Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
-A Testament of Things that Never Will-
Kakashi's hands shook as he read through the file. He and his team had returned to Konoha in the dead of night only for the Hokage to allow them a short sleep to recuperate. He had spared a passing glance and questioning look at the girl whom Yuri had been carrying but didn't push the issue, the haggard look on Naruto's face compelling him to give them their reprieve.
Kakashi had stayed behind and, when he and the Hokage were the only one's in the office, he said, "Yuri told me something...unbelievable."
The elderly man's face didn't change from its serious expression. "So," he said in all but a whisper, "he told you."
Kakashi immediately stood straighter. He was quiet for several minutes, processing all the information that he had. Finally, he reached a point that he had to ask, "Yuri said that you could demonstrate that he was telling the truth?"
"Yes," the old Sarutobi answered. He reached down to a drawer of his desk and Kakashi felt a pulse of chakra and heard a click. "The drawer," the old man explained, "is rigged to set fire to anything inside it if it is forced open." He reached inside and pulled out a file. It was thin and looked relatively new.
The Hokage handed to file to the Jonin and said, "This is Yuri's file. It has the information that you seek."
And here he was, reading over the many medical files that Yuri had. There were blood analyses, several debriefing interviews, reports from a medic-nin, Keiko Hashimoto, and a single report from Inoichi Yamanaka. Kakashi found it harder and harder to breathe with each word he read and his doubts of what Yuri had told him were scrapped away. He hadn't fully believed the man and took a suspicious look on the revelation the man had revealed to him those few days ago.
He collapsed back into the small couch that was in the Hokage's office, his mind a rush with emotions. Relief that Yuri had told him such a coveted truth, horror at the world that Yuri came from, shame from the unspoken implication Yuri had said about him and his treatment of his team in Yuri's timeline, fear of the future and the monstrous enemies who had yet to show themselves, confusion as to how Yuri came to be in their world, and anger at Yuri for keeping this from him for so long.
The man was his friend, one of his best, yet he hadn't told him such a world-changing secret. But, even as his anger mounted into a fury, his analytic mind slowly beat it down. It made sense that Yuri wouldn't say anything to Kakashi, he would be hard pressed to believe the man, despite how much he trusted Yuri, and he was most likely on a gag-order from the Hokage. Slowly his anger died down to a smolder and he worked his way to a new worry.
If these enemies were as powerful as Yuri made them out to be then both he and Yuri would need to start upping their training. His mind started down the path of making a schedule but he forced it back on track. He read and reread the file before he stood and placed it gently down on the Hokage's desk. In the file had been an abbreviated history of Yuri and Kakashi felt humbled by the many sacrifices the man had and continued to make.
"You are a good friend, Kakashi," the old man said. "You are one of the few whom Yuri trusts."
Kakashi looked over his shoulder just before he left the room. "He is one of the few I trust," Kakashi replied.
-A Testament of Things that Never Will-
Naruto stalked the halls of the hospital, impatience and worry hurrying his step. He had been taking by a medic-nin the second he enter the hospital six hours ago and the shinobi spent the last two of those hours asking him what felt like a thousand questions and poked and prodded nearly every part of him. His healing factor and the Kumo kunoichi had taken care of most of the damage he had suffered in the fight which had happened a week ago and the medic-nin had been fascinated by his ability. The man had even proposed cutting Naruto down the arm and measuring the rate of healing.
Needless to say, he was having none of that and left the man in the hospital room. He would probably get a scolding by Kakashi about leaving before the medic-nin was down with him but he had more pressing matters to worry about. For the past week he had been in and out of consciousness but he had always felt a constant presence near him. That little girl who had been with the bandits had been with him since he had saved her and he owed it to her to make sure she was alright.
He turned a corner and saw a nurse come running down the hall with several shinobi in tow. Curious, he followed and found the small girl he had saved with a scalpel in her hands hold up in one of the hospital rooms. Several people were in the room, all of them had their hands up and were attempted to settle the child down. She had a terrified look in her eyes and her hands shook slightly.
Naruto bullied his way into the room and when the girl saw him she immediately ran to him. She crashed into him with a force that almost knocked him down and he instinctively slid one of his feet back to keep his balance. He looked down at the girl, the room having gone perfectly quiet. She clenched to the white hospital gown that he wore and tears streamed from her eyes. If not for her completely expressionless face she would have looked the epitome of a relieved child.
Naruto smoothed out the girl's dark red-hair as he said a few things to calm her down. Kakashi had told him that he thought the girl's hair was black when he first took her to the medic-nin but it turned out that it was just so dirty and matted that its true color had been covered. When the Kumo kunoichi had returned with the sleeping girl, clean and warm, her true hair color had been revealed.
Blue eyes stared into black and Naruto was taken aback when he saw the clear and desperate need for attention. For love. He knelt down and took the girl into his arms and, even with him comforting her, it took the girl twenty minutes to let the nurses and doctors to finally look her over. They came up with the same conclusions the Kumo kunoichi did.
"Naruto Uzumaki," a commanding voice said and caused the medical staff to jump slightly.
Naruto glanced to the door, unfazed by the voice, and saw the old Hokage come walking into the room. He smiled and nodded to the man.
Hiruzen nodded back and said, "I was attempting to visit a Genin who had recently returned from a trying mission only to find that he had left his examination quite abruptly."
"I had other things to be doing," Naruto replied with a smirk on his face.
The old man came closer to Naruto and in turn the small girl who sat on the hospital bed next to the young blonde. Naruto rose and allowed the man to take his chair and the Hokage nodded his thanks as he sat down. Naruto watched the girl flinch away from the man and he placed his hand on her shoulder. She looked at him, questioning and fearful.
"This is Hiruzen Sarutobi," Naruto whispered to the girl like he was telling her a secret. "He watched after me when I was your age. He won't hurt you."
The girl stared at the old man for some time, suspicion clear in her eyes. After some time she slowly reach toward the Hokage and hesitated just before she touched his hand.
"Hello," the old man said in a soft voice that made him sound kind and accepting. "It is nice to meet you."
She nodded slowly.
Naruto and the old man talked about nothing in general for a while and finally the old Sarutobi got to the point he had come for. "Kakashi and Yuri have given me their report. They also told me their conclusions about this girl," he paused and Naruto saw sorrow flash across the man's eyes. "The council has been informed and will be meeting soon to decide what we should do with her. They will want her to be present for the meeting."
Naruto nodded and a pulse of anxiety passed through him. He wanted to see what the Council would do with the girl and he had a plan ready if they did anything that he disagreed with and while he hated using the girl in this manner he had to see what the people who lead him were capable of. He had to see with his own two eyes if the people of Konoha had the ability to damn one person, to turn from what was right and just, for the sake of power and their standing in the world. He knew what he had to do if they took the wrong path but he could only hope that he had the courage to actually do it.
-A Testament of Things that Never Will-
Yuri took in the breath-taking sight of the village of Konoha from his vantage point on the Hokage Monument. The village was a flurry of activity and he watched the many people scurry around the streets. He watched street vendors hawk their wares, children running around the roads, and the procession of a wedding party among the hundreds of other things that were happening in the village. A breath brought the smell of fresh air and the promise of rain and the slight breeze that had started spoke of a thunderstorm that would assault the village that night.
He felt a presence behind him but he didn't have to look to know who it was. There was only one person who could be looking for him at this time and he allowed the person to seat themselves next to him.
Kakashi had a pained look in his eye and the man bowed his head slightly. "Forgive me," he said. "I didn't believe you when you told me about yourself and for that I am sorry."
"Nothing to forgive," Yuri replied and looked up at the blue sky. "It is one hell of a story, one that I certainly wouldn't believe if all the evidence wasn't before me."
"Still," the man muttered, "I should have trusted you more. I should have known that you wouldn't lie to me, but I didn't. I questioned you and I showed myself how little trust I had placed in you. You're supposed to be my best-friend, damn it, and I couldn't bring myself to believe you even then."
"Kakashi," Yuri said sternly drawing the man's attention to him, "I don't blame you nor do I consider our friendship hurt. As I said, the story was a hard pill to swallow and you had every right to not believe it. You do now and that is all that matters."
"But-"
"No buts. You are the best damn friend that I have ever had," the black-haired Jonin said. "Then and now. Anyways, we have other matters to worry about at the moment."
"The girl," Kakashi said. "The Council will want to place her into a breeding program and Naruto will be dead before he allows that."
"I will be too," Yuri admitted. "I won't allow them to do that to a child or anyone. I could care less if it is for the good of Konoha. Power and standing built on the sacrifice of the innocent is monstrous and distended to wither and die. It is up to the village as a whole to become more powerful, not a little girl who is the last of her family."
The silver-haired Jonin nodded. "True but what can we do?"
"Well, we could always-" he told Kakashi his plan and wasn't surprised when the man agreed with him fully. The man was always looking to protect the innocent, even if he had to sacrifice himself to do it.
Just as they finished ironing out their plan a soft step signaled the arrival of another shinobi. An ANBU stepped toward them and bowed. "The Council requests your presence," the woman said.
Yuri noted the cat mask the ANBU wore and answered, "About time."
-A Testament of Things that Never Will-
Naruto swallow and took a fake interest in the door to the Council Chamber. He and the little girl had been waiting for the past twenty minutes to be called in and his nerves were getting the better of him.
"Amazing," a familiar voice said behind him, "you could face off against a hundred opponents bent on taking your head but a simple Council meeting has you stressing."
He turned to see Yuri and Kakashi walking toward him.
"Give him some credit, Kakashi," Yuri said, "he is the first Genin to be called to attend a Council meeting in over thirty years. I would be nervous too."
Naruto smirked, suppressing a shudder of his nerves. He wasn't worried about the meeting as much as what he would do with what the Council decided. He stretched his arms and replied, "Give me a fight any day, I at least have some experience in those."
Kakashi's eye squinted slightly, an indication that he was smiling, and said, "Relax. Answer any questions that they directly ask you, don't speak unless asked to, and if you aren't sure about something refer it to Yuri or I."
Naruto nodded and about jumped out of his skin when the doors clicked open. An ANBU stepped out and said, "The Council will see you all now."
Taking a deep breath, Naruto entered the Council Chamber.
-A Testament of Things that Never Will-
Hiruzen took his seat at the head of the Council and took a quick note of those attending. To his right were the Shinobi representatives. Closest to him was Hiashi Hyuga, Head of the Hyuga clan. Hiashi was a calm and controlled man who was fair in his judgments but had a tendency to favor clans over civilians and non-clan shinobi.
Next was Shikaku Nara, the Jonin Commander of Konoha and also a member of the prestigious Ino-Shika-Cho squad. The man was the smartest person Hiruzen knew but also one of the laziest. Inoichi Yanamaka sat next to the man. Part of the same squad and being skilled in his clan's mental based jutsu, the man was always calm and had a analytic nature similar to Shikaku. The final member of the famous squad, Choza Akimichi, was a kind and gentle man who made decisions on morals and not whether it would benefit the village or not.
After the Akimichi came the only female of the Shinobi Council, Tsume Inuzuka. A tough woman who could be impatient and wild, Tsume maintained a pack mentality and most often voted for what will benefit the village and her clan. Shibi Aburame came next and was the last to sit at his right. The man was quite, cautious by nature, and took in all the information. He only asked questions that he felt were important enough to need to answer and if the information was not provided he would withhold his judgment until the time that he was given the information.
The last of the Shinobi representative sat behind Hiruzen and was part of the Elder Council. Danzo Shimura was a snake in the grass war-hawk. He would always vote to make the village stronger, regardless of how this would happen, and was vicious in his politics. Also making up the Elder Council were Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane. Both of them had been part of Hiruzen's Genin squad and were both more militant than he was comfortable with.
The rest of the Council was made up of the Civilian Council a collection of people voted into power by the people. Most of these people were merchants or leaders of prominent guild but some were there with the drive to help the civilians and maintain a stance of power, something that was a constant battle in a shinobi village.
Hiruzen looked over all these people in a second and grimaced a little at the idea of the debate that was about to take place. He nodded to an ANBU that stood near the large doors across the room from him and said, "Call for Kakashi Hatake, Yuri Karasu, Naruto Uzumaki, and the young girl that is with them."
The ANBU went through the doors and when she returned a moment later the people he had called for came in behind her. He studied the blank faces of the shinobi and felt a twinge of pride strike through his growing concern for the outcome of the meeting. None of his shinobi looked fazed despite being called upon by the Council and, in fact, they looked more unimpressed than anything. Even Naruto had managed to pull off a convincing facade that had Hiruzen wondering if the boy was nervous for the meeting or not.
"Thank you for coming," he addressed the shinobi. "It has come to the attention of the Council that this child whom you found in the midst of a bandit camp might be the last surviving member of the lost Kanjo clan. Since it was both Kakashi-san and Yuri-san who proposed the idea, I and the Council would like to hear your reasoning."
Kakashi looked to Yuri and the man nodded. The black-haired Jonin stepped forward and said, "I am Yuri Karasu, Jonin of Konoha. I have a mild interesting in past and present shinobi clans and as such have studied them in a small amount of detail. By no means am I an expert but I do know of the most famous. The Kanjo clan was renowned for their ability to, for the lack of a better word, push their emotions onto others. Reports of this happening describe it as a slight feeling in the back of the person's head that slowly builds to something greater.
"Back during the Warring States Period, the Kanjo clan mostly kept to themselves but they did enter some battles. During one such battle the Kanjo clan was allied with another clan, the Senju clan." He paused, knowing that this information made the Kanjo clan connected to one of the major clans that founded Konoha. Some muttering rose between the council members but it faded when Yuri started to speak again. "The reports that I read were written by Butsuma Senju, the father of the Shodai Hokage, and said that the Senju were outnumbered three-to-one. They had lost all hope in victory but, suddenly, they felt their hope return to them. They fought with a vigor that none knew they possessed and, in the end, won that battle. Butsuma wrote that if it wasn't for the Kanjo clan's aid they would have all died.
"This information is important and was the thing that made me suspect that the girl was part of the Kanjo clan due to the feeling that Naruto Uzumaki reported to me after his battle with some missing-nin."
"Naruto Uzumaki," Hiashi said, "could you describe this feeling?"
The boy stepped forward, the small girl trailing behind him, unwilling to leave his side, and said, "I was in a position where my opponent was about to rip open my chest cavity to bath in my blood. I was too injured to move and I thought that I was going to die but hope started to build inside of me for a reason that I couldn't explain. That hope was the only reason that I mustered the strength to win that fight."
Choza crossed his arms and muttered, "Sounds similar to what Butsuma wrote down in his notes. I can see why Yuri-san made the conclusion that he did."
"It may be similar to what was described in the Senju's notes," Hiashi muttered, "but can we truly conclude that this girl is part of the Kanjo clan on this information alone?"
"Why not?" a civilian councilman questioned. The man was wire thin with a smattering of grey throughout his black hair. He locked his beady eyes onto the Hyuga head and said, "How much would we lose if we put this girl into the Clan Restoration Program?" The man picked up a folder, opened it, and pulled out some papers. He sorted through them until he got to what he wanted and stated, "This is the conclusion that Ryouske-sensei, the doctor who oversaw the girl's medical treatment, came to. 'The female child is vastly malnourished, making her physical condition strained and stunted, and her psychological state is abysmal. She shows signs of extreme paranoia, distrust, some antisocial tendencies, and, based on how she has so quickly bonded to one Naruto Uzumaki, she undoubting has reactive attachment disorder. These are only a few of the many psychological issues that this child will have to deal with whether in therapy or in her own way. As for her biological readiness, which I was asked to look into by the Hokage, if she gains some weight and undergoes some surgeries for damage done to her, she would be able to start producing offspring as soon as three months.'"
The Council Member placed the paper back into the folder and continued, "If you wish to read Ryouske-sensei's notes yourselves they can be found in the folder for this meeting. As the sensei has made note of, the girl would be ready in three months if the necessary surgeries were done. I ask the Council, is it not worth the chance of this child being part of the Kanjo clan and place her into the Clan Restoration Program? If she isn't part of the clan and has no kekkei genkai then we are simply out for the monetary sum for the medical expenses and nothing more but if she is found to be part of the clan then we will have gained a great power for Konoha. Also, this would look good to other clans whom have not sworn loyalty to a village as Konoha would be able to boast bringing a clan back from the brink of extinction."
"You can't seriously be proposing to place this child into the restoration program in the off chance that she is part of the Kanjo clan, Hisato-san," Inoichi said, his tone stern. He thumbed through the report and said, "It says here that the doctors are confident that she is only eight years of age. You would force a child into the program who has already been through so much on the chance that it would make Konoha stronger?"
Hiruzen stopped himself from agreeing with Inoichi. At the moment he wanted to see where everyone in the Council stood in this matter and he wouldn't risk swaying anyone with his thoughts. If the Council voted to have the child put into the Clan Restoration Program he would do so but with that stance in his mind he couldn't bring himself to look at Naruto. The boy had grown protective of the child and if the Council voted to put her into the program he feared the Genin might do something he would regret.
The old Hokage looked to the civilian section of the Council and watched Hisato acknowledge Inoichi's question. He knew that Hisato was only the puppet in play for Councilman Izo. Arashi Izo, a man ten years Hiruzen's senior, was a plump man whose body had been heavily affected by time. His face was a mess of wrinkles and his skin was like leather but while his body had begun to fail him his mind was as sharp as a katana. He was a merchant who had been elected to the Council forty years ago and had been a pain in Hiruzen's backside since. The man was cold and hard, like his namesake, and was willing to do anything to make his standing stronger in the village. Hiruzen wasn't sure how the man would benefit from the small girl being placed into the restoration program but the man had his ways.
Councilman Hisato took out a piece of paper from another folder he had, read it over quickly, and said, "I would. Four years ago we lost one of Konoha' strongest clans to a terrible incident and that along with the destruction the demon fox brought down upon us has brought Konoha to a terrible state. We are far weaker than we were before and this has the potential to more solidify our position in the Elemental Nations. This is something that we simply must do, even if it is just on chance alone."
"Strength built on the sacrifice of a child," Shikaku mumbled from his position.
"During the previous war we were constantly having children as young as six enter the battlefield," Shibi Aburame said much to Hiruzen's surprise. "Kakashi Hatake was one such child and he performed to a level above what was expected of him. How would this situation be any different?"
"She's just a child," Inoichi growled, "and we are not at war. Sometimes extreme measures must be taken but this is not the time."
Tsume leaned back in her chair, her arms folded, and said, "When would it be the time? We shinobi are expected to do our all for Konoha, even die for it if we have too. If this child can aid Konoha by baring children then that is what she will do."
"You all seem to be forgetting something," Choza said, the large man looking uncomfortable with the full attention of the Council turned to him. "This child isn't a kunoichi of Konoha. She is a small girl who was rescued from the ruins of a bandit came. We cannot force this child to do anything that she doesn't wish."
The room went silent and Hiruzen mentally applauded the Akimichi for his insight. The thought of gaining a new clan and a powerful one at that had made the rest of the council forget that the child in question was not associated with Konoha. Even he, the Professor, had gotten caught up listening to the other council members arguments that he had forgotten this point.
The old Sarutobi glanced at Naruto and the girl in question. The child whose name was currently unknown due to the girls seeming inability to speak or fear of doing so looked stoic, her face a face of indifference. Naruto had a similar face on but the old man could just pick up on some relief that flashed through his eyes. However, that relief changed to a well hidden anger when an old voice, familiar to Hiruzen, spoke from behind him.
"That won't be an issue," Danzo said. "The child became a Konoha citizen a little after she went under her physical examination."
"You have overstepped your bounds, Danzo," Inoichi snapped at the man. The blonde man grabbed the folder that sat before him and said, "There is none of the proper paperwork in this girl's file and a vote has not been taken, as is the policy when a new clan is being incorporated into Konoha."
Hiruzen didn't turn to look at the bandage wrapped man, he didn't have to. He could feel the condescending smirk, the one that told everyone that he had outplayed them and there was nothing they could do about it. "There was an emergency vote taken," the man countered. "For a clan to join the village both the Shinobi and the Civilian Councils are called on to vote since it affects both the shinobi forces and the citizens of Konoha. There must be a majority vote for the clan to join and with the full support of the Civilian and Elder Councils there was little point in contacting the Shinobi Council. We didn't think this would be an issue since all we were doing was giving the child a home."
"You rat," the Yamanaka head growled.
Choza frowned. "The child may be a citizen now but this changes very little" he said. "She isn't a shinobi and as such she cannot placed into the Clan Restoration Program."
"It has been a long time since that program has been enacted so I took the liberty of looking at it before coming to the meeting," Hisato said, taking the focus of the council back onto himself. He picked up a piece of paper off the table in front of him and read, "Should a clan become a part of Konoha and should this clan be or become close of annihilation they will have the Clan Restoration Program to support them and bring them back to full strength. Should the clan not wish to enter the program they cannot be forced unless they are shinobi of the village."
"Again," the large Akimichi said, "this is only the case if the individual is a shinobi and this child is not."
Hiruzen listened to the council members argue over that point and he slowly went numb as his mind worked out Danzo's scheme. He turned to look back at the man and saw a satisfied smirk on the man's face. Danzo had them in a checkmate but none of the people in the room besides he and the war-hawk knew it.
The plan relied on old knowledge, outdated laws, and the support of Arashi Izo. It would have been a simple thing of having the child made a civilian but Danzo went through the effort of bringing her in as a clan which was considerably harder. However, this was a critical part of the plan and he must have struck a deal with Izo, who controlled the majority of the Civilian Council, to acquire the vote needed. Hiruzen could only guess at which Council members Danzo and Izo must have threatened to have the vote go through.
With the girl entering the village as a clan then old laws did the rest of the work. If a clan is brought into the village as a clan, with full rights, they must provide an input to the shinobi forces. With the child being the only member of her clan, the law forced her to join the shinobi forces, and with that it also gave the Council the ability to force the child into the Clan Restoration Program.
Hiruzen thought over the plan several times and each time he came to the same result. he tried to find a flaw but there was none. His hands were tied and that forced him to take a side. Would he be opposed to the child entering the program or would he support it? To force the child would be a horrific thing, something that he would never be able to forgive himself of, but if the child truly was of the Kanjo clan than the power that would come with it would almost make up for the loss of the Uchiha clan. He frowned, his heart heavy. Sometimes he hated being the Hokage.
He cleared his throat, quieting the room. "The child was brought in as part of a clan and to maintain that position her clan must provide support to the shinobi forces. As she is the only member of her clan she will have to become a kunoichi of Konoha. This makes any argument that she is not a shinobi of Konoha a mute point since at this moment," he glanced at Naruto and prayed that the boy would be able to forgive him, "I grant the child the rank of Genin. With this done the Council must vote on whether we will place the child into the Clan Restoration Program or not."
The room stayed quiet and Hiruzen took the time to study the effects that his statement had made. Of the Civilian Council only a few looked like they were hiding shame and he concluded that they were the ones that Danzo or Izo had threatened or coerced into voting for their way. The Shinobi Council was more guarded with only Choza having a sour look on his face.
The old man took in a breath and looked where he had been avoiding his gaze, fearful at what he might see. Kakashi and Yuri were blank slates and the child who was at the center of this meeting had an oddly expressionless look. As he looked closer he noticed a hint of fear in her eyes and they looked at the blond boy next to her as if the Genin could do something to save her from the inevitable. He shifted his eyes to Naruto and was impressed and slightly proud that his face was unreadable. The boy must have sensed something because his eyes locked onto his.
They stared at each other for a few moments and a burning anger and cold disappointment flashed in Naruto's eyes. The emotion was so fierce that Hiruzen was forced to look away. The boy was justified in his anger but he didn't understand Hiruzen's position. He was the Hokage and as such he had to sometimes make decisions that made him sick, all for the benefit of Konoha. One day the boy would understand and when he did Hiruzen hoped that he could find a way to live with himself.
Hiruzen swallowed and called for a vote and wasn't surprised that the whole of the Civilian and Elder Councils voted for the child to enter the program. This meant that only one of the Shinobi Council had to vote for the child being placed into the program for it to be a two-thirds vote, the necessary majority for the vote to pass.
All attention turned to Hiashi who took it without batting an eye. "I vote no," he said in a stern tone.
This answer didn't surprise Hiruzen. Hiashi Hyuga was a man dedicated to his clan. He would do anything to keep it strong and if another clan were to become powerful in the village it would pose a threat to the dominating presence the Hyuga clan maintained. He looked to the rest of the Shinobi Council and awaited their votes.
"No," Shikaku muttered.
"No," Inoichi said.
Choza swallowed and shook his head. "No."
Tsume frowned and silence occupied the room. She studied the girl whose fate they were determining and a low growl echoed deep in her throat. "Against my better judgment, I vote no as well."
Tension filled the air. Shibi Aburame was the last member of the Shinobi Council and everything came down to his vote. The man didn't even look fazed by the pressure that was on him. He leaned slightly forward and said, "If you took the time to look at ants you might find that we and they are not so unsimilar. Each ant as a role they play and everything they do is for the benefit of the colony. In this we are they same. Each person in the village works for the benefit of the village but this is not reversible. The village does not work to benefit a single person but the whole and, similar to how sometimes a single ant must be sacrificed for the colony to thrive, so to must this child work to make the village greater than what it currently is. I vote yes."
Silence.
Hiruzen bowed his head, asking for forgiveness for what he was about to do. He looked up and addressed the Council. "With the vote done it is ten out of fifteen for. With a two-thirds majority I call for the child to be placed into the Clan Restoration Program. ANBU, please-"
Hiruzen stopped talking when he saw Naruto step forward, a protective hand guiding the child behind him. The old Sarutobi frowned, wondering what the boy was up to and asked, "Did you have something to say, Naruto Uzumaki?"
The blonde nodded his head and in an instant his eyes became steel and drilled into Hiruzen's own. The boy looked to each of the Council members in turn and only the members who had shinobi training didn't flinch away at the sheer disgust, sorrow, and disappointment that was evident in them.
"For my entire life I wanted to become a shinobi of Konoha," Naruto said, his voice taking on a commanding tone. "I thought it would be awesome. I thought it would be simple. To fight for the safety of Konoha, to defend her people, and to become stronger. This was everything I thought I needed to know because, how could that be wrong? I would have been a shinobi of Konoha, so my loyalties would be clear and I knew that Konoha would never do something that would make me doubt it." He paused, looking around the room before he said, "I was wrong."
"I wasn't in good shape after my most recent mission but I had survived and, circumstantially, saved this girl. I was later told that a Kumo medic-nin had looked over the girl and that her life had been far from pleasant. When I heard that I knew that she would find the life she always dreamed of here, in Konoha. There was no doubt in my mind until I heard my senseis speaking about the chance of her being part of a clan and that the Council might force her into a breeding program. I didn't believe them. I couldn't believe them."
Naruto lowered her head and his hands clenched into fists. "How could my village, the same place that I've bled for, do something like that. I have heard of villages doing terrible things, the Hyuga Incident being an example, but never in my darkest nightmares had I thought Konoha, my home, was capable of such things. Now, I see how foolish I was."
The Genin turned his head up and Hiruzen's heart nearly stopped. The look in the boys eyes spoke his intent and he could hardly believe that Naruto, the boy whose loyalty he had never question, was prepared for battle. He felt a stab of deep regret that it was his actions that forced the boy's hands. He felt paralyzed and all he could do was watch in horror and shame as a Genin showed all in the room what it truly meant to be a shinobi.
"I saved this child from the clutches of those bandits," he said and one of his legs slid back, his body slowly lowering into a fighting stance, "and I will damned if I deliver her to monsters."
Shocked. That was the best way that the old Hokage could describe the entirety of the Council. Never had a shinobi defied the them so bluntly and not a single face in the room wasn't taken aback.
"You would betray Konoha?" Shikaku asked. The Nara clan head was standing but made no move to attack the boy.
"If treating this child as nothing more than an object is Konoha's decision, then yes," Naruto answered.
"N-Naruto," Hiruzen stammered. He cleared his throat and clenched his fists as he rose from his seat. "Stop this. Nothing will change with your death here. There are six clan heads, twelve ANBU, and me here, you don't stand a chance."
"I know that I will not last more than a second," Naruto snapped, "but I will die without regret. Can all of you say the same?"
Hiruzen tensed, shame and guilt building in him. He swallowed but, before he could signal anything, Kakashi and Yuri grabbed Naruto's shoulders. The boy looked back to them, shock and betrayal painting his face.
"Take the girl and run, Naruto," Kakashi said.
Yuri took a step passed the blonde and stood before the Council, a confident smirk on his face. "Run like hell too. I'm not sure how long we can give you."
"Kakashi Hatake, Yuri Karasu," Hiashi questioned, "you would betray Konoha as well?"
The black-haired Jonin looked to the Hyuga head and his reply was cold and calculated. "I'm confident we take out half of you before you all can take both of us down."
That statement caused all the chaos in the room to stop. All eyes turned to the three shinobi who were putting their lives on this line to protect one small girl. Killing intent erupted from everywhere but none, not even the Genin, were affected by it. Hands moved slowly to kunai pouches and chakra filled the air.
"ENOUGH!," Hiruzen barked and unleashed a wave of killing intent that washed away the rest of it and dropped the temperature of the room noticeably.
All eyes turned to the Hokage but he didn't care. He had thought of something that had slipped his mind and it was going to be the saving grace of this situation. If Danzo wanted to play with old laws then he could to. "I call for my right to vote on this matter."
"You can't do that," Danzo hissed from behind the old man.
He turned to the bandaged man and said darkly, "Yes. I. Can."
The enraged Sarutobi looked back to the rest of the Council and stated, "I am using my right to vote on this matter. I am the head of the Sarutobi clan and I am also the Hokage of Konoha. This gives me two votes. As a Hokage, I must vote for the benefit of the village, so I vote yes, but as a clan head and a human being, I vote no. This brings the votes to eleven out of seventeen and that does not meet the two-thirds majority. I dismiss this issue. Is there anything else this council wishes to speak about?" He looked around. "No? In that case I call an end to this meeting."
Hiruzen looked to the three brave shinobi and focused on one in particular. He had probably lost all the respect the shinobi had for him but he would do his best to earn it back.
-A Testament of Things that Never Will-
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-Unbiased Abyss