Changing Their Fates

In the Hokage Office, Hiruzen Sarutobi and Jiraiya stood by the window, watching the three genin leave the Hokage Building and disappear in three different directions into Konoha Village's streets and crowds.

"You're saying Minato used ninjutsu to plow fields for farmers on his way back and earned money along the way, which is why he took several extra days?"

"Yeah. Tsunade took all my money. I couldn't exactly rob the farmers, and Minato happened to come up with a good solution."

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked displeased. "Ninja have their own way of doing things. How can he use ninjutsu to plow fields? Minato is such a promising talent. Don't let him grow crooked by following you."

"Teacher, that's not right. Didn't I turn out fine following you?"

"You turned out crooked because of me? Without me, who knows what kind of person you would have become. Peeping, laziness, doing whatever you please, no ninja discipline at all..."

"Stop, stop, stop!" Jiraiya repeatedly picked at his ears. "Didn't you develop and teach me those advanced peeping techniques? Back when you weren't Hokage yet, who was the one peeping into Konoha Village's Women's Bathhouse with me?"

"Shut up! I'm the Hokage now, not the Hiruzen Sarutobi I used to be!"

"I'm leaving, old man. If you come up with any new techniques, remember to teach me." Jiraiya headed for the door, but suddenly stopped halfway there and said:

"I'm planning to teach Minato more ninjutsu, especially the Mount Myōboku Summoning Technique. Old man, do you have anything to give your grandstudent?"

"Once he becomes a jonin, I'll give him the chance to read Konoha Village's Book of Sealing. He can choose for himself then."

Jiraiya nodded in satisfaction and left the Hokage Office.

Watching Jiraiya disappear through the doorway, Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled faintly.

Although Jiraiya was the least reliable of his disciples, Hiruzen felt the most relaxed whenever he was with him.

Amid the Hokage's countless tedious duties, moments of relaxation like this were rare.

In the village, Minato looked around Konoha Village with curious eyes.

Ordinary villagers were easy to identify. They bore no traces of ninja training.

Off-duty ninja were equally obvious. Even in casual clothes, they habitually watched their surroundings.

There were also many merchants from outside the village who had come to post missions. They wandered around Konoha Village as though sightseeing.

Konoha ninja could not leave the village without permission, but people from the Land of Fire could freely enter and leave Konoha Village.

The Second Ninja World War had ended last year, and the village was rapidly recovering, making it seem full of life.

Minato observed for a long time and thought for a long time.

How could he gain the Power of Reformation while staying in the village?

Exerting a fundamental influence on the ninja world, such as using ninjutsu in farming, had brought him a considerable amount of chakra.

Slightly influencing the fates of important figures in the ninja world brought only a small amount of chakra.

Even mosquito legs were meat. Minato decided to influence the people around him as much as possible.

As he walked along, lost in thought, the corner of his eye caught sight of a ninja with a white ponytail.

"Lord White Fang! Hello! Is this your son? His hair is white too!"

During the Second Ninja World War, Hatake Sakumo had earned the title of Konoha White Fang with his white hair and a Silver-White Chakra Short Sword.

As the village's current Jonin Squad Leader, Hatake Sakumo kept track of the village's important personnel. He recognized the blond child before him as a grandstudent of the Hokage's line.

"Minato Namikaze. Has Jiraiya returned to the village?"

"Teacher returned too." Minato asked, "Lord White Fang, is this your son or daughter? What's their name?"

Even though he knew this was Kakashi, Minato still asked.

"Oh, this is my son, Hatake Kakashi."

"Kakashi? A scarecrow guarding the rice fields? That's a wonderful meaning."

Kakashi meant scarecrow in Japanese.

"Yes. I want Kakashi to become a scarecrow that protects Konoha."

Minato Namikaze nodded repeatedly, impressed by Sakumo's conviction.

A ninja like this should not die because of rumors.

"Goodbye, Lord White Fang."

Hatake Sakumo had an exceptionally keen eye. He could always discern a ninja's level of talent.

Watching Minato Namikaze's retreating back, Hatake Sakumo was deeply surprised.

For someone his age, he was far too strong.

Sakumo could not help turning toward the Hokage Building. The ninja of the Hokage's line were all so powerful.

Originally, the position of Jonin Squad Leader had been intended for Orochimaru of the Hokage's line. However, the ninja clans had a poor opinion of Orochimaru, so in the end, they and the Hokage put forward the Konoha White Fang, whom everyone accepted.

Hatake Sakumo felt pressure from every direction within the village. Rumors had spread that he was the person most likely to become the Fourth Hokage.

These rumors were not only useless to him; they were covert attacks against him. He had no idea who was retreating in order to advance, trying to lure him in.

There was nothing he could do about it except slowly wait for a turning point.

When Minato Namikaze returned home, he found that the window was open.

He was an orphan and lived alone.

Had he forgotten to close the window before leaving, leaving it open for three or four weeks?

He rubbed the tabletop with his fingers, but it was spotless, without a trace of dust.

Puzzled, he went to close the window and searched through the original owner's memories. Who had a key to his home?

Soon, a red-haired girl appeared at the door, anxiously coming to Minato's home to close the window. After cleaning today, she seemed to have forgotten to close it.

"Minato! You're back!"

Facing Kushina Uzumaki as she rushed toward him, Minato Namikaze stood frozen in nervousness, not knowing how to respond with either his hands or feet.

The original owner and Kushina Uzumaki had shared deep feelings since their days at the Ninja Academy.

When ninja from an enemy country had tried to abduct Kushina Uzumaki, the Minato Namikaze of that time had been the first to discover that Kushina was missing and had gone to rescue her.

"Yeah, I'm back."

Kushina hugged Minato, then looked up and saw his trademark sunny smile. She asked:

"Did you run into any battles outside the village? Is it dangerous to carry out missions beyond the village?"

"I didn't run into any battles. Following Teacher Jiraiya wasn't at all... dangerous."

Actually, it had been a little dangerous. Jiraiya got too absorbed in peeping and always exposed himself, making it easy for people to beat him up.

"What a shame. For certain reasons, I can't leave the village. I really want to go outside with you to carry out missions."

As the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Kushina was the village's greatest secret, and she had not yet told Minato.

Minato Namikaze knew, but he said nothing.

The two sat across from each other at the clean dining table, talking about what Minato had seen outside the village.

Minato told her about Guangxia and Princess Tsunade.

Kushina listened intently from across the table, her eyes sparkling.

Yet Minato felt somewhat dazed.

This girl was wonderful and treated Minato very well, but those were the original owner's feelings, not his own. It left him somewhat confused.

In the original story, Kushina died on Nine-Tails Night.

She was another person whose fate needed changing. Minato felt very busy.

To change Kushina's fate, he still needed the Power of Reformation.

"Kushina, my chakra natures are wind and earth, while yours are wind and water. Let's find another ninja with a fire chakra nature and help me develop some ninjutsu."

The best way to build a closer relationship with someone was to ask them for help, then thank them properly.

"Develop ninjutsu? We're both genin. Can we develop ninjutsu?"

"We can. Some ninjutsu that isn't very powerful offensively but has great practical use."

After learning the technique for extracting chakra, Guangxia had extracted chakra within three days, proving that his talent was high. Perhaps he would soon come looking for Minato to answer his questions.

Before Guangxia arrived, Minato wanted to explore more ways to apply ninjutsu to agriculture.

"My good friend Uchiha Mikoto is in the village. After graduating, she went straight to the Konoha Military Police Force. Her chakra nature is fire!"

Minato Namikaze nodded. In the original story, Mikoto and Kushina had been close friends.

With that, the primary chakra natures needed for farming—earth, water, wind, and fire—were all gathered.

It would be great if he had Wood Release, but unfortunately, the First Hokage Chakra Cells were not something he could access yet.