Deal

A/N: In Japanese, it's custom for the last name to be given before the first name (Smith, John. Not too sure about the comma, though).

I'm an idiot. I forgot to throw this bit of back story in earlier. So I am doing a bit of back tracking, time wise.

It's been a year since Minato had rescued Naruto. So Naruto is six and Harry is five in this chapter.

Disclaimer: See chapter 1. Also special thanks for White Angel of Aurelon for her help with this story.

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Chapter 6

The Third Hokage, Sarutobi, Hiruzen, sat stood looking down from his office window at the celebration that was happening below him. He didn't have much to celebrate.

It had been a year since Naruto had disappeared from the village. No one had seen him leave or since that night. Even more puzzling, no one knew what happened except for the dead civilians and a couple of chunins in an alley this time last year. From the reports, a mob had chased Naruto into that alley, then nothing.

There was some of the boy's blood found and a chakra signature that was untraceable. The ANBU couldn't follow the chakra trail back to where it came from. Even Inu couldn't and he was the best the ANBU had to offer.

'Speaking of Inu. . .' The Third frowned as his mind turned to the very private young man.

Inu, or rather, Hatake Kakashi had been acting strange that night Naruto had disappeared, but then a few days later, he was back to his usual anti-social self. The Third worried that the loss of Minato's son would further push the young man into darkness. With Kakashi, one never knew what he was thinking.

The village took the disappearance of Naruto with glee, which caused several accidents to the most jubilant and out-spoken at the disappearance. He wondered if Inu was responsible. There was no evidence, but still...

The leader of the Hidden Leaf turned away from the noise below him and to his over-piled desk to a file laying innocently among the rest of the paperwork.

It was Kakashi's ANBU file. Coincidence?

Jiraiya had requested Kakashi's help with a project last month, lasting for a couple of months. Although Lord Third would rather keep his best elite shinobi in the village at this time, he knew he couldn't. Nothing in the request was out of the ordinary. As a student of his, Jiraiya was on an on-going mission and probably ran into trouble.

His eyes caught the picture on the wall of the Fourth Hokage. Frowning, Sarutobi, Hiruzen sighed as he relit his pipe. 'I failed you Minato. Not only has your son has been kidnapped and possibly killed, I've done nothing to keep Kakashi out of darkness.'

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In a clearing of two large, heavily carved, upright-standing stones, which was located several days' journey from the Village of the Hidden Leaf, stood two men waiting for the sun to set.

The stones were left-overs from the time when Uzushiogskure was still allied with Konohagakure. Although time has erased all knowledge of these sealed carved stones and their use, someone had managed to resurrected their use.

A small glow was starting to spread between them. With each minute the sun was setting, the glow grew.

On the other side of the glow, they could see three figures waiting patiently.

Soon, the glow engulfed the stones, leaving a doorway between worlds.

"Sensei, Kakashi-kun," Minato greeted, with each hand on his two sons to keep them still. "Come through and meet my sons, Naru-chan and Haru-chan."

The six and five years old gave a nervous wave.

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Since Minato couldn't cross over to the Elemental Nation's side of the portal, both shinobi shrugged before stepping through. They only had this night to catch up on the news, so they had to make the most of it.

Waiting for the men was a tent, a small fire, and a nearby table.

Naruto looked up at Kakashi. "You. I know you."

With only his one eye visible, he looked down at the blonde. "That so?"

Naruto nodded. "You found me after I was kicked out of the orphanage and made sure I had food."

"You remember that?" the tall, masked shinobi asked in a rough voice. It was hard for him to see both his sensei and his son alive and well.

Naruto nodded, before putting his arm around Haru pulling him closer. "This is Haru. Tou-san adopted him after his parents were killed when he was one. He's now my little brother."

Kakashi knelt placing an arm lazily on his raised knee and the other on the ground to look at the pair of boys. "Yo."

The trio stared at each other. No one said anything for several minutes.

Minato cleared his throat, breaking the tension. "Naru-chan, Haru-chan, why don't you spar with Kakashi to show him how much you have learned this past year?"

"Sensei, I don't think. . . " Kakashi started to protest until he saw that his old sensei used ANBU sign ordering him to go easy on them; wear them out.

"Just allow them to show off what they have learned, Kakashi," Minato suggested, "They have been looking forward to meeting their big brother. They're not prodigies like you were. I have only taught them the basics."

"Oh, come on, Kakashi-kun, show them what you've got," Master Jiraiya called, sitting on a nearby rock.

The two boys looked up at the silver-haired giving him huge puppy-dog eyes. Kakashi sighed and to use a coined phrase, he thought, 'Troublesome.'

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These boys looked like puppies waiting to rough-house with an older male; that meant he had to pull back on a lot of his techniques. He knew he was going to regret it, as he had to dumb down to genin level of sparring.

Naturally, the sparring match didn't last long. After all, the teen was an ANBU captain and a trained assassin, and the boys didn't have much training.

Although they were good for their ages. All he really had to do was just stay out of their way. Kakashi had to admit their teamwork was fair but it still needed a lot of work. He could see his sensei's training in their moves.

Suddenly, that he found himself in a dog-pile of limbs and laughter, the silver-haired teen found he didn't mind it.

These boys were not the enemy and not even half-trained. And yet, he allowed himself to be tackled to the ground. If his team heard of this, they would never let him live it down. However, something within him didn't seem to care, and he was reminded of his time with his old genin team with Obito and Rin. He could hear Kushina's laughter in his mind.

Kakashi grunted as an elbow poked into his ribs and a foot kicked him in the shin.

Minato laughed as the boys suddenly somehow managed to gang up on the silver-haired ANBU teen.

Kakashi missed hearing that laughter as he tried to free himself. He gave another huff as a knee got him in the groin. Finally freeing an arm and holding up a laughing Haru by an ankle, Kakashi gave the giggling gaki an one-eyed look.

"Hey! Let him go!" Naruto jumped up on the silver-haired teen's out-stretched arm, shouting to let his brother go.

Minato, still chuckling, took the upside-down Haru away from the teen so Kakashi could deal with his other limpet.

"Minato, it seems you have a ways to go with that pair," came Jiraiya's amused voice as the two boys demanded another go around.

Mentally, Kakashi agreed as he sat on the ground with Naruto on his back, trying to regain some dignity. Those two were heading for great things with his sensei as their father.

Somehow, Haru got away from his father and once more tried to tackle his older brother.

However winded he may be, Kakashi had one more trick up his sleeve. Just before his was tackled, he bit his thumb and called out: "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

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Minato stepped out of the tent, closing the flap carefully. Jiraiya and Kakashi were sitting around the fire burning tips off a couple of sticks they found.

"They asleep?" Jiraiya asked as looked up.

Minato nodded as he sat opposite of the pair.

"Thank you, Kakashi and your ninken, for wearing them out. Sometimes those two have way too much energy for even me to keep up. They really wanted you to like them."

Jiraiya gave a snort as he poured out some sake for his former student. "We could tell."

"You're looking good, Sensei," Kakashi commented, not looking up from his side of the fire. Once the boys had been sent to their cots, he had dismissed his ninken. "What's the real story? I take it you don't want those two to know."

The former Fourth Hokage sighed and told his side of the story about that night that had cost him so much. He also spoke of summoning the Shinigami to make a deal. However, instead of spending eternity in the stomach of the Death Spirit, Minato had been given another offer which he took.

"I can only cross the barrier on this night once a year," he finished, looking over at the standing stones. "The only reason I came back last year was for Naruto. It took me that long to breach the barrier keeping me out. But until I fulfill my part of the bargain. . ."

"That means you can return?" Jiraiya asked, hopefully.

Minato shook his head. "I have a deal with the Shinigami. Haru-chan lost his parents three and a half years ago to someone worse than Orochimaru. There's a prophesy and someone decided to monkey around with it, making the Death Spirit anxious. My bargain is to help Haru-chan to fulfill this prophesy, and only then I can return with my sons."

"But you returned. . ." Kakashi pointed out.

"I didn't stay. I push the limit on that, but I wanted Naruto. He's my son, and I really did not trust the council to leave him alone. I definitely don't trust Danzo and those other two advisors. I couldn't help worrying about Naruto. Was he eating right? Was the Third raising him as I wanted? Was the village treating him like hero? If it wasn't for the toads giving me reports, I would've gone mad," Minato looked over at the tent.

Then his face turned hard and unforgiving. "Imagine my anger when I found Naruto screaming in pain as several adult including a couple MY shinobi attacking him in a dark alley. Where were his god-parents? Where was his big brother?"

Kakashi hung his head. "I was ordered by Danzo and the civilian council to stay away from Naruto or being sent on a five-year mission away from the village. And after losing my team, then you and Kushina-nee, I wasn't in a good place. Master Jiraiya and Lady Tsunade were not around. What do I know about raising a baby? In the ANBU, I could secretly watch over him the best I could when I could get away with it. It was hard; he looks so much like you and acted like Kushina-nee."

Minato's features softened. He remembered that Kakashi had arrived at that alley, a bit late but still. . .

"When I was told you both were dead," Jiraiya picked up the tale. "I knew I couldn't raise him. So, I did what I could away from the village, I did send money and gifts for his upkeep. In the first five years, I have intercepted 21 assassination attempts on Naruto and the Third. I trusted the Third to do the right thing. I swear if I knew what was going on, I would've done something. The council tied his hands as well Kakashi's and mine."

Kakashi nodded in agreement. Danzo and the council had a lot to answer for.

"So, what was going on in Leaf?" the former Hokage asked, changing the subject. Naruto was now with him and safe; that was all that mattered now. "The toads have been giving some reports. They haven't said much, but that was how I finally knew how Naruto was being treated."

So went the rest of the night as they went through several pots of tea, snacks as well as a couple of bottles of sake, only finishing as the sun started to break through the trees.

Minato quickly woke the boys, so they could say good-bye.

Kakashi pulled Naruto up into a hug. He whispered into the sleepy boy's ear. "Grow strong, little brother. I'll see you and Haru next year."

Naruto nodded as he gave a huge yawn. "Promise?"

Kakashi placed a gloved hand on the boy's tousled hair and gave a nod.

Haru leaned against his Tou-san and waved sleepily. Jiraiya came up and took him from Minato and said almost the same thing to the sleepy child.

Haru nodded and he snuggled against the white-haired sannin with a yawn. Minato smiled as took the half-asleep boy back.

The trio waved to the pair as they disappeared through the portal back into their world.

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Kakashi raced back to the Leaf. He was burning through the light buzz from the sake and lack of sleep. Master Jiraiya had remained behind to make sure the camp and the seals were well hidden for next year's visit. He did have to muse that Naruto looked good after being away from the village for a year. He recovered nicely. Kakashi had been worried that hadn't been the case. And Minato's other son. His newest little brother was interesting and the perfect off-set to Naruto. His green eyes reminded him at lot of Kushina-nee and that streak of mischief. . . Minato-sensei was a great father, but he did have his hands full with those two.

The village came into sight. He needed to get his mind on what he would tell Lord Third. He hated lying to the leader of the village, his leader to whom he owed absolute loyalty, but Minato-sensei was also loyal to the village and had sacrificed his life and family to the village who had spit on it. Minato-sensei's secrets brought no harm to the village and had everything to do with protecting Naruto. According to sensei, someone had unleashed the nine-tails when Kushina went into labor, thus sealing Kushina's fate, and forcing that deal. According to Minato-sensei, the enemy got away before he made the deal with the Shinigami, leaving Naruto alone.

Jiraiya, after securing their camp site, was even now looking for him. However, if that person ever got in Kakashi's sight... Then there were Lord Third and the council, doing everything possible to keep Naruto isolated and downtrodden. Kakashi was now convinced there was a conspiracy, and he had the feeling that Danzo was behind it. It was no secret that the old war-hammer wanted Naruto in his ROOT program. Thankfully, Lord Third denied the request. Kakashi walked through the village on his way to the Hokage Tower. He would keep Minato-sensei's secrets by continuing to hide in the darkness for now. It was for the good of his make-shift family and the village.

He couldn't wait until next year to see how much stronger his little brothers would become.

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ANBU – Ansatsu Senjutsu Tokushu Butai ( Special Assassination and Tactical Squad). The hokage's shinobi black op's.

Inu – dog. Kakashi's ANBU code name.

Konohagakure – Village in the Leaves or Hidden Leaf Village and literally meaning: Village Hidden by Tree Leaves

Uzushiogakure – Hidden Eddy Village, Village Hidden by Whirlpools and literally meaning: Village Hidden by Whirling Tides.

Kuchiyose no Jutsu – summoning jutsu, Kakashi uses to call for his ninken. Kakashi has 6.

More on Danzo and Root later in the story, but then you can always look it up.

Until next time. GF