The last time Naruto had had a private audience with the Hokage, he had been six years old. The Hokage's office had seemed immense to him then, and the Hokage himself had been an alien, untouchable figure. But as he stood before the desk once more, the room, though big, was contained, and the man had never looked as weary as he did now.
"So you know the truth now," said the Hokage quietly, getting straight to the point. He was seated behind his desk; the white hat that signified his status cast shadows over his lined face.
"Yes," Naruto said simply, remaining stiffly in his standing position.
"Kakashi has filled me in on what he's told you, including the fact that he has suppressed the Taboo seal. But there are still certain things that he has wisely decided not to tell you...or perhaps he has forgotten them himself." With his wrinkled fingers steepled against each other on the desk, the Hokage looked straight at Naruto. "For the village, I sacrificed your childhood. You must despise me."
"...I don't know how I feel," said Naruto, slightly taken aback by the man's directness despite himself. "All I know is that my – the Fourth Hokage was the one who sealed the Nine-tails within me. And that for this, all the villagers hate me. Kakashi-sensei told me that there was an accident when I was six, but I recall that I was unwanted even before then."
"Even I do not still quite understand what happened the night the Nine-tails attacked Konoha," said the Hokage heavily. "But Naruto, did you know that Konoha has controlled the Nine-tails for several generations now? You are not our first jinchūriki. We had two before you...and they were both Uzumakis as well." Naruto's eyes widened by a margin. "Yes, your mother, Uzumaki Kushina, was the jinchūriki before you."
Naruto paused. "My mother..."
"And the one single thing that most weakens a jinchūriki's seal – that is, a jinchūriki's most vulnerable, natural state, is when she is giving birth." The Hokage nodded at Naruto's surprised expression.
"Yes, your mother risked quite a lot when she became pregnant with you. I thought Minato would be able to suppress it, but somehow it escaped. I suspect there was a third party, but we've never found any leads in that investigation. Regardless, in the aftermath, Minato and Kushina both sacrificed their lives to seal it once more within you." His face darkened.
"Unfortunately, the majority of the village was not aware that Kushina was pregnant. For her and your safety, Minato and Kushina kept her pregnancy a secret. And so, to this day, they still do not understand how it escaped. I believe some people who were not familiar with Kushina may have actually believed that she had released the Nine-tails itself."
"What?" Naruto cut in, his brow furrowed in thought. "Why did you keep it a secret after they died then? Why not tell everyone that I was their son, and that it wasn't her fault?"
"I may be Hokage, but even I do not have the power to control peoples' hearts," said the Hokage heavily. "Fear and prejudice are powerful forces. Following Minato's wishes – the surname 'Namikaze' was widely feared across the nations, and may have instigated assassination attempts against you – you were given your mother's name, 'Uzumaki.' With you being a newly born red-haired infant and having the last name 'Uzumaki,' I'm sure anyone could have connected the dots. But inevitably, rumors were spread.
You would not be able to tell given Konoha's present prosperity, but back then, it was a time of great loss and uncertainty. Many people had died, and the great Fourth Hokage had even given his life to defeat the beast. It is unfortunate, but people who are grieving do not always look to reason, and you became an outlet for their pain.
It didn't help that even some of the shinobi themselves held preconceived notions about jinchūriki, helping to set off what would soon become a village-wide movement against you Naruto." The Hokage paused. "You may not have been aware of it, but I always had at least two of my ANBU keep watch over you during your childhood. It was rare, but there were times they had to step in to prevent any bodily harm from happening to you."
"I remember," Naruto said quietly, thinking back to the time when the ANBU had scooped him up from inside his apartment.
"And yet, why didn't I step in?" The Hokage mused out loud, as if reading Naruto's mind. "Why didn't I act as a grandfatherly figure towards you? Why did I seal your memories?" Naruto nodded mutely.
"When you were just an infant, I put you in the care of an ANBU-retiree – your caretaker. I had resumed my duties as the village's Hokage and there were many...many things to take care of. I was incredibly busy, but regardless, I checked on you every now and then. You must not remember me, but it was I who bought you your first book – a book of folk tales. And Kakashi was there as well – he carved you a set of wooden blocks.
This may very well have continued in this pattern, if another incident hadn't happened. Right before you turned six, an anonymous organization somehow received intel on you, and sent a squad to infiltrate the village and kidnap you. You were able to release some of the Nine-tails power, and you slaughtered them...but you lost control, and in the process, killed several ninja who were at the scene as well – including your caretaker."
His mouth turned dry as he rewound his memories back to the morning he had woken up on his sixth birthday to a cold, empty room.
"There was an immediate backlash. Civilians and ninja alike believed this only confirmed their worst fear: that the Nine-tails was taking over your conscious and would eventually be released once more. The most radical of them wanted you to be put down, but they had to be appeased with the application of a Taboo Seal, which's effects I believe Kakashi informed you on." The Hokage's eyes swept over Naruto's tersely set jaw and whitened knuckles, and gave a slight nod.
"Your feelings of anger are to be expected. Even at such a young age, you had set yourself apart as a gifted child much like your father once was. And it is clear now, from the level of self-mastery you displayed during the Chūnin exams, that if we had informed you of your situation and taught you to control the Nine-tails, you would have succeeded. Yet, we treated you as an ignorant child – no, as an animal, pushing you back and forth at our slightest whims.
I cannot foresee the future. I had personally inspected Minato's seal, but there were certain elements that had never been used in a jinchūriki seal before. Knowing Minato as I did, I knew he would not have made a mistake – but there was always a feeling of unease whenever I saw you. Your red hair was a trademark of the Uzumaki clan and your whisker-like birthmarks were a result of your receiving your mother's influence while in her womb, but at the same time, you seemed like the very image of a Nine-tails that had been reborn incarnate. And so, I gave into the fears of an aging, feeble mind...
I see that I have given you much to think about. That is all I have to say, unless you have further questions, but all I ask is that you not blame the tool that carries out the hand's bidding; you may hate me as you wish, but I hope that you will keep considering Konoha your home. The villagers have not treated you fairly; they have trampled and spat on you when they should have loved and raised you as one of their own.
But believe me when I say that their actions were not out of malice for you. They were a result of fear and uncertainty – a lack of belief in those that had died for the village. However, from having personally looked over your growth through such difficulty, I can now say with a sincere heart that I believe you have the strength to overcome this." The Hokage stopped for a second to bore his gaze into Naruto's.
"You must have known this for a long time now but I have only just realized – you are strong, stronger than I had once thought. While I had once seen the Nine-tails in your red hair, all I see in it now is the will of fire that burns within you."
"...I see," said Naruto, carefully keeping his face blank. "Then there is just one question I'd like to ask, Hokage-sama." It was the Hokage's turn to blink; clearly, he had been expecting more of a reaction. "What seal did my father use on me, and how much control do I have over it?"
The Hokage slowly nodded. "Minato sealed the Nine-tails within you using the Eight Trigrams Seal, which is a special kind of seal that allows the vessel to access the chakra of the contained beast." The Hokage paused. "I do not believe your father intended it to be a curse, Naruto.
Did you know, that at one point, Minato was considered the child of a prophecy, and fated to change the world? Jiraiya certainly thought so. However, I believe that Minato thought that it would be you, rather, who would revolutionize this world. And so, he left you this power in order to have the ability to do so."
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