Since Minato didn't step in to help, Uchiha Ren naturally had even less reason to.
The two of them simply sat at their desks, quietly watching things unfold.
Jiro Egami—now that kid was notorious. A loudmouth troublemaker, always leading little cliques to bully others. He got a kick out of picking on the weak.
Once upon a time, this genius had the bright idea to try bullying Ren—probably thought it'd be fun to rattle someone from the Uchiha clan.
Big mistake.
Ren knocked out two of his front teeth.
Jiro, humiliated, called in backup—his older brother, a real shinobi. Maybe he thought that would restore his image.
Didn't work.
Not only did his brother get a beatdown too, he left the fight with a broken arm and some other... deeply personal injuries. Let's just say Ren didn't pull punches—not even with the kidneys or the chrysanthemum.
The poor guy was hospitalized for almost two weeks, and the first thing he did after getting out of bed was take off his belt and whip Jiro's ass again.
Ever since then, Jiro had been avoiding Ren like the plague.
But now, facing a timid red-haired transfer student who didn't dare speak up?
He was back to his old tricks, eyes glinting with smugness.
"Man… bullying classmates is still the most fun."
In his head, Jiro ruled the classroom.
With a cocky grin, he reached for Kushina Uzumaki's hair and mocked, "So what do you think, tomato freak? Ready to drop out yet?"
That was the last straw.
Kushina had tried to hold it in—being polite on her first day, trying not to make waves. She knew appearances mattered. She didn't want to start trouble.
But now?
Screw that.
The more she held back, the more these jerks pushed.
"Why the hell am I still holding back?"
She was done playing nice.
Her eyes burned with rage as she grabbed Jiro Egami by the collar.
"You bastard!"
Jiro froze.
That wasn't what he expected.
He tried to shake her off, hands prying at her wrist—but her grip didn't budge. It was smooth and small… but insanely strong.
"Let go! LET GO!"
Before his buddies could even react, Kushina's childish voice rang out again—this time ice-cold and shaking with anger.
"You guys keep calling me tomato... over and over…"
Her tiny fist trembled.
"For the record—I hate tomatoes too!"
And with that, she lifted Jiro up like a sack of rice, spun around 360 degrees, and threw him like a bowling ball, knocking down the cluster of kids behind him.
It was like watching a tomato-powered hurricane.
The rest of the kids hit the ground in a heap, stunned into silence.
Then Kushina straddled Jiro and just started wailing on him.
Fist after fist rained down, merciless and fast.
"Say it again! Call me tomato one more time!"
Jiro whimpered under the barrage, flailing weakly.
"Help—s-stop—!"
"If you EVER insult me again, I'll beat the snot out of you! You hear me?!"
From his desk, Minato watched with a small, proud smile. "Told you," he said. "She's strong."
Ren chuckled, resting his cheek on his hand. "Strong or not, she's still a girl. She needs someone to watch her back. If you'd stepped in earlier, you might've scored a few points, built some chemistry."
Minato flushed. "It's not that simple! You think love's that easy? Hero-saves-the-damsel is such a tired cliché. It might just annoy her!"
Ren stared at him.
(﹁"﹁)
…He was serious.
Minato's eyes remained fixed on Kushina, like nothing else existed.
After a moment, Ren muttered, "Minato… maybe read a book or two on emotional intelligence."
Something was off.
Maybe it was Ren's presence throwing things off—or maybe this guy had always been this clueless—but Minato's EQ right now was just pathetic.
Minato thought about it, nodded, and said seriously, "You're right! Emotional intelligence is important when you're chasing someone."
He always thought he wasn't bad in that area, but hey—there was room to grow. If reading a few books helped him get closer to Kushina, why not?
Just picturing a future with her—a happy life, maybe a family—made his lips curve upward unconsciously.
Meanwhile, Kushina stood over a bruised and battered Jiro Egami. Her anger had mostly faded now.
She dusted off her hands (even though there was no dust), then glared down at him and declared:
"That's enough for now. But if any of you dare bully me again—or call me tomato—I'll beat the crap out of you. Believe me, I don't play nice. Now SCRAM!"
Free at last, Jiro scrambled to his feet and ran to hide behind his friends. His face was swollen, and everyone could see the shame etched into every step he took.
Getting beat by Uchiha Ren? Fine, that guy was a monster.
But this new red-haired weirdo?
Absolutely humiliating.
"You—!" he started to shout.
Kushina calmly raised her little fist.
Jiro's eyes widened in horror. His threat died in his throat and turned into a squeaky:
"L-let's go!"
And he bolted from the classroom.
Kushina lowered her fist and glanced around. Many of the students averted their eyes, avoiding her gaze.
It left her feeling… uneasy.
Great. First day, and I already wrecked my chance to make friends.
But then she noticed something.
Among all the awkward faces, two boys hadn't looked away.
One had long black hair and was gazing out the window, completely unfazed by what just happened. The teacher didn't even bother with him. Must be a slacker.
The other one—
She frowned at the sight of Minato's soft smile.
What the hell was he smiling at?
"What are you looking at?!"
Minato flinched, turning red. "N-nothing! I wasn't looking at anything!"
Kushina's frown deepened.
Sissy! And he wants to be Hokage? Yeah right.
She opened her mouth to say more—but her expression suddenly twisted.
She had really needed to pee earlier.
Then those idiots stopped her.
Now?
Now it was urgent.
Without another word, she bolted out of the classroom.
Ren smirked as he watched her go. Then he turned to Minato, teasing: "Minato… you've got that look. You're already henpecked."
Minato's ears turned bright red. "What?! No way! I'm super brave, okay?!"
Then he paused.
"…Wait—Ren! What does 'henpecked' mean?! We're just kids! Don't say weird stuff like that!"
Ren just laughed and shrugged, letting the matter drop.
He turned back to the window, letting his thoughts drift again.
Meanwhile… at the Hokage's office.
Sarutobi Hiruzen—still in his prime—was half-buried under a pile of paperwork.
A lit pipe dangled from his mouth.
Behind the stack of documents, a crystal ball sat on a stand, glowing faintly. Inside, it showed footage of Kushina thrashing the bullies.
Hiruzen's expression was odd.
There was something familiar about this girl…
That red hair.
That attitude.
That punch-first-ask-later energy.
It reminded him of someone.
Tsunade?
She was a Senju—but through her grandmother, she carried Uzumaki blood too.
He also thought of Hashirama and Tobirama, his own mentors.
They had their eccentricities, sure, but not to this degree.
"Maybe… maybe it's just an Uzumaki thing. They're all a little wild."
He puffed his pipe, contemplative.
Just then, the door slammed open.
Not even a knock.
Of course.
It was Danzo.
Hiruzen didn't even look surprised. If Danzo ever knocked, he wouldn't be Danzo.
"Why aren't you down in Root?" Hiruzen asked flatly.
Danzo's one visible eye narrowed as he scanned the towering pile of documents, then locked on the glowing crystal.
"You've got mountains of paperwork and you're spying on children? Is this how you honor the Will of Fire?!"
He knew Hiruzen too well.
He could read the man's every move, even with half his face hidden.
And he knew what that crystal ball meant.
Every village had surveillance methods. Konoha's included the Telescope Technique, a detection-type jutsu that Hiruzen had mastered.
Danzo himself had studied counter-jutsu to avoid being watched by this old man.
Don't let his calm exterior fool you—Hiruzen loved using that crystal for all kinds of reasons.
Some of them… questionable.
"You act so noble," Danzo said coldly, "but the truth is, you spend half your time peeking into bathhouses."
Hiruzen exhaled a puff of smoke.
"Danzo, I'm the Hokage. How I manage my time is none of your concern."
He knew Danzo's type well—always poking around, always with some hidden agenda.
This visit wasn't random.
He was here because of Kushina—or more accurately, because of the Jinchūriki situation.
Danzo's face twisted. "You—"
Every time.
Every time, Hiruzen used his title to shut him down.
Damn it… If I were Hokage…