Time passed, and the war came to an end. As promised, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, stepped down from his position. The Fourth Hokage was chosen—the Yellow Flash of Konoha, Minato Namikaze.
Around the middle of Minato's first year in office, a massive concentration of chakra began forming at the lake in the Valley of the End.
It wasn't until sensory-type ninja stationed near the border detected it that the truth became clear—
A Tailed Beast was reforming there.
Not just any Tailed Beast, but the Eight-Tails.
Still not fully conscious, the beast remained vulnerable. Konoha's forces immediately sent an emergency message back to the village.
Upon receiving it, Minato quickly summoned the council to his office. Once everyone had gathered, he explained the situation, prompting immediate reactions from the advisors.
Danzō Shimura spoke first, insisting they needed to find a jinchūriki candidate as soon as possible.
Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado supported his decision.
Hiruzen, however, remained silent.
Lost in thought… because he already had a candidate in mind.
Arashi—now Arashi Uzumaki.
Over the past year, Hiruzen had arranged for a former kunoichi from his clan to care for the child, who was now nearly a year and a half old. He had even provided them with a small apartment near the Sarutobi clan district.
Having made his decision, Hiruzen finally spoke, interrupting the discussion.
"During the final year of my tenure as Hokage, a squad discovered a family murdered by Iwa shinobi. A red-haired infant was the sole survivor. After medical examinations, it was confirmed…"
He paused briefly.
"The child is an Uzumaki."
The revelation shook everything.
While the others were still processing the information, Danzō angrily demanded to know how Hiruzen had dared to hide such a valuable asset from the village.
But he was interrupted.
Minato, though clearly shaken by the revelation as well, remained focused on what truly mattered.
"Third Hokage… do you believe the child can withstand it?"
Hiruzen thought for a moment before nodding.
"If it fails… then we will have no choice but to destroy the Tailed Beast."
With everything decided, the operation began.
Even the Fourth Hokage would take part—he would be responsible for the seal.
The former Hokage was also involved, personally bringing Arashi to the site.
Even with two Hokage present, this was no small operation.
Dozens—nearly a hundred shinobi—would participate.
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The operation was a success.
Konoha forces quickly overwhelmed the Eight-Tails, subduing it before it could fully regain awareness.
Hiruzen had already prepared Arashi, placing him on a small stone platform.
The sealing began.
Minato formed the hand seals and placed the formula onto Arashi.
The baby began to cry as the process took hold, while the Eight-Tails cursed humanity for imprisoning it once more.
When it was over, the only sound that remained for a moment was the infant's crying—
Before it was drowned out by the cheers of Konoha's shinobi.
In this battle…
There were no casualties.
The news spread like wildfire.
While Suna and Kiri remained neutral, Iwa mocked Kumo, and Kumogakure demanded the return of their Tailed Beast—along with its jinchūriki, of course.
Under Minato's leadership, Konoha refused.
And due to the weakened state Kumo was in, they chose not to act.
For the time being, Minato allowed things to remain as they were. However, Arashi would now be under constant ANBU surveillance.
And in the shadows…
Root kept its eyes on the Uzumaki child.
Half a year later, a masked man calling himself Madara Uchiha unleashed the Nine-Tails upon Konoha.
That night, the Fourth Hokage died.
And the beast was sealed into a blond newborn child.
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How's everything so far?
It's said that Tailed Beasts don't truly die and simply reappear after some time, but it's never explained exactly how long that takes. We don't know how much time passed between the death of the Fourth Mizukage and the reappearance of the Three-Tails, so I assumed it's somewhat random.
Still, I'm always open to suggestions.
See you in the next update.