I do not own Naruto.

Like I said on Road to Fate which I had updated. I had a setback in my illness. Its a long story not going to get into it. But I am still alive and still kicking so onwards.

Returning….

Still looking younger than what he should be, Tsunade could not figure out how Minato was still alive. The man should be not only dead, but if he was still alive, he would be in his early forties. Not looking like the 26 year old he was when he died, Nevertheless, he was alive, and sitting in his hospital room at the moment, extremely annoyed.

Having shared the latest letter from Jiriaya, they figured Naruto and the Toad Sannin, were on the verge of coming back any day now. Minato wanted to not only be out of the hospital, but back in his own house, getting things ready, set up, and above all looking good for his son. Constantly, she had to remind him that the youth doesn't know of him as a father, but just as the hero of Konoha. He heard and he listened, but it seems that even now he was so hopeful, to be there in the office, when he came back. (not as Hokage though, he is still pretty mad about that))

That of course was nixed as even though he was walking a little more with aid from a cane, his body was still not up to full strength. But she did give him a little leeway though, he was well enough to return to his own house. The little one story house had been closed up and practically memorialized after the Kyuubi incident. So she knew the outside was cleaned and well maintained…

As to the inside well, that was another story.

So one of the first things she did was assign a genin team to help the man clean up and get things put back to normal for him. And luckily enough she had one particular team free, by the name of Konohamaru, Moegi, and Udon. The trio under Ebisu were doing well, and because of the connection to Naruto, the three genin could entertain with their sensei making sure Minato did not overstress himself.

Still barely keeping a lid on the identity of who his son was, Tsunade knew that it was all ready getting around the village shinobi at least Most understanding she wasn't kidding when she said she would execute if they blabbed. (One tried and he died….it wasn't pretty. Pancake was not even the word she would use)

But eventually the house was cleaned and repainted as it kept the three out of her hair. And they kept Minato occupied with their company. Having heard about how he had yelled at Tsume and Kakashi for their lack of action in his son's upbringing, she knew to bow out when her long time friend returned. As much as she cares for her former teammate, this is one time where he is on his own.

Dwelling on other things that she had to deal with, she was startled as a frog emerged on her desk. The colors and markings familiar, the little orange toad waved its flipper in hello.

"Hey Baa-chan!" Taking a swipe at the frog, for the name out of habit, the frog chuckled as he hopped back to avoid. "Had to do that, Boss dared me to."

"Yeah Yeah." A half smile on her face, Tsunade looked at Gamakichi with humor. "Well what is it."

"They should be here sometime within the next hour."

A smile on her features, she hands the frog a candy bar, that he gleefully munches on before disappearing. Knowing full well Sakura was on her way to get the reports from Kotetsu and Izumo, all she had to do was wait.

Other side of the village…..

Doing a lazy kind of stroll, as it was a nice day, Sakura found herself whirling around as three kids ran by her at break neck speed. One of them wearing an exceptionally long scarf, she knew who it was immediately. Snagging it in her hand, she hears a yelp two seconds later as said youngster crashes to the ground.

"What the!"

Finding herself staring down at Konohamaru, she was getting ready to hit him, when he started talking excitedly. "Hey Sakura-chan! It's you! Got to tell everyone! The boss is back! The BOSS is back!"

Something of a smile emerging, the pinkette doesn't think of the last few weeks and the news that could be extremely good or bad for her friend. All she thinks about is her friend. The one who just like her worked her ass off to become stronger. So that they could bring the one they miss most home.

Walking a little faster now, she is all but running as she makes it to the gate. Curiosity as both Kotetsu and Izumo talk about things never being dull again. The pinkette finds a familiar shadow walking leisurely down the road. The toad sage all smiles, the older man nodded his head in greetings and about to say something when the orange blur whirls past them both.

Taking a moment to adjust, all look up as right on top of a flag pole, the blonde youth hollered loud and proud. "Naruto Uzumaki is back!"

Laughter on her features , she starts to wave up at her friend, when it finally hits her. The events of the last few months, she bites her lip in worry. Knowing her friend, and the hopefulness of the other, this has the potential to really blow up in their faces. Being one of the few, who Naruto confided in after the incident with Sasuke. The abuse, the attempts on his life, and in the end, the sheer fact that he didn't break was impressive.

And that despite the results of someone who hid a lot. Only one saw past it all as despite the differences in his life, he knew how he felt. It is why the incident with their missing teammate nearly broke Naruto. The missing Uchiha was his best friend…

Shaking her head at the thought, she finds Jiriaya looking at her with a puzzled expression. A smile reappearing on her lips, she hands the toad sage some paperwork, asking him to take it to Tsunade as he has to report their return. The rosy haired girl takes after her friend, who was already running into town. Knowing full well where he would be heading, she runs after him and soon both have vanished.

888888888888

The white haired man just looking baffled for all of two seconds, he chuckles as he does not mind in the slightest to finish the errand. Walking as he does, the older man takes in the sight and sounds of what his home was like. Never really there, because he had to monitor his spy network, the older man found himself musing on what could have been.

Minato would have been so proud of Naruto and how far the teen has come. His son was a lot like him in many ways. He had Kushina's brashness that was for sure, but when it came to instinct about people? Fox or not, Naruto's was spot on. If the blonde boy took a liking to you? You were good. Despite being a potential enemy, Naruto would know whether or not you were worth saving.

Sighing as he moves on in memory, the white haired sage moves onward toward the tower. Unaware that even now as word reaches of his and his student's return. That shit was about to hit the fan…..

1 hour later

Tapping her fingers as she waits for him, Tsunade looked to her companion. Not trusting him one bit to overexert himself in his rage as word got to him of his former mentor's return. She kept a firm leash on him, rhetorically speaking that is as she knew Jiraiya well enough that he would be taking his time.

Having had to threaten Minato with locking him down in the hospital, the former Hokage glared at her in mutiny and said nothing. Chuckling a little bit, she couldn't help but say, "I thought it was Kushina he got it from, but I see it is you." She laughed, as she spoke. "He gives me that same look when he is in there. I swear even now if no one believed he was your son, they would now. Just look at you."

Thrown off by her comment, the younger man looks at her in confusion for a split second before smiling. A little plus in her favor, the woman nods her head as one of the shinobi lets her know of her friend's approach. Giving him a look that promises an intense pain if he says even one word, she gestures for him to go to where he is temporarily out of sight.

Doing so with a little more stability, she figures another few months of therapy and he should be okay as long as he takes it easy. Now as he makes it and sits down. The blonde woman sees Shizune peek her head in to signify her friend was there, Nodding in acceptance, 5th finds herself staring at her teammate. A mixture of joy, determination, and also anger on her face as he once again stares at her chest.

The blonde woman is hard pressed not to send him flying, just on principle. Still gesturing for him to sit down it does not take long as she expects for him to sense another. Turning around all the white haired man sees is a fist coming at him before he could register anything or anyone. A raging anger felt at that moment, Jiraya shook his head to get it together only to find an extremely pissed off Minato looking at him.

Blinking several times, he dodges as another fist is aimed at his face. Luckily Tsunafe stopping it, as the other man growls in rage, Jiraiya is just in shock as he sees his former student in front of him. Still young as if he never aged one bit, Minato stood in front of him. Looking not quite himself, he would think it was an imposter, yet….

Well it was the eyes. Those same blue eyes that Naruto has were his. This man was indeed his former student. Tsunade holding him back, she is whispering some calming words and soon he shortly settles down. But not without glaring at him in rage.

Something that in all his memory, Jiriaya has never seen on him. It was unnerving to say the least.

"What...How…"

"That;s one thing I would like to discuss with both of you later as no one has any idea. But right now I think this is not the time." Tsunade stated calmly. Her tone was nice and even, both of the men knew it was her warning them. They were going to talk, any more fists and she would personally take care of things.

"Where the hell were you?!" Rage coming forth from the voice. A voice that many times he had wished to hear again. Usually laughing alongside a red headed woman. To hear it again was great but yet the pain. The feeling inside it was strong and it was all directed at him.

"Answer him Jiriaya." Tsunade stated quietly. 'He has a right to know. He is his father." The woman said.

"I was out working monitoring the spy network. I had assumed that everything was being taken care of. I had to keep it maintained so that Naruto had a chance to be normal, to be safe! If anything I thought his godmother would have raised him as well."

"Bull shit sensei." That final word sarcastic to say the least, coming from Minato it is Tsunade who speaks up next. Her eyes saddened by the papers even now in front of her. Ones that she is pretty sure Jiriaya had never even seen. The woman tossing them at him, she gestures for him to flip through them.

"Take a look at them Jiraiya. Those are just a few of her...works." Tsunade said quietly. "And I know the first few reports the teacher showed you were looked at. It was the only time Saurotobi had highly recommended you take him with you. He made notes time and time again on later ones trying to convince you to do it."

Flipping through the reports, old memories long since buried started to come back. Emotions and grief at that time over the fox and what had happened. The baby who looked so much like his parents, who had smiled when he held him one time. Whose mirror image was dead...burnt to a crisp beside him supposedly.

"Why….why would she?"

"According to her," the younger man gritted out, "She thought Naruto had killed me and Kushina. Tell me Jiriaya how could a newborn baby supposedly kill us?"

Unable to answer that as fast as Minato would like, The pain was there as the former Hokage spoke, "I figured you of all people would trust me. And be able to explain about what Kushina and I had done to protect the village. After all, you were the one who taught me about the seals and everything."

"Minato...I."

"Don't even Jiriaya." The blonde man replied with no emotion. So cold towards him, it was unnerving. It was, not like him at all to the mind of the Toad Sage, the memory of his former student was not coinciding with the man before him. "The only thing I am thankful to you for right now is that you have looked out from these last few years apparently."

About to say something else, it is then that they hear some hyperactive voices. One all to familiar to three of them. It is the other that it is new to the blonde man sitting with the cane. Still out of sight and by the window, a rapid change of anger to nervousness shifts into high gear.

Still thin due to his time in the hospital, they could see the former Hokage straightening himself out. Wanting to stand tall and proud for someone who was about to enter the room.

First one he sees being the pink haired girl, who has been his nurse. He knows Sakura can sense him nearby, giving a slight friendly smile at the sight of him. It is the next person he drinks in as a father.

Almost as tall as him, he sees the same blonde hair and blue eyes that mirror his own, albeit confused as he is seen. Whiskered and tan cheeks, his build similar to what his was albeit more muscular. The orange still kind of loud, he is happy that his son has tempered it with some more of the black.

"Who the hell is this guy Baa-chan?" Immediately dodging as a missile of some kind is thrown at him, the older blonde male finds himself smacking the other upside the head in a instinctual kind of way. Startled to say the least as someone he doesn;t know does that, the blonde youth gives a guarded look, as he is not sure what to make of what just happened.

Somewhat hurt by the expression, Minato remembers that in the nick of time, that his son has no idea who he truly is yet, Looking to Sakura who gives a tentative nod that it was all right, she nods her head in acceptance of an order to find Kakashi, The slug Sannin herself getting up, she looks to all three with a mixture of emotions.

"Baa-chan?" The blonde boy, confused to say the least, the older woman gives him a hug. One that well mostly to help her feel better, she gestures to the other two men in the room. "Do me a favor kid...listen and keep an open mind ok?"

Puzzled to say the least, she leaves the room alongside Sakura. Closing it behind them as Minato nodded his head in appreciation for what they were doing, for there was MUCH that they needed to talk about.

8888888888888888

Confused to say the least, Naruto finds himself alone in the room with not only the pervy sage, but a blonde man that looks familiar to him. He just can't place it. It didn't help either that the damn fox was roaring psst and growling incessantly in the back of his mind. Doing his best to tune his 'prisoner' out. The blonde looks at his teacher with an expression of curiosity mixed with what one could only call guardeness,

"What the hell is going on you old pervert?" Naruto asked. "I mean seriously who is this guy and why did he hit me? And what the hell did Baa-chan mean by "keeping an open mind?"

Silence his only response as he looks at his teacher, the blonde youth turns to the other man with a slightly annoyed look as his head still aches a little. Knowing he has suffered far worse, the teen just ignores, especially as the guy has a can and looks far worse then he ever did,

"Well? How about you are you going to tell me what the hell is going on?" The growling getting louder in the back of his mind, Naruto continues his best to tune it out as he could tell it was affecting him. The youth shaking his head as both men notice the subtle changes going on at this moment. Everything else is put to the side, as both approach him.

"Is it the Fox?" The older blonde asks quietly before anything else is said. Surprised to say the least that this stranger knows about his damn prisoner, the teenager nods his head as he starts to shake his head in an attempt to clear it. "How….?"

Fighting back a sudden surge of pain writhing through him. Naruto manages to maintain control long enough for the Toad sage to place a paper on him. Draining some of the excess chakra leaking from him. The malevolence being felt strong to the point you could taste it, it helped greatly. But not before the blonde's eyes flash red and a gravelly voice emerges.

"YOU!"

Collapsing to the floor, Naruto is luckily caught before he could seriously hurt himself inadvertently, because of what was inside him. Still awake though, he gives a grateful smile to the sage, while looking at the other blonde with a mixture of pain and anger. "You...you are the one who sealed it inside me!"

Taking a swing, it is only the Toad Sage who holds him back from the weaker man. The blonde struggles almost violently as once again the red chakra starts to seep. The older blonde lets go of his cane long enough to perform some hand signs. Slamming his fist into the younger's stomach, blue meets blue. When he starts to pass out though from the pain, Naruto hears words that make his eyes widen coming from the man he knows as the Yondaime.

"I am so sorry for this my son…"

Hours later

Eyes opening slowly, the blonde teenager finds himself in a room that wasn;t the office or his own. Those words still in his ear, he disregards it as his imagination. He was about to go all fox on them. So hearing voices loud enough to wake the dead as he tries to get his head together, Naruto takes in his surroundings. White walls with an orange trim, he admits that he likes the color arrangement. But when he finds a few things familiar, he narrows his eyes in anger.

How the hell did his furniture among other things get here?!

Standing up a little too fast, the youth opens the door and follows the loud voices fighting with a few of his own. But pauses as what he hears next causes him to sit on the floor in shock and complete and utter confusion.

"MInato You must understand!"

"No you don't Jiraiya. The people Kushina and I thought would raise him did nothing old man. NOTHING! And when did they do it? One wanted to kill him, the other just paid his bills.. I mean for fuck's sake! That's not raising a child. You were supposed to be there for him, you and Tsume. None of you were there when Naruto was born, it was just me and his mother. How could a baby kill me and his mother? "

"Those times were dark, you and Kushina had just died and…" The older man replied.

"And you should have raised him alongside Tsume. But neither one of you did. Naruto grew not knowing about me and his mother. All he knew was he was alone. Alone when he did not need to be!"

"Sarutobi was going to tell him when the time was right. We wanted to keep him out of enemy hands. And he was looking out for him!"

"The Third had his hands full with the village Jiriaya! He couldn't be there for my son all the time where you and the damn Inuzka could have!"

Listening as the voices continue to argue and fight over him, Naruto finds himself experiencing emotions he hasn't felt in years, Sadness, pain, joy, rage all coming onto him at once. It...it was really strange. Finding out all this information just flowing from the other two, knowing someone was supposed to look out for him...never did.

The pain of wondering and always asking about who his mom and dad were. No one ever told him when apparently they knew. Especially his so-called godfather. Tears coming down his face as he hears that his friend Kiba's mom was responsible for the attempts on his life. So much now he understands….

Letting out what could only be a sound of pain and sorrow, Naruto found himself looking into a pair of blue eyes a second later filled with worry. Seeing the caring look in his eyes, Naruto really wanted to trust...but it was all so new to him. These emotions rolling through him as he stares up. Almost weak and scared he speaks up….

"You,,,you're my father."

A gentle and yet pained look in the older man's eyes, he nods his head in response. "Yeah I am kiddo. You grew up a lot since I last saw you."

A slight little smile on his lips, as he knew he never did see him, the blonde teen rubs his eyes as Jiriaya comes around the corner. An expression of pain and sadness in his look as well, he offers a hand to Naruto which he takes.

"We have a lot to talk about don't we." The Fourth says quietly. "You me and your godfather here…."

"Yea...I guess we do." The teen replies as he is hurt and confused. "I mean I don't know anything. Not even yours or m...mom's names or what you even looked like till now." Looking at his godfather he knows with sadness. The Toad Sage can't help but look away in regret…

"Why?"

Before anything is said though, Minato shakes his head. "Before we start talking about things like that allow me to fic one thing. My name is Minato, and your mother was Kushina." A smile crossing the older man's lips. "And she was the love of my life."