Arc One: A New Era Begins

Chapter Two

Thick tobacco smoke hung in the air of the Hokage's office as one depressed Hiruzen Sarutobi began to digest what events had recently taken place from his seat behind his desk. It wasn't that long ago since Inu and Boar had given their report, one which left Hiruzen in the state he was currently in. More tobacco smoke joined the thick acrid cloud above him as he puffed on his pipe once again. Not even his nicotine fix was calming him of the guilt he felt in his heart. The guilt of what he did to Naruto. The guilt of how he betrayed his sensei, the Shodai and Nidaime Hokage, as well as the Yondaime, Naruto's father. All three of them held the Will of Fire in their hearts, all the way until death. Hiruzen, the Sandaime, had such a fire burning but instead of the usual brightness and vigor, it was now only a spark.

A sigh escaped his lips as he put his still lit pipe on the desk before reaching towards the right where a hidden compartment lay. Inside, was a bottle of the rarest sake one could find in the Elemental Nations. Kami, did he need this now. The booze, however, had to wait as two puffs of smoke signaled a summoning in his office. As the smoke cleared, it revealed two people that Hiruzen didn't want to face right now. For he wasn't sure how much more guilt his old heart could take.

"Jiraiya, Tsunade, it's been a while." Hiruzen's defeated tone seemed to echo in his office.

The silence that followed was palpable as the two Sennin looked at their sensei with extreme disappointment. This silence, which only lasted a minute, was broken by Jiraiya throwing a scroll onto the Sandaime's desk.

"Open it." Was Jiraiya, the Toad Sage's, simple instruction. His tone left no room for argument.

Hiruzen did just that and rose an eyebrow at what appeared to be a blank scroll. Looking closer, however, there was random ink blotches and smudges on the paper which told him otherwise. Something used to be on this scroll, but what?

"That, Sensei, was a key." The Toad Sage said as Hiruzen looked up after examining the scroll. "A very important key which Minato and I came up with before Kushina's birth of Naruto just in case the worse came to pass."

Hiruzen looked at the scroll again as sweat began to drip down the back of his neck. He knew what a key did, a fuinjutsu one at that. And to have it disappear meant only one thing. Hiruzen slumped in his chair as he threw the scroll back which Jiraiya caught effortlessly.

"Naruto's gone, isn't he." It was more of a statement on Hiruzen's end.

"Hai." Jiraiya started, his disappointed tone was still steadfast. "And I'm speaking for both of us for Tsunade cannot bear to speak to you for what you've done. In fact, after what our summons told us, we are both ready to turn in our headbands and live the rest of our lives as retired shinobi or missing nin. Whichever comes first."

"B-but the village…" Hiruzen started but had to jolt backwards as his desk was smashed to pieces by Tsunade's super strength. Rare sake bottle included.

"It's always about the village with you!" The Slug Sage had lost her composure; she couldn't sit idle any longer. "You preached peace to all when you trained us, but go back on that word once the Yondaime died. You care no longer for the people, but only the village. You see them as tools I bet, much like that scum Danzo!"

"How dare you insinuate…" Hiruzen was now standing, his glare full force, but it was all interrupted by him being grabbed by the scruff of the neck and forced to look into Tsunade's rage filled eyes.

"You used Naruto, Sensei! You told me he would be looked at with care, not hate! Yes, I admit you did well on getting Megumi to help with his teachings, but she wasn't a black ops ANBU member for nothing, right?!" Tsunade slammed her Sensei to the ground before taking many deep breaths to calm herself.

The sounds of papers fluttering to the wooden floor, which burst into the air upon the desk's destruction, is all that could be heard for a moment as Hiruzen got himself off the ground. Once he dusted himself off, he looked at both his students with stern eyes.

"You may know of what your summons told you about Naruto, but you know not of the sacrifice I made to keep him safe from the encroaching darkness which plagues this very village." His eyes softened and his anger filled tone was reduced to one of sadness. "I tried….by Kami I did. I tried to help Naruto as best I could but I had to push him away."

Tsunade and Jiraiya were now confused and also worried about whatever this darkness was. Just what had happened since they were gone all these years? What had they missed?

"I pushed him away, my surrogate grandson away." Hiruzen was now in tears as he remembered all that he had to do. "I lied, he knew it, and yet he still looked up to me…" The Sandaime's face was turning a light shade of blue while his breath started to quicken. "…You know not of the monster I've had to become, of what…what…"

It was at this point Hiruzen collapsed which made Tsunade and the ANBU rush to his aid. Running a quick diagnostic on her sensei told Tsunade that a heart attack and possible cardiac arrest was imminent.

"Cat, help me get Sensei to the hospital…he doesn't have much longer to live!"

The ANBU in the room paused as they felt their own hearts squeeze in their chests. They couldn't fathom the Sandaime dying at a time like this. They were still healing from the Kyuubi attack and tensions had begun to rise in the Elemental Nations. An event such as this, if it got out, could spark a massive conflict. Cat pushed said thoughts away and nodded to Tsunade. As they were about to shunshin out, however, Hiruzen weakly pointed to the nearby bookshelf.

"Third book, fourth column." The Sandaime said in a whisper as his whole body began to shut down. "Take it out, add chakra…all will be revealed." The Sandaime used the rest of his willpower to look at everyone in the room with a smile as he spoke his final words. "Failed all…deeply sorry…beware the undergrowth…reignite the spark."

Silence.

Nobody moved in the room as they couldn't believe what just happened. No, the Sandaime was still alive, he had to be. The Sandaime's body twitched which gave everyone hope, but their hopes were dashed as Hiruzen's body remained still after that. Tsunade's eyes had begun to fog and her hands shook as she ran another diagnostic.

Silence.

Jiraiya's mind was shattered. Plain and simple. Six years ago he had lost his student and the father to his Godson. Now, he had lost not only his sensei, but his father figure as well. Jiraiya saw Tsunade run another diagnostic which was followed by a shake of her head. NO! He refused to believe this was happening. Without a thought, Jiraiya pushed a highly distraught Tsunade aside and began using a small lightning jutsu in the hopes of starting Hiruzen's heart. Time was now a blur. Jiraiya had lost count of how many attempts were made to resuscitate the Sandaime. A hand on his right shoulder made him pause and look into Tsunade's tear streaked face.

Silence.

The five ANBU in the room looked at each other in disbelief, their masks now off and attached to their belts. Like Jiraiya and Tsunade, they didn't want to believe what they just witnessed. Hiruzen Sarutobi was arguably the strongest shinobi in the Elemental Nations, yet he was brought down, killed, by a simple bout of depression. Questions now arose on just what Hiruzen was hiding. Just what was in that book? Yes, they were the Sandaime's personal guard, but they weren't privy to what Hiruzen did in his free time at home, or during Hokage-Ears only meetings. As much as they protested this, the Sandaime always told them that he could handle himself and that he was far stronger then he let others believe. As Tsunade and Jiraiya consoled themselves, the ANBU all knelt down around their fallen Kage; their heads bowed low in respect.

Silence.

For the Elemental Nations would hold its breath, uncertain of the events to come.

Volcanoes belched its molten interior and ash filled the sky as Alduin growled at the deceased body of what was to be his instrument of destruction, a second one at that. Again, it had happened again. The rage in his heart, his mind, had consumed him. A potential ticket out of this barrier, this accursed prison, was now gone. There were other options though, perhaps he would wait for a more opportune moment to strike.

"Alduin! I challenge thee!"

The Forbidden One turned its glowing red eyes to whom called him only to find Bahamut and the Dragon Clan headed his way. Alduin snorted which made a plume of acrid, onyx colored smoke to blow out his nostrils. Bahamut already knew his answer, he always did. The barrier flickered for a moment as it recognized the Dragon King's signature; it was now safe to enter and the dragon king took full advantage. Alduin barely had time to prepare as Bahamut rammed into his side full force which sent him skidding a few feet; claw marks now dredged through the volcanic soil. While the two almighties had begun battling each other, the force of which shook the landscape around them, Bahamut's son landed near Naruto's almost bisected body and shook his head with sadness. They were too late it seems. A potential summoner lost, a potential gateway to their original home now lost forever. A roar from his father made him look around to see that most of the clan was saddened to see this, yet a few of the elders still held hope. But why? This child was now in the Shinigami's clutches, and to go against a God was tantamount to suicide.

"Raise thine head, Tharos my son!" Bahamut roared out after he swatted Alduin into a few petrified trees. "All is not lost, for there is life within the boy. Merely between worlds is he."

Tharos, who looked almost identical to his father, blinked in shock before looking towards one of the elders. The elder had light blue scales that shined aquamarine if the light hit her scales just right, and she was about half the size of the dragon king. Her name, known to all, was Liorenth the Life Giver for her expertise in the medicinal arts and her exploits in the Second Great War of Old.

"But a spark left, this lad has Tharos." Liorenth stated with an oddly charming voice, her eyes closed as she concentrated on Naruto's life energy. "Giver of Life I may be, but weary I grow for the chill of death will soon be all encompassing." Liorenth opened her emerald green eyes, but instead of sadness they shown weariness for there was only one way to fix this.

Back when the Dragon Clan was in its infancy, and their kind exalted as Gods, some dragons had become attached to a human whom gave them gifts thanking them for protecting their village. Gold, silver, livestock, it didn't matter to the dragons for they were content on keeping a peaceful relationship with the world. This peace, some dragons thought, could better be handled if they had a liaison which could spread their ideology and be ready to quell any uprising before it got out of hand. Thus, the blood ritual was born. A ritual that imbued the power of a dragon into a human, early attempts of which literally blew the person apart. Once perfected, however, the Blessed Ones, as they were called by their villages, would never leave the home of the dragon that chose them until fully trained. At first, these skills remained the same but as time went on, the Blessed Ones and their dragons had evolved. And it wasn't just skills, but ideologies as well.

After hundreds of years of peace, some began to see the Blessed Ones and their dragons as tools for war. Oddly enough, some dragons had agreed with this for grudges had built up on who owned what in their loosely led clan. There was no technical leader at this point, only the acceptance that each dragon would leave each other's personal area alone unless a dire situation presented itself. And thus the first War of Old began, where villages were wiped off the map and led to mass extinctions across the land. Nobody knows how long the war raged, but what they do know is that a Blessed One had somehow achieved the impossible and became their first true leader. His name was Eldroth the Uniter of Worlds. An apt name, for Eldroth did much during his reign to ensure peace remained and that another War of Old would never take place again.

However, as the population slowly returned, there were the occasional attempts to start a revolt against the dragons. Ones which Eldroth did not stand for and quashed any hope of them gaining ground by killing the guilty party, some of them being from the Dragon Clan itself. Partly because of this, the blood ritual was now and forever banned. Nobody knows exactly how long this struggle for keeping the peace lasted for most records were destroyed in the Second War of Old. A conflict that was started when a princess, whom so longed for the fighting to end, wandered into a forest largely unmapped at the time.

This forest hid many demons the villagers said, and the princess soon realized this for the deeper she went, the more whispers were heard. Some promising death to those whom entered, some urging her to turn around and go home, while another promised her what she cherished most. The princess followed the latter and soon came upon a clearing where a decrepit, onyx black tree stood. There, on the branch which hung the lowest to the ground, was a single oddly glowing fruit. The whispers began again and, in an almost trance like state, she walked towards the fruit and picked it with a smile. As she ate it, a pulse went around the entire land which the Dragon Clan felt. Evil had tainted this world once again, and the dragons knew that keeping the peace would forever be impossible. For this evil was darker, more sinister, then the one faced in the First War of Old. An evil which would only grow stronger as the years progressed, and would taint anyone whom was a glutton for power. One such dragon was a young Alduin whom had become enamored by the thought of war.

He was raised in a loving family, both his parents and a younger brother by only two years. The parents always preached peace and told horror stories from their time in the First War of Old in the hopes that they would keep their sons away from the darkness. In the hopes that the stories would help them become a true leader of the clan. While the younger brother sided with his parents, Alduin decided otherwise as the stories sparked the darkness in his heart. Alduin hid this growing darkness, however, and got training from not only the Elders of the clan, of which were pushing almost 400 years old, but also Eldroth himself. Although it took almost 100 years to learn almost everything his mentors taught him, Alduin was happy with the results and knew he was ready to enact his plan. As he was about to start phase one, a massive pulse of power was felt which made Alduin let out an evil grin. Without a thought, he flew to its origin and soon found an unconscious regal looking girl next to a very ominous looking tree. As he landed in the clearing, the princess began to stir and soon was looking into Alduin's glowing red eyes. Both smiled at each other as the tree whispered into their ears.

"Alduin is thine name, dear princess."

"Kaguya, oh humble protector."

It was through this meeting, and one forbidden blood ritual later, did the Second War of Old officially start.

"Blood ritual." Tharos whispered to himself, but it ended up being heard by all.

"Are thine mad, Liorenth!" Another elder, this one with reddish black scales and a scar running down his right eye, yelled. The eye itself a hazy grey which showed that he was blind.

"Mad?" Liorenth tilted her head in contemplation before snorting in amusement. "Perhaps a tad, but what else do we have, Idrom?"

Before anyone else could question Liorenth's decision, Alduin crashed down and slid on his side towards Naruto. Although in pain, the Traitorous One sucked in a breath in the hopes of incinerating his failed instrument and all around him. Tharos, however, had caught this and promptly stomped on Alduin's head just as he was ready to blow a wide swath of fire. The fireball to be now exploded in Alduin's throat which made his eyes widen in extreme pain. It was only the second time in his life that this had happened, the first being the end of the Second War of Old before he was sealed. Before passing out, Alduin could only curse his parents for giving him a weakness such as this.

"Well done my son!" Bahamut proudly said as he landed beside Tharos, "A fine job, indeed."

Said dragon smiled and bowed his head in thanks, but that smile turned into a frown when Idrom started to speak his mind about the barbaric blood ritual. Idrom the Fierce was his name for his exploits in not only the end of the first War of Old, but the entire second as well. Fierce for he was just that in battle, and in tongue. The latter coming with age due to Idrom being the oldest clan member at almost 600 years. The argument had continued for almost three minutes now, way too long in Tharos's mind. With a mighty roar, the Son of Bahamut shut everyone up for his eyes held malice which was a surprise to many for he was always known to be very quiet and well mannered.

"Enough Idrom, my ears cannot take much more of your hearsay!" Said elder dragon was about to advance, but became surprised instead when he was slammed into the ground by one of Tharos's wings. "Aye, the blood ritual is archaic and banned by The Uniter himself, but this dying child in front of my talons was sent here for a reason."

"Bah! Prophecies again?" Idrom snorted out a plume of black smoke, "We haven't had a Seer in many years, Son of Bahamut, the last one dying just after the Second War of Old started. Good riddance I say!"

"Is that a threat, Idrom?" Tharos growled while his throat started to glow, "I do remember reading in the archives about the…mysterious circumstances surrounding that Seer's death."

Although the eldest in the clan, Idrom knew when to bow in submission. Everyone did when it came to Tharos. For if you threatened him, you had to deal with the King as well. Although only over 100 years old, young in dragon years, Tharos was mighty powerful for his age.

"Nay, Tharos, I submit to thee."

"Good, see to it that it stays that way." Tharos replied as the glowing in his throat ceased, his wing now back in place to let Idrom rise.

"My son speaks the truth, for I felt that this day would come sooner or later." Bahamut said to the entire clan. "For too long have we spent in this plane of existence. For too long have we sat idle. This boy has appeared for the darkness has returned, and he our only hope."

Alduin began to stir which prompted Liorenth to heal Naruto enough for transport. With the utmost care, she picked the Uzumaki up with her talons and with a nod, the entire dragon clan lifted off. As Alduin rose, the barrier now sealed, the dragon could only growl in disgust at the retreating clan. However, a slight smirk came to his scaly lips upon sight of the dragon whom has helped him in the past.

Tsunade was now alone in the Hokage's Office, the book Hiruzen had mentioned in her hand. Jiraiya and the ANBU had quickly shunshined Hiruzen's body to the Hokage Estate so that Asuma and Konohamaru could pay their last respects and lay out a plan in secret. As the Slug Sage rubbed the top of the black hard-covered book, she could only think about the minor oddity she felt when completing her second diagnostic. An oddity of which only a highly skilled medic could have detected. Forgetting about the book for now, Tsunade searched the remains of the shattered desk and found the intact bag of Hiruzen's tobacco. Pocketing this for later analysis, Tsunade focused on the book once again where she added chakra to it upon seeing her name in almost invisible kanji. With a slight glow, the front cover fell off to reveal a hastily written note of which was written two days ago, October 8, two days before the sixth anniversary of the Kyuubi attack.

I fear for this village, Tsunade, fear that I haven't done enough since the Kyuubi attacked six years ago. A great darkness plagues this village, this symbol of hope which my Sensei built. I delayed such a thing during my first reign, but only slight, and it seems they have bested me at all turns this time around. No longer am I king in this game of Shogi we are playing, but a pawn ready to be slain. Paranoia has overtaken me for I fear some of my ANBU to be imposters and the shinobi whom I once controlled would sooner turn on me to let the King come to power. Knowing you, my secret tobacco stash has been found. Study it, for I believe it to be laced with a poison, one I cannot detect. I haven't much time, my heart and lungs have grown weak. I've done all I can to keep the son of Minato and Kushina alive and free from the encroaching plague, but again I fear it was not enough. Read this, memorize it, don't trust anyone, even your friends, and leave these hallowed grounds lest you be slain by the plague soon to be.

Hiruzen Sarutobi

Tsunade double read the letter, her eyes wide with shock. Was this the reason why Hiruzen had us kept away from Konoha so long? Was this the reason why he didn't want us to be around Naruto? Her questions had to wait as she turned and landed a haymaker on whoever crept up behind her. A sickening crack was heard followed by a loud thump as the body hit the wall, the neck at an odd angle. Broken and lifeless, the body slid to wooden floor below. Heart racing, Tsunade watched as the body of what was a trusty Konoha ANBU shimmer for a moment before revealing the true person underneath. Tsunade's breath hitched as she recognized the uniform, but there were some odd changes to it. Before she could search the body, however, it burst into intense flame leaving only ash behind. The wooden wall and floor, oddly enough, wasn't even damaged. Committing what she saw to memory, Tsunade shunshined to the Hokage Estates. Although the letter told her not to trust anyone, Tsunade knew that Jiraiya and the Sarutobi's were loyal, were clean. The ANBU, however, was a different story.

For Jiraiya and Asuma, whom held a two-year-old Konohamaru, were surprised when Tsunade shunshined in and knocked out the ANBU that was with them. Jiraiya was about to speak up in protest, but the glare Tsunade was giving shut both him and Asuma up.

"No time, Konoha is no longer safe, hasn't been for a while now." Tsunade waved the book in her hands before throwing it to Jiraiya whom began reading the letter Hiruzen wrote. "Asuma, help me tie these ANBU up, we're taking them with us."

Asuma had an idea what was going on for his father had told him much, heck he had seen Hiruzen deteriorate these many years. Once a vibrant old man, he had seemingly started to rot from the inside out. Setting Konohamaru down, Asuma used the wire the ANBU had on them to tie up their fingers in such a way were jutsu couldn't be used.

"Suma, I'm scared." Konohmaru began to cry, even more so when he looked at his grandfather's smiling body on the nearby couch.

"This is…I have no words." Jiraiya had just got finished reading the note whilst Asuma consoled a very traumatized Konohamaru. "To think that the corruption went this far back."

"You knew?!" Tsunade sent an evil glare towards the Toad Sage.

Jirayia let out a sad sigh, "No, not all of it, but I've had a hunch for a while now. My contacts are afraid of something or someone. Not surprising when I've found a few dead with a strange symbol carved into their chest."

Tsunade raised an eyebrow at this as she remembered seeing a partial tattoo on the faux ANBU's neck before it burst into flame. Before she could ask for a picture for comparison, Asuma yelled that the seals had collapsed and a large group of ANBU were headed this way. Not taking any chances, Jiraiya summoned a small toad which reversed summoned them all back to Mount Myoboku, Hiruzen's body included.

AN: I know I said I would post tri-monthly but I think you have all waited enough. That, and my mind keeps on finding different directions for this story to go hence the slow writing time for this chapter. Thankfully, I have a good direction to go in now, so writing should go quicker from now on. I tried patching most grammar mistakes among other things, but I will go through the chapter again tomorrow and make adjustments if need be. Thanks for being patient and I hope you enjoyed!.