[Chapter Size: 2700 Words.]
Third Person POV
Konoha, 43.
...
...
All the greatest shinobi of the village were gathered near the Hokage building, while an emergency meeting had been called by all the current elders of the village at night, after a day of discussion inside the Hokage building between Minato and the others.
Even the Mitokado, Utatane, Shimura, and Sarutobi clans were summoned. Hiruzen himself, already retired, appeared, while ignoring the looks cast in his direction, as if he were there only to protect his clan, which was not in a very good situation within the village.
Sakumo expected all elite jōnin and some high-ranking shinobi and leadership figures in Konoha to be present to discuss the village's next plans. Obviously, it would not be possible to gather all of Konoha, with around twenty thousand ninjas. Because of that, only a few hundred of them, the most important ones, were summoned.
"Well, hello everyone. Thank you for coming," Sakumo began, breaking the silence while the ninjas murmured among themselves. Minato appearing in the village had been gossip and rumor that had also begun to spread throughout the village. "But I must say that this meeting is important, because it will decide the future of the village."
People began to look at one another.
"Does this have to do with the movements of the nations? Are we going to war?" someone asked.
"No. At least, not yet. The movements of rival nations are a major problem, and that is why we have also decided to make some changes in the village. Changes that will strengthen us against the other nations," Sakumo said.
Behind him were the leader of the Uchiha clan, the leader of the Senju clan, and the leader of the Nara clan, who acted as elders of the village.
"And what could that be? Does it have something to do with the arrival of Minato Namikaze in the village?" the Third Hokage did not hesitate to raise his voice. Normally, they would be looking at him with suspicion, indifference, or surprise. However, upon hearing those words, all those who had not had confirmation of this or had not heard about it were stunned.
Hiruzen did not care about the people beside him. As a former member of the village leadership, he would naturally react to such information by trying to find out what was happening.
"Well, since you are already aware, I will let that person explain," Sakumo said simply, taking a step to the side.
No one understood his action, waiting for him to answer, even the former Third Hokage, until suddenly, with a silent buzz, someone appeared beside him, instantly.
Silence took over the place as everyone looked on in surprise, recognizing Minato Namikaze, dressed in simple clothes and without a headband, not even the one he had used as a rogue ninja. He was a little older than everyone remembered, after all he was now 20 years old.
Minato remained there, in silence. With his blue eyes gazing at old acquaintances with a certain nostalgic glow toward them. There was Might Duy, Alpha, among others.
"It really is him...", someone murmured.
"I heard a rumor that he was in the village today, but I thought it was a joke at first...."
"I already knew. My cousin works in the Hokage's ANBU and came back to the clan saying that Minato Namikaze was talking with Sakumo-sama and the other elders..."
"I heard that from some people too, but I didn't believe it."
People began to stare at Minato. Some were already aware of the situation — in fact, about half of them had already heard about Minato's arrival or about him simply walking through the village toward the Hokage building. Others had heard rumors, while some had no idea he was in the village at all, until Hiruzen himself spoke earlier.
"Hello, everyone," Minato said in a calm tone. "As you know, I left the village almost a year and a half ago to fight against the Four Nations. I chose this because I didn't want to involve Konoha in retaliation by acting as a rogue ninja, since you decided to remain neutral."
Many ninjas clenched their fists, filled with shame and anger at the village's decision as they heard that. When the vote was held to help Uzushiogakure, Konoha simply ignored its Uzumaki allies and left them to die. And what did Minato Namikaze do, the most powerful ninja of Konoha, who made it clear to everyone on the night of the internal conflict that he was more powerful than even the Hokage himself? He went alone to fight for his allies, when no one else did anything.
It was only after Sakumo managed to make a decision on his own by taking over the leadership of the village together with new elders, overriding the decision of the previous council, that Minato left Konoha with his wives.
And they had not lost only the most powerful ninja, but also their jinchuuriki, a perfect jinchūriki.
And an army of Konoha was summoned, but in the end, the help arrived far too late.
Many gazes turned, mainly, toward Sarutobi, who felt the weight of the hatred directed at him. After all, it was thanks to his cowardly decision to include civilians in the plebiscite that the majority of the votes decided not to help the Uzumaki.
"Anyway," Minato continued, breaking the silence and the strange atmosphere formed between them, "I spoke with the elders and with Konoha's administration, and I intend to return to the village together with the Uzumaki clan. I will officially establish myself as the Namikaze clan, of the Leaf Village."
Most of the ninjas showed surprise, while others showed smiles.
Sakumo took a step forward, speaking again. "As you know, the other four nations blame us for what happened to Uzushiogakure and want retaliation. So, it will make no difference to the village to have Minato and the others when it comes to the hatred of our enemies. Besides, we are not cowards. Minato never harmed Konoha, that was never his intention. He fought for an ideal that he saw before all of us. We will support him, and Konoha has everything to gain from his return."
People began to agree.
"Minato Namikaze is the strongest ninja in the world. If he, along with the perfect jinchuuriki... returns to Konoha, we will be unbeatable," some people began to murmur in agreement.
"He is a hero of Konoha. He may have crossed out his headband, but he acted the same way he became a war hero so young: with courage. He went to fight for something that Konoha only understood later. There is no reason to deny it. Quite the opposite, we need Minato now."
"So will he take on the position of Hokage?" someone whispered.
"Very likely. Sakumo has been in Konoha's leadership for a long time, occupying the Hokage's place, but he refused to wear the hat. It's obvious that he has been leaving the position for Minato all along..."
"Minato is more powerful than anyone in the village. It's a very obvious choice."
"And it's not just him. They say that in the war, it wasn't only Kushina Uzumaki as the perfect Kyūbi Jinchūriki who stood out in the battle on the Uzumaki clan's island..."
"Did you hear the rumors? She can transform into the fox!"
"Fiancée...? That was a year and a half ago. They must have already gotten married. Maybe she even got pregnant and had a child."
Minato listened to the conversations of the ninjas, murmuring among themselves about all kinds of gossip. Some even spoke in silence, using lip reading, but he could identify everything. Still, he did not care. Rumors would come from all sides before they saw reality for themselves.
His gaze, however, eventually returned to Sarutobi, who was staring at him with a neutral expression. There was no anger nor fear, but a certain glimmer of regret. Perhaps he was rethinking his past actions, remembering how cowardly he had been as Hokage by handing over an ally just to maintain peace.
And a ninja declared a hero of Konoha had turned against the village to protect those same allies. Going against his cowardly decision.
Sarutobi had always spoken about the Will of Fire, about remaining as the light, protecting his comrades and sacrificing himself for the village. He was the Hokage of light, while his companion Danzō was the Hokage of shadows. But in the end, that all seemed like nothing more than an illusion, cheap marketing that could not be sustained when confronted with the reality of what he was. Just as they said he was the most powerful Hokage in history, yet he had been defeated by Kushina with just a single move and was taken out of the battlefield.
He and the elders had acted with cowardice, always seeking privilege while preserving themselves and their clans... In the end, they were a bunch of cowards exposed to everyone in the village.
It did not matter. Sarutobi was basically at rock bottom. Even with his strength, he had become more despised than Sakumo himself at the time when the village turned against the ninja who chose to save his comrades rather than complete the mission.
Minato ignored Sarutobi and began to speak again.
"First of all, I want to say that I intend to return to work as a ninja of Konoha and also to have my own team, I want to teach the next generation. In addition, I will act as an advisor just as I did before, and another council seat will be opened for the leader of the Uzumaki clan, after all Konoha needs to regain the trust it lost among its allies... We will be in this together, until the future surprises me." He took a small pause before continuing.
"Either way, I am back, and I am happy to be able to return to this village. It never ceased to be the place I wish to protect, because there are faces here that I consider friends, as well as people for whom I would fight with my life to protect them."
It was possible to feel a collective sentiment emerging among the shinobi of Konoha. Those were not mere words. It was not like Sarutobi giving speeches about the Will of Fire. Minato was different. He had proven that he would fight even against the rules themselves and even against nations to protect his comrades, facing the entire world if necessary.
His past actions spoke louder than his current words. In addition, he was the ninja who killed three Kage and mastered abilities that no one else possessed. Information from the Bingo Book was already beginning to circulate among the four enemy nations, reporting what Minato had done on each battlefield, according to all the witnesses who had survived.
Injuring bijūs to the point of making them scream, teleporting them away, just as he did with some and with Ōnoki, throwing them out of the battlefield...
Flying through the skies and beating Kage with his taijutsu.
Catching two Bijūdama with his own hands and throwing them back.
Killing two Kage on the same battlefield.
Being able to become even stronger than the Raikage's Lightning Armor, to the point of beating him with ease.
His speed having been even underestimated when he earned the title of the fastest man in the world, or the Yellow Flash.
Demonstrating a level of kenjutsu that surpassed even Sakumo Hatake's, when his blade darkened. He could cut legendary swords, as he had done with one of the Seven Swords of the Mist, and he also cut the Raikage's neck, whose armor was useless against that blade.
His teleportation was always a problem, allowing him to move across the battlefield with ease and control it however he wished.
Many spoke about Minato's strange ability to darken his fists and even his sword, no one knew what that was, but it certainly granted him tremendous destructive power that could defeat most opponents and also functioned as a defense against the Raikage.
No one knew how much more powerful Minato had become after a year and a half since that battle, but they could certainly imagine.
And if they knew everything he had mastered, beyond what was already public knowledge during the war in Uzushiogakure, people would begin to call him a Shinobi God.
Even so, Minato would think it was too early for that. Even if he were compared to the legends of the past, he still did not know whether he was on par with the goddess sealed within the moon. Her level as a god was beyond Madara and Hashirama.
Anyway, Sakumo continued speaking about the plan to relocate Minato and the others, together with the Uzumaki, explaining that the island would be integrated into the Land of Fire.
"Well, it seems things have been decided," Sakumo said, with a small, closed-lip smile.
It was possible to see many people celebrating the news. The Uzumaki clan would be absorbed by the village of Konoha as a new clan, and Minato, together with all his wives, would once again have all the properties that had belonged to him before he left Konoha officially recognized.
His name had never truly left the village, but now he would officially be a clan of Konoha, managing his shops and also regaining the house he had saved money for during the Second War.
"Anyway, thank you for everything," Minato said, opening a slight smile. "Now I'm going to the capital. I need to present myself to the Daimyō again. After all, he wants to know everything. Do you want to come along?"
Sakumo thought for a moment and nodded. "That would be best. I can go as Konoha's interim leader. It's good to give explanations and show our goodwill."
Minato nodded. He was not worried about appearing alone either; the current Fire Daimyō had admired him since he was a child, ever since Minato saved him from a kidnapping carried out by Iwa and Suna before Minato entered the Second War.
Minato felt that and simply agreed.
They spoke a little more with the elders and, after that, headed toward the capital. Upon arriving at the palace, they identified themselves and were led to a meeting. The young Daimyō, who had recently taken his father's place, immediately looked at Minato with joy and admiration.
"It's been a long time," Minato said.
"You came back," the Daimyō replied. "I said that if they didn't bring you back, I would cut most of the funding we send to Konoha." He cast a challenging look at Sakumo, who merely smiled and said nothing.
"He doesn't need to worry. I was more busy training and enjoying time with my family," Minato said.
"So you became a married man. Well, I did too. Come with me, I want to introduce you to my family. I've always told my wife about the man who rescued me, my sister, my father, and my mother when we were children, and who also took me with him, teaching me many things while we traveled to the Land of the Samurai," he said.
Minato merely shrugged, and Sakumo could not help but smile. After that, Minato went to meet the Daimyō's family. It was good to maintain that kind of relationship with the strongest financial power in the Land of Fire.
After negotiating various matters and even securing new funding for Konoha, Minato took Sakumo back to the village. Then, he headed toward the island in the sky, summoning his dragon companion, Guren, and asking him to begin transporting them.
At that moment, the Uzumaki clan already knew what was happening. Not everyone was happy with the decision, but that was the decision.
Thus, the island reached Konoha after a few hours, traveling through the skies.
"Well, let's begin," Tsuna said, looking down.
She and Hanabi descended from the island using Minato's teleportation, beginning to prepare the terrain so that it would fit into the planned location.
For Konoha, the sight of a dragon carrying a gigantic island was, without a doubt, a great attraction for everyone. Ninjas and villagers watched in awe as the island descended beside the village, while, for the first time, they saw a real dragon flying through the skies, capable of carrying an island shrouded in strange clouds.
◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
🦝 Raccoon here: 🦝
New update: I'm working with AI and creating images from the best scenes in the chapters!
I deeply appreciate your support since the beginning of this exciting journey!
I hope each chapter has provided incredible moments. If you like my work and would like to support the continuation of this fanfic, consider becoming a patron with plans starting at $2!. As a token of gratitude, I offer access to more than 210 extra chapters with 7 active fanfics at the same time, along with other exclusive benefits on my profile, such as images and significant decisions for the stories.
Even if you are not a patron, I am making chapters available a few hours earlier here, so become a free member on the platform!
🌟 RaccoonLeague | Patreon🌟
Visit our Patreon for more: https://www.patreon.com/RaccoonLeague
Extra Content Already Available:
🏴☠️ One Piece - I Am a Different Luffy!: 30 extra chapters!
👑 Game of Thrones: The Legend of Jon Arctic!: 30 extra chapters!
🌀 Naruto - Minato Namikaze SI!: 30 extra chapters!
🗡️ The Witcher - As Uchiha Madara! 30 extra chapters!
⚡ Harry Potter - Shadow Monarch! Finished! [100%]
👑 Game of Thrones: DragonBorn! 30 extra chapters!
Except for One Piece with daily chapters and DragonBorn once a week, all fanfics are updated 3 times a week, there's just a pause in updating in the week, only to create drafts for the week's chapters.
In addition to the extra chapters, daily chapters are posted and 25 chapters per week!
Your support is very important and makes all the difference in keeping these stories alive.
Thank you very much for being part of this journey! I hope you continue to enjoy the story and that it brings even more joy to your life!
Visit our Patreon for more!!
◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆