DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything from the Naruto universe.
Thinking (+ flashbacks, Naruto speaking in her mindscape, etc.)
Emphasis
Bijuu, etc. speaking
Bijuu, etc. thinking
"Hiashi?" Hiruzen yelped, flying backward in his chair in shock as Asuma and Chouza immediately moved in front of him. The head of the Hyuuga clan had just attacked the new Kage with a quick series of gentle palm strikes!
"I know that eye," Hiashi hissed furiously as he scowled at Danzo. "Deactivate it as you wish, but you cannot fool mine."
ROOT materialized from out of the walls causing all of the shinobi present in the room (minus the Elders and Hokage) to move to counter them. Shikaku had used his shadows to pull the civilian members of the council to the floor and relative safety as Tsunade had thrown the heavy, nearly immovable conference table through the wall over their heads.
"Stand down," Danzo said smoothly, although his operatives were still clearly ready to attack. He also had a Chidori behind him that was ready to go straight through him, so his underlings needed to listen quickly! "Heed my words. I would signal the same had my tenketsu not been blocked."
Slowly and obviously reluctantly, Danzo's goons backed off but didn't leave.
"What is the meaning of this Hiashi?" Hiruzen asked, the need for proper or any honorifics forgotten.
"Danzo is holding Uchiha Shisui's Sharingan. It is unique! I would know it anywhere! You have committed theft of a Kekkei Genkai," Hiashi accused, his byakugan still activated.
Danzo only scoffed at him. "And how do you know he did not give it to me? I can assure you that having his gift transplanted was for the good of Konoha. Surely, YOU can understand that, can you not, Hatake?" He'd have to say that he enjoyed the way the brat flinched as he moved around him, looking so deadly. Hatakes were such easy marks, he thought. The brat's father had been all too easy to destroy before he could become Yondaime. "As Hokage, this eye will bring other nations to heel."
It took most of Kakashi's willpower to hold Inuzuka Tsume back and not go on and Chidori the Warhawk on the spot. What Naruto had been saying about "smelling Sharingans" all along had been true?! And what the hell was Minato-sensei doing just watching all of this from above them?!
"Stand down," Danzo ordered the remaining shinobi in the room nastily. "Hiruzen had made his choice. My word is Law!"
"I don't think so," came a voice from the rafters. Minato landed as gracefully and silently as a cat. All eyes were now on him as the Yondaime turned toward the Sandaime. "I'm sorry, Hiruzen, but you do not have the authority to name a new Kage."
"You told him you weren't interested in the position," Danzo said, seething with rage.
"Did I?" the unhenged Yondaime asked before glaring at his predecessor: Hiruzen was supposed to keep his mouth shut about his plans. Now he felt much better about holding out on the details when he spoke to the man earlier. "Things... Genjutsu," Minato said in realization. "I am unfamiliar with the power of that particular Sharingan, but can only assume you used it to manipulate Hiruzen." Minato looked at the Sandaime - who looked baffled.
"You know nothing, boy," Danzo said, sneering hideously. "A dead man cannot reclaim his position..."
"Is that in the Village Charter?" Minato asked, grinning viciously and ready for a fight. "Because I'd like to see that clause. And I do believe I ordered your Foundation to cease all actions and for ROOT members to report to ANBU. You were to retire. Tsunade?"
"There's no clause in the charter regarding dead men," Tsunade confirmed, "although maybe we need to change that regarding the Elders," she added dangerously, deeply wanting to see Danzo dead and picked apart by vultures in the village center. Vultures would be fitting, considering his nature. "And you've seen the actual charter, Danzo. The one that you altered? Ohhhh, how I have longed to see you get yours!"
Danzo chuckled, his entire demeanor changing. "You should've stayed lost behind a bottle and your dead family's shame".
If this had been even six weeks ago, Tsunade knew that those words would've felt like a slap to the face whether or not she had long since gotten over her phobia. Now though? "I have a family, Warmonger. My son is the Yondaime Hokage, and my lineage will continue through the Hatakes."
Scared or not, that was enough to cause the civilian members of the council to begin crawling out from behind the conference table that was half-lodged in the wall. "So it's true?" a man with neon pink hair asked. He was ignored.
Minato sighed but stood up straighter. "Reluctantly, I must admit this changes things. From this point forward, I shall retake my duties as the Fire Shadow. Are we all in agreement?" Not even the other Elders dared to disagree for now, although Danzo did object. Sadly for him, that meant he regained Minato's attention. "I wasn't asking a traitor. Kakashi, Hiashi: take Shimura Danzo into custody." He nodded at Tsunade who had almost imperceptibly raised her hand.
"Should Hiashi's charge of dojutsu theft be true, I will need to remove Uchiha's eye." She also planned to ensure the old fart met a far past timely end. She could investigate the arm Naru-chan had complained about to Jiraiya, as well as the rest of his wrinkly old, liver-spotted hide afterward.
"Very well," Minato agreed. "The dungeon below the hospital?"
"Good thinking, Minato," Jiraiya said to his son. His son! His son was alive and staying! He chuckled to himself and grabbed Tsunade's hand, clenching it tightly: they had another chance!
"We will adjourn for now. I need to speak with Hiruzen," Minato said. As the council filed out following Danzo's incarceration, the shinobi offered him thanks (most still in wonderment) and welcomed him back. Sadly, now was not yet the time for celebrations. The blonde Hokage turned to Sarutobi and sighed, asking Jiraiya and Shikaku to stay behind with him. "What do you recall, Sandaime-sama?"
Hiruzen didn't understand what Minato was talking about. Wait: wasn't Namikaze dead? He was sure of it!
Nearly sure...
Gaara had just received word that it was time to return to Suna.
Pakura-sama said that they would be spending the night, so this was a surprise, as was the word that he should wait at the Main Gate to meet her. He knew that the Akatsuki was after the jinchuuriki all too well, and didn't plan to allow himself to be captured again, so he was armed to the teeth. Using his third eye from the center of the village, it broke into pieces at the surprise sight of the person offering a jaunty wave to him (or rather his floating eye) who was at that gate. It was a set-up! But not by the Akatsuki.
What was waiting for him at the gate was a clone. Gaara knew that now because as he passed a building on his way to scope out the situation further, a quiet voice beckoned him.
"Godaime-sama?"
Gaara's eyes nearly betrayed him, and he did stop in his tracks. He had just passed Ichirakus and shook himself, knowing that he should've been more aware even though there were so many people around. He closed his eyes for a moment, prepared himself, and turned to the man that apparently needed to see him. Up close and personal, he could sense that he was not looking at a henge. He pulsed his chakra and also knew that he was not under a genjutsu.
"No, Yondaime-sama," Gaara said with a deep bow. "The Godaime Kazekage is Pakura-sama. It is good to see you looking so... well."
ALIVE?! I MEANT ALIVE!
It took a lot to shock Sabaku no Gaara, but THIS was definitely shocking.
The Yondaime Hokage scratched the back of his head, and Gaara was so reminded of Naruto, he wondered how any and everyone couldn't see it! Blind fools: that was the only possible reasoning that their relationship wasn't widely known and acknowledged. Naruto looked more like Minato than he looked like Rasa, and everyone said that he looked like Rasa.
A pity for him and Kankuro, he thought.
"Maa, I suppose that merely standing or breathing is a good look for me. How are you, Gaara?"
Gaara was struck by the familiarity with which the Yondaime Hokage was showing him. Normally, such a thing would be perceived as odd. Had Naruto inherited her lack of tact and manners from this man? From everything he had read and heard about Namikaze Minato, that didn't seem right. "I am well, Yondaime-sama."
"Tell me, Gaara," Minato said before putting his fingers to the ground to sense that they were not being spied upon, "were you aware that I am a jinchuuriki?"
Gaara's mouth fell open a bit. "I am surprised that you are telling me this."
"I trust you."
Gaara took a deep breath. So if Namikaze Minato was a jinchuuriki (and alive;) and from his, Naruto's, and Fu's experience, he may very well remember a past life. Finally, he looked at the Yondaime critically. "Does Naruto know?"
"I'd like to leave Naruto out of this for now. Would you like to have some ramen with me?" he asked, tilting his head with a grin. "I haven't eaten in years. Sadly, it would be wiser, for now, if we henge our appearances and hide our chakra."
"You are currently hiding yours," Gaara said. It was bothering him. He felt a momentary subtle flare of chakra and almost laughed but couldn't - not when he had a feeling that his first friend was being held somewhere and her living, walking father was out here with him, rather than her. "Kurama's chakra," he said after a few seconds. "Thank you for verifying your identity and status, Yondaime-sama. I haven't had ramen in almost two days."
Minato smiled cheesily at him then, Gaara thought. "Well, you're way past due for it, aren't you?"
Both men henged into nondescript civilians and ordered their favorites from Teuchi before they sat down to talk.
Later that night, Minato turned over another page of his best friend's photo album. As he'd walked through Shikaku's home earlier, he saw many pictures of his daughter growing up in his household. She looked happy and healthy in most of them, although she was pretty darn skinny in the earliest pictures. From what he saw, she and Shikamaru, her big brother figure, were thoroughly devoted to each other. It brought tears to his eyes. There was also a wedding picture of her and Kakashi. She was so beautiful!
Kakashi was such a scoundrel: that little bastard. He loved that kid, though! What was a father to do?
"Thank you, Shikaku," he said with what he and a green-clad man would call a manly sniff. "You and Yoshino-chan have done so much for us; so much that Kushina and I were unable to do." He turned from a page that showed their children sleeping with Nara fawns to one in which his little girl had obviously been forced into a tutu. She looked absolutely furious. "How old was she here?"
Shikaku chuckled at the photo while Jiraiya looked over his shoulder and barked out a laugh. "That was about a year after we got her, so she was about eight. She uhh..." No, Minato doesn't need to know about Naruto's head injury and years of memory problems: when Yoshino constantly believed she could trick Naruto into being girlier. Jiraiya can tell him if he wants to. "...didn't care for the outfits, but we did get her into dance lessons." He let out a loud sigh before slumping into a large recliner with a deep, stiff drink. "She only agreed to it when we convinced her that it would improve her katas."
Minato nodded before loudly blowing his nose and letting out something akin to a muffled wail. Shikaku couldn't help but chuckle: off the battlefield, Minato had always been such a baby.
"Shuddup, Shikaku."
"Aww - troublesome. Speaking of, this is about the most troublesome thing you've ever done, Minato." When the blonde Kage turned to look at his friend, he found him looking unusually serious for the laid-back man.
"Shikaku, what I'm about to tell you might sound insane, but I am quite sure of what I speak," he said with the face of the warrior-leader he knew Minato to be. "Our village and the shinobi world at large - life on this planet itself, perhaps - is in danger. Lord Third was not properly preparing us for the Akatsuki's threat, and... I can't stay in this position for long. I want Tsunade to take over as soon as possible."
"We just got you back," Shikaku said sharply in just over a breath. "Now let's get serious, my friend and leader," he continued, getting pissed off. "Why are you avoiding Naruto, and what intelligence have you gathered in the hours that you've been alive again? I won't ask how you pulled this off... If anyone could come back from the dead, it would be you - and I don't think anyone else needs to know how to do that shit. Can you imagine how someone like Orochimaru would use that kind of knowledge?"
Minato nodded his head: he and Shikaku always did think alike.
"Did we manage to kill that snake?" a voice from the back rang out.
"Shikamaru," Shikaku said in a scolding tone. "I thought I told you to stay over at Choji's tonight."
"I needed to come back here to get my pillow," he lied, making his father roll his eyes. It was a pretty lame lie. He shrugged: it would have taken more effort to come up with something better. "It's troublesome, but I wanted my own." Minato snorted at his use of the word and was smiling kindly at him. "Yondaime-sama," he greeted politely. He totally forgot to bow, though, as he stared at Konoha's favorite Kage, Naruto's dead father, who was now in the flesh rather than even an edo-tensei. "Welcome to the other side."
Minato laughed openly at that. "Thank you, Shikamaru-kun."
Shikamaru immediately realized why people fell all over themselves for this man. He seemed warm, open, and kind - and everyone knew how powerful he was. He scratched at his chin as he took in the living legend: he was certainly as good-looking as everyone gushed about. He also had a voice that made him think of chocolate: THAT, he did not pass on to his loud daughter. Unfair that he won the genetic lottery, really... His thoughts were cut off by his father.
"He's a sight to behold: I'll agree with you there, son," Shikaku said with a wink. "Take your lewd thoughts about my pretty friend back to your room."
"What? ...Eww, Dad!" Jiraiya laughed heartily at the exchange, his heart and mind still celebrating Minato's return.
"I don't understand," Minato mumbled to Jiraiya, making the man laugh harder.
"You passed your one area of stupid on to your child, I can tell you that, Minato," Jiraiya told him, making the blonde bristle. Neither Namikaze got social hints or even bludgeons to the head that they were being flirted with or talked about in that way, other than with their significant others. Speaking of...
"Other than in the council meeting, have you spoken with Kakashi?"
Minato sank down in a chair before picking up the drink that Shikaku had made him earlier. The bitter taste wasn't something he missed or even liked, but right now he hoped it would settle his nerves. Finally, he shook his head before giving a significant look to Shikaku and then to the man's son. After Shikamaru was excused from the room/thrown out, Minato said that he had given Kakashi a mission. "Lady Shijimi is demanding to meet her goddaughter." He scratched his head as he considered the issue. "Why did she believe that Naruto was dead?" he asked both remaining men.
"I didn't know who had godmother duties," Jiraiya partially explained in surprise. "I figured Mikoto would have gotten that honor. She's the one who tried to adopt Naruto early on, but sensei wouldn't allow it."
"Troublesome. I know that Lord Third tried to cover some of the damage he potentially caused to Naruto's safety following his announcement of her jinchuuriki status. He told several people she was dead to... keep her safe, but I can't imagine why he'd tell the girl's GODMOTHER that," Shikamaru said. He had theories, but he didn't want to express them at the moment. He wasn't happy with Lord Third and hadn't been in many years.
Minato nodded before getting up to pace. "Huh... We all know he did it to keep her in the village." Finishing his drink, he flopped back into the soft chair and rubbed his temples. "My poor baby. Kami: the things I've done; what I've put her through..."
Jiraiya put his hand on his son's shoulder. "She's already forgiven you. She'll want to properly meet her father." He sighed, seeing that Minato's face showed only pain and determination. Why he had to be so stubborn, he couldn't understand. It has to be the Senju genes.
"I need to save her and Kurama," he said, placing his hand over his seal. Lost in his thoughts, he didn't see Jiraiya's eyes widen and become sharp. "If I can save them and the others, maybe we have hope of... time continuing? To avoid a repeat of the Fourth Shinobi War?"
He had just been fighting that war before returning to the Shinigami, after all. It was horrible.
"So you came back from the dead with the jinchuuriki and Shikamaru-kun, too?"
"Shikamaru?" Minato asked. Gaara told him of his and his friends' experience, including Naruto's, but Shikamaru wasn't a jinchuuriki! Was he?! Gaara hadn't mentioned him, other than to say that he had been surprised Naruto had been living with him.
"You two want to tell me what the hell you're talking about?" Shikaku asked, deadly serious.
Ten minutes later, he dragged his son's sorry ass out of his room and tossed him onto the couch. "You wanna finally admit why you've set the entire perimeter of our forest to blow now, boy?! Does Jashin ring a bell?!"
His father was bringing up JASHIN? Oh - fuck that...
Despite his anger, Shikamaru tried to play it cool but Jiraiya's face was telling. The Yondaime only looked curious. Jiraiya offered a big shrug that all but screamed "what can you do?" and his father was seething. "You told them," he said rather than asked Jiraiya.
"I don't know why you and Naruto would keep it a secret! Other than because you'd get sent to Inoichi, of course: that would definitely be a deterrent. Plus, gods forbid…"
"Oh, I don't know," Shikamaru interrupted sarcastically. His dad's Killing Intent was a total drag. "With Sandaime-sama kissing Danzo's sorry ass and Naruto nearly getting killed when she was seven..."
"That's enough, Shikamaru! You've withheld vital information!"
"Information no one would believe," Shikamaru reminded his father angrily. "We thought we were the only ones returned to the past until Naru spoke with Gaara and Fu! With the jinchuuriki's knowledge of future events - up until their deaths, anyway - there are more of us working toward avoiding that future. With promotions, Naruto and I were hoping to take a more active role and we've already been passing on information to you!"
"Like that, we might be invaded in the Chunin Exams," Shikaku had to reluctantly agree. A bit. "Regarding promotions: by withholding vital information, you've put your lives and careers in jeopardy, son."
"As if that matters in the grand scheme of things," Shikamaru said with finality.
"Troublesome. Go to bed. Consider yourself on house arrest; I can't look at you right now."
The next morning, Minato waited in the shadows of the treeline far enough away from the home he and Kushina planned to one day move into. He was watching Kakashi and Naruto who had just entered it, holding hands. He sighed and felt hot tears in his eyes. He remembered touring the home, a gift from his people, with Kushina, who ran around inside of it, having an absolute fit.
"It's so big and awesome, ya know! Hey Blondie... What do you say as soon as the geezer's outta here, we start working on another baby so we can fill this place up?"
He had loved that glint in her eyes.
"You're already pregnant, Kushina."
God, he was such an idiot. They knew the risks and still couldn't wait to have a baby. Not that he would ever regret having Naruto: no, he loved his baby girl.
"It's a girl!"
"What? No! Kushina! I thought I told you girls weren't allowed!"
"You moron! I found out she's a girl weeks ago! Your brand of crazy is why I couldn't tell you! Don't - Don't cry! Awww!"
"I'm a father!"
He missed his fiery redheaded wife. God, he ached for her. Would he really have the strength to do what needed to be done without her at his side?
Lost in memories, he watched as his little Naruto - who wasn't so little or tomboyish anymore - came out of what was supposed to be their home with her... husband. He loved Kakashi like his own but never would have thought of the two of them marrying. Then again, he didn't want anyone to marry his little Naru-chan, but that was unfair...
"Having led two lives, she thinks of Kakashi-brat as a younger man! Very scandalous! But you know what they say about women reaching their sexual peak at 30!"
Kami, Jiraiya was still such a pervert. Speaking of perverts...
"She married my anal-retentive student, Kushi," he whispered to his late wife as Kakashi pulled his little Naruto into a daytime drama-worthy kiss. His first thought was to slit Kakashi's throat, but he did want to see the kid's face first - to watch the light leave his mismatched eyes. He shuddered at the very real and awful thought: he loved Kakashi, just not his behavior! Naturally, the brat had pulled his mask up before he could see his face. Naruto looked so happy; worried, but happy.
Knowing that I forbid Kakashi from telling her about me, that worry is probably my fault. "I just keep screwing up with you, don't I, baby girl?" he whispered into the leaves. "Shut up, Kurama."
Minato watched them for a while longer until Kakashi's masked nose turned into the air as the wind changed course. He flashed away just as Kakashi sharply turned toward him.
How could I have forgotten about a Hatake's sense of smell? The last thing he had seen was Kakashi putting himself in front of Naruto and pulling out weapons. He hated to admit it, but Kakashi's protectiveness over his little girl did warm his heart.
Reentering his office, he sank down into his desk chair and got to work. He had twenty minutes before Tsunade got there and planned to fill her in on his ideas. There was so damn much to do. Looking into the rafters, he smiled up at his platoon. "Are you ready to get to work, boys?"
"Hai!" three ANBU in the room said excitedly.
"How about we start with a hug then?" He was tackled before he could even hold his arms out. Maybe being alive for a little while longer wouldn't be so bad.