Challenge: While cleaning, something is found that takes the finder down memory lane. What is it? And who is it about, a lost love, a current love? Tell us about it!

Idea: Sarutobi Hiruzen must deal with the aftermath of the Kyuubi Attack. After placing the last orphan, and an angry mob, he lays eyes on three pictures remembers.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Title: Found Memories

(Memories of a Hokage)

At age fifty-three, Sarutobi Hiruzen found himself once again sitting behind the desk in the Hokage's office, a place he thought he'd never have to enter again since his retirement nearly four years earlier, feeling all of his fifty-three years and more. He didn't want to be here, but tired as he was; Sarutobi Hiruzen knew that there was now no one that was fit to become the Godaime, at least not in the village. Danzou was still too old and a cripple, Orochimaru had been discovered just earlier in the year to be preforming illegal experiments on Civilians of all ages. Orochimaru had fled, predictably, taking his student, Mitarashi Anko with him.

(The poor girl had only just been recovered, with a seal of some sort on her shoulder, which she had no memory of receiving.)

Jiraiya had skipped town, (not to mention he still didn't want the job) and Minato, young powerful leader that he had been… was now dead; as was his wife, leaving their son, Naruto, very vulnerable. To protect the young Namikaze he'd called him by his mother's name, Uzumaki. (Thankfully his name had actually been Uzumaki-Namikaze as both his parents came from well-known clans, or it would have been much more complicated!) Unfortunately, not even three days after informing the Shinobi Counsel (of which the head of every major clan was a member), the information that Naruto was now the Jinjuuriki had been leaked to the Civilians.

(How the Sandaime didn't know, he just knew that Kakashi and Jiraiya were going to kill him if he didn't do something about it.)

That was his current problem though, he had no idea what to do about the leak, or the fact that the civilians were shunning the poor Namikaze so much that he must be having nightmares!

Apparently, Jiraiya and Kakashi had already hashed something out in the week it took to clean up the mess, The apartment he'd visited Kakashi in had three bedrooms, one had been converted into a nursery, the other two belonging to Kakashi and Jiraiya (for when he was in the village anyway). They had already been living like that until the Sandaime had gotten to the point where he even had the time to deal with the issue of the infant Jinjuuriki…

Memories of the Hokage

"…What do you mean Naruto can't stay here?" Kakashi asked, staring at Hiruzen blankly, "He's been here a week and nothing has happened! Tou-san even wanted it this way."

"I still can't allow it Kakashi," The Sandaime replied apologetically, "It is too obvious who Naruto is if he lives here."

"You would deny Minato-kun this Hokage-sama?"

Kakashi and Sarutobi looked up to see Jiraiya in the doorway, holding a squirming Naruto, "Jiraiya-sama…" Kakashi breathed as Jiraiya deposited his godson into his older brother's lap.

"I normally would not, Jiraiya-kun," the old Hokage replied tiredly, "But somehow, the information on what and not who Naruto is has made its way into civilian hands. The civilians know that Naruto is the Jinjuuriki!"

"…Are you saying that we can't protect our charge?" Jiraiya asked, his left eyebrow twitching, "…From civilians?"

Hiruzen sighed, "That's not what I'm saying at all!"

"That's sure sounds like it to me…" Jiraiya muttered, "On top of that, someone has sealed the Namikaze Compound and it wasn't one of us."

The Old Hokage sighed this was going to be a long meeting…

Memories of the Hokage

That meeting had fallen into a yelling match for a bit, and Poor Naruto hadn't been able to handle it. Apparently, Kakashi and Jiraiya had planned out exactly who would be providing what, right down to Naruto's allowance, Jiraiya was paying for the apartment, Kakashi would take care of the bills and groceries, and Naruto's allowance would come out of the profit from Jiraiya's book sales.

As it was, they had requested that that still happen, at least after Naruto had moved into an apartment of his own after the orphanage, if he couldn't move back in with Kakashi. Of course he'd agreed, after all, he really didn't want to deny them, or Naruto. Hiruzen stamped the official request with his approval and set it aside for later filing before turning back to his current problem: The Civilians knew what Naruto was, that was a Shinobi secret and yet somehow… they knew. And he had no idea what to do about it.

The civilians were being stupid, they thought that Naruto was Kyuubi, that there was no distinction between them; that they were one and the same when that was in fact not true. Even some of his Shinobi thought that way when they should know better! Hiruzen stared out the window, his eyes landing on Minato's head, his mind coming up with nothing. He sighed heavily, "If only there was a way for Naruto to have a normal childhood…" leaning back in his chair, Sarutobi Hiruzen pondered his dilemma, he knew that if he didn't at least come up with something temporary then Kakashi and Jiraiya would be the least of his problems.

…Some days it just didn't pay to be the Hokage, some days he really hated the position too. Getting up, he decided to dig out some of the laws that the First and Second had put in place, maybe there was a readymade solution already on the books that he could use… after all, no one had known that Mito-sama and then Kushina-chan had been the first and second Jinjuuriki of the mighty Bijuu… His eyes lit on the solution: None but the Jinjuuriki may speak of their status, so says I, the Shodai Hokage, Senju Hashirama. This was perfect! Using this he could execute the person who had leaked the information in the first place! Hiruzen grinned at his good fortune for once.

The Old Hokage got up, it was time to have an announcement, find the leak, and reassure Kakashi and Jiraiya that no one could say anything about Naruto. Hell, he could probably even set it up so that Naruto could move back in with his guardians when he entered the Academy! …That reminded him of something else, he had to find out who had sealed the Namikaze Compound and get the damn thing open again so that Naruto would be able to sign the Fox Contract…

But well, that didn't matter just yet; Naruto was only a week old. He stepped over to his secretary, "I need you to call a village wide meeting for as soon as possible, we're going to nip this in the bud."

"Yes Hokage-sama," she replied happily, Naruto was a delightful baby. Watching this happen to him was heartbreaking.

That night, the Old Hokage sighed as he looked at the pictures on his bedside table, there was his team, with Orochimaru, Tsunade and Jiraiya, then there was one that Jiraiya had given him just after he'd taken a student as his apprentice, Minato…

Memories of the Hokage

"Jiraiya-sensei, why do we have to take this picture again? We already have a Team Picture…" the young Minato almost whined.

"Because it is tradition kiddo, and if you want to be Hokage then you will have to deal with the picture taking." Jiraiya replied with a sly grin, "Besides, don't you want to look nice for your girlfriend Kushina-chan?"

Minato blushed, "Sensei! She doesn't want to be!"

"Jiraiya-kun, please stop teasing your student…"

Memories of the Hokage

And the third one, which was the last picture of the whole Team Minato, with Obito, Rin and Kakashi sprawled around the base of a tree resting with Minato and his girlfriend sitting in one of the upper branches reading a book…

Memories of the Hokage

"Let's take a break today," Minato smiled, as he surveyed his young students, all three of them looked tired.

"But Sensei, why?" Kakashi wondered.

"Because we've been working almost nonstop for the past three weeks," Minato replied, "Rin and Obito are going to collapse soon, and so are you Kakashi…"

Memories of the Hokage

The Sandaime sighed again, tired as he was, he'd gotten a lot done, everything else could wait until tomorrow.

(End)

Well, that's the third in the series… Who else should I use?

Neph