AN: NOTE – Alltariss – This chapter will reveal the nature of the sealing and also discuss the effects of the Kyūbi's attacks, especially the one I created. I've made some changes and fixed a few mistakes, but for the most part it remains the same.
Chapter 5
Good Intentions for Deception
The mood of the council meeting was tense. All the members were exhausted after working day and night to restore the village.
Hiruzen cleared his throat and began to speak.
"As of seven days ago, we the village of Konohagakure was attacked by an unknown shinobi. This shinobi had, in some way summoned the Kyūbi."
Inuzuka Tsume, the Clan Head of the Inuzuka Clan immediately rose to her feet.
"How's that even possible? I've never heard of someone having the ability to summon a Bijū," she exclaimed.
The Sandaime nodded, confirming that he too was at a loss. Even with his vast knowledge, Hiruzen was unable to accurately say who the masked ninja was or could be. At best he only had a sneaking suspicion.
"Whoever that ninja was, he was never seen after Minato engaged in single combat against him. Unfortunately we never found a body, so it is entirely possible that he managed to escape. Nonetheless, we can at least breathe a little easier knowing that the Bijū was sealed in two infant children, and will never be summoned by that man again."
He motioned for the ANBU to bring a table and place the two children carefully on top. Both Naruto and Alto twisted and turned, their eyes gazing at everything in a sense of curiosity and wonder.
Hiruzen sat down in the Hokage's seat, suddenly feeling a wave of exhaustion wash over him. He knew very well that the Bijū was only sealed within Naruto. The other child was found next to the bodies of Minato and Kushina.
The child had no reason to be there. Kushina only had one child, the medics confirmed it. Even more strange is that the boy looks nothing like them. The facial structure didn't match to any Nihon-jin.
Sarutobi closed his eyes and rubbed them gently.
No, it's better that we lie and say that the child was altered as a result from the sealing process.
"Sealed, you say? We all know that Minato was a skilled Fūinjutsu expert, but how secure is the seal? Can we safely say that it won't break or that the Bijū will not possess the children's bodies?" asked Yamanaka Inoichi, the Head of the Yamanaka Clan.
The Sandaime motioned for Jiraiya to come forward and present his judgments on the sealing.
"I examined both children as per Sarutobi-sensei's orders," he began. "The original sealing technique differs from what was used in terms of design and the way it was applied. The process of sealing the Bijū into living containers has happened enough times for me to understand how it should be properly done. Any Bijū whose number of tails is five or more needs to be very carefully sealed."
Jiraiya began to pace round the chamber, hands clasped behind his back. Sarutobi nearly chuckled at how much he seemed to mimic himself when he gave a lecture.
"If they are normally sealed, then the Chakra will eventually 'corrode' the body in which it is held. This usually results in the Jinchūriki(Power of Human Sacrifice) have shorter lifespans. The original seal that Minato was going to use is almost flawless. Instead of sealing the entire power of the Bijū, he would split it in half. By separating the Chakra into Yin and Yang, he could then seal only half the power into a host and the Jinchūriki would not only have better control, but a longer lifespan as well. Over time the missing half would slowly regenerate, which means that the host would have time to adjust and learn how to control the Bijū's power as it grows with him."
"A bold strategy," Shikaku remarked, Head of the Nara Clan. "The Jinchūriki may be weak in the beginning but would get stronger as he ages."
"Exactly, but that's not what happened when Minato actually performed the sealing. You see, Minato wasn't alone. Kushina was with him."
"I see, wasn't Uzumaki-san pregnant? How could she be of any assistance?" Shibi questioned, Head of the Aburame.
"Actually the children that were used to become a host, was the ones that she gave birth to on the night of the attack," Jiraiya replied.
"I see," Shibi murmured in deep thought. "I knew of Uzumaki-san's pregnancy, but I know not who the father is. Do we know who or where the father is?"
"I'm afraid the children's father is unknown. Neither I, nor Hideo-sama knows who the father is. Minato and Kushina were pretty close to each other, so we did a DNA test to see if either was Minato's child, but it returned negative. 'No Match'."
"Then why does the boy look like Minato?" Shikaku questioned.
It was a credit to Jiraiya that he did not show any sign of deception. His years of being in the espionage sect of ninja had served him well.
"I believe the way Naruto looks like is a result of the sealing process," Jiraiya began.
"How so?" Sarutobi asked, showing genuine interest.
He had known that Jiraiya was a skilled soldier, yet he never really knew how good he was at being covert and sly. He attributed it to the man's perverted lifestyle, a life he had lived since youth.
"I'm not entirely sure and I don't want to mess with the seal too much when it's still fresh, but I think Minato sealed a part of himself within the child."
Inoichi snapped his fingers and had a look of realisation. "Of course," he exclaimed. "How else would he ensure the mental stability of the child, if not placing a part of himself inside the boy?"
"And what of the other child?" Shibi asked. "What reason does that child have for looking so different?"
Jiraiya's face was a mixture of confusion and anger. "That's the thing that bothers me the most."
The council all observed the man with interest. Jiraiya was known to be a very easy-going and jovial person. To see him angered was a rare occurrence.
"I think that Kushina may have been in a relationship with a Westerner. It would explain why the child looks unlike any Nihon-jin."
The entire chamber was filled with hushed whispers, each one trying to understand the implications of Jiraiya's theory.
"That can't be right," Sarutobi countered, looking shocked.
"I'm afraid it is Sensei," Jiraiya replied. "It would explain why Minato took care of her, even inviting her to move into his home during her pregnancy."
"Jiraiya's theory is sound," Shikaku stated, gaining everyone's attention. "Relationships between people of Nihon and the West are not looked down upon, but if you do pursue a relationship then either person will have to choose which nation to belong to."
"What do you mean?" Tsume asked looking confused. "I'm not aware of such a thing."
"Either the Westerner or the Nihon-jin will need a change in citizenship," Shikaku explained. "It's an old agreement made between our two nations."
"I see," Shibi spoke, gently adjusting his dark shades. "Since Kushina and this Westerner took their relationship to an intimate level, they would have to decide who would change their citizenship."
Jiraiya nodded and picked up where Shibi left. "Exactly, and I assume that neither one wanted to change their citizenship, so they went their separate ways. Everything would have been fine…"
"Except that Kushina fell pregnant," Sarutobi finished. "Did she try to contact the Westerner?"
"I assume she did, but never received a reply," Jiraiya answered. "Or worse, the man fled as soon as the news reached him."
"Fucking coward," Tsume growled.
"Nevertheless, that is the most likely scenario and the mission records corroborate with my theory."
Jiraiya gazed at each member of the Ninja Council silently asking if anyone had more questions, but found that they were satisfied with the information given. Clearing his throat, Jiraiya prepared to continue on where he left off.
"Both Minato and Kushina were very skilled in Fūinjutsu. After examining the seals I have found that they created a seal that far outclasses anything I've ever seen before, especially when it comes to Jinchūriki. Now forgive me but the next part is a little bit technical, but I'll try to explain it as simple as I can."
Jiraiya stood in the centre of the council chamber next to the children and pointed to a projector screen above the entrance. Hideo clicked a button and the projector beside him flickered on bringing a photograph of Naruto on display. The picture focused on the seal located on the child's abdomen.
"After Minato became an Expert Sealist, I took it upon myself to teach him a variety of specialties that would later define what type of Sealist he would be."
At that moment Uchiha Fugaku, head of the Uchiha clan raised his hand. "What exactly do you mean by specialities?"
Jiraiya acknowledge his question, but his face showed indecision. "It's hard to explain or put it into terms for you and council to understand."
"Why," Fugaku pressed. "We're all Jōnin here. There's no need to dumb any of it down."
The last thing he or anyone expected was for Jiraiya to burst out laughing. He continued to laugh for half a minute before regaining enough control over his senses to answer.
"I don't mean to be insulting, but with the exception of Sarutobi-sensei you and everyone else in this room are no better than an academy student when it comes to Fūinjutsu."
"That's impossible we know way more about Fūinjutsu than any academy student," Inoichi exclaimed.
"Not true, all you did was memorise pictures and what they do. Any student at the academy can do that. You simply know more pictures than they do."
The old sage shook his head in disbelief at the looks the council were giving him.
"Not one of you knows anything about the actual parts that make a seal. I doubt any of you even know how to open any of the seals you know about. You just use them like shuriken, just something to use and throw away, but not really understand."
Sarutobi scratched his beard in thought and soon a thought emerged from the depths of his mind.
"You said that Minato was an Expert Sealist, but what does that mean. Is there some type of grading system among Sealists?"
Jiraiya turned to his teacher and nodded. "All Sealists are graded using a very detailed system. There are seven ranks and within the two highest ranks are a variety of sub ranks."
He leaned against the table and folded his arms. "I am at the highest rank which is Master Sealist, but explaining the grading system isn't important right now."
He cleared his throat. "Back to the topic at hand," he began. "When I graded Minato as an Expert Sealist I then introduced him to several different branches of Fūinjutsu. In the end he decided he wanted to specialise in seals that dealt with space and time."
Jiraiya chuckled as if laughing at some inside joke only he was privy to.
The only reason he wanted to learn more about it was because he wanted to spend less time moving from one place to another and more time with Kushina.
"I expected as much considering that he learnt the Nidaime's Space-Time Ninjutsu. So I gave him my notes on the topic and tutored him on the higher level theory. Unfortunately this tragedy occurred before he could reach the next Sealist rank. Nevertheless, know that he was highly skilled in all areas of Fūinjutsu."
He pointed to the projector screen and once again talked about the seal on Naruto.
"Now this is the seal that's on Naruto's body. The Shishō Fūin was to be applied twice then bonded together with the Hakke no Fūin Shiki, but that didn't happen. A single application of the Shishō Fūin creates four pathways for the Kyūbi's Chakra to flow through. Minato applied the first two seals then Kushina applied the same two seals again. At that point Naruto had sixteen pathways for the Kyūbi's Chakra to flow into his Keirakukei."
He moved to the projector and replaced the picture of Naruto with a blank plastic sheet. With a black marker he soon began to draw diagrams for everyone to see.
"The twin-layered Hakke(Eight Trigrams) Overseal was designed to do a lot of things. At first I assumed that its purpose was to purify the Kyūbi's Chakra so that Naruto can then use it, but that was incorrect. The Overseal was never meant to purify, but rather blend Naruto's and the Kyūbi's Chakras."
Jiraiya drew a circle within a circle.
"The innermost circle represents the Kyūbi," he said, writing the circle with the Kanji for 'fox'. "The outermost circle is Naruto," he continued, writing the Kanji for Naruto's name.
He then drew sixteen equidistant lines from the inner ring till halfway to the outer ring, before sketching small circles at the end of each line. He then connected the small circles to each other in pairs, before drawing another four small circles in between the pairs and the outer ring. He drew a line from two pairs to one of the four newer circles and then finally connected them to the outer ring.
"Imagine that the lines are like pipes that carry Chakra instead of water. The sixteen lines that extend from the Kyūbi are from the four Shishō Fūin seals that were first applied. The pairs of circles are where they connect to the Hakke Overseal. The sixteen individual lines form pairs, creating eight lines. Then those eight lines divide into pairs again to make four lines, and then they connect to Naruto."
He capped the marker and observed the council. To his relief none of them looked lost or confused.
"The sixteen pathways from the Kyūbi send its unfiltered Chakra towards Naruto. The first layer of the Overseal blends the Bijū's Chakra and Naruto's, and then proceeds to the second layer where the blended Chakras are further mixed before finally entering Naruto's Keirakukei."
Jiraiya walked towards the two infants at the centre of the chamber and gazed at Naruto for a moment.
"Now most Jinchūriki have large Chakra Reserves. This is because the Bijū are sealed into them at a young age most of the time, due to the fact that their Keirakukei is still flexible and has room to grow. Naruto is a unique case. His Keirakukei will be forced to expand at a very rapid rate because the seal is perfectly balanced. In the end I predict that Naruto's Chakra Reserves will exceed the level that is typically found in Jōnin before the age of ten."
Many of the council members whispered among themselves at this new revelation.
"And finally we have the Shiki Fūjin. The technique is extremely arcane in nature. This is because the user summons the Shinigami, and to complicate matters both of them gave their lives for it."
"Is that even possible?" Hyūga Hiashi asked, the head of the Hyūga clan. "Actually summoning a deity?"
"Yes," Sarutobi answered him before Jiraiya could. "Only those who sign a contract with the Shinigami will be able to see him. And invoking the technique results in the user's death, in which their soul will be eaten and reside in the belly of the Shinigami for eternity."
He motioned for his student to continue with his explanation.
"The seal that binds the Bijū within Naruto is strong, but it relies on the will of the container to hold the influence of the creature at bay. The issue of Naruto's mental stability is taken care of by the part of Minato that resides within him and the final Overseal that the Shinigami placed on top of the seal that was already there. The Shinigami's seal will degrade over time, but will provide additional protection to keep the Kyūbi from corrupting Naruto."
"What exactly did you mean when you said both of them gave their lives to the Shinigami?" Fugaku interjected. "How does that change the nature of the seal?"
"It means that Minato never split the Kyūbi in half, but sealed the entire Bijū into Naruto. With the seal that the child has, the Bijū's Chakra won't have a corrosive effect as bad as it would have been if the original seal was used. I might even say that the child will live well into his fifties before he succumbs to the corrosion."
Jiraiya bowed to the council and moved to stand near his teacher. The Sandaime raised his hand and silenced the chamber.
"Before any decisions are made we should all listen to Yakushi-san's findings," he suggested.
Hideo stood next to the projector and began to report his discoveries as he opened a folder with a variety of photos.
"Approximately three days ago Sarutobi-sama had brought in two newborn children to the hospital. He requested a private room and placed a full ANBU squad to guard them. He had informed me of their status as Jinchūriki and as such I made sure that proper measures were taken by assigning Hatake Kakashi and Maito Gai to care for them. I examined both children and found that they were perfectly healthy. Size, weight, response to stimuli, everything was as it should be. After that, was when I noticed they both had abilities beyond the norm."
Looking down at the children he collected his thoughts for a few moments. Both Naruto and Alto twisted and turned, their eyes gazing at everything in a sense of curiosity and wonder.
"I'm certain you all recall that during the attack the Kyūbi released a cloud of Chakra over the village. After extensive research and multiple autopsies, I believe I know what it is and how to counter it. I termed this special Chakra that the Bijū created as 'The Corruption'. The Chakra has many effects which depend on what it comes into contact with."
He placed the first photo on the projector to be displayed on screen. It revealed the walls of a house with minor fire damage, but upon closer inspection one could see smears of a blood coloured substance as well.
"If it touches any inanimate object, the Chakra will in most cases simply combust, but sometimes it reverts into a gelatinous form that clings to any surface. If this substance comes into contact with any living object it then induces a variety of conditions. All of which are severe and result in very painful deaths if it is not immediately countered or treated."
Hideo gave a stern look at each member of the council.
"If any of you have weak stomachs, then I suggest you grab a bucket. What I'm about to show you is not pretty."
The next picture was a series of diagrams picturing a group of cells under the heading 'Necrosis'.
"Necrosis is when cells prematurely or are forced to die, and because of the way the cells die the immune system doesn't respond to it very well. Therefore the Necrosis will spread until the patient expires. Conventional medicine such as antibiotics and herbal remedies are useless. At best they will slow the process down. The only way to deal with it is to surgically remove the dead flesh. Doing so will then change the condition from Necrosis to an open wound. After that we can then treat the patient as we normally would, with Chakra Therapy."
He swapped the current slide with the next one. The image revealed the gruesome condition of what appeared to be someone's leg.
"The Corruption is very complex. When it encounters any living tissue it induces Necrosis. This shows a leg that was exposed to the Corruption. As you can see the black area is the flesh that died. In this situation the entire leg was infected. If this was a normal case of necrosis then it would be standard procedure to amputate the leg. Yet the necrosis induced by the Corruption is far from normal. Even with Chakra Therapy the necrosis continued until the patient died."
He paused. The look of failure and guilt could clearly be seen.
"This leg belonged to an eleven year old boy."
Many of the council members shivered. It wasn't the first time they had heard or seen the condition, but it was always dealt with swiftly and at best resulted in temporary relief from the field. To see such a progressed form of it and knowing that it was a child made them feel terrified.
"Necrosis is a tricky thing. It can spread very quickly if you let it. The Corruption that this child was exposed to was quite high and we weren't able to stop its advance. We had to amputate his leg, but the Corruption continued until he died."
The next picture Hideo showed revealed a man that seemed to have most of his skin peeled off.
"This man was unfortunate to have been hit with the Corruption that must have had full contact with his entire body. His skin started to peel away layer after layer making him extremely sensitive and vulnerable to infection from fungi and bacteria. His body swelled and in places like his eyes and mouth were so badly swollen we had to exorcise the flesh immediately to prevent his tongue from choking him or his eyes from exploding. We tried our best but he died before we could begin the Chakra Therapy."
The next photo appeared similar, but the woman's body was severely discoloured with pink to red bloody sections of skin and yellow to brown almost pus-like patches.
"This woman was in her fourth month of pregnancy and we were unable to save her. I'm not sure how, but the Corruption made her contract Necrotizing Fasciitis. Or as most of you would know as the Flesh-eating bacteria syndrome."
The members of the council reeled back in shock. They had seen enough of the disease during the Second and Third Shinobi World War. Many of the poisons used against Konoha's troops resulted in contracting the syndrome.
"I thought we'd seen the last of this. If it weren't for Tsunade, we would have lost a lot of men on the battlefields," Hiruzen commented. Many shook their heads in agreement.
"She died before we could even complete our examination. Most of the information was gleaned from the autopsy. I'm surprised she didn't die sooner considering that the Corruption had liquidised the child within her womb."
Tsume wanted to grab a bucket and puke. Many others felt the same, even to imagine such a thing was too much to bear.
Hideo placed one final picture to display. The patient was a man that appeared to be suffering from Gangrene.
"As you can see the patient has suffered from Necrosis long enough for it to progress to gangrene. His hands and toes are far gone with the 'dry' gangrene, shown by the 'mummified' parts of his body. The brown-yellow patches are the 'wet' gangrene where his blood vessels provide enough moisture for bacteria to grow and spread. Both of these conditions only affect the limbs. The rest of his body has Gas gangrene. From the moment we finished examining him, we knew it was far too late to do anything. The amount of flesh we would need to exorcise would be too much. We unanimously decided to euthanize the patient as painlessly as possible."
Hideo collected the photographs and placed a plastic sheet to draw on. The chamber was silent, not a single person spoke.
"If we didn't rush most of the villagers to the shelters, we would have suffered far more losses. The Corruption has a side-effect on any living thing with higher cognitive functions. It sends them into a frenzy, makes them act in brutal and violent ways. Jiraiya-sama can give his first hand report of his experience with the Corruption."
Jiraiya cleared his throat and continued from where Hideo had left.
"When the Kyūbi unleashed the cloud over Konoha I immediately made my way over as soon as I was able to. A small thread of it had touched my arm; it immediately felt as if my arm was set on fire. The next moment my mind was filled with the desire to do all sorts of terrible things. As long as I killed something it wouldn't matter."
"Wait," Shukaku called out. "If you were hit with the Corruption then how come you never needed to be hospitalised like the others?"
"I can explain that," Hideo stated. "The Corruption is nothing more than Chakra. It maintains a semi solid form because it is in very high quantity and quality."
He looked towards Hiashi and bowed. "I must thank you Hiashi-sama, because if it weren't for a pair of your clansmen then I would never have found a cure."
"Really?!" Hiashi exclaimed.
"A pair of your clansmen came to me as one of them was in the early stages of the plague. I examined him and confirmed that he was indeed infected. I asked the clansman that brought his sick friend to tell me what was happening within his body using the Byakugan. He told of the Corruption within the patient's Keirakukei, and that the patient's Chakra Reserves were depleting themselves to wipe out the foreign presence. It was only when the Corruption left the Chakra Veins and dispersed itself into the flesh that the necrosis started to set in. At that point I realised that the necrosis was not the primary cause of death, but instead the Corruption's takeover of the Keirakukei."
Hideo drew multiple pictures of cups, split into two columns. Each column had ten cups and in one column he circled the cups making five pairs. He then drew a line from each pair to one cup on the other column, leaving five cups untouched.
"The Corruption is Chakra-based and so it is actually very easy to counter. Imagine if Chakra can be measured like water. If one cup of the Corruption is poured on you, it will take two cups of your Chakra to cancel it out. This is why so many succumbed to the plague, because they ran out of Chakra to flush the Corruption out of their system."
He turned off the projector and moved to stand near Jiraiya.
"That's why the number of ninja killed by the Corruption was much lower than the civilians. They never had the Chakra Reserves to resist it. The Corruption had first overridden their minds which caused them to be excessively violent until their Chakra gives out. The next stage is the various forms of Necrosis that I presented."
Hiruzen stood up and addressed the Council.
"The Council will have a fifteen minute recess before resuming. I think we could all use the time to collect our thoughts."
The Council chambers emptied out save for four people. Danzō stood up and walked towards the two children.
"I wonder if it is truly wise to not inform the village of Naruto's heritage. It may alleviate the pain of being a Jinchūriki," he asked.
Jiraiya wiggled his fingers above both the children eliciting giggles of laughter from both of the boys.
"If Naruto's heritage is leaked out to Iwa, he'll be killed within the week. And to make it worse he's a host, they may even kidnap him and turn him into a weapon to use against us."
"I can't believe we actually pulled off the scheme," Sarutobi said as he rubbed his eyes tiredly. "The only part that confuses me is that you mentioned that Kushina's mission records actually support your theory."
A section of the wall quivered and Shinichi's clone appeared. Hideo was the only one to jump in surprise.
I hate it when he does that.
"It was something that I was able to find when I ensured that there would be no contradictory evidence to counter Jiraiya's claim."
Jiraiya saluted Ishikawa before speaking.
"According to the records Kushina was hired to protect an art gallery in Tōkyō for a month. And as you all know the embassies of the foreign nations are all located in Tōkyō. The records show that she found no conflict during the mission, so she was essentially on a paid vacation."
Danzō tapped his cane on the floor to gather their attention.
"The only people who know about Minato's relationship with Kushina are in this room, with the exception of Shikaku and Inoichi. So there isn't a great need to worry right now."
"That's what worries me," Sarutobi sighed. "If we all die before the boys are ready to stand on their own, then the truth will never be known."
"Not true," Ishikawa countered. "If you look at Minato's mission record you will find that our Daimyō hired him to deliver a message to the Shogun and the Emperor. And they both reside in Tōkyō. Minato was in Tōkyō along with Kushina for at least a week. We can assume that that was probably the time when Naruto was conceived."
"It's certainly plausible and it matches the medical records, but it's still not solid." Hideo stated.
"I know," the Kageken replied. "That's why Danzō, Jiraiya, and I wrote the truth of it all and included our clever deception as well into a scroll. It has our three signatures, but we would need both yours and Sarutobi's to make it ironclad."
The Sandaime nodded. "Consider it done. Shikaku and Inoichi should probably add theirs as well."
Hiruzen rubbed his eyes again.
This is going to be one hell of a mess.
"I'm certain that I'm going to hell for what we're being forced to do."
The three other occupants looked at the Sandaime with varying looks of sympathy.
"What we do tonight will haunt us every time we see these children get abused. To make matters worse, we'll be forced to turn a 'blind eye' to it all. If the people hate them, we can play it off saying that they were simply born at the right time for the sealing. No one will suspect anything, but if we, the higher ups show an unusual interest in their wellbeing. Well, it may tip off any spies that there is more to them than meets the eye. We simply have to treat them as weapons until they are old enough to be recruited and are well within our military jurisdiction."
Jiraiya saluted Shinichi before speaking.
"Perhaps it is best that all documents regarding these children be kept under lock and key. Code Black Security. The only people with clearance will be those directly involved. It will solidify the false reason that their parents were traitors. I will then leave the village and meet with my contacts; I'll spread information that we have Jinchūriki and that even as newborns they are capable of wiping out scores of people. It's really pushing the limits of bullshit, but it is the best I can do."
Shinichi nodded before giving his own input about the situation.
"It's the best we can do for now. The children will have to be placed in one of the orphanages, preferably one closest to the Pleasure District. The area is less prone to spies, no high class people go there unless it's to the House of Pleasures. And even then they come by palanquin to avoid the sight of the slums."
"Agreed," Hiruzen said. He motioned for them to return to their places and prepare for the next half of the meeting.
The council members returned from their recess looking calmer after the events of the first half.
"The council is now back in session. I believe that Yakushi-sama has some more information on the children," Hiruzen began, giving Hideo the chance to speak again.
"Both children display abilities that are beyond normal human standards. When I drew some blood for testing, I noticed that the puncture marks had healed instantly. There was no scarring at all to even show they were pricked with a needle."
Jiraiya interrupted before the hospital director could continue.
"I had mentioned before that Minato had sealed the entire Bijū into Naruto, but that is a half-truth. The reality is that all of the beast's Chakra resides in Naruto, but the mind, the consciousness, has been sealed in the other child, Alto."
The entire chamber burst into whispers. The history of demon-vessels was documented poorly, but there was enough information to know that splitting the beast from its power was never done before.
"Does that mean the child is simply the Kyūbi in human form?" Fugaku asked.
"No!" Hideo shouted. "Absolutely not!"
"Naruto's Keirakukei is already undergoing expansion as Jiraiya predicted. When I examined Alto, something disturbing was discovered. The boy has no Keirakukei, no Chakra."
"That's impossible! Everything has Chakra even animals and plants," Hiashi exclaimed. Activating his Byakugan he focused all his attention on Alto.
Hideo continued on with his report taking into account Hiashi's outburst.
"As I'm sure you've found out, the boy has no Keirakukei. I asked a Hyūga to look at him and he could not find any pathways for Chakra to travel. I then hypothesised that perhaps all of his Chakra was flowing into and saturating his body. If all the Chakra the body generates was to constantly flow into your blood, flesh, and bones, then it would explain why he heals just as fast as Naruto. So I asked for an Uchiha to examine him. While their eyes cannot see Chakra as detailed as the Byakugan, they can see the colours and general flow, but even they said that they could see not any Chakra."
Both Fugaku and Hiashi looked horrified at the idea that there existed such a child whose body held no Chakra at all.
"Alto, according to all our research about Chakra, shouldn't even be alive let alone exist. He's nothing short of a living miracle. I may not know how this is possible, but there is no doubt in my mind that both of the children are connected in some way. Jiraiya examined Alto for any seal markings and found none, not anywhere on his body. It is my firmest recommendation that if they are placed in an orphanage or are adopted, that they are to be together."
The next few minutes of the council meeting was spent deliberating over what would be the best course of action to take. A few more minutes went by before Hiruzen stood and called for silence.
"I believe the council will agree with me when I suggest that they be placed in an orphanage. I doubt that any of us have neither time nor resources to not only raise and care for them, but keep a strict watch on their behaviour at all times. As an added precaution, I hereby decree that no person of their generation is to be told the truth of their status. Failure to obey will be seen as an act of treason and any law breakers will be punished as such."
For a new law to be passed during times of relative peace, it is required that the law be passed by majority vote. The Kyūbi attack was still fresh in the minds of the people, and as such the village was under a state of Martial Law. When under Martial Law the Hokage has the power to create and enforce laws without the need of the voting process. The council members agreed with Hiruzen's judgment and each of them signed their names onto a scroll to show their agreement and to keep an official record of the law.
Hideo then carried the two children back to the hospital until the papers for their release into the custody of an orphanage was finalised. Hiruzen then proceeded to address other matters of importance.
"This attack has left us weakened. We need to spend quite a bit of money to restore the village to the way it once was. I will request the Daimyo for a temporary increase in our budget for a while, but even so the attack has no doubt turned away many from travelling here. As such we will have to provide some sort of incentive. Does anyone have any suggestions?"
"I have an idea," said Homura. "We could create a Civilian Council in which the members have some authoritative powers. Their powers will obviously revolve around civilian concerns such as tourism and trade. As an added bonus they will have a voice in the Shinobi Council. While they may discuss matters of military nature alongside us, it is ultimately our decision. We still have the final say."
Hiruzen nodded and looked to the other members for any objections. There were none.
"I see that no one objects to the idea. Homura, Koharu, I leave the implementation of the Civilian Council to the both of you. Use whatever resources you feel are necessary to get it running as fast as possible. I don't wish to be a burden on our Daimyo."
The rest of the meeting was spent with each member giving their general report concerning their respective clans and assigning missions.
For the first time since the attack Hiruzen stepped through the doors of his home.
Biwako would have been having dinner with me now.
Walking towards the kitchen he saw that on the dining table was his favourite food. Hijiki and sardine fish balls. They were cover with a plastic sheet and had a small note attached to it.
I know that you've been working hard teaching Minato what it takes to be a good leader, so I made your favourite dishes.
Love, Biwako.
The food was already spoiled after being untouched for a week. Hiruzen cursed himself; tears ran down across his face even though he told himself he wouldn't cry.
Dragging himself to the bedroom, he laid down without bothering to change his clothes. Tonight would be to first of many lonely, sleepless nights.
Jiraiya packed his travelling supplies within a scroll.
Minato would kill me if he knew what we have done, but I promise to do whatever it takes to make sure he survives.
He shook his head, clearing out all thought of regrets.
"Yosh! I still have a book to be written and plenty of beautiful women to immortalise in the pages of literature."
Passing through the red gates of Konoha, Jiraiya walked forward with renewed strength and resolution.
Shimura Danzō calmly drank the tea that was prepared by his servants. Shinichi's clone sat across from him, calmly reading the scroll that lay before him.
"If this is true then Orochimaru is far more dangerous than we originally thought," Shinichi commented.
Danzō gave a long sigh before replying. "His experiments, which most ended in failure, are still dangerous. It appears that he has achieved a way of extending his life and has perfected his Cursed Seal."
Shinichi clenched his fists.
Damn that bastard! Even now he still causes problems for us, and to hear that he's part of a terrorist group hell bent on capturing the Bijū.
"Keep in contact with him. At best it will let us keep an eye on his movements. Make deals if you must to solidify the false animosity between Sarutobi and yourself. I'm sure you can come up with a believable lie to convince him."
Danzō nodded and signalled his Root guard to make the proper arrangements.
"It appears we are no longer beneath the sun's light."
"Then we shall fight in the shade," Shinichi whispered, fading away into darkness.
AN: NOTE – Alltariss – Hopefully the new chapter sizes are much better for people to read then before.