Chapter 2: Chapter 1 – Failed Plan

“What?!” The masked man uttered, showing for the first time a sign of concern.

Time had stopped. Kushina remained petrified with pain, while her aggressor seemed totally confused. He didn’t understand. He should have succeeded. Everything had gone as planned. He had followed the plan to the letter; he couldn't have failed. He had controlled the mightiest of the nine beasts with just a look but found himself blocked by a totally unseen and unknown force. How could it be? What had happened?

However, he didn't have time to think about it anymore, because it was already too late. He had missed his opportunity, and they weren't alone anymore. Minato had arrived.

There's no use trying to confront him, Tobi thought. Without the power of Kyubi, I can’t achieve my goal. Even if I managed to overcome Minato, my techniques are only suitable for one vs one combat, not for the destruction of an entire village.

The fourth Hokage rushed at Kushina first, sealing the Kyubi once and for all, then turned to the masked man.

In a flash, Minato sent a kunai straight at him. A moment later, the kunai was gone, absorbed by a peculiar force.

“Impossible!” Minato exclaimed, seeing a red glow in the hole of the mask just before his kunai disappeared.

It occurred in a blink of an eye, but that fraction of a second had been enough for Minato to measure the magnitude of the threat that this individual represented. He did not have a choice; he had to stop him from achieving whatever goal the mysterious man had in mind.

“Yondaime Hokage, I'm impressed. Your space-time techniques are impressive. You well deserve your reputation and your title of Kage.”

The masked man paused, nodding, feigning respect.

“But you see, you still can’t measure up to me.”

With these words, he vanished before Minato's eyes. The latter, however, showed no sign of surprise and did not try to prevent his escape, to the great astonishment of Kushina who slowly regained her senses. The blond man turned to his wife.

“Kushina, I'll take you back to Naruto.”

He picked her up in his arms and vanished. The next moment, he was putting her down next to their newborn son. He then went and grabbed his Hokage cloak that he put on. He was ready to go.

“Wait…”

“Kushina, I must immediately inform the Sandaime of…”

“I'm coming with you!”

“Surely not. Rest, and take care of Naruto.”

“But Minato... You have to know... His eye…”

“I know. Rest for now. I’ll come back soon.”

Then, regaining a little more gentleness in his tone, he added:

“I love you.”

These words soothed the young woman and echoed in her head, despite the fact that Minato was already far away.

When Minato met his predecessor, the Yondaime first informed him of the death of Biwako, his wife. Hearing the terrible news, the Sandaime collapsed like a child. The two ANBU guards present in the room lowered their heads sadly. Minato didn’t say a word. He couldn't imagine what this man he respected so much felt when he himself had almost experienced the same thing. He had almost lost Kushina.

After a few minutes that felt like hours, the old Hokage seemed to pull himself together. However, he was unable to erase the pain in his eyes. One of the fundamental rules of ninjas was not to show their feelings. Hiruzen Sarutobi hadn't shed a single tear, but his suppressed pain was even more striking than if he was to let it out and cry.

“What happened?” The old man asked, his voice cracking.

Minato explained everything. Hiruzen listened carefully, looking serious.

“So, this individual knew... He knew about Kushina. And he was able to defeat my best men without difficulty... He's not just anyone.”

“That's not all. Under his mask, I clearly saw a Sharingan.”

Both looked at each other, imagining the same thing. But it was Minato who broke the brief silence.

“Sandaime... Do you think it could be Madara Uchiha?”

“Madara Uchiha is dead.”

The old man seemed particularly disturbed by the news of the mysterious man with a Sharingan.

“Although the circumstances of his death are rather vague…”

He paused, thought for a moment, before resuming:

“I knew him. I was young then, but I know what he was capable of. Lord Hashirama explained everything to me. He was really strong.”

“Yes, I heard about the fight against the Shodaime Hokage at the Valley of the End. He had Kyubi back then. Just like today, he tried…”

“He didn't just have Kyubi.”

Sandaime looked out the window, looking worried as if expecting to see the village attacked any second. Time was ticking. Minato thought it was best to wait without saying a word. Although the Sandaime knew about Konoha during its founding days, he had never mentioned Madara Uchiha's name before.

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What exactly does he know about him? Why has he kept that name silent, as if it’s taboo to talk about it? Lots of questions raced through Minato's mind, but he preferred not to break the silence that had settled.

Suddenly, the door flew open, and Kushina burst into the room. Startled, Minato and Hiruzen turned around with the same quick gesture.

“Minato! Sandaime Hokage!”

Realizing her abrupt arrival, she turned almost as red as her hair.

“I... I have to talk to you, ya know.”

“Kushina, I told you to stay…”

“What's the matter, Kushina?” The old man immediately asked. “Minato explained everything to me, including his Sharingan, and we think…”

“It has nothing to do with it!” Kushina interrupted. “It's about Kyubi's seal. That man, he knew how to set him free.”

“Apparently not,” Minato smiled. “Don't worry, he's gone, and I'll watch over…”

He couldn't finish his sentence as he was hit hard on the head. Hiruzen, despite his deep dismay, seemed to smile as Kushina grabbed her husband by the hair and forced him to look into her eyes.

“You didn't understand anything, ya know!”

Minato, his head aching, threw a kunai in the air and teleported there, freeing himself from Kushina's embrace. It had become a habit for him.

“You didn't understand,” Kushina repeated. “I don't care about this guy, you're going to kick his ass like everyone else. I'm talking about the seal. I know Fuinjutsu well thanks to my clan and my mother. Kyubi was released, but something blocked it. Something else. I felt like a force, an energy. What happened earlier wasn't normal, natural, or logical! But whatever it might be I hope it's with us…”

“Do you have any idea what it might be?” Hiruzen asked.

“No.”

“In that case, we cannot dwell on that for the moment. The priority remains the masked man.”

Despite his words, the old Kage seemed unsettled by the news. But it was pointless to talk about it without having the slightest clue of its origin. This strange force, whatever the source, had turned out to be a blessing. Who would know what would have happened if Kyubi had been released on Konoha?

Hiruzen was tired of all the bad news. He sat down behind his desk. Minato, realizing it was time for him to take his leave, exited, followed by Kushina. As he was about to close the door, Hiruzen, apparently very worried, added:

“If it really is Madara Uchiha, you're lucky to be alive, Minato.”

Minato said nothing and closed the door. But Kushina was surprised by the Sandaime’s words.

“Madara Uchiha?! He... is he that strong?”

For the first time, she realized the gravity of the threat the man with the Sharingan poses.

“But wait, isn't he supposed to be dead?!”

“The circumstances of his death are rather unclear. The Sandaime confirmed that much. Jiraiya-sensei already told me that he found it strange…”

Minato lowered his head sadly.

“Unfortunately, he's not here. I wonder what he's doing now.”

“He is definitely looking for inspiration chasing women around.” Kushina chuckled.

Minato couldn't suppress a smile, then became serious again.

“Anyway, as the Yondaime Hokage it is my duty to find out the truth and stop this man.”

Kushina slapped him hard on the back.

“Well-spoken, Hokage!”

Minato was propelled forward. He was always surprised by his wife's unpredictable reactions…”

“As for me, I'm going to take care of this mysterious force that kept Kyubi in me. Do you wanna bet that I’ll succeed before you?”

Minato took Kushina's hands.

“In the meantime, both of us have an important mission to accomplish as a team.”

He kissed her passionately.

“Let's go see Naruto.”

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