"Senior Junko Watanabe."
The tall figure was indeed Junko Watanabe, someone he hadn't seen in over half a year. She still wore that sharp outfit and carried the same blade on her back.
Still, none of that could hide her striking beauty. Those eyes—black as polished gems—held a piercing coldness that clashed with her delicate appearance.
Sakumo Hatake had already pointed this out before. Minato, now the Fourth Hokage himself, knew well that many ninja who served in Anbu tended to develop similar traits after their missions in the shadows.
Still... Junko's condition seemed far worse than six months ago.
"Why are you here?" Junko Watanabe asked immediately. This was Hokage Tower after all—Minato should not have been able to enter freely while still officially a student.
"Master Jiraiya has something important he asked me to relay to the Third Hokage..." Minato couldn't openly declare his promotion to genin status yet; that remained confidential for now.
But the fact that he was Jiraiya's disciple would eventually come to light anyway, so there was no need for secrecy.
At the mention of Jiraiya, the two village guards visibly shifted uneasily.
Junko had known about Minato's mentor well beforehand, however.
"I can vouch for him. You heard it yourself—Jiraiya-sama has urgent business for the Third Hokage," Junko said firmly.
Ever since the mission in the Land of Hot Springs, Minato had become one of the few people Junko truly trusted. Without a second thought, Junko stepped forward to defend him.
Though now just a jonin within Konoha, she had once held a high-ranking post in the Anbu. The guards, veterans of their posts, recognized some vague details of her background—even if they didn't know specifics.
So they stepped aside and let Minato pass.
Though strict hierarchy governed the ninja world, factions existed even within.
If Minato was Jiraiya's student, then he was also the Third Hokage's grand-apprentice.
"Thank you," Minato acknowledged their duties politely before stepping forward.
"Come on." As Minato approached Junko, she spoke again.
Walking together by coincidence, both happened to be headed toward the Hokage Office.
Yet Junko clearly wasn't in a good mood.
"You go first if your matter is urgent," Minato remarked gently. He caught the flicker of hesitation in her eyes despite her attempt to hide it.
"Not really urgent. You go ahead," he added with a smile.
After all, he hadn't been formally invited in the first place.
"Alright." Junko gave a slight nod before reluctantly entering...
...
Several minutes later, the office door opened again. Junko emerged, followed by three other Konoha ninja who appeared to be chunin-ranked.
They appeared to be part of the same squad, yet Junko made little effort to interact with them.
"Minato, come in," called the Third Hokage from the barely open crack of the door.
Seemed like Junko had already informed him of Minato's arrival.
Minato opened the door and walked in, seeing the Third Hokage seated at his desk, rubbing his forehead.
The role of Hokage was not an easy one to bear. Minato had held the position for just over a year, yet he'd already felt the crushing burden it carried.
At times, it could be even more exhausting than fighting on the battlefield.
After closing the door, Minato immediately knelt down and said, "I'm sorry, Lord Third. I came here recklessly and even deceived the guards and Senior Junko Watanabe with lies."
"Hahaha, you did well. That wasn't deception; it was protecting your own identity," the Third praised instead of scolding, adding with a smile, "You are my disciple's successor. What's wrong with occasionally coming to visit me?"
"Thank you," Minato replied. This was how the Third always was—kind and generous, like a great patriarch safeguarding the village.
Ever since regaining his memories, Minato had felt a sense of guilt whenever he saw the Third. The older man had placed such high hopes in him, passing on the Hokage title, yet he ended up dead.
Though Minato had sealed the Nine-Tails, the burdens left behind in the village ultimately fell upon the already fifty-something-year-old Third...
"Tell me, what is it?" the Third asked.
Minato promptly replied, "I'd like to ask for some time off."
"Time off?" The Third blinked in surprise.
"Today I went to Mount Myoboku with Master Jiraiya..."
Minato then recounted his experiences at Mount Myoboku to the Third, including everything the Great Toad Sage had foreseen, holding nothing back.
Even if he didn't say anything himself, once Master Jiraiya returned from Mount Myoboku, he would surely report it to the Third anyway.
"Such things really happened?"
The Third naturally knew about the Child of the Prophecy from Jiraiya's previous accounts. Upon learning that Minato might actually be able to prevent the impending disaster, his expression couldn't help but change.
"Yes, so I want to focus on training for a while," Minato continued, using it as an excuse.
"That's certainly fine," the Third agreed. Minato's skills were far beyond what he could possibly learn at the Ninja Academy.
"Are you trying to stop your guardian duty over Kushina?" the Third immediately asked.
Minato shook his head and said, "No, definitely not. I only need roughly a month to work through some personal ideas. My regular training won't interfere with classes at the academy."
He wasn't about to throw away this hard-earned opportunity. Also, thinking about it, the time he had left to accompany Kushina was limited.
"Alright then, I'll handle the arrangements at the Ninja Academy," the Third replied. He fully understood the young man's thoughts.
Kushina had officially requested one month of leave, so Minato asking for the same duration made perfect sense.
It was plain to see how much Kushina meant to him.
But then again, what would he become when one day he learned the truth—that Kushina had been chosen as the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki?
"Thank you," Minato said before taking his leave.
A mix of joy and worry crossed the Third's face as he watched Minato walk away.
...
Back in his room, Minato didn't rest for even a moment. Immediately, he formed a hand seal.
*Poof!*
Evenly distributing his chakra, Minato summoned a [Shadow Clone].
Then he began forming hand seals with both hands. These hand seals weren't familiar to this body, but they were deeply etched into his mind.
Soon, he placed his palm onto the motionless Shadow Clone. Dark markings began crawling across its chest.
"Poof!"
But in the blink of an eye, the markings in his hands cracked apart and vanished into thin air.
The two Minatos sighed in unison as they witnessed what happened.
"Failed again?"
What Minato had decided to train in first was neither the Rasengan, which he had perfected over three years, nor the Flying Thunder God Jutsu that earned him renown across the Ninja World.
Instead, it was the Uzumaki Sealing Technique that Kushina had taught him long ago.
...
...(to be continued.)
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