Blue Flame

"Damn it," Danzo growled in the underground laboratory. "There's got to be something we can do. We've come this far we can't give up now! The Two tails is within our grasp! There has to be a way to harness its power!"

"Well," Ororchimaru sighed. "We need to do something soon. There's no way we can control it permanently without a new host. The creature is breaking free already."

A smug look suddenly settled over Danzou's weathered face. He turned to a member of Root standing beside the door. "Bring me Uchiha Fugaku and his youngest son. If that detestable man truly wants peace, perhaps his son's life can buy it? After all, a Jinchuriki is invaluable- not only to the village but to the honorable family it was born into. And soon Konoha will have two of them- the Uchiha brat and Lady Kushina, the Hokage's wife."

"I'm looking forward to it. But it often doesn't work out well for the infant to have a demon locked inside it. And I'm not yet an expert in sealing jutsu. Shouldn't we bring in the Fourth Hokage and his wife? He has to learn of the Jinchuriki eventually. Wouldn't it be best to tell him now?"

Danzou growled. He turned to one of his other bodyguards. "Go and ask the Lord Fourth to come here. If anyone can seal the demon into its new host it would be him and his wife. We are lucky to have the two of them. But you can't be caught here, old friend… How are you going to observe all of this and still get out safely?"

"Well, I did have this place built to my exact specifications. But I don't have to share what those are. And, if you do anything that would endanger our working relationship, I'll know, old friend. But I know that you won't because I know you wouldn't want anyone to find out about your arm, for example… Fugaku might not like seeing all of the Sharingan eyes implanted in it..."

"Now, now, no need for threats. I was just curious," Danzou chuckled as the scientist took the back exit out of the room.

While Danzou hated the dark Sannin's workspaces, they were incredibly useful. But it was anything but cozy. There were oddities everywhere in this room lining the shelves and collecting dust. There was enough space for the bastard to do many kinds of experiments and cells to keep three or four prisoners in. This particular hideout even had an observation chamber. And that was why they were here tonight.

He was facing the window looking into another room. The quiet of the place was shattered though just moments after Orochimaru left.

"What's the meaning of this? It's the middle of the night." Fugaku demanded as he shoved his way past one of the Anbu guards. His wife was right beside him with their baby in her arms. "You want my son to become a Jinchuriki? Why?"

"Your clan loves to show off its power and you're asking me why I want to honor the child with a tailed beast?"

Fugaku rolled his eyes. But he didn't get a chance to say anything, because his wife jumped in between them. Mikoto was in tears. "But look at him! He's only three days old… He could die… What would I tell Itachi? He adores Sasuke!"

"The village needs peace to continue to thrive. And a good offense is the best defense. Consigning your son to become a host for the beast is a good gesture of support for the village. It can show everyone that we are coming together."

"What beast is it?" Fugaku asked.

Danzou nodded to the room's large window. In a large holding cell a massive black and electric blue cat was pacing the edge of the barrier Orochimaru had placed around it. Its yellow and green eyes studied them with a dark intelligence. "This is Nibi. The two tailed cat."

Mikoto gasped. "Y-You want to put that in my son?"

"It will make him incredibly strong, that's what you Uchihas like, power, prestige…"

"And you don't?" Fugaku countered.

"Hence we're in this together. The village gains control of a second tailed beast and you have the honor of raising him. Everyone wins."

"Where did you get it?"

"Does that matter? The beast was captured inside its previous host and in fact, the body is still in there with it, in the far corner. Since the creature was taken alive it was the perfect time to research on how long it takes for a tailed beast to reappear after its host dies."

"Everyone fears and hates the Jinchuriki. You're making all of this sound really simple and it isn't!" Mikoto snapped. After looking around the lab for a moment she shivered. "I don't like this place. Let's go, dear."

"No. Sasuke is strong," Fugaku said. "He can handle it."

"H-Hey!" Mikoto gasped as Danzou took the baby out of her arms.

"Excellent," Danzou smiled eerily.

Sasuke babbled and reached out a tiny hand and tugged on the bandages that covered part of his face. Danzou quickly laid the baby on the operating table and turned away to adjust the bandages.

"Mikoto? Fugaku?" It was Kushina and she hurried in through the door to wrap her arms around her friend. "What's going on?"

"T-They're going to put a monster inside my baby…" Mikoto cried.

The Fourth followed his very pregnant wife into the room calmly and scowled at Danzou. "You're serious about this?"

"The creature is already in the village, my Lord. We have to do something about it. And are you not always advocating that we need the Uchiha clan to be included in everything?" The Elder shrugged. "Clearly Nibi will break out of its containment before we can find another host. The barrier is weakening and time is running out, my Lord. Make a decision."

"I don't like being pushed into things. Why didn't you tell me you had a tailed beast in the village to begin with?"

"We weren't expecting the creature to respawn so quickly after its host died. And, you know now…" Danzou shrugged.

"As soon as this is over I'm demoting you. The Third gave you way too much freedom and you don't care who you hurt."

"Everything I have ever done has served this village," Danzou said evenly. "I'm one of the village's best and most valuable tools. Surely you must see that?"

A roar from the great cat shook both rooms as the barrier threatened to collapse.

"Is this really what you want, Fugaku?" Minato asked. "You want us to put that in your son?"

"Yes. My son is strong. He will be fine," Fugaku said. He walked over to his wife. "Don't worry. Sasuke is-"

"He's a baby!" Mikoto cried, pounding her fists against his flack jacket. "He's our baby… How can you do this to him- or to me?"

"Kushina?" Minato asked. His wife came to him holding baby Sasuke. "Are you ready?"

"Not really," She said softly, following Minato into the room with the giant chakra beast. "Here, you take the baby. I'll catch Nibi in my chains and pass its chakra on to you and- Sasuke."

As the door closed behind them, Kushina asked in a small voice, "Minato- I'm scared… Why do I feel like we're going to have to do this again- soon?"

"Don't think like that. All we can do now is try to protect Sasuke as much as we can. But, can anyone do it? Can a baby this tiny take that much chakra?"

"Well, he is an Uchiha and Nibi is weak right now because he just revived after it's host died. So it isn't as strong as Kyuubi. If I can bind it perfectly, Sasuke should be okay. I'll need you to do the sealing though. When the barrier collapses we'll have to be fast."

"Don't strain yourself though."

"She's my friend and she's worried sick. What if this was our baby? Would you still say that?"

He didn't get a chance to answer though, the whole room shuddered again as the barrier between them and Nibi finally collapsed.

Baby Sasuke started to cry.

The glowing beast snarled and tried to pounce on him, but Kushina's chains were faster. They wrapped around the huge creature tightly, wrestling it onto its back and restraining it. Kushina couldn't help feeling a little sorry for it. Soon it would be trapped again, this time inside the baby it wanted to kill.

But that was being a Jinchuriki. Having a living, intelligent entity inside you was not the most fun thing she could think of, but as long as she was in control, everything was safe. No one in the village even knew she was the host of the nine tails- well, a few people knew, like Mikoto, but her friend didn't hold it against her. And, best of all, Kushina would be able to teach Sasuke to control Nibi when he got older.

"Okay. I've got him. Time to seal him. Please don't be scared, Sasuke, you're going to be just fine. I just know it, little guy."

Minato carefully unwrapped Sasuke from the blanket he was wrapped in and gently put a hand on the child's belly. Sasuke was still crying, but that was probably because the two tails kept roaring nonstop. The creature was understandably growing more angry by the minute.

As Minato focused his chakra, the seals appeared on Sasuke's belly. The baby continued to cry, his tiny body was shaking in the cold room. But, they would have him bundled back up soon.

As the last seal appeared, Minato drew another one over it and then reached out with his chakra to place the same seal on Nibi.

The beast roared in fury, struggling mightily but Minato ignored everything except what he was doing. Everything had to go well. He couldn't afford to mess this up. Not only were the Uchihas a powerful clan, but just as important, this was Kushina's friend's baby.

When the seals were both in place, Minato activated them and in seconds the room was silent- except for baby Sasuke's cries. Kushina hurried to wrap him up again and took him to Mikoto. "Here you are. One tiny Jinchuriki."

"Thank you!" Mikoto hugged her tightly. "Is he really going to be okay?"

"Yes. Luckily, Nibi was just revived after his last host was killed so he's still weak. Sasuke can hold him because the beast's power will grow with him. Because of the seals we used, it can't return all at once and overwhelm him. If we were dealing with that monster fully grown out in the wild, it might be different. But we had time to do the seals correctly and I believe that Sasuke is strong. Besides, I will be here to teach him everything I know to make sure he stays in control. There's no reason for anyone to be afraid of him."

"Good work, thank you both so much." Fugaku said, offering Minato a handshake.

"You're welcome. But where is Danzou?" Minato accepted the handshake as he looked around.

"I-I don't know, we couldn't take our eyes off of what was going on in that room," Mikoto said, nuzzling Sasuke who cooed happily. "My beautiful Sasuke... I can't believe you're going to be okay."

"Yep. He will be just fine. But it looks like Danzou's guards are gone too. What is that bastard planning this time?" Kushina growled, peering into the hall. "How do we find him?"

"Probably when he wants to be found," Minato sighed. "In about three months we'll have our own baby. I hate to think about that old bastard still lurking in the shadows then…"

"How could you let that old bastard talk you into this, Fugaku?" Kushina asked. "Sasuke could have easily died if someone less experienced had done the sealing… W-Wait. Where are we anyway?"

Grotesque oddities like preserved snakes and bones from all kinds of creatures surrounded them and the operating table in the center of the room was splashed with dried blood- and the blood looked pretty fresh.

Fugaku walked back into the room where the sealing had taken place. True to Danzou's word there was a body tucked into the far corner… But it was that of a child. A blonde child who looked like she was about four or five. A chill swept through him. So, in four or five years this could be Sasuke, worth nothing more to Danzou than this frozen pile of bones and rotting meat. A curiosity- nothing more…

"Who's this?" Kushina asked, then gasped. The others had followed him. "Wait- the previous host? This poor girl. No wonder the room was so cold… In all of the commotion I had no idea she was here… This place is even worse than I thought."

"This is definitely one of Orochimaru's old lairs," Fugaku said. "The Third had them demolished. I don't know if this one was spared or if it was never found."

"Well, we're demolishing it now. Call in some of your men and have them bring in a demolition crew. This place has Orochimaru's fingerprints all over it. But why did Danzou know about it?"

"Wait- when we got here, Danzou said we weren't expecting the host to die… H-He wouldn't dare have stayed in contact with that traitorous bastard Orochimaru… would he?" Mikoto asked.

"If he thought it would "benefit Konoha in the long run", yes. I know he would." Fugaku said. "But who knows what they are really planning… Why did he want our son specifically?"

"Why did you give in when you don't know?" Mikoto growled.

"I'm sorry, honey. It was just so rare that he offered us anything and you know having a Jinchuriki in the family can't be all bad… We'll be here to guide him, after all. Make sure he is a great ninja and an asset to the village."

"Well, I'm sick and tired of situations that put us at odds with the rest of the village. This place is our home. And don't look at me like that, Fu. We could have lost our baby tonight and for what? Power? When will it be enough? We all believe in the Will of Fire, why can't we just fit in? Please, let's just start over and enjoy what we have right now."

"I'm relieved to hear you say that," Minato said. "But I really need to have a talk with the Third… Unfortunately, it shouldn't wait until morning. We're all exhausted and I know no matter what we do, we aren't going to find Danzou tonight, but we have to try. He's more slippery than a dozen eels. As the head of the police force, I want you to monitor the movements of the Anbu known to work for Danzou. We have to find him before he can bury his connection to Orochimaru. And please report everything to me directly. Raid his house, and put some pressure on the other elders too. Do whatever you have to, just... be respectful. I'm counting on you, Fugaku."

"I won't let you down, my Lord. I owe both of you my son's life after I put him in danger. Mikoto, take Sasuke home and make sure Itachi is alright. He's a light sleeper even on a quiet night."

She sighed, but nodded. "Alright, but send word as soon as you find anything. If Danzou thinks he's going to get caught there's no telling what he'll do."

Minato nodded, taking Kushina in his arms, he kissed her lightly. "You go home too. You and the baby need to rest."

"Are you kidding?" Kushina growled. "This is the most fun I've had in months. Our child is just fine, I would know, he's inside me at the moment."

"The doctor said you need to get plenty of rest. A few more hours of sleep can't hurt. I'll call you if I find anything."

"Fine… Three and a half more months of this? Mikoto, how on earth did you get through having two babies?"

The dark haired kunoichi smiled as they walked outside together. "I don't know. They're far enough apart that I guess I kind of forgot how much my feet and ankles swell and my back hurts… I kind of wanted a girl this time, but I wouldn't want to give up either of my boys."

"You could always try again! Third time might be the charm."

"As much as I love him, Fugaku is never home. He was only home tonight because his brother and his wife came for dinner. I feel like raising three kids alone would be really hard. Itachi adores Sasuke though, he really likes to hold him."

"Well, I do too. He's definitely a little angel. Good night, little Sasuke, don't keep your mom up all night after all of this excitement."

"That goes for yours too." Mikoto giggled. "I swear, when he hit six months Sasuke kicked all night just for fun and then slept all day…"

Kushina groaned. "Oh don't tell me that, this little guy is always bouncing around already. I don't need him getting even more active."

"Wait- you're having a boy for sure?"

"Well, I don't know for sure, but I'm hoping for a boy. I don't know why but I just can't picture this baby being a girl with his rambunctiousness."

"Goodnight!"

"You too, sleep well." Mikoto hurried home, it was late but she wasn't afraid for herself, she was worried about the tiny baby in her arms. It was chilly and the outskirts of town were no place for a lady to walk alone at night.

Luckily, she wasn't a lady. She was a jonin, and while she was retired, she did enjoy training with Itachi. Unfortunately, he would be starting school at the academy soon, she knew he would graduate early. So he wouldn't be out of the house for long. Soon he'd be taking on missions of his own. She often wondered who he would be teamed up with.

Living on the outskirts of town there wasn't much to do. They didn't have many neighbors and the ones that they had weren't very sociable with them because of her husband and his job as the police chief and him being the head of the Uchiha clan.

So why make that disdain worse by making Sasuke a Jinchuuriki? Why had her husband gone along with something so dangerous?

Well, she sighed. There was no use being mad at him now. Sasuke seemed happy and healthy in her arms as she returned him to the crib in the nursery.

"M-Mom?" Itachi asked in a soft voice. "Where did you go? Where's Dad?"

"Come here for a minute, Itachi," Mikoto said. "You father and I had to leave to speak to one of the council elders tonight. That horrible man chose Sasuke to be a Jinchuuriki and your father allowed it."

"A-A Demon vessel?"

"Yes," She said tiredly. "Sasuke now holds the power of Nibi, the two tailed cat."

"Wow," Itachi said, "Can I hold him?"

"Tomorrow, my love." Mikoto said smiling, drawing her oldest into her arms. "He's just gone to sleep. He was awake the entire trip home after the sealing but he hasn't cried since it ended. I'll sit with him here until he wakes up for his next feeding. So I need you to go back to bed too."

"Do I gotta?"

"I'll make bacon and eggs for breakfast tomorrow if you go right now..."

"Okay!" Itachi giggled, kissed his mother's cheek and scrambled off to bed.

Soon though she was thinking about her husband, wondering what if anything they were uncovering on Danzou… And what would the Third say to Minato? Why had the old man given Danzou so much free rein that he ended up meeting Orochimaru to torture and kill small children? There was a knot in her stomach and it was a powerful warning that somehow this just wasn't over… Danzou had undeniable connections to Orochimaru- he practically admitted it when they first arrived… So why was she so worried?

She felt sick… that little girl couldn't have been any older than Itachi… What had killed her and why had they left her there like a discarded toy? They wanted to see how quickly Nibi would revive? What kind of logic was that?