"I didn't do that," Minato said, stepping past the boy with a finality that brooked no argument.
The boy's face darkened with instant displeasure. "Still playing the fool? Akasaka Yu is the third-best in your year, right behind you and Mikoto. To launch him through a door and crack a stone wall before he can even blink... that doesn't match your 'average' test scores, Minato Namikaze."
The freshman class was divided into two sections. Standing before Minato was the undisputed prodigy of the other section: Uchiha Flame.
In the Academy hierarchy, the Uchiha name was synonymous with a heavy, oppressive excellence. Flame wasn't just talented; he was arrogant in the way only someone who has never known defeat can be. He had clearly spent his lunch break cross-referencing witness accounts of the classroom brawl before seeking Minato out.
"What do you want?" Minato asked, his brow furrowing. He could sense the restless energy rolling off the Uchiha—a fire looking for something to burn.
"I want you to fight me!" Flame declared, already turning toward the training grounds with the swagger of a challenger.
But Minato stood his ground. "No. I won't engage in a battle that serves no purpose. I'm sorry."
He turned to walk away, his mind already drifting back to the rice balls Mikoto had promised. To Minato, power was a shield for the cherished, not a toy for the vain.
"Coward!" Flame shouted, the insult echoing down the corridor. "Are you afraid of a real fight?"
Minato didn't even break his stride. "Think what you want. Goodbye."
Flame stood frozen, his fists trembling with a fury that felt like a physical heat. He had expected resistance, perhaps even a return insult—but Minato's total indifference was more galling than any blow. It wasn't that Minato was afraid; it was that Minato didn't think Flame was worth the exertion.
Bang!
Flame punched the wall, a spiderweb of cracks forming under his knuckles as he watched the golden-haired boy disappear into the classroom. "Just wait, Namikaze," he hissed. "I'll drag that strength out of you soon enough."
Back in the classroom, the atmosphere had shifted. As Minato entered, the gossiping groups split apart like a school of fish avoiding a shark. Fear and awe followed him. To these children, Akasaka Yu had been a giant; Minato had felled him like a sapling.
"Minato! Over here!"
Mikoto was waving from her desk, having already pulled Kushina into the seat beside her. Kushina wouldn't look at him, her face a deep shade of pink that made her look, as the bullies had crudely put it, like a small tomato. But to Minato, the sight brought a sudden, blooming warmth to his chest. He sat down opposite them.
Mikoto handed him a rice ball, her eyes sparkling. "Everyone loved them, Minato! You were right."
The peace of lunch gave way to the afternoon's practical session: Chakra Refinement.
Chakra is the lifeblood of the shinobi—the fusion of physical energy from the cells and spiritual energy from the mind. For the new students, learning to knead this energy was the first step toward the "superhuman."
Most of the class struggled, producing only a faint, flickering spark of blue energy. Mikoto, with her Uchiha heritage, had always been the benchmark for the class. But today, a new shadow was cast.
Kushina Uzumaki sat with her eyes closed, her breathing steady. Within minutes, the air around her seemed to hum. A blue aura—dense, vibrant, and incredibly vast—swirled around her small frame.
The volume of her chakra wasn't just larger than Mikoto's; it was on a different scale entirely. Minato, observing her through narrowed eyes, realized that even with his "future" reserves bleeding into his young body, Kushina's natural reservoir was a terrifying ocean.
"It seems Kushina has found her strength," Mikoto said, smiling sincerely without a hint of jealousy.
As the sun began to dip, painting the sky in hues of amber and gold, the school day came to a close. At the gates, a crowd of parents had gathered to collect their children.
Minato stood by the gate with the two girls, a familiar, hollow ache in his chest as he watched other kids run into the arms of their fathers. He wished, just for a moment, that someone was there to take his hand and lead him home.
"I have to go," Kushina said, her voice dropping. A stern-looking woman in her thirties was waiting for her. There was no hug, no warm greeting—only a sharp nod of acknowledgment. Kushina walked toward her with a visible sense of hesitation.
Mikoto sighed. "I suppose I'll head back too. My clan expects me to walk home alone. They say reliance is for the weak."
Minato nodded to her, but his eyes were fixed on Kushina's retreating back. He saw the woman, and then, he saw something else. In the shadows of the nearby rooftops, three masked figures moved with a predatory, silent grace.
ANBU.
"Mikoto, you go on ahead," Minato said, his voice suddenly cold and sharp. "I forgot something at the school."
Before Mikoto could question him, the Golden Flash was already moving, vanishing into the crowd.
In a high office overlooking the Academy, the Third Hokage—Hiruzen Sarutobi—puffed on his pipe, his eyes narrowing as he watched Minato disappear. Beside him, Shirota-sensei knelt in a formal bow.
"Shirota-sensei," the Hokage mused, a hint of surprise in his voice. "Your student is... unusual. It seems he's already noticed the ANBU detail I assigned to the girl."