Alright guys! I am on a roll! Only one more chapter after this! I finally got a break from my novel and decided to take some time and update some of my stories. There is only one more chapter after this one and it will be the longest one yet, but I wanted to note something! I am taking a different route than the manga. I'm only going as far as Pein in the war arc. Im not going as in-depth with the war-honestly I don't have time and I believe that it might take away from Minato and Naruto story that this fix was suppose to be about.

Here is the latest chapter.

As always! Please REVIEW! I love reading them and they are so encouraging! I love you guys!

CHAPTER 24: The Problem and The Solution

It was working. Shikaku's plan was working. Naruto just had to keep reminding himself of that as he and his team sat and waited for the signal. Shikaku had told them that once they had sight of the Pein bodies he would contact them. Naruto wasn't the most patient person in the world. He had eyes on the tower that his father was currently residing in, but he wasn't allowed to rush to him like he so desperately wanted to.

He could tell Jiraiya and the Kazekage were getting restless too. Jiraiya was pacing again while Rasa was sharpening his kunai at an unsafe pace. Gaara was as still as a stone like normal while B was off practicing his rhymes or something. Yamato was hovering near by like always, most likely making sure the young blonde didn't try to go off on this own.

What if the plan wasn't working? What if Pein didn't take the bait? What if his father hadn't even given them the name of the village? What if his father had decided not to? Naruto suddenly stood up.

"I need to make sure my father is alright," he stated.

"No," Rasa shook his head without glancing up from his kunai, "Shikaku strictly informed you to NOT contact Minato. The less contact we have the more likely Pein will stay in the dark."

"What if he decided not to go through with the plan? What if he's already is dead? What if they killed him once they knew the location?" Naruto questioned irrationally.

"There are a lot of 'what ifs' when it comes to plans, especially when it comes to our line of work," Rasa sighed and put away his kunai, then walking over to the young blonde. Rasa placed a hand on the young boys shoulder, "Look, Shikaku is the best tactician in all five Hidden Villages, and he knows Minato rather well, so trust him. You told your father to trust the Nara, right?"

Naruto nodded.

"Then you need to trust him as well," Rasa stated, "Wait for the signal. Once we have the signal, you can contact Minato in order to find out where he is located within the tower. We will need your ability to scope out the place and find out an enemies that are still there, but. Not. Yet."

"Why?" Naruto asked getting impatient.

"Because we can not risk someone sensing the chakra that you are sending out," Rasa nodded, "It is a strong chakra that has a definite identity to it therefore it has a higher chance of being felt by a sensor. We need remain hidden until the time when Shikaku gives us the signal. Do you understand?"

"Yes," Naruto nodded and pulled away from the Kazekage, "I understand."

It was silent after that. It felt like an eternity for Naruto and the others as they awaited the signal from Shikaku and Naruto was getting more restless by the minute. Flashes of the pain and suffering that his father was going through were traveling through his mind with every moment. His anxiety was growing steadily in his stomach. All he could think about was every moment he spent in the small clearing just outside the lake that surrounded Ame was one more moment that his father would spend in side that horrid place. One more moment that his father was suffering.

"Naruto."

The blonde looked up and saw the Jiraiya was motioning in him over to the group that had formed in a circle. He had been so involved in his thoughts that he didn't even notice that his team had gathered.

"We need to discuss the plan," Jiraiya explained as he walked up to the semi-circle, "Shikaku should be giving us the signal soon so we need to be prepared."

Naruto nodded indicating for the larger man to continue.

"Now, Ame is surrounded by the large lake as you can see, the easiest way to infiltrate it without the large numbers like we had the last time would be to use the toads," Jiraiya started glancing over to his young student who smiled at him knowingly.

"Toads?" Gaara repeated.

Jiraiya nodded and placed his hands together in a rapid formation of seals which he then slammed his hand down on the ground creating a black seal that snaked out from under his hand, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

A split second later, a large puff of smoke revealed a small toad.

Naruto knelt down next to him, "its good to see you again, Mogama."

"Oh, young Naruto!" the toad turned to see the one who had spoken to him, and then he looked up, noticing the rest of the group that surrounded him.

"Mogama is a diving toad," Jiraiya explained to everyone aside from Naruto, "He is going to help us get into Ame via the lake."

"Wait, how is that possible?" Yamato asked.

"Like this," Naruto smiled at him and motioned for the toad to open up, which he obligingly did. He gently stepped one foot inside the toad's mouth one at a time until his slithered down all the way inside of him.

"Wow," Yamato shook his head, "I guess all things are possible. Are we all going to fit inside one toad?"

"It will be tight, but yes you will all fit!" The toad smiled up at him.

"Very well then," Yamato replied nodding.

Naruto pushed his way back out of the toad so that Jiraiya could finish explaining the plan.

"Once we are inside Ame, we are going to have to be quick. Naruto you will need to find Minato's location as fast as possible," Jiraiya explained glancing over at the blonde who nodded in return, "When we have the location, we are going to have to play it somewhat by ear, but the gist of it will be to find him and extract him with minimal contact with any Ame shinobi. Its kind of self explanatory but I just want everyone to be on the same page."

"Right," Rasa nodded and pulled out some headset devices, "Gaara, B, Yamato-san I would like you three to stay here if possible. We need you to have a bird's eye view on things. Use these to stay in contact with us. If there is any sign of danger, radio and we will get out of there immediately."

Gaara nodded as he took the headset reluctantly then handed on to B and Yamato.

"Naruto, Jiraiya and I will be the ones going in. Jiraiya and I have been to Ame once before so we are bit more familiar with it," Rasa continued and pulled out a few more headsets handing them to Naruto and Jiraiya then he put one on himself.

"Last that we know Minato will be located in the center tower," Jiraiya stated then turned to Yamato and rest of the Jinchuurikis, "You three will need to keep an eye on the entrances to Ame as well as that tower, unless we tell you otherwise. Once we have Minato, we will get out as quick as possible, but like most things in this shinobi world, the plan might not go, well as planned. Naruto…"

"Yes?" the blonde replied.

"You will be leading us when we get to Ame, since you will be able to track him," Jiraiya said adjusting his headset, "Rasa and I will be backing you up. If it comes to it, get Minato and get out of there."

"You don't mean…" Naruto started.

"Yes I do," Jiraiya nodded towards Rasa, "as of now, it is more important for you and Minato to get out of there than it is me or Rasa."

"I can't just leave you there," Naruto protested.

"If it comes to it, you can and you will," Rasa replied.

"Naruto, your life is more important than mine," Jiraiya explained, "If Minato doesn't get out of there than you won't either which is why, the two of you have a higher priority."

"Then what about the Kazekage?" Naruto argued, "What about his life? What about Gaara?"

"Naruto, it is known that my father and I are not as close as you and your father," Gaara spoke up in defense of Jiraiya's plan.

"Then you'd leave him there to die, Gaara?" Naruto asked a little astonished.

"Of course not," Gaara shook his head, "but unlike you, I won't go and do something reckless to rescue him."

Naruto opened his mouth to reply by the Kazekage cut him off, "Naruto, don't worry about that now. Lets cross that bridge when we get there."

Naruto hesitated a moment, then nodded in reply.

"Good, now that we all know the plan, all we have to do it wait for Shik-" Jiraiya started but then was suddenly cut off.

Can you all hear me?

It was Shikaku.

It's time. GO!

~O~

It was dark and wet in the small cell that they had placed him in to await his death. With all the pain he was in he didn't dare move once he was there. Pein was surely on his was to that village. In some far off memory Minato recalled that the Tanzuka Gai was the town that Jiraiya had found Tsunade in when Naruto was poisoned. It was ironic that that same town might just save Naruto once more. Hope was the only that was keeping Minato alive at this point. Hope that Naruto would live. Hope that Shikaku's plan-whatever it was- would work. Hope that he would make it out of here alive and back to his son.

Minato laid on the cold hard slab of rock that Konan and a few of the Pein bodies had placed him on a while ago. It was dark in the cell with no windows, only plain walls of steel and a large bolted door. He couldn't tell how long he had been here for. Was his son already dead or is the plan working? Minato couldn't make the questions stop. He tried to let himself be consumed by the darkness but it was futile.

Every now and then Minato would find himself waking up from sleep to a searing pain his unconscious body had caused by moving.

Minato found himself about to drift back into the darkness when he heard a loud commotion outside of the door. He tried to sit up but the agonizing pain pushed him back down. All he could do was lay there until something changed, but the commotion was getting louder and louder like it was heading straight for him.

Minato winced at the thought that is might have been Pein returning from his unsuccessful trip to the village. The blonde knew that his son was most likely not there, nor any of the other Jinchuurikis. If Pein found out about Shikaku's plan before Minato was able to get out, he was going to get much worse pain than he has experienced before they would let him die.

Suddenly the noise stopped and Minato let out a breath. Whatever it was seemed to have come to a complete halt.

Then not a moment later he heard the familiar whirlpool noise of his own creation.

With the flash of blue the large bolted door flew backwards and landed on the back wall with a large bang. Minato tried once more to sit up, but was met with a large jolt of excruciating pain that forced him back down.

"Tou-san!" a familiar voice called out to him right before the darkness took him once more.

Naruto. My son.

~O~

He was out cold and from what Naruto had witnessed earlier, it would be a lot easier to get his father out of the large tower if he was like this. As soon as the door had come down with ease, thanks to the Rasengan, Naruto rushed over to his father. He was alive but only just. Jiraiya was taking on a few of the Ame shinobi that they had unfortunately run into, but Rasa was there to help him.

"Mogama!" Naruto called for the toad that helped them get to the tower and when the little grey toad appeared next to him, he motioned for Rasa to help him get his father inside.

The toad opened up as wide as he could to make it easier on Naruto and the Kazekage, but his father was heavy from all the muscle that he carried. Rasa grabbed his feet while Naruto looped his arms underneath his father's shoulders and together they were able to slide the Hokage into the pit of the toad.

Once he was safely inside, Naruto looked up at Rasa, "Lets go."

Naruto scooped up the little toad and carried him out the door following the Kazekage.

Shikaku had informed them that only three of the Pein bodies had been spotted heading in the direction of the village, that meant that there were only three left in the tower it self. Surprisingly, none of them had encountered any of the remaining Pein bodies. Naruto and Rasa made haste across the same path in which they had come. Luckily for them, Minato had been kept in one of the prisons the lowest floor, three levels down from where from the ground floor where they had entered.

Rasa glanced over to Naruto, "Where is everyone?"

"I don't know," Naruto shook his head as the reached the first set of staircases and making his way up, "Right now, it takes me too much time to locate people. We need to focus on getting out first."

"Its strange that we haven't encountered Pein yet," Rasa called from behind him.

"It is," Naruto replied taking two steps at a time, "I doubt they would just let us take him like this without some alternative reason."

"Ah," Rasa agreed as the reach the first landing and started up the second staircase.

It was quiet the rest of the way up, Naruto noted that Jiraiya must be still on the first floor fighting the few shinobi that were at the entrance of the tower. Finally the two men were able to reach the ground level floor and they continued to weave down the maze of hauls that led to the entrance.

Naruto and Rasa skidded to a halt once they reached the large open area of the entrance. In front of them stood three orange haired men clad in Akatsuki cloaks and one woman with blue hair. Something white caught his eye causing Naruto glanced to the side to notice that Jiraiya lay unmoving in a heap.

"Sensei," Naruto swore under his breath.

"He is alive, Naruto," Rasa whispered, "I can see him breathing."

Naruto's eyes flicked back the center orange haired man in front of him.

"I can sense the Hokage inside that toad. You may allow your father to leave with that man beside you, young Uzumaki," the man said pointing to him, "but you however must remain here."

"No," Rasa yelled, "I won't allow it."

"Naruto, go," a voiced called from where Jiraiya lay.

"Naruto, remember what we said earlier," Rasa said quietly, "whatever happens you and Minato must get out. Leave us."

"Oh, we can't allow that," Pein stated, "You must remain here, Naruto."

Naruto flicked his gaze towards Jiraiya one more time, then down to the toad he held in his arms. Neither his father, nor Jiraiya could go much longer without medical attention. Both would die soon if they went too long and he knew this. He glanced back up at the orange haired man in front of him after he came to a decision, and then he turned to the Kazekage. He shoved the toad into the man's arms and gave him a look of fury mixed with an apology.

"Naruto!" Rasa yelled grabbing for the blonde as Naruto walked forward.

"Allow them to leave and I will stay here," Naruto stated to the man.

"You can't!" Rasa yelled lunging forward to grasp at the young blonde but Naruto roughly shoved him off.

"Very well," Pein nodded and lifted both hands, one in each direction of the two men, "Banshō Ten'in"

Both Jiraiya and Rasa were suddenly yanked forward towards the men. Upon reaching him Pein grabbed both men by the throats and shoved them towards the door.

Before either of them could react, Pein held both hands up again, "Shinra Tensei."

Jiraiya and Rasa both found themselves being shoved out the door and into the pouring rain.

"Naruto!" Jiraiya called out in vain as he tried to stand.

"Damn it!" Rasa yelled throwing a fist into the ground.

"Tou-san? What is going on?" Gaara radioed through the headset.

"They have him Gaara," Rasa replied angrily, "They have Naruto."

~O~

When Naruto woke, he was in a familiar place, but for a moment he couldn't remember how he got there or even why the place was familiar. However after a few moments his mind flooded with memories and a pang of guilt hit his stomach. Then he felt an even larger pain hit his wrists. He looked up. He was hung from the ceiling with large chains just as his father was before him. He struggled a bit but in vain, no matter how strong he was the chains weren't budging. That is when he heard the door in front of him open.

"You," Naruto swore under his breath.

The orange haired man walked causally into the room followed by the blue hair women.

"Ah, Naruto," the man said stopping just short of the blonde.

Naruto didn't reply but instead kept his eyes firmly locked on to the purple ones.

"Don't worry I'm not going to do anything to you," Pein shook his head, "not yet anyways. I just wanted to talk."

"Talk?" Naruto repeated, unsure.

"Yes, about our sensei," Pein replied.

"What?" Naruto bit out.

"Ah, I guess Jiraiya hasn't mentioned it," Pein nodded, "but I, along with Konan were once his students, just as you and Minato were."

"No," Naruto shook his head, "Jiraiya-sensei wouldn't train anyone like you."

"Oh, but he did," Pein replied, "but I guess we were very much different people all those years ago, back when we were very foolish."

"What do you mean?" Naruto found himself asking.

"We were foolish like you, your father and Jiraiya are now," Pein explained, "his ideas of peace are foolish and unattainable. As well he is foolish enough to spread them to his students like you and the Hokage."

"They aren't foolish!" Naruto yelled.

"Oh?" Pein shook his head, "how do you suggest we go about achieving that peace then?"

Naruto didn't know how to reply, so he just stayed quiet.

"I see. That is how I thought you would reply," Pein shook his head and turned to take his leave, "now, I should be expecting the other Jinchuurikis soon so I will need to prepare rooms for them as well. Do not fear though, I will be back."

And just as quick as he was there, he was gone again.

~O~

"What do mean they have him?" the Raikage yelled over the table.

Jiriaya and the Kazekage had made their way back to the Tanzuka village to find it destroyed but a large camp several miles outside the village hosted the remnants of the allied forces. The battle at the village lasted roughly the same amount of time, but they had been dealt much worse damage and suffered a lot more causalities. The remaining leaders of the forces surrounded the table in the large tent that was posted in the center of the camp. All the Kages, aside from Mei were there, as well as Jiraiya, Shikaku, Yamato and Gaara (B had excused himself moments before).

Minato was laid out on a cot in the back of the tent where he was receiving medical attention from both Tsunade and Sakura, although he had yet to awaken. Jiraiya had already been seen and was the only one sitting at the moment, while everyone else was standing around the small table.

"Exactly what I mean," the Kazekage tried to reason; "he basically gave himself up to them and Pein literally forced Jiraiya and I out of the tower."

"Did the boy now know his importance to this war?" Onoki asked.

"He did," Rasa nodded.

"He has never been one to place his own life higher than others," Gaara mentioned.

"Gaara is right," Jiraiya added, "but we explained that he, along with the Hokage needed to get out of there as quick as possible and it if came down do it, then he should have just left us there."

"At the time there was nothing that we could do," Rasa slammed his fist down on the table, "its is my fault. I was with the boy, I should have stopped him."

"No, its mine," Shikaku shook his head, "I shouldn't have let him go in the first place. I should have come up with a better plan than this!"

"There is no point in figuring out whose fault it is," Tsunade called from Minato's bedside, "What we need to do now is get him out of there before the extraction begins, and preferably before Minato wakes up."

"She is right," Onoki nodded, "no sense in arguing, we must more forward."

"The extraction does not take place in Ame," Shikaku thought out loud, "We know that."

"There is one problem though," Gaara stepped in.

"What is that?" Rasa flicked his eyes to his son.

"Naruto no longer has a seal holding the Kyuubi back," Gaara explained.

"What does that have to do with it?" Onoki asked.

"That means they don't have to go through the extraction process," the Raikage explained, knowing a bit about B's seal or lack of one.

Gaara continued, "One of the abilities of the Rinnegan is sucking out chakra from people correct? Then all they have to do is use that ability on him, and the Kyuubi's chakra is gone."

"For fucks sake," Shikaku dropped his head, "if I had known that it was that easy for them to remove the Kyuubi, I definitely would not have allowed him to go!"

"Why didn't anyone inform us of this before we made the plan?" the Raikage asked.

"Naruto specially asked us to keep it a secret," Gaara shrugged.

"Why?" Shikaku asked.

"Because he didn't want you all to know that he had control of the Kyuubi," Yamato explained, "I don't know his reasoning's, but that is just what he asked of us."

"We'll that maybe what gets him kill!" Jiraiya yelled.

"We can't let him die," Gaara whispered when everything quieted down for a moment.

"He is strong," Jiraiya shook his head, "he won't die so easily, but we'll need to get him as fast as we can."

"You are right. The more we sit here and argue the more time we waste," Shikaku sighed and sat down in the chair behind him, lacing his hands together in front of his face, "between those of us who were here, we were able to take down three of the Pein bodies, and even though each body had a different power, I'm fairly certain that we'd be able to take down the other three."

"How do we get to the other three?" the Raikage thought aloud, "I doubt we are going to be able to march right in there and start a fight."

"No, but there might be another way," Shikaku shook his head trying to think, "Jiraiya. The three of you were able to get in. How?"

"Well we were a small group so we just snuck in basically," Jiraiya shrugged, "its like they weren't expecting us at first, so the entrance wasn't heavily guarded, but I doubt that will be the case this time around."

"No, they won't leave themselves unprotected like that again," Rasa shook his head.

"There is always the chance that Pein doesn't know about Naruto's seal, or the lack of one rather," Gaara offered.

"If that is the case, then they will have to travel to the same location that they've used for the extraction before," Shikaku nodded, "but if that's not the case, then we will need to go to them."

"How can we find out?" Jiraiya asked to no one in particular.

"I'm not sure," Shikaku shook his head.

"Is there a chance that Naruto will fight back?" Yamato asked.

"He will try," Jiraiya gave him a sad smile then glanced over to his other student, "but after what they did to Minato, I highly doubt that the kid will get much a of chance to."

"You are right. We can't count on Naruto fighting back at the moment. Plus even if he tried to, he's not nearly strong enough to take on Pein alone," Rasa reasoned.

"I don't know, in some ways, Naruto is stronger than Minato," Jiraiya shrugged, "but you are right, we can't count on that."

"Does Naruto have the key to his seal?" Shikaku asked.

"He does," Yamato nodded.

"If there was a way we can contact Naruto and tell him to close the seal, then that would force Pein to take Naruto to the sealing location," Shikaku thought out loud, "and when they leave the Ame, that is when we will strike."

"But how can we contact him? I doubt that he is still wearing the headset device," Gaara asked.

"Let me see if Inochi can reestablish the link with him," Shikaku stated.

Inochi…

"Shikaku?"

Can you see if you can reach Naruto for me?

"I… I just finished speaking with him…"

You have?

"Ah, and he's got a plan."

~O~

It was really cold in here, Naruto remarked to himself. He had always been unusually warm to the touch but he felt chilled to the bone in the small damp room. Ironically, his father had been kept in the room that he just about destroyed that was right next to his. All he could think at the moment, was that he was glad he wasn't chained to the ceiling any longer. After Pein had left, Konan had release him and taken him to the room in which he now resided.

He wasn't sure just how long it had been since he last saw his father for only a few short seconds during their rescue. As far as he knew his father was safe. He was probably receiving medical attention from Tsunade at this very moment. Although he was in a horrible situation at the moment, he couldn't help but feel relieved that his father wasn't no longer in the hands of Pein, even if he currently was.

He knew that everyone, including his father would rather it be the other way around, but Naruto had never been a selfish person, so he wouldn't feel guilty about trading places.

The only thing he felt the slightest bit guilty for was the look of betrayal that laced both the Kazekage's face and Jiraiya's as he agreed on the trade with Pein. He knew that he went back on his word to the Kazekage, but at the time it was the only way for them and his father to get out safely. Plus Jiraiya and his father needed medical attention and that couldn't wait.

Naruto's mind kept flashing to those few short minutes, but the decisions he made in that moment would affect not only his entire life- no matter how short it was now- but the entire war. He might have just signed off on the deaths of all of his friends. That thought only made the guilt he felt in his stomach tighten his hold.

Sighing he tried to distract himself by thinking of a plan to escape.

If he was right, then Shikaku would be trying to come up with a plan as well. Naruto tried to clear his head like he had seen the Nara do plenty of times before. He tried to think about what Shikaku would come up with. If they weren't able to talk to each other, their best course of action would be to come up with a similar plan so they wouldn't be working against each other.

What would Shikaku do?

He would protect the Kyuubi. That was his number one priority and they just happen to coincide with keeping Naruto alive.

Pein could suck out chakra, but did that mean he could suck out the Kyuubi's chakra from him? Even if he could, what would Pein do with it once he removed it? But he couldn't take that chance. He needed to force Pein to attempt to extract the Kyuubi. There had been reports that it takes a few days to extract to be complete especially for the tailed-beasts with more tails, and that would give the Allied forces time to get to him.

Kurama.

I know what you are planning, kit.

Kit?

The fox hesitated before replying.

It's a baby fox.

Naruto smiled to himself at the cute nickname that Kurama had taken to calling him.

Awe. Naruto taunted his new friend.

Shut up.

Anyways… Naruto started before he was cut off.

I know. I can kind of hear your thoughts.

That's kind of creepy, ya know.

Ignoring this, Kurama just continued.

I know you want to temporarily close the seal to force Pein to attempt an extraction rather than his just sucking my chakra out.

Yes, that way the Allied forces have more time and opportunity to get to me.

Don't you think that Pein has considered this?

I do, and I think I have a way to convince Pein that the forces won't try anything.

Do tell.

Most likely, Pein will try to ward off any attacks on the carvan that will transport us to the extraction site. To do this, he will probably send a decoy first, so I will just need to warn them that it wasn't our party so to speak.

I see, but what happens if they knock you out for transport? How will you tell Shikaku which is the decoy?

Crap… I didn't think of that.

Figures… I will tell them.

You?

Yes, I can see everything that you can, even when you are asleep.

What really? Well, that will come in handy on missions.

Naruto, pay attention.

Right, but how are you going to contact them?

Let me worry about that.

Alright.

You just need to contact Inochi if you can and tell him your plan.

Can I? Even with these restraints?

Humph, do you really think that these restraints will hold by my chakra?

I guess not.

Pein doesn't think that you have access to my chakra, which was his mistake.

Kurama?

Yeah?

Are you alright? I mean with the resealing?

As long as you are planning to open it back up, then sure kid. What other choice do we have?

Naruto internally nodded to his new companion. He knew, as well as the fox, that when the time was right, he would reopen the seal.

He took a deep breath repeated the same process of stretching out his chakra searching for the blonde mind-user. Each time he did this, it got easier and easier to find people.

Inochi?

Naruto!

I need you to relay a message to Shikaku, my father and the others.

What is it?

I have a plan to escape so to speak.

Go ahead.

~O~

Shikaku glanced up at those around the table after he finished speaking with the Yamanaka. Those around him were watching him with mixed expressions, waiting for him to explain his conversation.

"Inochi spoke to Naruto," Shikaku started off and he noticed that almost everyone seemed to visibly relax, maybe it was the news that Naruto wasn't dead yet that calmed their nerves, "and it seems that Naruto came up with the same plan that I did, however his is slightly different."

"How so?" Rasa asked.

"Naruto is going to re-seal the Kyuubi for now, but he believes that once he receives the signal from us when he is outside Ame, he can unseal the beast without Pein noticing," Shikaku explained, "so when we ambush them, he will be able to fight with all his power. Plus, he believes that the Kyuubi's chakra mixed with his own can break through the chakra suppressants he is currently wielding."

"Very good," Jiraiya nodded, "but just one thing."

"What's that?"

"Won't they know that we will try to ambush them during the transfer?" Jiraiya asked.

"It seems likely they will try to do something to prevent us from taking Naruto back," Gaara added.

"Apparently Naruto has thought of that and told Inochi that he is taking care of it," Shikaku shrugged, "I wasn't sure what to make of it."

"It means Naruto is bound to do something stupid and reckless," Sakura called from the corner.

"That's probably true," Jiraiya shook his head, "but the boy may surprise you."

"Either way, Naruto requested that Inochi keep an open link between them so he can immediately contact him, as well that once Naruto closes the seal, then he wont be able to contact us like he has in the past. He will have to rely on Inoichi for that," Shikaku continued his explanation, "Naruto will try to keep us updated on any of Pein's movements for now."

"Does he have an idea of when the transfer will occur?" the Raikage spoke for the first time in a while.

"Soon. Within the next day or two," Shikaku nodded.

"Then we should go get prepared," the Raikage nodded, "if that is all?"

"Ah, that should be it," the Nara replied, "I will let you know if there is something new or if something changes. We should all go get some rest."

"You are right," Jiraiya nodded, "all we can do now is wait."

~O~

His head was spinning. His world was dark, but subconsciously, Minato knew that he was unconscious. He willed himself to wake, but it was useless. He would have to wait until his body recovered enough to him to wake.

…with that venom, you would have died in days…

Pein's words played over and over in his head, but the last thing that Minato remembered was his son's face bursting through the door of his cell in Pein's tower.

Naruto.

Was his son safe?

Minato truly didn't care much about the Kyuubi at the moment, his son was his first priority contrary to most in the Allied forces, but Naruto's safety included the Kyuubi's.

As he sat in the darkness, Minato almost felt helpless. It was an odd feeling, knowing that he was unconscious and knowing that when he woke, he probably wouldn't remember anything from this moment. However even knowing that, he couldn't help but worry and try to find ways to fix this whole situation. That was just who he was. That was just how his Hokage brain worked.

Minato tried to distract himself by going through his favorite memories of his son, Jiraiya, even his own genin team, but none would come to mind, aside from one particular one and it wasn't of his son.

It was of Kushina.

When he heard the news of Kushina's abduction, his heart sank. She had already been gone a while and was probably almost out of the fire country. He knew the Jiraiya-sensei would be angry with him for going after her, but he didn't care. She was way to precious to him to even consider not attempting to find her.

He ran. He was fast and he knew that he might be able to catch up with them, but he wasn't sure how to find them. He was a sensor but not nearly as good as most, still he might be able to at least get a general direction. He stretched out his chakra in hopes that he could locate that very special chakra that she processed. His heart leaped in his chest when he found it. It wasn't a pinpoint position, but more of a general direction. However it was start.

He found a way to sneak off from his genin team to go on pursuit. He had a feeling the Jiraiya all ready knew his plan, and he found it odd (and slightly reassuring) that the white haired man wasn't trying to stop him. He shook his head; he wouldn't worry about that now.

He was hoping through the trees heading in the general direction of the aura when something caught his eye. He hesitated before stopping but something in his heart told him too. It glimmered off the moonlight giving it an almost glowing sensation. When he landed in the very shallow path, and picked it up, he knew what it was immediately because he had come to love the place where it came from.

It was a single strand of red hair.

He glanced around noticed that there were other pieces. He reached out a grabbed a couple, then found a few more a little way down the path. Then it hit him.

She was leaving a trail!

He knew that she was smart and he couldn't help but love her even more.

Minato flew off in the direction of the trail and continued to follow it until he felt a sudden burst of chakra. He was close enough to feel them.

With this, Minato put all his energy into his speed. He needed to get to her as fast as possible.

When he reached them, he flew through the trees and jumped at the first one in the front. After knocking him out, he went to the second one and did the same. By this time, the third one was ready to fight, but Minato was way a head of him. Coming at him from behind, he landed a blow on the back of his head, knocking him out cold as well. Minato mentioned to himself that these Kumo shinobi weren't very strong.

Minato glanced over to Kushina and noticed that she was still walking. He could tell that she was exhausted both physically and mentally. He hopped down from the tree in front of her.

"Are you alright?" He heard himself ask.

At the sound of his voice, she came to a halt and looked up at him. At the moment, the clouds above him parted and moon lighted the area around them.

"I came to save you," he smiled at her.

After realizing who he was, she gave him a weary expression that turned into a small smile. Then not a moment later, her exhaustion hit her causing her to fall, but Minato was slightly faster. He reached her just in time catching her. She lifted her head as he wrapped his arms around her.

"You'll be alright now," he said smiling once more.

He slid his arms around her torso and under her knees lifting her up in a bridal style.

"Hey, wait a minute!" Kushina protested with her voice, but she didn't struggle.

Minato ignored her protests as he managed to pull out a kunai and slice the ropes that bound her wrists. After stashing it away, he took off in the air with her. He could tell that she was watching him intently, but he just paid attention to where he was going. She glanced down at his hand and noticed the red strands that he still held.

"That's…" she started.

"Your hair is beautiful, so I noticed right away," Minato explained still hoping from tree to tree.

She looked at him in a slight shock, and he smiled at this. Then she turned away, but he could tell that she was blushing slightly, "But you've always ignored me."

"Because I know that you're strong…" Minato smiled.

She looked up at him again.

"…in body and in spirit," he continued.

Minato landed in a small clearing so that he could look at her and talk to her directly, "But this is a fight between two villages. Its different from your other fights so…"

"So?" she repeated, urging him to continue.

Minato gave her a little bigger of a smile before continuing, "I didn't want to loose you."

Kushina's eyes widened for a moment before turning a little sad, "even if I am an outsider?"

This statement shocked him for a minute even if he didn't show it. How could she think that?

"Why do you say that? You live in the Hidden Leaf Village, so you are one of us."

After that moment, their lives became one. She fell in love with him, and he could only love her more. Neither of them knew at the time, that their lives would change forever after that. They would have a son who they would love more than each other.

For years Kushina often referred to her hair as their red string of fate and she couldn't have been more right.

~O~

Naruto was trying to get some rest when the door of his cell slammed open to reveal the orange haired man named Pein and Konan. Naruto stood up off the bed and pushed himself back against the wall as Pein made his way over to the him.

"Your father lied to me," Pein stated. He was angry.

Naruto didn't reply but only stared at those strange purple eyes.

"I had given him my word that I would not harm you until the time of the extraction, however that was before I knew that he had lied," Pein continued, "Did you know that several of my men perished at that village and that I lost three of my bodies?"

Again Naruto was silent, as Pein's words got deeper and deeper with anger.

"I think you knew," Pein's eyes narrowed but his voice stayed steady, "I think this might have been your plan so that you could retrieve your father."

Naruto took in a sharp breath.

"I didn't know how you did it. I didn't know how you contacted Minato," Pein thought for a moment, "that was until I felt a certain chakra spreading thin though my tower a little earlier. At first, I couldn't place it, but then it hit me."

Naruto had been trained to hide all emotion from his gaze, but all that training left him at the moment and his eyes were filled with a mix of shock, unease and anger.

"That strange chakra that I felt," Pein smiled, "Was the Kyuubi's."

Naruto swallowed hard. He knew what was coming.

"You have access to the fox's chakra," Pein shook his head in a mock impression, "I never thought a jinchuuriki would have a free access to their tailed-beasts' chakra like that, but you do."

Naruto internally thanked the fox for having him redo the seal earlier, so now Pein would either think that he was wrong or that he would torture him like he did Minato to get him to release the seal.

For a moment time it seemed like time stood still as Naruto waited for what Pein would do next, but then Naruto felt a large fist collide with his stomach that made him double over in pain.

"You bastard," Pein gritted through his teeth as he realized that the seal had been replaced.

Naruto collapsed on the ground. He couldn't understand why a simple punch in his gut had hurt so much, and then he remembered how much Sakura's and Tsunade's punches hurt. It was chakra infused to make the impact harder.

"You will die soon," Pein stated, "The Kyuubi will be extracted from you, and you will die."

Naruto only grunted in pain as he tried to push himself up off the ground.

Pein stepped on his back to push him back down, then he leaned down and stabbed a long black, pole-like object through one of his hands causing him to cry out in pain, "but before you die, you will learn what true pain feels like."

He pulled out another black rod and shoved through Naruto's other hand causing the young blonde to cry out again, "I will be back soon."

And then he was gone.

Naruto was left alone with only the pain in his stomach and the rods in his hands as a reminder of what was to come.

~O~

It had grown quiet in the tent. It had been a long day of all of them and they needed to get some rest for what was come in a few days. Everyone started to stretch and file out of the cramped tent, but before anyone had left they heard a small squeaked voice followed by a louder one.

"Hokage-sama!"

"Minato!"

When Jiraiya had looked back at the sound of Tsunade's voice, he noticed that Minato was attempting to climb out of the bed that they had placed him in. However Tsunade and Sakura had quiet a hold on him and in his damaged state, he could do little to over power them.

"Hokage-sama! You shouldn't move yet!" Sakura tried to reason while Tsunade was a bit more forceful.

"Lay down, Minato!"

Minato's eyes dashed from Jiraiya to Rasa over and over again until it seemed that Minato finally got his voice to work.

"Where… is my son?"