"I saw you walking with the Lord Fourth. Do you know each other?" the white-haired Anbu asked without taking his eyes off Minato at all.
Finn stared at him for a few seconds; he always wondered how that mask was supposed to hide the identity of someone as characteristic as Kakashi. His trademark white, spiky hair screamed, 'Look at me, I'm Kakashi.'
"For months now" Finn answered before continuing "but it seems you've known him for longer. Are you going to stay here crying, or are you going to see him?"
Kakashi didn't respond and simply glanced at him sideways. Finn could see the Sharingan hidden behind the eyeholes of the mask he was wearing.
"Nice eye, do you wear contacts?" Finn asked with a smile.
In an instant, Kakashi vanished from Finn's sight. He could only feel the breeze caused by Kakashi's movement before shaking his head and turning to see Minato, who was already hugging Naruto.
(Damn, I missed the most important part) Finn thought, even as he heard the surprised whispers of the civilians and shinobi.
Soon, rumors began to spread through Konoha: the Fourth Hokage was back, and he was hugging the boy possessed by the Kyubi. After a few minutes, Minato stood up and took Naruto with him, disappearing in a flash from everyone's sight.
"It's time, Finn" Minato's voice called to him from behind. "Everyone is already gathered in the Hokage's office"
Finn turned to see Minato alone, deducing it was a clone, then looked toward the Hokage tower before letting out a loud sigh.
"Can't I just stay here while you do... whatever it is you have to do? I don't understand those political things or anything related" Finn pleaded.
Minato just smiled without answering directly, then placed his hand on Finn's shoulder, and they disappeared. Outside the office, Finn and Minato appeared in a flash, where Shisui and Itachi were already talking somewhat animatedly, and to one side were several Anbu, including Kakashi.
"I'm staying here. You go do whatever it is you have to do" Finn said quickly before heading toward Shisui.
Minato gave a quick glance to Finn and then to Shisui and said "Shisui, make sure he doesn't leave; there are some things I still have to talk about with him"
Minato had spent enough time inside Finn's head to know that if they let their guard down, he would leave for Magnolia and probably wouldn't be seen again for several months.
"Don't worry, Fourth Lord, Itachi and I will keep an eye on him" Shisui assured firmly while placing his hand on Finn's shoulder.
Minato nodded gratefully before entering the office. Everyone could hear the collective gasp of astonishment coming from inside.
"Are you related to the Fourth Hokage?" Itachi asked, curious.
Everyone in the hallway turned to look at Finn, except for Shisui, who already knew Finn's story but couldn't reveal anything.
"I'm his illegitimate son; he had me during the Third Ninja War" Finn answered, causing several different reactions.
Kakashi stared at him; he couldn't believe what Finn was saying, even less after having met Minato's wife himself. At that moment, Shisui slapped Finn on the head before he could tell another lie.
"Don't believe him, he's an ally of Master Jiraiya and the Lord Fourth. He just likes to joke" Shisui interrupted.
"I see... and where do you come from?" Itachi asked again.
"Distant lands, beyond what you currently know... or at least what you are allowed to know" Finn answered, trying to create a believable story.
Everyone turned to look at Shisui to see if what he said was true. Shisui thought for a few seconds before nodding in confirmation; there was no better way to explain where Finn came from without revealing too much.
"Distant lands, huh? I never thought there was anything beyond here... no, in fact, I never even stopped to think if these lands were all we knew" Itachi confessed before entering a state of deep reflection.
Several Anbu did the same; they had never thought about whether there was anything else beyond where they were.
"Land of Snow?" Kakashi asked, gaining everyone's attention "it's beyond the five great nations; to get there, you have to cross the vast ocean" he explained.
"Good answer, but no. I come from Earthland. You could say it's so far away that it's a different world from this one" Finn confessed, earning an elbow from Shisui for revealing too much information.
"Like another world? Is it that different?" Itachi asked, curious, turning to look at Shisui for answers.
Shisui shrugged while nodding slightly.
"I don't know much, but from what the Lord Fourth told me, that place is a bit more technologically evolved in some aspects like houses, transportation, roads, among other things" Shisui replied.
————
Hokage's Office
The office was silent; everyone stared wordlessly at Minato standing in front of them. Hiruzen, in particular, looked at him incredulously; he had seen Minato's dead body himself and had ordered it to be buried as was proper, but now all logic seemed to have left his mind.
Danzo, who had found out from his Anbu about the situation, had come personally and uninvited to investigate what was happening. Now he found himself not only surprised but curious about how Minato could have returned to life, if he had truly been dead at all.
"How?..." Hiruzen barely managed to ask, stunned, standing up from the desk and walking toward Minato. "I saw you die, Minato"
"I know it's hard to believe, and in part, you are right; I died that day, or at least a part of me did" Minato began, searching his clothes until he pulled out his special kunai "and all the answers are in this... or at least the reason I'm still alive."
"The Hiraishin no Jutsu?" Fugaku asked, confused "It's a space-time jutsu as far as I know; how did that save your life?"
Minato smiled at the question, noting the extreme interest in Danzo's visible eye.
"Are you sure it has to do with the Hiraishin and not the unknown boy who is just outside the office right now?" Danzo asked with severity, almost demanding to know the answer.
"The Hiraishin is not the answer itself, but where it took me. During the Third Ninja War, during my training, I wanted to take this technique further; unfortunately, or fortunately, my plan failed, taking me to unknown lands beyond the five great nations" Minato began to explain "there I encountered another culture a bit more advanced than ours, but nothing remarkable. What really matters here is who I met there: a young man with the ability to fragment the soul."
"Fragment the soul?!" Hiruzen asked, incredulous.
"That's right. The boy, due to his young age, didn't know how to use his power, and my arrival wasn't as pleasant as it should have been... the point is that I ended up with my soul fragmented in that encounter. Something I never thought would help me in the future" Minato lied.
"Fragmenting the soul... how would that help when you used the Shiki Fujin? The Shinigami takes the summoner's soul as payment" Danzo asked directly. "It's an instant death; there's no way to escape that!"
"And what if the soul were split in two?" Jiraiya asked, interrupting for the first time. "The Shinigami only takes one soul at a time, but what if the soul were divided in two?"
"The Shinigami only took one part..." Hiruzen replied, falling for the deception completely; even Fugaku nodded at such a resolution.
"That's right. Once I was 'dead,' one of the toads took me to Mount Myoboku, where my body was healed. But there was a problem: without my other part of the soul, my body would remain immobile"not dead, but immobile"until I recovered my soul" Minato explained.
"That's where the boy comes in again. We only needed to summon the Shinigami so the boy could extract the remaining part of Minato's soul. The problem was finding the boy" Jiraiya continued.
"A kekkei genkai that allows soul control?" Fugaku asked, amazed.
Minato nodded slightly, explaining that no one knew the limits of Finn, not even he himself.
"This is dangerous; I recommend that the boy be placed under immediate training. Such a technique is dangerous for Konoha! I will take the boy; I will make him loyal to Konoha like no other" Danzo asserted quickly, starting to walk toward the door to find Finn, but Jiraiya stood in his way, placing his hand on Danzo's chest.
"Not so fast, Danzo. The boy does not belong to Konoha. Touching a single hair on his head would start a devastating and unnecessary war" Jiraiya assured, standing firm between Danzo and the door.
"The boy's techniques are dangerous; we can't afford for him to leave!" Danzo tried to retort.
"It's not up for discussion!" Minato interrupted immediately. "The boy will return to his home this very afternoon. Besides, it's not as if you have any vote on this matter. I didn't come here to ask for your opinions about him, nor to report as just another ninja. I came to fulfill my duty; I am still the Fourth Hokage until I decide it is time to give way to the Fifth."
Minato's voice didn't just echo in the room; those outside the office also heard Minato's voice, clearly angry. Itachi couldn't help but wonder internally what was happening inside, as did Shisui and Kakashi.
"What do you mean I don't have a vote?! I am one of the elders and councilors of this village. I will always have a vote!" Danzo couldn't stay quiet; his pride wouldn't let him be looked down upon at all.
"That may have been during Lord Third's tenure, but that changes now" Jiraiya replied for Minato.
The tension in the room was rising. Jiraiya and Minato knew they were about to make a big move here that would shake Konoha quite a bit, but which was also necessary.
"Behind that door, not only is the boy and a group of Anbu, but also Shisui Uchiha" Minato's voice echoed in the silent office. Danzo's expression hardened in front of everyone's eyes, understanding what was about to happen. "Danzo, take off the bandages."