“I can't do it,” Namikaze Minato whispered. He was alone in the Hokage office planning the defense of the Konoha from the Kyuubi no Kitsune. Hours ago he completed a seal array that would defeat the approaching demon. Unfortunately the seal required a living vessel and Minato was not the kind of man to ask another for their child. This meant he had to use his own. The baby boy that he spent the last three months remolding his home for. The son he always wanted to teach everything a father could. The first true step to the large family he and his wife talked about when the were first married. The one thing in the all of creation that meant more to him than even his precious village. “I can't do it,” he repeated. “Not to him and I can't ask someone else. What would that make me if I asked someone else to carry the burden?” He started passing the room growing frustrated by the dilemma, “But what choice do I have!? It's one life for the sake of thousands! But its Naruto's life!” Minato yelled pounding his fist into the wall causing cracks to form. The pain was not enough to distract him from his frustration so he looked for another outlet. Turning back to the table with the plans for the seal array Minato lashed out knocking all the papers and one of his special kunai he was using as a paperweight to the floor. As he reached down to pick up the papers, to clean them up or tare them apart he did no know, he paused.
There on the floor were three overlapping each other were three items; the seal array, his kunai, and the special map of Konoha used for planning its defense. What made this map so special was that it showed all the protections Konoha had, the public and top secret. Top secret like the barrier that alerted him and a handful of others when anything approached Konoha territory. The three items laid out as they were caused a strike of inspiration. And the once a generation genius mind of his went into overdrive forming a plan from that inspiration.
Outside the office the Anbu guards were talking. “Do you think Yondaime-sama is alright? We haven't heard anything for the past few hours.”
“He's probably trying to convince himself to do what he needs to,” the other Anbu said. Both guards heard parts of the Yondaime's yells about his son, the Kyuubi and a seal. They were smart enough to guess what he was doing and thanking whatever power there was it was not their decision.
The first Anbu was about to reply when the heard the door slam open and the Yondaime walked out with a confident look and determined stride. The kind of look that made you think he could take on the world and win. The kind of stride that would make an army follow him to their death. Needless to say the Anbu thought they would be doing the later as they accompanied their leader to face the Kyuubi. So when Minato stopped just past them and turned around they were surprised. Even more so when he spoke, “You have thirty minutes to bring me the Sandaime Hokage, the Advisers, the Clan Heads and the Barrier Keeper.”
The Anbu were stunned for a moment. The Yondaime had enough respect from everyone in the village that a polite request was more than enough to summon even the most stubborn people. For the Yondaime to order these people brought to him meant someone screwed up in a big way or something life changing was about to occur. “Yes Sir!” the Anbu coursed before disappearing in a large puff of smoke.
Twenty-nine minutes and fifteen seconds later the last person, the elderly Barrier Keeper, the Yondaime ordered to be brought to him arrived. He like the others was surprised by the summons and the even further surprised but who was currently standing on the Yondaime's table, Shima and Fukasaku the Sages that taught Jiraiya the Senjutsu.
The Yondaime faced the assembled people and could tell several wanted to ask questions. He stopped by talking first. “I have little time and even less patience right now so all of you shut up,” everyone in the room save for the toad looked at each other confused. The Yondaime was never rude when speaking anyone much less them. “The Kyuubi is less than an hour away. I can save the village but how well I can save the village will depend on you.” The assembled looked at each other again and then back at the Yondaime wanting to ask questions again. Minato cut them off by unrolling a large scroll with the most complex seal array anyone in the room had ever scene. This was not really a surprise as most figured the Yondaime would use a seal to stop the Kyuubi, that was how the other villages stopped the other Bijuu. What was a surprise was the fact that different people recognized different parts of the array. The Sandaime was the one that noticed the key parts of the array and quickly put together what the Yondaime planned to do.
“By the Kami,” the Sandaime said. “You plan to...”
The others turned to ask what he meant but the Yondaime continued. “This is the seal array I plan to use. It is not an array to seal the Kyuubi away but a reverse summoning array.” The others looked stunned, was he going to send the Kyuubi away? “No I'm not sending the Kyuubi away, I am sending the village and everyone in it away.”
“That's impossible,” Uchiha Fugaku said expressing the thoughts of everyone else.
“I have combined parts of the Shiki Fuujin with my Hiraishin and the Barrier surrounding Konoha,” the Yondaime explained. “With this combination I can send the entire village away from the Kyuubi and danger. Alone I can send Konoha to another country, with the Toad Sage's help I can send you to one of the other continents. With further help I can send the village to another dimension like the Summon Homeland, with further aide I can send the village even further.” Minato paused taking the time to look at everyone in the eye before continuing, “I won't lie, I will die because that is the price one pays for summoning the Shinigami for any task. Those that help me may also die simply because of the amount of chakra needed so the risk is great.” He took a deep breath before finishing, “This is why I ask for volunteers to aide me, not as the Yondaime Hokage, not as the Yellow Flash nor even as your friend, but as a Father who wants to protect his son from harm.”
Silence descended upon the room as everyone contemplated what the Yondaime said and what he was asking. The silence ended when Hyuuga Hiashi spoke up, “You ask a great deal Yondaime-sama. I think I speak for everyone when I ask how do we know this will work and if it does will the village be safe where it ends up?” Several heads nodded showing their agreement with the Hyuuga Clan Head.
“You don't have to worry about the location being inhospitable,” Fukasaku answered. “As most of you know when a being is summoned properly it is obligated to fulfill its end of the bargain, otherwise it becomes stranded between dimensions. Minato-chan here has wrote the contract properly to ensure the village will end up in a place where humans can thrive. After that it is up to you lot to determine whether not you survive.”
“What about the ninja that are out of the village?” Utatane Koharu, one of the village Advisers asked. “They will be stranded, some in enemy territory, without support.”
“Summons can be called to where ever a person is,” the Yondaime replied. “Shima and Fukasaku have agreed to relay what happens here to Jiraiya-sensei who will relay the information to our ninja in the field. From there all they have to do is sign a contract and be reversed summoned to Konoha. And before anyone asks, when Jiraiya-sensei wants to find someone he will no matter how well they are hidden.”
“And if this plan does not work?” the Sandaime asked. He had complete faith in his successor's abilities but he felt it was his duty to ask.
“Then the original plan of sealing the Kyuubi into a newborn will proceed,” Minato answered. “I will die whether this works or not. As such I cannot ask you to volunteer Sandaime-sama. If this plan fails you are the only one strong enough to seal the Kyuubi away. Also the Barrier Keeper will be needed to maintain the seals of the barrier so you can't volunteer either.” The Sandaime and the Barrier Keeper nodded albeit reluctantly, they knew Minato was correct. No one had the skill either possessed to do their tasks. “Are there anymore questions?” No one spoke up. “Then I as again will you help me save our home and families.”
For a moment no one did anything, and for that moment the Yondaime was disappointed. But after that moment they began to step forward. First were the Advisers, they had served Konoha for over sixty years serving Konoha was their life. Next the Nara, Yamanaka, and Akimichi Clan Heads stepped forward, they swore as Gennin they would protect the others' family with their dieing breath. The third to step forward were the Inuzuka and the Aburame, both knew that sometimes the hive/pack needed to be put above their personal concerns. The Kurama Clan Head was the forth, his clan had fallen out of prominence but this would be a great legacy to leave behind. The last were the Hyuuga and the Uchiha, both clans had an old rivalry and neither wanted to be scene as less than the other in their duty to Konoha.
The Yondaime looked at the assembled people closed his eyes and knelled before them, “I thank you.” He then stood up, looked them in the eye once more and simply stated, “Let's get to work.”
An hour later the Yondaime stood a top on of Konoha's gigantic trees looking at the truly epic battle taking place before him. The Toad Tribe came out in force to help Konoha. Not only was Gamabunta there but so here his brothers Gamaken and Gamafunsai. They were holding off the Kyuubi while he summoned the Shinigami. “Let's do this,” he stated. Fukasaku and his wife nodded from his shoulders and began to channel the natural energy into the Yondaime. Minato's appearance began to change, his face elongated, his skin changed to a bright red and his fingers and tows became webbed. The Senjutsu was the one skill he was unable to master from Jiraiya's training, but he was still good enough for this task.
Back in the village deep under the Hokage Tower the Clan Heads and the Advisers were sitting around the anchor seals for the Barrier channeling their chakra into modified array. The Barrier Keeper sat in the middle controlling the seals making sure they remained stable. Up in the Hokage Office the Sandaime was praying this would work, he did not want to turn any child into a Jinchuuriki, much less the son of a man he respected as much as his own teachers, the Shodai and the Nidaime Hokages.
Back with the Yondaime he completed the last hand seal of the fifty handseal sequence and felt the ethereal chill that signaled the arrival of the Shinigami. “He's here” Minato said. “You and your son's can disengage.” The Toads did not need to be told twice, they could not see the Shinigami but they could feel him.
“Good luck Minato-chan,” Shima said before she signaled her children to move away.
Seeing his enemies pulling back the Kyuubi glanced around wondering what was going on. It then felt a cold chill in the air one that was not of this world. Focusing his senses the Kyuubi traced the source to a lone human lest than three of its strides away from him. “What are you doing human?” he asked he needed to know, this chill was not natural.
As the Shinigami plunged his hand through the Yondaime's torso to take his soul as payment, the Yondaime answered. “I am denying you your prize! You and your Master will never have Konoha!” With this last breath the Yondaime Hokage pitched forward falling form the tree top only to be caught by Fukasaku just as the village behind them seemed to waver before vanishing from the world.
“I wonder where they went?” Shima asked.
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(Posted Sun, 29 Nov 2009 18:29)
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