Naruto: Shy Fox Chronicles

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Shy Fox Chronicles

Chapter 1: Roar of the Kyūbi

The war had drained the village of so much, but a new Hokage hadbrought much needed vitality and energy to the rebuilding process. Many shinobi had died, but the village itself was untouched. This was fortunate as it now needed to absorb the Uzumaki and Kamishini. The new Hokage, Namikaze Minato, warned that things would be difficult at first, and things would need to change, but, if they tightened their belts they would get through it.

The two new peoples, however, were quick to make their presence known. Immediately, the two old, intertwined clans began, as soon as the sites were worked out, constructing their own compounds. Their civilians quickly got to work finding jobs, opening businesses, and selling goods they had on hand to pay the bills. Though the wild Uzumaki and the strange Kamishini were off putting to many, their hard work, determination, and warmth wore people down. Though the Kamishini that remembered those days would tell you it was really the Uzumaki who did the people pleasing part. Unlike them, they had work to do.

That year, however, also changed Minato. His quick turning of fortunes for the village and even teaching the Hokage guard platoon the Flying Thunder God technique earned him much favor. However, over that time, he seemed to get more… distracted. Hardly anyone, save a closely guarded few, knew why. Indeed, this process of integrating the clans into the village and revitalizing a starved war economy meant he had to step on a lot of toes in the village. To the point where he may have had as many enemies inside the village as outside it. One night, after leaving unusually early from the office, he walked the streets he helped rebuild.

'Is this what Hiruzen-sama felt? This sense of pride in your good work? Things really have changed.' Minato mused to himself as he walked the new paved streets.

As he arrived home, he opened the door to the smell of food and a cheerful humming. He smiled at that. His dutiful wife likely did not expect him to be home so early. Using his shinobi training, he snuck behind his long haired, fiery redhead, and gently hugged her, making her jolt and nearly send the chicken she was cooking into the ceiling.

"Who the hell're you and how'd you get in my home, y'know!?" The redhead snapped out, her hair standing up and split into nine, tail-like segments as she jumped back and grabbed a frying pan to use as a weapon.

"Kushina, is that any way to speak to your husband?" Minato said with a nervous chuckle.

Immediately calming down, Kushina lowered her cast iron blunt-force weapon as her hair went back to normal, leaving her looking sheepish. "M-Minato! You shouldn't sneak up on me like that, y'know! I could've caved your head in…!" She worriedly told her husband.

"A simple Restaining-Type jutsu would have made sure that wouldn't happen. Besides, we can't have you getting this excitable. It is the big night, after all." Minato said with a smile.

Kushina sighed and smiled, rubbing her pregnant belly. "You're right. Sorry, Minato. You too, Naruto…" The redheaded Uzumaki replied, looking down at her big belly.

"If only Jiraya sensei was here to see his godchild. Oh well, he is busy. Guess we will have to settle for Oda-sama…" Minato said as he sat down, arms crossed.

"Knowing the old perv, he'll be as excited as Gramps to have a little one around to spoil and corrupt." Kushina said in a playfully cross tone with a smile on her face.

"I'm more worried about Oda… The fact he can't answer how many kids he's had concerns me more than Jiraiya sensei. Then again, Oda-sama did live in the days of the warring clans…" Minato sighed as Kushina plated up their food.

"Those were vastly different times, Minato. Much more chaotic and dangerous times." Kushina quickly pointed out as she served her husband up his food.

"So, what you're saying is Kakashi can age gracefully then, Kushina-sama?" A familiar, very spunky voice said, followed by a smack to the back of the head. "DAMN IT, RIN! THAT HURTS!!"

"Be nice, Obito. You and Kakashi are finally getting along." Another familiar, but distinctly more feminine voice chided.

"Making a lot of assumptions there, Rin." A dry, but playful voice answered.

"Aw come on, Stupid Kakashi. You know you love me. Besides, I did give you one of my Sharingan after you lost your eye saving my life." Obito said with a smile as the three members of Team Minato came into view.

"And let's hope you don't infect our sensei's child with your reckless stubbornness." Kakashi said as he walked around the corner of the hall with Rin following.

"I prefer to think of it as 'valiant courage'." Obito said with pride as Kakashi rolled his one visible eye while Rin giggled.

"With uncles like you two around, that baby is going to be a handful." The Nohara girl commented playfully.

"I'll have you know I will be a much better uncle than that loser/idiot!!" Kakashi and Obito snapped in unison, pointing at the other, only for Kushina to crack both over the head with a fist each, "Sorry, Uzumaki-sama…"

"Good. I didn't invite you all over so that you boys could bicker. I invited you three over so that we could eat together before the baby is born." Kushina said with a smile.

"Don't worry, Kushina-sama. We'll all take great care of little Naruto. Oh, maybe I can teach him some Fire Release jutsu when he gets old enough!" Obito replied excitedly.

"You do realize that Fire Release aptitude in the Uzumaki is extremely rare. To the point where it's been classified as a clan wide deficiency?" Kakashi said, putting in his own two sen to bring his argument crashing down.

Obito waved off his friend's concerns. "Details, details, Stupid Kakashi. If he ends up being anywhere near as hard a worker as I think he'll be, he'll get it down eventually." He replied confidently.

"Why do I even try to explain things to you?" Kakashi sighed.

Rin couldn't help but smile. "Oh relax, Kakashi. Obito's just excited. I know you are too." she said playfully.

"If anyone harms a hair on sensei's child, they will die slowly in their sleep…" Kakashi muttered, proving her point.

"I'll help you get rid of the evidence…" Obito muttered as the two boys fist bumped.

"While I appreciate you two now bonding properly, I would prefer it would not be over the topic of casual murder." Minato said, tugging his collar a bit nervously.

Kushina cracked up laughing, having to brace against the table to keep from falling over. "HAHAHAHAHAHAH! Oh, by the gods, I love you boys!" She cackled with joy, pulling the two boys into a tight hug.

The boys gulped as Kushina, forgetting the size of her chest at that moment, smashed the two boys' faces with her larger than normal mounds. Respectfully they turned away, but the blushes on their faces told everyone what they needed to know.

When she released them, Obito smiled and put his ear to Kushina's pregnant belly. "Don't worry, Naruto. I promise you'll be safe with us around." At that, Obito felt a bit of movement. "I think I felt him kick!"

"If you three wish, I can plate you up with some food. I made plenty." Kushina said, giving them a kingly offer, as the entire team did adore her cooking.

"If you wouldn't mind, Kushina-sama." Rin replied with a smile as she watched Obito be overjoyed at feeling the baby kick.

"Oh darling, I never mind if it's for my man's students. You three are going to make fine shinobi one day." She said with a smile, and eternal warmth in her voice.

"We already are, Kushina-sama. Now move over, Obito! I want to feel him kick too!" Kakashi replied as Obito moved aside so Kakashi could take his place.

"Boys, you're gonna smother my child…" Minato groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose as he ate with the other hand.

Kushina and Rin giggled as they watched this. "Oh relax, Minato. I'm sure that the worst that'll happen is Naruto being shyer due to too much attention and having to find a couple of pretty, bold, and brave Hyūga girls to bring him out of his shell." The Uzumaki woman replied in amusement.

"Why does it always have to be those Clear-Eyed Prissies…?" Obito muttered.

Later

"Minato, I can walk on my own you know…" Kushina said as Minato carried her bridal style.

"I'm not taking any chances, Kushina. Boys, any signs of trouble down the street yet!?" Minato replied, calling out to Obito and Kakashi from the treetops.

"Negative, sensei! All clear!" Kakashi called out.

"Nothing on my end either, sensei!" Obito called down as well.

"Keep me posted!" Minato yelled back.

"You know, yelling out your orders like that is a surefire way of getting yourself killed, Minato. I would have thought that the war would have taught you that." A familiar, though more tired, elderly voice rang out as they neared the hidden compound.

"Hiruzen-sama. My apologies. The boys, Rin, and I were just making sure that Kushina and the baby got here safely." The blonde Hokage replied with a smile as he placed his wife back on her feet.

"That's what the comms are for. We don't spend enormous sums of ryō for nothing on those." Hiruzen said with a sigh.

"Fair enough." Minato said sheepishly as Kakashi and Obito dropped down from the rooftops.

"I understand what you're going through, Minato. But, if you want to keep your baby and your wife safe, you need to think like a shinobi right now, not like a father." Hiruzen said, trying his best to give his successor advice.

"Don't worry, Old Man Third. Kakashi and I made sure from the rooftops that we weren't followed." Obito replied with a smile.

"He's right. I even had my ninja hounds scattered out to keep their eyes open too." Kakashi added with pride.

"Kiss up…" Obito muttered.

"That means nothing." Hiruzen said, leading them inside the compound.

The small group went down a ramp, eventually reaching a larger chamber with a hospital bed and a medical table on it. Hiruzen's personal medical staff, a delegation of the Uzumaki led by Oda, and a delegation of Kamishini led by Seishin and Kodai. Many would balk at the need for such a concentration of expertise and force. However, the baby was not their concern. It was a far more dangerous cargo that Kushina was carrying alongside the baby about which they were concerned.

"Kodai, has your clan prepared the outer perimeter?" Hiruzen asked the elderly shinobi sage.

"The barrier is ready and guarded by members of my clan, Hiruzen-chan. No one is getting in or out without someone knowing." The elderly Kamishina replied.

"Anbu Daimyo, this is Fallen Lord. Is the middle ring prepared?" Hiruzen asked into a comm in his ear.

"Middle ring is ready, Fallen Lord. No signs of movement yet." A voice said back through the comms.

"Oda, has your Shadow Dragon set up your guard over the inner ring?" Hiruzen asked the old Uzumaki.

"Inner ring is secured, Saru-chan. My Shadow Dragon has a group of elite Uzumaki shinobi monitoring the inner area with a secondary barrier set up around the compound." Oda's voice replied with a smirk.

"Isn't this all… a little excessive?" Obito asked, surprised.

"You haven't told him, have you Minato?" Hiruzen said, looking at the Hokage as he laid Kushina down on the bed, and allowing the doctors to do their part.

"When a female jinchūriki is pregnant, chakra that the seal uses to sustain itself is diverted to the growing baby. And when the baby is to be born, the stress upon the body is put upon the seal because of how everything is interconnected. If there was a time for the fox to attempt a breakout, now is the time." Minato grimly explained, stunning the three young shinobi.

"Are you sure you don't need any extra security inside the room? We can stay if need be…" Rin offered in concern.

"No, you three would be a liability." Minato swiftly and sternly answered.

"But sensei…!" Obito started to say only for Kakashi to put a hand on his shoulder.

"Obito… he's right. We may be good for our age, but we'd only get in the way if the most powerful of the Nine escaped Kushina-sama's seal. Let's leave it to people capable of handling it." Kakashi reluctantly told his friend.

"Can we at least hold the baby later?" Obito asked.

"Yes, you can, Obito." Minato answered with a small smile.

The three nodded and were escorted out by Uzumaki shinobi. Kushina now was hooked up to the equipment the doctors needed to monitor and could begin. Tsunade sighed deeply. She had brought many babies into this world. None with the string attached of a destructive monster sealed in with it. Catching a small tremble in her hand she walked over to Kushina.

"I'm honored you wanted me personally for this, Kushina." Tsunade said simply, getting gloves on and a mask up.

Kushina smiled at the older woman, still a bit nervous but trying to not show it. "Of course, Tsunade. There's no one I'd trust more to deliver Naruto."

"Right. Deep breaths people and at your stations. It's time to induce labor." Tsunade called out, and immediately everyone snapped to their stations, the vigil now online.

"Before we start… is this really gonna hurt as much as people say it does…?" Kushina asked fearfully.

"No, Kushina. It's going to be a lot worse." Tsunade dryly said as she prepared herself. "Just use the stress ball liberally and just keep breathing."

Kushina nodded. "Right. Use the stress ball a lot…" She replied, holding the stress ball in her hand.

The process mercifully for all, except Kushina, was going smoothly. Naruto was a small baby, making it easy for him to come out. As that happened, all eyes lay on the seal and around the compound. Minato, however, had all the veins popped in his forehead, as the real battle was just beginning. 

The seal was warping and twisting, repairing itself as Minato tried to hold it together. Trying to hold the seal together against the Tailed Beast's onslaught while his wife did his best to push their baby out. With sweat running down his brow, Minato did his best to maintain the seal until the birth was complete.

"How are you holding up, Kushina? Are you doing okay…?" Minato asked his wife in concern as he struggled to keep the seal intact.

"MINATO, YOU BASTARD! YOU DID THIS TO ME!" Kushina roared out in pained fury as she popped another stress ball and took hold of a new one that was handed to her, squeezing it like a woman possessed.

"Holding up well. Got it." Minato answered, not able to say much more as a hammer blow from the fox slammed against the seal.

"Just hold it together, Kushina! I can see the head! Push!" Tsunade told the redhead from between the Uzumaki woman's legs.

With one final, almighty effort, for as long as her consciousness could hold, little Naruto was finally born. With that, Kushina's vision blacked out for a moment, and she slumped onto the bed, dropping her stress ball. She breathed heavily, fighting a horrible headache as she heard crying. Tsunade pulled the baby boy free and picked him up, holding him gingerly. She saw short, spiky fuzzy blonde hair, a set of little whisker marks on his face, and a chubby, crying face.

"It's alright, little Naruto. Welcome to the world." Tsunade said with a smile, both of happiness and pride.

"L… Let me see him…" Kushina panted out, having managed to fight her way back to consciousness.

"Alright. Just remember what I taught you about holding a baby." Tsunade answered, wiping down the baby thoroughly after cutting the cord and swaddling him in fresh cloth, before gently handing him to his mother. Still crying his head off at sensations he has never felt before.

Kushina smiled in exhaustion as Naruto was handed to her. "Naruto… my baby boy…" She tiredly said as she snuggled him gently while Minato began to try to reinforce the seal.

"Get in position! We must reinforce the seal!" Minato yelled at the Uzumaki seal artisans.

"Yes sir, Hokage-sama!" The seal artisans replied as they began working on the seal with him while Tsunade took Naruto and handed him to Biwako and a nurse.

However, suddenly, they heard a loud crash coming from the doorway, with the bloody screams from the guards posted. Soon a shadowy man, covered in dark tattered robes, and a cracked, grimy mask of a snarling Tanuki. He then stood up straight, his eyes poking through the darkness of the mask in a blood red color, staring squarely and unerringly at Kushina with his two Sharingan active.

"I'm sorry milady, but your son is going up for adoption." The man said in a strange, malaise tone.

"You won't touch that boy!" Tsunade replied in anger, throwing off her doctor's scrubs and preparing for a fight while Biwako and the nurse got behind her.

"And what is an old hag out of her prime going to do to me?" he asked, bemused, before rushing in with shocking speed.

A vein popped up on Tsunade's forehead. "I'll show you what this 'old hag' can do if you take so much as one step closer!" She snapped out, dropping into her stance with her fists at the ready.

The masked shinobi was fast, moving at a speed that was only exceeded by the likes of Minato. However, the assailant had made a critical mistake only a younger man ever would. Tsunade, a shinobi veteran who remembered her granduncle's own impressive speed, knew how to manage speedsters. In a matter of moments, she delivered a punch so hard one could swear it rattled the very sky itself directly into his jaw. The blow sent him back and bored a monstrous hole into the thick, seal enhanced walls. To everyone's complete and absolute horror, he staggered to his feet, his jaw comically jutting to the side away from the curve of Tsunade's punch. Taking his hand, he forced it back into its socket with a sickening noise that froze their blood.

"That hurt." The man answered in his dry, malaise tone.

"What the hell are you…?" Tsunade asked in sheer disbelief.

"Just a man who needs a paycheck. Bills are tough." The masked man answered with a shrug.

It was at that moment that Kushina screamed in pain and writhed in agony. Everyone looked at her in shock as the Kyūbi's chakra began pouring out of her, originating from the seal. Immediately knowing what was happening, Minato called out in concern for all his allies present.

"The seal's breaking! Everybody down!" He called out in concern.

With a shockwave, red chakra exploded outward from the seal as everyone took cover. Soon, the dust cleared as the chakra took the form of a massive, red-orange nine tailed fox demon. Throwing its head back, the fox let out a roar at the full moon as it tasted freedom for the first time in decades. Massive wounds on its limbs and tails healed in mere moments as it rotated its arm about, almost as if it were getting the rust off. Underneath him, looking down, he saw the masked man. A quick sniff made him growl in disgust. He knew the scent.

"Little late, big guy. Thought you'd come out faster, considering I gave you the opening." The masked man said to the titanic kitsune.

"UCHIHAAAAAAA!" The massive fox roared out in fury.

"Sure. Yell it out so the cheap seats can hear you." He said in a bemused tone, and from his eyes came the Mangekyō Sharingan as his Sharingan changed into the form of a curved cross.

The massive orange beast faltered, gritting its teeth as it tried to resist. This invisible duel lasted for some minutes, enough for the rings of shinobi to regroup and respond. When they arrived, they found the fox standing stock still in front of the man. It then lowered its head, in an almost zombie-like manner in front of him. He then walked up and petted its face almost like one would a dog.

"That's better. Now then, Big Nine, why don't you be a good boy and take some vengeance on the village that so unfairly imprisoned you." The man said, eliciting a growl from the fox, as if agreeing with it.

"Restrain him!" One of the Anbu yelled out.

The fox, however, cut them off with a thunderous roar, rattling the heavens with its might. The present shinobi launched elemental blasts of fire, wind, water, and lightning at the beast only to find their attacks swatted away by a swipe of a claw. The resulting wind pressure from the swipe unleashed a blast of air that hit them with the force of a hurricane. Blasting away the shinobi as well as the area in front of them with the force, all that was left was a wide and deep trench dug into the ground without any trace of man, beast, or foliage.

"Now then… to let the Kyūbi do the hard work for me." The man said, before melting away into shadow while the fox poofed away in a cloud of smoke.

Slowly, the survivors from the Kyūbi's escape raised their heads from the rubble. Coughing, Minato waved the dust out of his face as he called out.

"KUSHINA! TSUNADE-SAMA! NARUTO! BIWAKO-SAMA!" He called out in concern only to hear the cries of a baby to signify someone was alive.

As the survivors went to where the baby cries were, they found Naruto sheltered in the arms of a battered and bleeding Biwako. Tsunade moved her over; to reveal she had been killed by the blast, body torn and slashed by the shrapnel as she used herself as a human shield to protect the blonde baby. Holding back tears, she closed her body's eyes and picked up the crying Naruto to comfort him.

"It's okay now, little one. You're safe." Tsunade whispered to him as Naruto continued to cry.

"M-Minato…!" Kushina's voice weakly called out from nearby as the sound of large chains moving was heard.

"Okay, anyone else wondering who the hell was that?" Oda asked the group, rubbing his back.

"I wish I knew, old friend. But I do know that we only know of one man with the Sharingan who was ever capable of controlling the Kyūbi…" Kodai replied, getting up with his cane and dusting himself off.

"It is not Madara. He is dead. I saw his body myself after that fight. He is dead, a skeleton turning to dust in an unmarked grave by now." Oda snapped out.

"The Sharingan and its evolutions are known for having powers many would consider… unnatural…" Kodai pointed out to his old friend.

"It doesn't raise the dead, Kodai. For as long as you've been fighting spooks, demons, and other unholy crap, I'm surprised you're entertaining this nonsense." Oda said.

"I am simply saying that we cannot rule out the possibility. He could have used a delayed Izanagi for all we know." Kodai countered.

"Can we all focus on the problem at hand here!? There's a Tailed Beast on the loose near the village!" Hiruzen yelled, picking up frantic comms chatter.

"How did it get there so fast? It isn't capable of that kind of speed." Seishin said in shock.

"This masked man, whether he's Madara or not, must have some kind of Space-Time Ninjutsu at his disposal." Minato theorized.

"We must move quickly to rally the village against this threat. Tsunade, can I trust you to keep Kushina and Naruto safe?" Hiruzen asked, turning to his student.

"Of course, sensei! I'll protect them with my life and keep Kushina alive whatever it takes!" Tsunade replied.

"I'll get the others back to the village while a Shadow Clone of mine gets you three to a safehouse." Minato replied, making a single Shadow Clone.

"Be careful, honey…" Kushina said weakly.

Minato nodded as his clone went to the two women and the baby while the others grouped up around him. In twin flashes of yellow light, everyone disappeared from the scene of destruction. Tsunade and Kushina had to regain their footing after the clone dropped them off. Before poofing away, it made sure to lock down the compound and secure the locks. It was spare, but mercifully it had a bed and a basic first aid kit.

"Kushina, get on the bed and rest. Here's Naruto." Tsunade said, forcing her onto the bed to give her the baby.

Kushina tried to hold back tears as she exhaustedly held her baby boy. "Naruto…" she uttered tearfully.

"Just breathe. I'm going to give you an antibiotic shot to be safe. After that, eat a ration bar. You need energy." Tsunade ordered in concern, preparing her arm.

Kushina nodded, letting Tsunade do her job. However, they both knew that it was likely futile. Uzumaki or not, a jinchūriki who lost their Tailed Beast would die. Her chances of survival were slim. All Tsunade could do was do everything she could to keep her going. She failed Nawaki, she failed Dan, she was not going to fail Kushina now. Not without a fight.

Meanwhile, in Konoha

"Come on, you lot! Keep firing! Suppress its movement!" A Lightning Release squad Kamishini barked at his squad for another group jutsu.

Together, the squad unleashed a group Lightning Release jutsu at the Kyūbi as it rampaged through the village, attacking anyone who got too close. The jutsu electrocuted the giant fox, stopping its movements for just a moment to allow the injured to fall back as it roared in fury. Lashing out with one of its tails, it slammed it down in a thunderous attack that shook the very foundations of the village and released a shockwave around it. The blast killed multiple shinobi while injuring more as Konoha ninja of all stripes began throwing down suppressing fire to try to slow it down.

A flash of light appeared near the Hokage office with the survivors of the fox's escape. Minato, using his comms, figured out where the most amount of control was coming from and made his way to it. In an unhit shinobi barracks, the Anbu commander had made a makeshift command station, slowly but surely getting control of the scattered forces and focusing them. One could tell even through his mask that he was relieved to see Minato come in the door.

"Hokage-sama." He said, snapping to attention with a salute.

"At ease, commander. What is our situation?" Minato asked the Anbu leader.

"The fox has destroyed ten percent of the village infrastructure and damaged another thirty percent. Casualties are climbing, but, due to the Uzumaki and Kamishini squads' aid and sacrifices, its progress has slowed and minimized them. It's currently sealed in an Uzumaki sealing barrier and the Kamishini are engaging it. How long that will last is unknown. Currently most shinobi are being called up and organized as the Anbu are evacuating civilians." The commander explained.

Minato nodded. "I understand, commander. Lord Third will be taking command of the situation while I go to cut the head off the snake." He told the Anbu leader.

"Someone is controlling the Kyūbi, sir?" he asked, stunned as Hiruzen walked in.

"Indeed. Minato, go catch them. I can manage it here." Hiruzen simply stated, regaining control of the mood in the room.

Minato nodded. "Yes, Lord Third. Good luck." He told his predecessor before disappearing in a flash of light.

"Status on civilian evacuations?" Hiruzen asked the commander.

"We believe twenty percent have been aided by shinobi, while another forty percent have made it to the safe houses under their own means. However, the fox's rampage is threatening to cut the rest off from safety." The commander explained.

"What forces have you been able to organize?" The former Hokage asked.

"The Uchiha clan were the first to be mustered, my lord. Their Fire Release Jutsu are laying down cover fire with the Kamishini." He explained.

"Then tell them to form up and hit that damn thing as hard as they can. Knock it on its ass while we get the rest of the defenders ready." Hiruzen ordered.

"For what, my lord?" The commander asked.

"Shift all available Anbu to speed up the mustering process. Once everyone has formed up, we are going to hit it with the largest Combination Ninjutsu this village can muster. I will lead the attack." Hiruzen ordered.

The Anbu commander nodded in acknowledgement of the order. "Yes, Lord Third." He replied before leaving to organize his men.

Meanwhile, with Minato

Minato rushed through the forest, hot on the trail of the masked ninja. He found him on the wall of the village, overlooking the carnage. Fire erupted in great pillars as he saw utter ruin of ash and blood in the ruins. The masked shinobi did not even turn to look at him. 

"For being the fastest shinobi in history, you're quite slow on the uptake." The man said in his malaise tone.

"Who are you? Could you possibly be Uchiha Madara?" Minato asked, glaring at his opponent.

He stopped leaning and gave him a slow clap before he flourished. "Congratulations, Hokage-sama, you have caught me. It is I, Uchiha Madara! The Ghost of the Uchiha and the Destroyer of Konoha twice over! Tamer of the mightiest of Tailed Beasts! And devilishly handsome if I say so myself." The man said in a more enthusiastic if sarcastic tone.

"How can you possibly be alive? Even if you survived your battle against Shodai-sama, you should be over a hundred years old!" Minato challenged.

"To answer you in order. One, he's a bitch. Two, I have an exceptionally good spa routine." He answered in a deadpan tone.

Minato glared as he drew multiple of his three-pointed kunai. "Regardless of whoever you are, you are threatening my village. As Hokage, I will stop you. No matter what it takes." He told him, throwing his kunai so that they planted themselves in the surrounding area.

"Spare me the heroics, Minato. You are nothing compared to your predecessors. They had a chance of beating me. You? You're a speedy gnat by comparison. All flash with no bang." He said dryly, turning away from the Hokage.

Teleporting before the masked man with a Rasengan in hand, Minato thrust it forward and attacked, barely missing the masked man as he disappeared into a shadow in the ground. The resulting impact of the Rasengan on the wall created an explosion that blew up dust and rubble everywhere. Looking around, Minato tried to sense his foe's chakra.

"Amusing. Perhaps the gnat has a hint of bite after all." He mused as Minato turned to face him while he rose out of a shadow in the ground, "Very well, Minato. If it is a battle you wish for, then you've got one."

Minato, meanwhile, tried to break down and analyze his opponent's jutsu. 'He seems to be using some kind of shadow-based Time-Space Ninjutsu to disappear into the shadows to teleport. I'll need to catch him off guard if I'm going to hit him.' He thought, drawing another kunai.

"Show me, Namikaze Minato of the Hidden Leaf, why you are the fastest shinobi in the world!" The masked shinobi yelled with an embellished flourish.

Rushing right in, Minato created another large Rasengan as Madara rushed in at him as well. Drawing a tanto from his hip, the masked Uchiha coated it in solidified shadows to extend its reach to the length of a katana. Throwing his three-pronged kunai, Minato prepared for Madara to make his move. Drawing another kunai and running Lightning Release chakra into it to extend its reach, Minato swung his trident blade of lightning at the masked Uchiha only for him to disappear into a shadow again.

Appearing out from Minato's shadow, Madara prepared to slash the blonde Hokage with his blade of shadows. Minato could feel the victorious smirk behind the tanuki mask as he swung his blade. Quickly, Madara tilted his head to evade the kunai coming at him from behind, the one Minato had thrown before. Minato felt the smirk of his opponent behind the mask grow further.

'Victory is mine!' Madara thought, continuing the arc of his blade only for Minato to disappear in a flash of yellow just before his shadow blade could make contact. "WHAT!?"

Appearing right above Madara in that same instant, Minato thrust his swirling ball of chakra down on his opponent. "RASENGAN!" He called out, aiming to blow his opponent's entire side apart with his jutsu.

As the swirling ball of chakra infused death was plunged towards the masked attacker, it could not make proper contact. Erupting from his shoulder came a burst of foul, sickly greenish black energy, the likes of which Minato had never felt before. It felt similar to the power of the Kamishini… but also different. Condensing into the shape of a gecko-like lizard, the form caught the swirling Rasengan's energy in its hands.

"Hi. How's it going?" An equally dispassionate voice came from the "lizard."

"WHAT THE-" Minato called out before the Rasengan exploded.

Without warning, faster than even the Fourth Hokage expected, the Rasengan's unbound energies sent both combatants flying as Madara cried out in pain. Due to their advanced Shinobi skills, both effortlessly controlled their descents and landed near harmlessly on opposing roof tops. As Minato stared Madara down, with this bizarre lizard construct perched on his shoulder like a parrot as the ancient Uchiha panted and gripped his shoulder in pain.

"You're wasting our time playing with your food. We are on a timetable." The Lizard said, turning to his humanoid partner with annoyance.

"Give me a break. I haven't had this much fun in a long time. I think that last attack broke my arm and dislocated my shoulder." Madara replied, popping his shoulder back into place with a grunt as the bones in his arm slowly began to heal with sickening cracks and pops.

"You would have lost it if it wasn't for me. Focus on the mission. He doesn't have anything of value worth stealing." The Lizard hissed with increased annoyance.

"You're not Madara. Whatever that thing is, its power is clearly not yours. From what I know of him, Uchiha Madara would never want to borrow power that he didn't earn himself." Minato said, narrowing his eyes.

"Well, well. Give the Hokage a mochi cake." The lizard sneered back at the Leaf's leader.

"Who I am is irrelevant, Minato. But what I want is relevant. And you are in the way of it." 'Madara' told him as the bones in his arm finished healing.

"Make this quick you fool, before more distractions come our way." The Lizard hissed before disappearing into his heavy clothing.

"Hm. A shame. I would have loved to get to play with you more, Namikaze. But alas… I must hurry this along." 'Madara' replied as bladed tendrils of darkness sprung up from his shadow and lashed out at the blonde Hokage. 

Throwing handfuls of his kunai, the blades impacted with the bladed tendrils and bounced off them. Teleporting to a kunai, Minato caught it and threw it again before teleporting to the next one. Minato did this multiple times, each blade being blocked by a tendril before Minato teleported out of the way of being stabbed to another kunai, only to then throw that one as well. Finally getting in front of 'Madara,' Minato went for a point-blank range Rasengan in an attempt to cave in his skull. Swiftly, the Lizard moved from the masked man's shoulder to the face of his mask to block the attack once again.

The resulting explosion cracked and broke off part of the mask as 'Madara' shook his head out of his daze to try to recover. However, this allowed Minato to teleport right above his opponent and finally connect with a pointblank Rasengan that the Lizard failed to block. The masked man cried out in pain as Minato's attack dug into his back and exploded. Placing a seal on the man's back as his Rasengan ended, Minato gave a small smile.

"Heal from that." The blonde Hokage said before quickly teleporting away from his opponent as shadow tendrils attempted to stab him.

"What did I tell you?" The Lizard annoyedly quipped to the masked shinobi.

"GAGH! FUCK! Do you know how long it's going to take for my spine to regenerate, you blonde bastard!?" The masked man yelled in a combination of anger and, for some reason, excited glee.

"Oh, take as long as you like! Why don't I help you by sending you off for recovery!?" Minato playfully called out to him.

Slowly, then man forced himself to his knee as the vertebrae and bones in his back began slowly cracking and popping back into place in a sickening symphony of regeneration. It was then that the seal Minato placed on his back after the point of impact activated and glowed. Looking at the glow on his back, 'Madara' saw his Sharingan eyes widen in shock at the realization.

"That's…!" The masked man began to say.

"A Contract Seal! He's separated you from your control of the Nine Tails!" The Lizard hissed in fury.

"Signed, sealed, and delivered! Now get out of my village!" Minato yelled as he readied a Rasengan in one hand and a lightning extended kunai in the other.

The masked man chuckled. "Perhaps I was wrong about you, Namikaze. Perhaps you truly are worthy of your titles. However, the Nine Tails will be mine one day. It… and so much more…" 'Madara' replied as he faded into his shadow and disappeared, his chakra signature completely disappearing from Minato's chakra sensing.

Minato sighed as he dissipated his attacks. "One problem down, and now for a giant orange one. Looks like I have no other choice. Gamabunta isn't going to like this…" Minato muttered as he readied his signature summoning jutsu.

Meanwhile, With Hiruzen

"Seishin! What's the status of holding the Nine Tails back!!?" Hiruzen yelled as a massive explosion rocked the area around him.

"The barrier won't hold out much longer! It's about to be breached!" Seishin called out.

"Commander! What is the status on evacuating the civilians!?" Hiruzen yelled at the Anbu Commander.

"All civilians in the surrounding area evacuated! We can proceed with the plan to drive it out of the village!" The Anbu commander told the previous Hokage.

"Excellent! Proceed with the next phase! Have the Yamanaka link up all available shinobi's minds!" Hiruzen said with a smirk.

"Sir, you can't be serious!? We don't have the power to perform that technique!" The Anbu Commander yelled, a tint of dread leaking through his normally stoic voice.

"I am as serious as a shark attack right now, Commander! If we don't have the power, then make it!" Hiruzen called out.

"Yamanaka! Send the signal for Operation Firestorm! That's an order from Hiruzen-sama himself! Execute with haste!" The Anbu Commander barked out over the din of devastation.

Soon, the minds of every shinobi remaining on the battlefield were all linked up. Going through hand seals, they began gathering and molding Fire Release chakra. The Kamishini even used their strange powers to build up chakra for a more powerful version that did not require hand seals. Calling out, Hiruzen roared to his forces a single command.

"NOW!" Hiruzen howled to his troops.

"COLLABORATION JUTSU: STORM OF THE FIRE GOD!!!" The shinobi force roared out as they all unleashed their strongest Fire Release jutsu simultaneously.

The storm of the flames unleashed combined into one massive fireball, the flames burning white hot. The massive fireball crashed into the Nine Tails, forcing it up and into the air before finally exploding above the village, sending it flying out into the outskirts just past the walls. Crashing down, its chest badly singed and burned, the mightiest of the Tailed Beasts growled before roaring in fury at the insignificant gnats that had dared to harm it.

"Um, sir… all we did was piss it off…" A shinobi in the command post said.

"I can see that, soldier, quite clearly." Hiruzen answered indignantly.

However, before anyone could utter another word, nearly the entire village was rattled by an almighty quake. Soon, engulfed in a sudden dust cloud, forcing everyone to cover their faces. As the dust settled, however, the moonlight was snuffed out, cloaking them all in darkness. Looking at its source, there was a familiar giant, red toad with a black jacket.

"Perhaps I could be of some assistance!?" Called the voice of Minato from atop the great amphibian.

"Minato! It is about time, my boy!" Hiruzen called out with a smile.

"Apologizes for my rude lateness, but that bastard didn't know when to stay down!" Minato called back.

"Here I thought Jiraya was the craziest summoner I've ever had. But you, boy, take the grubs." Gamabunta grumbled like the old goat he was.

"My apologies, Gamabunta-san! Can you hold him down for me for a little while?" Minato called out to the Toad Boss.

"This just isn't my day… All right, hold on, Minato! You're about to witness the ancient secret Toad Taijutsu technique!" Gamabunta yelled, leaping higher than anyone had ever seen him do before.

"Minato must have really fired him up. I didn't think his old hips could get him that high anymore." Hiruzen muttered as he watched the now airborne toad boss.

To this day, many wonder what the Nine Tails saw. However, the village got a noticeably clear picture. Now high above the great fox, Gamabunta then began to perform a flying 360 backflip. A shocking display of agility and athleticism for something of his advanced age.

"Secret Great Toad Taijutsu: Thunderous Thunderdrum Drop!!" Gamabunta bellowed out of his immense lungs.

Tucking his arms and legs in, he then immediately made a drop rear first towards the fox. The fox's eyes widened in sheer shock, but it was too late to move out of the way. As Gamabunta made contact, there was for a split second an eerie silence. Before a shockwave so fiercely ripped through the forest, tearing trees out of the ground like blades of grass. Great furrows were bored into the ground as if it were tearing bubblegum apart. And the Kyūbi howled in agony, crying in vain to an uncaring heavens. It was then and only then that the Fourth Hokage finally made his move.

To Be Continued…