A/N: I AM SOOO SORRY! I kept on telling myself that I would update this story, but to be honest, I have had, like, NO inspiration at all... I have idaes floating around and everything, but no drive to put it all down. I wish that everything I think of would just be automatically typed out, because if it was, then this story would have been updated weeks ago. All I can say is I am truly, deeply sorry and that I will try my best to scrounge up enough drive to update this story as I had planned to when I went on my short leave of abcense on this site. Anyway, here is the next chapter that's been written out finally. I am not happy with how it came out, and will definitely come back to change a few things, but for now, I think you all deserve to see what has happened to Minato and everything, so here it is!
Key:
"Speech"
'Thoughts'
Demon/Deity
Demon/Deity thoughts
"Sign Language/ANBU coded signing"
Chapter 12: Path to the Truth
When morning came, Minato woke up with a groan. He needed to do something about Madara Uchiha, and do something fast. He could easily tell Hiruzen the truth behind the night of the Kyuubi attack, but he definitely had to tread carefully over the subject. Anything he said would have countless ripples, ones that were unpredictable and could very well lead to war in a worse case situation.
Kami, he hated politics.
It was never simple. He couldn't just say they needed to kill Madara right now because then that would more than likely lead to war, and have Madara enact plans he undoubtedly had laid out before him, early on, on a Village that was grossly unprepared for anything of the sort. More than that, there were ripples for every little decision made. One word, and a person could very go out and set things in motion that could very easily affect the world for decades to come.
It was far more complicated now that he was in the body of a seven year old.
Why couldn't it be simple?
He couldn't influence decisions directly as he once could, only inform those in authority like Hiruzen of the threat...after that, it was very possible that he would be left in the dark of any plans he would make until he was deemed a shinobi on a "need to know" rank. Which probably wouldn't happen for at least another five years. He had seen the look in Sarutobi's eyes when he granted him the chance to spar for Genin rank, a part of him that still wished he could be a child for a little while longer. He was positive that the Old Man would do as much as possible to keep him "ignorant" to the terrors of Shinobi life.
Regardless of what would come of this, he had to tell Sarutobi the truth behind the Kyuubi attack. Not doing so would definitely lead to horrors of the utmost disturbing and, possibly, catastrophic kind.
When and, more importantly, how, though?
With a soft sigh, he realized he would have to think further on the matter before he did anything, most probably resort to meditating if he truly couldn't find a good solution without it. Either way, right now he had to make it to his meeting with Itachi near the Hokage Tower.
"It would be best if you make some clones so we can do two D-ranks at the same time, I can make only one clone and maintain it long enough for us to get the missions complete, otherwise, I would suggest we do more than two." Itachi said in a dull tone. Clearly he was as excited as Minato was in completing the D-rank missions. Ones which were action packed with dog-walking, and weeding out a garden.
Joy.
Weeding a garden would be childs play, considering he could easily create and equal ratio of clones to weeds and have them simultaneously extract the weeds and have the garden fixed within less than ten minutes. The dog walking would have to actually take more time, but either way, they would be done withing the hour.
"Afterwards, we'll continue on your training, focusing on your physical strength and speed. Gai-sempai has agreed to continue training you in this aspect along with your friend, Rock Lee. I will join you and when his training regimen is complete, we will finish with a spar."
"Okay, Itachi-sensei." Minato said with a fox-like smile. He was particularly glad that he wasn't going to be separated from his friend. He knew that the moment he took on higher ranking missions, his free time in the village would become more and more sparse, not to mention sporadic. He was sure that Lee would be ecstatic at the thought of training with another person he had never fought before if only to test himself. However, he had a feeling that Itachi wasn't looking completely forward to training with Gai and his...eccentrics, but the young man took it with stride.
"I never want to do D-ranks again!" Minato groaned as the dull memories of weed removing came back to him with a force. Itachi and he had both finished walking the dogs - well, he did, Itachi merely observed, which could have been far more dull than actually walking them - and had moved back to a training ground where they worked on his physical strength and speed. He wasn't complaining about it, in fact, Minato welcomed the exercises because it brought him that much closer to the strength that he once was.
Itachi was equally annoyed with having to monitor these D-rank missions. Even though he knew that this was to help a fellow shinobi, and prodigy, he couldn't help but feel it was something of punishment. He was ANBU, or had been at least, reverting back to D-ranks and his Chuunin status was disheartening...but he would do as his Hokage asked without question, even if it meant pushing through these utterly dull D-Rank missions they would be doing for the next week or so. Hopefully by then, they'll have reached the minimum of D-ranks for new genin and they'll be able to take on C-rank missions. Given that he had more training than any ordinary Chuunin despite his age, and Naruto being trained by both the Hokage and Jiraiya of the Sennin, obtaining a C-rank should be no trouble.
"Hnn." Itachi hummed in agreement. "Let us return to the tower with the scrolls, and have the successful missions officially put on your records." he said beginning to walk toward the tower. "We are meeting Gai-sempai and your friend at Training Ground 12 in three hours. It would be wise to obtain some nourishment before then."
Minato raised a blonde eyebrow at his new partner/sensei, confused as to why a boy his age would talk so...adult like. Then again, the boy had been in ANBU...Why Hiruzen would ever allow a child to be sent into ANBU was beyond him. Children did not need to be exposed to the life of ANBU. It was supposed to be for seasoned Shinobi who have seen the horrors the world could commit, NOT prodigies who knew of nothing about the real world. If he ever got the chance to, he would tell the old man off for allowing both Kakashi and Itachi into the Corps.
"You mean get a late breakfast, right?" Minato asked as a seven year old normally would. To be perfectly honest, acting as a child should was beginning to grate on his mental sanity. Never being able to actually talk the way you normally would and having to filter out everything you want to say so that no one would notice he was far wiser and smarter for his age, despite spending "an unknown amount of years" in the seal with his "dad" and "mom". He was going mad with not having a proper, intelligent conversation with someone...but within a few short years, it would be expected of him to carry on a proper conversation, and knowing this was the one of the few things that kept him going with the constant reminder to sound like a child.
Itachi looked down at him with a blank look and nodded. "Yes. I suppose it would be best to go together. I know little of you and vice versa with you to me. Knowing ones partner will help with teamwork while out on the field."
"So, we'll eat lunch together so we can get to know each other better?" he asked lightly in clarification.
"Hnn."
"Okay!" Minato said excitedly with a bright fox-like smile and walking with a bounce in his step. He could feel it within his very bones that this would be how his son would react to someone telling him they would like to get to know him better. His son had been friendless his entire life, constantly being chased away from children his age because of what he carried inside him, and adults never giving him the time of day because they considered him to be a demon living in a human child's skin. Though he now had Lee as a friend, Naruto would have been overjoyed with knowing someone else wanted to know him as well.
Once they reached the Mission Report desk and turned in the successful mission report, the pair turned to leave and head toward the civilian sector of the village where most of the restaurants and food stands were located.
Itachi eventually led him to a small, but humble, restaurant that served a variety of healthy and nutritious dishes. It was run by an elderly man and woman who had the aura of retired shinobi. Minato smiled happily at them when the man merely smiled politely and led them to an empty table with water and their menus before them. He would remember to come back to this restaurant alone and see if this reaction was simply because Itachi was with him, or if the couple here truly didn't care about him being a jinchuuriki.
"I will order for you." Itachi said taking Minato's menu from in front of him. "You will need much nutrition in everything you eat from now on, and I will assist you in that regard. When training with Gai-sempai is over, I will come over to your apartment and see if the food you have is satisfactory in terms of nutritional value."
Minato blinked at the teen in front of him. This kid just didn't know how to act like a...well, kid! If he was still alive he would have been forcing the Uchiha to have fun or something! The guy couldn't honestly be taking the shinobi code for "no emotions" literally? It was emotions that made them human! Something that a certain old war hawk simply couldn't understand. Kami he hoped that old man never got his hold on Itachi... the guy deserved some semblance of a childhood...
"Okay..." Minato said slowly, watching as Itachi ordered him a hearty plate of food consisting of steamed salmon, rice, and an abundance of vegetables. He ate the food slowly, not wanting to let go of his control and scarf down the food as his sons body was trained to, in front of Itachi. However, the observant teen seemed to notice anyway, thankfully, however, he refrained from questioning it.
When they were done with their lunch nearly an hour later, having spoken between bites a little about themselves, Itachi said it would be best to head over to the Training Ground and begin stretches before they began training with Gai-sempai. The pair reached the Training Ground shortly after they left the restaurant, even though they had taken the long route as well as walked slowly to help digest their late breakfast.
"Stretch out." Itachi said as he began to stretch his muscles in preparation for whatever Gai-sempai had in store for them.
"Hai." Minato answered obediently. He knew the importance of stretching before training, as did all shinobi. If you didn't do the simple stretches, there was a chance for injury and dealing with shin splits, or pulled muscles was painful as well as ghastly annoying. By the time they were done, a trail of dust blocked their vision for a short while, the end of the trail leading to two slightly sweaty green-spandex men.
"Ah! Itachi-san, Naruto! Good you're here! Shame you weren't here earlier, you could have joined in our most youthful race!" Gai exclaimed with his "good-guy" pose, his teeth giving off a most uncomfortable twinkle.
"YOSH! I will do five hundred push ups and three hundred squats for my youthful loss against you Gai-sensei!" Lee said with a salute. The taller green-clad man turned to the smaller boy with tears in his eyes.
"Lee!" He said happily spreading out his arms toward his student.
"Gai-sensei!" Lee answered, also spreading out his arms. Minato felt as though something that could not be unseen were about to happen, but for some reason, could not look away.
"Lee!" Gai exclaimed with anime-like tears streaming down his face, hugging his student.
"Gai-sensei!" Lee also exclaimed hugging back his teacher.
It was then that both Minato and Itachi saw a wave crashing against a rock behind the pair. They immediately decided that it was the most unsettling thing they had ever seen, and Minato could only shudder at thinking how Gai really found his long-lost son in Lee...
Konoha was doomed to have two Gai's...
Suppressing another shudder, Minato immediately covered his eyes, doing his best to un-see what Gai and Lee had just shared. Itachi, thankfully, coughed in his hand to regain their attention and stop them from continuing on with that...unsettling scene.
"Ah! Onto training of course! First, we shall do training set number 4!" Gai said happily, referring to the certain training regime that he created to help strengthen the core and upper arm strength. Complying, both Lee and Minato began the exercises, which were mirrored perfectly by both Itachi and Gai who both believed that one could never get enough training in, and could always continue to better themselves.
It was a few hours, and a lot of sweat later that Gai officially declared training to be over. Lee was expected back at the orphanage as soon as it was over, so he had bid everyone a "youthful" farewell and ran toward the orphanage at top speed while Gai smiled and left to do whatever it was Gai normally did when no training or on a mission.
"Now, we should head to your apartment. I want to see if you have the nutrition you require." Itachi said to Minato while wiping some sweat from his brow. Even though they had cooled down with a simple kata, his body was still overheated from the rigorous training Gai put them through.
"Okay, Itachi-sensei." Minato said with a smile, leading the way to his apartment when only a few short minutes after they left the Training Ground did an ANBU intercept them.
"Itachi-san, your Father requests your presence immediately." the Boar masked ANBU said diligently, sending light KI toward Minato.
With narrowed eyes from sensing the KI, Itachi nodded and said, "I will return home straight away." With a stiff nod, the ANBU left in a swirl of leaves. "I must go home, but I will arrive at your apartment tomorrow morning to inspect your groceries. For now, rest and enjoy the rest of your day." Itachi said to him before he too left in a swirl of leaves.
With a small sigh, Minato dragged himself home, watching happily as the sun began to make it's descent on the horizon.
As his apartment building was far from the Training Field, and the fact that he was already in a slightly populated area, Minato had to walk home, choosing not to over-strain his muscles by running any more than what Gai already had him do. By the time he reached his district, the sun had already completely fallen, and the moon had taken it's place.
Looking up, Minato smiled at the bright fullness of the moon as it stood amongst the stars in the sky. He fondly remembered a story told to him when he was a child, a story that every single star represented a person who had passed on. That in death, one became a star to watch over their loved ones who still remained on Earth and even the darkest of times, lighting their way. It was a nice thought, thinking that both his wife and son were watching down upon him, somewhere among the thousands of stars that littered the night sky.
A noise brought his attention down the street he walked along. There weren't that many people walking out, but there were the few who sneered and glared his direction. Remaining alert, Minato continued to make his way home, and it was only when he skillfully dodged at glass beer bottle that was aimed at his head that he turned around completely.
There behind him were a number of civilians, obviously drunk from their swaggering stances and bottles in their hands, staring murderously at him.
"Demon brat! Take your punishment for everything you've done to us!" One man screamed, an angry fist shaking in the air at him.
"Get the demon!" Another screamed before they began to race toward him.
A part that was Minato screamed at him to beat every single one of these bastards to the ground and then some, but the fear that had been rooted into Naruto's very body caused him to turn around and run for his life, forgetting the fact that he could easily shushin out and into the safety of his apartment, or even the Hokage Tower which would definitely be safer.
As the now growing mob of people chased him, Minato wondered where the ANBU were, and why they weren't doing anything t stop this from escalating. His only theory was that the ANBU General had a grudge against him for simply being the jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi and played some part in this, or that they were simply being lax in their duties, the latter being highly doubtful...
Skillfully dodging the items thrown at him, Minato raced in and out of the side-streets, hoping to loose the mob that chased him mercilessly. He had though he had escaped for a brief moment, only to run into another group, effectively boxing him in. Their murderous glares caused Minato to shrink back into the far wall they had cornered him into, but when a man attempted to grab his hair and throw him into the ground, Minato finally regained control, his fight instincts coming on in full strength.
With his smaller hand, Minato grabbed hold of the man's wrist and twisted it as quickly as he could before directing the man to the side, sending him tumbling down into a few more civilians. Then, a man kicked him straight in the face and Minato lost it completely.
These...scum, had beaten up a child more defenseless than he...beaten him until he was bloody and his voice hoarse from his screams and pleads for help. These...monsters, had been the ones to kill his only son. A boy of seven who had done nothing wrong to them! An innocent!
No, these bastards would never harm his sons body again.
He fought back, as best as he could while being surrounded by men far larger and physically stronger than he. For a while, he had been winning, leaving unconscious civilians on the floor with various injuries. But one man, who had to have had some shinobi training, took him by surprise and threw him into the wall harshly, causing him to lose his breath. Falling to the ground, Minato immediately curled into himself, protecting his head and his knees pulled up to his chest, knowing that the man towering over him would kick him. But instead of stomping on him, or kicking him in the back, the man grabbed a hold of his collar and brought him up again, looking at him straight in the eyes before he punched him in the face, the strength of the punch literally shaking his brain.
He vaguely heard another man scream and pull the civilian off of him, but he had already fallen to the floor, his vision clouding with black spots and the world becoming further and further away.
He could feel strong hands lift him from the floor, but when he opened his eyes after darkness had completely engulfed him, he was not in Konoha. Instead, Minato found himself in some sort of sewer...a thin sheet of water on the floor.
'Where...where am I?' Minato thought to himself, noticing through the reflection of the water on the floor, that he was in his body and not that of his sons.
Curiously, Minato walked down the tunnel like sewer, hoping to see an ending but only felt an all to familiarly malicious chakra. Right there in front of him, not thirty feet away, he saw the seal he had created for half of the Kyuubi no Kitsune, as well as the seals manifestation in a cage like form. Within the bars, Minato caught sight of all to familiar red slitted eyes and did his best to repress a shudder.
The Kyuubi.
The Nine Tailed Beast roared in absolute anger and swatted out his paw through the bars, trying to claw at Minato even though he was at a safe distance.
"Fourth!"
A/N: In case you haven't noticed, I suck at Itachi's personality...but I'll be sure to re-read as much Naruto with his speech in it in order to get a feel for his way of speaking...
Also, I just want to explain a few things since they have come to my attention. Minato is in fact training diligently, every day on his chakra control, and physical strength and endurance. I know I haven't exactly written out his training regime, but honestly, I don't want to unless absolutely necessary because it's just a small filler that I don't really want to put in a chapter when there are other things I want to focus my time on. So, until I decide to put something in there about his training, just know that he is and is slowly getting back to a good level for his age. He can't be the amazing, invincible ninja that he was once viewed as since he's seven, but he'll be on par with a low-mid Chunin due to his battle knowledge.
Since there have been a small number of reoccurring questions, I've decided to answer them here. Any other questions that come up will be addressed at a later time.
1) Pairings?
A: As stated in previous chapters, Minato will not be paired up with anyone in this fic due to reasons stated in said chapters. If you are adamant in stating your opinion on the matter or have further inquiries on the subject, PM me and I will gladly explain my reasoning's further and hear/read you out. This doesn't mean that the other characters won't feel drawn to him in a more-than-friendly way. EDIT: For those of you who believe that this is plain stupid, understand, PLEASE, that Minato is mentally as old as their parents! How would you like to date and fall in love with someone as old, and grew up with your dad or mom? Even if you knew and accepted it, you can't tell me that's not creepy on so many levels. And even if he does date an older character, there is still a creepy age difference between the two, as Minato is in Naruto's body. As for those who believe he should leave his legacy behind, family isn't all about blood, and I think Minato is just the person to go out and adopt an orphan and raise him or her as his own.
2) Will this story follow Canon from now on?
A: Not sure how this questions came about, but to answer, no, it will not. Obviously nearly everything will be going different, seeing as Naruto isn't Naruto, and is in fact, Minato. Sure I'll follow the basic timeline of major events (at least taking them into consideration and how I have Minato act upon things change them) but overall, no.
3) Will there be Yaoi/Slash (M/M)?
A: It's come to my attention that this was a poorly written answer, so I apologize for that. To answer, yes, I will be having at least one male/male couple in my story. The reasons behind this are because in our society today, statistically speaking, one out of three people are homosexual. I have no qualms with the subject, nor writing about it so why shouldn't there be one? To think that an entire village, no, world, is completely heterosexual is simply unrealistic. So, regardless of what some of you people say, I won't be changing this, and all of the planning I've done thus far just because you have issues with even thinking about a man/man relationship.
4) Will Minato be super-powered and/or gary stew-ish?
A: Nope. He'll be far more adept to the shinobi lifestyle since he's lived it once before, but if you mean superpowered as in, all of a sudden obtaining the Rinnengan or a bloodline never before seen or thought to be extinct - definitely not. I'm a sucker for those stories, sure, but in this one, those characteristics will not be shown.
5) Will this be a long story?
A: Depends on what you consider to be long. Truthfully, I'm partially making this story as I go along; writing up something that comes to me at the oddest of times (like when I'm talking to a customer at work, or in the middle of homework or class) but I do plan on making it past the 100,000 word mark at least.
6) Y U NO UPDATE!?
A: ...I got lost on the road of life...
