Naruto: Deal with the Devil 2 - Family
Title: A Deal with the Devil
Author: ofphenwa
Rating: R - NC17
Warnings: Violence
Summary: Dying was easy but living is the hardest thing to do as Namikaze Minato discovers for himself after making a deal with Shinigami - with literally deadly consequences, should he fail.
Master Post 1 2 3
It is not flesh and blood but the heart which makes us fathers and sons.
Johann Schiller
Chapter 2: Family
Danzo stared at the wrecked and bloody scene of Uzumaki’s ward in consternation. Uzumaki was nowhere to be found. How had that demon container managed to kill his men without raising an alarm? Either the boy had done the impossible or there was a third unknown party who had been inside the room with him at the time of the mission - had Kyuubi somehow manifested? The fatal wounds on the corpses were horrific indeed and looked like a beast had made them. But he would never know the answer, because there was no one left alive to speak.
Danzo curtly ordered his subordinate, “Clean it up and tell no one about this.” Then he spun around on his heel and left the ward without a further word. Koharu and Homura could not know of his hand in this botched affair. But perhaps, he could use this situation to his advantage… even if it meant rearranging his plans. The best laid plans of mice and men oft go awry indeed.
Naruto’s body felt sluggish and heavy as though his limbs were made of lead. Even opening his eyelids was a huge strain on his body. Naruto's vision was blurry and he felt wind on his face. Huge blobs of green and brown zoomed past with the occasional patches of blue and white. He was being carried in warm and strong arms and a pleasant nostalgic scent of sandalwood and pine filled his nose. It aroused such a strong feeling of safety and reminded him of home that he didn't feel the urge to struggle. He peered up to try and see who was carrying him. The bright sun created something like a halo around the man's head, at first making it hard to see his features. When Naruto could finally see, he smiled and said softly, "Hey, Yondaime-sama. Thanks for the ride."
Then, Naruto sighed contentedly and burrowed deeper into the comfortable embrace and shut his eyes, enjoying the breeze and feeling the man's heart beating reassuringly beneath his cheek. Yondaime's arms tightened around him protectively, making Naruto hum with contentment. It was the nicest dream Naruto had. Before he drifted off, he had the faintest impression of being kissed on his forehead.
Time passed like a dream.
Naruto slowly woke up, feeling pleasantly warm and safe. The pillows he was lying on were the largest, fluffiest and softest pillows he had ever slept on and the bed was so comfortable that he was tempted to doze off again. Naruto frowned slightly when he did not recognise the ceiling to be the familiar dreary greyish-white ceiling of the hospital or the cracked ceiling of his small apartment. Instead, it was a high ceiling with dark wooden panelling. He was slightly bewildered as to where he was but he did not feel any fear. After all, there was no sense of danger nearby that pinged his well-honed survival instincts.
Naruto yawned and smiled dopily. He had dreamed that the Yondaime had carried him through a forest. That was pretty awesome. Though, too bad it had been just a dream. There was no way the Yondaime could be alive. But where the heck was he now? Luckily for Naruto, there was a window in the room so he hopped off the bed and walked over to the window to see where he was. He placed his hands on the window shutters and pushed them wide open. A blast of bracing briny air slapped his face and his remaining sleepiness away. Naruto gasped at what he saw. An ocean, deep and blue as far as he could see! He was in a house on a hill next to the ocean.
Okaaaayy, I’m not in Konoha anymore.
Gaping at the foreign but beautiful scenery, Naruto almost missed the click of the door lock opening. Leaping quickly behind the bed to put some distance between him and his kidnapper, Naruto held a defensive pose only to be struck speechless when he found that he recognised the man. It was the freaking Yondaime Hokage! But common sense quickly prevailed and with a ferocious yell; Naruto launched himself at the imposter.
Minato stretched his arms; loosening up his stiff muscles from the hard training he had been doing for the past few hours to ascertain his new limitations. Everything was in working order and in fact, Minato's chakra reserves seemed to have mysteriously expanded. He was now capable of creating twenty Kage Bunshin; about the twice the number he could do before he died. Unfortunately, this also meant that his chakra control was shot and he would have to train up his control again. Nevertheless, it was an unexpected boon and Minato wasn't going to look the gift horse in the mouth. So he simply took it in stride.
As he walked back to the small house, Minato admired the scenery. This used to be Uzumaki Kushina's ancestral home, before she, as the last Uzumaki, migrated to Konoha. The house was surprisingly still in good shape thanks to the stasis seals on it. Minato was grateful that Kushina had told him about her home, or he and Naruto would have been sleeping on the rocks instead. Wave Country, formerly Whirlpool Country, was quite a serene place and Minato could see why Kushina had missed her homeland so much. He thought that it would be a good place to hide out for a while with Naruto from Danzo's men until his son was strong enough to look after himself.
As Minato strolled back to their house, he wondered if Naruto was finally awake. It should be about time now that the sedatives had worn off. Minato had been quite furious to discover that his son had been drugged with enough sedatives to kill a man in preparation for his kidnapping. Such underhanded actions in broad daylight were a clear sign of how bad affairs in Konoha had become if Danzo and Root could afford to act in the open. He shivered to think of what could have happened to his son if he had not been there to stop the kidnapping. He finally noticed that the window of Naruto's room was open now, indicating that his son must now be awake.
Minato's heart beat rapidly as he ascended the stairs to Naruto's room. This was the first time his son would actually get to see and speak with him. There was a very large chance of Naruto reacting negatively on learning that Minato was his father and hence his father had been the one to seal Kyuubi inside him. Minato couldn't bear the thought of his son hating him for what he did. He would rather die instead. Gulping nervously, Minato's hand trembled as he gently pushed the door open. Naruto was standing behind the bed in a stance, which he vaguely recalled, from basic Academy taijutsu.
As Minato stared at his son, wondering what to say to him, a stunned expression spread across Naruto's expressive face as he recognised him. Then his face quickly set in a determined and hostile expression. With a ferocious yell, Naruto's fist suddenly flew towards his face and instinctively; Minato caught the hand and barely avoided the following ferocious left kick from Naruto. Plastering a grin on his face that belied his shaky confidence, Minato greeted, "You're looking in fine form, Naruto."
His blue eyes intense with determination, Naruto chambered his leg for another painful hard kick to Minato's knee. He was forced to tackle Naruto to the bed and hold him down with his larger frame to prevent his son from attacking him and not hurting him at the same time. It was much harder than it should have been as Naruto kept wriggling around like a slippery eel in his grasp and jabbing his bony elbows and knees painfully into his body. Luckily, Naruto didn't resort to biting though it increasingly looked like he might with every passing second. God, it was almost like trying to contain a wild hurricane, his namesake. Naruto hollered, "Who the heck are you and why did you kidnap me?! Why are you pretending to be Yondaime-sama?!"
Minato's nervousness completely dissipated in the face of Naruto's loud accusations and the rebellious glint in his eyes. It reminded him so much of Kushina. Naruto's personality was so much like Kushina's. He laughed quietly. Naruto temporarily stilled his struggles, confused by his laughter. Minato replied clearly, "I am no imposter, Naruto. Otherwise, my disguise would have dispelled by now with all the struggling you've been doing. I am Namikaze Minato, former Yondaime Hokage."
Naruto found it hard to comprehend what he was seeing and hearing. His instincts told that the man who claimed to be Namikaze Minato, the Yondaime Hokage, was telling the truth and he had to admit that he wasn't in a henge as it would have dispelled with the few hard blows he had given the man. He asked in confusion, "But, but… didn't you die thirteen years ago? How did you come back? Why do you look so young?"
Minato let him go, seeing that his son was now willing to listen and not attack rashly. He explained, "Yes, I did die thirteen years ago. As for how I came back…I'm not sure. I just woke up in an abandoned laboratory in Rice Country a few days ago so I can only assume that someone was trying to resurrect me. They must have given up long ago as the laboratory was in such dilapidation that I'm surprised I actually came back at all. As for my youthful appearance…being dead for thirteen years tends to stop the aging process."
“How do I know you’re telling the truth?” Naruto sceptically asked, eyeing the stranger who claimed to be the Yondaime suspiciously. It was just not possible for anyone to come back from the dead. He eyed the open windows and door, calculating his chances of successfully escaping from the Yondaime-lookalike.
Minato smiled and reached out to ruffle Naruto’s hair affectionately but he aborted the movement halfway as he realised that his suspicious son wouldn’t appreciate it. Awkwardly letting his hand drop to his lap, he replied, “Alright. I’ll show you that I am the person whom I claim to be.”
“….W-wow. You really are the Yondaime Hokage…” Naruto stared at the man who was really the real Yondaime Hokage in awe. After carving some seals into a solid branch as a temporary replacement for his kunai, Minato had passed it to him and told him to hide it in a place only he knew. Minato would then use the legendary Hiraishin that only the Yondaime Hokage could use and retrieve the stick within seconds, thus proving his claim.
Naruto had not hidden it in the forest or the house but buried it firmly in the sand at the beach. When Minato appeared at the beach, he had been given a rude shock as a tidal wave crashed over him at that very moment. Sopping wet and cold, Minato took the sand-encrusted branch back to his son and Naruto finally conceded that he was telling the truth as he confirmed that it was the same branch.
Looking at the ground and blushing furiously, Naruto apologised, “I’m so sorry! If I’d known that you were the real Yondaime, I would never have planted the stick at the beach. I never meant to get you totally wet!” He was so mortified that he wished the ground would open up and swallow him.
Minato laughed as he picked out a strand of seaweed from his hair, “You did nothing wrong. It was just rather bad timing. Now that you believe me… I’ve got something important to tell you.”
Looking up at Minato, Naruto curiously questioned, “What is it?”
Minato was now giving him the same serious look that Sandaime-jiji would give him when he had something very important to say. Naruto suddenly got a funny feeling in his stomach, knowing somehow that it was going to be earth shattering in some way. Minato finally whispered, “I am…” He paused with a nervous look on his face before breathlessly finishing his sentence, “I am your father.”
The Yondaime Hokage was his father…?
Naruto couldn’t believe his ears. Numbly, he heard himself say, “You’re pulling my leg, aren’t you? Hardeehar, very funny. This is payback for getting you wet, isn’t it?”
“No, I’m telling the truth. I would never lie to you, Naruto.”
Minato’s blue eyes were pleading and earnest. Naruto couldn’t bear it. Stepping back out of Minato’s reach and shaking violently with anger, he shouted at him, pointing an accusing finger at him, “Don’t lie to me! If you were my father, then you would never have sealed Kyuubi inside me! You would never have chosen to die and leave me alone for nearly all my life! Do you know how much I’ve suffered? The hate, the fear the villagers had towards me… How…dare you! Even if you’re the Yondaime Hokage -”
“Yes, you’re right.” Naruto stopped, his body trembling as he listened to Minato speak. “I never should have sealed Kyuubi inside my son thirteen years ago. It was a choice I never wanted to make as a father. But as a Hokage, I had to, much to my painful regret and shame.”
Minato sadly smiled at his son, “For it’s worth, I’m sorry for the pain I’ve caused you. Even if you won’t forgive me, please let me be by your side as I should always have been…”
Naruto’s arm dropped limply to his side as his fury ebbed away. He felt so emotionally drained and looking into Minato’s eyes, he saw something that he desperately craved for so long and with such intensity that it scared him. Then he recalled the strange dream he had earlier and realised with a jolt of shock that it might have been a very real memory. Shyly and with a seed of hope in his heart, he asked, “That dream I had earlier… The one where you were carrying me through the forest… Was it real?”
“…Yes.” Minato hesitantly answered, bracing himself for his son’s inevitable response.
“Oh.” His breath whooshed out of him in astonishment and in its wake, a curious joy almost like the time he’d heard Iruka’s speech on the night he became a genin spread through him. Blinking rapidly, he awkwardly said, “Um, well, thanks for the ride…” Naruto self-consciously rubbed his nose, “This is quite a lot to take in…but well, it’s kinda cool to have you as my father, I guess.”
Minato blinked dumbly as he processed what Naruto had just said. When it finally hit him, he could not help but smile brilliantly as relief and happiness coursed through him. Too fast for Naruto to see and react; he swept his son up into a tight embrace as he murmured into his ear; “Thank you.”
Naruto stiffened initially at the unfamiliar contact but he soon relaxed when he realised that Minato was merely hugging him. Aside from the cold wetness, it actually felt… pretty good. It felt like he’d returned home. Feeling self-conscious, he half-heartedly squirmed in his father’s cold and wet hug as he muttered, “…Let me go. You’re getting me wet!” Minato only laughed and refused to let him go.
A calm, deep voice declared, "So it is decided. Hence forth, Genin Uzumaki Naruto, Shinobi ID 012607, is now an S-ranked missing nin and will be interred into the Bingo Book. All Konoha shinobi are to apprehend him and bring him back alive to Konoha on sight."
A rustle of paper was faint; someone was turning over the pages. The same voice spoke again, "However, if Uzumaki is covered with red chakra, do not attempt to engage him in combat, as the red chakra is toxic and we are all well aware thanks to the night of the Kyuubi Attack. Uzumaki is also too powerful and dangerous to fight with when he is in this state. We do not wish to lose any more men now that Konoha is in the reconstruction process. We do not look kindly on traitors who kill their fellow comrades in cold blood and betray Konoha. Are there any further questions before we close this session?"
A stony silence ensued. No one spoke even after a few long minutes.
"Council is dismissed."
Haruno Sakura was wondering where Uzumaki Naruto had disappeared. It had been days since she last saw him during the Chuunin Exams Invasion. She didn't even see Naruto at the memorial ceremony a few days ago. Waiting at the red bridge, their usual meeting place, Sakura perked up when she saw Sasuke walking towards her. She politely greeted him, "Good morning, Sasuke-kun."
"Hn."
Sasuke seemed to be so intense lately. It was as if nothing except training existed for Sasuke. It had gotten worse, now that Naruto wasn't around. Kakashi-sensei also seemed to be ultra-tense lately, as well. He hadn't even pulled his perverted orange book once when he was with them. She was sure that all this had happened because of Naruto's absence, and she didn't know what to do. She hated to admit it but she also felt concerned about Naruto, but only as a teammate, honest! Naruto was… strong and stubborn. He wasn't the type to go down so easily. When Naruto finally showed his face, Sakura was going to give him her piece of her mind for making his team worry so much about him.
"Sakura, Sasuke. I will be away for a mission so there will be no training today. A replacement Jounin will train you while I'm away."
Kakashi-sensei was punctual today! Pinching herself discreetly to make sure that it wasn't a dream, Sakura boggled at her Jounin teacher. He actually looked deadly serious; like that time they went on the Wave mission. Sasuke frowned, but he nodded and walked off somewhere to be alone.
Sakura watched Sasuke go, wanting to chase after him but she had too many questions to ask Kakashi-sensei. Turning to the grey-haired Jounin, she asked, "Where's Naruto? What happened to him? We haven't seen him for days. He didn't even show up for the funeral!"
Kakashi's black eye rested on her and Sakura shivered at the blankness she saw. But she held firm. Kakashi seemed to smile at her but it was hard to tell with that stupid mask in the way. Kakashi brought out his familiar orange book and flipped it open to start reading. Sakura felt indignation rising when Kakashi finally drawled, "Naruto's on a vacation trip. Don't worry, he'll be fine."
Sakura nearly shouted at her perverted teacher to put that book away, but she stopped short when her feminine intuition told her that something wasn't quite right. She couldn't name it but was Kakashi actually… angry?
"Is something wrong, Kakashi-sensei? Naruto's ok, isn't he?"
Kakashi didn't answer Sakura, too absorbed in his book as he disappeared in a whirlwind of leaves. Sakura growled in an unladylike manner and kicked the bridge post that her teacher had been leaning against.
"Stupid sensei! Why won't he tell me what's going on??"
Slumping against the post, Sakura suddenly felt so alone, never realising just how much she actually missed Naruto now that the blond boy was gone. Chasing after Sasuke suddenly didn’t seem so important now. Listlessly watching the clouds, Sakura whispered to herself, "Naruto, you idiot. You better be ok and come back soon! I'll even go out on a date with you once."
The next day, Sakura learned that Uzumaki Naruto was now an S-ranked missing nin, and accused of murdering four ANBU.
Next
Author: ofphenwa
Rating: R - NC17
Warnings: Violence
Summary: Dying was easy but living is the hardest thing to do as Namikaze Minato discovers for himself after making a deal with Shinigami - with literally deadly consequences, should he fail.
Master Post 1 2 3
It is not flesh and blood but the heart which makes us fathers and sons.
Johann Schiller
Chapter 2: Family
Danzo stared at the wrecked and bloody scene of Uzumaki’s ward in consternation. Uzumaki was nowhere to be found. How had that demon container managed to kill his men without raising an alarm? Either the boy had done the impossible or there was a third unknown party who had been inside the room with him at the time of the mission - had Kyuubi somehow manifested? The fatal wounds on the corpses were horrific indeed and looked like a beast had made them. But he would never know the answer, because there was no one left alive to speak.
Danzo curtly ordered his subordinate, “Clean it up and tell no one about this.” Then he spun around on his heel and left the ward without a further word. Koharu and Homura could not know of his hand in this botched affair. But perhaps, he could use this situation to his advantage… even if it meant rearranging his plans. The best laid plans of mice and men oft go awry indeed.
Naruto’s body felt sluggish and heavy as though his limbs were made of lead. Even opening his eyelids was a huge strain on his body. Naruto's vision was blurry and he felt wind on his face. Huge blobs of green and brown zoomed past with the occasional patches of blue and white. He was being carried in warm and strong arms and a pleasant nostalgic scent of sandalwood and pine filled his nose. It aroused such a strong feeling of safety and reminded him of home that he didn't feel the urge to struggle. He peered up to try and see who was carrying him. The bright sun created something like a halo around the man's head, at first making it hard to see his features. When Naruto could finally see, he smiled and said softly, "Hey, Yondaime-sama. Thanks for the ride."
Then, Naruto sighed contentedly and burrowed deeper into the comfortable embrace and shut his eyes, enjoying the breeze and feeling the man's heart beating reassuringly beneath his cheek. Yondaime's arms tightened around him protectively, making Naruto hum with contentment. It was the nicest dream Naruto had. Before he drifted off, he had the faintest impression of being kissed on his forehead.
Time passed like a dream.
Naruto slowly woke up, feeling pleasantly warm and safe. The pillows he was lying on were the largest, fluffiest and softest pillows he had ever slept on and the bed was so comfortable that he was tempted to doze off again. Naruto frowned slightly when he did not recognise the ceiling to be the familiar dreary greyish-white ceiling of the hospital or the cracked ceiling of his small apartment. Instead, it was a high ceiling with dark wooden panelling. He was slightly bewildered as to where he was but he did not feel any fear. After all, there was no sense of danger nearby that pinged his well-honed survival instincts.
Naruto yawned and smiled dopily. He had dreamed that the Yondaime had carried him through a forest. That was pretty awesome. Though, too bad it had been just a dream. There was no way the Yondaime could be alive. But where the heck was he now? Luckily for Naruto, there was a window in the room so he hopped off the bed and walked over to the window to see where he was. He placed his hands on the window shutters and pushed them wide open. A blast of bracing briny air slapped his face and his remaining sleepiness away. Naruto gasped at what he saw. An ocean, deep and blue as far as he could see! He was in a house on a hill next to the ocean.
Okaaaayy, I’m not in Konoha anymore.
Gaping at the foreign but beautiful scenery, Naruto almost missed the click of the door lock opening. Leaping quickly behind the bed to put some distance between him and his kidnapper, Naruto held a defensive pose only to be struck speechless when he found that he recognised the man. It was the freaking Yondaime Hokage! But common sense quickly prevailed and with a ferocious yell; Naruto launched himself at the imposter.
Minato stretched his arms; loosening up his stiff muscles from the hard training he had been doing for the past few hours to ascertain his new limitations. Everything was in working order and in fact, Minato's chakra reserves seemed to have mysteriously expanded. He was now capable of creating twenty Kage Bunshin; about the twice the number he could do before he died. Unfortunately, this also meant that his chakra control was shot and he would have to train up his control again. Nevertheless, it was an unexpected boon and Minato wasn't going to look the gift horse in the mouth. So he simply took it in stride.
As he walked back to the small house, Minato admired the scenery. This used to be Uzumaki Kushina's ancestral home, before she, as the last Uzumaki, migrated to Konoha. The house was surprisingly still in good shape thanks to the stasis seals on it. Minato was grateful that Kushina had told him about her home, or he and Naruto would have been sleeping on the rocks instead. Wave Country, formerly Whirlpool Country, was quite a serene place and Minato could see why Kushina had missed her homeland so much. He thought that it would be a good place to hide out for a while with Naruto from Danzo's men until his son was strong enough to look after himself.
As Minato strolled back to their house, he wondered if Naruto was finally awake. It should be about time now that the sedatives had worn off. Minato had been quite furious to discover that his son had been drugged with enough sedatives to kill a man in preparation for his kidnapping. Such underhanded actions in broad daylight were a clear sign of how bad affairs in Konoha had become if Danzo and Root could afford to act in the open. He shivered to think of what could have happened to his son if he had not been there to stop the kidnapping. He finally noticed that the window of Naruto's room was open now, indicating that his son must now be awake.
Minato's heart beat rapidly as he ascended the stairs to Naruto's room. This was the first time his son would actually get to see and speak with him. There was a very large chance of Naruto reacting negatively on learning that Minato was his father and hence his father had been the one to seal Kyuubi inside him. Minato couldn't bear the thought of his son hating him for what he did. He would rather die instead. Gulping nervously, Minato's hand trembled as he gently pushed the door open. Naruto was standing behind the bed in a stance, which he vaguely recalled, from basic Academy taijutsu.
As Minato stared at his son, wondering what to say to him, a stunned expression spread across Naruto's expressive face as he recognised him. Then his face quickly set in a determined and hostile expression. With a ferocious yell, Naruto's fist suddenly flew towards his face and instinctively; Minato caught the hand and barely avoided the following ferocious left kick from Naruto. Plastering a grin on his face that belied his shaky confidence, Minato greeted, "You're looking in fine form, Naruto."
His blue eyes intense with determination, Naruto chambered his leg for another painful hard kick to Minato's knee. He was forced to tackle Naruto to the bed and hold him down with his larger frame to prevent his son from attacking him and not hurting him at the same time. It was much harder than it should have been as Naruto kept wriggling around like a slippery eel in his grasp and jabbing his bony elbows and knees painfully into his body. Luckily, Naruto didn't resort to biting though it increasingly looked like he might with every passing second. God, it was almost like trying to contain a wild hurricane, his namesake. Naruto hollered, "Who the heck are you and why did you kidnap me?! Why are you pretending to be Yondaime-sama?!"
Minato's nervousness completely dissipated in the face of Naruto's loud accusations and the rebellious glint in his eyes. It reminded him so much of Kushina. Naruto's personality was so much like Kushina's. He laughed quietly. Naruto temporarily stilled his struggles, confused by his laughter. Minato replied clearly, "I am no imposter, Naruto. Otherwise, my disguise would have dispelled by now with all the struggling you've been doing. I am Namikaze Minato, former Yondaime Hokage."
Naruto found it hard to comprehend what he was seeing and hearing. His instincts told that the man who claimed to be Namikaze Minato, the Yondaime Hokage, was telling the truth and he had to admit that he wasn't in a henge as it would have dispelled with the few hard blows he had given the man. He asked in confusion, "But, but… didn't you die thirteen years ago? How did you come back? Why do you look so young?"
Minato let him go, seeing that his son was now willing to listen and not attack rashly. He explained, "Yes, I did die thirteen years ago. As for how I came back…I'm not sure. I just woke up in an abandoned laboratory in Rice Country a few days ago so I can only assume that someone was trying to resurrect me. They must have given up long ago as the laboratory was in such dilapidation that I'm surprised I actually came back at all. As for my youthful appearance…being dead for thirteen years tends to stop the aging process."
“How do I know you’re telling the truth?” Naruto sceptically asked, eyeing the stranger who claimed to be the Yondaime suspiciously. It was just not possible for anyone to come back from the dead. He eyed the open windows and door, calculating his chances of successfully escaping from the Yondaime-lookalike.
Minato smiled and reached out to ruffle Naruto’s hair affectionately but he aborted the movement halfway as he realised that his suspicious son wouldn’t appreciate it. Awkwardly letting his hand drop to his lap, he replied, “Alright. I’ll show you that I am the person whom I claim to be.”
“….W-wow. You really are the Yondaime Hokage…” Naruto stared at the man who was really the real Yondaime Hokage in awe. After carving some seals into a solid branch as a temporary replacement for his kunai, Minato had passed it to him and told him to hide it in a place only he knew. Minato would then use the legendary Hiraishin that only the Yondaime Hokage could use and retrieve the stick within seconds, thus proving his claim.
Naruto had not hidden it in the forest or the house but buried it firmly in the sand at the beach. When Minato appeared at the beach, he had been given a rude shock as a tidal wave crashed over him at that very moment. Sopping wet and cold, Minato took the sand-encrusted branch back to his son and Naruto finally conceded that he was telling the truth as he confirmed that it was the same branch.
Looking at the ground and blushing furiously, Naruto apologised, “I’m so sorry! If I’d known that you were the real Yondaime, I would never have planted the stick at the beach. I never meant to get you totally wet!” He was so mortified that he wished the ground would open up and swallow him.
Minato laughed as he picked out a strand of seaweed from his hair, “You did nothing wrong. It was just rather bad timing. Now that you believe me… I’ve got something important to tell you.”
Looking up at Minato, Naruto curiously questioned, “What is it?”
Minato was now giving him the same serious look that Sandaime-jiji would give him when he had something very important to say. Naruto suddenly got a funny feeling in his stomach, knowing somehow that it was going to be earth shattering in some way. Minato finally whispered, “I am…” He paused with a nervous look on his face before breathlessly finishing his sentence, “I am your father.”
The Yondaime Hokage was his father…?
Naruto couldn’t believe his ears. Numbly, he heard himself say, “You’re pulling my leg, aren’t you? Hardeehar, very funny. This is payback for getting you wet, isn’t it?”
“No, I’m telling the truth. I would never lie to you, Naruto.”
Minato’s blue eyes were pleading and earnest. Naruto couldn’t bear it. Stepping back out of Minato’s reach and shaking violently with anger, he shouted at him, pointing an accusing finger at him, “Don’t lie to me! If you were my father, then you would never have sealed Kyuubi inside me! You would never have chosen to die and leave me alone for nearly all my life! Do you know how much I’ve suffered? The hate, the fear the villagers had towards me… How…dare you! Even if you’re the Yondaime Hokage -”
“Yes, you’re right.” Naruto stopped, his body trembling as he listened to Minato speak. “I never should have sealed Kyuubi inside my son thirteen years ago. It was a choice I never wanted to make as a father. But as a Hokage, I had to, much to my painful regret and shame.”
Minato sadly smiled at his son, “For it’s worth, I’m sorry for the pain I’ve caused you. Even if you won’t forgive me, please let me be by your side as I should always have been…”
Naruto’s arm dropped limply to his side as his fury ebbed away. He felt so emotionally drained and looking into Minato’s eyes, he saw something that he desperately craved for so long and with such intensity that it scared him. Then he recalled the strange dream he had earlier and realised with a jolt of shock that it might have been a very real memory. Shyly and with a seed of hope in his heart, he asked, “That dream I had earlier… The one where you were carrying me through the forest… Was it real?”
“…Yes.” Minato hesitantly answered, bracing himself for his son’s inevitable response.
“Oh.” His breath whooshed out of him in astonishment and in its wake, a curious joy almost like the time he’d heard Iruka’s speech on the night he became a genin spread through him. Blinking rapidly, he awkwardly said, “Um, well, thanks for the ride…” Naruto self-consciously rubbed his nose, “This is quite a lot to take in…but well, it’s kinda cool to have you as my father, I guess.”
Minato blinked dumbly as he processed what Naruto had just said. When it finally hit him, he could not help but smile brilliantly as relief and happiness coursed through him. Too fast for Naruto to see and react; he swept his son up into a tight embrace as he murmured into his ear; “Thank you.”
Naruto stiffened initially at the unfamiliar contact but he soon relaxed when he realised that Minato was merely hugging him. Aside from the cold wetness, it actually felt… pretty good. It felt like he’d returned home. Feeling self-conscious, he half-heartedly squirmed in his father’s cold and wet hug as he muttered, “…Let me go. You’re getting me wet!” Minato only laughed and refused to let him go.
A calm, deep voice declared, "So it is decided. Hence forth, Genin Uzumaki Naruto, Shinobi ID 012607, is now an S-ranked missing nin and will be interred into the Bingo Book. All Konoha shinobi are to apprehend him and bring him back alive to Konoha on sight."
A rustle of paper was faint; someone was turning over the pages. The same voice spoke again, "However, if Uzumaki is covered with red chakra, do not attempt to engage him in combat, as the red chakra is toxic and we are all well aware thanks to the night of the Kyuubi Attack. Uzumaki is also too powerful and dangerous to fight with when he is in this state. We do not wish to lose any more men now that Konoha is in the reconstruction process. We do not look kindly on traitors who kill their fellow comrades in cold blood and betray Konoha. Are there any further questions before we close this session?"
A stony silence ensued. No one spoke even after a few long minutes.
"Council is dismissed."
Haruno Sakura was wondering where Uzumaki Naruto had disappeared. It had been days since she last saw him during the Chuunin Exams Invasion. She didn't even see Naruto at the memorial ceremony a few days ago. Waiting at the red bridge, their usual meeting place, Sakura perked up when she saw Sasuke walking towards her. She politely greeted him, "Good morning, Sasuke-kun."
"Hn."
Sasuke seemed to be so intense lately. It was as if nothing except training existed for Sasuke. It had gotten worse, now that Naruto wasn't around. Kakashi-sensei also seemed to be ultra-tense lately, as well. He hadn't even pulled his perverted orange book once when he was with them. She was sure that all this had happened because of Naruto's absence, and she didn't know what to do. She hated to admit it but she also felt concerned about Naruto, but only as a teammate, honest! Naruto was… strong and stubborn. He wasn't the type to go down so easily. When Naruto finally showed his face, Sakura was going to give him her piece of her mind for making his team worry so much about him.
"Sakura, Sasuke. I will be away for a mission so there will be no training today. A replacement Jounin will train you while I'm away."
Kakashi-sensei was punctual today! Pinching herself discreetly to make sure that it wasn't a dream, Sakura boggled at her Jounin teacher. He actually looked deadly serious; like that time they went on the Wave mission. Sasuke frowned, but he nodded and walked off somewhere to be alone.
Sakura watched Sasuke go, wanting to chase after him but she had too many questions to ask Kakashi-sensei. Turning to the grey-haired Jounin, she asked, "Where's Naruto? What happened to him? We haven't seen him for days. He didn't even show up for the funeral!"
Kakashi's black eye rested on her and Sakura shivered at the blankness she saw. But she held firm. Kakashi seemed to smile at her but it was hard to tell with that stupid mask in the way. Kakashi brought out his familiar orange book and flipped it open to start reading. Sakura felt indignation rising when Kakashi finally drawled, "Naruto's on a vacation trip. Don't worry, he'll be fine."
Sakura nearly shouted at her perverted teacher to put that book away, but she stopped short when her feminine intuition told her that something wasn't quite right. She couldn't name it but was Kakashi actually… angry?
"Is something wrong, Kakashi-sensei? Naruto's ok, isn't he?"
Kakashi didn't answer Sakura, too absorbed in his book as he disappeared in a whirlwind of leaves. Sakura growled in an unladylike manner and kicked the bridge post that her teacher had been leaning against.
"Stupid sensei! Why won't he tell me what's going on??"
Slumping against the post, Sakura suddenly felt so alone, never realising just how much she actually missed Naruto now that the blond boy was gone. Chasing after Sasuke suddenly didn’t seem so important now. Listlessly watching the clouds, Sakura whispered to herself, "Naruto, you idiot. You better be ok and come back soon! I'll even go out on a date with you once."
The next day, Sakura learned that Uzumaki Naruto was now an S-ranked missing nin, and accused of murdering four ANBU.
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