Minato fought to calm his breathing while he eyed his opponent critically. The man before him tilted his head to the side and Minato couldn't shake the feeling that he was being laughed at. Blonde locks blew into his eyes for a moment, failing to break his concentration. His heart clenched painfully in his chest as he remembered exactly what had brought him to this secluded meadow. Kushina, his love, had gone through the last few moments of her labor. He had focused on keeping the demon sealed within her at bay. The first cries of his newborn son had brought about such a deep, protective love. His glossy blue eyes had turned at the cries of the midwives only to find Naruto in the arms of a masked man.

A growl threatened to break past the blonde's lips as his glare grew in intensity. Minato held one of his unique 3 pronged kunai up, a plan having formed in his mind despite his distress. He had seen how his every moved had gone through the masked menace. The blonde also noticed that, for his opponent to land a hit on him, he could not use his phasing ability. Images of the explosive tags attached to his son and the weak, vulnerable Kushina ripped at his mind. The sounds of the Kyuubi's roars and his village's destruction pounded through his ears. Minato shifted his position, his weapon of choice held at the ready. He eyed the masked fiend before him one last time before racing at him.

An aura of smugness surrounded his enemy as he charged at Minato. Mere feet away from the masked monster, the blonde threw his kunai with unnerving precision. The other man raised his hand as the kunai went through him without causing harm. Knowing that he could not hesitate in the least, Minato charged a Rasengan in his hand, the swirling blue ball of chakra casting a ghostly light upon the two men. Minato did not feel joy as he outwitted the other and used his trade mark Flying Thunder God technique. A seal activated on the thrown kunai and the blonde promptly disappeared only to appear behind and above the masked man. Minato slammed his jutsu into the other man's back while he uttered softly, "That was my Flying Thunder God technique, level 2."

The ground below the pair exploded in dirt and dust as it cracked and shifted. Minato left one of his seals on the man's, now bare, back before he could teleport away from him. The masked man appeared several yards away from the irritating blonde, grasping his wounded arm. His breath was ragged as the dust settled enough to reveal the icy blue eyes of the Hokage. The blonde wasted no time in using activating the seal, appearing in front of the masked man. Black markings expanded across the man's chest as Minato tore the Kyuubi from the man's influence.

Cold furry seeped into the masked man's words and he questioned the blond, " A contract seal? Are you trying to pull the nine-tails free from my control?"

Minato's response was just as chilling, "No, I already did. He's no longer your weapon!" The masked man snatched Minato's wrist, activating a jutsu he had yet to test. It was a jutsu that he had been saving for himself. Minato's vision began to fog as the world swirled together like water down a drain. He moved to use his Flying Thunder God Technique to escape the pull of the unknown jutsu as he had before, but his chakra froze in their coils. His breath caught as he realized that he was not escaping this attack, whatever it was. In his last moments, Minato sent a wish that his wife, his son, his teacher, and his last student would be alright. The Yondaime neglected to hope the same for Konoha.

The masked man stumbled back in exhaustion as the blonde disappeared. A low, dark chuckle sounded as he silently used his favorite jutsu to leave Konoha to its fate. Ferocious growls of anger echoed hollowly through the now empty field. The only evidence that Namikaze Minato, Fourth Hokage, husband of Uzumaki-Namikaze Kushina and father of Uzumaki Naruto had even been present was a single, metallic item. At eye height, on an oak tree was a 3 pronged kunai.

Rain was the first thing the blonde man was aware of. Droplets splashed against his skin, pooling around his eyes and slipping down his cheeks. His golden locks clung to his skin desperately, turning an almost brown color. Mud was soaked up by his once white, Hokage coat, hiding the kanji. Thunder clapped overhead only faintly startling the man who laid spread eagle upon a drenched field. The storm lacked any wind, making the rain truly seem like a shower. Slowly, uncertain blue eyes opened to greet the black clouds above them. Minato was familiar with the feeling rampaging through his motionless body. His mind searched for a moment before producing its answer: Chakra Exhaustion.

Minato continued to stare unseeingly at the rumbling masses in the sky. He replayed the last 22 hours over and over, each time causing him more pain than the last. The man wasn't stupid. He knew that if someone hadn't found him by now, that meant there wasn't anyone to look. It wasn't as if he was a chunin, he was the Hokage. His stomach churned at that and Minato rolled onto his side, spilling his stomach contents on the green grass below him. The blonde retched again as worry twisted his insides and doubt sank its teeth into his heart. His village, his people, his family; he hadn't been able to save any of them. A fist pounded into the ground beside his head as more than just rain trailed from his eyes.

Still, the need to see Konoha ate away at him. Minato slowly pushed himself to his feet, his arms shaking pitifully. The moment his head was higher than his heart, a round of vertigo crashed into him. Catching himself before he could fall, the blonde pushed his hair away from his face, panting lightly. Step after stumbling step, Minato willed himself to keep moving. Konoha wasn't far from where his safe house once was and Konoha's Yondaime Hokage was determined to see it.

He wanted to ignore what he would do if everything was destroyed as he made his way up the small incline that would drop him off at the top of the Hokage Monument. A sinking feeling badgered his heart and told him that he must consider his options. Where would he go? Alliances were still weak and premature after the war for him to be able to rely on any other village. Besides, they would most likely laugh in his face and then move to ravage whatever supplies were left unspoiled in Konoha. Minato coughed into his fist, coming to rest against an old tree. The rough bark scratched his cheek and the blonde trained his ears on his surroundings.

Even if it had been the day of a funeral, Konoha was never a quiet place. Minato's muscles tensed as the hairs on his body stood at attention. His blue eyes became watery and his movements became desperate as he pushed himself away from the tree. He kept reaching for that place where the trees would thin out and show him his village. Each step was heavier, harder than the last. His pants morphed into gasps. Minato fell to his knees but refused to give up. Mud dug under his nails as he dragged himself up the last few feet of the incline.

Lightning lit up the sky, a terrible wind picked up, and the path was more of a mud slide than anything. Minato grit his teeth and pushed on, pretending that nature herself was not against him. The blonde refused to acknowledge the shivers that racked his whole being. He needed to know and that was the sole cause forcing him onwards. The tree line broke around him and the last foot before the top was presented to the man. His heart beat tripled in anticipation as he erased the last inch between him and his home.

Suddenly, Minato wished he hadn't come, that he hadn't seen. Spread out below him was what could be called, at best, ruins. The walls that had served to protect Konoha from common threats were long since collapsed into rumble. Only the gates remained standing with one door on the ground beside its counter part. Partially demolished walls reached for the sky as creeping ivy attempted to scale them; shattered tiles surrounding their bases. Nature had done its best to retake the land and this was what gave Minato pause. If he had only been holding his wife the previous afternoon, why did it appear that Konohagakure had been destroyed years ago?

A touch of hysteria was all it took for Minato to completely and utterly break down. His mouth dropped open in a silent scream as hot, fresh tears cascaded down his face. The blonde sat on his knees, his fingers burying themselves in the soft mud around him as if to anchor him to the world. Each breath he took shook his shoulders harder than the shockwave of an explosion, forcing the man to bow. Everything he knew, everything he loved was gone. It had all been gone for years, years he couldn't find. Had Kushina known of his disappearance before she died? Did Kakashi wonder where the blonde man was as he was surely struck down? Would Naruto have known what was happening when he too was killed? What had Jiraiya thought when he heard about Minato? Would Hiruzen have regretted putting him in charge of the village rather than one of the Sannin?

Forehead pressed against the ground and darkened locks stained brown, his eyes stared forward blankly as the rain continued to pelt him with its droplets. The cold crept into his bones and Minato wondered if it was cold enough for him to die of hypothermia or phenomena. It was then that a small sliver of hope made itself known above the raging ocean his mind had become. Movements idle, he pulled his hands towards his face and created a well known hand sign. His eyes were closed in concentration as he disrupted what little chakra was left to keep him alive.

Minato tried again and again yet he still met the same results. The rain never stopped its beat against the earth and the wind failed to stop pushing against his chilling skin. This nightmare was not ending because it was not genjutsu, it was reality. He waited for the calm outer shell of his furry to form as it always did when the fire in his stomach was kindled. This disaster was as much his fault as one other and he planned on making sure that his loved ones would get their justice.

Tired eyelids slipped open as realization came upon the lost Konohagakure shinobi. Try as he might, he could not summon a righteous anger or even hate. Everywhere he turned all he found was a deepening, darkening pit that grew suddenly when he thought of it. Minato knew that one misstep and he would probably never find his way back out. For a minute he considered that idea, would he truly die then or would he be damned to wonder the face of this world until someone took pity upon him and ended it all. A short, bark of a laugh was drowned out by the storm's stronger roar. Everyone thought so highly of him, even his own teacher, but no one seemed to notice that he was just another man. They all thought he was the chosen one, their messiah. Oh how disappointed they would be to see him considering, wishing for his own death now!

Droplets of mud reunited with their mother as the man shook his head. No, they would probably make up some honorable view point on the whole situation. He loved his people so much he could not bear to go on without them, Minato wanted to snort at the line. Why had no one ever seen him for who he truly was? Not even Kushina, his dearest Kushina had been able to see under his mask, though she had seen the most. His fists balled tightly, knuckles turning white. They had probably all thought that if they could stall the Kyuubi long enough he would show up and make it all better.

Slowly he pushed himself up into a sitting position. Could Konohagakure have been saved if they had known that their mighty Yondaime Hokage was not coming? As shinobi they should have known better than to hope he would come if he had not arrived in the beginning! Minato pounded his fist against the soft earth repeatedly, his mind fogged by a grief driven anger.

He never knew how long he spent acting out his emotions but when his body's weakening state made itself known again, Minato could just scrape up the energy to lift his water logged head. Gaze harsh, he took a second look at Konohagakure, analyzing it. The blank expression morphed into a confused frown as he compared the scene before him with the map of his Konohagakure in his mind. Streets that shouldn't have been there were easy to make out even under the stones and vegetation. Then the simple amount of rubble did not make any sense to him either. There were more remains of buildings than there logically should have been for the amount of years that had to pass to allow nature to do as she wished. Minato pressed a hand to his forehead as a sharp pain took up residence in his temple.

A shiver hugged his shoulders and the man rubbed numb fingers together. It was past time for him to get out of the rain in favor of finding shelter and oddly enough he found an icy gloss covering the pit in his psyche. The pain that had crumbled the mask Minato wore was pushed aside as his body's will to live rushed forward, overwhelming whatever his mind had decided was best. Mechanically he set his feet under himself to stand on legs that felt like twenty ton bricks. The trip down the path to Konohagakure was uneven but surprisingly undamaged. As the weary man reached the bottom his eyes were half closed and his steps were no more than shuffles, causing him to look much like one who only kept going because there was something more important than dying left to do.

He found shelter inside the first used-to-be building he came across. What remained of its roof had formed a lopsided triangle with a half demolished wall. A slab of concrete made up Minato's bed but it was better than sleeping in the ankle-deep mud that surrounded it. He brushed a trembling hand along what remained of the red tiles that had made up the roof before laying upon the slab of concrete. The once Yondaime Hokage curled into himself, too tired to try to create a fire for warmth. If he died in his sleep, it would be a kindness of the most basic sorts.

Unfortunately, Kami did not favor Namikaze Minato enough for that.

Minato's eyes eased open slowly, expression blank as he looked at but did not see the sky above. Sometime in his sleep he had rolled halfway off of the concrete slab and now the stone bit into his lower back. The knee high grass blocked the edges of his vision but the blonde man paid it no mind. Silence reined over the village and Minato smiled softly. Just by tracing the stars he knew he was near where the Hokage tower had once been and that no genjutsu was that perfect. He was home again but no one was waiting for him. That, of course, was his own fault.

Sitting up slowly, the blonde carefully took in his surroundings and imagined what Konohagakure had looked like as it was set a light. The smoke had probably been darker than night, blocking out all sources of light. Bodies had littered the ground with their blood spilling across the streets. Most likely the civilians had raced about, trying to find a safe way out with their children in their arms but ultimately unable to protect them from the enemy.

He was no fool. Evidence of combat in the streets were still obvious even after all the years that had passed. Walls that hadn't crumbled completely were pock marked with holes caused by kunai and shuriken. It was the tilt of the walls and the small areas of absolute destruction that had first tipped him off. The Kyuubi, large as it was, could not have done any of the finer details. Somehow, someway the Village Hidden in the Leaves had survived the Ninetail's attack, going so far as to rebuild but it hadn't been enough. No, shinobi had attacked Konohagakure and shinobi had tried to defend her. His home had stood without him and had been destroyed. The way the paths had been cleared of all but the most recent debris also gave the man hope. Someone had lived. All around him the traces of dead bodies were not to be found. Someone had cared and Minato would find them, thank them.

Knowing that the only way left open to him was forward, the man ducked out from under his lopsided shelter. The moon above lit up the vacant faces of the buildings still standing; its pale glow casting shadows over their windows and hiding the darkened sorrow of what once was. Turning in a half circle, he tried to get his bearings but ended up following the shadows as they danced upon the ruins. Small, unheard animals crept along the pools of black as the once Hokage shrugged off his coat. Here, at the center of what he used to know, Minato would leave what small things tied him to this dead place. The knot at the back of his head gave in easily, momentarily causing him to wonder how it always stayed in place over the years.

Minato ignored the chill tracing his arms as he folded the white coat and placed it under the triangle that had sheltered him. Yet, when it came time to release his hitai-ate, his fingers refused to move. Unless he was at home with Kushina he always wore the soft cloth with its metal plate. Eyes as blue as the day he first became a genin traced the small symbol engraved up the metal, wondering if he would ever see it again. The man pretended it did not hurt to leave his hitai-ate behind as he turned, gaze stuck to the stone road he could not recall ever traveling. His feet refused to stop, leading him through twisting paths full of lost souls. Minato slowed to a stop as he reached the first intersection and his eyes glued themselves to the charred wooden doorway that stood crookedly before him.

"Sensei, why didn't you take me with you?"

His heart jumped into his throat at the voice and briefly hope flooded his system, overriding his common sense. Minato's body shifted of its own accord until he was looking down the path to his right. Warm, mid-morning light lit the road full of villagers going about their daily routines. Weaving between them was a dark haired boy who was waving one arm in the air, doing what he could to gain the blonde's attention. The muscles in his chest constricted, making breathing difficult, as Minato braced himself to be tackled by his student. His throat ached with unspoken words while the boy who was always going too fast or too slow continued towards him. He never had been able to find the balance between the two.

"Obito," Minato managed to call out as the Uchiha's expression became clear. It was hard in pained anger as the Uchiha picked up speed, staring at Minato intensely. Heart dropping into his stomach and hands trembling, Minato saw that his student was looking through him as if he wasn't there at all. Unable to come back to reality he failed to remember that dead men did not talk. Minato opened his arms to catch the boy once he was in reach but his embrace remained empty. His eyes opened slowly, realizing that the only light came from the black velvet sky above and the once busy street was silent again.

Dirty nails scrapped across his scalp as Minato tore at his hair in desperation. The man had seen Obito but he was dead. The street had been filled to the breaking point with the people of Fire country and yet it was in ruins. He was losing it, he knew, but he wished that what he had seen had been real. If he could just go back to those days when he was still just another jonin and his team was still whole. Breath came and went harshly through his mouth as his feet carried him to the left. Every shinobi lived with ghost haunting their steps but delusions of dead loved ones were another thing all together. The blonde had to find a way out of Konohagakure or he would join the ranks of countless dead in this grave. Frantic eyes searched the area around him but this was not the same village he had spent 23 years of his life in and he found himself lost.

Still, giving up had not been part of the mask he had worn day in and day out all his life. Even now he was racing down a curving street, struggling with the urge to surrender and the will to keep going. Minato had heard of people who did not know themselves or what they truly wanted out of life but this was something else. Chapped lips parted for another breath as the end of the street came to view, a broken archway hiding whatever lay beyond it. His life was one large contradiction even up to a few hours ago. Hadn't he been wishing for his own death and now he was running from it? What was his choice? Minato's feet slowed before stilling completely as his thoughts chased each other in his mind. If he kept going, didn't that mean that he wasn't giving up?

Glancing back was not necessary because he knew that only ruins, destruction and the end awaited him. Calloused fingers brushed the rough stone as he eased closer to what was probably an exit, body and mind in conflict. Was dedicating himself to vengeance any better though? Others had always thought him above such petty things and Jiraiya had tried to teach him that there had to be another way. He had another choice; he could start anew and live as the hero everyone had always known him to be. Yet, wouldn't that require he forever hide behind his mask? Minato stood directly under the archway, trapped between choices he could not make.

Reactions long ago engraved into his bones had him throwing himself to the right as the stone groaned. Stunned blue eyes closed hastily, protecting themselves from the rain of debris, and his back slammed into a crumbling wall. He choked on the newly disturbed dust, fanning it away with his hands as the stones settled into place. His heart slowed its racing to a calm thump and Minato rubbed his closed eyelids in an attempt to sooth the burning there. In front of him the archway had fully collapsed, blocking the path back into Konohagakure's heart. Not for the first time Minato became conscious of the fact that he was racing through the trees, the endless sea of leaves bidding him goodbye.

The sun's first light graced his skin as he stood on the outskirts of a village that hadn't been there before. People's voices rang through the air, bringing forth such heart tearing homesickness from the pit of his heart. The streets were full of villagers going about their daily routine. Traders called out to those walking past and children chased each other about. The aroma of freshly baked sweets surrounded his head, persuading him to follow its trail. Though smiles were few and far between he did not miss the warm familiarity that emitted from each citizen. Minato wanted to be down there, surrounding himself in what he no longer had. It was his first wish in this world that was not corrupted by his overly analytical mind.

A tentative smile wormed its way onto his lips as he strolled down the main road. No one paid him any mind as he entered the town square. A child to his right was haggling with an old woman like a professional over some bread while his smug father charmed a younger woman into giving him a discount on a basket of pears. Gathered in a semi-circle up ahead were several young children. They were listening intently to a story a man no older than Minato himself was telling, his arms moving about in dramatized gestures. Coal colored locks falling across his bare forehead as the man weaved his tale and curiosity brought Minato closer, his acute hearing comprehending the words clearly. His smile was quickly swept away.

"Knowing that their revered leader would not come before the cruel beast destroyed all of Konohagakure, the Sandaime became the hero only the oldest of the old remembered him once being. A Uchiha and a Uzumaki stood at his sides as the man summoned the vile Shinigami to the realm of the living. The Uzumaki kept the Kyuubi still with chains created of her chakra while the Sandaime Hokage tore half of the beat's soul from its body!" The pale story teller leaned forward, prompting his audience to do the same. Minato's brow pinched and his stomach twisted as he quickly worked out who the Uzumaki was and what jutsu his predecessor had used.

Sadness hidden behind layers of amusement shadowed the story teller's onyx eyes as he realized that the children were clinging to their seats. In some cases, quite literally. "The death god was not satisfied with just part of a soul and took the Hokage's as well. Left on their own, the two kunochi knew there was only one thing they could do: seal the monster in a host. Sharingan spinning, the Uchiha kept the beast still long enough for the Uzumaki to focus on her fuinjutsu, an art that her own clan had long ago mastered. In an act of selflessness too few would recognize her for, Uzumaki Kushina sealed the Kyuubi into the stomach of her new born."

Minato had not known that he had moved closer to the group until the story teller's eyes flickered up to meet his. Something akin to surprise and recognition lit in both men's gazes and neither dared break it as the dark haired man finished his tale. "This final deed required every drop of her chakra, sentencing her to death. Kushina's final words had been a request that the Uchiha, her dearest friend, take care of her son. Holding the newly orphaned boy, Mikoto had agreed without hesitation. Never would she have guessed that by raising the blonde as her own that she was sealing Konohagakure's fate. The village would burn hotter than any sun with civil war once word of the jinchuriki reached Danzo, Godaime Hokage."

"What happened during the war," one of the children shifted back into her seat, "And what did it have to do with the baby?" The story teller looked down at the girl, a charming yet weary smile forming on his lips.

"Perhaps I'll tell you next time." His words were met with groans from the children, some muttering that he 'always' said that. He had chuckled softly at their expense while climbing to his feet.

"Why not now," the same girl whined, shoulders slumping and a pout working at her mouth. Minato quirked an eyebrow as the other man paused. He knew before the once genjutsu prodigy parted his lips that he would surrender to the ten or so kicked puppy looks he was receiving. (The other kids had caught onto the girl's ploy.)

Minato stepped in at that point, hands casually stuffed into his pockets. "Because he has already agreed to get breakfast with me." The blonde never faltered under the scrutiny of the kids, merely offering them a small smile that gave away nothing. "Isn't that right, Shisui?" He glanced at the Uchiha, who was still frozen in place between getting up and sitting back down. At this the children directed their attention to Shisui. In return he nodded once which earned him more groans. Only occasionally throwing wistful looks at the pair, the kids easily dispersed, leaving them alone.

Shisui pushed up the sleeves of his plain cotton shirt, having forgone the usual high collar that his clan used to sport. Despite being in Hi no Kuni, the last thing he wanted was to advertise the fact that he had the Sharingan. Life was bad enough that he had inherited the pasty white skin and dark hair from his mother, he did not need to bring Shinobi hunters down upon his head while he was at it. Carefully he eyed the man standing beside him. Thanks to his elder brother being on Minato's team he had been fairly familiar with the man and even his wife due to his aunt Mikoto. Still, it utterly baffled him as to how the man was standing beside him when everyone had been so sure he had died. Hell, even that bastard Danzo had confirmed their fear!

Snorting once, he figured it would be just up the old war hawk's alley to lie about such an important thing. After all, if Minato had been alive this whole time he would never have gotten the title of Hokage and perhaps Konohagakure may have been saved. Jerking his head to the right, Shisui turned away from the crowds of downtown. He never bothered to check to see if Minato was following him as he lead the way towards a particularly empty part of the village. The thing that bothered him the most was the fact that the blonde had not changed in the least. Almost a quarter of a decade had passed and yet he looked no older than he had when he became Hokage.

Minato walked beside the Uchiha he had last seen as a boy. Only 10 years of age and he had already graduated from the academy with flying colors in genjutsu and taijutsu. At first he had been uncertain that this man (barely taller than he was) had been the same short squirt that had insisted that he would become better than Obito. Yet, his oddly feminine eyes and unkempt hair had given him away. Minato recalled one agitated Mikoto pinning the boy to the floor before sitting on his back, forcing a brush through his hair in order to make him look clean cut for "potential wives." The 7 year old had kicked his feet about and clawed at the hardwood flooring just to escape. Mikoto had relented until the brat had told her that she was "crushing" him because she "weighed more than a house full of shinobi." Kushina, who had brought Minato over to introduce him to her best friend, had gone after Shisui for that.

"Minato?" The soft gasp drew cerulean eyes to a pale woman standing at the door way of a house, door knob in hand. Shisui had stepped to the side in order to give her a better view of Minato and the basket of vegetables in her arms dropped. The Uchiha man was able to catch it before it struck the stone steps but the woman was already down them in a flash. To any other, the woman's strong embrace would have been a shock but, to Minato, it was his first bit of comfort.

"Hello Mikoto."

A/N: I've scrapped my rewrite of this and decided to rewrite it anyways. I have to say I like this version much better now, though I wonder what all you lovely people think. So speak up! Review and tell me if you like this or not. Oh, and if you see any mistakes I would much appreciate it if you let me know.