AN: Thank you for beginning this journey with me. I have been juggling ideas for several OC for years now, and have decided to finally put them into words. This is the first time I have written any sort of story before, but I hope you enjoy. First few chapters are a little slow but it speeds up once we get into the fun. Please feel free to subscribe and comment. I look forward to hearing your input and your reaction to Son Sarutobi!

Update: Many of you have requested a timeline to where in the Naruto story Chapter 1 begins. For reference, Son Sarutobi starts in Year 59 after Konoha was founded. That means Kakashi is 8 years old, Minato and Kushina are 18 years old, Fugaku is 27 years old, Shisui is 5 years old, and Itachi would be born around this time. Naruto is born in year 65. I have been reading Naruto Fanfiction for a few years now and felt this time period demanded more attention. I felt that Shisui, Minato, and Kushina deserved more screentime so you can expect to see more of them in later chapters.

Just outside the Hokage's door, a small ear pressed up against the stained oak. The small form stood still and listened for any hints of the conversation inside.

"What are they talking about in Grandpa's office? I know it's important, or else dad wouldn't have left in such a hurry", the small boy thought to himself. Akodi Sarutobi, first grandson of the Third Hokage, stood in the hallway just outside the door to his Grandfather's office. For a five year old he was taller than average, with tanned olive skin and unkempt black hair that somehow stayed spiky and out of his eyes. "Dad has to be in there."

Just a few moments ago, the three of them were sitting at home enjoying breakfast, like every normal day. Just his mom, Elida, and his dad, Akodi, when Elida noticed a hawk flying outside with a small note attached to its leg. She took the note off the hawk and passed it to the head of the house who read it, grabbed his mission gear, and quickly headed to the Hokage's mansion without another word.

They lived in the Sarutobi compound which was conveniently located not too far away from the Hokage's Tower. It was grand yet humble in design, without the extravagance or flaunting of wealth as the Hyuga's compound.

"I can't hear a thing through this door. Stupid privacy seals..'' Akodi quietly exclaimed.

Suddenly, the door quickly (and somehow silently) opened and Akodi fell through the doorway and landed hard on the tiled floor of the Hokage's office. He looked up and saw the Hokage, who looked suspiciously alone in his office sitting behind his desk casually filling out paperwork. "What is this, hmmm? Looks to me like a little monkey got loose and found himself someplace he should not be." The Third Hokage said with his eyebrow raised. Hiruzen Sarutobi, also known as the God of Shinobi, smiled fondly down at his grandson. The young Sarutobi was always trying to find excuses for barging through his door, then coming up with reasons why he should stay and "help with Hokage stuff".

Akodi picked his head up slowly from the floor and rubbed the back of his head, grinning sheepishly. "Hehe, sorry Grandpa! You see, I was just coming to tell you how much I missed you. But I can tell that you're busy. I'll just be going back home now. Bye!" Quickly, he turned on his heel and bolted back out the door.

The aging Hokage took a puff from his pipe and let out a soft laugh, before slowly nodding his head and setting his pipe back down.

Behind the still-ajar door, a ninja dressed in a black Anbu outfit and wore a white porcelain mask with the shape of a Ram's face appeared suddenly and quietly shut the door. Hiruzen pulsed his chakra and activated the security seals on the walls, floor, windows, ceiling, vents, and door.

"That son of yours is quite a handful at times, isn't he?" He asked with a fond smile. "Quite tenacious for a five year old. He's getting tall. Taller than you were at that age." Hiruzen sat back in his chair and recalled fond memories of a time long ago.

The Anbu removed his mask, revealing a man in his late-twenties with messy dark hair. He had a strong, muscular build earned from a lifetime of training and stood tall with posture only replicated in the anatomical scrolls at the hospital. "Yes, although I don't know where he gets this rebellious behavior from. Must be from his mothers side." He mused half-heartedly.

Hiruzen chuckled and slowly leaned back in his chair, looking out the window of the Hokage's tower where he could see the busy city of Konoha coming to life in the early hours of the morning. The sun was just beginning to creep through the clouds which sent shadows dancing through the tall Hashirama trees outside the village gates.

"You act like you weren't exactly like him at that age." The elderly Hokage smiled fondly at his firstborn son.

After a peaceful moment, he exhaled and put his pipe back onto his desk. Hiruzen slowly lifted his head towards his son, who donned on his mask, understanding the reminiscing was done and the man in front of him was no longer his father, but the well respected God of Shinobi.

The Second shinobi war has been waging for three years now with no immediate end in sight. Iwa looked to be on the losing end of the war. Not only were their numbers dwindling, but their people were starving and trade was halted. Knowing these next few months would determine the tide of the war, his options were limited.

"Ram. I have a S-Rank classified mission for you. I wish I did not have to send you of all people, but I have no choice. I will explain the details when your team arrives.

As if on cue, 2 more Anbu appeared by shunshin wearing similar black Anbu attire with white porcelain masks.

"Lord Hokage" They choired in unison and bowed deeply.

A third, smaller, figure quickly arrived into the room via shunshin, clearly out of breath but finished the sentence with "-okage" as she appeared mid-bow.

Hiruzen quirked an eyebrow at his tardy ANBU. The shadow units were trained to be the elite of the elite and at the very least, punctual. "You may rise and remove your masks. We are all well acquainted enough with each other.''

Normally, the identity of Anbu is classified. Rules of Anbu state members must wear their masks and their identity must be unknown to all but the Hokage and ANBU Commander. However, the Hokage's Anbu guard is a group of select few members hand picked by Lord Third himself. They have the utmost trust that they are loyal first and foremost to the Hokage and will answer to none other. However, It goes without saying that just because they aren't supposed to reveal their face, ninja have many ways to uncover the identity of an individual and have eventually found out who their teammates are.

The three Anbu members rose from their bow. The late Anbu member donned off her mask and shook her hair free. Her long, crimson-red hair flowed behind her and made her identity unquestionable, even if her large, dense chakra signature hadn't made her stand out like a beacon. She had violet eyes and the smallest hints of three whisker marks on her cheeks. She stood uncomfortably and smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of her neck. "Sorry Lord Hokage, it just feels weird just appearing in your office like this without being escorted in."

"Kushina, congratulations on making Anbu. As this is our first official meeting, allow me to introduce myself. As you know, I am Akinji Sarutobi, Captain of the Hokage's Guard and will be known as Ram for this mission." Akinji said to the teenage kunoichi.

Kushina nodded back politely, "Thank you, Lord Captain.. Captain Akodi.. Umm, Captain Ram?" she tried bashfully.

"For this mission, Captain will be just fine." Akinji replies.

Hiruzen cleared his throat and drew the attention back to himself. "Kushina has recently been added to the Hokage's guard after passing Anbu testing. Since she has been added to the Hokage's guard, as you can presume, she did quite well in testing" he .with a hint of amusement in his voice. "This will be her first mission. Her unique skill set will be necessary for this mission's success. I trust you will all find her addition to the team quite beneficial." He leveled his four Anbu with a serious expression.

Hiruzen took a long drag from his pipe before he continued. "The Four-Tailed Jinchuriki, known as Roshi from Iwa, is being sent to the battlefield. Jiraiya's information states he will arrive on the Western front in 4 days time".

At the sound of Jiraiya's name, Kushina perked up. She's very familiar with the Toad Sage and was unaware he was sent to Iwagakure, although it makes sense to have Konoha's spymaster across enemy lines. The Third Shinobi War has been ongoing for three years now and so far all nations have kept their Jinchuriki close to home. If the Tsuchikage is moving his jinchuriki against Konoha now, he must be trying to get this war over as quickly as possible. "Iwa doesn't have much room for agriculture" she thought. "They must not be getting food supplies because of the war. Merchants are too scared to cross a battlefield, so they tend not to travel so far" she surmised.

"You four will intercept Roshi before he gets to the battlefield." The Third Hokage continued. "He must not make it there. I'm afraid the balance of this war will depend on the outcome of this mission. Use whatever means necessary to ensure the Four Tails does not make it to the battlefield." He nods to Kushina, who meets his eyes and nods back.

Akinji steps forward and bows. "We will not fail, Hokage-sama." He turns to face his three teammates. "We leave immediately. Move!" Four shunshins and the Hokage's office is empty.

"I really do hope they all return home safely." The aging Hokage finally sighs and slumps down into his chair. He knows more than anyone the risks of being a shinobi, but if anything were to happen to his son he would never forgive himself. "I pray they can protect Konoha once again." He turns and looks out the window as the sun disappears into the clouds, letting the shadows overcome the light once again.

…

Akodi walked through the entryway of the Sarutobi compound, mulling over his thoughts.

"Dad always goes out on these cool missions for weeks at a time. He's probably going off on another cool mission where he's going to defeat bad guys and win us the war!" He walked up the steps, not exactly aware of his surroundings. He noticed the door to his house was open and inside the entryway was Elida staring him down. Her face was full of unblinking anger as her piercing gaze locked onto him.

"Ah He he.. I just wanted to go for a stroll and get some fresh air?" Akodi tried weakly with a small grin, letting a light laugh escape.

"And I suppose this stroll just happened to take you to the Hokage's office again by chance, did it?" Sometimes, Akodi forgets that his mother is a Tokubetsu Jonin, skilled in espionage and information gathering.

"Oh what's that? I think I hear Shisui calling me, I should go see what he wants." He turned to leave before his mother instantly shunshinned behind him and placed a hand on his shoulder. She gave him a stern look before softening her gaze.

"Akodi, I know you just want to spend more time with your dad and grandpa, but it's important to have discipline as well. They are some of the two, if not THE two, most important people in this village, and they work so hard to keep not only us but the village safe. The best way you can repay them is to be good and work your hardest. Can you do that for me?" She looked at him with soft eyes that warmed him.

Elida was known as much for her combat skills as she was for her lovely personality. She showed great perseverance but also fair forgiveness. She would have been a great war negotiator, for when she spoke even the men stopped to listen to her soft, yet commanding tone. Akodi stood no chance. If she wanted him to stay home and get work done, then that's what he would be doing.

Said work was actually training, but to Akodi it felt like work. When he turned three both of his parents took to training him with diligence. At first, it began with playtime that covertly improved the child's abilities. Most clan parents had similar toys that would work to improve a child's balance or finger coordination for hand signs.

Once he was old enough he began to practice his katas diligently under the watchful eye of Elida, who would ever so calmly and lovingly correct his form, telling him to straighten his back when raising a hand to block or to tighten his core before he jumps to the side.

So there he was, sweat beading from his brow while he threw punches, kicked, and side jumped under the afternoon sun. About two hours later, Akodi looked up to notice his mom was no longer watching him and realized his dad still hadn't come home yet. "She's probably gone out to the market to get food for dinner." he presumed..

Akodi walked to the edge of the field to rest in the shade of one of the larger trees and looked up at the clouds, watching them lazily pass through the sky. He closed his eyes, and tried to reach deep down for that familiar feeling that he associates with his chakra. He can feel the initial warmth and tingling sensation deep in his core. He then moved this warmth slowly and spread it up his chest, through his arms and into his hands. Then he did the opposite, moving the chakra out of his hands, traveling up his arms before bringing it down to his legs and through his feet. Akinji had shown him this exercise when he initially began to show signs of his chakra coils growing. It was a good exercise to develop and grow his chakra pathways and overall chakra reserves from a young age. Akinji was shocked when his son managed not only to connect with his chakra, but was able to move and direct it on his very first try.

When Elida returned home with bags of food, Akodi ran over to help her put groceries away and prepare the rice while his mom worked on preparing the fish.

"I think you're improving a lot with your form. I'm proud of you and all the hard work you've been putting in." She gave him a side hug and kissed him on the forehead before she headed into the kitchen.

Akodi blushed but beamed up at her. Her compliments always left him feeling all warm and fuzzy inside.

Elida continued. "Your dad will be away on a mission for a bit. At least a week or two".

At that, Akodi slowed his hands and looked down to the floor, sad he won't be seeing his father for a while. He became worried as he knows his father is risking his life for the village on another high ranking mission. "Will he be going to the front lines of the war?"

One of Akodi's best friends, Uchiha Shisui, had his parents sent to the war last year and never returned home. When the news came of their death earlier this year, Shisui was inconsolable. It was said that the grief of losing his parents had awakened his sharingan, becoming one of the youngest Uchiha to do so. The Uchiha were proud and spoke of him in high regard, saying he had one of the most mature sharingan in ages! Shisui just wanted his parents back.

"The nature of the mission is classified so even I don't know where he is going." She continued, "But know that your father is strong and has his team with him." She walked over, knelt down and wrapped him in a loving hug. "His team will keep him safe, don't you worry."

Akodi thought back to his conversation earlier with his mom about how his dad and grandpa have sacrificed for the village, remembering how hard they work to protect not only their family, but their village. Maybe to them, the village is an extension of their family? Or by protecting the village, they are also protecting their family. Suddenly, it all clicks inside his head. The reason why they all train and work so hard is because they want to protect those they love and what is important to them.

To Akodi, his family and friends are the most important thing to him. He then resolves himself to work harder than ever to protect them. In protecting them, he will also protect the village because it's important to his family!

Akodi released himself from the hug with a strong, determined look in his eyes. "Mom, will you teach me how to use a fire release jutsu!? I want to impress Dad when he returns home from his mission."

The request confused her briefly before she saw the steely look in his eyes. "Yes, a fire technique would certainly be fitting for your first jutsu. I'll show you the first step after dinner. Now hurry with the rice."

"Yes Mom!"

…

The next two weeks were a lot of the same. Akodi would eat breakfast, then practice his katas while listening to suggestions from Elida and polishing his form to meet her approval. They would take a break and he would play 'ninja' with Shisui and the other kids his age throughout the village. Afterwards, he would go home, eat, then practice the jutsu he'd been working on with his Mom.

Wash. Rinse. Repeat.

Two weeks later, Elida was sitting on the steps watching Akodi perform a training method known as shadow fighting, in which he imagines he is fighting an opponent. "He really has improved while Akinji has been gone." She thought. "It's like he's found his Will Of Fire."

Akinji threw a perfect right handed punch at his imaginary opponent and followed it up with a sweeping left kick. In his mind, he imagined his opponent jumping over his kick. Akinji spun and kicked upwards with his right, sending his opponent upwards and careening towards the other end of the field. He focused his chakra towards his feet, allowing it to flow into his leg muscles along the way, and dashed forwards with a burst of speed to deliver the finishing overhead kick.

He stood up and relaxed his shoulders. "I really need to improve the speed it takes to gather my chakra. In a real battle, I won't have time to stand still like that."

…

Four shadows sped by through the treetops. The landscape was starting to change from the tall, powerful Hashirama trees to thinner, more sun-starved vegetation.

"We should be nearing the Western front shortly." Akodi thought to himself. He flashed the ANBU sign for 'break' to his team and the three other ANBU agents faced him.

"Lynx. Beaver. Fox. I know we never had an opportunity to train together so Fox, you will stay close with me. Provide supplementary support from mid range while the three of us will use formation 2C. Our primary objective is to defeat and/or restrain a seasoned Jinchuriki. They are near impossible to defeat-"

Kushina blurted out an impulsive "Damn Right!" forgetting she's Anbu and quickly smacked her own hand over her mouth. She looked apologetically at Akodi for cutting off the captain.

He continues, eyebrow quirked up in annoyance,"-impossible to defeat one on one. Thanks to their increased healing factor, there is only one sure way to kill a Jinchuriki. We need to remove the tailed beast.".

Three eyes widen at the proclamation.

"I hope you have a plan." Lynx not so tactically points out.

"I do." He replied and pulled out what appeared to be a plain-old looking jar. "Our intel from Kumo and Suna state that they have successfully sealed a Jinchuriki into an inanimate object, such as a jar, in the past. However, it is impossible to tell how long the tailed beast will be held. Our objective is to take the beast from Roshi and seal it into the jar. That is where you come in, Fox. It is imperative that we protect Fox, so she can extract and reseal the Yonbi."

Kushina is slightly miffed he would suggest protecting her, "As if she couldn't defend herself!"

However, she already used her one 'outspoken comment allowance' and knows she would not be awarded another.

Akodi cleared his throat, gathering her attention back onto him. "Move out, Fox stay close with me"

"Right!"