Chapter 1:

Konohakagure no sato (the village hidden in the leaves) is the de facto superpower of the elemental nations; it is said that the walls of Konoha have never been breached. But there is a first for everything, and Konoha was never prepared for it.

Soseki had always thought that wars were fought outside. He had survived the last war as Genin, not due to his strength but for the lack of it. He had survived, as he was too weak to serve on the frontlines. His exemplary work in logistics landed him a promotion to chunin in the office. He was happy with it, as that meant he was not strong enough to be sent on dangerous missions and could retire early so he wouldn't be missed. But he is currently doubting his life choices.

He never thought he would face this, even in his wildest dreams. The nine-tailed demon fox, a beast so powerful that just a glare rooted him to the spot. Disregarding the ninja around it, the beast was in the process of utterly decimating the Konoha. Its mere movement sent a couple of buildings falling.

"Oi Soseki, snap out of it. Don't just stand there. Go and check for survivors; Jonin will take care of that." His team leader shook him and pointed to the ninja fighting it. He followed his team leader's gaze to see a squad of elite ninja under the Third Hokage rushing to face the fox. Assured of Sandaime's prowess, he could finally regain his bearings. He nodded towards his team leader, silently thanking him. His team leader assigned him the mission. He must lead a couple of Genins to ground zero. His team is one of the four whose primary objective is to help survivors, and a secondary aim is to check for clues for its emergence.

It first appeared in the civilian area, as if it knew that the ninja concentration was low there. It demolished the buildings by swishing its tails and went on a path of destruction leading to the centre of the village.

He reached the position and checked the surroundings. He noted the buildings are small and made of bamboo, with bamboo being a cheaper alternative for people living in these slums than wood. He ordered the genins to clear the ruins and help the survivors, whose count was higher than expected. In situations like this, the leading cause of death is getting crushed by debris. Since the houses were made of bamboo, that factor is significantly reduced.

He called out to all the survivors that gathered around, "Listen, everybody. Please stay calm and follow the ninja. They will escort you all to the shelter. Call out if you have any injuries. Prioritise children and the elderly." He gave them the instructions he learned in drill class.

"Taichou, this lady here is in a critical condition." He heard a call from one of the genin. He rushed to assess the situation. He saw a lady weakly cradling a baby amidst the ruins of a sturdy building. The house occupied significantly more area than the rest. He followed the genin's signal to see a sharp wooden shrad impaled in her solar plexus. She is slowly bleeding out. From his experience on the field, he immediately understood that he could not remove the splinter without her bleeding to death. The bamboo is attached to a large frame, making it difficult to carry it with her to the medical camp. Soseki understood that the woman did not have long to live.

He kneeled beside her and gently laid an arm on her shoulders. His actions caused the woman to look at him through her unfocused eyes. The woman has high cheekbones, brown hair, and smooth skin that has lost its colour. Her dark eyes struggled to gain clarity from the blood loss. "Please... take him to safety," she said between laboured breaths. He slowly nodded and reached out to the baby. She looked on while the baby was taken into his hands and gave me a small smile when I promised the baby would be safe.

He looked at the baby and noticed that the baby started to wake up. It opened its pale blue eyes to look at him and squirmed around. The woman gathered her energy once more to say, " Akira, his name is Akira Ma…". The woman didn't finish her sentence; her breath hitched one last time. The baby slowly started to cry. He did not know if it was out of hunger or the death of his mother.

Soseki sighed and closed his eyes while a few memories of his comrades swirled in his head.

He gently closed her lifeless eyes and motioned for a genin. He handed the baby, now named Akira, an unknown surname to a Genin. "Take him with you to the shelter and look for women to feed him. Hand him over to nurses after you reach the shelter." The genin bowed in affirmation and ran to join the group of survivors. The clean-up squad will take care of her body and investigate her details. Hopefully, some survivors would adopt the boy, as orphanages would be stretched to the limit after this.

This reminded him of his family, who are safe in the clan shelter. He decided to retire after this. He shook himself from the gloom to concentrate on his surroundings. His side mission is to check for clues about Kyubi's appearance. He used his shadow Jutsu, to clear out a few pieces of debris surrounding the woman. His eyes quickly noticed an intricate fan with a burning red leaf in the middle, surrounded by two flame symbols. He felt like he had seen this symbol somewhere and decided to add it to the evidence. He checked around for a while and finally left the place after covering the body with a cloth that he found nearby.

Just as he turned to head back, he noticed an ominous purple ball aimed at the Hokage monument. That is where all the shelters are located. The amount of chakra in that ball of doom made him fall to his knees. He had a premonition that the ball could wipe out the whole monument. The monument in which his family is sheltered. He prayed to every god he knew that the ball would not reach his family. A miracle did happen. The ball stopped. Marks appeared in thin air, and the ball of doom got sucked into it. Tears started to gather around his eyes. He looked up to see the Fourth Hokage clad in his signature cloak. He represented hope to Soseki, hope that he will turn this around, hope that his family and the kid he saved will continue to see tomorrow. He got up, unfazed by the aftershocks of an explosion, and steadied his shaking feet. He could not stand down while the Hokage himself was risking his life.

Chapter-II:

Hiruzen:

Hiruzen Sarutobi, the third hokage of the village, hidden in the leaves, sat in the office of the hokage once again. Unlike the first time, he was not young and hot-blooded. He saw too much in his long life. He saw death, destruction, and every evil that is part of the Shinobi world. In his capacity as a young Hokage, he participated in a lot of that destruction. He fought in battles both big and small. His hands were perpetually drenched in blood. He turned a blind eye to most of the evil because of his position.

After fighting in the wars, he started to hate them. He felt the pain of losing his comrades and the anguish of sending people to their deaths. He yearned to spread the will of fire and sacrifice himself to let the new shoots bloom. He understood the importance of the next generation. He taught a lot of them, either directly or indirectly. His teachings and skills earned him the title of 'The Professor'. His disciples were his hope and legacy for the next generation. After the last war, he understood that it was time for him to retire. He found the hope he sought in the next generation.

Minato is the culmination of his efforts. He was personally taught by his own disciple, Jiraya. He was strong and kind, the ideal leader in both war and peace. His will of fire burned the brightest. He retired with thoughts of a bright future ahead.

All his dreams and plans crashed overnight. The village that he fought to protect was ravaged by a beast. The hope he found was extinguished. The heavy hat he put down had found his head again, and he did not think he could bear it at his age. But the village needs a strong leader. He must stay strong, at least for a while. Maybe after the situation is stable, he can retire and one of his students can pick up his hat.

" Hokage-Sama, one of the investigation teams found something important." His secretary's words brought him out of his thoughts. He nodded to the secretary to bring out the report. The secretary bowed and placed a written report on the table. Hiruzen looked at the report first. It said that a woman in the civilian district died, and it also listed the reason why she couldn't be saved. His eyes narrowed at the extra details pertaining to the death. As loath he was to admit it, a normal civilian's death will not cause such a reaction. He continued on and found that the woman had a child who was named Akira by her dying breath. The report also noted that the child is healthy and has been weaned. His brows furrowed, and he became impatient with the details. He turned to the secretary, questioning him with his gaze.

The secretary then opened the fan, and his eyes widened as he looked at the symbol. A burning leaf flanked by two flame symbols. It is the symbol of the Daimyo's family.

" Who found this, and where is the child?" He asked the secretary.

" A chunin by the name of Soseki Nara. He was part of the first response team. He was also the one who witnessed the death and passed on the child to the survivors. The child is in the hospital and is being taken care of by a nurse." The secretary answered, still bowing his head. He was waiting for the next orders.

Hiruzen thought for a while, and the office fell into silence. " The whole incident would be an A-ranked secret until further notice. Order the chunin to not inform the council and make sure to keep this report out of the archives. "At least until I talk to Daimyo about it."

He will have to hurry up the scheduled meeting with the Daimyo. He put the report and the fan away in his personal safe under the table. " Anything else?" he asked, knowing this was only the most important of the messages as the reconstruction is underway.

" Yes, Sandaime Sama, the third division is lacking..." The secretary continued with the further reports, and they put this incident on the back burner while more immediate concerns took precedence.

After a few weeks:

The capital of the Land of Fire is as tranquil as it has always been. The atmosphere is jolly as people are still celebrating the peace after the third great ninja war. The partial destruction of Konoha is covered up so that an average civilian is ignorant of it. Even now, the elite ninja of the Leaf are working hard to keep the mission rate stable to preserve the illusion of strength. Special forces like ANBU are aggressively operating beyond the borders, sabotaging the response forces of various villages.

As the afternoon sun is burning hot, the roads are almost empty, with people resting at their homes or lounging under the shade. A convoy of leaf shinobi is escorting a covered palanquin emblazoned with the symbol of Konoha across the main road leading to the Daimyo's palace.

The civilians did not find it suspicious as it was the time for the routine liaison between the leaf and the Daimyo's court, even though it was a bit ahead of schedule. Some nobles have begun preparations to house the envoy during the stay, as it can lead to favourable deals. The palace of Daimyo is bustling with activity for the evening court, where the envoy is scheduled to present himself.

The third prince, Akihiko Madoka, is waiting with a welcome party for the envoy. As soon as the palanquin reached the party, the prince gave a customary bow. He was assigned to this duty as he is the unofficial successor to the position of Daimyo. The prince is a plump middle-aged man. He wore an orange yukata with a red border that reflected the sunlight, making him brighter.

" Sarutobi-Sama, The fire daimyo's court welcomes you. I hope there were no problems during the journey."

" Ah, Akihiko-chan, it was a pleasant journey; there were no hiccups along the way. But you have grown so much since we last met. I feel like it was only yesterday when the little kid asked me to show him a great fireball. What happened to that little kid who said he would burn all the enemies of the Fire Nation with his bright flames?" Sarutobi could not help but tease the kid.

The prince blushed heavily as his retainers hid their pleasant smiles, imagining the ever-serious prince as a kid. " Sarutobi-Sama, it is not fair to tease me in front of my subordinates; I have grown much more mature since then," he replied with an easy smile forming on his face. Hiruzen chuckled and followed the prince into the palace with two bodyguards. The rest of his retinue disappeared, leaving leaves in their wake.

" How is Daimyo-Sama? Can I meet him personally before the court meeting?" Hiruzen asked with a hint of seriousness.

" Father is currently stable, but the physician says he may not have much time left." A hint of sadness can be felt in Akihiko's tone. "He just had lunch and retired to his chambers; I can arrange a meeting if it is important," he finished with a professional tone.

" That would be lovely; we old folks need to catch up with each other about our long lives."

Akihiko nodded, and a servant rushed ahead to inform the daimyo. The rest continued as the prince and the old man talked about some anecdotes.