Before anyone realized it, the calendar had already flipped to Konoha Year 30.
"Hoshiyomi, Minato! Breakfast is ready! If you don't eat now, you'll be late for class!"
Rie Gekkō, wearing an apron, walked out into the courtyard, following the sounds of clashing practice weapons.
Seeing the silhouettes of Hoshiyomi and Minato training in the yard, she shook her head.
"Honestly, no matter how hard you train, you still have to remember to eat."
Hearing his mother's voice, Hoshiyomi put away his wooden practice sword.
"That's enough for this morning, Minato. Go wash up and get ready for breakfast."
Minato wiped the sweat from his brow and set down his practice kunai.
Minato had moved in with the Gekkō family.
His parents had passed away early, and he didn't come from a privileged clan.
So Hoshiyomi had waved his hand and simply brought Minato home to live with him.
Rie was more than pleased.
Her son, Hoshiyomi, still hadn't given her any grandchildren, and she'd been fretting about that for years. Now, with Minato in the house, she was practically living her dream of being a grandma.
If Minato weren't so stubborn about keeping his own identity, Rie would've made him change his name to Gekkō Minato by now.
Thinking about it, Hoshiyomi suddenly chuckled to himself.
Wait… if this keeps going, does that mean Naruto will have to call me Grandpa Hoshiyomi someday?
What a wild thought.
In terms of training, Minato's progress was phenomenal.
Before, his reflexes and coordination were exceptional, but his physical strength was average, and he lacked basic chakra training.
That was why, in the original timeline, Minato hadn't graduated early.
He'd had to stay in the Academy longer to make up for missing foundational lessons.
But now—with Hoshiyomi as his teacher—that gap had closed fast.
In just a year and a half, under Hoshiyomi's guidance, Minato had already caught up to, and even surpassed, the children of the major clans.
According to Hoshiyomi's estimation, in pure taijutsu alone, Minato could already match a newly-promoted chūnin.
And this was still just his first year at the Academy.
If it were Hoshiyomi, he'd have already applied for early graduation.
Theoretical knowledge could be polished later during D-rank missions.
But Minato was cautious—surprisingly cautious for a prodigy of his level.
Even though Hoshiyomi said he was ready for the graduation exam, Minato insisted on staying in school until at least age ten.
Of course, Hoshiyomi suspected Kushina was part of the reason.
It must've been love at first sight.
Minato had plenty of fangirls in his class, but he had eyes for Kushina alone.
And Kushina, after visiting Hoshiyomi a few times, had gradually accepted Minato too.
Sure, she still pretended to dislike him, but Hoshiyomi could see the difference.
Her attitude toward Minato wasn't the same as before.
Even Mikoto and Kuugetsu Uchiha noticed it sometimes and would tease Kushina about it.
When compared to how she interacted with Nawaki, the contrast was obvious.
Nawaki was already in his sixth year at the Academy, and now that he no longer competed with Kushina, the two of them got along just fine—like ordinary siblings.
Their relationship was steady and bland.
But with Minato, it was different.
Kushina still acted like she disliked him, but that "dislike" had a distinctly different flavor.
It had the hint of a girl teasing someone she secretly liked.
Hoshiyomi actually enjoyed this kind of daily life.
Practicing his sword techniques, flirting with Tsunade, teaching Minato, and watching Minato and Kushina bicker—
It was a simple life, but not boring.
If it were possible, he really wouldn't mind things staying this way forever.
But the shinobi world doesn't follow anyone's script.
That day, Hoshiyomi and Tsunade suddenly received an urgent summons.
The messenger wasn't an Anbu from the Third Hokage—it was Mito Uzumaki's personal attendant.
The two of them knew immediately what that meant.
Without a word, they rushed toward the Senju compound at full speed.
Neither of them noticed that, near the entrance of Konoha Hospital, a certain jōnin fresh out of recovery watched them hurry away and smiled coldly.
Inside a nondescript house elsewhere in the village, that same jōnin knelt respectfully before Shimura Danzō and reported:
"Lord Danzō, just as you predicted…
Mito Uzumaki is most likely at the end of her life."
Danzō finally smiled.
"Inform the others. It's time to prepare for new leadership appointments."
The jōnin blinked, then his face lit up with excitement.
"Yes, sir! I'll notify them immediately!"
...
Meanwhile, in the Senju compound—
Hoshiyomi and Tsunade didn't hesitate for a second as they charged straight into Mito's room.
On the way, Hoshiyomi noticed something:
There were new sealing arrays drawn along the corridors.
He understood what that meant.
His heart clenched, but he said nothing as he held Tsunade's hand and walked silently into the room.
Inside, Mito was sitting upright in a rocking chair.
When she saw them come in, she smiled faintly.
"You're back."
Her voice was stronger than usual—not weak and frail like before.
In fact, she seemed almost energetic.
The moment Tsunade saw this, her tears started to fall.
After years working in the hospital, she recognized this immediately for what it was.
This was the so-called final burst of clarity before death.
Tsunade walked over, wanting to hug Mito one last time.
Mito opened her arms and embraced her, then gently wiped away her tears.
"Now, now… what's there to cry about? Birth, aging, sickness, and death—that's life.
I've lived long enough to see you and Hoshiyomi grow up, to see Nawaki and Kushina thrive… I'm satisfied."
"Grandma…"
Tsunade couldn't even finish her sentence.
Hoshiyomi's eyes were wet too.
Moments like this were always hard to accept, no matter how prepared you thought you were.
But Mito remained calm.
"Enough tears. There's no time to waste on sadness."
She looked at Hoshiyomi.
"Come closer, Hoshiyomi. Let me give you my final instructions.
Hashirama's already waiting for me on the other side—I don't want to keep him waiting too long."
"Grandma… We're listening."
Hoshiyomi took a deep breath and stood beside Tsunade, quietly listening.
Mito held Tsunade's hand first, then solemnly placed it into Hoshiyomi's.
"I'm entrusting Tsunade to you now. You promised me you'd take care of her.
And if possible, please look after Nawaki and Kushina too."
Hoshiyomi forced a smile through his tears.
"Of course. That's my duty."
Mito smiled and gently hugged both of them.
"As for the position of Fourth Hokage—
you two can decide between yourselves.
Either way, I'll be at peace leaving it in your hands."
"I've made almost all the necessary preparations.
Right now, you, Jiraiya, and the others might not have the full political clout to call the shots.
But after the news of my passing spreads…
another war will probably break out."
"That can't be helped.
Hashirama spent his whole life working for peace, but maybe it's still too soon for people to truly understand each other."
"Whether or not that day comes depends on your generation."
"War is cruel, but for you, it'll also be an opportunity.
When the time comes, if your standing is high enough, and with the help of that list I prepared, you shouldn't face much resistance."
"I've entrusted that list to the Slug Sage.
When the time comes, just ask her for it."
Mito's smile deepened.
"Hashirama's already getting impatient over there.
I'd better go.
Don't worry—he, Tobirama, and I will be watching from above, blessing you all."
"The future of Konoha… is in your hands."
As she finished speaking, the color slowly drained from her face.
The hands that held theirs gradually lost strength.
But the smile on her lips never faded.
Author's Note:
Mito's death was inevitable, but honestly, I still hate writing these kinds of scenes.
(Also, minor spoiler: Danzō will stir up trouble soon, but the more he jumps around now, the worse his downfall will be.
Don't worry—unlike the original series, I won't let him get away with things for so long.)