Disclaimer: I just want you all to know that Naruto and Yu Yu Hakusho are not mine. I do not own them. I only write fanfiction. However, if I did own Naruto and Yu Yu Hakusho, this is story you are all reading right now is what they would be like.
Chapter 11: Certain Truths
"Now then," Sarutobi said as he, Naruto, Minato and Jiraiya all sat down in the Hokage's office. "While it is truly great to see you again, Minato, I have to ask. How is it that you are alive?"
Minato leaned back against his seat, a small smile on his face, the kind he had when he had a secret that he found amusing. "I'll tell you, but I don't want any interruptions. Okay?" When the two older ninja who had not been present for his rebirth both agreed Minato nodded and continued. "Orochimaru revived me via the Edo Tensei, he revived not only me, but the Nidaime Hokage as well." A frown marred the blond's face. "He had also tried summoning the Shodai, but for some reason it didn't work and Shodaime-Sama wasn't revived."
"That would be my fault," Naruto admitted, causing all eyes to turn on him. "I was on my way back to Konoha when I ran into a hidden outpost with Oto ninja guarding it. I thought it was strange and decided to investigate. What I found..." Naruto growled, and for a moment everyone in the room leaned back as killing intent leaked out of the blond. It left a second later as Naruto visibly calmed down. "I found one of the three Oto genin that had been in the Chunin Exams, one Tsuchi Kin. They... the Oto Jonin had raped her, multiple times if my guess is correct. I killed most of the jonin except one, and interrogated him."
"That was how you knew of the invasion," Sarutobi said in realization.
Naruto nodded. "Correct. Anyways, after I had pulled every iota of knowledge from the man's mind, I killed him and stuffed his corpse into the coffin."
"Which is why the technique didn't work," Minato said with a nod. "Edo Tensei requires a living sacrifice to work. Nidaime-Sama originally created the jutsu to revive ninja who had died while delivering important information. I'm guessing that once he finished it, he ended up deciding to go further then he had first wanted. In any case, he revived myself and Nidaime-Sama to help him kill Naruto and destroy Konoha. Now the reason I didn't end up becoming Orochimaru's puppet is quite simple. I gave my life to Koenma-Sama..."
"Koenma who?" asked Naruto.
"Koenma-Sama's the guy in charge of the Spirit world," at the blank looks he was getting from everyone else in the room he elaborated. "That's where people go when they die." The three others gained a look of understanding and he continued. "So basically he's the one calling all the shots. When Orochmaru tried to revive me, he felt this was the perfect opportunity to get a presence here in the Elemental Nations."
"What do you mean a presence?" asked Naruto.
Minato paused and gained a thoughtful look, as if trying to decide how best to explain the situation. "I mean he wanted someone who works for him to be stationed in the Elemental Nations. It's not known to us, but when the ninja world started using chakra it created a barrier between us and the spirit world. As you know, chakra is comprised of a combination of spiritual energy and physical energy. Well the physical energy is actually blocking Koenma's influence here, and because there are so many chakra users it's actually created a literal barrier around the Elemental Nations that keep his agents from getting in."
"And that's where you come in?" said Naruto with a frown. "He made use of Orochimaru's jutsu to bring you back to life to work for him because he had no one working in the Elemental Nations for him?"
"Well, there was one person who used to," Minato said. "I don't know much, but I heard that there was a woman named Botan who was here in the Elemental Nations that helped Koenma-Sama ferry the souls of the dead across the river of Styx. However, she disappeared around eighteen years ago and no one's even heard from her since."
"I'm still not really sure I understand," Jiraiya said, scratching the back of his head as a confused expression crossed his face. "You're telling me your working for the guy in charge of this spirit world place, and that he made use of Orochimaru's stupidity to bring you back to life?"
"I know, it doesn't seem possible," Minato said, understanding his sensei's skepticism that there was someone who had that kind of power over life and death. "There was also another reason he let me come back. I happen to be one of his best workers, and having sacrificed myself to save my village in my past life he respected me. And I guess he felt... bad that I never even got to spend time with my son before dying." There were a few moments of silence at that, before Minato continued. "So he gave me my life back, or at least some of it. I get to live for however long the person who was sacrificed to bring me to life had already lived for and hopefully in that time I'll be able to establish a connection between the Elemental Nations and the Spirit World."
"If Kin was one of the sacrifices then logic would dictate that the other was her teammate, Zaku," Naruto said. "He was... fourteen, I think." Minato nodded at his sons statement.
"Now then, you all know how I'm here. There are some things I need to tell you," Minato's demeanor became much more serious. Recognizing the look, both Sarutobi and Jiraiya followed suit. "Now Naruto already knows this, but I figured it wouldn't hurt to let you two in on this."
"On what?" asked Sarutobi.
"On the truth," Minato answered grimly. "The truth of what happened the night of Naruto's birth and the Kyuubi attack." He looked at the two older ninja, seeing that they were both serious and apprehensive. It wasn't surprising, they must have wondered for years about that night. Wondered how the Kyuubi could escape when he was keeping a watch on the seal. It probably plagued them for a long time.
"I suppose we should start of with a bit of background history, just to give us some context," Minato said. "Everyone here knows how the Shodai-sama's wife, Mito-sama, turned herself into the Jinchuuriki for the Kyuubi during Hashirama-sama's battle with Madara at the Valley of the End. Mito-sama was from the Uzumaki Clan of Uzu No Kuni (Land of Whirlpools) and Uzushiogakure (Village Hidden among Eddies). Due to their special chakra the people of the Uzushio were blessed with naturally long lives, to the point it became known as the 'Village of Longevity.' Also, the members of the Uzumaki Clan were unparalleled masters of the art of Fuuinjutsu. So, using her skills, Mito-sama sealed the fox spirit away, becoming the first Kyuubi Jinchuuriki."
"Later, as she was nearing the end of her life, Naruto's kaa-san, Uzumaki Kushina, was brought to Konoha so she could become the new Jinchuuriki. I don't really the reason she was chose for this, just that she was. I didn't find out about this until we started dating. We had actually met in the academy at first, and to be honest, your mom didn't like me." Minato smiled at his sons confused look. "She thought I was flaky, even called me girly." Naruto chuckled as his father continued. "She was actually a very hot-headed girl, and a tomboy to boot. She would always beat on the other kids that would pick on her for her red hair, they usually called her Tomato. Because of those two facts, your mom was given the nickname Chishio No Habanero (Red-Hot Blooded Habanero)."
"So anyways, one day, she was kidnapped by Kumogakure because your mom was the last person to manifest the Uzumaki Clan's Kekkai Genkai. They could produce chakra chains that could restrain the Bijuu much like Shodai-sama's Mokuton Jutsu. I think that's probably why she was chosen to be the Jinchuuriki. She managed to leave a trail using her hair, and I was able to track down the two Chuunin who had captured her, and saved her. We started dating shortly after that. However, the Third Great War began a year later so we didn't get to see each other too much. It lasted a good number of years and during that time I trained Kakashi, Rin, and Obito and developed both my Hiraishin no Jutsu and the Rasengan. Once the war ended, me and your mom married and you came along soon after."
Minato closed his eyes and it looked like he was struggling to say what he needed to say. "Now, I suppose I've stalled long enough. It was only a few years after Kushina and I got married that she got pregnant. As you can imagine we were pretty happy."
Jiraiya snorted. "Pretty happy? Kid, the first time you found out Kushina was pregnant you ran out of the room screaming 'my wife is pregnant!' like an idiot."
Minato blushed, "actually, the first time I heard Kushina was pregnant I sort of um... fainted..." Silence, pure silence reigned in the room before Naruto began laughing.
"Are you... are you serious?" said Naruto, guffawing loudly. "The great Yondaime Hokage, most feared ninja in the Elemental Nations, can't handle learning his wife is pregnant!"
Minato blushed even more. "Well I was surprised!" He coughed into his hand several times as he tried to get back on track. "Anyways, we were happy and we made all these plans for your room and what we would name you. You know, we named you after he character in Jiraiya's book?"
"You mean his first book," said Naruto.
"Excuse me?"
"His first book. Ero-Sennin over there has more then one book out," Naruto grinned when he heard a shout of 'disrespectful brats!' from Jiraiya and continued. "Now a days he's writes porn novels."
Minato really didn't know what to say to that. It was more or less what he expected of his sensei. The man had tried to peak on him and Kushina having sex after all. He decided to just continue with his story. "However, both of us were worried as well. There is only one point that the seal that binds the Kyuubi is the weakest. That is during childbirth. All three of you know this, the energy used to power the seal is diverted to help the baby grow, the seal weakens in direct proportion, and a full term pregnancy is a whole tenth months, and that night, someone attacked. I don't know how he knew, but he knew the exact moment that the seal was it weakest…so…it was October 10th, just over thirteen years ago…"
Birth of the New Demon King
Flashback...
A ten month pregnant Namikaze Kushina was sitting at her dining room table with her husband Minato leaning forward, one hand on the back of her chair, and the other on the table top. Across from them sat the Sandaime Hokage and his wife.
Minato stood as he spoke, "I'll be there for the birth…we have to take care of the seal and everything. I'll get everything prepared beforehand."
"This is what we did for your predecessor, Mito-sama, as well," Sarutobi spoke as he held his pipe in his hand. "The seal nearly failed when she gave birth. I'm afraid we'll need to prepare for the worst…we'll set up a place outside the village and erect a barrier to protect it. Only Minato, my wife Biwako, and Taji from the ANBU will be inside. This must be kept top secret. Of course there will be reinforcements outside; ANBU under my direct command. I'll tell Yiz where the place is, so get your things ready!"
"Yes…thank you both," Kushina responded, looking a little bit nervous.
Birth of the New Demon King
Sarutobi Biwako and Namikaze Kushina were making their way out of the village when they ended up running into one of Kushina's lifelong friends, Uchiha Mikoto. As Kushina stopped to say hi, she noticed the baby in the other woman's arms.
"Didn't you have a girl?" Kushina asked with surprise evident in her voice.
Mikoto gave her long time friend a smile, but shook her head. "Nope, another boy."
"Well, what's his name, Mikoto?" Kushina pressed.
"Sasuke," Mikoto answered, there was a proud smile on her face as she looked down at her sleeping son.
The name struck a chord with the elder woman of the trio, and Biwako spoke up, "Ah, the same name as the Sandaime's father."
"Yes…I'm sure he'll become a fine shinobi," Mikoto agreed. Then she looked back up at her red haired friend and grinned as she continued, "You're almost due aren't you Kushina? You should pick out a name before it's too late."
Kushina smile brightly as a hand raised up to her chest's level in a sign of thoughtful excitement, "We've got one – 'Naruto.' He and Sasuke-kun will be in the same grade, I hope they become friends!"
A look of fear and nervousness seemed to clash down around the expecting mother as she leaned forward and whispered with her hands around her mouth, as if asking was taboo, "By the way…does it hurt? Like, bad?"
Mikoto chuckled, "Well, well, even you're afraid of something. I'll be."
By this time, Biwako had had enough and dragged Kushina away by the wrist, "Come on already!"
"Oh, sorry!" Kushina apologized, waving back at the Uchiha Clan's matriarch.
"Ja ne!" Mikoto responded, waving farewell to the red head.
"Remember," Biwako chastised after they were far enough away, "we need to keep your birth classified. Try not to talk to anyone while we're on the move, even your friends."
"Right, sorry about that," Kushina acknowledged with a nervous hand rubbing her head.
"The fact that we're leaving the village is classified as well!" Biwako snapped as she turned to face Kushina. "Don't go screaming your head off, even when the contractions start."
"R-right…"
Birth of the New Demon King
The ANBU guard standing outside a sealed cave heard, "OH GOD, IT HURRRRRRRRRRRTS!"
"KHRAAAAAAAA!" Kushina continued to scream as she lay on the bed and tried her best to fight through the labor pains.
Minato was looking rather harried as he stared at his wife in blatant worry, "I, uh…I've never heard Kushina in so much pain, are…are you sure she's alright?"
"SHE'S FINE! JUST KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE SEAL!" Biwako snapped at her husband's successor.
"But, she's…"
"Good lord, you're the Yondaime Hokage! Don't panic!" she continued to yell at him. "This is why women have babies; you men can't handle the pain!"
Minato gulped as he felt the seal on his wife's abdomen pulse with energy, signaling that the Kyuubi was trying to break free.
"UAAAAAAAU!" Kushina moaned as another powerful contraction hit her.
'It's so strong!' was the only thought that ran through her husband's mind as he used his chakra to strengthen the seal. 'I can feel the fox trying to break out!'
"Hang in there Kushina! Hang in there Naruto!" he muttered as he continued to fight back the fox.
"MMMMNNNNNNNNN!" Kushina's moan as she felt Naruto trying to exit her womb racked her body and her eyes clenched shut in agony.
"The head's out! Almost there, Kushina!" Biwako cheered as she helped the baby from his mother's birth canal.
Taji, the attending medic also provided encouragement, "Keep going, Kushina-san!"
Then, both Minato and Kushina felt the fox trying to break free once more, but Minato surged his chakra from his hand and into the seal with a cry, "Narutooo, get out here! And Kyuubi, you stay right where you are!"
"MMMNH-" Kushina whined as she gave one final push, her son finally free of his mother's uterus.
Cries from the infant filled the cave turned hospital room and Biwako ordered Taji to get some hot water. He snapped to and rushed to the table where the basin waited.
"…It's okay," Minato muttered in shock while Kushina panted, trying to rest her labored body.
The baby Naruto continued to cry as he was washed clean of his mother's bodily fluids and Biwako announced with joy, "Congratulations, it's a healthy baby boy!"
"Hahaha," Minato wiped his eyes from their tears of joy, "Look at me, I'm a father!"
Biwako handled the blanketed Naruto and carried him up next to his mother's head as he continued to cry. Kushina's own tear laced eyes turned to happiness as she leveled her gaze on her child, "Naruto…haa…I finally get to meet you…"
She would have continued, but Naruto was taken by Biwako to be cared for as Minato spoke, "Okay Kushina! I know you're exhausted from the birth, but we've got to get the Kyuubi completely sealed!"
She huffed, "Right…!"
Just as he was about to stabilize the seal, two unmistakable cries of people dying ripped through their ears.
"BIWAKO-SAMA! TAJI!" Minato roared.
His attention was grabbed by a new person who had somehow bypassed the guards and the barrier, wearing a hooded black cloak and an orange mask with black stripes and a single eye hole where the right eye should be; he was holding the baby in his arm, one arm prepared to strike Naruto, "Yondaime Hokage…Minato. Back away from the Jinchuuriki or your son dies at the ripe age of one minute."
Minato's eyes narrowed as two thoughts ran through his mind, 'How did he break through the barrier. Who the hell is this guy?'
The blonde Hokage was about to move to attempt to rescue his newborn son when Kushina moaned as the Kyuubi began to push for its freedom from the seal on her exposed stomach.
"Kushina!" he cried. 'The seal's not done!'
The masked assailant produced a kunai in his left hand and threatened the Hokage once more, "Back away from the Jinchuuriki…or don't you care if your son dies?"
"Hold it, j-just calm down!" Minato pleaded, raising his hand up in a reaching gesture as Kushina experienced another wave of pain. Then, to Minato's much growing fear, the man threw Naruto into the air.
"You should take your own advice Minato. I'm perfectly calm," the man berated.
"NARUTO!" Kushina cried while her husband's gaze turned absolutely murderous as the wailing newborn and the man drew the kunai down in preparation for an upwards thrust.
The next moment, Minato had Naruto in his arms as he rested his feet against the wall behind his attacker.
"You live up to the 'Kiroii Senkou' moniker, but what now?" the man quipped with a backwards glance.
Minato glanced down, seeing smoke flow up from the bottom of the baby blanket, and he recognized the flow as that of multiple paper bombs. A quick movement of his hands later and Minato separated the child from the impending explosion.
"MINATO! NARUTO!" Kushina cried when she noticed the man in her life and her newborn son disappear.
Birth of the New Demon King
The house went up in fire and smoke as it exploded, and Minato, using his body to protect his and his wife's baby was thrown away from the blast.
"Thank Kami…you're not hurt," Minato breathed a sigh of relief as he caught his breath while sitting on the ground, cradling the shrieking infant who obviously did not like all the jostling.
"Ow…" Minato winced as he finally registered the pain of a small piece of wood that had embedded itself in his lower right shin, through his pants and wrappings. He plucked the wood out and his mind was already trying to figure out why they had been attacked.
'He's after Kushina. He forced me to use my Hiraishin no Jutsu to separate us! Gotta hurry!'
He used his Hiraishin once more to get Naruto to another house. He then quickly placed Naruto in the bed sized crib and wrapped a blanket around him.
"You'll be safe here," he mentioned, although he may have been trying to reassure himself. "You'll wait here on your own for a bit Naruto…I've gotta go save your mom before it's too late."
Birth of the New Demon King
Kushina was strung up with chains binding her wrists that were tethered to several giant boulders jutting up from a mountain lake; kanji were drawn around four vertical pieces of stone and along the chains, forming a seal, as the seal on Kushina gullet spread so that it began to manifest itself on the lower portion of her face.
In her weakened condition, she was forced to kneel on another stone as the cloaked man stood before her and she pried for information, "What…are you after?"
"I came to rip the Kyuubi from your stomach and use it to crush Konoha," the man answered.
"…What…?"
"Minato's teleportation jutsu use a special marking that lets him instantly move from one marking to the next," the man continued. "I see he's incorporated it into the design of your seal."
The man's head lifted and in the eyelet of his mask, a fully mature, three tomoe Sharingan was revealed, "All so he would always be there to protect you…but I managed to get away from him. And the seal has been greatly weakened from the birth…do you have any idea how long I've waited for this moment?"
Realization began to dawn on the new mother and her eyes locked with the Sharingan as it peered into her, allowing the man to enter the seal's inner construct where the Kyuubi was bound by chains to a large ball with each of its tails staked into it as well, along with its torso and all four paws. It tried to fight off its assailant's genjutsu, but the Sharingan prevailed and its slitted eyes shown with the Sharingan – the indicator that the man's control was a success.
The chains began to melt and the stakes disappeared, allowing the fox's chakra to manifest as a chakra cloak around Kushina, who screamed in agony when the fox began to emerge from the seal.
Her captor brought his right up in a hand seal and uttered his first command to his new beast, "Come forth, Kyuubi no Yoko!"
And with a roar that shook the heavens, the full form of the beast emerged from its host.
Below, the man turned from Kushina who had collapsed now that the chains were no longer holding her up and he commanded once more, "We head for Konohagakure no Sato."
"S…stop…" a severely weakened Kushina squeaked out.
The man did stop and turned back in slow surprise, "…The Uzumaki Clan is really something special. Even wrenching a Bijuu from your body didn't kill you right away."
The fox above growled and the man spoke once more, mentally commanding the monstrous fox to smash the woman, "It's only fitting for the Kyuubi to kill its former Jinchuuriki."
And just like that, the fox smashed its paw down where Kushina was laying, sprawled across the rock, unable to move, and upon contact, the section of ground exploded from the shear amount of power exuded from said Bijuu.
As the dust settled, Minato was crouching on top of a large tree, cradling his wife against himself.
"A small glimmer of hope," their enemy scoffed. "But it's too late."
"Minato…" Kushina huffed and struggled to speak. "Is Naruto…is Naruto okay?"
The Yondaime smiled down at her, "Yes…he's fine. I hid him somewhere safe."
"Oh, thank Kami…" Kushina sighed, happy as any mother would be when knowing that their child was safe from harm. "Minato…stop him…stop the Kyuubi…they're headed for the village…"
An unhappy Minato sighed as Kushina's eyes closed from exhaustion and he vanished with her.
The man who had attacked merely looked on and spoke for no reason than to hear himself speak, "Gone again…no matter…on to Konoha!"
Birth of the New Demon King
The couple arrived via the Hiraishin and Kushina asked her spouse, "…Why?"
"Never mind why…stay with Naruto," her husband answered while he placed her beside their baby. Her eyes cracked open slowly and lay on her finally sleeping son.
"…Naruto…" she cried as she wrapped an arm around him as he lay beneath the blanket. She continued to cry as she pulled him close and the side of his head rested against her own. "Minato…thank you…" she managed to get out as the man clenched his fists and stomped the floor in anger.
"I'll be back before you know it," he proclaimed while slipping his signature Hokage Haori over his Jounin vest.
Birth of the New Demon King
A five year old Uchiha Itachi was sitting on the porch that ran along the perimeter of the courtyard that the main family's dining room looked out upon. In his arms was his baby brother, Sasuke, who was sleeping rather peacefully when a something washed over the older son of Mikoto.
"What's…this awful feeling?" he muttered as he looked up into the night sky.
"Nmmmmm," the infant began to squirm before crying out, forcing his older brother to try and rock him back to sleep with reassuring words.
'What an awful feeling?' Itachi thought again. 'Why did Kaa-chan and Tou-san have to go out now?'
He then redirected his attention back to his brother once more, "Don't cry Sasuke; your Nii-san is here to protect you, no matter what happens."
Birth of the New Demon King
Many of the village's ninja were beginning to unwind for the day and were saying their farewells to their friends for the night. Two in particular though, had just met up with one another and the vastly more eccentric was demanding a challenge from his 'eternal rival.'
"Why don't we just go with rock-paper-scissors today?" Kakashi asked as he walked down the street with his hands in his pockets.
"NOT AGAIN! I WANT A MORE HOT-BLOODED CONTEST!" Gai protested with a very childlike attitude. "AND YOU CALL YOURSELF MY RIVAL!"
Ignoring him, Kakashi examined his left hand as it gained a nervous tremor, "…Hey Gai…Do you sense something…off? Like there's an awful chill in the air…"
"WHY DO YOU HAVE TO ACT LIKE THIS? WE'LL ONLY BE YOUNG ONCE!" Gai continued with his rants on the youthfulness of... youth.
Birth of the New Demon King
Minato's predecessor was reading from a report while smoking on his pipe when he too felt the same ominous feeling that Kakashi and Itachi were both experiencing. He looked out his window while exhaling a stream of smoke.
'It couldn't be,' he thought. Unfortunately, it was, because a moment later, the same man who had attacked the Yondaime and his family, and unleashed the Kyuubi, materialized just inside the village's walls and used a summoning jutsu.
"Attack, Kyuubi No Yoko!" the man commanded, and the Kyuubi flared its youki while smashing buildings causing many people to fly away from the sheer power it unleashed.
Some of the villagers however, were not caught in the initial assault and looked up in pure, unadulterated fear.
"Sandaime-sama!" one of the ANBU appeared before Sarutobi, "it's the Kyuubi! The Kyuubi attacked the village out of nowhere!"
Sarutobi though, was in motion before the man even arrived, placing his battle worn bracer on his right forearm as he responded, "I know, I'll hold it back; gather and protect the civilians!"
"Hai!" the man acknowledged and disappeared as quickly as he had arrived.
Sarutobi then sighed while thinking, 'Did Kushina's seal fail? Were all the safeguards we put in place, really not enough?'
Birth of the New Demon King
In a crouch, the Yondaime Hokage appeared, arriving on top of the most vertical rock that represented his spiky hair. The Kyuubi noticed immediately and turned his attention towards the most dangerous threat to its existence as the man stood up straight, the wind dramatically blowing his hair and haori to his left as it whipped by him.
"So you noticed me already," he commented dryly and watched as the Kyuubi pulled its chakra to its mouth, condensing it into a large and lethal ball of energy.
"Not on my watch!" Minato retaliated as he began to run through some hand seals while the demon launched its attack at him. As it closed in on Minato, it suddenly disappeared and a large seal appeared in the sky in a dome fashion. When the seal faded, Minato was holding both of his hands out before him, fingers spread, the pointer fingers and thumbs touching each other, and held in place by his chakra was one of his Hiraishin tri-pronged kunai.
'Gotta pick a safe place to let that huge blast detonate,' he thought, before picking the exit seal, five miles behind Konoha, away from the village.
Down below, one Akimichi Chouza commented on the spectacle, "It stopped the Kyuubi's attack…that was a Jikukan Kekkei ninjutsu!"
"It's Minato!" Chouza's long time friend, Nara Shikaku, announced – the Jounin Commander rallying the morale of the villagers.
"EVERYONE MOVE OUT!" they then heard the Sandaime command. Shouts of 'Hai' resonated as the Konoha ninja began to counterattack.
Back with Minato though, he was preparing to Shunshin to Hiruzen's side, thinking, 'I have to tell the Sandaime what happened…' when the same man who had attacked him prior, rose up from the top of his face on the mountain.
Forced to deal with the man, Minato whipped around, and attempted to drive one of his signature kunai knives into the man's head. But, much to his shock and dismay, the blade phased through him and as the blade cleared, his opponent reached out and grabbed the Hokage's arm.
"You will face me," the man stated. "…And we're done."
Immediately, the man opened a spiraling vortex that attempted to suck in Minato. But, Minato's Hiraishin was faster, and he escaped the man's trap.
"He teleported…" the man commented in an awed tone. "Talk about fast. Next time, I'll warp you the moment I lay my hand on you."
Birth of the New Demon King
Minato appeared, skidding across the ground with a grunt, 'My attack slipped right through him. But a moment later he was solid and tried to…suck me into some dimension or something; what was that move?'
A humming sound alerted Minato to said man's arrival, who spoke as he solidified, "You won't escape me."
As the two opposing super ninja stared each other down, Minato's brain was searching for a solution, 'What is that? Is it a Jikunan Jutsu? Whatever he did, it must be how he moved so far after taking Kushina! He defeated ANBU under the direct command of the Sandaime, got past the most top-secret barrier we have, and must have known the seal would be weak while Kushina was giving birth…Then with the seal undone he took the Kyuubi and marched straight into Konoha without so much as pausing to deal with the barrier…there's only man I can think of that makes sense…'
"Are you Uchiha Madara?" Minato questioned. The man didn't answer, choosing instead to remove the hood from his head, revealing short spiky dark hair. "No…you couldn't be," Minato continued. "He's long dead…"
"Oh…" the man interrupted. "I don't know about that…"
Minato continued as if he did not hear, "…On second thought, it doesn't matter who you are. But why have attacked Konoha?"
"Oh, you know…its part of my plan…to start a war…to bring peace…"
'Whoever he is, he's incredible!' Minato's thoughts began to fire again. 'He can control the Kyuubi, wields time-space jutsu that far exceeds that of Nidaime-Sama, and clearly has evil intentions. If I don't kill him now, he'll become a greater threat than the fox!'
Minato stood, prepared to fight, a plan forming, 'If I teleport back to the village he'll just follow me and things will get even more chaotic. If he really is Madara, then I doubt he can summon the Kyuubi for very long. I'll just have to leave the village in the Sandaime's hands and finish him off right here!'
"There no hope for any of you!" Madara jested as he charged his adversary, a chain, hooked to both wrists, trailing behind himself.
As the drew close, Madara phased through Minato's body, and the chain, upon reaching Minato, wrapped around him once Madara snapped his arms around in an attempt to stop Minato's movements. When Madara tried to rip the chain through the Hokage's torso, Minato activated his Hiraishin and teleported to the special kunai that he had used to arrive earlier, escaping the would-be fatal attack. That attack was enough for Minato to understand Madara's strategy as he glanced over his shoulder, eyeing Madara who returned the stare.
'He makes his body intangible to negate my attacks, then solidifies to counterattack. My only shot is to try and trade hits with him. But attacking at all is a big risk for him. If he can only keep the Kyuubi summoned for a short time, he won't want this fight to drag on.'
They dashed again, but this time, Minato was armed with another of his kunai. During the rush, the blonde had another thought, 'It comes down to speed, whoever strikes a split second earlier will win!'
When they reached five feet from one another, Minato slung his kunai forward, watching as it phased through Madara's head. When the pommel was the last part to pass through him, Madara reached forward to grab a hold of Naruto's father as the man charged a Rasengan up in his right hand.
'Gotch-' Madara thought as his hand connected with Minato's shoulder, briefly, before the man disappeared. "GHAGH-!" He exclaimed when Minato suddenly appeared above him, and pushed the Rasengan into his back, shredding through the cloak and piercing the flesh as it drove Madara into the dirt. 'Damn it…he teleported to the kunai he just threw!'
"That was the Hiraishin no Jutsu, Level Two," Minato boasted as he continued to force his chakra sphere into the rogue Uchiha.
Madara forced himself to use his phasing technique once more to slip away with a pained groan. When he put some distance between him and Minato, he realized that his left arm was dripping copious amounts of blood and was unable to be moved. And before he could anything else, a glaring Minato materialized before him, via Hiraishin, with a kunai in his left hand poised to gut Madara, and his right hand planting itself on Madara's torso.
'The Hiraishin no Jutsu!' Madara mentally screamed. 'He must have put that marking somewhere on my body!'
It was after that thought that Madara realized that Minato was implanting a seal on him and roared, "A contract seal? Are you trying to pull the Kyuubi from my control?"
"No," Minato retorted. "I already did! The Kyuubi is no longer your weapon!"
Birth of the New Demon King
At that moment, the severing of the control was completed and the Sharingan disappeared from the Kyuubi's eyes as he roared.
Amongst the rubble below, the child of two of Konoha's Jounin was trying to help his injured mother.
"Iruka…are you hurt?" his mother asked as blood leaked from her mouth.
"Mom…" the young boy started, fear gripping him like a choking hand. "DAD! MOM'S-"
"I'll take care of your mother," the addressed man shouted back to his son. "You get out of here!"
"NO WAY DAD! I CAN'T LEAVE YOU AND MOM ALONE! I'LL PROTECT HER!" Iruka protested, only to be stopped in his tracks by his father's angry yell.
"CUT THE CRAP!" he told Iruka. "Parents are supposed to protect their children!"
At the wall, thanks to Minato's actions, the Sandaime and many of the village's most powerful ninja including Akimichi Torune, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu were able to drive the Bijuu out into the forests that surrounded Konoha, preventing any more casualties.
"DON'T STOP SETTING TRAPS!" one of the Jounin who charged the beast shouted as many ninja continued to leap at it, fully intent on slaying the monstrous creature.
Birth of the New Demon King
Madara escaped by teleporting to a mid level branch that looked down on the man who had stopped him and complimented, "You deserve the title of Yondaime Hokage…managing to wound me and wrest the fox from my control in one move. But someday it will be mine. The fox and this whole world, will bow to my will. Many doors are still left open to me." And just like that, Madara used his jutsu once more to disappear.
From his position on the forest floor, Minato glared at where the man had been standing, 'Something tells me he wasn't lying.'
Birth of the New Demon King
"Hold on! We've got to hold it off until the Yondaime Hokage gets here!" a Jounin, bleeding from a slight head wound, shouted to his comrades in arms as they charged the viscous beast once more.
Just behind them, a career Chuunin grabbed the young Iruka who tried to follow his dad after his mother was no longer amongst the living, having died to protect her son from falling debris. He protested, proclaiming that his parents were still out there and that he needed to be with them.
"KUCHIYOSE NO JUTSU!" everyone heard. With a large plume of smoke, the large toad, Gamabunta appeared with the Yondaime atop his head, landing directly on the fox's shoulders and subsequently driving the most powerful of the Bijuu into the earth. Unfortunately, the beast was in the middle of charging up one of its devastating chakra sphere blasts.
"HOLD DOWN THE FOX FOR JUST A MINUTE!" Minato yelled out to his long time partner.
"I may be big, but I'm not a miracle worker!" was the protesting reply.
"I need enough chakra to take him and that blast out of here!"
In a last ditch attempt to destroy everything, the fox swiveled its head around and lined its mouth in the direction of a tired and scraped up Sandaime Hokage whose eyes widened in fear as the fox prepared to detonate. He was saved a second later when Gamabunta landed on the ground with a resounding 'thud' as Minato used his Hiraishin to transport the fox and attack away from the village.
"Minato…" Hiruzen tried to figure out what happened, "did he teleport himself and the Kyuubi?"
He was answered immediately when the fox's attack detonated over ten miles away.
"Out there!"
Birth of the New Demon King
With an incredibly loud rumble, the fox collapsed on the ground after its rather quick transfer. It took it a minute to figure out where it was at, and the only thing it could see of human construction were a small group of houses that it chose to smash with its paw. But unfortunately for the angry Bijuu, Minato was able to rescue his wife and son from certain death and held onto them as he appeared in a tree via the use of Shunshin.
"Gotta put up a barrier…" Minato groaned as he began to feel the drain on his chakra from all of his quick movements, coupled with the oppressive aura that radiated from the beast.
"My chakra's almost drained…" Kushina mentioned, the bags under her eyes as pronounced as the tiny whisker marks that adorned their baby's cheeks.
With a strained effort, Minato erected an intertwining cage like barrier that prevented the fox from escaping, and Kushina used what chakra she could spare to use the Uzumaki Clan's Kekkai Genkai to produce chakra chains that wound around the fox and held it in place. The Kyuubi began to struggle against it's bindings, and roared angrily. It had just gotten out of that damn woman, it had important things to do and these ningen were getting in it's way!
Kushina then dropped to her hands and knees and began to tremble in her efforts to keep her once prisoner at bay, and, surprisingly, that much quieter thud was what woke Naruto into a ear piercing wail.
In panic, Minato cried out to his wife, "Kushina!"
"Sorry Naruto…I didn't…" she huffed, ignoring her spouse in favor of looking at her baby for a few more minutes, "mean to wake you…"
"Kushina…" Minato muttered, as he began to understand what his wife was thinking.
Now, she turned to him and confirmed his worst fear as she spoke, "I'll drag the Kyuubi…back…and die with it inside me…that'll…prevent it from coming back…for a while…it's the only way to save you both…with the little bit of chakra I have left. Thank you…for everything."
She finished speaking with a kilowatt smile that left Minato gasping in sadness, "Kushina…you…you made me your husband…you made me into the Yondaime Hokage…you made me this boy's father! And I…"
She cut him off from his rant as the baby in his arm cried out in discontent, "Don't look so sad…Minato. I'm…I'm happy. Happy that you loved me. Happy that it's…our son's…birthday-tte-bane…If I try to imagine surviving…and the three of us…living together…I can't think of anything…beyond, 'I'd be so happy.'"
Try as he might, Minato could not stop the swelling tears from falling down his face as he too pictured the scene in his mind.
"If I had any regrets…" Kushina stated as she looked at the newborn in his father's arms, "it would be that I won't see Naruto grow up."
With a sigh, Minato wiped the tears from his eyes and spoke out, "Kushina…you don't need to take the fox down with you. We can use the last of our chakra to see Naruto one more time!"
"…Huh?" that word said it all. She was confused beyond all get out.
"I'll seal the last of your chakra in Naruto using the Hakke No Fuuin Shikki. Then I'll lead the fox away with a seal only a non-Jinchuuriki like me can use, the Shiki Fuuin!"
"But that…the user will be-"
He continued, "But I'll only be able to seal half the fox's power…it's just to great; its physically and conceptually impossible to completely seal it all. I can't let the Kyuubi be revived without a Jinchuuriki; the balance of Bijuu will be destroyed. But with the Shiki Fuuin I can permanently seal half the fox's power along with myself. And the remaining half…"
He paused as he remembered something his own sensei, Jiraiya of the Densetsu no Sannin spoke to him when he had just become a ninja, "You know, you might actually be the destined child?"
"The what child?" he had asked.
"Sometime in the near future the shinobi world will be faced with disaster, and the destined child will be its savior," Jiraiya had responded.
Minato looked down once more and noticed that Naruto had cried himself back to sleep and finished his train of thought concerning Naruto and the fox, "I'll seal the remaining half inside Naruto with the Hakke No Fuiin Shikki."
Kushina looked like she was about to protest but Minato explained, "I know what you want to say…but Jiraiya-sensei spoke of the world undergoing a revolution, and with it, a great disaster! Tonight I've confirmed two things. The first is that masked man, the one who attacked you…he is the harbinger of that disaster! And Naruto will be the one to stop him. The Jinchuuriki who will blaze the trail to the future; I just…know it."
At this time, with his trusty companion Enma in his staff form, Sandaime Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen landed in a crouch just outside the barrier that Minato used to protect the rest of the world from the fox's destructive capabilities.
Back in the barrier, Kushina watched as Naruto was laid on the ground and tried to protest again, but Minato merely flashed through the nine hand seals to mold his chakra to summon the Shinigami. As the spectral spirit eater materialized behind him, visible to only himself, he said with a smile, "Have a little faith! He is our son after all! After I finish the Shiki Fuuin, I'll place your remaining chakra into Naruto as well. You'll meet the grown up Naruto sooner than you think…the time will come when he'll attempt to take control of the fox's power…I want you there to help him."
"Our son…"
"That's why! I don't want him to bear such a heavy burden all on his own!" Minato retorted before sighing and looking down at the near helpless forms of his tired wife and sleeping child.
Kushina though, decided to argue the point anyways, now that Minato had finished his speech, "BUT WHY…WHY THE SHIKI FUUIN? There's no reason for you to die…just so I can see him for a few minutes when he's older. I wanted you to be there for him…I wanted you to raise him! Why…Why are you sacrificing Naruto just to preserve the balance of the Bijuu…to save the village…to save the country…Why are you sacrificing yourself for me?"
"Turning your back on the village, on the country, is just as bad as abandoning a child. You should understand…you saw your own country fall apart. You know the pain of growing up without a home of your own…and you know that we are a family…of shinobi!" Kushina would have likely argued, but settled for a glare as her spouse continued to try and justify what he was about to do, "Besides, even if I lived I could never be a substitute for you."
"…What…?"
"There are things Naruto needs to be told; things I could never say myself. That's the mother's job, and I need you to carry it out even if you only have the briefest of moment's to do so. This isn't just for you…this is for Naruto!" At this point he knelt down and picked up his baby once more and settled right in front of his wife. "Dying to make life better for his son…that's the stuff you let the father handle."
Understanding slowly began to manifest itself on her face, but Kushina tried so steel her eyes in a last ditch effort to go with her plan and save her son the life of many Jinchuuriki since the first ones of ages long past – a life of neglect and hatred. One she was one of the very few to have been lucky to have missed. But her husband would not be deterred and held the visage that struck fear into the hearts of many of Iwa's shinobi during the Third Great War.
From his position, Sarutobi was finally able to get a glance of something and in fear he gasped, "Those markings…it can't be…the Shiki Fuuin?"
Before he could do anything else, two of the village's Jounin jumped down beside their previous military commander, "What's happening, Sandaime?"
"We're too late!" he answered. "They've put up a barrier around the Kyuubi! Whatever they're doing, they're doing it alone!" With a cry, he tried to use his own chakra to force his way into the barrier and help the Namikaze family.
Now, the devourer of spirits was ready and thrust his hand through Minato's stomach from behind and out the front and grabbed onto the monstrosity that towered over him. The fox, unable to speak because of Kushina's chakra bindings, mentally cursed as it felt its power being ripped in two.
"FUUIN!" Minato exclaimed, and the fox roared as it felt half of its life force, forcibly rent asunder from its body and pulled away, with no way to prevent it.
Gasping, Minato thought, 'My body's gone numb…what a heavy chakra…'
"It is the Shiki Fuuin! I can't believe he actually used it…" Sarutobi breathed in shock. It was the most powerful self sacrificial jutsu for a reason, but to see such a powerful sealing jutsu used against a Bijuu was breathtakingly scary.
"But the fox remains; he didn't seal all of it!" one of the Jounin cried out. "…but…it's shrunk!" No amount of emotional training could have stopped the confusion that laced his voice.
"Now for the Eight Trigrams Seal!" Minato called out. "I'm going to seal the Kyuubi inside Naruto!"
A puff of smoke followed and a ritual style altar appeared. From its now shrunken size, the Kyuubi was able to recognize the altar as the ceremonial throne, and realized now that Minato was truly intent on sealing it within the blonde babe. It began to look hopeless for the beast but Kushina's chakra and strength began to fade as she started to wobble and be racked with searing coughs that in turn caused her control over the chakra chains to lessen just enough for the Kyuubi to try and counterattack the Yondaime and his wife.
"KUSHINA, STAY WITH ME!" Minato hollered as he quickly turned from the throne he had just laid Naruto on.
The Kyuubi raised its right forepaw in preparation to slam its paw down. However, its efforts were in vain as Minato was able to grab hold of his wife and threw himself in line with the demon's claw and used his own body to stop the claw from attacking his son, and Kushina was able to refocus enough to re-ensnare the beast once more, ensuring its unwilling stillness. The blood soaked claw stopped a mere three inches above Naruto's chin and the dying parents breathed a sigh of relief.
"If the father can do his job…" Minato said, trying to alleviate some stress.
Kushina picked up on it, and completed the thought, "The the mother should be even better…right?"
Sarutobi was astounded, "Is that their child?"
"They protected it!" a Jounin stated.
"DAMNED HUMANS!" the Kyuubi growled in indignation.
Ignoring the fox, Kushina glanced behind her where her husband was impaled on the claw directly behind her, as she sat on said claw and rasped, "You win…first argument…you've ever won…I guess…you're really serious…"
He chuckled, "Thank you, Kushina…" Working as quickly as he could, Minato quickly summoned a toad.
Said toad looked around and freaked, "AAH, THE KYUUBI! AND YONDAIME, WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO YOU!"
"Gamatora, I'm entrusting you with the key to this seal," Minato spoke, forced to work fast as his life force waned. "Hurry to Jiraiya-sensei…store it within him…" With that, he plunged his hand into the toad's gut which cause a scroll to wrap around him and extend his height to that of a full grown man.
From his spot, Sarutobi finally pieced together the puzzle, "I see…Minato intends to save the village by making his son the new Jinchuuriki."
"GOT IT!" Gamatora proclaimed as the seal's key rolled up on the scroll. "GOOD…GOODBYE!"
"That does it…" Minato muttered as the toad disappeared to carry out its mission. "It's time for me to go Kushina…I'm going to perform the Eight Trigrams Seal…and try to leave a little of my own chakra in Naruto too! We don't have much time…if you have anything to say to Naruto…"
Kushina bowed her head in understanding, too tired to nod fully and huffed out with the last of her strength, "Naruto…Naruto…don't be a fussy eater…eat a lot and grow up to be a big boy! Take your bath everyday…go to bed early and sleep well! Make friends…it doesn't matter how many…just make sure they're real friends…people you can trust…even a few is enough! And study your ninjutsu…I was never very good at it, maybe you will be…everyone has things they're good and things they're not…don't feel bad if you can't do it all. Make sure to listen to your teachers…at the Academy. And remember to avoid the three vices of shinobi…don't borrow money if you can help it. Save what you earn from missions…no drinking alcohol until you're 20, and don't overdo it or you'll ruin your body. And as for women…well, I'm a woman so I don't know what to say, but there are only men and women in the world, so be nice to Mei-chan…she doesn't seem to be too weird…she's a lot like me. And the fourth warning…watch out for Jiraiya-sensei!" She paused to smile as blood poured out of her mouth as it rose up from the pit of her stomach and spoke again with tears streaming down her face, "Naruto…you're going to experience a lot of pain and suffering…remember who you are! Find…a goal…a dream…and don't stop trying until it comes true…there's…there's…! There's…there's so much more I want to say…to teach you about…I want to stay with you…I love you…"
Minato sighed but kept his mouth shut and Kushina realized, "I'm sorry Minato…I took all our time…"
"It's okay…" he supplied. "Naruto…this is your dad. Listen…to your motor mouth mother. Hakke Fuuin…FUUIN!"
This is more or less a re-hashing of the manga chapter... forgot which one. While most people may feel annoyed, I felt it was necessary to have. Naruto needed to see things from Minato's perspective and I dislike summarizing events, for those reading my story who have gotten a review from me, you have probably heard me say 'show not tell' and I believe in doing that, which is why I have this chapter. I didn't want to have a single paragraph where I write 'Minato told them everything about how Blah, blah, blah'. I find that to be boring. Only people who are to lazy to write out full scenes would summarize something so important.
I hope you all enjoyed the chapter.
So I just got to the demon tournament arch, the final arch in Yu Yu Hakusho, and I found out that my power levels are wrong. It seems anyone with 100,000 is an S class demon, though they are on a much lower scale of S class. A class demons would be 99,999 to 30,000. B class I guess would be 29,999 to 10,000. C class 9,999 to 5,000. D class 4,999 to 1,000 and E class 1,000 and below. I think that would actually make more sense, since a single S class is supposed to be able to destroy over 500 A class demons with impunity.