Swish!
Before everyone's eyes, Minato vanished in a flash of golden light.
[Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!]
Jiraiya immediately unleashed his Wind Release jutsu that he had been channeling. A powerful gust erupted from his mouth like something tangible, far surpassing the strength of Uchiha En's Grand Fireball Jutsu.
Boom! Boom!
The massive fireball was blown apart by the intense wind. Flames scattered like tiny sparks of fireflies, though fortunately had already lost most of their destructive force.
All of this happened so fast that even the Chunin-level instructors barely had time to react.
Bang!
As their stunned expressions began to soften slightly, they turned toward the source of the sound.
Dust rose from the ground as Minato subdued and pinned Uchiha En to the floor. His fist stopped just inches away from Uchiha En's face, his bright blue eyes burning with true anger.
"Uchiha En, have you lost your mind?"
Minato snapped furiously. He wasn't angry at his opponent for using such a powerful jutsu against him—after all, he had accepted this duel.
But what he couldn't tolerate was how recklessly Uchiha En had disregarded the safety of the other students. Though they were all about the same age, some of them could've been severely injured or even killed by that attack.
He glanced sideways and saw Jiraiya who had suddenly appeared. For a moment, surprise flickered across his face, but when he noticed that the two people at the edge of the fireball had been rescued just in time, his heart finally settled.
His fist, halted mere inches from Uchiha En's face, clenched tightly and trembled slightly—but ultimately did not fall.
At this moment, Uchiha En's expression also froze. What Minato was thinking was exactly what came to his mind only after releasing the Grand Fireball Jutsu—he had completely blanked out at that moment, as if he had lost control of himself.
This had almost led to an irreversible mistake.
"If you still want to fight, I'll keep going. But… from now on, our conflict must never involve others again."
Minato stood up, slightly unsteady. Using such extreme speed just now had consumed a significant amount of chakra. Fortunately, a delicate pale hand quickly reached out and steadied him.
It was Kushina.
While the rest of the crowd remained stunned and motionless, Kushina was completely unfazed by the battle. Her only concern was Minato.
"Are you okay?" Kushina's voice quivered slightly, her eyes glistening with tears.
On the outside, she seemed bold and free-spirited, but deep down, she was as sensitive as any other girl. Kushina clearly knew full well that Minato had taken up this fight only because Uchiha En had insulted her.
Just like last time when Akasaki Yu had spoken ill of her.
When Minato heard her words, his face involuntarily flushed red and he quickly stepped back to avoid Kushina holding him up.
Kushina hesitated slightly, observing Minato's reaction. Anxiety grew across her face.
"Are you hurt? Why is your face so red?" she asked urgently.
Minato chuckled and waved his hand. "Haha... I'm fine. You don't need to worry."
Kushina's previously anxious expression suddenly turned doubtful.
Minato briefly avoided Kushina's gaze and walked up in front of Teacher Kondan. He bowed deeply and said, "I'm sorry, Teacher Kondan. I originally promised I would handle this properly, but something unexpected still happened."
For a moment, Teacher Kondan didn't know how to respond. In truth, Minato wasn't responsible for the incident at all.
"Thank you, Jiraiya-sama."
At this time, the remaining teachers from the Ninja Academy and the two children rescued by Jiraiya were thanking him. Among them was a teacher with a solemn look—he was the homeroom teacher of Uchiha En's class.
As for all this, Jiraiya didn't care in the least. He simply frowned as his eyes swept between Minato and the unconscious Uchiha En lying on the ground.
"...I'm sorry..." Uchiha En rasped out at last, his expression extremely complicated.
Only then did Jiraiya's gaze soften slightly. The fact that Uchiha En could admit fault voluntarily showed he was different from those other Uchiha clansmen who usually relied on their clan's reputation to misbehave.
After all, he was still very young, so the ideas prevalent within the Uchiha clan hadn't yet taken deep root in his mind.
Minato paused slightly before turning slightly, looking at Uchiha En as he spoke, "You indeed should apologize, but you've chosen the wrong person. It shouldn't be me..."
A complicated look crossed his face. He exchanged a few words with Teacher Kondan, and with the latter's permission, he left the training field directly.
Kushina and Mikoto, who had just finally figured out what was going on, quickly followed behind.
Neither Minato nor Uchiha En mentioned the outcome of their match, yet in the end, the result had already been decided...
Everything gradually quieted down. Afternoon classes were canceled due to En's actions and replaced with free study time instead.
Surprisingly, Minato—one of the central figures—wasn't questioned at all. For the entire afternoon, he sat silently at his desk, lost in thought, not uttering a word.
Many students occasionally glanced his way. However, they weren't thinking about the consequences of today's events—they were simply stunned by Minato's strength.
It wasn't just the level he displayed... seemingly at the end, he had actually defeated the top student of the year—Uchiha En.
Because of this, some of Uchiha En's fans even switched their attention. After all, Minato's looks were absolutely no worse than the former's—in fact, compared with Uchiha En's sharp features, Minato had more gentleness in his appearance.
But right now, Minato had no mood to notice any of this. He wondered what had been wrong with him lately.
He often became impulsive, and all of this was connected to Kushina.
What connection existed between the red-haired woman constantly appearing in his consciousness and Kushina?
Her face was unclear, but her long red hair was almost exactly like Kushina's.
Soon, dismissal time arrived. A figure bolted out of the classroom as if fleeing, his expression clearly panicked.
However, just as he stepped out of the classroom, there stood Minato—the same one he had been staring at while lost in thought moments ago.
Akasaki Yu's face turned pale. The fight between Minato and Uchiha En had already made him realize their power levels were nowhere near equal.
He was the one who had leaked information about Kushina to Uchiha En.
Expecting a scolding or punishment, Akasaki Yu braced himself—but what came next shocked him. Minato bowed and said, "Akasaki Yu, I went too far before. I shouldn't have struck you."
Minato had wanted to apologize a week ago, but since then, Akasaki Yu had been skipping class all this time, so Minato never got the chance.
"And please promise me you won't pull something like that again. Regardless of everything, we're in the same class—we're teammates… This kind of hurtful behavior, I hope you'll never repeat it."
Minato said calmly and walked away without another word, leaving Akasaki Yu completely frozen.
Gradually, his rigid muscles slowly loosened—but just then, two figures walking together stopped right in front of him.
It was Mikoto and Kushina.
Kushina slightly frowned—clearly displeased by his presence—but stayed—for Mikoto's sake.
"Hey, you—" Akasaki Yu barely started speaking when a sharp pain exploded in his abdomen.
His stunned expression mirrored those of his classmates who had just stepped out of the classroom yet suddenly froze mid-step. The one who actually hit him was none other than Mikoto—the girl known for always being gentle and kind.
But Mikoto didn't flinch under the shocked gazes around her. She glared at Akasaki Yu, her delicate features twisted in fury.
"Those who betray their comrades are the worst! Even if Minato is willing to let it go, I won't! You must learn that whatever harm you cause, there will always be consequences!"
Mikoto had hit him hard. Though she wasn't on par with Uchiha En or Minato, she was still far stronger than her peers.
Akasaki Yu half-crouched in the hallway, sobbing uncontrollably—who could tell if it was pain or guilt that hurt more?
Then Mikoto grabbed Kushina's hand and, amid countless surprised and questioning looks, simply turned and walked away...
...
...
Sorry for the delays—these past few days have been pretty hectic. Every day, I've also been going through loads of material related to the Naruto world, trying to get every detail about the Fourth and his contemporaries right. Hoping this story brings joy not only to myself but also to all readers.
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Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** on the weekend!