Chapter 2: The Child Who Should Not Exist
Night of Ash and Silence
The Nine-Tails' roar had faded.
What remained was smoke, broken stone, and the quiet grief of survivors wandering through ruins that had once been home.
Inside a temporary medical shelter near the eastern wall, lantern light flickered weakly, casting long shadows across bloodstained cloth and shattered equipment.
Hatake Arashi staggered forward, clutching a bundled infant close to his chest. His flak jacket was torn, blood dried along the edges of wounds he no longer felt.
"Medical-nin!" Arashi shouted hoarsely. "Please—my wife—"
A medic turned at once, exhaustion lining her face.
Her name tag read Uchiha Hana.
She hurried forward, her eyes scanning the scene with practiced speed.
"Put the child down gently," Hana said. "What's your wife's condition?"
Arashi swallowed hard.
"…She used the last of her chakra."
Hana's expression softened—only briefly. In war, hesitation killed.
"I'll do what I can."
She reached for the infant.
Alex Hatake Kurama looked up at her.
For just a single breath, Hana froze.
Her Sharingan did not activate.
Yet something about the child's gaze made her chest tighten, as if she were standing before something older than it should be.
"…Strange," she murmured.
Arashi stiffened. "What is?"
Hana shook her head quickly. "Nothing. Just… tired eyes."
She wrapped the infant more securely and turned away.
Alex remained calm.
Presence dilution was already at work.
Good.
Rina Kurama – Final Moments
Rina Kurama lay on a medical cot, her breathing shallow, each breath thinner than the last.
An older shinobi knelt beside her.
Nara Shikaku.
Two fingers rested lightly against her wrist, his sharp eyes clouded with something rare—helplessness.
"…Your chakra network is collapsing," Shikaku said quietly. "I'm sorry."
Rina smiled faintly.
"I know."
She turned her head slightly.
"Is… my son safe?"
Shikaku nodded. "He's alive. Strong."
Rina exhaled slowly.
"That's enough."
Her eyes sharpened one final time.
"Please… don't let the elders touch him."
Shikaku stiffened.
"…I can't promise that."
Rina's lips curved faintly.
"Then… let Hatake protect him."
A pause.
"…Kakashi?"
"Yes."
Shikaku closed his eyes.
"I'll remember this."
Rina Kurama died quietly.
Outside, Konoha burned.
Three Days Later – Hatake Compound
Rain fell softly over empty ground.
The Hatake compound was silent—too silent for a shinobi household.
Alex lay in a small wooden crib beneath the eaves, wrapped in clean cloth.
Beside him sat Hatake Kakashi, knees drawn up, his visible eye unfocused as he stared into the rain.
The space across from him was empty.
No elder.
No guardian.
Only absence.
"They named you before they died," Kakashi murmured quietly.
"…Alex Hatake Kurama."
The infant stirred slightly.
Kakashi's eye softened.
"…You don't cry."
Alex simply watched him.
Calm.
Observant.
Too aware.
Kakashi swallowed.
"That's… not normal."
No.
It wasn't.
Spirit Palace – First Conscious Observation
That night, Alex's awareness sank inward.
The forest greeted him again.
Larger now.
Clearer.
Roots spread deeper into unseen layers of reality.
He stood before the status screen without hesitation.
STATUS SCREEN
Name: Alex Hatake Kurama
Age: 0
Cultivation Stage: Mortal Foundation – Initial
Chakra Network: Forming (Stable)
Bloodlines: Fully Integrated (Hidden)
Special Notes:
Yin Nine-Tails: Perfectly Sealed | Undetectable
Origin Bloodline: Dormant | Adaptive Mode
Presence Dilution: Passive (Low)
"So this is infancy," Alex thought calmly.
No rush.
No shortcuts.
This body needed time.
And time was something he now had.
Konoha Council Chamber – Same Night
The room was dim.
Hiruzen Sarutobi sat at the head of the table, pipe unlit.
Near the wall stood Danzo Shimura, his cane tapping softly against the stone floor.
"There was another child born during the attack," Danzo said. "Hatake blood. Kurama blood."
Hiruzen exhaled slowly.
"He lost both parents."
Danzo's visible eye narrowed.
"All the more reason—"
"No."
The word struck like stone.
Hiruzen met Danzo's gaze evenly.
"The village has lost enough children to ambition."
Danzo smiled thinly.
"…Very well. For now."
He turned to leave.
But for the first time in decades—
Danzo felt watched.
And he hated it.
Hatake Compound – Dawn
The rain had stopped.
Kakashi stood beside the crib, staring down at the sleeping child.
"…You're troublesome," he murmured. "Everyone who matters keeps dying around us."
Alex yawned softly.
Tiny fingers reached out and curled around Kakashi's sleeve.
Kakashi froze.
Slowly, he exhaled.
"…Guess you're stuck with me, then."
Alex smiled faintly.
Yes.
That was the plan.