While Minato clutched his acceptance letter and turned to leave the academy grounds, one person kept staring at his back with a complicated expression.
It was Fugaku.
He had been about to enter his class when he caught a glimpse of Minato outside, which made him pause.
'Minato Namikaze… the future Fourth Hokage. My Apparition might not be as fast as his Flying Thunder God, but I don't have the limitation of needing a mark. He seems like a decent person. If he really becomes Hokage… maybe I won't have to worry about the Uchiha clan.'
A pause.
'As for Danzo… I'll deal with him myself.'
He turned and entered the classroom. Mikoto was already seated.
"What made you stop?" she asked quietly.
"Nothing," Fugaku replied with a small smile. "Thought I saw someone interesting."
"Who?"
"Don't know. Maybe we'll meet him later."
Mikoto looked at him for a second, then turned away with a small pout.
Fugaku spent the next few minutes coaxing her before the class started.
Over the past two years in the academy, Fugaku had made significant progress in Dark Magic. His Fiendfyre had reached a high level, and recently, knowledge of his exclusive spell, Protego Diabolica, had surfaced.
His Transfiguration and Charms were also well developed, though still slightly behind Minato's level. Shinobi training took up a lot of his time, so he couldn't focus entirely on magic even if he wanted to.
He knew he couldn't reveal his magical abilities, so becoming a strong shinobi was necessary, especially with the Second Shinobi War ongoing.
His strength was already around Genin level, maybe close to Chunin.
His Fire Style was at Chunin level, and his chakra reserves were impressive.
The only thing lacking was taijutsu. Still, with magic, he was already quite strong.
Even after learning so many Dark Arts, he had avoided the Cruciatus and Killing Curse.
He understood how they worked. Grindelwald's knowledge made that much clear. But he also knew those spells required something deeper, something darker.
Until he mastered Occlumency and the Patronus Charm, he had no intention of touching them.
Even a wizard who used Dark Magic could still produce a Patronus, as long as they weren't corrupted. It just became much harder.
And right now, Fugaku was stuck.
'I should've focused on Patronus first instead of jumping into Dark Arts.'
'Even after spending time with my family and Mikoto, and staying away from the darker stuff, I still can't form a proper Patronus. Just white mist.'
A pause.
'I might need Andrew for this. With Dumbledore's template, he should be better at this.'
'Even Occlumency isn't improving. Knowing a spell isn't the same as mastering it. Even with Grindelwald's insight, I still need to understand it myself.'
Another pause.
'Maybe I should slow down. Try something different. I haven't touched Divination in two years.'
'For the past five years, it's just been constant training. Magic, chakra, over and over again.'
'Maybe… I need a break.'
His thoughts stopped as his name was called in class.
With his intelligence and strength, Fugaku was already one of the top students. But recently, he faced competition from Nawaki Senju.
After class ended, Nawaki walked straight up to him.
"Hey, Fugaku, I want a rematch," Nawaki said loudly, leaning way too close. Spit almost landed on Fugaku's face.
Mikoto couldn't hold back a small laugh.
Fugaku's forehead twitched.
"…Not interested," he said calmly, wiping his face.
In the beginning, Fugaku had accepted every duel. Back then, the fights were close.
Now, not anymore.
He had already surpassed Nawaki, but the guy just refused to accept it and kept challenging him.
Sure, Nawaki had talent, but that was it. He wasn't a genius like Tsunade. At best, he might end up around Asuma's level.
But like Naruto, he just wouldn't quit.
And before Fugaku could react, Nawaki climbed onto the table.
That triggered something.
'Wait… isn't this exactly how that Naruto and Sasuke scene went?'
A bad feeling hit him.
'No. Absolutely not.'
Fugaku immediately jumped back, putting distance between them.
The next second, Nawaki was pushed forward and fell right where Fugaku had been sitting.
Fugaku froze for a moment, then slowly wiped the sweat from his forehead.
'…Was that observation haki?'
He paused.
'No. That's stupid.'
'Still… I need to stay away from this short-lived guy. One day he'll drag me into something ridiculous.'
"You know what," Fugaku said, "we'll fight. Just not now."
Nawaki instantly stood up, eyes lighting up. "Then when?"
"In three years. At graduation."
Fugaku stood up and extended his hand.
"I want you to prepare everything you've got. Train as hard as you can. And when we fight, we go all out."
"A proper one-on-one duel. No holding back."
He looked straight at Nawaki.
"Let's settle it properly in one go."
For a moment, Nawaki just stared.
Then his face lit up.
"I accept!"
He grabbed Fugaku's hand and shook it hard before running off, probably to start training immediately.
The class was silent.
Everyone had heard that.
Only Mikoto seemed to understand what actually happened.
This wasn't about some grand duel.
Fugaku just didn't want to deal with Nawaki right now.
Three years later? That was a future problem.
"You really like making things dramatic," Mikoto said, trying not to laugh.
"You already know why I did that."
"Yeah, but it was still fun to watch."
"You're getting bold," Fugaku said, narrowing his eyes slightly. "Maybe I should bring back the tickle punishment."
Mikoto froze.
Her expression changed instantly.
She still remembered that day.
He had overused Fire Style, messed up his throat, and his voice sounded ridiculous. She laughed at him, and he didn't let that go.
"No. I was joking," she said quickly, taking a step back. "You promised you wouldn't do that again."
Another step.
"Or I won't talk to you anymore."
She pouted, trying to look angry, but it just made her look even cuter.
Fugaku couldn't hold it in and laughed.
"Relax. I won't."
He reached out and poked her cheek.
"But this cute face was worth it."
Mikoto froze again.
"…cute?"
Her face turned red almost instantly as she looked down, completely flustered.
Meanwhile, the rest of the class got to eat first-class dog food, which only made them silently curse Fugaku in their hearts, while the girls of the class did the same for Mikoto.