The Village Hidden in the Leaf was not crying; it was completely collapsing.
It was burning.
The village was on fire. Dark black plumes of smoke blotted out the moon, in the dark yet anguished night of October 10th. People cried for help under the grown of the crumbling houses. People ran and cried for their loved ones.
The village was in turmoil, completely wrecked by the terror of the red-eyed orange furred monster. Terrifying bloody eyes and massive nine tails, each shattering entire streets with a flick. The demon fox had destroyed and slaughtered indiscriminately. Not even the Fourth Hokage and his wife were spares.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, kneeled while panting. His every breath was laboured and his chest was on fire; a reminder of his deteriorating physical health thanks to his age.
"Find the one responsible for this. Don't let a single person come close." He ordered.
Hiruzen quietly approached the sight of the battle; the place were the Nine Tails was sealed by the Fourth Hokage.
Once he arrived, his nearly fell. His legs were quivering, they felt numb. But he did not allow himself to fall. In front of him, were the bodies of two people he considered family — Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki. Both of them were sprawled out in front of a bundle of cloth, holding each other in a lifeless embrace. The holes in their bodies were seeping red, staining the grass and floor with vibrant blood.
Hiruzen, with quivering hands, gently lifted the little baby, still sleeping peacefully. The baby had some drops of blood on his belly, no doubt, from his parents. The Third Hokage held the baby with a gentle and delicate embrace, as if he was afraid the baby would shatter in his arms.
"Status report, sir." An ANBU agent wearing a dog mask appeared next to him and kneeled.
"There are remnants of a battle five kilometres north. It seems Lord Fourth confronted the masked man there directly before coming here to seal the Kyuubi. Additionally, the place were Lord Fourth's wife gave birth, was destroyed entirely. All the ANBU agents and midwives are dead. Lady Biwako was struck down as well and is currently receiving emergency medical treatment from Sannin Tsunade." The agent spoke, reporting the situation to the Hokage.
Hiruzen froze, nearly falling over for real this time, but he managed to catch himself. He was holding the baby Naruto in his hands, he couldn't afford to falter. The very thought of his wife being struck down in such a manner made him stop breathing. The fear of losing even his wife was starting to brew.
This night was meant to be a night of joy and celebration. It was the night that Naruto Uzumaki, the child of Minato and Kushina, was born. It was an auspicious day, but it ended in nothing but tragedy. Someone attacked the village using the Nine Tails, destroying and killing hundreds, maybe thousands. The Fourth Hokage died. Hsi family was suffering. His wife was at death's door. And despite all this, Hiruzen refused to fall.
He was the Third Hokage! He was currently the strongest and most capable shinobi in the village and therefore, it was up to him to protect the people and maintain order. There was no one else that could handle such a task. No one except him. Especially since Jiraiya was unavailable.
"Take the bodies of Minato and Kushina back to the Sarutobi compound. Sent a message to contact Jiraiya and bring him back immediately." He ordered, his face was hardened and his tone held a cold authority that was only ever seen in a war veteran.
"Save and help the people, but do not tell about what happened. All discussions will be closed and nobody is to know about this boy or the Nine Tails until I provide further notice."
"Yes, Lord Hokage!"
Hiruzen turned around and starting moving towards the hospital, with Naruto delicately yet firmly held in his arms.
He witnessed his unconscious wife, bloody and wounded, being provided emergency treatment by his student, Tsunade Senju. Unable to handle such a sight, he closed his eyes and left the hospital, returning to the Hokage Office.
•••
The Third Hokage had called for a meeting. Sitting before him, in two perfect rows, were the elites of Konoha and the heads of several clans were all present there.
"As you have already heard... The Kyuubi was released during the delivery of the fourth's wife. Due to the isolated location of the delivery, only he was able to face the beast. Regrettably, both the Fourth Hokage and his wife were fatally wounded by the Nine Tails, before they managed to seal it." Hiruzen's tone was grim and solemn, as if he was still unable to comprehend such a reality.
The people around him were all mourning the loss, paying respect to the heroes that saved the village from the demon fox.
"The people have been stabilized. The wounded are being treated and the tally of the dead has begun. This day is a tragedy that will never be forgotten by the people of the leaf."
"Minato sealed the Kyuubi into his newborn son, Naruto Uzumaki." He revealed the identity of the Nine Tails Jinchuriki, making many of the people in the room feel pity for the boy.
He was just born and yet, he was already burdened with the curse of being a Jinchuriki. And after this incident, should the people find out about him, they'll all hate him for sure.
"How did it happen ?"
"Someone released it." Hiruzen replied, shocking the members of the council.
"A masked man attacked the place where the fourth's wife was giving birth. He kidnapped Kushina and released the Kyuubi. He wanted to use the Kyuubi to crush the leaf." Hiruzen explained the situation properly, making all the elites have complicated expressions on their faces.
How were they supposed to react ? Information about the whereabouts of Kushina's delivery, which were meant to be a national secret, somehow got leaked to an enemy. The enemy in question seized the opportunity to cripple the leaf and shatter their foundations.
There was nothing else to be said. That is exactly what had happened.
"We do not know his identity. Lord Fourth confronted him just before returning to the village. We neither have a name not a face. He managed escape, regrettably." Hiruzen's face was form but people that have known him for a while could tell just how much was boiling underneath that cold facade.
Danzo decided to speak up.
"And what about the child of the Sannin ?" He questioned randomly, which made Hiruzen look at him in confusion.
"What ? What do you mean, Danzo ?" He couldn't understand why Danzo would bother asking about Ryuma after the situation they were stuck in.
Ryuma's birth was a secret. He hadn't been allowed to leave the perimeter of the Senju Estate, which is where Tsunade had made her stay. Due to the nature of his birth and his heritage, it would be too dangerous for people to be aware of his existence this early, and hence, he was hidden.
There should be nothing to worry about.
"The masked man was aware of secrets only the elites of the village should be aware of. What makes you think he doesn't know about Ryuma Senju ?" Danzo enquired, bringing the mood even further down.
Hiruzen looked frantic. Naturally, there were already guards stationed around the Senju Estate to protect Ryuma from any threat during the absence of his parents. Tsunade was too busy healing the wounded and Jiraiya was out of the village. Minato and Kushina were dead. Biwako was in critical condition. And he was here, in the Hokage office.
"You said he wanted to cripple the village, right ? Killing the son of two Sannin during this moment of turmoil would do the trick."
Danzo made a great point, and Hiruzen didn't bother thinking much about it. Too much had already happened and he's still wrapping his head around it all. Everything was crumbling. If Ryuma gets taken from them, he and his students will certainly collapse.
"There are already guards stationed there, Danzo. But your point is excellent. Send the ANBU black-ops to protect Ryuma. Send Kakashi Hatake there."
"Understood." Danzo nodded his head and left the room.
Hiruzen stared at his retreating figure for a bit, before looking away and deciding to end the meeting.
•••
Hiruzen was now standing in front of Biwako, his unconscious wife. Tsunade was sweating while trying to heal her, his son Asuma was present outside the room. He sat by her side and held her hand to support her and let her know that he was here.
Eventually, Biwako opened her eyes. She looked up, staring up at his grief-stricken face and she couldn't stop the years from flowing. Biwako was unconscious, but she was a smart woman.
In the background, Tsunade leaned against the wall with a hand on her chest, breathing heavily to try and calm her beating heart. The loss of Minato and Kushina was heavy, even for her. Minato was Jiraiya's student, someone he cared a lot for. And she herself, was good friends with both of them. It was safe to say she cherished them like family.
And once again, the world went out of its way to take that away from her.
"How... How did he get in ?" Biwako questioned, trembling and crying. "How is it possible ? How did he even know about it ?"
Biwako briefly remembered staring into a single glowing red eye, mixed with dark red. It was the only recognisably thing about the attacker.
"We don't know..." Hiruzen responded, unsure of how to react or talk to his wife.
"What about them ? Minato and Kushina ? What about Naruto?!"
"The boy is alive." Hiruzen replied.
His refusal to say anything about Naruto's parents was enough for Biwako to understand what happened to them. She remembered how happy they were at the prospect of becoming parents. And on the day of their child's birth, it was all taken away.
"Naruto is the Nine Tails Jinchuriki." Hiruzen suddenly said, which surprised both Biwako and Tsunade, who were utterly shocked by what they heard.
Minato sealed the Kyuubi inside his newborn son?!
"What?! But he's a baby! He can't be burdened with such a fate!" Biwako argued, not at all approving the decision to make Naruto the vessel/prison of the Kyuubi.
"I know, Biwako... But—"
"Lord Hokage!" An ANBU agent burst into the room, startling them.
"Requesting for backup! We're under attack again!" The sudden declaration sent shivers down their spines.
"WHAT?! Where?!"
"The Senju Compound has been attacked, Lord Hokage!"
The world seemed to slow down when the ANBU agent said that. All three of them looked at him in shock and genuine anguish, none more-so than Tsunade herself.
"No...! No, no, no, no, no...!"
Tsunade started hyperventilating.
Without sparing a single second, she rushed out of the hospital and ran towards the Senju Estate, ignoring absolutely everything else. She was seeing red. Horrible, traumatic memories were resurfacing once again.
She lost her grandparents and her family. Her parents. Her younger brother, Nawaki. Her lover, Dan. Minato. Kushina. She did not want to lose her son too! She would never be able to recover from such a tragedy again if something happened to Ryuma.
Hiruzen, Biwako and a bunch of other capable shinobi followed Tsunade, who was on the verge of completely breaking down.
'Please, no! Not him too! I'll do anything, just please not him!!'
Tsunade was extremely fast while running, but her legs were quivering despite the determination she felt to save her child. The constant reminder of her failures and losses her hounding her.
If something happened to Ryuma, she didn't know what she'd do.