It was Konoha Year 63 (the timeline of the Book of Formation, three years later than the Book of Those Who Came Before).
At thirty-six, he was at the very peak of a ninja's life.
Having served as the Fourth Hokage for exactly thirteen years, Minato was now the father of three children.
Both physically and mentally, he was in the truest sense at the height of his powers.
Rumor had it that his strength as Hokage had come infinitely close to that of the First Hokage, Hashirama, though no one knew whether that was an exaggeration.
His long golden hair was braided into three plaits, one hanging down his back from the back of his head, while the other two fell over his shoulders from his temples.
His features remained handsome and youthful. If time had left anything on his face, it was likely the naturally imposing aura that had settled between his brows after years in a position of authority.
On a bright, sunny afternoon, Minato received Team 7 in his office—the team led by Jonin instructor Kakashi Hatake and composed of three Genin, who had returned triumphantly from a C-rank mission in the Land of Waves.
The three Genin were Namikaze Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke, and Uzumaki Kaede.
Minato had his own selfish reasons for placing these three in one team and putting them under the leadership of Kakashi, his most trusted disciple.
Naruto and Kaede were both his children, while Sasuke was the youngest son of Fugaku, the current Uchiha clan head, whose relationship with Konoha was as close as newlyweds on their honeymoon.
But that favoritism could not be displayed openly. To avoid giving people something to talk about, the adaptable Minato... proposed forming Konoha's ultra-elite class.
That was, to break away from the traditional combination