"Next—our final match!"
"Namikaze Kaoru vs. Sarutobi Shinnosuke!"
At the teacher's call, twelve-year-old Kaoru stepped out from the crowd, graceful and composed, coming to a stop at the center of the sparring field.
She wore a gentle smile as she faced her opponent, her tone polite and sincere.
"Shinnosuke, please take care of me."
Across from her, twelve-year-old Sarutobi Shinnosuke felt his emotions knot together.
This was the girl he had once admired in secret—the girl whose eyes, from beginning to end, had only ever reflected one person: Uzumaki Kyusei.
Later, she had told him plainly to stop clinging to her. For someone like him—the son of the Hokage—how could he accept that?
Today, he would prove it with strength.
He would defeat her with his own hands and show her that she had made the wrong choice.
Two years of relentless training had filled Shinnosuke with confidence.
"Then… please take care of me as well," he said, fixing his gaze on the gentle-looking girl before him.
"Kaoru."
Beneath his calm words, excitement churned uncontrollably. He would prove it—prove she had chosen wrong.
"Both sides, prepare!"
"Three!"
"Two!"
"One!"
"Begin!"
The instant the command fell, Shinnosuke clenched his fists and charged forward!
There was not the slightest trace of restraint in his movements. If he wanted to prove her wrong, then he would do it in the most direct way possible—overwhelm her fast, crush her decisively!
Shinnosuke's strength looks pretty impressive…
As his punch came tearing through the air toward her, Kaoru offered a quiet compliment in her heart. At the same time, her eyes calmly assessed his movement and stance.
If she sidestepped and struck his waist, she wouldn't necessarily end the match—but she would gain a massive advantage.
But considering Shinnosuke's identity, and his former feelings toward her… Kaoru hesitated.
If she ended it too cleanly, would it hurt him too much?
After all, he was the Third Hokage's son. Losing that decisively would be humiliating.
I'll drag it out a bit longer…
Kaoru shifted her body slightly aside. Her hands moved like agile serpents, snapping forward to seize Shinnosuke's wrist. She immediately retreated, pulling hard at the same time.
Shinnosuke's balance wavered in an instant.
At the critical moment, however, his legs slammed down like iron stakes, rooting him firmly to the ground. The arm she had grabbed tensed, and he forced a contest of strength.
In raw power, Kaoru—still a girl—was ultimately at a disadvantage.
With no choice, she released her grip.
Seeing Shinnosuke's remarkably steady lower stance, her eyes lit up faintly.
As expected of the Hokage's son—he really did have some skill.
In that case… she could afford to loosen up a little more.
—
Inside the principal's office of the Ninja Academy, Sarutobi Hiruzen watched the two figures exchanging blows on the field below. Then he turned to the red-haired boy standing beside him.
"Kyusei, who do you think will win?"
"Kaoru."
The twelve-year-old answered instantly, without the slightest hesitation.
"So confident?" Hiruzen asked with interest.
"You know Shinnosuke has received personal instruction from me."
"Why are you even asking?" Kyusei shot him a sidelong glance, clearly unimpressed.
"Don't you already know the answer?"
Two years ago—before meeting Namikaze Minato—Kaoru had already begun experimenting with Wind Release chakra nature transformation… and succeeded.
Now, she carried the inheritance of a forty-year-old Namikaze Minato.
What did that mean?
It meant that a natural genius, armed with the experience of her fully grown future self, would grow at an absurdly accelerated pace.
Every detour erased. Every past mistake eliminated.
Nearly thirty years' worth of Minato's techniques and combat understanding had been handed to her outright.
Among her peers, she was utterly unmatched.
If she wanted to, even many special jōnin wouldn't stand a chance against her.
Even Kyusei himself—without borrowing Little Nine's power—was absolutely no match for her at this point.
And that was still a conservative estimate.
After all, in canon, that incident where Kushina was kidnapped by Cloud ninja was ridiculous to begin with—but those were still fully trained enemy ninja, all defeated in a single exchange by twelve-year-old Minato.
Kyusei honestly couldn't imagine how, with ANBU nearby, Konoha's sensory barrier active, and a sealing barrier in place, those Cloud ninja could've possibly infiltrated the village and abducted him.
The only explanation that made sense was that the old man beside him had deliberately let them in.
"Heh… fair enough. It is Kaoru, after all."
Hiruzen chuckled, stroking his chin.
Over the past two years, he had watched Kyusei and Kaoru grow with his own eyes.
Shinnosuke was outstanding—but he simply couldn't compare to those two.
Geniuses were already rare enough. A genius who worked even harder than everyone else?
That was terrifying.
While others ate, drank, slept, and played, someone far more talented was still pushing forward, climbing ever higher.
Kaoru was exactly that kind of person.
Almost flawless—strength, personality, even temperament. Even Hiruzen couldn't find a single fault.
…Well.
If he had to name one, it would be the brat standing next to him.
Kyusei was Kaoru's one and only weakness.
But that brat just so happened to be the most important person in the entire village—making that "weakness" essentially meaningless.
As Hiruzen was lost in thought, the match on the field reached its conclusion.
"Shinnosuke."
Kaoru extended her hand toward the black-haired boy lying on the ground, her smile gentle as ever.
Shinnosuke stared at her in silence for a moment, then took her hand.
As Kaoru pulled him to his feet, the teacher announced the result.
"Match over! The winner—Namikaze Kaoru!"
"Whoa—!"
"That was amazing!"
"Kaoru's so cool!"
"Top of the grade, as always!"
"Beautiful and badass—I'm melting!"
Surrounded by excited classmates, Kaoru greeted each congratulation with calm courtesy, her smile warm and restrained.
Her gaze searched the crowd for a familiar figure.
But she didn't see him.
He probably ran off somewhere again…
Kaoru sighed softly, amused rather than annoyed. Then, almost unconsciously, she lifted her head—
—and looked toward the second-floor window of the school building.
The boy who occupied her entire heart stood there, smiling down at her. His lips moved silently.
What do you want to eat tonight?
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