Sharingan No Naruto

Prologue

"Character Speaking"

'Character Thinking'

"Summon/Bijuu Speaking"

'Summon/Bijuu thinking'

- The start and ending of a flashback (In some ocassions a Character's reminiscence).

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, but you already knew that didn't you?

--

Minato's attempt at sealing the Kyuubi went wrong, very very wrong.

The old fox noticed Minato's use of the Shiki Fuujin upon feeling a tug on his chakra and seeing the Shinigami on the Hokage's back, in a desperate attempt to save himself he managed to break the hold of Kushina's chains, severing her head with one of his claws.

'K-Kushina' Thought Minato as he watched his wife's head leaving her body, he was trembling in horror, sadness and fury and as the tears rolled down his face his will to fight started to falter, how could it not? The woman he loved above everything else was just beheaded in front of him, no matter how strong or resilient Minato could be, there's only so much a man can take, but he had to get a hold of himself, there was a lot at stake here and the sound of a crying baby reminded him of that fact, he found comfort in knowing he wouldn't live much longer.

The Kyuubi picked the wailing baby up with one of his tails, taking Naruto very close to his mouth. He looked down at Minato's trembling body.

A threat.

"Stop the sealing, mortal." Snarled the Kyuubi, clear disgust in his voice when talking to Minato.

The Yondaime Hokage seeing very little choice complied and willed the Shinigami to stop while he directed the chakra he managed to take from the kyuubi into Naruto's little body, a seal-like mark appeared on the the boy's stomach and as soon as it appeared, it dissolved into nothing.

Normally, a seal of this nature fades into the recipient's body and only shows itself when the recipient channels chakra. The seal on Naruto shattered and turned into a puddle of ink.

Seeing this Minato realized that sealing the chakra in his newborn had failed and it was too late now to redirect the half of the fox's chakra he sealed in his own body.

Knowing his life was about to end and that there was nothing he or anyone could do, the Hokage decided to try one more thing.

"Kyuubi..."

The old fox had to blink at that, not even his siblings address him with that level of familiarity.

"I have something to ask of you." Now he was surprised. "Please, leave..."

He just stared at him, almost like looking at his soul. "We both know you didn't attack on your own will, and even if I despise you for what you did to my wife. You're as much of a victim as Kushina and the people of this village were, you were denied your freedom since before I was born and now Naruto here..." The Hokage took one last look at his son.

"Naruto here will have to grow up without his parents because of the mistakes of dead men." Senju Hashirama gave away the bijuu like they were pets in his search for peace, what did he accomplish again? "So I'm asking you... no, I'm beggin you Kyuubi..."

"Be free."

If you ask the Shinigami why they allowed this to go on for so long the answer would be I don't know whether it was out of respect for the dying man or the millenium fox standing in front of them - they don't really know, but this was as long as their grace extended and with the legendary man's parting words the God of Death took his soul and vanished.