Alrighty, first fanfic in the Naruto-verse in about four years or so. Zero pressure amiright? Welcome to the first chapter of what I hope will be an amazing story. While it deviates a great deal from the canon material, I think the gameplan I have for this will work out. I will politely ask if you actively despise Narusaku, you MIGHT not like this fic, though I'm certainly hoping to change some minds lol.
Chapter 1: The Hokage's Decisions
-Hokage's Office, Leaf Village, two days after the nine-tails attack-
Hiruzen Sarutobi was growing weary of the bad fortunes that seemed to always befall the home he cared so deeply about, the village that his predecessors had cared so deeply about. As he slid into the chair that had a window view over this home, he felt a deep wave of regret and pain wash over him. The Hidden Leaf Village was in utter turmoil following an attack of almost incomparable strength by a beast known as the nine-tailed fox. They'd known for some time that such an attack was a distinct possibility, given the…circumstances surrounding the monsters former host, but you could never truly prepare for a being that was more akin to a force of nature than anything else. They had learned this the hard way, and now they faced the arduous task of rebuilding what was lost.
Most of the residential sectors had been an utter loss. The fox had appeared virtually on the outskirts of the village, and as a result these were the first sections hit. The piecemeal resistance from the few outer guards that didn't die in the first wave of attacks did little to deter the monster. If anything, it seemed to only enrage it even more, and its ferocity increased further. By the time the shinobi had formed a defensive line of sorts, well over half of the homes that housed the common villagers, the life blood of any thriving home had been lost and the ones not destroyed utterly were severely damaged.
The business and military sectors also suffered, though not as much, which was small comfort, but one had to take what one could when a disaster of this magnitude hit. To lose yourself to despair would do little good in the long run, though he was sorely tempted to. At the top of the list of damages, the worst loss was undoubtedly that of Minato. The man that Hiruzen deemed worthy of the mantle, one of the brightest warriors the leaf ever produced had given his life to save the village. Though he'd not witnessed the moment of the monster's defeat with his own eyes, enough of the survivors had come forward with their accounts, and the valor that the man had shown right until the bitter end was one worthy of the history books.
But this left the leadership in flux. He was content to be acting Hokage for the time being. Gods knew that there wasn't anyone, in the village right now at least, more qualified to take Minato's place. But he'd longed to retire. He wasn't a decrepit or anything, not by a long shot, but his youthful days were further away than ever, and the aches that crept up his body at times was proof enough of this. But he couldn't dwell on it any longer. Until a worthwhile replacement was found, this was his duty and he'd perform it to the letter. But now, his mind turned towards other matters, namely Minato's son.
Naruto wasn't even a week old and already he commanded the attention of not only himself, but the jounin council, the ANBU, and the village elders. It would be remarkable if not for the dark nature behind the attention. According to witness accounts, Minato had sealed the fox inside Naruto's tiny frame, as indicated by the seal that adorned his stomach. This presented a unique dilemma. While the child certainly hadn't done anything other than be born in one of the most inopportune times in recent history, there were a lot of unknowns making the village nervous. If anything went wrong with the seal, they would have another catastrophe on their hands, and who knew if they'd survive this time around with Minato here to do whatever he did.
Still, much of the leadership was divided on what to do. Some wanted to simply send the boy away. There weren't many who were related to his family out there, but with some effort they could be found. Others wanted to try and find a way to transfer the spirit to an adult shinobi, or to seal it in some benign location like an isolated object or protected shrine. Still, there were a very slim minority that proposed more…unsavory methods of dealing with the issue, believing that if the boy were destroyed, so would the spirit. Hiruzen however, after heated debate, rejected these outright. Each one had a significant flaw.
First the issue of banishment. As hazardous as the nine-tails was, having it out in the wild to potentially fall into the hands of rogue ninja would be playing with fire. There were many who would have welcomed the downfall of the leaf, and to toss a potential weapon out to the world at large when that was to be considered was simply not practical. Perhaps if they could guarantee that the family they left him with would never be uncovered, but there were simply too many variables for it to be a viable solution to the issue.
Sealing the beast into another person or isolated location also wasn't an option for much of the same reason. First, there was no guarantee that they'd find anyone amongst the remaining shinobi who had both the willpower and the chakra control to contain it. Sealing it away in a shrine or other location also meant that, gods forbid, if anyone in the village who was trusted with the knowledge of the location betrayed them, as some had in the past, you were risking a great deal. The leaf had had it's fair share of rogue ninja in the past. The possibility was always there, no matter how remote it may or may not be. So that was out too.
And he didn't even entertain the third option that had been thrown at him. "They have some gall to believe that I would ever consent to such a proposal," he growled under his breath. "The moment this village condones the killing of an innocent infant is the day I will have it burnt to the ground," he said, making a mental note to keep an eye on the small number of shinobi who had proposed it in the first place. He knew some of them had simply been consumed by fear and worry, and he couldn't fault them that. But one or two were of particular concern to him. Letting out a deep sigh, he leaned back into his chair. "What a disaster."
There was only one logical choice that he could bear to deal with. Minato, Kushina, and Naruto were dealt a cruel hand by fate. Their young, happy family had been taken away by a malevolent force and here was simply no going back now. Likewise, the village also had a similar cruelty inflicted on it. There was one common factor. Nobody had asked for the hand they were dealt, but it had happened and now they could either attempt to turn it into a positive in some way. He summoned for one of the jounin stationed nearby and sent a message to have the other leaders assemble before him.
It took a little over half an hour, but eventually the leader of the jounin council Reiza Tekamari, Commander Jiro Watanabe of the ANBU, and Homura of the high council were in the office. All were in various states of dishevelment from trying to assist with the relief effort. "Thank you for coming by so quickly, my friends. I understand our time is short with everything going on, but I have reached a decision regarding the boy." An air of tension entered the room, glances were exchanged, and he allowed them to calm again before elaborating. "I have decided to be responsible for him." He saw some visible confusion on their face, so he went on.
"Minato saw a reason to seal the nine-tails inside his son. I can't claim to know his motives, but I think we all know that the man wasn't prone to making decisions without considering the ramifications of said actions. To not care for and watch over his son would not only be dismissing this, but it would spit on the sacrifice that he and his wife performed to keep us all safe. I shall be his guardian until he hits academy age. From there, we will grant him the inheritance he is due." Almost immediately the objections started, Homura being the loudest and clearest.
"You can't be serious, Hiruzen! Never mind the fact that you intend to keep the boy around, do you know what will happen to the legitimacy of your rule as Hokage when they hear this? That their acting Hokage, that their protector is harboring the very…. thing that attacked us in the first place?! What will you tell our allies? What will-"Hiruzen's fist collided with the desk and the elder was jolted into silence as he stared into the Hokage's narrowed eyes.
"You forget your place, Homura. You are a respected friend, but I will not tolerate being spoken to as you would a first-year academy student. My decision has been made. If you take issue with it, your objections are noted but it will not change anything for you to yell in my ear. Reiza cleared his throat, a mixture of satisfaction for seeing Homura knocked down a couple pegs, and genuine worry about whether this was the right decision. The jounin had been the ones to recommend an alternative seal away target
"Forgive me, my lord, but what WILL you do about the villagers? Regardless of what we think about all of this, there's bound to be some lingering resentment to put it lightly. As it is, we have three men guarding the room at the hospital to ensure nobody takes any actions into their own hands." Hiruzen sighed at this, nodding. Now that was a more valid concern. Hundreds of people were dead, and most wouldn't have the context of what happened at the end of the battle. Once word got around, things would go from bad to worse. And they couldn't have the boy trailed by shinobi for the entirety of his life.
"It will not be easy. But I shall make a decree to deal with the worst of it. It will buy us time for the worst of the fallout to be handled…he won't have a normal childhood, that's for certain. But any chances of that are long sine abandoned." Reiza nodded, though clearly, he was unsure, not that could really blame the man for that. "Go. Spread the word to as many as possible and double the guard at the hospital when you have the men available. Reiza and Homura nodded and left, the latter significantly less enthusiastically though not expressing it any further. Commander Jiro was the only one who remained behind. "You have something else to add?"
"Not regarding the boy, my lord. While I disagree, I respect your judgement. No, something else has come to my attention. Prior to the attack, Shisui Uchiha had reported to me that many of the top-ranking members of their clan had been plotting against the village. A full-fledged coup. I verified the information, but with all the chaos after the attack I haven't had a quiet moment to inform you." Hiruzen's eyes widened at this. "As crazy as it seems, the timing of the attack seems to have put a delay in their plans. But if we don't take decisive action soon, they will recover and resume their planning."
The thought of one of their most respected clans turning on them and trying to overthrow their village…it could very well be a death nail to the village as it was. "When you find him, tell Shisui to come here immediately. We need to move quickly," he said firmly. Jiro nodded and vanished. He returned a short time later with the man in question, and to his increasing horror, the plan was laid out. The Uchiha were somewhat divided themselves. Not every council member had consented to the plan, but the impression he had gotten a day or so before the attack was that the holdouts were starting to waver in their objections.
The situation was dire. As Jiro had predicted, the nine-tails attack had dealt a blow to their plan, buying them time but that wouldn't last forever. Likely, once things settled down and everyone wasn't on high alert, things would resume. But Shisui had a solution. "With your permission, my lord, I will eliminate the agitators driving the plot forward." Jiro and Hiruzen exchanged a look. "We can't allow their plans to continue, and any other shinobi who tries to stop them will tip them off and cause them to possibly initiate their move early. They already believe in me. I know I can get close. This way the plot is foiled, but the clan can survive."
"It's an interesting concept…..but you realize what this will mean for you, right? It won't stay a secret forever, Shisui," Jiro said.
"I know. I don't expect it to. I don't expect a pardon, I don't even expect Lord Hokage to even acknowledge that he knows why it happened. They made this personal to me. These men bring disgrace to our clan's name by plotting against the very village our ancestors have resided in for as long as people can remember. They would see us all branded on the same level as Madara. And I refuse to allow that to happen. I am a true Uchiha. I remember where my loyalties lie, and I won't allow them to get away with this," he said firmly. Hiruzen studied the man's expression thoughtfully, searching for even a flicker of resignation and found none. IF he had misgivings, he wasn't making them clear. "Shisui if you do this, it will brand you as a rogue ninja. Are you prepared to deal with the consequences of this?" Shisui nodded. "Very well…for now, remain in observation of their tactics. Wait for the village to at least somewhat recover, and when you believe the time is right initiate your plan." Shisui put a fist to his chest.
"Thank you, my lord." With that, he vanished. Hiruzen turned to stare out over the village again, feeling a chill run up his spine as he did so. He couldn't quite explain where it came from, but all he could do was hope that it wasn't omen of possible catastrophes to come.
They simply couldn't handle another one for a while.
And that'll do it for now ladies, gents, and that wonderful rainbow in between. I hope you enjoyed, and reviews are greatly appreciated. Stay tuned! Plenty more where this came from.