Disclaimer: I sadly don't own Naruto or any characters in this story; it all belongs to masashi kishimoto.

Chapter 2: The Day of the Tragedy

October 10th

Jiraiya threw himself into the bed of an inn and let out a tired sigh. 'Why do I wear those things? My feet are killing me. Maybe I should look for a bar and some cuties to spend the night...' Though Jiraiya with a perverted grin but it soon died down. 'I need to be in good condition tomorrow when I meet Naruto. It's going to be like a six-hour journey to Konoha.' And with a smile, Jiraiya drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

Kakashi was coming back from the cemetery after sharing the news with his deceased teammates. He couldn't put into any words other than he was feeling lighter. His nightmares about Rin were happening less frequently, and he thought he had more energy to train. 'I guess I'm doing better.' His thoughts drifted again to Naruto. He couldn't remember the last time he had been so excited for something. No one could tell due to his mask, but Kakashi had a soft and small smile as he walked the streets of Konoha.

"IT HURTS DATTEBANE!" Kushina's screams filled the room she was giving birth.

Minato was supposed to keep Kushina's seal stable while she gave birth, but her screams of pain dug deep holes into his concentration, filled with worry for his wife. "I've never seen Kushina in so much pain. Is she alright?" asked Minato with concern in his words.

"She is doing fine, just concentrate on keeping the Kyubi inside of her, and she will get the baby out." Explained Biwako, the wife of Hiruzen Sarutobi. Minto nodded and was about to regain focus when Kushina uttered another thundering scream of pain.

"Are you sure she is..."

Minato never finished his question. "You are the Yondaime Hokage! Act as such! She can handle the pain." said Biwako in a harsh tone. Minato gulped and refocused on Kushina's seal. The struggle continued for a few minutes, Minato trying to keep the Kyubi in his seal and Kushina trying to get Naruto out of her. Finally, everyone present heard the indistinguishable cry of a newborn baby.

Minato stared at Naruto in Biwako's arms. "He's born." Minato muttered to himself as he felt his eyes grow damp. Minato closed his eyes and let out a massive sigh of relief that had been in him for the last several months. 'He's born, and everything is fine!' Minato wanted to burst out in tears of joy, but when he opened his eyes, he saw Biwako coming his way carrying Naruto.

He tried to take Naruto from her to hold him and tell him how much he loved him, he had loved him ever since Kushina told him she was pregnant, but Biwako scolded him, saying Kushina had the right to hold him first. Minato could only pout.

Kushina was still panting from the effort when she saw Biwako approaching with Naruto in her arms. "Naruto! I finally get to see you."

"You'll have more time in a couple of minutes. I'm going to lay him down, okay?" Kushina only nodded, feeling her words fail her due to her emotion.

"Kushina, how are you feeling? Asked Minato cheerfully.

"Happy. So happy." Said Kushina in a weak voice as tears rolled down her face.

Minato could only look affectionately into her violet eyes and say the first thing that came to mind. "Thank you." They simply stared into each other eyes sharing the deep happiness and relief each felt.

"Okay, now I only have to completely seal the Kyubi." Said Minato with determination. As he was about to begin, two screams of pain and surprise echoed through the room. Minato instantly turned to see Biwako and her aid crumble lifelessly into the ground, but he saw him. A cloaked and masked figure holding his son.

"Yondaime Hokage, step away from the jinchuriki. Otherwise, this child will have only lived one minute." Said the masked man in a cold tone.

It all went to shit after that. Minato had to save Naruto from blowing by teleporting into one of his safe houses. After making sure that Naruto was unharmed, he went looking for Kushina. He was just in time to rescue her from being crushed by Kyubi. He knew he had only bought her a few more minutes of life. Even an Uzumaki wouldn't survive for long after having a bijū extracted. It was a testament to the Uzumaki's life force she hadn't died right after the extraction.

"Is Naruto... is he safe?" asked a weak Kushina.

Minato could afford to be clouded by emotions at this point. "Yeah, he is fine. He is in a safe place for now."

Kushina nodded. "Minato... that man, he is heading towards the village... he wants to destroy it with the Kyubi." If possible, Minato's mood turned even more somber than before. Minato quickly teleported to the safe house where he had left Naruto in. He arrived and laid a dying Kushina next to his newborn child.

"Just stay with Naruto, Kushina." Kushina tried her hardest to pull herself closer to Naruto so he could embrace him in her last minutes of life.

Seeing her dying wife lay peacefully beside Naruto filled his eyes with tears. Still, they were quickly replaced by the look that would send shinobi during the last war. He quickly gathered his vest, Kunai, and cloak. He flashed into one of the backs towards the village.

Minato landed on top of his own head in the Hokage monument and stared down the Kyubi, thinking about how best to approach the situation. He was coming up with a plan when the Kyubi turned to face him.

"So, you notice me already." The Kyubi immediately started charging a bijūdama to aim it right where he stood. "You won't get your way here!" screamed Minato performing four hand signs as the mass of pure chakra flew toward him. "Hiraishin: Dōrai." Massive kanji appeared before the Kyubi's attack as it swallowed the bijūdama. A couple of seconds later, an explosion was heard in the distance. Minato was about to do the hand sign to summon Gamabunta when he felt a presence behind him. He quickly turned to slash with his Kunai but was surprised when he saw his arm go through the head of the masked man until it reached it his hand, and he held it in a vice grip. Minato's world began to spin as he felt himself being sucked into a spiral. Thinking quickly, he flashed to a kunai on the outskirts of the village.

Minato landed harshly on the ground as he analyzed what had just happened. 'My attack missed, but he materialized and instantly tried to drag me in. What is that jutsu?' as he finished that thought, a spiral formed as the masked man materialized from nothing. As Minato stared into a single hole on the right side of the mask, he saw a bright red eye with three tomoe.

"I won't let you get away." Announced the masked man.

Minato stood up as he kept analyzing his mysterious opponent. 'He can use a teleportation jutsu that rivals the hiraishin. He managed to outmaneuver the ANBU assigned by the Sandaime and slipped through a top-secret barrier without anyone noticing. He also knew that Kushina's seal would weaken during childbirth and managed to extract and control the Kyubi with his Sharingan. Furthermore, he successfully infiltrated Konoha without firing off the security barrier. I know of only one shinobi capable of this.'

"Are you Uchiha Madara? But that's not really possible. He died a long time ago."

"I wonder about that." Said the figure as he lowered the hood of his cloak.

"It doesn't really matter who you are in the end. But why are you targeting Konoha?"

"You could say I did on a whim, or that I planned it, or that it is for war, or that is for peace." Said the man cryptically as chains fell from the sleeves of his cloak.

'This man is even more dangerous than Kyubi. I must deal with him right here before I can return to the village and help with Kyubi. I'll have to trust that Sandaime can protect the village while I care for him.' Though Minato as he sized up his enemy.

"You have no hope left, Yondaime."

As soon as the man finished the sentence, both rushed towards each other. Minato tried to slash at the man again, not hoping to damage him but to figure out more about his technique. As he had suspected, he went through his opponent's body as if it was just an illusion, right into the chains he had attached to himself. Minato quickly flashed toward a kunai a few meters away.

'I thought my physical attacks did not affect him, but he has to materialize to attack me. Namely, I can aim for him when we both try to strike, but there lies the risk. Considering how much time has passed since he summoned the Kyubi into the village, it doesn't have much time. He wants to finish these as soon as possible, just like me. However, lands their next attack an instant quicker than the other will emerge victorious.'

Minato prepared to charge again. As both ran towards each other at blinding speeds, Minato threw his Kunai towards the man's head, and just as he had hoped, it phased right through him. The milliseconds grew long as they approached each other, and Minato formed the biggest rasengan he could with the available time. It seemed that Minato would be one picosecond too slow as the mysterious man's hand would reach him first when he suddenly flashed to the Kunai from earlier and slammed the rasengan onto the man's back.

"That was my Hiraishin-Ni no Dan: Flying Thunder God – Second Step)."

"You got me. I must say you are as fast as your nickname. I should have never let my guar-" Just before he finished that sentence, Minato flashed to the mark he had put on him and slammed a palm into his chest, with multiple kanji spreading as a result.

"With this, The Kyubi no longer belongs to you!" said Minato as he put his palm into the masked man's chest. "Keiyaku Fūin: Contract Seal."

After negating the control the man had over the Kyubi, Minato moved to slash the man's throat, but the man disappeared and appeared a few meters away.

"I must hand it to you. You wounded and managed to break my control over the Kyubi. However, the Kyubi will eventually be mine. Sooner or later, I will rule this world... and there are many ways to go about it." And with the man disappeared into a spiraling vortex.

'That man is a threat to this world.' Minato could feel his mark still on the man, but he had more important matters at the moment and made his way to the village.

He appeared as the Kyubi was charging another bijūdama; Minato quickly summoned Gamabunta to immobilize it. Minato's thoughts returned to the masked man, and he knew what he had to do. He started molding chakra, and suddenly he and the Kyubi disappeared, and a bright explosion was seen in the distance by the Sandaime.

A panting Minato landed with an agonizing Kushina and Naruto. "I must put a barrier up immediately." He told his wife while panting. 'But my chakra is almost...'

"I-I can still do it, Minato." Said Kushina, and without waiting for an answer, golden chakra chains sprouted from her back that quickly tied the Kyubi.

Due to all the noise, Naruto woke up. "Did I wake you up, Naruto? I'm sorry." asked Kushina with a tired smile.

She turned to her husband. "Minato, I will draw the Kyubi with me to my death. We could delay the revival of the Kyubi. I can save everyone with what little chakra I have left." She closed her eyes, not wanting her husband to see the sadness in her eyes. "Thank you for everything you've done for me." Minato's heart was broken, but everything wasn't fine in the end.

He finally let his emotions slip after everything that he went through today. "Kushina, it's because of you I gained the strength to become Hokage. You made me the man that I'm today, and you made me Naruto's father, and I couldn't pro-"

"Minato, don't give me that look." Still giving him that closed-eye smile. "I'm happy that you loved me, and today... is Naruto's birthday. The only regret is that I won't be alive to see Naruto grow up."

Minato took a deep breath. "Kushina, there is no need for that." Tears slipped from his eyes. "Preserve as much chakra as you can and mold it in two different parts... for a reunion with Naruto." Kushina's head snapped up. "I'll seal all of your remaining chakra inside Naruto. One half will be part of the Hakke Fūin: (Eight Trigrams Seal); the other will be part of the Shinzui Fūin: (Essence Seal)."

"But Minato..."

"Kushina, let me finish. I will only seal half of the Kyubi in me. I'll have to use the Shiki Fūin: (Reaped Death Seal) to split the Kyubi's chakra. The other part... I'll seal it inside Naruto."

Kushina was about to protest, but Minato didn't let him. "I learned two things today. First, the masked man who attacked today is a harbinger of disaster, and second, the one who will stop him is this child. I believe Naruto will open the future as jinchuriki. I don't know why, but I'm convinced of this."

Minato started to make one of the last sets of hand signs he would ever perform. When the Shinigami himself appeared floating behind Minato. "Kushina, let's put our faith in him. He is our son, after all. I'll seal part of your chakra in the Hakke Fūin: (Eight Trigrams Seal), and the rest I will seal in the Shinzui Fūin: (Essence Seal). You will be able to meet him twice. Once when he attempts to control the Kyubi's chakra and another when you feel he needs you the most.

"You have no idea... you don't even know the burden you are putting him under! Being a jinchuriki is a curse! I had it easy compared to others. I found you and a few friends, and only very few people know my status. And also, why use the Shiki Fūin: (Reaped Death Seal)? So that we can meet an older Naruto briefly when you could be there for him! You don't need to die!" screamed the panting, furious, and slowly fading Kushina. After a few deep gasps of breath, she continued. "I want you to stay by Naruto as he grows up and protect him! You are dying for what? To protect the balance of bijū between the nations? To give a chance to meet him? For the village's sake? Why must Naruto be sacrificed?!" streams of tears flowed freely from her eyes.

Minato's expression was a mix between sadness and determination. "To forsake one's village is the same as forsaking one's child. That is what my title of Hokage means. Your own homeland was destroyed, so you, of all people, should know why I'm doing it. As his mother should know, I hate doing it. And you are right. I don't know what being a jinchuriki is like, but I know you do. That's why you need to be there for him; he will need you more than he needs me. Have faith in him, Kushina; he is your son, after all." Minato gave her a smile. "I know he will be able to shoulder his burden even better than you did." Kushina only gave a nod in response as tears kept falling.

A couple of seconds later, the spectral hand of the Shinigami went through Minato's belly, went after the Kyubi, ripped a part of the Kyubi's chakra, and dragged it to seal it into Minato. The Kyubi size was cut in half, and its chains loosened unbeknown to the couple. At that moment, Minato got distracted by seeing Kushina fall to the ground coughing. The Kyubi used that opportunity to try to kill the baby he would be sealed into by crushing it with his claw.

Minato and Kushina turned in time to stop the deadly claw. Minato performed the Hakke Fūin and sealed the Kyubi in Naruto before preparing to perform Kioku Fūin. "Kushina, I will seal the remaining of your chakra in Naruto now. You won't be able to talk to him for a while, so..."

Kushina nodded. "Naruto, we don't have so much time. I just want you to know that we love you so much that it breaks our hearts to leave you. I'm sorry we won't be there every day. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry we won't be able to play with you, that I won't be there to spoil and scold you at the same time. I'm sorry I won't be able to see you smile." Kushina was now sobbing, and Minato was openly crying.

"Naruto, I'm sorry. I didn't want to put such a heavy burden on your shoulders. I have faith you can handle it, be strong, Naruto. Know that we will always love you." A few seconds later, the barrier dropped, and the third Hokage ran to their aid.

"Sandaime... I want people to know that Naruto is a hero..." said his successor before he died.

October 11th

Jiraiya woke from a restful sleep and quickly showered to head to Konoha. He was giddy at the prospect of meeting his grandson. 'I wonder who the gaki resembles? If he turns out to be anything like Minato, he will help a ton in my research.' Though with a perverted giggle as he made his way toward Konoha.

Jiraiya's excitement soon became dread as his journeys advanced. The lands surrounding Konoha showed signs of destruction, and Jiraiya quickened his pace. 'No, no, no!' were the only thoughts Jiraiya could muster as he was filled with dread and panic.

Jiraiya arrived at the gates only to see the recent destruction that had hit the village. He soon spotted a chunnin and approached.

"Where is Minato?!" Jiraiya screamed at the chunnin as he shook him violently.

"Hokage-Sama is..." The Chunnin never finished the sentence as he decided to go to the Hokage's office. Jiraiya's panic meter was now in overdrive. He entered the building without caring who shouted or tried to stop him. He blurted through the door, hoping, no, praying to find his prized pupil behind the desk and not his old sensei. He was surprised to find neither of them present.

His surprise was quickly replaced by confusion. He was about to leap out of the window to move to continue his search when he heard a voice. A voice that filled him with dread. The voice of one, Sarutobi Hiruzen.

"Jiraiya." Said the man with exhaustion and sadness in his voice.

The sannin slowly turned to see his sensei in his full shinobi armor. He didn't say a word, or rather, he couldn't. Hiruzen closed the door and made some hand signs, and the kanji for silence appeared at the door.

"Take a seat, Jiraiya." The old Hokage said, pointing to a sofa in the corner of the room.

The toad sage did, and both sat in a bone-chilling silence. "W-where is Minato?" the sannin finally asked the question he was so afraid of.

Hiruzen kept silent for a minute until he finally let out a depressed sigh, and Jiraiya knew he would never see his students again. "I don't know exactly what happened. We are still trying to figure it out, but the Kyubi broke from the seal and appeared in the middle of the village."

Jiraiya sat in silence for a long time. "How?"

"I... I don't know. Kushina was giving birth away from the village. We should have been able to see it coming."

"Kushina?" asked hopefully the sannin. Hiruzen just shook his head, answering his student's question. Jiraiya felt empty and numb. Never, even during the wars or when he lost students, had he felt so empty. What he had with Minato was special, beyond the common bond between Master and student. He knew Jiraiya wasn't a fatherly figure, but he thought Minato was as good as his nephew.

Suddenly the Sandaime got serious and visibly angry. "I suspect some sort of foul play present in this disaster."

"Foul play?"

"After everything was solved, I went to where Kushina was giving birth... I-I found Biwako and her assistant dead and all the anbu I had dispatched, but the place showed no signs of destruction. Someone assassinated them. I don't know how or why, but a third party was involved."

Jiraiya's chakra spiked, and he started to leak killing intent. "Danzo?"

"No, I don't believe Danzo would have someone that capable in his ranks. Neither would he attempt something so dangerous that could have ended with the destruction of the village."

They sat in silence for a while. Hiruzen let Jiraiya process everything before overwhelming him with more information. After a few moments, Hiruzen spoke again.

"Naruto is alive..." Jiraiya's head snapped up in attention. He had forgotten entirely about his godson.

"And Minato sealed the Kyubi in him." Jiraiya was shocked. A part of him, the one with a very dark sense of humor, almost chuckled. His student was far too noble and loved the village too much. He wouldn't seal the beast in any other person if he weren't willing to do sacrifices himself.

"Do you want me to check the seal?" asked Jiraiya. Hiruzen frowned and raised a questioning eyebrow, but either way, he nodded in acceptance.

Jiraiya followed Hiruzen to the hospital to a private room heavily guarded by ANBU. When Jiraiya saw his godson, his breath hitched. He had previously hoped that Naruto resembled Minato, but now, seeing that he clearly reached him, it hurt. It hurt a lot. Jiraiya quickly went through the process of checking the seal. On another occasion, Jiraiya would have whistled and boasted about the sealing prowess of his student, but now he felt far too empty to even acknowledge beyond saying that the seal was stable.

After the examination, Jiraiya and Hiruzen stood in silence while the sannin kept trying to look anywhere but at the cradle where a sleeping Naruto lay.

Hiruzen kept taking glances to gauge what Jiraiya was thinking. "So, Jiraiya, what are you going to do now?"

"Huh?" was everything the sage could say.

The old Kage just sighed. "Jiraiya, Minato and Kushina named you his godfather, did they not? You do know what that means?" finished Hiruzen harshly.

Jiraiya's eyes widened in realization. "I-I can't take care of him, old man." Said Jiraiya a little too loud. Before catching himself, "I can't raise a kid. I mean, look at me. What sort of person he would grow up to be? Can you imagine how that girl Tsunade took with her is doing? Besides, I-I have to take care of my spy network, life on the move won't be good." Jiraiya's voice slowed. Hiruzen was tempted to express his disappointment, but he understood he was grieving.

Hiruzen turned to see the sleeping baby. 'We can keep his status as a Jinchuriki a secret and try to give him the normal life of an orphan. Making his status public would only put him in danger and make him the center of all the grief and anger.' He thought depressively.

Seven days later, all shinobi who were healthy enough to stand, except for one of the sannin, could be found at the cemetery, paying their respects to the late Namikaze Minato and all the victims of the tragedy. Among all of the shinobi, no one fell more desolated and emptier than Hatake Kakashi. Kakashi's life had been marked by loss since he was young, but this one stung the most. It stung the most because it was the one that left him completely alone. When he finally was turning a new page, someone came and shut the book, forcing him to start from the beginning and relive the worst parts. He knew there was someone, his sensei son. He tried; he really did. But when he went to meet the baby and tried to hold him, it burned. It burned with all the pain and loss of his young life. 'No. No, I can be there for him. Not now, but eventually, in a couple of years.'

Author's Notes:

Thanks to everyone who has liked and followed my story. I actually wasn't expecting to have more than 3 likes and follows, but it was a nice surprise. Special thanks to the mast3rmind.m15 and saidbaca308 for the comments. I still need someone to Beta for my story, so I you want to volunteer or know about anyone else that might want to, please DM me.

Also, I have two things I kind of need yall opinions on. First, I was toying with the idea of writing some Data books for my fic every time a big arc ends, like with Data book stats, but the point system would be slightly different than the ones seen in that canon data book. Second, I'm not sure how to write the name of the jutsu, would you always want me to write the English translation or just the first time around? I don't mind either way, so please tell me what you prefer.