Recognizing a Younger Brother

"I'm home."

Uzumaki Mito called out as she entered the house, her gaze fixed on Hyuga Shinichi. Upon hearing Hyuga Shinichi reply, "I'm home," Mito smiled kindly and patted his head.

"Welcome home, Grandma. Why are you back so late today? Eh? Isn't this Shinichi? Why did you take the day off from school?"

It was Nawaki who came out to greet them; Tsunade was away from the village on a mission.

"Well, I have taken Shinichi as my apprentice. From now on, he will be living with us."

"Hm? Hmm! Ah?"

Seeing Nawaki's expression shift from confusion to shock and finally to bewilderment, Hyuga Shinichi immediately played along, putting on a comically wounded expression.

"Nawaki, what kind of look is that? Are you unhappy that I'm staying at your house? Fine, I don't want to ruin the atmosphere of this home because of me. I'll leave right now, sob sob."

"Eh? What are you talking about? Come back!"

Hearing this and seeing Hyuga Shinichi turn to leave, Nawaki didn't even stop to consider if it was an act; he immediately rushed over to grab him and prevent him from leaving.

"Alright, both of you stop messing around. Don't disturb the neighbors. Nawaki, is it alright if Shinichi sleeps with you tonight?"

"No problem! I've always wanted them to stay over and hang out. This is my first time sleeping in the same room as a friend; just thinking about it makes me excited."

Previously, everyone had been reluctant to cause trouble for Nawaki's family, so no one had ever stayed over.

"Very well. Shinichi, that's fine with you, right? I'll have someone organize your room tomorrow; it's too late tonight."

"No problem, anything works for me."

"Good. Both of you, wash up and go to sleep early. Don't stay up too late. Shinichi, you need to wake up early tomorrow morning; your training starts then."

"Grandma, can I join too?"

"Only if you can actually manage to wake up."

Nawaki wasn't happy to hear that and threw an arm around Hyuga Shinichi's shoulder.

"With Shinichi here, I'll definitely be able to wake up, right Shinichi?"

"I don't know."

After saying that, Hyuga Shinichi pulled away from Nawaki and walked into the house to put his luggage away.

"Hey, Shinichi, don't go! Oh, right, let's take a bath together!"

Life continued with school during the day and training with Mito after returning home. However, the focus of the training remained on Hyuga Shinichi, while Nawaki underwent standard cultivation.

Time slipped away in the blink of an eye. Four years later.

It was now the 32nd year of Konoha. Hyuga Shinichi was seven years old, standing at exactly 1.3 meters tall—much taller than his peers. He wore a green robe, his long, jet-black hair reaching his shoulders, tied up high with a hairpin, with a few strands left framing his face.

His appearance had matured from the childishness of the past into a handsome, dashing look, exuding an air of elegance and a faint, noble aura.

At this moment, Hyuga Shinichi had let his green robe fall to his waist, leaving his upper body bare. With his eyes closed, he stood on the surface of the water, back turned to the waterfall, holding the chakra sword he had commissioned a few years prior.

The design of the chakra sword was identical to the Taiji Sword from his previous life; he had drawn the general shape from memory and had a craftsman forge it.

It was not a flexible blade, but a rigid one, consuming the entire block of chakra metal. Hyuga Shinichi had named it the "Listen-to-Wind Sword."

Suddenly, Hyuga Shinichi opened his eyes, revealing his snow-white irises, and turned to swing the blade.

"Wind-Riding Sword Technique: Wind-Cutting Slash!"

A cyan-green slash formed by wind-attribute chakra flew toward the waterfall.

BOOM!

The Wind-Cutting Slash sliced the waterfall clean in two. The momentum of the strike remained undiminished, carving a shallow mark into the rock wall behind the water.

Had a keen observer been present, they would have noticed many such marks on the rock wall where the waterfall had been severed.

"Hah, the force of the slash could still be improved."

Just as he was about to sheath his sword and get dressed, a young boy with yellow hair emerged from the bushes nearby.

"That was amazing."

Seeing Hyuga Shinichi look toward him, the yellow-haired boy realized he had been spotted.

He seemed to have realized he had interrupted someone's training.

"Sorry, my name is Namikaze Minato. Your technique was so incredible that I got distracted. I didn't mean to disturb you."

Hyuga Shinichi had already guessed the boy's identity from his appearance, and hearing his name confirmed it was indeed Namikaze Minato.

In his previous life, Hyuga Shinichi had been a huge fan of this character, and he never expected to meet him here.

Namikaze Minato was born in the 27th year of Konoha, making him only about five years old. Because of his fondness for the character, Hyuga Shinichi spoke to him in a gentle tone.

"I'm Hyuga Shinichi. By the way, shouldn't you be in school right now? Why are you here all by yourself?"

"Ah? Are you that Hyuga Shinichi who entered the Ninja Academy before age three, graduated at four, passed the Chunin Exams at five, and is rumored to be becoming a Special Jonin at seven?"

(The Bing no Sho mentions that the ranks of a ninja from childhood are: Academy Student, Genin, Chunin, Special Jonin, and Jonin, with Jonin being promoted from Special Jonin after selection.)

Because Hyuga Shinichi had graduated early at four, and Namikaze Minato's generation generally didn't enter the academy until age four, Hyuga Shinichi was already six by the time they started. Since he had become a Chunin at five and was constantly out on missions, those who enrolled later never saw him, though they had all heard the legends circulating about him in school.

In truth, Hyuga Shinichi did not particularly enjoy others talking about his exploits. Although they were all facts, the sheer embarrassment was enough to make him want to dig a three-bedroom apartment into the ground with his toes.

Seeing Namikaze Minato looking at him with a face full of admiration, Hyuga Shinichi found it difficult to shatter the lofty image he held in the boy's mind. After a brief shudder, he placed his hands on his hips and said, "Yes, that's right, it was me."

"So amazing!"

"Right, that's that. You still haven't answered my question. Aren't you supposed to be at school today? Why are you here all by yourself?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I was just a bit too excited. I'm not in a very good mood today, so I took leave to come out and clear my head."

Later, the two sat by the waterfall, and Namikaze Minato recounted the reason for his distress to Hyuga Shinichi.

It turned out that Namikaze Minato's parents were ordinary people who ran a small business. Not long ago, they had planned to follow a caravan outside the village to see if they could procure any goods to bring back and sell. On the road, however, they were attacked by a group of bandits led by a rogue ninja with the strength of a Jonin.

The few Chunin guarding the caravan were naturally no match for a Jonin and were easily suppressed and killed.

It was only later that a Jonin-led squad on a mission to suppress bandits discovered what had happened. After completing their mission and relaying the intelligence back to Konoha, the villagers who, like Minato, had been waiting for their families to return, learned that their loved ones had all been slaughtered by the bandits. Namikaze Minato had become an orphan.

(I am creating an original backstory for Minato here, as Minato is a genius who emerged from civilian ninja roots, so his parents were also Konoha civilians.)

After finishing his story, Namikaze Minato stared at the distant waterfall. Although he wanted to maintain a good image in front of someone he admired, tears still flowed down his face uncontrollably.

Having also lost his parents at a young age, Hyuga Shinichi understood this feeling all too well. Although he had not experienced familial affection like Namikaze Minato had, he could feel the pain brought about by the departure of loved ones even more deeply.

Hyuga Shinichi reached out and patted the head of Namikaze Minato, who was hugging his knees and sobbing. He shared his own experiences, and as Namikaze Minato listened, he gradually lifted his head to look at Hyuga Shinichi.

"So, your parents certainly wouldn't want to see you this sad and heartbroken. You must live on well and become a ninja capable of protecting what you cherish. If you don't mind, why don't you acknowledge me as your older brother? We seem to get along quite well."

Hyuga Shinichi had no intention of taking advantage of the future "Yellow Flash" and "Fourth Hokage." For all these years, he had never treated the people of this world as fictional characters from a manga; they were all living, breathing human beings.

He himself was a living existence in this world, having long since become a part of it.

Hyuga Shinichi simply felt that he and Namikaze Minato shared a similar fate, and he wanted to provide him with the warmth of a "home" once again.