Shadows Cast by Fire's Light
Chapter 1 – Death Dance of a Fleeting Flame
The air hummed with an intense energy as Hiruzen stood panting before the Fuinjutsu barrier. He recognised it immediately as Kushina's handiwork, and hence knew the futility of trying to break through. Not that it would stop him from trying. He formed a few rapid seals, and as the fingers of his right hand began to glow with chakra, Hiruzen attempted to slowly sink them into the energy charged Fuinjutsu array in an effort to alter its core function. The already humming air began to crackle yet louder as his hand made contact, and Hiruzen drew his hand back sharply, wincing in pain as energy from the barrier crackled through his fingers and up his arm. From the burning feeling that rose up, he knew that his chakra channels had been damaged somewhat, but that was the least of his worries at this moment.
Making up his mind, Hiruzen dashed backwards, putting some space between himself and the barrier. His hands blurred into swift motion, and as he completed the sequence of seals, he called out loudly " Doton: Tsuchi Zuhan Danmaku". The world seemed to rumble in response, as great discs of earth were dragged from the ground by Hiruzen's chakra, and hurled against the barrier, where they smashed to pieces, each impact creating a deafening crash; the barrier even seemed to shake and waver a little beneath the barrage, but still held firm and returned to stability once the storm of Hiruzen's technique had been weathered.
Hiruzen grunted in displeasure, and once again began to form a series of complex seals. As his hands came to a stop, he drew himself to his full height, sucking in a lungful of air, "Katon: Shinhidora no jutsu". With that, Hiruzen leaned forwards, spewing a stream of intense flame from his mouth, roaring in frustration. The rising flame span and circled before the barrier, forming itself into the visage of a great three headed hydra. Each head threw itself forwards, spitting out great fireballs, impacting heavily against the barrier, which wavered yet again as torrents of flame battered against it, although it still held. Making the tiger sign with his hands, Hiruzen grunted with great effort, directing the fire hydra forwards, and it seemed to roar with power as it threw itself wantonly against the Fuinjutsu array. The earth rumbled and shook once more at the repeated collisions of the great fire beast throwing itself again and again into the barrier, ignorant of the futility, until Hiruzen collapsed to his knees, falling forwards and panting against the ground, his chakra all but spent. The great flaming figure then began to dissipate, rising into the air, its chakra fuelled form flickering out of existence.
Forcing himself once more to his feet, panting still from his exertion, Hiruzen stared hopelessly at the barrier that still stood before him. The sinking feeling that had begun in his chest when Minato used his Hiraishin to teleport the Kyuubi away from the village now returned as a throbbing ache. By the time Hiruzen had rushed to the great barrier that he had sensed erected in the distance, the Kyuubi had already dissappeared, presumably either sealed or temporarily slain, yet now Kushina's barrier still stood, and Hiruzen worried that her techniques that had saved so many lives on previous occasions, could now be consigning her and her husband to death.
There was a rustle from behind, as two of Minato's ANBU guard detail finally caught up. As Hiruzen turned to address the newcomers, a feeling of dread fell over his heart, and he stumbled for a moment as his legs almost gave way. He turned back towards the barrier, which had only moments before been glowing a faint green and practically buzzing with power, but which now seemed to fade into the ether, great holes appearing in its mesh, which rapidly grew as the barrier fell apart in front of their eyes.
Hiruzen wasted no more time, forcing chakra through his system as he leaped forwards through a quickly widening gap with a powerful shunshin. He could hear the two ANBU hot on his heels, but he didn't look back as he rushed towards the centre of the area that had been contained within the barrier technique. Trees flashed past to either side of him, many broken and ruined, a testament to the struggle that had occurred here but a few minutes prior.
After a little more than a minute of holding such a frantic pace, the encroaching trees seemed to draw back, as Hiruzen came to a sizeable clearing, and finally laid eyes on his quarry. There, in the centre of the clearing, lay both Minato and Kushina. Minato sat upright, if only barely, his back resting against the stump of a tree that looked like it had been thoroughly shattered. Hiruzen could see Kushina lying at her husband's side, her head cradled in his lap, although she did not seem to be moving. Hiruzen decelerated rapidly as he approached, and began to make out more details. The two figures were covered in blood, and he could see as he closed in that Kushina's chest did not seem to rise or fall, although Minato seemed to shudder repeatedly with every breath. Minato, however, did not sense Hiruzen's approach, as he stared intensely at what Hiruzen could now see was a small bundle held in his arms. As he closed the last few metres, Hiruzen could hear Minato whispering in a soft but strained voice, clutching the bundle close to his chest.
Hiruzen came to his successor's side, taking a knee, and staring almost in horror at the baby wrapped within Minato's arms, still covered in blood and mucus from the birth, a thin umbilical cord snaking out from beneath the bundle of blankets, still connected to the afterbirth that was yet contained within the child's unmoving mother. Hiruzen opened his mouth to speak, but Minato finally seemed to notice his presence. He laboriously turned his head to look at Hiruzen, although he seemed to barely have the strength, as his head lolled against his shoulder. With a great effort, Minato raised his head to meet Hiruzen's gaze, who found a startling clarity shining from within his successor's eyes. Hiruzen craned his head close, taking Minato's cheeks in his hands and supporting his neck as the man struggled to get out his words. "Protect him... Hiruzen. Tell everyone... he is a hero.".
ScbFL-SCbFL-SCbFL
Hiruzen stood by the window of his office, staring listlessly out through soot-stained glass at the wreckage of his village. The fires had all been doused throughout the course of the day, but some larger areas of wreckage still smouldered slightly, emitting ever-thinning plumes of smoke into the darkening sky. He cradled the child, Naruto his parents had planned on calling him, in his arms, rocking him gently in his sleep. Although not related by blood, by seniority, Naruto could be considered his great-grandson, and one whom he had sworn to protect at Minato's deathbed. Turning his back to the window, Hiruzen crossed the room and placed the child into the small cot that he'd had temporarily placed beside his desk. The child stirred slightly at the touch of the cool blankets, but did not wake.
This was all too much for Hiruzen. He'd happily passed down his responsibilities, and begun to fade into the shadows of the village, spending more time with his children, and gradually extricating himself from the incessant council meetings, whether military or civilian. Then, from out of a quiet night, hell broke loose in an instant, and tore from the leaf the greatest hope of a generation. He would have to step back into the limelight, he knew. Other than himself, only Danzo would be able to garner enough support to take over as the reigning Hokage, and Hiruzen found the idea of control of Konoha falling into the hands of such a man to be entirely unconscionable.
As if called by some foul ritual, Hiruzen heard the dreaded gait of Root's leader making its way down the corridor outside of his office, its volume rising along with the frown that grew on Hiruzen's face, even as he made his way to sit behind his desk. Hiruzen steepled his fingers before his face as he waited for the expected firm knock at the door, and called out "Enter." far too quickly than could be considered elegant when it finally came.
The door opened only half way before Danzo's cane made its way into the room, closely followed by the man himself. Despite his initial lack of participation the previous night, Hiruzen had sent one of his ANBU with a scathing message to the Root commander in the midst of the defence, and sure enough, Root operatives had been deployed to aid in the defence of the village. Thanks to that, Hiruzen estimated that a good few residential blocks had been saved, and Danzo now looked haggard and worn in a way that was quite pleasing to Hiruzen, having spent great efforts, first in the defence, and then the subsequent aid efforts throughout the village.
Hiruzen had initially been prepared for a tense battle of words, and had been prepared to go on a verbal offensive immediately, but in truth, the haggard appearance of his old friend which had brought about such an enjoyable feeling of schadenfreude gave him pause. "Take a seat Danzo." He said, waving to one of the chairs by the side of the room. Danzo inclined his head, and made his way slowly towards the chairs, but instead of pulling one over as Hiruzen had expected, the exhausted man simply sat heavily in the chair where it was, resting his head back against the wall, and gazing at Hiruzen with oddly glassy eyes.
"The funeral arrangements have been made Hiruzen, tomorrow at dawn, before the memorial stone.". Of all the things that Hiruzen had been expecting Danzo to say, that had never crossed his mind. He had always thought Danzo a heartless man, his hand signing away the deaths of Ninja from Konoha and from foreign villages alike, and yet he now saw that such callousness regarding the lives of Konoha's citizens in the past had just been an escape from the issue, rather than a true lack of care. Such haunted eyes were not something Hiruzen had ever seen on Danzo before, not even in the aftermath of previous great ninja wars. Not even after the death of Tobirama.
"We must discuss a plan to move forward Hiruzen, the fourth had no successor arranged. Do you plan to take up your old place once more?". Hiruzen felt yet further shock at that. He had expected Danzo to act swiftly and ruthlessly to seize power, and not to even discuss the possibility of Hiruzen regaining control.
Hiruzen leaned forward in his chair, staring deeply into Danzo's eyes, and finding them unsettlingly unfathomable. "I will step up once again Danzo,", he said firmly, "we need to stand together in such trying times. The will of fire burns all the stronger in adversity.".
Danzo cocked an eyebrow at Hiruzen's words, before putting his hands on his knees and rising slowly to his feet. Hiruzen watched, and heard the soft tapping of Danzo's cane against the floor as the man made his way across the room to gaze out of the blackened window out into their village. "Your will of fire Hiruzen, I never believed in it in the past. Now we are laid low by the demon Fox, and our enemies will gather around us, perhaps it is our last best hope. Show it to me Hiruzen, show me the will of fire. I cannot say I believe, but you are right, we will be stronger united. The village cannot afford our conflict any longer. So burn brightly Hiruzen, and I will support you from the shadows.".
Hiruzen frowned yet again at this. It was progress to be sure, and if somebody had told Hiruzen a week ago that Danzo would be willing to come to a compromise, he would never have believed it, but he would have to be sure to keep Danzo on a tight leash. He couldn't allow Danzo to descend into some of the more egregious tactics that he had proposed in the past. It could in fact all be a ploy, convince Hiruzen to loosen the reigns, and then enact some cruel barbarism in secret with his newfound freedom. "It will be good to work together once again Danzo," Hiruzen spoke tentatively, "although we must agree that you will not act alone. Your support will be invaluable, but do not think I will be any more lenient than I have been in the past.".
Danzo shook his head at Hiruzen's stern tone, and turned to look at the ageing Hokage. Their eyes met, each man's gaze hard. "My hand will carry out those acts that yours cannot Hiruzen. I will not allow you to neuter the ruthlessness required of our special forces." The silence seemed to stretch into eternity before Danzo continued." But, I will concede to your point. I will run my plans past you before I enact them. We cannot afford a silent war between us, we must pool our strength. That being said, I want to expand the Root training program. There are now many orphans, I've arranged for them all to be housed in orphanages temporarily, but there is such an overflow that many have been placed with willing families in the interim. I will take as many as possible. If I don't, a good portion will end up on the streets, and those that don't will be cramming up the orphanages.".
Hiruzen stood, walking over to Danzo's side, and once more staring out upon the wrecked village. The two stood side by side for a moment as Hiruzen considered his response. "Agreed. Offer them the choice though Danzo, and let them keep their names. They won't be Root, I won't let you turn an entire generation into nameless robots." Danzo made to respond, but Hiruzen held up a hand. "You can still run their training, but keep them separate from Root, or loosen up on the restrictions on the trainees entirely. You can train them to be ANBU, and the core power of our next generation, but if our people are only tools to us, then there isn't really anything left to bother protecting.".
Danzo swallowed loudly, but inclined his head in acquiescence. "Fine. I will, loosen the restrictions on all new Root operatives. But in turn, there is one child in particular that must be trained." Danzo turned, and Hiruzen followed his eyeline to the cot beside his desk.
"No Danzo!" He didn't shout, but spoke firmly. "I promised his father to protect him. He is already a hero of this village, I won't allow you to take away any more of his childhood than he is already likely to lose.".
Danzo's faced scrunched up into a grimace for a moment, before he schooled it of its emotions. "If he has lost his childhood, Hiruzen, then his father is to blame, and nobody else. You know as well as I what is sealed within that child. The jailer of the strongest of the tailed beasts; the perfect weapon; the greatest of the Jinchuriki; and sealed so young that we can mould him into the sharpest of tools. We would lose even more by not training him than we would by fighting with each other. Think of it Hiruzen, if we weather the storm while he grows into his own, he could be the ultimate deterrent against our enemies once he reaches his prime! You say he is the hero of this village, then let me guide him to be the greatest hero this village has ever seen.".
Hiruzen found himself shaking his head all throughout Danzo's impassioned speech. "No. No Danzo. I won't condone it. Besides, you've seen the reports from our spies in Kumo, don't pretend that you haven't obtained a copy. Jinchuriki are far from just being weapons. I won't allow you to raise Naruto into a rabid dog, to be pointed at the nearest target and let loose. He'll not be some vile imitation of a death-sworn soldier. We'll have much greater success by raising him properly, making him feel safe, letting him grow to protect his home as any other ninja would do.".
Danzo grunted dismissively. He had, of course, seen the report that Hiruzen was referring to. He'd had his operatives recover it, since any information regarding the Hachibi Jinchuriki was of vital importance. He didn't quite believe the reports. Surely this Killer Bee was only treated so kindly due to his relation to the Raikage. But then again, Jinchuriki were not exactly common, and while Danzo considered himself an expert in training loyal and skilled ninja, even he would have to admit that his experience did not extend to that of raising a Jinchuriki. If the report was to be believed, by humanising the Hachibi Jinchuriki, Kumo had been able to have him been much more active in the field than would usually be expected, and be very effective too. Although that could just be that the Hachibi was one of the most powerful of the tailed beasts, and as such afforded its host a great amount of power. Similarly, he thought, Kushina had been so strong due to the Kyuubi's insane reserves, rather than the mollycoddling way in which she had been treated by Hiruzen. That being said, he could not afford for Hiruzen to shut him out of the boy's training. He must be as involved as possible so as to hone the boy into a sharp blade.
"Very well Hiruzen, I shall not train him as such, but the boy must be trained all the same, and I insist on being involved."
Hiruzen stared at Danzo for a long moment, before nodding. "I will ensure Naruto is raised properly, and as soon as he is old enough, we will begin to train him to reach his true potential. You will of course, be allowed to be involved. Barbaric as your methods have been in the past, I can't deny that you are an effective teacher when you keep your ruthlessness in check. The will of fire still burns strong, and I will have Naruto carry the torch.".
Danzo was appalled at Hiruzen's optimism. "I'm sorry old friend, but your will of fire is but a dying ember now.". Hiruzen made to make a retort, but Danzo spoke over him. "I will protect that fire of course, and nurture it until it roars with life once more. But for now, it is but a weak tongue of flame, barely sustaining itself as it dances upon the whims of the wind. Just remember Hiruzen, that it is in the dying light of a flickering flame that the shadows will truly begin to dance.".
Jutsu List:
Doton: Tsuchi Zuhan Danmaku – Earth Release: Earth Plate Barrage
Katon: Shinhidora no jutsu – Fire Release: True Hydra Technique
Hiraishin no jutsu – Flying Thunder God Technique
Shunshin no jutsu – Body Flicker Technique
a/n: So I've been planning on writing at least the second half of this chapter for a long time and I'm really glad that I finally have. If I'm honest, I'm not 100% happy with Minato's final words, but that's always an issue, I find, when anything poignant happens in the first few chapters of a story, as there's been no time to prepare any smoking guns etc. and this honestly isn't something that'll come up again in a meaningful way, (I mean the exact phrasing, obviously the whole Kyuubi attack and its aftermath define pretty much the entire story) so I don't really have anything to aim for. Here I am then, a perfectionist aiming for invisible goalposts of dubious existence in the first place. Yay for self-criticism and gratuitous faux-profundity.
That being said the conversation between Danzo and Hiruzen was enjoyable to write. Its a dynamic that was never really exposed or explored within the anime to any great extent, so I enjoy writing it, as it affords me so many believable options regarding how exactly their relationship plays out, without having to become too contrived regarding their actions to fit in with their canon portrayals.