Jiraiya could not believe that he was walking through the once happy place he grew up in. The devastation was unreal and resembled something one could only see during a taxing and gruesome war. Buildings that once stood tall were reduced to piles of rubble and trash on the floor, dead bodies with mauled faces were laying helplessly on the ground, and the fresh scent of greenery that travelled throughout the village was replaced by the stench of blood and smoke. This was the result of the nine tailed fox's attack on the Leaf Village.
The letter that Jiraiya received from the Third Hokage was brief and carried very little detail of the catastrophic event that took place while he was away. All he really knew was that the fox demon was unleashed on the village and wreaked complete havoc on all who inhabited the area. As he walked throughout the destroyed village, all he could think about was the absolute terror he felt when he wondered why the Third Hokage sent him the message and not the current Hokage, Minato.
It is a known fact that once a tailed beast is extracted from its host, that jinchuriki dies. Since the nine tailed fox was released from its bonds and ran amok in the village, that simply meant that it was somehow taken from its vessel, Kushina Uzumaki, the wife of the Fourth Hokage, a mother to be, and someone Jiraiya cared deeply about. A cold sweat ran down his back as he automatically thought the worst. He just hoped with every fiber of his being that she somehow managed to survive having the beast extracted from her and that her unborn child was alright as well. But then he remembered just who was in charge of the village, his very own student Minato. He knew that there was no way Minato would simply stand by and allow his wife to march off to her death. He was positive that Minato did everything in his power to not only keep the village safe, but also his wife and unborn child. Jiraiya decided to trust in Minato's abilities and told himself that they were still alive and well.
He made his way to the Hokage mansion that surprisingly was still standing, with only a few cracks on the walls of the building and a couple shattered windows. Security was tight around the mansion, but that was to be expected after such an attack on the village. He approached one of the guards, and after going through a rigorous screening process, he was allowed to enter the compound. He walked the multiple steps that would ultimately lead him to the Hokage's office and when he approached the familiar door, he knocked once until he was granted permission to enter. When he walked into the office, he saw his old Sensei with a tired, devastated look on his face, standing among the two village advisors Homura and Koharu. Those two were Sarutobi's teammates back in the day and were still very close to the old man. Jiraiya never cared for them since they were always so strict and never hesitated to tell him how one of the members of the Sannin should act. They expected him to be responsible and dignified due to his highly ranked status as a ninja, but Jiraiya was the complete opposite of their expectations and had little care to conform to the mold they wanted him to fit into.
As he stood among the three older ninja, he couldn't help but wonder where Minato was. He was the Fourth Hokage so if anyone should be in attendance at that moment in time it ought to have been him. Jiraiya didn't want to panic, so instead of immediately thinking of the worst case scenario, he convinced himself that perhaps Minato was visiting victims of the attack in the hospital, or even tending to his wife's needs.
"What happened here Sensei?" Jiraiya asked in a shaky voice. He was having a hard time keeping his composure, but forced himself to stay completely sane in the presence of the village advisors.
Sarutobi looked to his comrades with a somber look on his face then walked closer to Jiraiya, "We believe that the fox demon was unleashed on the village by a masked man." He started, "We don't know who he is or what his intentions were, but because of him the village is in ruins and many people lost their lives."
Jiraiya knew that the Leaf Village had enemies, but he had no idea that one of them was actually capable of manipulating a tailed beast. It was a scary thought, "What about Kushina?" Jiraiya asked, "Is she alright? And what about her baby?"
Sarutobi looked to his friends again, almost as if he were silently asking them what to say. They nodded their heads at him and he then put a wrinkled hand on Jiraiya's shoulder, "I think you should sit down Jiraiya."
Jiraiya shook his head and backed away from his sensei. His heart immediately started to pound rapidly within his chest, his palms became sweaty, and his voice became shakier than before. Something was terribly wrong, but they were taking too long to tell him and he couldn't stand being left in the dark, "No Sensei, I don't need to sit down!" He shouted, annoyed that he wouldn't just tell him what happened, "Where's Minato?! What's going on here?"
"Honestly Jiraiya, you know what happens when a tailed beast is extracted from its jinchuriki." Koharu said in an unsympathetic tone.
"What is that supposed to mean?!" Jiraiya shouted, on the verge of a mental break down, "Is Kushina actually,"
"Please just have a seat Jiraiya." Sarutobi pleaded.
Jiraiya sat down on a chair in the room, not because they told him to, but because he felt as if he could no longer stand. His body was wracked with grief for he knew what tragic news he was about to hear, but he was not emotionally prepared for what he was about to be told.
"Kushina went into labor." Sarutobi started, "As planned she gave birth in a remote location outside of the village in the event that the seal were to come undone. Even though her birthing plans were kept top secret, somehow a masked man was informed and as soon as Kushina delivered her baby, he attacked."
Jiraiya felt as if he were about to be sick as he was told the details of that tragic day. Imagine just giving birth to a beautiful child, and then being attacked right after. The day that was supposed to be the best of her life, was actually one that was filled with tragedy.
"The masked man threatened the life of the newborn baby, basically forcing Minato away from Kushina. That gave the man the opportunity to take Kushina hostage and ultimately extracting the beast from her." Homura explained.
"Minato made sure the baby was safe and then went back for Kushina but the demon was already taken from her. The masked man then manipulated the fox and sent it to destroy the village. Minato confronted the man but he managed to escape. Then Minato and Kushina tried to take matters into their own hands to save the village." Sarutobi said.
"What do you mean?" Jiraiya asked, "How did they stop the fox?"
Sarutobi shook his head, "They were in a barrier so we don't know the exact details on what happened to lead them to the decision they made, but Minato sealed away the fox spirit within his newborn son with the reaper death seal."
"The reaper death seal?!" Jiraiya repeated, "But if he did that, that means," He started but stopped himself, not wanting to say the words out loud.
"You're correct Jiraiya." Sarutobi said in a sad tone, "Minato died after sealing the fox away in his baby, and Kushina succumbed to her fate that was sealed the moment the fox was taken from her and died as well."
Jiraiya felt as if the room were spinning uncontrollably and the voices of the people surrounding him sounded like nothing but distant echoes. Minato, his prized pupil and the son he never had was dead along with his beautiful wife Kushina. How could something like that happen? Just a few days ago they were alive and well, excited at the prospect of becoming parents. But now they were laying lifeless in a morgue, awaiting the day when they would be put to their eternal rest. Jiraiya started to hyperventilate as he took in the information he was just given. Then when he felt as if he could not breathe, he blacked out. Just before he succumbed to the darkness, he saw the smiling faces of Minato and Kushina and allowed a stray tear to run down his face.
Jiraiya opened his eyes, hoping that the incredibly sad news he received was just a horrible nightmare. It was only when he looked around the room he found himself in and took note of the IV in his arm, that he realized he was in an infirmary. Tears emerged in his eyes when he remembered the harsh reality of his village being in shambles, and Minato and Kushina no longer being alive. His heart ached with grief and he felt absolutely helpless and somewhat guilty that he was not there when his student needed him the most. He wondered if he had been there if there was something he could have done to have prevented the untimely deaths of the young couple. Would he have been able to stop the masked man from taking Kushina? He would never know because he was not there. Instead he was away, trying so hard to get Tsunade to stay with him, but ultimately failed. While he did not regret being with Tsunade, he just wished that he could somehow rewrite the past and make it so that Minato and Kushina could still be alive.
"Nice to see you awake." A young nurse said as she entered the room, "How are you feeling?"
Physically Jiraiya was fine, but emotionally he was far from okay. He felt drained and absolutely devastated. He has seen dark times before, but nothing like what he was currently experiencing. He felt numb and wondered if that was how Tsunade felt when she lost her brother and her lover all within the span of a few months. Jiraiya lost two people dear to his heart and he was having a hard time imaging a life without them in it. They were supposed to be a family, and now it was just him again.
When the nurse realized that Jiraiya was not going to answer her question, she walked over to his bedside and checked his vitals. After she was certain that he was physically fine, she removed his IV and instructed him to go straight home and drink fluids to prevent himself from becoming dehydrated again. He got out of the cot and placed his shoes on his feet before thanking the nurse for taking care of him and then walked out of the room. As he was on his way out of the infirmary, he saw so many injured people. Some were missing limbs due to the severity of the attack, some were completely covered in bandages, and some were even on the verge of death. He felt nauseous among all those battered and bruised people when he noticed that as many injured there were, there were not enough medics to care for them. The village was completely unprepared for an attack of that caliber. It was too comfortable in the peace it was experiencing. That was a mistake. There was no such thing as peace in the ninja world even though Jiraiya wanted to believe that there was. A ninja had to live his life in fear, children had to grow up in an world wondering when the day would come when they would lose everything. That was the reality and Jiraiya was powerless to change it.
He was told to go home, but he had no intentions on going there. For one, he had no idea if his home still existed and he had another destination in mind. He walked down the familiar path that would lead him to his intended location. He walked down that path multiple times in the past, all for happy occasions. But, this time around his heart was breaking with each step he took for he knew that when he arrived at the location he planned to visit, nobody would be there.
He arrived at the home that used to belong to Minato and Kushina. He remembered the last time he was there. The house was filled with joy and happiness, as the couple was thrilled about the baby that was to soon grace their lives. But now, as Jiraiya walked throughout the deserted house, it felt cold and empty. Every corner in the home served as a constant reminder of the lives that were lost. Just being in there without the two occupants felt strange and unreal. Jiraiya then found himself in the nursery that was decorated in happy, vibrant colors, had stuffed animals in every corner, and had baby blue painted walls. He then remembered that the child was born on the day his parents died. But where was he? What happened to him now that he was the new vessel of the nine tailed fox?
With so many questions circling in his mind, he ran out of the house with one destination in mind. He knew he had to return to the Hokage mansion to figure out just where the baby was. He just hoped that wherever he was, that he was safe. When he arrived at the mansion, he had to go through the same screening process before being granted access to the building. Once he finished with that, he entered the building and barged into the Hokage office. Upon his unannounced entrance, he was looked upon with disapproving faces by the village advisors, but one of sympathy from his old Sensei. From the looks of it, they were in the middle of an important meeting when he intruded, but he didn't care. He had so many questions, and a child was the topic of all of them. He had to know where he was and if that meant interrupting a meeting for a few minutes, then that's what he had to do.
"Where's the baby?" Jiraiya asked, completely ignoring the anger on the faces of Koharu and Homura.
"How dare you just barge in here like that!" Koharu scolded, "We were in the middle of a very important meeting. Have you ever heard of knocking?"
"As one of the Sannin, you should know better Jiraiya." Homura said in an annoyed tone.
Jiraiya stepped further into the room and looked directly at his mentor, "I don't care about all of that!" He shouted, "Where is Minato and Kushina's baby?" He asked again, "You said that Kushina gave birth before she died, so that means that her son must be somewhere."
"Yes Kushina gave birth and yes the baby is somewhere." Koharu said, "But you're forgetting the part when we told you that the child is not just a baby. He's the jinchuriki of the nine tailed fox, the demon that destroyed this village!"
"What does that matter?" Jiraiya asked, "He's still just a baby, a baby without parents at that."
"You can't be that naïve Jiraiya." Homura said while rubbing his temples, "That child is nothing but a danger to this village. He's a threat to us all!"
"A threat?!" Jiraiya repeated in anger, "He just so happens to be the son of the two people who saved this village! How dare you act like he's just a nuisance to us all because of what he carries within him. He's just a baby, he didn't have a choice in the matter, but because his tiny body is carrying that demon, he's protecting this village!"
"That is enough!" Sarutobi shouted, breaking his silence, "Koharu, Homura, shame on you for allowing those words to escape your mouths." He said, disappointed at how his friends viewed the world simply in black and white, "Before Kushina died, she asked me to take care of her son and that's exactly what I intend on doing." He said then turned to the white haired sage, "Jiraiya, if you wish to see the child I will take you to him."
Sarutobi rose to his feet and proceeded to walk towards the door, much to the shock and disapproval of the two village advisors.
"Sarutobi, this meeting isn't over yet!" Koharu said.
"It is for now." Sarutobi said, "We'll continue when I return. You two can stay here, don't follow us."
Jiraiya and Sarutobi walked out of the tense room and Jiraiya was happy that his sensei did not have the same mindset and the two old advisors. He knew that Sarutobi must be aware of his feelings. He knew how close he was to Minato and Kushina so Jiraiya was pleased that he wasn't treating him as if it were just a normal day. Sarutobi led Jiraiya into a room on the top floor of the mansion. For the years that Sarutobi has been commander and chief of the village, Jiraiya has never been on that floor. It was off limits to just about everyone except for the Hokage and a few select people. When they entered the room, Jiraiya saw a young woman sitting on a rocking chair with a tiny bundle in her arms. She was the only person in that room besides the child and Jiraiya wondered if that was intentional.
"Jiraiya, this is Hana." Sarutobi said as he closed the room door, "She will be the caretaker of the child until he is old enough to be on his own."
Hana rose to her feet with the bundle still in her arms, "Hello Master Jiraiya." She said, "Lord Third told me all about you."
"Hana is one of the few people who know about what the child carries within him. She has been a member of the medical core for a few years now and I've been watching her closely so I know she can be trusted."
"Be trusted?" Jiraiya repeated, somewhat confused.
"Yes. The child is not safe because of the fact that he is a jinchuriki. People will not hesitate to harm him if they were to find out about him. Therefore, in order to keep him safe, we have to take all the necessary precautions."
Hana stepped closer to Jiraiya and revealed the child she had in her arms, "Would you like to hold him?"
Jiraiya peered into her arms and saw the baby looking up at him with big, bright, blue eyes. He looked almost identical to Minato and even shared his father's spiky blonde hair. It was as if he were looking in the face of Minato himself. The child smiled when his eyes focused on Jiraiya's face and in that moment Jiraiya felt his heart swell with emotion. The child was smiling, completely unaware of the fact that he was orphaned within hours of him being in the world, and was burdened with being the vessel of a terrible monster. He felt such sorrow for the child and could only imagine the horrors and the extreme loneliness he would have to live through. He didn't deserve that life, nobody did, but the child was the son of heroes and deserved a life of happiness not one of pain.
Cautiously, Jiraiya took the baby in his arms. He felt so small, so fragile, that Jiraiya was scared to make any sudden movements. He had never held a baby that tiny before, but here he was rocking the infant back and forth and growing closer and closer to him in each passing second. Time seemed to stop as he held the baby close and he then remembered that he was not a stranger to the child, he was his godfather, "Hello Naruto." Jiraiya said.
"Naruto?" Sarutobi repeated, "Is that his name?"
Jiraiya nodded his head, "Yes, his name was decided by Kushina and Minato a couple of days ago."
"But isn't that the name of the main character of your novel?" The Hokage asked.
"Yes, that's right." Jiraiya nodded, "His name is Naruto Namikaze."
Sarutobi shook is head in disagreement, "No it can't be." He said, "Minato had too many enemies and we're supposed to be keeping Naruto safe. We can't risk his safety so he will take his mother's name. He will be called Naruto Uzumaki."
Jiraiya understood what the Third was saying and agreed to it, "That's fine. They also named me his godfather so I would like to take him under my wing."
Jiraiya couldn't stand the thought of such a happy, innocent baby growing up alone in a world where people would more than likely ostracize him because of who he is. He was positive that Minato and Kushina would have wanted Naruto to be under his care. Furthermore, he felt a strong connection towards the infant and felt the need to protect him at all costs. He never thought about becoming a father, and was never sure how good he would be at raising another person. But as he looked down at Naruto's chubby face, he felt confident that he would do right by him. There would be so much that he would have to learn, but with Naruto in his care he knew that he would figure it all out.
"I can't allow you to do that Jiraiya." Sarutobi said regretfully.
Jiraiya looked at his mentor with a confused expression on his face, "What do you mean?" He asked, "I'm the only one he has in this world."
"You need to remember that this child is also the jinchuriki of the nine tailed fox Jiraiya." Sarutobi started, "He needs to remain in the village and I know how you don't like being tied down to one spot."
"If it's for Naruto I will stay in the village." Jiraiya stated. He wasn't too keen on the idea of staying in the Leaf Village. But if staying in the village meant being able to look after Naruto, then he would do it with no hesitation.
"Even so I still can't allow you to take the child as your own." The Hokage said, "There will come a day when he will have questions of his parentage, and for his own protection he cannot know." He explained, "If you were to raise him, it will become abundantly clear that you are so much more than just a guardian to him and he will ask you questions that you cannot answer."
"Then I won't tell him who I am or who his parents are." Jiraiya promised, "Just please let me take care of him. He needs me."
Sarutobi shook his head, "I'm sorry Jiraiya, but it has to be this way."
The white haired sage looked down at the infant in his arms once again and felt as his heart twisted into knots. How could he simply walk away from the orphan? What would become of the son that Minato and Kushina left behind if Jiraiya was not there to oversee his upbringing? What kind of pain and suffering would the child have to endure?
"If I can't be there for him, then I want you to promise me that he will be well taken care of." Jiraiya said firmly while looking directly at his teacher, "Promise me that he will want for nothing and that he will be safe."
Sarutobi could clearly see how much the baby meant to Jiraiya. He never expected him to possess such a fierce sense of responsibility towards a child that wasn't even his own. The reckless, immature young boy he taught the way of the ninja has matured and perhaps even turned into a surrogate father to an unfortunate orphaned baby boy.
"I give you my word that I will ensure Naruto is taken care of and safe." Sarutobi promised the Sannin.
"I want updates on his upbringing as well." Jiraiya added, "I would like to know what he's like as he grows older." He said and dug around in his pocket and pulled out a wallet that was in the shape of a frog. He got that wallet from his father when he was a young boy. It was one of his prized possessions therefore he carried it on his person at all times. He vowed to himself to never part with it as it reminded him so much of his father, but suddenly had the desire to gift it to his godson, "When he's older, please give this to him." Jiraiya said while handing it to the aged Hokage, "You don't have to tell him who it's from, but I would like for him to have it."
Sarutobi took the wallet from his student, "I will be sure to give it to him."
Naruto squirmed in his godfather's arms and let out a tired yawn. It was close to his nap time. Jiraiya knew the time was drawing near when he would have to part from the infant. He decided to leave him with a few words that would hopefully stay with him as he grew up, "Naruto." He started, "You will face some hard times in your life, but don't let that alter who you are. You were brought into this world by two people who loved you with all their hearts. Sometimes it may seem as if you are all alone in this world, but you are not. I may not be around, but I will always be with you. Be brave, be happy, and never give up on your dreams."
"It's time for his nap Master Jiraiya." Hana said, holding out her arms to take the baby from him.
Jiraiya was reluctant to hand over the infant. He was painfully aware of the fact that it would be the last time he were to ever hold the child. With a heavy heart, he placed young Naruto in his caretaker's arms. He felt an emptiness within as he stood there watching Hana place the baby in his cot. He felt the same kind of loneliness he experienced when he woke up without Tsunade in his presence.
"He'll be alright Jiraiya." Sarutobi said as he placed a reassuring hand on the sage's shoulder.
"I'll stay for the funeral and I'll help rebuild the village." Jiraiya said, "But afterwards, I'm going to head out on another journey. There must be a way to bring peace to this world of hatred."
After taking one last look at the blonde haired infant, he walked out of the nursery. He was determined to bring back some sort of stability to the village. He decided to make it his life's mission to find peace and spread it throughout the ninja world, so that Naruto would not have to live in fear. He didn't know how he would turn his ambitions into a reality, but vowed to himself and to his precious godson that somehow he would make it happen.