"I WANT EVERY CIVILIAN UNDERGROUND, ANY NINJA HIGH JŌNIN OR GREATER IS WITH ME" The voice bellowed with a mix of fear and order. A chorus of acknowledgement followed as shinobi scattered to carry out the orders of their former Hokage.
"SARUTOBI-SAMA, THE FOX IS MOVING TOO FEROCIOUSLY; MY BARRIER WONT HOLD" A man yelled to his superior, voice filled with fear and desperation.
"THE HOKAGE IS ON HIS WAY WE NEED ONLY TO STALL IT UNTIL HE ARRIVES" The elder man responded and turned his attention back to the rampaging fox. Flowing through hand seals, Hiruzen bit his thumb and slammed his palm onto the damp ground. "SUMMONING JUTSU: MONKEY KING ENMA" the former Hokage bellowed as a large plum of smoke covered a section of the battle field. Once the smoke cleared it revealed a towering, well built, monkey dressed in tiger print, a leaf headband tied around its forehead.
"Hiruzen" It spoke before turning to the rampaging fox. "I thought Kushina-San had this beast under control." It turned to the Third Hokage who flashed a grimace.
"She did up until moments prior."
"The seal has weakened?" It spoke wishing more to confirm than question.
"She gave birth to twins. The boy came into the world without issue but the girl..." Hiruzen trailed off
"The girl decided to try and drag that beast out with her" The monkey spoke, narrowing its eyes at the fox.
"In a sense yes"
"Then let us fight" It's tone decisive. Hiruzen nodded and with a puff of smoke, Enma turned into a large black staff.
"EXTEND, ENMA!" Hiruzen shouted as the staff obeyed his command, thinning out and extending in length. Hiruzen flung himself towards the fox who seemingly noticed the man and swung a claw towards him. Hiruzen, stopped his advance and swung his staff upwards, catching it between two of the beats claws.
"EXTEND, ENMA!" Hiruzen commanded once more and the staff shot through the beasts claw, nailing it in the snout. The fox reeled back as it stopped to assess the Third Hokage. Hiruzen took advantage of the brief lapse in attack to make his own move. Retracting Enma, the elder man threw a pebble behind the beats head before making 5 hand seals.
"SUBSTITUTION JUTSU" the man had disappeared and in his place was the pebble he threw earlier. The foxes eyes widened before it whipped its head behind itself, spotting the former Hokage.
"FIRE STYLE: BURNING ASH JUTSU!" The former Hokage called out before blowing out a cloud of gunpowder. The man stalled to light it as he let himself fall and slip behind the temporarily blind demon fox.
"FIRE STYLE: BURNING ASH JUTSU!" He yelled again as he repeatedly ran laps around the blind fox, repeating the jutsu in intervals. The fox attempted to raise a claw to swipe at the smoke but found it couldn't. The beasts eyes widened as it seemingly knew what came next.
"Wisened up have we?" The former Hokage said tauntingly as Enma was back at his side, not as a staff but as his summon, holding a wire covered in a slick substance.
"FIRE STYLE: FIRE BALL JUTSU!" The ball of flame stuck to the incendiary oil and traveled up the length of the wire, wrapping around the fox while also exploding the several gunpowder clouds around its head.
"THAT'S THE POWER OF THE HOKAGE!" a shinobi yelled out and a chorus of similar sentiments followed. The fox stayed stagnant for a while before letting out a deafening roar and tearing apart the wire and settling its glare on Hiruzen. The fox snarled before opening its jaw and pointing it straight towards the former Hokage as a sickly blackish purple chakra condensed in its mouth.
"SCATTER!" The man yelled to his subordinates as he cast a glance at Enma who returned it understandingly. If they didn't pull this off, they would die. The summon transformed back into a staff and expanded to a size near that of the fox itself. The fox narrowed its red eyes and shot the condensed ball of chakra towards the Hokage and his makeshift wall. Hiruzen watched as the ball came closer and closer, anxiously awaiting the collision.
But it never came.
A yellow flash blinded the former Hokage and once his vision cleared up he realized that the massive ball of chakra was gone.
And the Fourth Hokage was here.
"Minato" Hiruzen breathed the name out as his fears lessened slightly.
"Hiruzen." His voice was cold as he stared down the tailed beast. "I have a plan." The elder man nodded and shifted his gaze to the enraged fox.
"Just tell me what you need from me Hokage-Sama" He spoke the man's title as a way to convey his willingness to fight for his village. With a nod, Minato turned towards the beast and threw a tri-pronged kunai at the fox demon who made an attempt to swat it away but before it could the Fourth Hokage appeared with it in his hand and tapped the beast on its claw. A large yellow flash blinded the battlefield and once the light cleared Minato had disappeared.
Alongside the beast.
Hiruzen stared at the place the Hokage once was before grimacing and narrowing his eyes.
"What are you planning Minato" However, before the man could move to search for the beast and aid his successor in combat, the blonde man reappeared and wordlessly teleported his predecessor away with him.
Clearing - Land Of Fire
"You still haven't told me your plan Minato" Hiruzen spoke, though it was more to himself than to the blonde man beside him.
"We're going to seal the fox in Narumi." He said it bluntly as he turned away from the former Hokage and towards the demon fox. "But first, we have to slow it down"
Hiruzens mouth was agape as he looked at his successor, eyed wide as saucers. "You can't be serious"
"I very much am." His cold voice contrasted harshly from the warm man Hiruzen knew him to be.
"You surely can't hope to use that seal. It'd kill you" Hiruzen was worried. He knew this man wouldn't think twice about killing himself for the village he called home.
"No." Hiruzen breathed a sigh of relief
"Then how do you intend to seal the fox?" His worry washed away slightly and was replaced by curiosity.
"I came across a scroll among the ruins of Uzu. Most of it was gone but I managed to figure out what info it was containing, turns out it's a sealing jutsu called Heavenly Restriction."
"Though surely it has a cost?" Hiruzen added and studied the Hokage. The blonde lowered his head before turning to the fox, who was in the midst of gathering more chakra for its Tailed Beast Bomb, and throwing one of his tri-pronged kunai right towards the rapidly growing ball of chakra and teleported right in front of the beast.
"MINATO, DODGE!" The former Hokage shouted but the blonde man stared the rapidly approaching bomb down and stuck his hands out. Time seemed to slow down as Hiruzen watched as the technique inched closer to his student before it finally made contact with his outstretched palms.
And it vanished.
Miles out, a loud crash rocked the land of fire as the bomb eviscerated a natural hot spring.
"I knew his Flying Raijin was powerful but to teleport an attack from that monster?!?! Incredible" Hiruzen praised the Hokage in his mind before a shout broke him out of his thoughts.
"FOLLOW UP HIRUZEN!" The Hokage had yelled at the elder man who only nodded before slamming his palms together.
"EARTH STYLE: STONE MONOLITH" A large slab of stone appeared infront of Hiruzen who grabbed his staff and swung it as hard as he could, shattering the recently constructed structure and launching them towards the fox alongside a flurry of fūma shuriken. Said demon raised its paw to block the debris but just as they made contact the former Hokage made a single hand seal that triggered each of the paper bombs discreetly attached to the rocks to explode deafening the fox and propelling the shuriken deep within its paw. The former Hokage grinned as he made a mad dash to the tree line, encircling the fox before returning to Minatos side
"Fifteen seconds." The Hokage spoke out and Hiruzen nodded. He'd give Minato that time and then some.
"Go" the elder man spoke and Minato flashed away to presumably retrieve his daughter. The fox grew irate at the lack of carnage and swiped its undamaged paw at the older man who jumped back in response.
"Let me show you why I am revered as the god of shinobi fox" The man grinned as he tossed up Enma who returned to his monkey form. The summon shared the God of Shinobis grin as he pulled hard on the wire wrapped around his hands. The trees surrounding the Kyuubi toppled atop the beast who struggled to free itself with its one paw.
"FIRE STYLE: GREAT DRAGON FIRE JUTSU!" Hiruzen yelled as he lit the trees ablaze. Without missing a beat Hiruzen formed a number of hand seals before slamming his palms on the warm grass.
"EARTH STYLE: SINKHOLE" the area under the fox collapsed as a sinkhole a staggering 600 meters down swallowed the demon fox.
"Water Style: Stormy Blockade" A calm voiced called out.
Minato was back.
"Caught on didn't you" Hiruzen grinned as he turned to his successor.
"Great minds think alike" The blonde said with a warm smile. Hiruzen let out a chuckle before turning back to the now submerged Kyuubi and going through hand seals once more. Minato quickly flashed through his own seals as they finished the technique at the same time.
"LIGHTING STYLE: ELECTROMAGNETIC MURDER!" The two men called out as the lighting infused water shocked the nine tails who struggled to free itself.
"We have little time Hiruzen we need to begin" The blonde flew through hand seals before biting his thumb and slamming his palms on the ground, summoning a giant toad.
"Minato? Hiruzen?" The toad questioned as he surveyed the area.
"No time to explain Gamabunta just hold down the Kyuubi when it crawls back up" Minato ordered and the toad gave a nod, turning to the Kyuubi.
"What are you doing Minato?" Hiruzen asked for the final time and the blonde Hokage finally answered him.
"We're sealing the fox into Narumi. I told you this." He said before turning back to his both his children.
"Then why is Naruto here?"
The Hokage didn't answer and instead drew a number of seals on his son and daughter.
"Cursed Binding: Heavenly Restriction!" The Hokage called as the seals on both his children glowed and a ghostly apparition appeared before them.
"Speak" It called, voice quiet yet haunting as it stared right through the men, down to their souls.
"We wish to seal the Kyuubi in my daughter, Narumi" Minato spoke, his voice shaky yet gaze firm.
"And in exchange?" The voice asked. Hiruzen turned towards Minato, anxiously awaiting what he'd be giving the demon in exchange for the sealing. Then it dawned on him.
"I WONT ALLOW YOU TO SACRIFICE NARUTO TO SEAL THIS BEAST" But as Hiruzen moved to interrupt Minato spoke.
"I offer you my son, Naruto's, chakra."