Konoha cat Breeder

Chapter 28: Minato, the New Ally 

"I see!

You've done an impressive amount of research on the 'Will of Fire'! Good! Very good! Excellent!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi repeated the word "good" three times to express his approval.

He knew that Tonari had been training hard, but he never expected him to have taken the time to study The Will of Fire, a book that Sarutobi himself had written.

It was as if Sarutobi had found a kindred spirit, someone who could relate to him. He felt an inexplicable bond, almost as though he had found a friend across generations.

You understand me!

Tonari nodded firmly.

Even though Sarutobi had written The Will of Fire, Tonari could have given a long-winded lecture about it, even without reading the entire book. He had absorbed the key points and committed them to memory.

Sarutobi was surprised at how much Tonari had internalized. Don't underestimate his education or his ability to memorize—he's much sharper than I thought.

Though Sarutobi's writing was long and verbose—something he might have inherited from a certain someone—Tonari had no problem grasping it. This "Will of Fire" is mine now. No one can stop me!

Sarutobi patted Tonari on the shoulder with a smile. "Once you join the Ninja Academy, make sure to study hard and get along with your classmates!"

Then, as he sat back down, he added, "You can go now. When the time comes, I'll send someone to escort you to the academy."

"Okay, thank you, Uncle Hokage," Tonari said with a polite nod, then left the Hokage's office.

Every time Sarutobi heard the word "Uncle," he couldn't shake the feeling of being mocked—though it was unintentional.

He shook his head, trying to dismiss the thought. Focus, he told himself. His smile gradually faded as he instructed, "Continue monitoring him. Report daily on his actions and who he interacts with. We don't need so many people, though—just pull back one of the teams and leave one squad for now."

From the shadows in the corner of the room, two masked ANBU operatives appeared and knelt before Sarutobi.

Neither said a word.

Whatever the task, once an order was given, they would carry it out without hesitation, whether the mission was easy or dangerous—until it was completed or they sacrificed their lives.

"Also, why haven't Orochimaru and the others returned yet?"

When Sarutobi mentioned Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Tsunade, he couldn't help but feel a sense of pride. After all, they were his disciples.

"Orochimaru-sama's report has already been delivered to your desk, Hokage-sama," one of the ANBU captains responded flatly.

Sarutobi looked at his desk and realized a scroll had been placed there. He had been so distracted by the crystal ball earlier that he hadn't noticed it.

"Ah, I got too caught up in the crystal ball," Sarutobi muttered.

"Cough, alright, you may leave now."

The two ANBU operatives nodded and vanished without a trace.

Sarutobi unrolled the scroll and read Orochimaru's brief report, which summarized their current situation. As he read, Sarutobi frowned slightly.

Although the three of them had narrowly survived the battle with Hanzo of the Salamander, gaining the title of the "Legendary Three Ninjas," that fight had been brutal. Hanzo's poison had been particularly devastating, and even with Tsunade's medical expertise, it had taken them a long time to fully recover.

But the real issue wasn't the battle—it was Jiraiya's soft heart. He had decided to stay in the Rain Country for a while to teach orphans, which had delayed their return even further.

"Jiraiya..." Sarutobi rubbed his temple, feeling a bit of frustration.

At least Orochimaru was more reliable...

As Sarutobi's strength began to decline, he had started thinking about who would succeed him as Hokage.

Passing the mantle of Hokage to one of his students was a long-standing tradition.

After earning Sarutobi's approval, Tonari excitedly made his way to his usual training spot in the grove.

The place had changed a lot since he first started training there.

The most noticeable change was the open area in the center, which had been cleared to create a dedicated space for his taijutsu training. There were punching posts, targets for throwing practice, and other training tools.

Tonari had made good progress with his throwing accuracy. While it wasn't perfect yet, he was getting better. He had also nearly perfected his hand seals. His speed still needed work, but at least his ninjutsu no longer failed due to incorrect hand seals.

His next goal was to improve the speed of his hand seals.

But as he entered the grove, he noticed something unexpected—there was someone else there.

A ninja dressed in a white hoodie, with messy blonde hair and a headband, stood in the clearing.

As soon as Tonari spotted the person, they both locked eyes.

The man had bright blue eyes and a friendly smile that gave off a warm, sunny vibe.

Tonari's heart raced. He recognized the man in front of him.

My uncontrollable youth... is it calling to me?

Minato Namikaze!

The "Leaf's Little Sun!"

The future Fourth Hokage of Konoha.

The legendary "Yellow Flash" who would later make the entire ninja world tremble with fear!

He was also Naruto Uzumaki's father.

There were so many ways to describe Minato, but they all spoke to one thing—his exceptional abilities.

"Hello, I'm Minato Namikaze. Is this your training ground?" Minato asked politely.

Tonari quickly realized, based on the ages of people like Jiraiya, that Minato had already graduated from the Ninja Academy. He never expected to run into him here.

At this point, Minato had shown promise but didn't have a powerful backing yet. While he had gained a reputation as a young genius in Konoha, he wasn't yet famous.

Tonari jumped down from the tree and stood in front of Minato, his excitement barely contained.

Among all the characters in the Naruto world, the person who had left the deepest impression on Tonari was Minato—especially the image of him facing death with a smile, and the tragic memory of Itachi Uchiha laughing as he passed away while saying, "My foolish little brother." Now, seeing Minato in person was surreal.

Minato Namikaze... He was just as stunning in person as Tonari had imagined.

Thankfully, just slightly less than me...

Tonari realized that Minato was the first person he had ever met who could match him in looks.

Handsome people should stick together, right? Maybe Jiraiya would be better suited for his team...

Minato noticed Tonari's wide-eyed expression but didn't quite understand what was going on.

Luckily, Tonari quickly composed himself, and his excitement didn't spill over.

Slurp—

"Hello, my name is Tonari. This is indeed my training ground. What brings you here?" Tonari asked, managing to smile.

Minato scratched his head, giving an awkward yet friendly smile.

"I see! Actually, I've been training here too, but I've been busy with missions recently. I didn't expect...

Since this is your training ground now, I'll go somewhere else."

Minato's golden hair remained perfectly in place as he scratched his head.

Tonari couldn't help but feel a little envious.

But right now, the focus wasn't on that.

Tonari quickly waved his hands. "You were here first, so I should be the one to move! But if you don't mind, how about we share the training ground?

Training alone can be boring, but if we train together, it'll definitely be more motivating."

How could Tonari pass up the opportunity to train with someone of Minato's caliber?

The future Fourth Hokage—his training partner. Just the thought of it was exciting.

Minato looked at Tonari, assessing his clothes and the fact that he hadn't graduated from the Academy yet, before smiling.

"Alright, we can share," Minato agreed, after a brief hesitation.

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