me now, and who is my Godfather, and what is the Ark of Fire?" Naruto asks.

"The will of the Fourth states that one of three conditions is to be met for that letter, knowledge of the Kyuubi, becoming a Genin, or when you come of age. There is more but it requires at least Chunnin rank or three years of active service," he said as he looked Naruto in the eye. "Your Godfather will meet you some time after you have become a Genin, and he will tell you what the Ark is," he finished.

"Well that's alright, because I became a Genin right, I passed that test," Naruto exclaimed as he started to regain his energy.

"Unfortunately you did not," the Sandaime stated. "Because the test Mizuki gave was false and with Iruka still out from the poison, the Elder's will not let you graduate. By the time I can get Iruka's testimony the period for new ninjas will have passed, and because of your low test grades they will insist you are not ready."

"What! but I only failed because of the bunshin jutsu, now I have Kage Bunshin," Naruto shouted as the shock of the Sandaime statement faded to anger. "I am sorry Naruto, but they will insist that with the state of your grades as they stand you cannot graduate," he responded with a heavy sigh. "Without Iruka's testimony they will not believe you on what happen that night, it was all I could do to keep them from charging you with treason as Mizuki's partner.

"What!" Naruto shouted as he shot to his feet.

"But I that means I have to go back to the academy, how can I fulfill the Fourth's wishes if I am not a ninja?" he argued.

"This is not necessarily a bad thing Naruto, no one but Iruka and Mizuki know you have learned the Kage Bunshin; I didn't tell the elders because they would have still rejected your graduation. So I went along with their recommendation to pacify them. This will give you a whole year to work towards the Fourth's plan without anyone having any idea of what you're doing," said the Sandaime. Naruto calmed down as he listened to the Sandaime and recognized the wisdom that the Fourth talked about in his letter.

"Okay let's see those plans Jii-san!" Naruto said as he motioned towards the scroll.

"Okay Naruto," said the Sandaime with a small chuckle as he then broke the seals in the scroll.

"Let's see what your Father had planned for you."

And that's Chapter 2!

Thanks to those who have alerted this story. Should I keep Sandaime and change the Fourth to Yodaime? or keep The Fourth and change Sandaime to the Third? let me know which you prefer in reviews

Beta and edited by Sakura Williams.

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