PART 2
Minato's POV
Walking up the wooded staircase, I approach the room of a blonde twelve-year-old boy who is going to be late for his own graduation ceremony if he doesn't get his butt out of bed right this minute.
Upon reaching his room, I open the door and look over to the bed. Half of his covers are draped along the floor while the other half is wrapped around his waist, exposing his arms and his legs. His hair is a wild mess, and there's a little bit of drool dripping from his mouth.
His body is twisted, and to be completely honest I'm not even sure how he's able to get a goodnight's sleep like this.
"Naruto, wake up sleepy head." I say loudly, nudging him gently on the shoulder.
His nose twitches, but his eyes don't flutter open.
I try again.
"Come on you're going to be late." I say a little louder, poking his cheek this time.
He groans and flips his body so that he's facing the other side.
Sighing at his reluctant behavior, I whisper something in his ear that will surely grab his attention.
"I'm going to eat your last pack of instant ramen~" I sing mockingly, and that surely grabs the younger blonde's attention.
His eyes fling open, and he sits up straight so fast that I don't even have time to move out of the way. His head bonks mine, causing him to cry out in pain and for me to stumble back.
"Owww!" He cries, rubbing his head and staring at me with an un-amused glare.
"Seriously Dad, this is the kind of wake up call I get?" He complains, throwing the covers off of himself and stretching his arms as he raises them over his head.
He lets out a long yawn.
"I didn't expect for you to sit up so fast." I retort, shaking my head.
"Besides, why are you waking me up so early isn't it like Saturday?" He asks confused, staring at his clock and then back at me.
Seriously? He doesn't even remember the single most important day in his young life?
I don't reply right away, hoping that my son isn't so dense that he can't even remember his own graduation day.
And then his face turns from slightly irritated to complete panic.
"Oh sh-" I give him a stern glare," Shoes?" He rubs the back of his head sheepishly.
"Hop in the shower we leave in ten minutes." I say, coming over to him and kissing the top of his head. He nods and races to the bathroom.
I watch him go, shaking my head and laughing slightly to myself.
That kid, I swear he's going to be the death of me.
xXx
"So what kind of team do you think I'll get? Do you think my Sensei will be cool? Oh, maybe I'll be with Sasuke? It'd be cool if I was with Sakura too? What about…"
The constant chatter just won't end as the two of us walk down the quiet streets of Konoha. I zone out of my son's blabbering knowing that whatever I say will just be tuned out by him.
When he's on a roll he continues rolling until we reach our destination.
I decide to instead marvel at the drastic changes in the village.
It somehow looks much…darker.
Almost as if the village has lost all of its cheeriness.
No longer do I notice children playing on the streets, instead they stand behind their mothers, whispering small words and staring at the ground. Everyone walks silently with their heads bowed. Even the hustle and bustle of the city has died down, no longer do street vendors or charismatic restaurant owners come out and converse with the usual towns folk, they just stand there like statues smiling politely when someone walks by.
Even the school system has changed. It used to be that the children learned the history of Konoha and how to control minor amounts of chakra along with weaponry use. Now, they are all trained like anbu. To conceal emotion, to become mindless killers, and to obey their Hokage like he is a supreme being.
When Naruto came home and told me this I spit out my coffee.
I wanted to believe he was lying.
And to question why this all happened, well the answer is simple.
Ever since Danzo became the Hokage, which is still a case I am trying to crack, the whole village has flipped upside down.
Anbu are now placed in every street corner to survey the village, looking out for crime, for potential rogue nin, oh and my personal favorite,
Blasphemy against our Hokage.
I grit my teeth even thinking about it.
Yes, our new Hokage has decided that if anyone speaks out against him they will immediately be arrested and "dealt with" as he likes to put it.
To me, it's just a way to cover up civilian murder.
He isn't even a Hokage anymore, he has become a dictator.
And now that I'm no longer the Fourth Hokage, Danzo has personally kicked me off of the council and I am no longer allowed to attend any meetings.
At first I was furious, but what could I do?
I chose my son over my job...there was nothing I could do but agree with his terms. And I could see that Danzo was enjoying my misery as I stepped down and gave him the hat.
"Dad are you even listening?!" Naruto screams out, causing some of the townspeople to look in our direction with frightened eyes. They move their children behind them and scurry past us, as if we have some kind of disease.
An anbu steps out of the shadows, gripping his sword from behind his back in a threatening gesture.
"Naruto, what did I tell you about screaming on the streets?" I scold, my voice hushed not to attract anymore attention.
He must have noticed the anbu because he averts his eyes towards the ground and zips his mouth shut. I notice the fear in his eyes before he averts them, and it sets an uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach.
No child should be afraid to speak to their own father while walking on the street.
I sigh, wrapping my arm around his shoulders and letting him lean into my side.
I nod politely with a tight knit smile at the anbu as we pass.
As usual, he does nothing.
To say the least, the village has been stripped from everything that used to make it the Hidden Leaf.
Sometimes I even wake up and wonder where I am.
Because this sure doesn't feel like home.
xXx
Naruto's POV
Sitting beside Sasuke, I can't help but bounce my leg up and down out of anxiety.
"Would you cut it out?" Sasuke snaps, his voice hushed and pointed. His left eye twitches in annoyance as I continue to bounce my leg.
"I can't help it, I'm nervous okay?" I whisper to him, and he reaches out his hand and grabs my thigh halting my bouncing.
"I can't hear what Sensei is saying." He argues, grinding his nails into my leg.
I let out a hiss.
"Cut it out!" I yell out, louder than I should have.
All eyes in the classroom turn to the two of us, and Iruka Sensei lets out a breath of annoyance.
The anbu in the corner raises his head to look at us.
His masked glare causes Sasuke and I to freeze and stop our antics.
Iruka smiles gratefully towards the anbu and clears his throat.
"Now where was I…oh yes the assignment of teams."
My ears perk up at this.
"When choosing teams-"
"We are assigned a team that can work well together and is carefully chosen depending on each individuals strengths and weaknesses." A confident voice pops in, and I look over to see Ino with a raised chin and a proud smirk on her lips.
Iruka nods.
"Looks like someone came prepared today. Good job Ino." Sensei says, smiling towards the blonde who turns in her seat and boasts about it to her classmate who seems to be more interested in staring blankly at his desk than at her.
Shikamaru sighs and mutters something along the lines of "what a drag."
Iruka continues speaking, I kind of zone out not bothering to listen to his pep talk since my dad gave me plenty of it the night before.
But, something does grab my attention. As Iruka continues I can't shake the feeling that someone is staring at me.
Turning around in my seat, my eyes meet those of the masked anbu and a shiver runs down my spine. I quickly turn around and bite my lip.
Those guys never fail to creep me out.
It used to be different, here in the academy.
I could goof off and throw in some of my lame jokes at something Sensei would say, but now I can't even bounce my foot without getting a scolding, not only from Sensei, but from the anbu who stands in the back corner with his head down unless something catches his attention.
It's like I've lost all my freedom and am now supposed to be some brainwashed kid who can't act out and be…well a kid.
My thoughts are cut off when I notice all of the kids stand up and bow their heads, muttering a quick "Good Morning Lord Fifth."
Confused as to why they are standing, I look towards the front of the classroom and see the Hokage standing there, his eyes boring into mine.
Gulping, I stand up clumsily, bow my head, and mutter those four words. Sasuke looks at me from the corner of his eyes and lets out a small breath.
"Idiot." He mutters softly.
"Good morning to all of you as well. You may be seated." He says, leaning his hands on his wooden cane.
The class sits, and I note that everyone's posture is perfect. No arched backs, no legs folded, no arms crossed, and no leaning on desks.
I notice Sensei opening his mouth to say something, but Danzo turns his head and gives him a menacing glare.
Iruka zips his mouth shut, a flickering of fear in his eyes.
"I've heard many good things about this specific class, and I am looking forward to assigning your teams today." He begins, surveying the class like a hawk as he takes his time to look at each and every one of us.
When his eyes land on me, I feel a shiver run down my spine. There's a small smile tugging on his lips, but his eyes don't show genuine care or happiness. They're so cold, almost lifeless. His eyes filled with vengeance and something so dark and menacing that it causes me to avert my eyes and stare at my folded hands.
Just who really is our Hokage?
He clears his throat.
"Now, I'll begin with team 1" He says, pulling out a scroll from his cloak and reading off the three names.
The three students get up and are escorted by the anbu out of the class.
This same procedure goes for all the teams, and my name still hasn't been called.
"Team 7."
My ears perk up at this.
Team 7 is my dad's old team, and so maybe I got it too.
"Sasuke Uchiha."
I cross my fingers hoping I'll be on the same team as my best friend.
"Sakura Haruno."
I cross my toes hoping I'll be on the same team as my crush.
And then he nods at the anbu.
"Hinata Hyuga."
I feel my heart drop. Why wasn't I chosen? Sasuke and I work so well together, and Sakura seems to like the both of us...we could have made a great team.
I watch with disappointment as the three of them exit the class with the anbu trailing behind.
And soon enough I notice that all of the teams have been chosen; yet I'm still sitting here in this chair waiting impatiently and with anxiety for my name to be called.
Did I do something wrong? Did he just forget me? Maybe he misread?
All of these thoughts flood my mind, and I feel my palms get sweaty.
"And as for you Naruto Uzumaki." The fifth says, a small smile spreading on his lips.
I gulp, feeling uncomfortable as I stare at his fake smile. He should really stop smiling...it does not look good on him.
"I have big plans for you."
And he walks over to me, pulls out a white envelope, and slaps it down on my desk.
"Open this when you get home. I'm looking forward to your decision."
And with that, he disappears in a puff of black smoke before I can question him.
Still slightly shaking from the anxiety, I stare down at the snow-white envelope.
Just what could be inside?
AN: So yes, I am back with Part 2 of this series! I hope you all enjoy this first chapter...hopefully it somewhat explains the situation of the village. Also, if you're confused as to what Minato does for a living, he's just a normal shinobi. Yeah I didn't really want to make him a baker or anything sooooo xD
Well sorry this took me so long to write I just didn't really know what to do but I've decided on a plot line and I'm going to stick with it!
This "Part 2" will most likely be 7 or so chapters as of right now...might be more I'm not entirely sure.
Please leave a review, and I do hope you enjoy this first chapter...sorry if it's not perfection. (:
Until next chapter, toodles~