PinkiePieParty122894: It seems that I can always rely on you for a feel good review. I appreciate the continued support and hope that you like this chapter.
Animaman: I think that Naruto will have a couple of talks with his parents later on, and Tsunade and Kakashi will realize what they have missed out on. Very soon, a certain incident (I'm sure you know what it will be) will cause Minato and Kushina to look back at how they raised Menma and Narumi and where they went wrong. This will also kind of add on to the guilt they feel for neglecting Naruto. Appreciate the continued reviews and comments.
1995hzq: Thanks for your patience. I'm a huge fan of Minato and Kushina so I rarely like stories where they stay dark. I may have made mistakes in writing their relationship with Naruto and how fast he forgave them, but it is what it is. Glad that you liked the training.
pyoson123: If I remember correctly, Naruto was in the village for over a month before he forgave them but I expand on it this chapter. The reason he couldn't kill all of the thugs in Wave is because he was weakened a lot by his earlier battle with Iliel. The reason he doesn't use jutsu early on is simply because he doesn't know many jutsu. His parents nor Sera taught him ninjutsu or genjutsu before Wave so that's a big reason why he didn't kill the thugs with chakra. Sorry that you think it's dumb.
(Gates of Konoha)
Naruto stood in front of his village with a smile on his face. After months of training, he had finally returned home. Soon he would be able to reconnect with Yakumo, Sasuke, Itachi, Konan, and his parents. Naruto frowned at the thought of his mother and father. His training trip had opened his eyes and he had come to a very important revelation.
Shaking his head, Naruto got rid of the negative thoughts in his head and walked forward. He smiled as he walked past the two guards Kotetsu and Izumo who were too busy arguing over something menial to notice the blonde. As he walked the streets of Konoha, Naruto closed his eyes to focus on the chakra signature of his girlfriend. He sensed her location at Team 11's training ground and noticed that Sasuke, Konan, Itachi, and a few other familiar chakra signatures were with the genjutsu prodigy.
With the location in mind, Naruto took off quickly, heading for Team 11's training ground.
(Team 11 Training Ground)
Yakumo sat with Sakura and Hinata as they talked about current events and gossiped among each other.
"So when is Naruto coming back Yakumo?" asked Sakura causing the brown haired girl to frown slightly.
"I don't know. He hasn't sent me any letters in over a month and I'm starting to get worried" the brunette said looking down.
Hinata and Sakura looked at each other with frowns of their own. "Listen Yakumo, I'm sure he'll be back in no time. And when he comes back, you can show him how much stronger you've gotten. I'm sure he'll be impressed" Sakura said causing Yakumo to smile again and nod her head.
"You know, I would like to know how strong you are babe" said a voice that caused Yakumo to go stiff as a board and her eyes to widen greatly. Turning around slowly, she was met with the sight of her boyfriend and started to drool slightly. Naruto had grown slightly taller, his face looked more mature,and his muscles were very defined. He wore a black sleeveless shirt that showed off his muscles and his summoning tattoo and black ANBU pants.
Naruto grinned as he noticed his girlfriend beginning to stare. "Well, I take it you like what you see" said Naruto with a smirk. His comment caused Yakumo, Sakura, and Hinata to blush before Yakumo hit her boyfriend over the head. She immediately followed up the attack with a tight hug. Naruto held onto his girlfriend and hugged her back while she tightened her grip. Looking over Yakumo at the other two girls, he greeted the two with a smile. "Hey Sakura, Hinata" the blonde said causing both to smile and wave.
The blonde chunin was about to further his greeting when out of nowhere, a shuriken came flying quickly in his direction. Naruto chuckled and caught the shuriken with two fingers just before it reached his face.
Without turning around, Naruto smirked and said, "Nice to see you again Sasuke." With the announcement of his presence, the Sasuke followed by his brother, Konan, and the rest of the of their generation including the senseis walked out of a nearby treeline and approached the blonde. As everyone came together on the training ground, Naruto was able to gently pry Yakumo off him and examine his other teammate. The Uchiha had grown slightly taller but he had grown immensely taller, Naruto could sense it.
Walking to his teammate, Naruto held out his hand to Sasuke who smiled and shook the hand. "I see that you've gotten stronger Sasuke" Naruto said causing the Uchiha to smirk in confidence of his abilities.
"Well Naruto, I couldn't let you be the only one who got better. I bet that I could beat you now" Sasuke said causing Naruto to chuckle.
Naruto shook his head at Sasuke's declaration. "Sasuke, Sasuke, Sasuke, have you been taking gambling tips from Tsunade? I would like to see how strong you have gotten though. How about a spar, right here right now" the blonde said.
Sasuke grinned widely at the idea. "I'm all for it, but you'll probably need help. Yakumo, you in?" Sasuke asked causing a tick mark to form on Yakumo's head at the insinuation that her boyfriend couldn't handle Sasuke in a spar.
Yakumo shook her head. "That's okay duck butt, I'm sure that Naruto can handle you alone" she said causing Sasuke to grow a tick mark of his own and everyone but Itachi to laugh. Itachi still didn't get the joke and his blue haired girlfriend just patted him on the back while she chuckled.
"I want in, I wanna face the two of you. Me and Akamaru can take you" Kiba said stepping forward followed by the rest of his generation. He frowned however when he was stopped by the hand of his sensei while the others were stopped by their senseis.
Kurenai looked at the group of genin near her and shook her head. "Listen Kiba, your desire to get stronger is well noted but you need to learn to pick your battles" the female jounin said getting nods from Asuma and Guy. "It's true my youthful team. Sometimes, the most youthful thing you can do is admit when a battle is outside of your abilities" Guy commented.
Asuma took a drag of his cigarette before responding to his own team. "What they said. Besides, I want to see a battle between the "Kage Killers". Plus, the three of you could learn from it" Asuma said before blowing out smoke from his mouth.
Naruto and Sasuke smiled that they wouldn't have to share their battle with anyone else before entering their battle stances.
"I hope you've gotten stronger Naruto because I sure as hell have" Sasuke said before a large mass of chakra exploded from the Uchiha. The amount of chakra exuded caused everyone but Naruto's jaw to drop. From the reaction of those present, Sasuke had kept his abilities a secret and had saved them for this battle.
Naruto smirked before releasing his own chakra to the point that it matched Sasuke's. In his blue eyes were the occasional sparks of electricity.
When the two were finished unleashing their chakra, Naruto and Sasuke dashed towards each other, nothing but blurs to the untrained eye. Naruto landed the first hit with a punch to Sasuke's face, but the Uchiha quickly recovered just in time to dodge a follow up punch from his blonde teammate and land a kick to the boy's chest pushing him back. Sasuke jumped backwards and did a quick series of handsigns before shouting "Dragon Flame Jutsu", spewing a stream of fire towards the blonde. Naruto did a series of handsigns himself and shouted, "Water Wall Jutsu" before spewing a great stream of water from his mouth that formed a wall just in time to block Sasuke's attack.
Sasuke was panting slightly as he waited for the steam that was created from the mixture of his and Naruto's attack to clear. As he was about to take a step forward, a black tar substance took hold of his legs stopping him from moving. Sasuke tried struggling against the new bonds but it was futile. His attention quickly shifted though when he noticed a figure walking towards him through the steam. As the figure neared closer and into his vision, Sasuke smirked at what he saw. Naruto stood in front of him with his skin red and slightly burned, scorch marks on his pants, and half of his shirt burned off.
"Nice move but it just wasn't enough" Naruto said with a grin as he looked into his teammate's eyes. Sasuke chuckled at Naruto's statement causing the blonde to frown. "And you broke the number one rule of fighting an Uchiha" Sasuke said before his eyes morphed into that of the Mangekyo sharingan. "Tsukuyomi" whispered the Uchiha as the world around the two chunin morphed into a new reality.
(Tsukuyomi World)
The sky turned blood red and before the blonde could react, Naruto was lying on the black ground unable to move. Naruto struggled as best he could to get up off the ground but some sort of force refused to let him stand.
The sound of footsteps nearby caused Naruto'e eyes to look up. Walking towards him was Sasuke who had a smug grin on his face. The Uchiha stopped in front of the blonde and chuckled. "I hope you like my new jutsu. It's considered one of the strongest Uchiha jutsu there is. As a matter of fact, not a single Uchiha has ever been able to use the Tsukuyomi to its fullest potential, something I plan to change one day" Sasuke said before slamming his foot down on Naruto's leg, shattering the boy's knee. Naruto yelled out in pain at his friend's action before growling. Sasuke smiled at Naruto's reaction. "You see Naruto, I knew that you would come back far stronger so I pushed myself harder than ever before along with help from an unlikely source. With the power I received, I am finally able to stand as your equal" he said before a katana appeared in his hand which he stabbed into Naruto's chest.
Naruto gasped in pain as he felt the cut. He tasted the blood that was already making its way to his mouth. The pain was almost too much to bear since unknown to Naruto, the pain of his injuries were intensified exponentially by Sasuke. Just as Naruto was about to make a comment towards Sasuke, he looked up to see ten katana flying from the blood red sky, each of which slammed into his body. Two landed in his shoulders, two in his legs, two in his hands, two in his feet, and two in his chest. Naruto screamed in pain once again as he begged for the mercy of passing out from the pain. Unfortunately, Sasuke was in control of Naruto's state of consciousness. Blood was flowing from Naruto's mouth and his breath became labored. Closing his eyes, Naruto could think of only one way to escape Sasuke's hellish genjutsu. The blonde began to focus quickly.
Sasuke looked at his friend who was no longer moving. Naruto was still breathing, but he was not struggling to move any more. Kneeling down to observe his teammate, a sharp pain suddenly formed in his eyes. Grabbing at them, he yelled out and lost focus for a moment. That moment was all it took for Naruto. The blonde's eyes flew open as he shouted "Lunar Expulsion". A powerful surge of dark chakra pulsed out of his body sending the katana out of his body and disrupting Sasuke's genjutsu with every pulse of dark chakra. In a matter of twenty seconds, pieces of the red sky above started to break off along with the rest of the jutsu while Sasuke continued to hold his eyes in pain. It didn't take long for the genjutsu to fall completely.
(Real World)
Naruto blinked multiple times as he panted, his body begging for as much air as possible. His body hurt immensely and he was exhausted. Looking around, Naruto noticed that the mist from the clash of his and Sasuke's water and fire jutsu was still present meaning that hardly any time had passed. His gaze eventually found its way to his teammate who stood from his kneeling position shakily. The Uchiha's eyes were back to normal but small lines of blood ran from his eyes. Concerned for his friend, Naruto quickly asked, "Are you okay Sasuke?" to which Sasuke nodded.
Sasuke wiped his eyes as he stood straight. "You really did get a lot stronger. Naruto, I need you to promise me to keep my eyes a secret. I don't want anyone knowing about them, not even Itachi knows" Sasuke said to which Naruto narrowed his eyes at first before nodding. "Now Naruto, what's say you to one last jutsu. Winner take all" Sasuke said with a smirk already knowing his best friend's answer. His smirk turned into a full fledged smile when Naruto smirked with his signature confident look. Sasuke jumped backwards, creating a fair amount of distance between the two in order to have room for his jutsu. Holding his hand forward, Sasuke said "Emperor's Ember" as a small blue flame formed. The flame quickly grew larger and more intense, so much so that the ground beneath him was starting to heat up. When the flame finished forming into a fireball that was half the size of Sasuke himself, he sent the blue flame flying towards Naruto.
As soon as Sasuke had started to form his jutsu, Naruto started to form the jutsu he had created during his time with the serpents. The Tempest Rasenshuriken. Forming the rasenshuriken quickly, he added the electricity and put the finishing touches until the attack was able to sustain itself. Sparks of lightning flew from the attack as it remained in Naruto's hand. Naruto held the attack until he saw Sasuke send what seemed to be a very powerful and destructive jutsu his way. Digging his foot in the ground, Naruto threw his attack with all his might shouting "TEMPEST RASENSHURIKEN", sending the rasenshuriken on a collision course with his adversary's attack.
(Spectators of the battle)
It took a minute for the mist to clear that was the result of Naruto and Sasuke's jutsu colliding. When it did, each of the onlookers jaws dropped. Sasuke and Naruto were facing each other head on, each one with a jutsu of immense power in their hands. They watched as both attacks flew towards one another and quickly met. The collision between the two was earth shattering to say the least. The ground started to tremble and dust from the ground started to fly as Naruto's electric attack and Sasuke's fire attack fought for leverage. Each of the spectators could feel the chakra being put off by the attacks. The amount was unreal, especially considering that they were the attacks of chunin.
After a minute of standstill pushing, both jutsu seemed to implode on one another sending everyone in the area backwards. Each of the audience were on the ground for a short moment before slowly getting up to see the result of the battle. What they saw was a shock to everyone there. Both boys had burn marks and were panting heavily. The ground beneath them was charred. What once was a green meadow was now nothing but ashy ground. Naruto and Sasuke stood weakly for a long moment before the Uchiha fell to the ground face first while Naruto fell to one knee. After getting over the shock of what they had just seen, Yakumo and Itachi rushed to Naruto and Sasuke, picking them up and rushing them to the hospital.
(Konoha Hospital Three Hours Later)
Naruto was in his hospital bed trying to let his muscles relax. He had just woke up a few minutes earlier and received a major tongue lashing from Tsunade herself for disregarding her orders not to exhaust his chakra. He was able to find out from Tsunade that he would be able to leave in two days, the same diagnosis that had been given to Sasuke. Sighing, Naruto looked up at the ceiling feeling bored. The feeling didn't last long however as his door was slammed open causing him to nearly jump out of his bed. A red blur tackled him in his bed as his father entered immediately after.
Kushina was holding onto her son tightly. He had been injured much worse in the past, but it still hurt her every time she saw her child in a hospital bed. Sniffling and barely keeping the tears at bay, she let go of her son only to glare at him. "Naruto Uzumaki, why didn't you let me know that you were back? I have been so worried and I haven't seen my baby in three months. Do you know how much I've missed you? You should have come to see me but noooo, you just had to start a fight" Kushina said pouting which gained a chuckle from Minato who was standing behind his wife.
Deep down, Minato was in shock at his son and Sasuke's progress. When Naruto and Sasuke's final attacks had met, the entire village felt the intensity and power of the two chunin. He had never seen two ninja as young as them wield such power. Shaking his head, Minato cleared those thoughts and smiled as his wife doted on their son. His smile quickly dropped however when he noticed that Naruto was frowning.
Naruto ended his mother's lecture when he removed her from him causing Kushina to stop talking. "Mom, Dad, I have something say" he said causing a bad feeling to begin to stir in both parents' stomachs. "Since I returned to the village, I have fooled myself. During my training in the serpent realm, I was able to witness the consequences of doing so. I convinced myself that I had forgiven you two for all those years of neglect, but the truth is that I just buried and ignored those feelings in order to get stronger. I thought that I had risen above the negative feelings, but it was just the opposite. I'm sorry that I've led you both on for this long but for now, we cannot have the type of familial relationship that we have had since I returned. I still love you both, but I need time to really forgive you" Naruto said looking down, unwilling to meet his parents eyes.
Minato stared at his son in shock while his wife sobbed at Naruto's confession. Deep down, he knew that this was something Naruto needed to do in order to not only grow as a ninja but as a person as well. It was the same as when he was a child. He had been so angry at his parents for leaving him alone in the world, but he eventually rose above his anger and began his journey to becoming one of the strongest ninja in Konoha history. This knowledge did nothing to ease the deep pain that he felt in his heart however. He looked at his wife who already looked a mess. She looked broken and her eyes conveyed that heartbreak. Minato knew that Kushina was taking it the hardest because of who she was. She was an Uzumaki, so knowing that she had pushed her son away to this extent was a pain like no other. The blonde Hokage looked down as a few tears fell from his face. He truly had failed as a father. The child he neglected for so long was unable to forgive them and the children that he had raised to the best of his abilities were now enemies of Konoha.
The blonde chunin looked sadly at his parents but he knew that this was something that he had to do. His experience with his darker self had made him realize that. His heart still broke a little at the sight of his parents in such emotional distress because of him. "Listen, I just need some time to figure out some things. You two are still my parents and I still love you, I just have a lot to figure out. It's hard to disregard all the years of neglect, all the years of witnessing the favoritism shown towards Menma and Narumi. No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't disregard it any longer. I understand if you're angry at me" he said but was interrupted by his mother once again tackling him.
"Don't you say that Naruto. If anyone should be angry, it's you. I'm so so sorry that I put you through so much pain. I failed you as a mother but I will win your trust back, I swear on my name as an Uzumaki" she said as she tried to stop the tears from rolling down her face but they just wouldn't stop. Naruto looked away for a moment as tears had started to form in his eyes but he quickly wiped them away.
Minato approached his son. "I also failed you Naruto. I wish that things were truly okay with us, but I understand and I'm sorry that I caused you to feel like this. I swear that we will regain your trust" he said before joining Kushina in hugging their son. All three of the Uzumaki-Namikazes cried quietly as they hugged like a family. Naruto knew that the path ahead would require more than just heartfelt apologies, but his parents were off to a good start as he could feel the amount of love they had for him.
(Later that night)
Kushina and Minato had reluctantly left Naruto's room in order to let him rest. Shortly after, he received visits from Yakumo who went into a long lecture with a special appearance from her demon Ido before she attacked him with a series of long kisses that left both red faced for a while. He also received visits from Itachi, Konan, and all of those who were there to bear witness to the spar between the "Kage Killers". Most of the visitors asked for lessons or sparring opportunities which Naruto eventually gave into. Eventually, everyone had to leave on account of Tsunade's orders for him to get some rest.
Naruto turned in his bed as he slept. A vivid dream played in his mind disrupting it from getting a proper rest.
(Naruto's Dream)
Naruto looked around at his surroundings. He stood in a quaint house as he looked at two people standing in what seemed to be the kitchen. One was a grown woman with long black hair and pale skin, the other was a little girl who had long black hair as well but her skin was a tint darker than what he guessed to be her mother's. Walking forward, he quickly made the assumption that he was unable to be seen by the two. Naruto walked into the kitchen and listened to the conversation that the two were having.
"I said no Aiko" the adult woman said sternly, not looking up from whatever she was cooking.
The little girl pouted at the woman's answer. "But Mom, I just wanna play outside for a little bit. Pleaseee" the girl now known as Aiko whined. She tugged on her mother's apron until her mother turned away from her cooking to face her daughter.
"Aiko, I have to cook dinner and I've said a hundred times that I have to be with you when you go out to play" the mother said before kneeling down to Aiko's level. "Listen Aiko, I know that you think that I'm being mean, but I just want you to be safe. I love you too much to risk anything happening to you" the mother said as she caressed her daughter's cheek.
Aiko looked down at the ground before looking back up and into her mother's eyes. "But Mom, Old man Sao said that nothing bad ever happens here. If nothing bad happens here, then why can't I play? Just for a little bit, I promise that I'll be good Mom" pleaded the little girl with the cutest form of puppy eyes.
Aiko's mother smiled at her daughter. Her little girl was too cute for her own good. It had taken years for her to grow immune to her daughter's puppy dog eyes. Taking Aiko in her arms, she held the girl tightly. "I know the village's history but no matter how safe somewhere is, I'll never stop worrying about my little girl. That's what a mother is supposed to do after all" she said as Aiko's face started to turn red from both embarrassment and at being called little.
"I'm not little, I'm just still growing" said Aiko pouting before she turned and walked upstairs to her room causing her mother to sigh and go back to cooking.
Naruto watched the conversation play out and looked on as the girl known as Aiko walked right past him without even noticing him. Something within him told him to follow the girl so he did. When he entered the room, he saw Aiko sitting on the ledge of her window swinging her legs. The girl sighed but smiled as the sun shined on her. The last thing Naruto saw of Aiko was her practically glowing in the light of the sun.
(Real World)
Naruto sat up breathing a little harder than normal. He was confused at what he had just seen but shook it off as just an odd dream. Slowly getting out of bed, Naruto exited the window of the hospital before using his chakra to walk up the side until he reached the roof. Taking a seat on the edge, he stared at the moon. His source of power, an object of beauty in his eyes. He felt the moon begin to heal him as he closed his eyes.
"It's a beautiful night isn't it?" said an unknown voice causing Naruto to open his eyes quickly and jump up. In his battle stance, Naruto examined the one who had sneaked up on him. A black haired man with a royal hairstyle and a thin golden headband sat on the edge of the roof. The man smiled at Naruto and patted the area beside him before looking up at the moon. Naruto narrowed his eyes but took a seat at a distance beside the man.
"Who are you?" Naruto asked with a suspicious tone causing the man to look at him.
The man smiled at the question. "My name is Tenji and I am the man responsible for the weapon that you wield" he said causing the blonde's eyes to widen. "Long ago, I had a dream. A dream for peace among nations, peace among everyone. I was willing to do whatever it took to achieve that peace. Then one day, I came across an angel. A woman who I would quickly fall in love with. She too shared my desire for peace. Every night, we would look at the moon and the stars while we discussed how we would achieve our goal and what we would do once we had achieved it. The two of us planned on having a family and showering our children with love while we spent every day with one another for the rest of our lives, but I ruined that future" Tenji said looking down sadly.
"One night, a rival kingdom sent soldiers after her and she defended herself. She killed the soldiers and the rival kingdom threatened war as retaliation for her actions. I was so angry, I felt betrayed. She knew my desire for peace and I had thought that she felt the same but I was young and stupid. I let my temper get the best of me and I chased her in order to bring her to justice. Not once did I consider that the rival kingdom simply wanted war in the first place. I threw away the love I held for my dear Kaguya because of my own selfish ambitions" the man said as he looked back up at the moon.
With a sigh, Tenji continued his story. "The chase eventually forced her to what was known as the God Tree. She took one of the fruit from the tree and from it, chakra was born. My men and I caught up to her shortly after and it was then that I realized what I had done. As she massacred my men without mercy, I saw that I had created a monster. In desperation, I took one of the fruit but was only able to eat half of it before she set her sights on me. The two of us fought and at one point, I gained the upper hand. I had the opportunity to kill her, but I couldn't do it. I couldn't bring myself to harm my Kaguya any more than I already had so I accepted what was just and let her kill me. When I fell, my sword landed beside the half eaten fruit. The fruit transferred its power into the sword, a sword that has changed shape and wielder over time. The sword that you wield now" he said making Naruto's eyes widen even further.
"Within your sword lies the purest form of chakra. Pure chakra is far stronger than regular chakra and is nearly extinct. I have watched recent events unfold and I tell you now that only the man known as Tsuranabi and you utilize the power of pure chakra" Tenji said before looking Naruto straight in the eyes. "You have a great burden on your shoulders Naruto Uzumaki, but I give you this crucial piece of advice. A burden is always easier to bear when you have someone to share it with you" Tenji said before he began to vanish.
Naruto had a confused look on his face as he thought about what Tenji had just said when he noticed that the man was fading away. "Wait, what does that mean?" he asked but received no answer as Tenji faded out of existence without a word. Looking back at the moon, Naruto shook his head. "Damn spirits and their vague messages" the blonde said before leaving the roof and returning quietly to his hospital room.
(Hokage's Office Three Days Later)
The Fourth Hokage sat in his chair with his hands folded examining the ninja before him. In front of him stood, Naruto, Sasuke, Yakumo, Sakura, Hinata, Itachi, Konan, and Kakashi. Sitting up, Minato addressed his subordinates. "Firstly, I wold like to know if each of you are healthy enough to perform missions" he said before getting a nod from each of the ninja. "Good. The Leaf has received two high profile mission requests that I will assign you now. Yakumo Kurama, Sakura Haruno, Hinata Hyuga, and Konan, you four will be tasked with an escort mission" he said causing Yakumo's eyes to narrow since her last escort mission wasn't an especially fond memory.
"The four of you will be charged with the duty of protecting and escorting the actress known as Yukie Fugikaze to a shoot for her latest movie" he said before letting a small smile show at the reaction of the three girls. Each one had stars in their eyes and were practically squealing. "Konan has all of the information on the mission details so if you have any questions, she will be able to answer them. You four are dismissed" Minato said getting nods from each kunoitchi left, Yakumo leaving after giving Naruto a kiss on the cheek which left the boy a little red.
Once the four kunoitchi had left, Minato's face turned deadly serious. "I'm afraid that your mission will not be as laid back. A critical situation has arisen in the Land of Demons. A fool by the name of Yomi has allowed himself to be possessed by the demon known as Moryo which has raised what is known as the Stone Army as a result of Moryo's return to this plain. The Stone Army is an army of immortal stone warriors that follow the command of Moryo himself. We believe that Yomi will go to the shrine where Moryo's physical body is kept in order to fully revive the demon. If that happens, there is a good chance that the elemental nations will fall. Our hope rests in the hands of a young priestess by the name of Shion who resides in the Land of Demons. She alone has the power necessary to seal Moryo which is why the four of you must quickly go to the Land of Demons and escort her to the shrine that holds Moryo. There, she will seal the demon and end the threat he presents. This mission is of the utmost importance and you must not fail" he said getting a nod from the four. "You are dismissed" Minato said before they quickly left his office.
Once he was alone, Minato stood up and turned to face the village. The threat to the elemental nations was real, but he believed in the ninja he had chosen. He knew that no matter what, those four would never stop fighting, and that was the definition of the Will of Fire. And as long as the Will of Fire still burned, Konoha would never fall.
(Outside Shinigami's Blade Base)
Jiraiya stood in front of a large dark building. Ma and Pa had left him a short moment ago after telling him that Menma and Narumi's track led here. Before they left, the two old toads wished him luck. Jiraiya looked at the building for a long while. Never before in his life had the former Toad Sage felt so alone. He knew that no one really cared about his fate and he also knew that he could very well die from the inevitable battle that was going to occur. Shaking his head, the Sannin forced his feelings of self pity and sadness away and replaced them with determination to right his wrongs and rescue his godchildren. Taking a deep breath, Jiraiya walked forward.
Author's Note: Hey everyone, once again sorry for the late update. I want you all to know that I am still fully committed to this story. Now about the Yukie story line, I know that a few of you are probably wondering how I plan to do it without Naruto being a part of it. All I can say is don't fret, I have a plan on how I'm doing it. Anyways, I hope that you liked the chapter and thanks for all of the support.