A/N: Oops… :9 I'm sorry. I'm just so used to reading gigantic blocks of texts…

Enwa- I'm soooo sorry! Paragraphing has always been my problem even in primary school! I'll try my best to paragraph! And I have not read any books without paragraphing so I really take my hat off to you if you actually pay attention to the format in books. (I usually ignore it… ehehe…)

Blakraven- Erm… okay… I'll try not to disappoint… I think…

I was not expecting any reviews at all so thanks for taking some of your valuable time to help me improve…

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto because if I did the drawings would be crappy (I can't draw at all to my chagrin…)

Chapter 1: Starting from scratch

Before he blacked out, he noticed the dawn approaching, signalling a new day. Ignoring the bouts of pain shooting through his body, he smiled, embracing the void that was death, knowing that his village was safe…

XXXXXXXXXX Time skip (?) XXXXXXXXXX

He opened his eyes and took note of his surroundings as the world blurred into focus. 'If this is the belly of the death god, it's rather white' he thought, as he tried to move, only to find that he could not. His usually cool and calculating mind short-circuited as he panicked, unhinged by all the events that had happened that day. From the corner of his eye, he saw someone approaching, then doing an about face and leaving. His thoughts immediately returned to their normal working order.

He took in every detail he could and processed the information, finally coming to the conclusion that he had reverted to being a toddler. Not entirely a baby, but still very young, about two to three years of age. He forced himself up shakily, his limbs seeming to disobey him. After what seemed like an eternity, he managed to right himself and glanced around him, noticing that his son was not in the room. He then came to the conclusion that he had somehow absorbed the spirit of his son, sealing the demon into himself and effectively de-aging himself. He flopped down, lamenting his loss before deciding that this was a final gift to him from Naruto to continue protecting the village he so cherished. He sighed once again and let the darkness embrace him once more.

Unbeknownst to baby Minato, the council was deciding what to do with him and that his fate rested in their hands. Unfortunately, things did not seem to be in Minato's favour. "We should kill it before it can attack us again" a merchant voiced his opinion accompanied by sounds of consent and shouts for 'it's' execution. Danzo just sat in his seat, surprisingly silent about the matter, secretly brewing schemes of turning the newly made Jinchuuriki into an emotionless tool, a loyal weapon at his disposal.

"Silence! Wouldn't killing him release the demon and leave it free to destroy the village for real this time? The Yondaime will not be there to seal it again this time around" the Sandaime Hokage bellowed. He looked wearily at the people gathered in the room deciding that he needed to name a successor soon, the lines on his face looking more defined than ever, his grey hair looking bedraggled. They had escaped the nightmare that was Kyuubi but now he found himself in a room filled with corrupted civilians, battling for the life of his now deceased successor's son. He had entered another nightmare, but this was a political one.

"I decree that you are not to speak of this at all and especially not to the younger generation. If anyone in this village speaks of the sealing, the offender will be executed. Understand?" he announced. The civilians all grumbled their assent, not wanting to die. The Sandaime had not been this forceful since he was in his prime and his tone reiterated that he meant business. They were then adjourned, the shinobi half keeping silent, the civilian half whispering and griping among themselves.

Hiruzen Sarutobi also known as the Sandaime Hokage made used Shunshin in a bid to get to the hospital quicker in the event of an attempt on 'Naruto's' life. He strode down the hallways of the hospital, the staff not noticing he was there if that was any evidence of the vast number of casualties they had to tend to. He yanked open the door to ward 490 and swept into the room to find 'Naruto' sleeping peacefully in the cot. He took in the toddler's features, finding the resemblance to his father uncanny with the exception of the whisker marks adorning his cheeks.

He smiled sorrowfully, finding it ironic that Naruto could sleep, not knowing that there had been an attempt to off him, if not politically. He gently picked up the sleeping form and Shunshin'd to an orphanage he had once placed Minato in when he had found the orphan. The familiar feeling of using the Shunshin enveloped his being and moments later, he found himself standing in the middle of a rather well furnished room. He crossed the room to talk to the old matron who was tending to a wound one of her charges had received.

Natsume had worked as a matron in the orphanage for a very long time and was proud to say that she had taken care of the Yondaime himself when he was at the orphanage. She had silvery grey hair that was always pulled severely back into a tight bun when on duty. She had laugh lines framing her mouth and crow's feet branching off from the corners of her eyes. She wore a pink blouse coupled with a grey skirt completed with an apron going over her other apparel, edges of the ribbon peeking out from her wide girth.

All in all, she looked rather grandmotherly and prided herself in seeing the world without bias, always looking from both points of views when a squabble broke out among the orphans she considered her children. The night of the attack had left her with different views of the world after her son and granddaughter were killed on active duty. She was tenderly bandaging the gash on Yuki's hand when the current Hokage in office walked over to her, holding the 'demon child'. She hastily put on her usual warm smile and greeted him, kindly accepting to care for the 'demon child' while secretly coming up with various methods to torture him as retribution for taking away her family members.

Minato woke up to a draft drifting around his body and settling there, chilling him to the bone. His fingers felt icy and he could see his breath steam in front of his face before fading away like a mirage. He took stock of his surroundings and finding himself in an unfamiliar setting once again. There was no blanket covering him and the cot he was in was rotted and looked ready to fall apart at the seams.

He did not recognise the place but there was a little voice nagging in the back of his mind that there was something familiar about the place. He did another sweep of the room and realised that he was in the orphanage he was in when he was a child. He lay down, trying to keep his mind off the deathly cold fingers of winter that was creeping around him, caressing him and leaving him shivering, in need of warmth. As he watched his breath frost in front of his face, he steeled himself for the circus of horrors that had only just begun.

A/N: Is this a little better? Please voice your opinions and point out my flaws. I'll be all too happy to correct it. (Did you notice I forgot the disclaimer in the prologue? I can be so stupidly muddleheaded sometimes and like I said, I am a lazy, fat cat.)