Oh, I don't have that much to say today, except that some of you people are impossible to please. (you know who you are)

Chapter 16

Tsunade squeezed her eyes shut as Naruto finished his story. Her head was pounding and her heart ached; she wasn't sure how many more emotional revelations she could handle in one day. Already she wanted to find a bottle of alcohol—it didn't matter what kind, just something intoxicating—and break down. Instead, she settled for pinching the bridge of her nose and promising her runaway emotions that she'd deal with them later. She had bigger fish to fry.

Namely, Uchiha Madara.

And the fact that he was still alive.

And the fact that he had the power to suppress Kyuubi.

And the fact that he and Orochimaru had orchestrated the attack on Konoha.

And the realization that he was probably the mysterious Uchiha with the advanced space/time jutsus that Kakashi's team had met and unsuccessfully fought over a month ago.

He was probably behind Akatsuki, which would explain the red and black theme, as well as the clouds.

Hell, she thought, connecting the Tsukuyomi and the red clouds, he more than likely had a hand in the Uchiha massacre. I knew a thirteen year old couldn't have done it alone.

Now she really needed some alcohol.

The Godaime heard other voices—probably Minato and Kakashi talking about Naruto's tale and all that it implied.

Something clicked into place in her head. "I've discovered something."

"Minato!"

The blond jumped at her sudden harsh tone. "What?"

"When you were talking to Kyuubi, in the months before he attacked, according to the fox, you said you had discovered something. Do you remember what it was?"

Minato frowned and his eyes slid to the right. "Discovered . . . I'd—wait . . ." He folded his arms and stared hard into space, letting the memories overtake him.

" . . . the shrine," he muttered. "Which one?"

Tsunade narrowed her eyes, waiting for Minato to sift through his past.

"Na—nakano."

"The Nakano shrine?" Kakashi asked.

Minato didn't respond or even cut his thousand-yard stare. Worry for him added onto her list of problems—the Minato she'd known was always focused when he put the Hokage robes on. He would never have allowed himself to drift into thought when matters were pressing.

She was just about to walk up and snap her fingers in his face when the door exploded open and the last thing, no wait two things Tsunade needed, especially right now, walked in.

Ukatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura.

"Tsunade, we heard that Uzumaki was . . . awake . . ."

All conversation in the room ceased at the two elders clapped eyes on the resurrected Yondaime. The sound of the door opening had snapped him out of his daze and the man blinked at the two elders confusedly.

"What is going on in here?" Homura wondered, alternating between staring at Minato and glaring at Tsunade.

"Is this some kind of funny prank?" Koharu demanded. "What are you trying to pull, Tsunade?"

Tsunade took a moment to hiss out a breath between her teeth, but it was a moment too long to wait. Minato sensed the suspicion and hostility emanating from Koharu and Homura and didn't like it. His hand crept to the kunai pouch on his hip and despite Tsunade's earlier warnings, he shifted closer to Naruto. The two elders, being close-minded but not blind, saw.

"So, this has something to do with you?" Homura demanded, rounding on Naruto.

"It's hardly a surprise," Koharu snapped, glaring at the boy in the bed. "He is the cause of most of Konoha's trouble now. What did you do, Uzumaki?"

"Don't talk to him that way," Minato growled, three standard kunai clutched in his right hand.

Both the elders stiffened at that tone. Tsunade stepped forward and tried to offer words of peace, but calming people down wasn't exactly her specialty. "Listen, we all need to calm down—"

"Were you being a calm, rational Hokage when you discovered this man here, Tsunade?" Homura demanded.

Tsunade bristled, but Koharu picked up the assault before she could defend herself. "Indeed. Upon discovering an impostor in the hospital room of a Konoha ninja—"

"Oh, now he's a ninja, instead of just the 'demon brat,' huh?" Tsunade interrupted her. "Naruto's only a person when he suits your needs."

"Demon . . . brat?"

There was a moment of dead silence as Tsunade processed the horrendous error she'd made. It was clear Minato was ridiculously protective of his son, and more than a little mentally unstable. Add to that the fact that he was undoubtedly on edge from the aggression coming from Koharu and Homura and he was an explosive tag set to detonate. Bringing up the elders' treatment of Naruto right then was clearly the seal that set him off.

With a silent snarl twisting his lips, Minato brought the kunai into attack position and launched himself at the two geriatric members of the Council. Even without the Hiraishin, Minato was unnaturally fast, and before Tsunade or Kakashi could even attempt to stop him, he and Homura had locked kunais.

"You've just attacked a Council member—" Homura informed him, a victorious smirk on the man's face.

"Tell me why I should care!" Minato shouted, backflipping away and landing on the table next to Naruto's bed. He leaped off it again, intent on hurting one of the elders, but it was two on one, and the argument with Homura had given Koharu an opportunity, which she used.

"Wind Style: Air Hammer!"

Tsunade grimaced and grabbed Naruto, pulling him onto the floor and out of the way of the jutsu. Kakashi and Yamato both cleared out of its way as well, and Minato snagged a bedsheet and yanked himself down. The Air Hammer Koharu had created still caught the edge of his foot and the former Hokage was sent spinning.

He crashed through the plaster, right next to the planks of wood Yamato had put up.

Sensei always did have the luck of the gods, Kakashi thought, flying out the Minato-shaped hole an instant after Homura and Koharu. A foot to the left and half his bones would have been smashed on the wood.

"ANBU!" Koharu shouted. "This man is an impostor and assassin! Kill him!"

Minato's eyes widened as over fifteen ANBU emerged out of nowhere and descended on him. Somewhere in his mind, he recognized they were Konoha ninjas, and that he shouldn't fight them, but they were brandishing their weapons and raising their killer intent. Sixteen years of instinct were hard to resist.

The first battle was aerial, and Minato swung the resulting limp body around as leverage to get onto the nearby roofs. The unconscious ANBU crashed into two of his comrades, but they landed sideways on an electrical pole. Minato's palm slapped on the tiled roof and he spun on it, bringing the rest of his body down in a crouch.

Fifteen original. One down, one transportation.

Kunai! Dodge three, block two.

ANBU. Highly trained, conditioning program. Sometimes predictable.

Three down, one out. Ten left.

Three o'clock! Calling for backup!

Nine left. Backup coming.

Nara Yoshino reached out and rubbed her friend's arm comfortingly. "I'm sure Ino will be fine, Inoichi. She's a strong girl and Tsunade's the best medic in the world!"

She smiled and waited for Shikaku to chime in with his own encouragement, but her lazy husband just sat there and stared out the window. Frustrated, Yoshino let go of Inoichi for a moment to smack the spiky-haired man and snarl, "Shikaku, say something!"

"Like what?" Shikaku sighed. "Inoichi knows everything you've told him. You're just being redundant."

"Redundant?" Yoshino shrieked. The only person in the coffee shop who didn't wince was Chouza, whose mouth was too full of barbeque to allow for facial movements.

"Now you've done it," Inoichi muttered. Shikaku just sighed heavily and slouched in his chair while his wife ranted on about sensitivity and the male gender's lack of it. His gaze drifted out the window, hoping to catch a glimpse of some interesting cloud formations. The dark ones on the horizon indicated a storm was coming, and he sighed at the thought of what he'd have to do to prepare for it. Blocking off the dangerous slopes, making sure the deer stayed away from the river, which would probably overflow, and checking the drainage on his wife's garden, because that would drown in the coming downpour.

He tuned back in to his wife's voice when another's joined hers in shouting. Ah, it was the manager, asking her to leave. Might as well, he wasn't all that hungry anyway.

"Come on," he groaned, standing up. "There's a storm coming and we need to get ready."

While Yoshino resumed her shouting, again directed at him, Shikaku threw some money down and wandered out the door, followed closely by Inoichi and eventually by Yoshino. He knew Chouza wouldn't leave, and they wouldn't kick him out, until he was good and full and that would be a while.

He wandered down the street in the general direction of his house. He was trying to figure out the shortest way back when the hairs on the back of his neck rose up.

"Do you feel that?" Inoichi asked him.

Shikaku nodded. "Yeah. There's a full-blown battle going on somewhere."

"Near the hospital," Inoichi added.

"Go, hurry," Yoshino urged. "If it's near the hospital, Ino might be in danger."

Shikaku and Inoichi took off, speeding across the rooftops, and Chouza followed a minute later, a take-away bag of barbeque clutched in his hand.

They neared the hospital and saw the growing crowd of civilians on the streets, all staring up. ANBU were flocking to the scene as well, passing the two retired Jounin with ease and calling for backup. Shikaku sent chakra to his ears and picked up whispers and murmurs from the crowd below. What he heard stunned him so much he collided with Inoichi when the other man abruptly stopped.

"Wha? Inoichi—"

"Am I crazy or . . . or I don't have an acceptable alternative," the blond man muttered, staring straight ahead.

Shikaku shuffled to the side and peered where Inoichi was staring, already having a suspicion what he would see.

Indeed, there on the rooftops, battling the ANBU, was a tall man with sunny yellow spikes and a red and white cloak.

For all appearances, the Fourth Hokage.

"Maybe . . . maybe it's Naruto," Inoichi said.

"That would explain why he hasn't used Hiraishin," Shikaku agreed, sharp eyes taking in every move the 'Yondaime' made. "But that taijutsu style isn't Naruto's, it's definitely Minato's."

"Naruto is still in his hospital room," Shikamaru said, landing lightly next to his father. "He's awake by the way."

Shikaku said nothing to Shikamaru, knowing the boy would fill them in. He instead continued to observe the battle, and how one man had so far defeated three four-man teams of ANBU. Two shuriken pinned his cloak to the roof and he slipped out of it easily, continuing the fight in his Jounin gear.

"Naruto's condition started improving today," Shikamaru began. "He woke up about an hour ago, shouting his head off and looking for someone. Immediately after, wind blew the window open and that man . . . materialized. He and Kakashi almost started to fight, but I stopped them and Tsunade sent everyone but Naruto, Kakashi, Yamato and that guy out of the room."

Shikaku's insides twisted as the battle intensified, and a tight, small Rasengan began to form in the blond man's hand.

"What the hell?" Chouza shouted, catching up to his friends. "Is that Minato?"

"Obaa-san! Come on, wake up, you old hag!"

Naruto grabbed the unconscious Tsunade by the shoulders and shook her, remembering belatedly that moving someone wasn't a good idea when they had a head injury. He snatched a pillow from the overturned bed and placed it under her head, careful not to bump it again. Naruto dragged himself forward, clawing for the call button for the nurse and deciding the bed was evil.

First, he was stuck in it for over a month.

Second, that stupid wind jutsu of the old woman's had knocked it into Tsunade's head.

Third, it had landed just far enough away that he couldn't reach the call button easily.

Thankfully, the Bed of Darkness didn't prevail, as Sakura had come running to see that her mentor and teammate were alright. Naruto had every intention of complaining to Tsunade that all the other nurses were too busy watching the battle outside to tend to somebody injured.

"Sakura!" he cried, never quite so relieved to see the pink hair as right now. "Obaa-san's injured! The bed hit her in the head!"

Sakura stared in horror at the room for half a second before kneeling next to the Hokage's side. She carefully examined the woman and told Naruto, "Don't worry, it's a very mild concussion. She doesn't have any other injuries."

"Heal it! Heal it!" Naruto shouted. "She's the only one who can stop this!"

Sakura ignored him, having already started the medical jutsu. Her green hands rested on Tsunade's forehead, where a trickle of blood was coming down. The small cut and half-formed bruise disappeared quickly enough.

"When will she wake up?" Naruto demanded.

Tsunade groaned and put a hand to her head. "How can anyone be unconscious with you yelling in their ear, brat?"

Sakura helped her sit up slowly while Naruto fidgeted and barely restrained himself from yelling. "What's going on?"

"What's going on? Those two creepy old people told the ANBU to attack—"

"Minato!" she cried, the memory coming back.

Tsunade stumbled to her feet, brushing Sakura's warnings aside and climbed out the window, taking stock of the battle immediately. ANBU were sprawled all across the rooftops and streets, but from what she could tell, none were dead. Minato was picking them off with terrifying ease, using his Rasengan now to send them flying across the city.

Damn. If he is an enemy, we're in a shit-ton of trouble.

From the building next to the hospital, Koharu and Homura were watching with increasing horror and worry.

"You really think he is Namikaze Minato?" Koharu demanded of Tsunade.

"Yes," she answered, stopping desperately ordering the ANBU nearest her to stop their attack for a second.

"Well, we'll see if that's true or not," she decided. While Tsunade was getting the attention of more ANBU, and heading off the ones that came at the call for backup, Koharu headed back inside the room. She emerged from the hole in Naruto's hospital room with the blond himself in tow.

"Hey, hey! Lemme go, you old ugly woman! Ow!" Naruto shouted loudly.

Tsunade whipped her head around and her heart pounded in fear as the elderly Council member, who was a heck of a lot stronger than she looked, dragged Naruto up and supported him, as his legs still couldn't. Koharu clamped an arm under his chin and brought a kunai up to his exposed throat.

"Namikaze Minato!"

All battle ceased. The old woman could be commanding when she had to be.

Minato froze as she dug the kunai into Naruto's neck. The blond had stopped squirming when the metal had connected to his neck. Apparently all old women in Konoha were freakishly strong. The crowds were starting to whisper about the little brat.

"Put him down," Minato ordered.

"Koharu! This is the wrong move!" Tsunade shouted.

"I don't think so," Koharu shouted. "Lay down your weapons and surrender or I'll cut his throat open."

To prove her point, Koharu moved her kunai to the side a fraction of an inch. Naruto tensed as the metal cut into his skin. He felt the blood seep out of his cut and start to flow down his neck.

"Koharu!" Tsunade shouted. "Let him go!"

"Not until—"

"Let my son go or I'll kill you!"

The murmurs of the crowd instantly stopped, then started up again. Tsunade knew that by the time the sun set, the entirety of the village, and probably half of Suna, would 'know' that the Fourth Hokage had come back to life, that Naruto was his son, and probably something along the lines of a rebel organization headed by said Hokage was going to take down all the villages starting with Konoha, but there was a more immediate matter than the impossible spread of Ninja Rumor and that was the killer intent that Minato was flooding the area with and the yellow-sealed kunai he was clutching in his hand.

"If you want to save your son, drop the kunai!"

A second passed where Tsunade thought he actually might give in, where the worst possible outcome she was forseeing would not come to pass.

She should have known better.

Koharu got the proof she needed that this man was in fact the Yellow Flash when he appeared behind her, having thrown the specialty kunai. He moved immediately, grabbing her arm and jamming a kunai into the base of her neck. She was dead before she could blink. Her head fell forward, hitting the back of Naruto's. The blond shuddered—he could feel the instant her heart stopped beating.

Tsunade sprinted across the rooftops and got to Minato before the ANBU could. She waved them off, ordering the soldiers to stay back. Minato let go of the kunai and her arm and Koharu's body slumped to the ground. Naruto would have followed, but his father snagged him around the waist and pulled the shaken teenager away from her body.

"Minato," Tsunade said slowly. "Minato, listen to me. The ANBU are going to take you away."

"Naruto's hurt!" he cried, wiping at the blood on Naruto's neck. "Naruto—he's bleeding! Please, Tsunade!"

Naruto tried to respond, but Koharu's arm had been pressing on his windpipe and he just started coughing.

Behind Minato's back, Tsunade motioned to Sakura to get her a sedative—just in case. She hoped she wouldn't have to use it, but considering how the rest of her hopes had gone that day, she had a sinking feeling she'd need it.

"I'll take care of him," she soothed, rubbing her hand on Minato's shoulder, gently putting calming, healing chakra into the man. Her other hand started to glow green and she brought it up to Naruto's neck. "There, see?"

"What if he's hurt somewhere else?" Minato demanded as the cut on Naruto's neck vanished. "What else did she do to him?"

"Tsunade!" Homura snapped, coming over to them. Minato stiffened and shifted into a protective position over Naruto, so that the younger blond was completely covered.

"Please not—"

"This man killed a citizen, former ninja, and council member of Konoha!" Homura raged, indicating the prone form of Koharu. "I don't care if he is the Fourth, that is a crime!"

"Do you really want to risk upsetting him even more?" Tsunade demanded. "Now, shut the hell up, get back, and let me calm him down!"

Homura glared at her, but took a glance at the hostile Minato and stepped back. Tsunade turned back to him, keeping a hand on his shoulder.

"Mina-chan, look at me."

He tore his eyes away from the threat to meet hers.

"Do you trust me?" she asked, meeting his eyes directly.

Minato nodded. "Of course."

"Okay, then you need to let me take Naruto," she said.

The relaxation she had been pumping into him was suddenly forced out at the thought of being separated from his son. Tsunade kept a kind smile on her face, knowing now that she'd have to knock him out. As much as she loathed it, certain procedures had to be followed and Minato had taken out nearly twenty ANBU and killed a prominent member of society. He had to be given a trial, as well having his identity verified, and until then, since he was clearly dangerous, he'd have to be locked up.

"Okay, never mind, never mind," she said softly, gently putting more calming chakra back into him. "He'll stay with you. Shhh. He'll be okay. There, relax."

Her hand slowly crept up his arm until it was at his shoulder, at which point she jammed a pressure point in his neck. The Fourth slumped forward, unconscious.

"Hey! What'd you do that for?!" Naruto shouted as his father lay sprawled over him. "What's going on?

Tsunade made a motion with her hand, and the ANBU came and carted him away. Kakashi followed, ensuring that he wouldn't be mistreated or locked up improperly. Yamato and Sakura hurried forward and helped Naruto up.

"Take him to a new room," Tsunade ordered wearily.

"Wait!" Naruto shouted, struggling against their hold. "Where are they taking him? What's going on? Why'd you do that?"

"I'll explain, Naruto," Yamato assured him. "Tsunade needs to take care of some things now."

With that, Yamato and Sakura carried a pissed off Naruto into the hospital. Tsunade forced herself to block out his angry cries and accusations. She ordered for him to be sedated, and that whoever did should tell the Kyuubi not to neutralize the sedative. Ha. Like that'll work. Kyuubi is Hideharu, Minato's friend. He's probably even more angry than Naruto right now . . . so why isn't he bursting out of his cage?

Tsunade didn't have time to ponder it, as Homura dragged her away for an emergency council meeting. She braced herself for a long, stressful evening that would not end well in any way, shape or form.

Hinata jumped up to the roof and made her way to the Hokage's cloak pinned to it. She carefully pulled the shuriken out and picked up the red and white cloak. It was folded with care and clutched in her arms as the young girl made her way to the hospital.

Her Byakugan activated, Hinata scanned the hospital and found Naruto, in a secure room, surrounded by guards. She took a deep breath and hurried to his room, smiling at the guards as they opened the door. Yamato and Sakura had already left, according to them, one to check on Kakashi and the Fourth, and Sakura to keep an eye on Tsunade.

The sedatives had already started to kick in, and Naruto was complaining about his father, his words slow and slurred. Hinata wanted to say something to him, to comfort him, but she settled for sitting down next to him. She unfolded the Hokage's robe and found the two punctures in it. Her fingers poked through them and she frowned. That wouldn't do.

Fifteen careful minutes later, the holes were repaired, with white thread. Hinata smiled and ran her fingers over them. Satisfied, she spread the robes over Naruto like one would cover him with a blanket. The restless boy calmed down after a minute, shifting under the cloak. In moments, he'd fully succumbed to the sedatives.

Hinata's smile widened and she poked her fingers together, wishing she could be that bold when he was awake.

Maybe . . . someday.

With that comforting thought, she turned around and scurried out the door. Her father, or at least Neji, would probably be worried that she wasn't home yet, especially with all of the turmoil in the village tonight.

"G-goodnight, Naruto," she murmured, closing the door.

--

So, that's it. Yes, Koharu is dead. She always seemed like the more aggressive one of the Two Evils to me.

A lot of you were asking for Hinata, wondering why she hadn't shown up, so I decided to throw her in. As for the sewing, she seems like the type to do that kind of thing. Where she got the needle and thread is anybody's guess. I don't feel like coming up with an explanation for that.

Good night!