ncpfan: I completely understand and I decided to move the post- civil war until next chapter just because I really wanted to focus on the actual battle for that chapter.
zero fullbuster: Thank you and I appreciate the review as always.
PinkiePieParty122894: Yeah they are but they are going to get really powerful soon to I guess a respectable level. But they will probably still be idiots.
Animaman: Jiraiya will get an eye opening encounter the next time he meets the twins and at that point he will know what part he played in the whole prophecy ordeal. Whether or not he survives the encounter is still being decided. For Yagura, he was influenced by Madara who is now dead along with the rest of the Akatsuki but the brainwashing stayed. He will get more training but it will be in the Realm of the Serpents learning from the serpents and a few other people there. As for the council, I kinda nip them in the bud for now this chapter but they will eventually come back in an antagonistic role.
DxGRAYxMAN: It won't be the last maybe, but they will turn into stiff competition later on.
KamiKageRyuuketsu: I'm not 100% sure who your review is directed to whether it's me, Naruto, or someone else but thanks for the review.
777torn777: I'm glad you liked the joke. I'm always a little unsure when I add comedic parts but nice to know that they're appreciated. As for Yakumo and Sasuke's improvement, I've still got quite a few ideas that I think are going to be enjoyable in terms of things they either learn or create.
SalamanderNatsu: Itachi was busy with clan business but had faith in his team (Naruto at the time) to take on whatever challenge came their way. He wasn't expecting Iliel to come in a beat Naruto so a mistake on his part.
(Konoha)
Minato sat in his office doing the thing he dreaded most. Paperwork. Thankfully, Orochimaru who had been a good assistant to him lately was helping him with the never ending forms and documents. As he continued to sign document after document, his mind began to wander specifically to the topic of Naruto's childhood.
Flashback
The fourth Hokage sat in his study examining the infamous caged bird seal of the Hyuga clan. Recently, he had been asked by the clan leader Hiashi Hyuga to find a way to break the seal without killing the branch members. Minato was happy to accept the request and saw it as a strong mark of progress within the village. He studied the seal carefully when he heard his study door open. Looking up, he was greeted with the sight of his oldest son Naruto. The blonde boy had a nervous look on his face and was holding his left arm as he refused to meet his father's gaze. Shaking his head at the demeanor of his son, he asked "What do you need Naruto?"
Naruto was quiet for a short moment as he contemplated whether or not he should make the request he came with to his father. Shaking his head slightly, Naruto spoke up. "Father, I was looking at a few books on the different subjects of ninja and came across one about fuinjutsu. I was hoping that you could help me learn fuinjutsu" the blonde boy asked with a desperate look on his eyes. Minato gave an annoyed sigh and shook his head. "No Naruto, I'm too busy. Besides, you shouldn't be worrying about the ninja arts until the academy" he said before going back to the caged bird seal. Naruto looked down at the ground but quickly looked back at his father with a determined expression on his face. "But father, Menma and Narumi are being trained in the ninja arts including fuinjutsu so why can't I learn as well?" Naruto asked. Minato sighed once again as he was starting to become annoyed. "They are being trained because they are special Naruto. They need the training more than you do and we need to train them as much as possible. Someday you will be able to join your brother and sister in training, but for now just wait until the academy" Minato said causing Naruto to look down in sadness.
The blonde haired child slowly nodded his head before leaving the room. Once Naruto was gone, Minato put his face in his hands. Personally he wanted nothing more than to train Naruto and teach him the ways of sealing among the other aspects of being a ninja, but according to Jiraiya's prophecy, he needed to make as much time for Menma and Narumi as possible. He didn't have the privilege of treating Naruto equally in terms of training but it did hurt him greatly every time he had to reject his eldest son. For what seemed like the thousandth time in his lifetime, Minato cursed the stupid prophecy that the toads had handed down but knew the consequences of disregarding it. After all, the needs of the many outweighed the needs of the few. Didn't they?
Flashback End
Minato shook his head of the bitter memories. It was a miracle that his relationship with his son was stable at the moment even though he honestly didn't deserve it. It would always eat at him the way that he discarded his first born son because of a stupid prophecy. Until Naruto left Konoha, he had never felt so stupid. When he found out his son had run away, he immediately sent teams upon teams of trackers from Inuzaka to Hyuga ninja to find his son to no avail. Throughout Naruto's extended absence, Minato had found himself weeping with his wife on more than one occasion. But now his son was back. Unfortunately, his other son and daughter had left the village willingly but Minato knew deep down that they would find them.
Looking down at his desk, he realized that his pile of paperwork had doubled during his reminiscence of past events. Quietly groaning, the blonde got back to work.
(Just outside of Konoha)
Kuro looked at the sky with a small smile. "Ah what a beautiful day. Perfect weather for killing a kage" he said before turning in the direction of the Hidden Leaf Village. Looking at the village from the field of grass he stood on, he stared at the famous Hokage Monument. Each of Konoha's Hokage's faces were carved into the mountain which in a way immortalized them all. That simply wouldn't do. Reaching behind his back, Kuro pulled his sword from it's sheath. Upon pulling the blade out, the sword began to grow until it reached five feet long and four feet wide with a blueish grey blade. Holding it amazingly with one arm, he aimed the tip of the blade at the mountain.
A tremor began to shake the ground beneath him as a dark orb the crackled with what seemed to be black electricity formed at the tip of the blade. "Go" Kuro whispered. The orb obeyed the request and flew at an incredible speed towards the Hokage Monument. Kuro laid his sword on the ground as it began to shrink to it's original size of a standard katana and laid down on the ground as he waited for the inevitable approach of his target. Flaring his chakra, he waited for Minato Namikaze.
(Hokage's Office Three Minutes Prior)
Minato and Orochimaru were still doing paperwork when Kakashi entered the room with his report of his ANBU patrol. The masked jounin had decided to go back to ANBU seeing as how Sakura was now in the medical ninja program and Menma and Narumi were gone. As he gave his report, a feeling of power made itself known to the three ninja in the room causing Minato, Kakashi, and Orochimaru to look around for the source. What happened next was something that they wouldn't have believed had they not seen with their own eyes. Looking out the window, the three ninja saw something impact the Hokage Monument but the surprise came after the impact. Whatever hit the mountain at first seemed to just make an impact, but a short moment later a colossal black orb covered the entire mountain. The area near the Monument began to shake violently and people began to scream. Not long after, the black orb simply dissipated but it left nothing behind. The Hokage Monument, the entire mountain, was completely gone. It was as if the mountain never existed in the first place.
Minato, Orochimaru, and Kakashi jumped out of the office and landed on the street. The civilian population was either screaming in panic or crying at the loss of the Monument that exemplified the Hidden Leaf's four most powerful ninja. The ninja were not crying but were shocked beyond expressing any type of true emotion. Most ninja were standing but a few had fallen to their knees at what they had just witnessed. The Hokage Monument, something that had been a source of inspiration for those of the Leaf, something that had stood since the beginning of Konoha even against the mighty Kyuubi, was gone. As Minato, Orochimaru, and Kakashi tried to process what was going on, a flare of enormous power revealed itself to the group. The amount of power sent chills down each of their spines.
The blonde kage looked at Kakashi. "Kakashi. prepare the village for an invasion and protect the civilians" Minato said before turning in the direction of the power that they had sensed, sure that it's source was the cause of this great transgression against the Leaf. Kakashi looked at his sensei as if he were crazy. "Sensei, you can't go after that chakra. Please, we need you to give us orders" Kakashi implored as he feared that the power was too great even for his teacher. "Kakashi, you must take care of the village from the inside for now. Orochimaru and I will go and deal with whoever has dared to attack us" Minato said getting a nod from Orochimaru. Before Kakashi could protest further, Minato and Orochimaru took off prepared for battle.
(Outside of Konoha)
Minato and Orochimaru quickly made it outside the village and followed the source of power that they had felt earlier. It took a few minutes before the three came to a clearing that was empty except for a single man lying on his back. He had long brown hair, tanned skin, and wore simple ANBU style gear.
"I was wondering when you'd show up but I didn't think that you'd bring company" said the man as he raised his head to meet Minato's gaze. "Honestly, I'm a little disappointed that you didn't get here sooner considering your reputation as the fastest man in the elemental nations" the man said chuckling. Minato gripped his fists at the jab. "Who are you and are you the one responsible for the attack on the Hokage monument?" Minato asked causing the man to chuckle even louder before getting to his feet. "You really shouldn't ask stupid questions. I'm sure that a prodigy like you has already guessed the answer to those two questions" the man said with a smile causing Minato to quickly take two of his tri-pronged kunai into each of his hands. "You're part of the Shinigami's Blade" Minato said causing Orochimaru to quickly get on guard.
The man picked his sword up from the ground and stabbed it back into the ground while leaning on it with a smile. "Ding ding ding, we have a winner. I am Kuro, member of the Shinigami's Blade and soon to be the killer of the Yondaime Hokage" Kuro said. Minato narrowed his eyes at the man. "You've taken my children. Where are they?" Minato asked causing Kuro to laugh. "We took them? Please, I've never seen two kids as obsessed with killing a sibling as much as them. They are either at the base training or beating the shit out of your son Naruto" he said as he stopped leaning on his sword and stood up straight. Taking a look at Orochimaru, Kuro shook his head. "Now Minato, do you really think that bringing a Sannin that we've already used will make a difference?" Kuro said with a serious look in his eye.
Minato stood his ground as did Orochimaru. "We are ninja of the Leaf and have sworn to defend our home from anyone foolish to attack us" Minato said. Kuro laughed at the statement. "Oh yeah, the "Will of Fire" right? Your "Will of Fire" didn't help you so much against Iliel did it? Each of us are able to take down entire villages on our own. Hell, the only reason Konoha still stands is because I have certain orders that don't involve destroying the Leaf. No, I doubt anyone could defeat us now despite what Leader says. But you already know that you won't win this, don't you?" Kuro asked with a grin. "Now let's see what all the hype is about the fabled Yellow Flash of Konoha" Kuro said as he raised his sword from the ground. Minato got ready in his battle stance. "You made a mistake today, and that mistake will cost you your life. My name is Minato Namikaze, the Yellow Flash of Konoha and the Fourth Hokage. I will protect my village with my life and I swear now that I will take yours" Minato said with a look in his eyes that had not been seen since the day he earned his title of the Yellow Flash.
Once again Kuro chuckled. "Tell yourself whatever lies you need to hear. We both know that your trump card/son is too far away to stop what is about to happen. My former associate took you, the Raikage, and the Tsuchikage on at the same time so I doubt that you alone will prove much of a challenge" he said but was confused when Minato smirked. Throwing his two tri-pronged kunai, Minato shouted "Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu" as his two kunai multiplied into two hundred kunai. "Perhaps I should show you why I am known as the fastest man in the elemental nations" said Minato before flashing inside Kuro's guard and landing a hard punch that knocked him backwards a good two feet. He followed up by flashing behind the slightly disoriented Kuro landing a kick to his back that sent him flying forward. Orochimaru did a series of quick handsigns as Kuro flew towards him before saying, "Wind Style: Great Breakthrough" which hit Kuro flying backwards again towards Minato who had a large ball of blue chakra formed in his hand. Meeting the opponent halfway so as to not give Kuro a chance to recover from Orochimaru's attack, he shouted "RASENGAN" as he shoved the ball of chakra into Kuro's back sending the swordsman into the ground. While the enemy was down, Orochimaru did another set of handsigns before saying, "Striking Shadow Snakes" as a multitude of snakes flew from Orochimaru's mouth and covered Kuro both holding him down and sinking their fangs into the man.
Minato and Orochimaru looked at the pile of snakes that covered their enemy whose movements were becoming less and less. When the pile stopped moving, Orochimaru sighed but Minato narrowed his eyes at the sight while keeping two of his kunai at the ready. Orochimaru looked at his Hokage in confusion and just as he was about to ask what was wrong, a loud laughter started to sound. A second later, a black dome surrounded the pile of snakes he was under. The dome was narrowly avoided by the two Leaf ninja as Minato had grabbed Orochimaru and hiraishined out of the immediate area just in time.
The laughter continued as the dome started to vanish leaving Kuro standing with no sign of the many snakes that had held him down. Kuro held out his sword, examining the blade with a smile. "You know, the wonderful thing about my sword is that it can disintegrate anything I choose so long as it hits. I even get to launch attacks like the one on the Hokage Monument if I concentrate hard enough. You two are out of your league" Kuro said looking up with a bit of blood coming from the side of his mouth. Quickly dashing towards the two, Kuro surprised them as instead of going after Minato, he targeted Orochimaru first. Making a quick slash across the Snake Sannin's chest, the man sent Orochimaru flying through two trees before eventually landing unconscious. Minato meanwhile flashed away from his opponent and looked at Orochimaru from the corner of his eye. 'Orochimaru didn't disintegrate. Either Kuro was lying about his ability or he has to have a certain level of concentration to use his ability' thought Minato as he filed that away for later.
"I was told to keep collateral damage to a minimum. I've already filled my quota for collateral today so your Snake Sannin gets to live. Unfortunately for you, your fate hasn't changed" Kuro said before dashing towards the blonde with great speed and is sword at the ready. Just as he swung his blade at the fourth Hokage, he vanished in a flash of yellow light. Less than a second later, a sharp pain was felt in his shoulder. Quickly turning his head, he saw Minato with his signature kunai jabbed into his shoulder wearing a serious look on his face before he flashed away again but this time facing him from a distance. "I don't believe in fate but I do believe in the Will of Fire. That's why you will die here today. Within me lies the legacy of all of Konoha's greatest ninja, the hopes and dreams of the people of the Hidden Leaf Village, and the fire to protect those precious to me. Something that you will never understand" Minato said.
Kuro growled at Minato's short speech and berated himself within his head. 'I don't get it. Iliel almost killed him without suffering even a scratch, why is it so much of a chore now? Has he been training? Of course he has stupid! It doesn't matter, without the hiraishin, he's nothing" Kuro thought as a wicked grin formed on his face. Stabbing his sword into the ground, a large black circle formed around the battlefield which missed Minato barely. The circle eventually formed a large black dome similar to the one that destroyed the Hokage Monument. When the dome dissipated, the battlefield seemed to be the exact same except for one major issue. All of Minato's kunai that had been placed were gone. Picking his sword up, Kuro smiled at his opponent. "I never got why you were considered the fastest man alive when that speed was never your own. At least A of Kumo has some claim to the title since he uses his own chakra for the Lightning Armor but you just use seals to basically perform a shunshin" Kuro said.
Minato didn't react to the insult but instead smirked. "I wouldn't be a good kage if the hiraishin was my only way to become faster than my opponent" Minato said getting a confused look from Kuro. The blonde put his hands together and shouted "Gravity Seals Release", never taking his eyes off of Kuro. Rolling his neck, Minato vanished before Kuro's very eyes and almost instantly appeared in front of him with a heavy uppercut that sent Kuro up in the air. Minato jumped up to follow up the attack by landing punch after punch and kick after kick in an impressive display while in midair. Kuro who was done taking hits from the Hokage swung with his sword in the air only for Minato to vanish before the blade could land. When Minato landed on the ground he looked up at his opponent who was starting to fall. Without a hand sign or a word, three shadow clones popped up next to him and each formed a rasengan in each hand before jumping towards Kuro. Leading the charge, Minato shouted "Rasengan Barrage" as he and his clones each landed two rasengans on the swordsman's body.
When Minato landed, he was panting relatively hard. He gazed at the cloud of smoke that held his now dead opponent. As he was about to sit down, he felt a quick spike in chakra and only thanks to his years of experience as a shinobi was able to avoid a sword strike from his thought to be dead opponent. Kuro was bleeding heavily from his mouth and his shirt was in tatters revealing multiple bloody marks throughout his torso no doubt an effect of taking multiple rasengans. He no longer held the cockiness that he displayed earlier. Now, he was furious. Swinging quickly and viciously at Minato, Kuro growled at each miss but eventually saw an opening. Stabbing before Minato could avoid it, Kuro landed a strike to Minato's shoulder which went out the back of his shoulder causing the man to yell in pain. Minato was able to dislodge the blade quickly as the sword had started to glow blue which he guessed meant disintegration time. Jumping backwards, Minato tried to make distance from Kuro but was too slow as Kuro appeared beside him with a slash to Minato's side that sent him to the ground.
Taking the opportunity given to him, Kuro kneeled on top of Minato to keep him from escaping before punching the man violently in the face breaking his nose. He punched again and again causing the Hokage's face to quickly swell up and blood to run from his mouth. Meanwhile, Kuro continued to dig his knee into Minato's ribs causing immense pain for the blonde. Slowly, Kuro stood up from the man and raised his sword. "You were a strong opponent Minato, but not strong enough" Kuro said before stabbing into the Hokage but was beyond shocked when the victim poofed out of existence. Unfortunately for Kuro, Minato had switched places with a shadow clone that he created when he made the shadow clones for the Rasengan Barrage. Just as the sword started to come down, Minato switched with the clone. The most important thing though is where he switched to. Nearby and completely visible to Kuro were two clones and now Minato who had formed the complete form of Minato's original move. The Rasenshuriken.
Had Kuro not been so angry and focused on hurting Minato as much as humanly possible then he would have easily seen the clones and known what was going on. Now, Kuro was left looking at two clones of Minato Namikaze and the Hokage himself holding a massive chakra shuriken. Thinking quickly, Kuro raised his sword. "You think this is over just because you got to make your special little move? You still have to hit me with it and there's no chance in hell that I will let you!" Kuro said before launching a black orb from his sword at the group of Minato and his clones. Minato saw the attack coming and instead of showing fear, he smiled and vanished in a yellow flash with the Rasenshuriken in hand. Seeing the man vanish in such a way caused Kuro's jaw to drop and then quickly go over how Minato could pull off such a feat without his kunai. His eyes widened when he came to the conclusion and the mistake that he had made. Minato had stabbed him with the kunai and the hiraishin seal had transferred to his body. Before he could make another thought, Minato flashed behind the swordsman and shoved the incredible attack into Kuro ending his existence once and for all.
Minato was knocked backwards from the attack but stayed conscious as he walked over to Orochimaru who was starting to stir. Kneeling down to the Snake Sannin, Minato lightly shook the man awake. When Orochimaru awoke, his eyes immediately widened at the sight of his Hokage. Minato looked beat to hell which made Orochimaru feel useless as he had been unconscious for the battle. "Minato are you okay? We need to get you to the hospital!" Orochimaru started. Minato nodded his head. "I'm fine Orochimaru. The threat to Konoha has been dealt with" he said as he looked behind him at the pile of dust before falling to one knee but was quickly helped up by Orochimaru. Turning to the man, he said "I've got enough in me for one last hiraishin which will take us to my office. Afterwards, I'll go unconscious so I need you to make sure the village is okay, get a message out to Kushina and her group telling them of what happened, and take me to the hospital" Minato said to which Orochimaru obediently nodded and the two flashed out of the battered field.
(Konoha Council Chambers Eight Hours Later)
The council of Konoha was arguing as it always did. Politics, sometimes more of a pain than actual combat missions. The council members were speaking loudly while Orochimaru and Kakashi rubbed their heads in frustration. Orochimaru had done what Minato had asked and Kakashi had met up with him after making sure his sensei was okay. Now the two were busy trying to deal with a possible mutiny peacefully.
"The Hokage just saved s from whoever attacked the Monument. Whoever created that attack was extremely powerful. I'd like to see anyone else in this village try and do what he did today" Shikaku Nara said irritated that he had to be in a council meeting for such a stupid reason. Danzo Shimura shook his head at the conclusion of Shikaku. "We need someone to unite the people in this time of darkness and Minato is not the one to do it" Danzo argued getting murmurs of agreement from council members that he had paid off. The other two elders, Koharu and Homura, nodded in agreement with their fellow elder. "Danzo is right. Minato wasn't ready for the hat when he was given it and has not shown that he is ready now. We as the council of Konoha must be the ones to lead this village and with Danzo as our Hokage, I believe our village will enter a new age of prosperity" said Koharu.
"Is that so" said a voice from within the room. Looking around the room, the council was shocked to see their Hokage standing in the shadows with a cold look on his face. "I don't believe that I called for a council meeting, did I Orochimaru?" Minato asked as he stepped into the light revealing his bandaged form. Orochimaru shook his head at the question. "No Lord Hokage, you didn't" Orochimaru answered as the elders and the civilian council started to sweat while the shinobi council grinned. "So there is discontent with how I'm doing things?" Minato asked but received silence in return. Walking forwards a few more steps, he directed his gaze at the civilian council and the elders. "What's wrong? You were so passionate about deposing me a few moments earlier" Minato said. "Who in here wants my position? I ask because if you do, you must prove that you're strong enough to defend this village. So I ask are any of you willing to fight me for the title of Hokage?" Minato asked and once again got silence.
"Let me remind each of you of your position. You are advisers, people who inform me of the day to day issues within the village, nothing more. You are not the strength of Konoha, you do not rule Konoha. I am the Hokage and I will not accept those who put themselves before the interests of the village" Minato said before raising his right hand up and snapping. Immediately, an ANBU ninja appeared from thin air. "I want each of the civilian council members along with the elders taken to T and I" he ordered causing terror to show on the faces of the civilian council members.
Looking at the shinobi council, he simply said "You're free to go". The shinobi council didn't fear Minato because they knew that he always had Konoha's best interest at heart and would always do what was best for his home. Alienating the civilian council was a small example of that. As the left, the shinobi council members nodded and smiled at their Hokage with respect. Minato nodded and smiled back before taking his seat. "Orochimaru, has the message been sent?" Minato asked to which the Snake Sannin nodded. Looking at Kakashi, Minato asked "How is the village?" with concern on his face. Kakashi nodded at the question. "They're still recovering from shock but we're strong. We'll be okay" Kakashi said to which Minato nodded and looked out his window. "I know we will" the Fourth Hokage said as he faced the village he loved so much, sure that they would pull through despite what had happened today. Feeling tired, Minato said goodbye to Kakashi and Orochimaru before going home. He needed a stiff drink and a good night's rest after today.
Author's Note: Hey everyone, sorry it's taken so long to update. I had to study for exams but now that they're over I should be more consistent with the updates. Happy early Christmas as well to everyone and I hope you all have a good one. I really appreciate all of the reviews and the follows and the view and the favorites. It means a lot to know that so many people are enjoying the story and I am really thankful to all of you. Well, see you next chapter and Merry (Early) Christmas! Also, the council will come back later on in the story in an antagonistic role.