Chapter 2:

Kushina quivered in his arms, sending a cold chill up through his spine.

"Its cold tonight, how did I not notice that?" Minato thought, as he continued to march onwards through the forest. Naruto began whimpering quietly as his mother held him close, trying to transfer body heat to each other. Minato diverted his eyes away from the heartbreaking sight and turned to Enma, who was still walking just ahead of him.

"Will you go to the funeral?"

"The contract between a summon and summoner is broken upon death of either one" Enma grunted, without turning back. "Technically, I shouldn't even be here right now but I'll make an exception for Sarutobi. Before I go, I want to talk to Asuma. Is that all right, Minato?"

"Of course" Minato replied, as he listened out for the sound of Kushina's breathing. It had begun to slow down, it was clear that she needed medical treatment quickly. However, he had very little chakra left and was unable to perform Hirashin. It was difficult for him to even walk but he did his best to continue on.

After what felt like an eternity, the village finally came into view. Minato had been sure that, once he gazed upon the familiar and welcoming sight of his village he would be fine. However, the sight was not what he was expecting. He had seen that the village had been damaged by the attack but viewing it up close was a different experience entirely. The smell of burning filled his nostrils and the scattered bodies were no longer just various shapes on the ground; they were people he recognised. It wasn't just Shinobi either; he saw the owners of local restaurants and employees in the local stores. However, this is not what bothered him the most. Watching the reaction of those that had gathered on the edge of the village was almost too painful to watch. At first they appeared to be relieved as they noticed that he had survived, some of them even clapped. Then, they noticed Enma and the feeble old man curled up in his arms. The applause soon ended and the few cheers turned to screams of horror. Minato knew that they needed a leader at that moment, someone to take charge and fix everything. However, that would have to wait, he had one priority at that moment.

A man around Minato's age walked up to him, his face filled with concern. His usually tied back black hair had been pulled out of place and his clothes were ragged and torn. His physical state represented that of everyone who took part in the battle but Minato knew that his mind would still be in pristine condition.

"Minato, we-"

"Shikaku" Minato sighed, looking over at his long time friend. "Kushina needs medical treatment immediately and I will not abandon her, not again. The Kyuubi has been sealed and the village is not in any immediate danger. Whatever it is can wait, I have to do this first."

Whether he agreed or not, Shikaku was always one to respect authority. He politely stepped aside and allowed Minato to continue on, which also seemed to discourage others from approaching him. Finally, he reached what appeared to be the emergency medical centre, which had been set up with impressive speed and functionality. As soon as he entered, a nearby lady approached him. She was small, a good foot shorter than Minato was. Her youthful expression and dark purple hair was familiar and he recognised her as a member of the Yamanaka clan. Although, he didn't have time to confirm this.

"Lord Hokage!" she gasped, before turning her attention to the two people in his arms. "I see, quickly put her down over here."

This was one of the reasons why Minato held Medics in such high regard. They treated everyone the same, regardless of fame or rank. He couldn't think of any other situation in the Shinobi world where that would be the case.

"Lord Hokage, you'll have to take the child while I treat her" the medic said, as she picked up Naruto and handed him over. At the same time, Kushina pulled her arms in the same direction as if she was begging for her son to be returned to her arms.

"Naruto" she whispered, with her arms still outstretched. "Naruto-"

"It's okay" Minato said, kneeling down to his wife's level. "I've got him here, he's safe."

"Minato, you should take him home" Kushina said, while lightly stroking Minato's cheek. "It's cold tonight and this isn't a good environment for a new born."

"What about you?" Minato replied, the thought of leaving his wife alone repulsing him.

"What can you do for me now? You may be a lot of things Minato but a medic is not one of them" Kushina chuckled; breathing some much needed cheer to her face.

"Send word to me the second anything happens" Minato demanded of the medic, who gave a very quick response. He then turned to Kushina and lightly kissed her forehead. "I'll be back to check on you soon, no matter what you say."

"No surprises there then" she sighed, as Minato was ushered out the door so treatment could be administered. Before he could leave, Minato had one more question for the medic.

"Do you have any soldier pills with you? It would make things a lot easier."

"Well, of course" the medic replied, as if Minato had asked a stupid question. She gave Minato the small black pills before quickly returning to her duties. He quickly ate the pill and soon felt the wonderful feeling of chakra returning to his body.

"All right then Naruto, let's get you home."

Within a second he had done just that, using his Hirashin to transport them to the apartment. It was a modest place, no bigger than a standard apartment. It only had two bedrooms, one bathroom and basic amenities. Memories of missions and days with friends adorned the cream walls, while rustic furniture filled the floor space. Minato had lived there ever since he had moved out of home and so far they hadn't bothered to move elsewhere. Of course, Kushina had been demanding that they find a bigger home once she found out she was pregnant but so far he had been able resist this. There was a cabin in the woods that they occasionally used but they both knew it wasn't a viable home even before it had been crushed by the rampaging fox. He felt a special attachment to this place and it wasn't something he was willing to let go easily.

Minato walked into the back bedroom, which had been left vacant until now. Inside, the walls were painted a tanned orange colour, at Kushina's insistence, and the room was filled with stuffed toys and draws filled with other items needed for a newborn. To the side, there was a hand crafted mahogany crib, a memento left behind by Kushina's parents. They had only placed the crib in the room the day before yet it seemed so long ago, back when everything was much simpler. He'd imagined that this was something he and Kushina would do together, putting their boy to bed for the first time. To his credit, Naruto seemed very relaxed and calm as he was placed onto the small mattress. As he did this, the blanket that had been covering him slipped a little and revealed the mark on his stomach. It was the first time Minato had seen the seal and he found himself dumbfounded by it. It was raised and harsh looking and when he ran his hand over it he could almost sense the Kyuubi inside. It was truly astounding that something so huge, something so dark could be sealed inside an innocent child. That was when it him.

"What was I thinking?" Minato thought, as he gazed down at his only son. "How could I have done that to you, left you all alone in this world with such a thing? What kind of father am I?"

His monologue was interrupted by the sound of the door opening. Admittedly, it wasn't something that would usually put him on alert, after all a Shinobi wouldn't announce their interest in such a way. Yet, this didn't stop Minato from drawing a kunai and facing the door. He was just about ready to attack, when he recognised the boy that had walked in.

"Minato Sensei, thanks goodness. They wouldn't tell us what happened so I came here."

Minato felt further pangs of guilt as he looked upon his last living pupil. He had seen Kakashi Hatake grow from being a prodigy child into a young man that would make any father proud. However, he had also seen the pain that Kakashi carried with him every day. Growing up without a mother, finding his father's dead body in his own home, dealing with the death of his two closest friends on the battlefield, it was fair to say that he had not enjoyed the best life. Minato realised that he was probably the only thing Kakashi had left. What would he have done if his original plan had gone ahead? He quite clearly came here first, not learning about what happened on the way. Would he have sat alone in the apartment, waiting for someone who was never going to turn up? Then he would be delivered the heartbreaking news that his father figure is gone forever. This was yet another person's feelings he didn't take in consideration, with every passing second his willingness to die seemed more and more stupid

"I'll explain it all later Kakashi, it's been a rough night" Minato sighed, as he stroked Naruto's head. Kakashi walked over to the boy in the crib and appeared to smile at him, although it was difficult to tell with the mask he permanently attached to his face. However, this smile soon faded as he turned to Minato in horror.

"Wait, where's Kushina?"

If Minato was Kakashi's paternal figure, Kushina was definitely his maternal influence. Kakashi's father was her Sensei and after his unfortunate death, she felt some kind of responsibility towards him, especially as he was so young at the time. When he was younger, he would pretend that she was merely an unnecessary burden that was constantly getting in his way. Then, the incident with Obito happened and his general attitude changed forever. He even came over for dinner at least three times a week, when Kushina would spout of typical motherly phrases about him being too thin.

"She should be all right, she's being treated as we speak" Minato replied, trying to keep his voice as calm as possible.

"Well, what happened?" Kakashi asked, pressing his Sensei for answers.

"They Kyuubi has been sealed in a new Jinchuriki, that's all you need to know for now" Minato responded, instinctively pulling more blankets over Naruto's stomach. He hadn't yet decided whether he would let everyone know about Naruto and he didn't want that decision taken out of his hands.

"Kakashi, I need you to stay here and look after Naruto for a while" Minato said, as he prepared to leave. "I need to brief the Jonin on what's going on and start organising things. I'll then check on Kushina and should be back in a little while."

"Wait, what?" Kakashi exclaimed, chasing Minato out of the door. "You want me to look after him? I don't know anything about kids!"

"You'll be fine, just keep an eye on him. If anything happens, contact me immediately. I've already put the seal on him, so don't worry."

With that, Minato rushed out the door and back on to the streets of Konoha. He paused for a second, wondering how he should proceed. He needed a way to contact all of the Jonin as quickly as possible, which was a particularly difficult thing to do at the best of times, never mind a situation like this where they were spread across the village. Fortunately, for possibly the first time that night, lady luck was finally smiling on him. A distressed looking blonde haired man was walking past just as Minato looked up.

"Inoichi!" Minato called out, startling his former classmate.

"Minato, there you are. There are a lot of people looking for you, what's going on?"

"That's actually what I need to talk to you about" Minato replied. "I need to talk to all of the Jonin at once, do you think you could contact them?"

"Well, once I get back to my house it should be easy enough. What did you want me to say exactly?"

Minato knew that he had got lucky once he found Inoichi. He was probably the most reliable of all the Shinobi in the village and he carried out any orders quickly and dutifully.

"Tell them all to meet me on top of my office in an hour's time. I can explain everything there."

Minato sat on the edge of the railing with his eyes closed, allowing his thoughts to race through his mind. He wasn't sure how he was going to approach this meeting; he just knew that he had to say something at least. It was his duty as leader of the village to take charge and that is exactly what he intended to do. Still, a conversation with Kushina would have been nice; she could always be counted on for moral support. However, he had already attempted to see her before coming here but had been told that she was resting. That was encouraging news at least, the longer she held on the stronger she would become.

"What is it?" Minato asked the ANBU that had just appeared behind him.

"Lord Danzo and the elders request your immediate presence at an emergency meeting " he said, trying to keep his tone as polite as possible.

"Does he now?" Minato replied, smiling as he did. "You can tell Danzo that I have other responsibilities to take care of first and then I'll think about attending his meeting."

"Well, Lord Danzo said that-"

"I don't care what he said," Minato snapped, his patience having been worn thin. "Despite what he may think, Danzo holds no power over me whatsoever. He is an advisor and nothing more; he would do well to remember that. You may take your leave now."

The ANBU was smart enough to know that was more of an order than a suggestion and quickly left. Over the next few minutes, the Jonin slowly gathered on the rooftop. Minato greeted each of them in turn, although most of the time it was through a simple nod of the head rather than any grand gesture. Some of them had a slight redness around their eyes and all seemed to be exhausted. Although, this gave Minato the chance to truly survey the damage of the attack. Although there were a few notable absentees, when taking into account the Shinobi out on missions and those he knew were in the hospital, it seemed that a large majority of the Jonin had survived.

"I know that you're all busy, so I'll keep this short" Minato began. "The Kyuubi has been sealed inside a new Jinchuriki, so there's no need to worry about it materialising here again. Secondly, any rumours you may have heard regarding the Third Hokage are true; he lost his life tonight while battling the fox. The circumstances will be kept confidential, I just want it to be known that we could not have won without his sacrifice."

"So that's all your going to tell us Minato? We're not even going to know who the Jinchuriki is? What gives you the right to withhold such information?"

Minato would have been able to guess the source of the disturbance even without hearing his voice. The sullen black haired man had been a pain in his side ever since he became Hokage and they had had their fair share of disagreements in the past. It was only the friendship between their wives that stopped them from coming to blows.

"Fugaku, with all due respect I have the right to withhold whatever information I see fit" Minato responded, which was met with a look of anger from the Uchiha clan leader. "Ever since the system was started by the First Hokage, the Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi has always been kept confidential and for good reason. Even if you don't care for the privacy of the Jinchuriki, there's a practical consideration regarding information that can be given to other villages. The less people that know, the better. As for tonight, the focus is on treating the wounded and trying to clear up the mess that has been created. There will of course be a memorial service and you'll learn more information on that in due course. Are there any questions?"

Whether it was because they could sense how stressed and exhausted he was, or because they were stressed and exhausted themselves, no one made a response. With that he dismissed them but before he could leave, Minato called over one of the smaller Shinobi there.

"Asuma, how are you doing?"

Unlike his brother, Asuma Sarutobi didn't really resemble his father. His eyes were wide and a deep shade of hazel and he had a more stocky build than the Third. He also didn't seem to share his father's love of order; with his uniform often altered to reflect whatever fashion he was into that week. Oddly, he hadn't seemed to have made any alterations that night.

"Fine, all things considering. Enma had a talk with me, it's encouraging to know that he died a hero" Asuma replied, surprisingly calm despite what had happened.

"He did love you, you know."

Minato was well aware of the difficulties Asuma had with his father. He'd been a rebellious teenager, often disagreeing with the idea that Shinobi are merely tools and the amount personal sacrifices had to be made for the sake of the village. It caused a lot of friction between them and Asuma had threatened to leave the village on multiple occasions.

"Just not as much as the village I guess" Asuma sighed. "I know it's selfish, but I always wanted a father that would concentrate on me where I would be the priority. You have no idea what it's like to be second best to an entire village of people."

"I guess not" Minato replied. It was something he'd never considered, being the child to a leader. How does a parent balance two responsibilities?

"One thing that's come from this is that it's helped me make my mind up about a few things" Asuma said defiantly. "I'll probably have to talk to you about it again later. Thanks Minato Sensei."

Asuma gave a wave before running off, no doubt going to meet a certain Kunoichi from the Yuhi clan. Minato had certainly been given more food for thought than he had expected but for the first time that night things appeared to be going to plan. Unfortunately, there was still one last thing he had to do that could de-rail all of this progress, a meeting with the elders.

Minato hesitated before he opened the wooden door in front of him. This was the absolutely last thing he felt like doing. He had purposely took as long as possible to get to the meeting, taking a detour through the streets of Konoha and stopping to offer as many words of encouragement to as many people as possible. He had never liked these meetings; the elders had ideas above their station and tried their best to push these ideas on him.

"Come in Minato, we have been waiting a long time."

Danzo's voice was incredibly grating, Minato could practically picture his face screwed up in sadistic pleasure. He reluctantly opened the door and stepped into the room.

The three elder sat next to each other on a long table placed on the side of the room opposite to the door. It was a big space and Minato always felt that this was done on purpose, so that the large table would seem more intimidating. The elders themselves were stern faced and always looked like they disapproved. Minato didn't let their stares bother him; he simply took his place in the middle of the table without even offering an apology.

"We should get the basics out of the way then" Koharu said, adjusting the papers in front of her. "Tell us exactly what happened."

Minato gave in and outlined everything that had happened in detail. He knew that, if he didn't, the elders would hassle him and pry into his life until they did find out.

"So, you actually made your son the Jinchuriki?" Homura asked, his voice incredulous.

"There wasn't exactly much choice in the matter" Minato shot back, already irritated. "Hiruzen was only capable of sealing half of the fox's chakra and Kushina wouldn't be able to handle that chakra being sealed with her again. Naruto was the only choice, he has inherited her chakra and was the only one capable of handling it."

"We will have to keep a close eye on the boy as he grows up" Danzo mused, focusing his eye on Minato.

"You think I wouldn't do that anyway?" Minato challenged Danzo, standing up as he did so.

"Of course, but even you cannot watch him every second of the day" Danzo responded calmly. "It's imperative we protect the Jinchuriki, especially with a clan like the Uchiha in the village."

"What, you think they have something to do with this?"

"Of course I do Minato and you are a fool for thinking otherwise" Danzo shot back. "You said it yourself, the Sharingan is the only power capable of controlling the fox and there is a good chance that Madara Uchiha himself is the culprit. We need to keep a closer eye on them in the future."

"You disgust me," Minato rasped, as he stormed towards the door. "I'm tired of your conspiracy theories Danzo and I'm tired of your little habit of getting carried away with your role. I don't trust you at all and if I get even the slightest hint that Root is still operational, you'll be out."

"Yes, I have noticed that you've placed me under surveillance" Danzo stated, his mouth breaking into something resembling a smile. "The Hatake boy in particular is very impressive, almost on par with his father. You have nothing to fear though, I have followed your every order."

"We'll see" Minato said, as he opened the door to leave. "Oh yeah, I want you to contact the ANBU ad set up a division to track down Lady Tsunade, I feel that she'll want to come back to the village for the memorial. I need to go home to be with my son."

"Minato, stop fussing I'm fine."

"Are you sure? Wait, let me adjust that pillow."

"Stop it! I said I'm fine!"

"Hey, you didn't need to hit me in the head, I get the point."

Kushina had been moved to a private room in the hospital after waking up the day before. Physically, she was still struggling as the process of having the Kyuubi ripped from her had left her temporarily unable to move from the waist down. It was a strange sensation for her, due to the fox she was used to healing very quickly. As she often did, she took her frustration out on Minato who merely saw it as a cute personality quirk.

"Are you sure you're capable of looking after Naruto for a couple of hours?" Minato asked, unsure of the plan himself.

"Yes, I am capable of taking care of my own son" Kushina responded, as she stared down at the child that was asleep in the crib next to her. "You already have enough to do today and I don't trust Kakashi to watch him again, the boy can barely take care of himself!"

While that wasn't strictly true, Minato let it slide. Now that she has a child of her own, Minato trusted that she would stop babying Kakashi eventually; he was an ANBU squad leader after all. Still, he knew that she still saw him as that orphaned child she charged herself to look after and that it was something she was unwilling to give up.

"That reminds me, I'll have to stop off at the memorial stone before I go to the funeral" Minato commented. "He probably won't turn up otherwise."

"You better leave now then, dragging him away from that thing is easier said than done."

Minato agreed and gave Kushina a quick peck on the cheek before he left. On his way down to the funeral, he could feel a presence following him. This time, he was much more calm and able to focus on identifying just who it was.

"You know, I was trained by one of the Sannin, you'll have to do better than that," Minato yelled, out spinning around and startling the man following him. "Isn't that right, Jiraiya Sensei?"

Minato always thought that Jiraiya had an impressive aura about him and the past year certainly hadn't changed that. His hair had grown a little longer and now reached to about half way down his back. He sported a red jacket and had replaced his Konoha headband with the symbol of Mount Myoboku. Still, he had always remained loyal to the village, which was evidenced by his return.

"I was just checking, I wanted to make sure that the time behind a desk hadn't made you incompetent" Jiraiya joked, patting his student on the back.

"So, you got my message then?" Minato said, looking to bring the conversation to a more serious matter. He knew that Jiraiya could often get side tracked easily and that he had to maintain order.

"Yeah, I would have come back earlier but I had to get some more information from a contact" Jiraiya replied. "Turned out to be a dead end though, like so many before now."

"So, you haven't had much like finding Orochimaru then?" Minato asked, referring to the informal mission Jiraiya had been on.

"It's not so much about finding him as keeping an eye on what he's doing" Jiraiya responded. "Although, that's not been going that great either. Last I heard he was with a rogue ninja from Suna, although which rogue that is I don't know. Enough of that though, what's it like being a father?"

"Stressful so far, Naruto can be quite the handful" Minato chuckled. "It has been a little difficult the past few days though, trying to organise everything while looking after him. I've had to rope in almost everyone I know to babysit at some stage, it's just been a stage of coping so far."

"Well, that's what life often is" Jiraiya began. "You've been through war Minato, you're used to just surviving day by day. I'm sure that, with Kushina by your side, you'll be an excellent father."

Even though he was renowned as a pervert and a joker, Jiraiya had always given Minato advice such as this and it was comforting to have someone he could rely on like this.

"Especially if we get some help from his godfather from time to time" Minato laughed.

"Call me when he's a teenager, so I can teach about the things that matter" Jiraiya hit back, generally lightening the mood. The next few minutes was filled with such talk, as master and student caught up after almost a year without contact. They then went to pick up Kakashi, who was predictably unwilling to leave.

When he reached the area for the service, Minato couldn't help but be impressed by what he saw. Pictures of all who had died were placed in front of coffins, containing the bodies of those that had perished. The flowers were arranged both in front and around the coffins, creating a beautiful sight. The entirety of Konoha had turned out clad in black, even Asuma had made an effort to conform.

The memorial service itself went far better than expected. Predictably, the concentration was on the Third Hokage and he was the focus of much of the day. Minato started the service by explaining how important it is to remember those that had died and how their sacrifice would not be in vain. Asuma gave a surprisingly tearful and heartfelt goodbye to his late father, before giving one last rebellious moment by declaring his intention to join the Guardian Shinobi 12. Jiraiya also gave an impromptu speech and spent the time telling funny stories and reminiscing about his time as a part of Team Sarutobi.

What was supposed to be a sad day ended up turning into a day of laughter and memories. Minato supposed that this was more fitting really. The Third was a man full of life and love; he wouldn't have wanted those he considered family to be sad at his passing. He wanted them to grow and go in to the future with their heads held high and Minato knew that it was now his job to do just that.