The graduation exam had finally come to an end. All of the new graduates were heading back to their old classrooms to wait for their team assignments. Once these teams were officially decided, the students would still need to pass one last test. They would only truly become Genin after they earned the approval of the Squad-Leading Jonin assigned to them. Technically, this was the real final exam for every graduate. If a student failed to impress their Squad-Leading Jonin, they would be sent straight back to the academy to repeat their entire year of studies. Such a failure was extremely rare in the village. Unless a student had a truly terrible personality or lacked basic skills, it almost never happened.
After finishing his breakfast, Minato left a Clone at his home to handle his daily chores. His main body moved through the village toward the school to secretly watch Nawaki get his team assignment. This was the first time Minato had ever performed a mission involving serious infiltration and spying. For once, Minato felt like he actually looked like a proper Ninja. Usually, he felt more like a berserker who simply used his speed to flash into the middle of an enemy camp and destroy everyone in sight. He preferred this quiet observation to his usual violent methods.
Inside the classroom, the teacher finished reading the names from a long list. The team assignments for the year were now finalized and official. To nobody's surprise, the famous Ino-Shika-Cho trio of this generation was placed together. Nara Shikaku, Akimichi Choza, and Inoichi Yamanaka were all put into the same squad. Nawaki was placed in a team with one boy and one girl. This followed the standard three-person squad structure used by the village. However, his two teammates were just minor characters that Minato had never heard of before. After the teacher walked out of the room, the students stayed in their seats. They were full of excitement and anticipation as they waited for their new Jonin leaders to arrive.
Soon, a Jonin from the Sarutobi Clan walked into the quiet classroom. He looked at his list and said, "Team 6, follow me." The Ino-Shika-Cho trio stood up immediately and followed him out the door. Nawaki and his new teammates were assigned to Team 7. This was the same team number that Naruto would eventually have in the future. Sometimes Minato thought about how these two boys were so similar. They had the same looks, the same loud personalities, and similar family backgrounds. Yet, despite these similarities, their ultimate fates were completely different. The Ninja World was full of hot-blooded idiots just like Naruto. But aside from Naruto and Hashirama—who were both basically cheaters—most people like that never had a good ending. One could say this was just the harsh reality for most ninjas.
While he was lost in these dark thoughts, a slender man appeared at the classroom door. "Team 7, follow me," the man said. His voice was very gentle and his face was quite handsome. He had long, pale-blue hair that flowed down his back. He had an air of kindness that made him seem very easy to talk to. How could it be him? Once Minato saw the newcomer's face clearly, he immediately narrowed his eyes and frowned. The man standing there was none other than Kato Dan. In the original story, he was known as the first love of Tsunade. Are all of the people who are destined to die young gathering together? Minato thought this to himself instinctively.
He quickly realized that this line of thinking was a bit too dark. He shook the thought out of his head and tried to focus. Minato was not quite sure how he should feel about Kato Dan. In the original story, the very first thing Dan said to Tsunade was that it was getting dark and he wanted to walk her home. Walk Tsunade home? Minato remembered that specific plot point very well. He really wanted to ask a question back then: if they actually ran into any danger, which one of them would be the one doing the protecting? Then, the man had the nerve to talk about his own dead sister to Tsunade. He did this right after Tsunade had just lost her own brother. Minato was not sure if he was just being cynical, but the man felt like he had hidden motives.
If Kato Dan had not rushed to the battlefield to help Tsunade after the Reanimation was released, Minato might have felt even worse about him. As it stood, he felt more repulsed than indifferent. The most important question right now was why he was Nawaki's leader. In the original story, it seemed like Tsunade and Dan did not know each other well at first. He certainly was not her brother's teacher in that timeline. Was this caused by the butterfly effect of Minato's presence? Or did the man have some other ulterior motives for being here?
"Eh? It is Big Brother Dan!" Nawaki's loud voice suddenly came from inside the classroom. This interrupted Minato's train of thought. Big Brother Dan? Did these two already know each other? Minato shifted his gaze and focused all of his attention on Nawaki. He had to be careful because a Jonin has very sharp senses. Staring at a high-level ninja for too long would make them realize they were being watched. "It has been a long time, Nawaki," Kato Dan said with a gentle smile. He then turned around and led the three students out of the classroom.
The group walked together until they reached a training ground. They did a very simple round of self-introductions. After that, Kato Dan said he wanted to test the strength of the three graduates. Jingle... A pair of small silver bells appeared in Kato Dan's hand. Seeing this made the hidden Minato feel completely speechless. Grabbing the bells was a very old tradition in Konoha. From this perspective, it was clear that Dan had strong political ties to the Third Hokage. "Next, your only goal is to take these two bells from my hand," Kato Dan said with a kind smile. "You have exactly $1$ hour. Anyone who cannot get a bell will not get any lunch today!"
"Hmph, just watch me!" Nawaki shouted. He used the Body Flicker technique to vanish and reappear right in front of Kato Dan. His movement was so fast that Dan's eyes lit up with surprise. "That was a nice Body Flicker, but your attack is much too obvious." As he spoke, Dan reached out and pressed his hand down. He caught Nawaki's punch easily and used the boy's own momentum to throw him away. However, at that exact moment, Nawaki's body seemed to twist in mid-air. He suddenly performed a Scorpion Tail Kick. His heel slammed hard into Kato Dan's surprised face!
Slap! Kato Dan took a quick step back while holding his face. There was a clear flash of shock in his eyes. Had he really just been kicked in the face by a brand new Genin? Even though he was holding back his full power, that kick had been incredibly fast and strange. Minato's mouth also twitched as he watched from the shadows. He did not even know what to say about such a lucky hit. "Big Brother Dan, you are way too slow!" Nawaki said as he flipped and landed on his feet. He looked very annoyed. "You are not even as fast as the reactions of Minato's Shadow Clone. Are you really supposed to be a Jonin?"
"I am sorry, I clearly underestimated my opponent. That kick was very tricky," Kato Dan said. He did not get angry at the boy. He only gave an apologetic smile. "This Minato Clone you just mentioned... who is that?" Nawaki stood up straight and looked proud. "Minato Namikaze is my sister's Disciple. He is the most Genius guy I have ever met in my life!" Nawaki's voice sounded like he was bragging about his own achievements. "That guy is $2$ years younger than me. I have tried to challenge him many times, but I cannot even beat one of his Shadow Clones."
"Eh? Minato Namikaze? Is he that handsome boy with the blonde hair and blue eyes?" The girl on the team suddenly had stars in her eyes. "Do you actually know him, Nawaki? Can you please introduce me to him?" Nawaki hesitated for about $2$ seconds. He thought about how scary Kushina looked when her red hair started flying in the air. His mouth twitched in fear. "I am sorry, but I really cannot do that."
Tsunade's Disciple... Kato Dan was stunned for a moment by this news. "Is he the Genius who reportedly awakened the Wood Release?" Nawaki nodded his head heavily to confirm it. Kato Dan looked quite emotional as he spoke. "I see. It is no wonder that Princess Tsunade took him as a Disciple. Nawaki, you seem to respect him a lot?" Nawaki thought for a moment and then spoke very seriously. "I have never seen anyone who is as perfect as he is!" This one sentence made Minato feel very embarrassed in his hiding spot.
Hearing this praise made Kato Dan's expression turn very subtle. Then, he suddenly showed another gentle smile. His voice carried just the right amount of curiosity. "To be praised like that by you, it seems Minato-kun is not a simple person. I really want to see his skills for myself one day." Nawaki laughed and waved his hand. "Haha, that guy is always very busy. He is either training or cooking. He almost never leaves his house," Nawaki said without thinking.
This guy definitely has some kind of problem. His way of talking and asking questions feels very forced. Minato narrowed his eyes and created a Wood Clone. He had the clone merge into the trunk of a nearby tree to keep watching. Then, his main body traveled all the way to the Root Base. He found Orochimaru, who was currently busy with a new experiment. "Senior, I need you to help me investigate a specific person," Minato said. He did not waste any time and got straight to the point. "Who is it?" Orochimaru asked. He was curious about who could catch Minato's interest. "Kato Dan." Orochimaru nodded his head like he understood. "Oh. Your love rival." Minato: "???"
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