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Assistant: Title: The Ripple Paradox
        Author: asl3o asl3o 
        Chapter: 5/5 
        Summary: After the Fourth Shinobi War ends in betrayal—with Sasuke’s blade in her back, Kurama gone, and her chakra depleted—Uzumaki Naruto is casted to the past she doesn't know. But time doesn't just rewind. The Rikudō Sennin intervenes, rewriting fate itself- Now, Naruto is reborn into history not as the daughter of Namikaze Minato, but as his ten-year-old younger sister.In a time of shifting loyalties and altered bloodlines, Naruto must forge her place as a Namikaze, protect the bond she never expected to have, and survive a world that was never meant to know her.
        Contents: Chapter 5
    

    


      
        
          I do not own Naruto.
            
            (See the end of the chapter for  more notes.)
            
      
  

  
  
    
    
  It had been a week.

  Seven days since Naruto had stepped out of a clothing shop wearing slate-gray shinobi pants and a black top with orange accents, newly bought and still unfamiliar. Seven days ago, she’d shared a delicious bowl of ramen with her brother and promptly got swept into the attention of a group of imposing, curious genin. Seven days since Tsume had dared her into a spar and Shikaku had looked at her like a puzzle he couldn’t quite solve.

  And now, a full week later, she was still here.

  The sun dipped lazily toward the rooftops, casting long shadows across Konoha. Naruto sat alone atop the Namikaze apartment building, legs crossed, arms behind her head, gaze tilted toward the glowing sky. Her new pants were already dust-streaked at the knees, and a faint trail of grime marked her cheekbone—dirt from some earlier scuffle she hadn’t bothered to wash off yet.

  Konoha wasn’t what she expected. It was like she walked into a whole different version of the village she remembered. Or maybe, it’s just because she wasn’t the Uzumaki Naruto anymore, the kid that the whole village despised. She’s Namikaze Naruto now, the beloved little sister of the prodigy orphan, Namikaze Minato.

  Minato wasn’t who she expected either. Then again, she doesn’t personally know the Minato that was once her father to compare him to the thirteen year old genin Minato who was now her older brother. 

  In some strange way, the two of them—this place and this boy—felt like parallel constants she was learning to orbit around. Her brother didn’t openly smother her, fuss, or hover, yet he always noticed everything. How she tensed when the crowd got too close. How she chewed her food a little slower on days when she felt like she didn’t belong. He never commented on the weird things she does, just silently accepted whatever she did. With a quiet, steady presence. With shared meals. With hand-me-down jokes and soft smiles. With silences that didn’t press for explanation.

  It wasn’t love in the way she used to know. Not the kind she experienced with Baa-chan, or Kakashi-sensei, or her close friends. Minato’s love and care was something more for her. It melted her inside into something soft, something beautiful.

  Still, it hadn’t been all calm skies and peaceful ramen nights.

  Minato’s fangirls had noticed her.

  And they were… relentless.

  Naruto had run into them three times this week alone. If you ask her, that’s three times too many. 

  Once at the fruit stand near the mission board, where two of them had stared at her like she was a riddle they didn’t want the answer to. Another time outside the training fields, where she had been minding her business only to be cornered like prey. 

  “You’re his sister, right?” one of them had asked, all wide eyes and suspicious.

  Naruto nodded. “Yeah?”

  “
  
    Really
  
   his sister?”

  She’d blinked. “We have matching medallions. Not to mention, I look like his girl version. Want to check for shared blood types too?”

  That hadn’t gone over well. The girl looked ready to throw hands.

  Fortunately, Minato had shown up just in time. He didn’t say a word—just stood next to her, tall and composed, until the fangirls scattered like startled cats. Then, as if that weren’t enough, he’d given her a look. Not one of pity or concern. Just a small, crooked smile that said, 
  
    Welcome to the club.
  

  Naruto hadn’t quite decided if that was comforting or deeply annoying.

  She’d met his friends again, too.

  More than once now.

  Tsume had already declared herself the bossy big sister type—loud, fast, and never asking before grabbing your hand and dragging you into trouble. She liked Naruto, apparently. Said she had grit and decent reflexes, even if her footing still needed work. Naruto thanked her for the compliment. 

  Fugaku had offered a surprisingly neutral, “Not bad” after watching her spar with Tsume. It was more than what his future b@st@rd son could offer. Naruto wishes he wouldn’t spawn Sasuke in this lifetime. Is it murder if she killed Sasuke right after birth to prevent future disaster? Would people suspect she did it? Now, that was something to think about. 

  Shibi had commented on her reaction speed with vague approval. Choza had offered her a steamed bun once, and Inoichi had chatted with her like they’d known each other for years.

  The Hyuga twins—Hiashi and Hizashi—were harder to read. Hiashi nodded politely when she greeted him. Hizashi grinned and gave her some kind of long-winded compliment she didn’t quite understand, something about raw potential and untempered resolve.

  But it was Shikaku who confused her the most.

  He hadn’t said much at first. But he watched her in that Nara way—half-lidded eyes, quiet gaze, casual slouch that made him seem half-asleep when he was clearly thinking three steps ahead. He’d asked her strange questions too. Not big ones. Just little observations tossed her way like test stones.

  “You always scan the edges of a crowd first?”

  “Why do you favor your left side when you dodge?”

  “What do you see when you look at a shadow?”

  She’d never had the right answer. But she got the feeling that was the point.

  He wasn’t teasing her. He was... measuring her. Not to judge—but to understand.

  That unnerved her more than the fangirls. Naruto decided that Shikamaru’s father is weird. Weirder than his future son, and that said a lot because she was best friends with him.

  Naruto wasn’t used to people trying to understand her.

  She was used to assumptions. Conclusions drawn too fast. Dismissals or expectations that felt more like cages. But here—in this strange, sun-warmed village with its awkward silences and blunt affection—people were giving her space.

  It felt foreign. New. She wasn’t used to it.

  Minato had asked her that morning, while he stirred miso soup with the kind of methodical attention only he could manage, if she wanted to visit the Academy grounds before officially enrolling. He hadn’t pushed. Just asked. He didn’t decide for her, and it felt refreshing. 

  She’d said she’d think about it.

  And she was still thinking about it. Even now, sitting up here with the sun on her legs and the faint rustle of birds in the trees below.

  Who was she now?

  Not a kunoichi. Not yet. Not even a student.

  But also not quite a civilian.

  She could feel something in her limbs—restless movement, a readiness that hadn’t dulled since her spar with Tsume earlier that day. Her body still remembered things that her current life hadn’t taught her yet. The way to shift weight before a fall. The way to brace for impact. The way to breathe when the wind changes.

  Maybe she 
  
    will
  
   enroll soon.

  Not because someone told her to—but because she’s ready to try again. This time, the academy would be fair to her, hopefully. Then, she would train and learn all the skills needed so she could protect the future better. Protect her brother, his friends, and the village. Protect them all.

  The fangirls would glare. She didn’t know what their problem was, she’s Minato’s sister, not his future bride. Shikaku would probably smirk. Tsume would definitely throw a training knife at her ankles to test her reflexes.

  But she’d survive. She always did. And this time… maybe she’d get to do more than survive.

  Maybe she’d get to 
  
    live. 
  
  Live her life as a diligent student that she never got to be before, because this time everything will be different. 

  Naruto tipped her head back, closed her eyes against the glow of the sky, and exhaled.

  This is what peace feels like. 

  –

  The sun was slipping behind the trees when Naruto decided she was done sunbathing on the roof of their apartment. It was also the time she wanted to let Minato know her decision regarding the academy.

  Minato was leaning against the kitchen counter, finishing up the dish he cooked for their dinner. Naruto was just a little behind him, setting up the dining table for their meal. Minato finally finished cooking. The air smelled faintly of grilled fish and steamed rice. The room was quiet, save for the occasional sound of the wooden chopstick hitting the ceramic bowl. 

  “I think I’m ready.”

  Minato didn’t pause in his movement, still calmly deboning the fish he grilled, then gave the flesh to Naruto. 

  Naruto took the fish. “To enroll,” she added.

  Minato’s expression didn’t shift much. He just hummed in response as he took a mouthful of rice.

  “I see,” Minato said after he finished chewing.

  “Don’t make a big deal out of it,” she warned, still not looking at him.

  “I wasn’t going to.”

  “Liar.”

  “I would’ve treated you to ramen.”

  That got her to look. She raised an eyebrow. “Ranen?”

  “For celebration.”

  “That’s a terrible reward.”

  Minato offered a faint smile. “You like ramen.”

  “…That’s beside the point.”

  She let the silence sit between them again, then finally shifted and sat up straighter, pulling her legs in.

  “I was thinking about it all day,” she said more seriously. “I want to be able to protect myself properly. Prove to everyone that I’m not just a Namikaze by name.”

  Minato nodded once. “You don’t have to prove anything to anyone, you know.”

  “I know.” Her voice was softer now. “But I want to prove it to myself. And I want to be able to protect you one day.”

  Minato didn’t speak for a long moment. “Then we’ll go tomorrow,” he said after.

  Naruto blinked. “What?”

  “To submit the forms. The Hokage’s office already has your record under the Namikaze name. Enrollment just needs confirmation. I checked last week.”

  “You what—?”

  “In case you were ready.”

  “You planned ahead?”

  “Of course. I’m not pressuring you into becoming anything but I know you’ll eventually want to be a kunoichi.”

  Naruto narrowed her eyes. “That’s sneaky.”

  “That’s responsible.”

  “It’s sneakily responsible.”

  He didn’t deny it, just smiled. 

  She stared at him for another second before letting her shoulders slump, the tension easing out with a quiet breath. Her lips twitched.

  “I’m glad you did,” she admitted.

  Minato just inclined his head slightly, the small smile he had is turning into something bigger. 

  “I’m not going to be like the other kids,” she said, more hesitantly. “I’m not sure how I’m going to fit in.”

  “You don’t have to.”

  “I know,” she said. “But I still want to try.”

  He nodded once. “Trying’s more than enough.”

  They sat there in the golden light, quiet again. The cicadas outside had started their evening hum, and the air was beginning to cool. They resumed eating.

  After a while, Naruto finished and she leaned back on her seat, gaze drifting toward the low ceiling.

  “Think anyone’s going to try to mess with me on my first day?”

  “Yes.”

  “Seriously?”

  Minato met her look. “It’s the academy. Someone always tries.”

  Naruto grinned ferally. “Let them try.”

  “I’ll walk you to the gate.”

  “I’m not five.”

  “Didn’t say I’d carry you.”

  “I wouldn’t put it past you.”

  He didn’t answer, which said more than anything.

  Naruto rolled her eyes, but the smile stayed. “Thanks,” she said, after a pause. “For not rushing me.”

  “Of course, Naru-chan.” 

  –

  Naruto stood outside her assigned classroom. Her hands were slightly clammy from nerves. It didn’t matter that she’s been to the academy before. It didn’t matter that she was once a student—a terrible one according to all the occupants of the academy in her time. 

  This time, she’s attending the academy as Namikaze Naruto. She didn’t know if she’s nervous because there’s a kind of pressure and expectation hanging on her shoulders for being Minato’s sister, or because she just knows that this time, the academy will be a totally different experience for her. She would expect that someone wouldn’t like her, but not for the same reason as before. 

  Minato had walked with her to the gates that morning, as promised. They hadn’t talked much before that. They shared breakfast and a long, steady silence that didn’t need words. When they arrived, he gave her a nod. No big brother speeches. No embarrassing encouragement.

  Just a simple non-verbal, 
  
    “You’ve got this.”
  

  She hadn’t said anything back. But her fist had briefly bumped against his forearm before she turned to go.

  Now, the real part began.

  Eyes.

  Not many, not all at once. Some lingering, some sharp. Some confused, others calculating. Not everyone recognized her face, but enough of the older students had heard about the blonde girl who stood up to Uzumaki Kushina and Yoshino and lived.

  And now, she was wearing the clothes Minato bought for her—a black top with orange accent, slate-gray pants, and black shinobi sandals.

  When she entered, the room fell quiet. 

  It was a mid-sized classroom, sun filtering through open windows, the air thick with the scent of chalk, wood, and anticipation. Most of the students were already seated. Boys in the back, girls in the middle, a few bold ones clustered up front. Her arrival broke whatever conversation had been happening.

  All eyes on her.

  She could hear the whispers already.

  “Is that the girl who—?”

  “She’s Minato-senpai’s sister, right?”

  “I thought she was older.”

  “No, she’s just weird.”

  Naruto walked toward the empty seat near the back row, second to the window. The teacher arrived shortly after. A tired-looking chunin with a scar down one arm and a habit of clearing his throat too often.

  “Namikaze Naruto,” he read from his roster. “New student. Seat taken? Good.”

  He didn’t give her a chance to introduce herself. Naruto preferred it that way.

  The first half of the class passed in a haze of lesson plans, expectations, and rules. No jutsu yet—just foundational lectures, chakra theory, and attendance review. Naruto just listened to him talk, the pencil Minato had put in her bag long forgotten. 

  Some of the students were already sneaking glances at her again. One boy near the front—a pale-haired kid with an upturned nose—kept whispering to the girl beside him and glancing over his shoulder.

  She ignored them. It’s her first day at the academy. She’s not going to dignify those whispers with dramatic reactions. If it was before, then maybe she would have demanded the attention she wanted, but that was Uzumaki Naruto. She’s Namikaze Naruto now. 

  At break, it started.

  The girl with the long pigtails—Suzume, if she remembered the name correctly—approached first.

  “You’re Minato-senpai’s little sister?” she asked, all saccharine voice and narrowed eyes. She looked at her haughtily, nostrils flaring when she didn’t get the attention she wanted from Naruto.

  “Yeah,” Naruto replied flatly, not looking up from her snack.

  “Funny. You don’t look anything like him.”

  Naruto popped a piece of dried sweet potato into her mouth. 
  
    I’m literally a carbon copy of him
  
  , her mind supplied. “Should I apologize for that?”

  Suzume blinked. “What?”

  Naruto stared straight at her, chewing slowly. “For not looking like him. Should I say sorry? You look like a radish to me. Should 
  
    you
  
   apologize?”

  There was a pause. Then someone behind them 
  
    snorted.
  

  Suzume flushed and stormed off. Naruto kept eating.

  By the time the second class started, no one else had dared to approach her directly. But the glances were sharper now. Not friendly. Not hostile. Just 
  
    curious.
  

  The teacher had just begun a lecture on chakra channels when the classroom door opened. Another chunin instructor peeked in.

  “Sorry to interrupt. I need Namikaze Naruto for ten minutes. Observation.”

  The teacher frowned slightly, but waved her off. Naruto stood, confused but obliged anyway.

  As she stepped into the hallway, she noticed the instructor wasn’t alone.

  A tall genin leaned against the window just down the hall, arms crossed, posture lazy. His brown hair was tied back, and his sharp eyes tracked her movements with that same unreadable calm she remembered all too well.

  “Shikaku?”

  He nodded. “Yo.”

  Naruto blinked. “You’re spying on me?”

  “Observation,” he corrected. “Hokage’s orders. Said I’d ‘have insight.’” He made air quotes lazily with one hand.

  She frowned. “I haven’t even thrown a punch yet.”

  “You verbally-assaulted a girl with vegetable-based insults.”

  “She started it.”

  “I know,” he said simply, then tilted his head. “You alright?”

  She crossed her arms. “You tell me. You’re the expert.”

  Shikaku smirked. “You’re adjusting. Slowly. It’s interesting.”

  Naruto sighed. “You’re weird.”

  He didn’t argue.

  Then, surprisingly, he said, “You did good. For your first day.”

  Her eyes softened slightly. “You’re not just saying that?”

  “You’re not the only misfit in this village,” he murmured. “We tend to spot each other.”

  She stared at him for a long second before nodding.

  The chunin instructor motioned her back to class. Naruto turned, walking away with a little more steel in her spine. Back in her seat, she leaned her chin against her hand and stared out the window.

  Maybe school wouldn’t be so bad. The instructors are not biased against her. She always did suspect that her instructors back then were manipulating her exams. She always understands the lessons but always gets the lowest grades in class. 

  Maybe, just maybe, this time will be different. 

  –

  Naruto had never tried to draw attention in class.

  In fact, she’d spent the last few days doing the opposite—blending in, being quiet, answering only when called, and doing her best not to bite back when her classmates stared or whispered. Her seat near the window had become her fortress of solitude, and she preferred it that way. 

  But peace, as she was quickly learning, had a short lifespan in the Ninja Academy.

  Especially when your last name was Namikaze, and your brother was the top-ranking genin prodigy every girl in the room was either in love with or wanted to be. Naruto never asked for much, but when she’s trying not to draw attention to herself, then please don’t give her attention. She had enough of that as Uzumaki Naruto.

  On this particular day, the culprit was their instructor: Instructor Moriyama, a grizzled chunin with a thick mustache and a penchant for putting students on the spot.

  “I like to see how sharp your minds are,” he declared at the start of the afternoon lesson. “Understanding chakra theory is just as important as throwing kunai. Now…” His sharp eyes flicked down the roster, then snapped up with the precision of a shuriken.

  “Namikaze Naruto.”

  Naruto straightened. “…Yeah?”

  “Let’s see if you’re just a sibling with a famous name or if you have a brain to match.” The class chuckled. Several eyes turned toward her.

  Naruto forced herself not to slouch. “Alright,” she said calmly. “Try me.”

  Moriyama smirked. “What are the five basic chakra natures?”

  “Fire, Wind, Lightning, Earth, Water,” she answered immediately.

  “Which of those is the primary affinity for most Uchiha?”

  “Fire.”

  “Name the first Hokage’s unique kekkei genkai.”

  “Wood Release—Mokuton.”

  A few murmurs rippled through the room.

  Moriyama didn’t slow down. “How do you form a clone using the basic Clone Jutsu?”

  “Ram, Snake, Tiger.” Her voice was steady, her tone bored.

  Moriyama’s brows rose. “What’s the name of the point where chakra gathers before it's released from the tenketsu?”

  “The Tanden—located below the navel.”

  “Describe the difference between substitution and transformation jutsu.”

  Naruto leaned her chin into her hand. “Substitution replaces you with a nearby object before impact. Transformation lets you disguise yourself as that object. They’re often used together for misdirection, but only one gets you out of harm’s way.”

  The room was 
  
    dead silent. 
  
  Even the kid who usually doodled on the edge of his scroll had frozen, brush still.

  Moriyama nodded, lips twitching. “Very good, Namikaze. The rest of you better start studying.”

  The bell hadn’t even rung yet, but Naruto already felt the shift. All around her, eyes narrowed and widened in equal measure. Some are curious. Others in outright disbelief.

  Naruto kept her face neutral. But she knew something had already shifted. More people are now starting to notice her. And she just knows that life in the academy wouldn’t be peaceful anymore.

  After class, it began.

  “Hey, that was awesome,” said a boy with thick eyebrows and round eyes. “How’d you know all that?”

  “Did your brother teach you?” another asked, almost too eagerly. “Is he, like, tutoring you every night?”

  “No,” Naruto replied, slinging her bag over her shoulder. “I just read.” 

  She made it halfway down the hallway before two more boys caught up to her.

  “Are you gonna be a ninja like Minato-san?” one asked breathlessly.

  “You’re really smart,” said the other. “Smarter than half the class. Even smarter than Yuki.”

  Naruto’s feet slowed. “Who’s Yuki?”

  “You’ll see,” said the first boy, then turned pale. “Actually—uh, good luck.”

  They vanished down the hall.

  Naruto blinked. “…That’s not ominous at all.”

  She found out who Yuki was the very next morning.

  It happened during group taijutsu drills. Naruto was stretching near the edge of the field when a girl with sleek dark hair and an impeccably crisp uniform approached.

  “You’re the Namikaze girl,” the girl said, tone clipped.

  Naruto raised an eyebrow. “The one and only.”

  “I’m Yuki.” The girl’s smile didn’t reach her eyes. “Top of our class. Or I 
  
    was.
  
  ”

  Naruto took in the girl’s rigid posture, her spotless sandals, the way her arms folded across her chest like a shield and a weapon at once.

  Ah. There it was.

  “You don’t like me,” Naruto said flatly.

  “I don’t know you,” Yuki replied. “But I know Minato-senpai.”

  Naruto’s eyes twitched. “You like my brother?”

  Yuki lifted her chin. “He’s admired. Respected. You’re just… new.”

  “Yeah, I am.” Naruto’s tone didn’t waver. It’s kind of getting dragging to be in this kind of situation almost everyday. “But I’m not going anywhere.”

  Their staring contest lasted five full seconds before the instructor called for everyone to line up.

  Naruto didn’t look back as she walked away.

  Yuki did.

  By the end of the week, Naruto had collected four fanboys—two from her own class, one a year younger, and one civilian boy who peeked over the wall during outdoor drills to wave. She had no idea what to do with them.

  “They just show up,” she muttered one afternoon to herself, hiding behind the school’s storage shed. “Like stray puppies.”

  “I think they’re cute,” said a familiar voice from the roof above.

  Naruto nearly choked. “Shikaku?!”

  The Nara heir lounged on the ledge, staring down at her with his usual half-lidded expression. “You’re popular.”

  “I’m going to 
  
    burn this school down.
  
  ”

  “You can’t do that,” he said calmly. “Too many witnesses.”

  Naruto groaned and buried her face in her arms.

  Shikaku chuckled. “You’re handling it well,” he added after a moment. “Better than most.”

  “I didn’t ask to be admired,” she mumbled.

  “You didn’t ask to be underestimated either,” he pointed out. “But here we are.”

  Naruto looked up at him, eyes squinting in suspicion. “Why are you here, anyway?”

  He gave her a lazy shrug. “Curiosity. You’re turning into the most interesting part of my week.”

  “That’s a horrible reason.”

  “That’s a true one.”

  Naruto looked away, ears burning.

  From behind the wall, she could hear two of her ‘fanboys’ arguing over whether her shirt looked better with or without the orange accents.

  She sighed, long and loud.

  “…I miss being invisible.”

  Shikaku smiled. “You were never invisible, Naruto. People just didn’t know how to see you yet.”

  She didn’t answer. She didn’t know how to. 

  –

  Naruto sat in her usual seat with her chin balanced on her fists, eyes half-lidded as her classmates created noises around her. The classroom buzzed with the same chaos it always had during lunch break—bento lids clicking open, wrappers rustling, fanboys trying too hard not to look at her while still sitting 
  
    just close enough
  
  .

  She had gotten used to this.

  Yuki’s cold stare from across the room. The awkward, flustered attention of a few overeager boys. The occasional group whisper that carried her name like it was a rumor, even when she was sitting right there.

  She had gotten used to all of it.

  What she wasn’t used to, however, was the sharp knock on the sliding classroom door a few minutes after lunch started, and the way her teacher’s head immediately lifted, eyes lighting up like someone had just said “pay raise”.

  “Minato-kun!” the instructor greeted, already walking over. “What a surprise! Come in, come in.”

  Every single head turned. Naruto blinked from her seat, slowly straightening as her brother stepped into the room, hands tucked casually into the pockets of his flak jacket.

  Thirteen, taller than most of the students, and calm in the way a still lake was calm before someone drowned in it—Minato had that quiet charisma that made people instinctively lean in and shut up. Especially the girls.

  Especially Yuki. She shot to her feet so fast her desk rattled. “Minato-senpai!”

  Naruto groaned. “Here we go.”

  “Sorry to interrupt,” Minato said politely to the teacher, who waved off the apology with an enthusiastic laugh.

  “You’re always welcome, Namikaze. Visiting Naruto?”

  Minato nodded. “Lunch.”

  Several kids gasped. One of Naruto’s fanboys dropped his chopsticks.

  “Lunch?” one of them repeated, stunned.

  “With 
  
    her
  
  ?” Yuki muttered under her breath—but just loud enough.

  Naruto tensed, but didn’t respond. She looked up at her brother instead. “You didn’t tell me you were coming.”

  “I wanted to see your face light up,” Minato said casually.

  Naruto scoffed and rolled her eyes, but the way her fingers fidgeted with the edge of her bento box said she was flattered anyway.

  Minato ignored the students gawking at him and walked to the empty seat beside his sister. “Is this taken?”

  “No,” Naruto mumbled. “But it’s probably cursed by fangirl rage now.”

  Minato gave her a rare smile, a light chuckle escaping his lips. He always likes his sister’s humor.

  “Hey! You can’t just sit here!” Yuki finally burst, standing at her desk like she was rallying a protest. “This is a student’s class period. No visitors during classes!”

  Lunch wasn’t even close to over, but Yuki clearly didn’t care.

  The teacher blinked. “Yuki, it’s lunch break. And Minato-kun’s not a stranger. He’s always welcome here. He’s also a student who attended the academy, and most of the instructors adore him.”

  “Rules are still rules!” Yuki argued, face pink with indignation—and possibly romantic disappointment.

  Minato looked at her calmly. “Are you suggesting I leave before I’ve even unwrapped my bento box?”

  The class snickered. Naruto tried—
  
    tried
  
  —to bite down her grin. Even the teacher had to cough into his fist to hide a smile.

  Minato continued, his stare flat as he answered. “I’m here as Naruto’s brother. I wanted to eat lunch with her. I finally had a day-off and wanted to spend it with my little sister. If it bothers you, I can ask the Hokage for a signed permission slip next time.”

  The words weren’t harsh. They were delivered in that same cool, detached tone Minato always used when handling missions or facts. But the impact was unmistakable.

  Yuki’s mouth opened, then closed. Her posture stiffened. Her face went red. She sat back down.

  Naruto raised an eyebrow. “That was overkill.”

  “Was it?” Minato replied mildly, already opening his bento.

  Naruto glanced over at her rival. Yuki was now angrily stabbing her pickled plum with her chopsticks like it had insulted her entire family. Yeah. She wasn’t getting over this any time soon.

  Naruto leaned toward her brother, dropping her voice. “You know she likes you, right?”

  “I’m aware. I think.”

  “And you 
  
    came here
  
   anyway?”

  Minato picked up a piece of tamagoyaki and placed it on Naruto’s own bento. Nevermind that they have the same kind of food. “Yes.”

  “Evil,” Naruto muttered, shoving the tamagoyaki in her mouth.

  Minato said nothing as he chewed on the karaage he popped it into his mouth, perfectly content.

  They ate in peace for the next few minutes. Students slowly adjusted to the presence of the golden-haired genin in the room, though many kept glancing at him like he was a celebrity doing a pop-up appearance.

  Naruto could feel the stares like a pressure on her skin, but beside Minato, she didn’t mind it as much. It was harder to feel like a freak when your brother was being cool, calm, and casually deflecting all the tension without breaking a sweat.

  “How’s your week been?” he asked between bites.

  “Yuki tried to kill me in sparring class.”

  “Do I need to talk to your instructor?”

  “No. It wasn’t that bad. Just a flare-up.”

  “You didn’t retaliate?”

  “No.”

  He hummed, satisfied. “I’m proud of you.”

  Naruto flushed slightly and picked at her rice. “You’re just saying that.”

  “I don’t say things I don’t mean.”

  She fell quiet. Their bento boxes were nearly empty by the time the bell rang to end lunch, and Minato stood, collecting their trash like he belonged there.

  “You picking me up after class too?” Naruto asked, half-joking.

  “Yes.” Minato answered without wasting a second. 

  “…What?”

  “I said I’d use my day off with you. I meant it.”

  Naruto didn’t have a reply to that. So she just stared as he walked to the door, giving a polite nod to the teacher, and left. Half the class exhaled all at once.

  Naruto sat back in her seat, arms folded across her chest.

  Yuki didn’t look at her, but Naruto didn’t miss the faint sound of teeth grinding behind her.
 
  Class ended without any more drama. The sun was starting its slow descent as students filed out of the academy, chattering about training drills, snack shops, and weekend chores.

  Naruto lingered for a bit, stretching her arms behind her head. It was another slow day without someone antagonizing her anymore after what happened during lunchtime. It was bliss. A few of her classmates hovered but they scattered the moment they saw the figure leaning by the front gate.

  Minato.

  He waved warmly once when he saw her, a smile playing at his lips. Naruto smiled back, bigger but just as warm. 

  “You really came.” Naruto walked faster than usual. 

  “You didn’t think I would?”

  “Well…”

  “You wound me, Naru-chan.”

  She snorted, throwing a playful punch on her brother’s arm. “Not much of a day off.”

  “It is,” he said. “Because it’s with you.”

  “You’re so lame.” Naruto complained but she felt warm inside. 

  They went home together in the glow of late afternoon, greeting acquaintances as they walked the way home. 

  
  

    
      
        
        
          I'M BACK B@TCH@S! I SURVIVED MY MOCKBOARDS!!! but y'all let me rant for a bit. Like, I'm so p@ss@d with one of our exams coz the questions are literally out of this world???? I won't even rant if the topics were taught or included in the lessons but no? literally my mind went blank just from the very first page, I already gave up at that point. Fortunately, the other exams are more reasonable, therefore, answerable lol.Also, I just realized that the chapters are too peaceful. There wasn't much going on there. It felt boring to read aahhh but I already decided that past chapter 10 I would be including monologues of some of the characters and introduce other characters into the story. Kushina and Yoshino will be back y'all, very soon too!When I hit the two digit in my chapters, the real drama and trouble would start. Look forward to it!For now, we have a prodigy in-the-making (not really, I always believed that Naruto is a genius if opportunities were given) Namikaze Minato, and some siblings bonding|!!!! I want a brother like Minatooooo. Okay, that's it y'all bye'
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