Roy casually twirled his sword, creating a flourish of blade light that plunged into the ground, leaving behind small, deep holes from which underground water seeped out. He said with amazement, "Ama no Murakumo... Its name is Ama no Murakumo!"
Under the sky, above the clouds, with only the sun hanging high,
It truly is a... "very good name."
Minato Namikaze reversed his grip to tuck his kunai at his waist, smiling as he extended his right hand to Roy: "Nice to meet you, I'm your team leader this time, Minato Namikaze."
"Uchiha Jin," Roy sheathed his lightsaber and reached out to shake hands with Minato Namikaze.
One creating a light nature transformation, the other a warm sun-like glow... the image of the two, one large and one small, reflected in the age-weathered eyes of Hiruzen Sarutobi,
The old man seemed to finally remember his pipe, picked it up, took a drag with a 'clack,' disappearing behind a cloud of smoke, making his face hard to discern....
"How wonderful... young people brimming with radiance...." Moments later, a sigh echoed through the Hokage's office....
Perhaps reminiscing about his own youthful days or caught in turbulent emotions, finding it hard to remain calm... After finishing the remaining tobacco, Hiruzen Sarutobi stood up, donned his ceremonial robe and Hokage hat, and stepped out.....
"Creak...." The Hokage office door opened and closed,
Footsteps echoed past the Hokage building, through the bustling streets outside, amidst greetings from Konoha villagers and ninjas, inevitably spreading towards... the South Forest.....
At that moment, Roy noticed the sneaky gaze disappear and withdrew his hand from Minato Namikaze's grasp without changing expression.
Turning his head slightly, he noticed Rin Nohara walking towards him,
She held onto the hem of her clothes, lowered her eyelids, and muttered softly, "Thank you."
Her usual sweet and gentle demeanor was a bit out of place in Roy's presence... seemingly flustered, not knowing what to do....
'What's happening to me?'
"Rin Nohara, you should lift your head and look at him boldly......"
Feeling her cheeks burning, the girl seemed unable... to snap out of the 'light transformation.' Seeing this,
Roy understood and nodded slightly, saying, "No need to thank me,"
The boy's gaze slipped past Rin Nohara and towards a winded Kakashi and Obito, who had finally arrived, leaning on their knees, breathing heavily, "Because I caused everyone to take the blame, I should bear the responsibility."
Beside him, Minato Namikaze crossed his arms, watching as Kakashi and Obito stepped up, nodding imperceptibly.....
What is a comrade, what is a bond... this is it,
"Whoosh~" A gust of wind blew, tossing the man's blonde hair, Minato Namikaze clapped his hands, saying, "Alright, let's begin today's training task."
Flipping his hand, he pulled a bell from his clothes.
"Ding ding dang dang...."
The bell swayed in the wind, creating a crisp ringing sound....
Noticing this, Roy's thoughts surged, flashing to the future where Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura, as a trio, were first tasked to snatch the bell from Kakashi's hand. Glancing at Kakashi standing beside him, he thought... this is an old tradition in Konoha, seeing as it might trace back to the Third, or even to Tobirama Senju's head, although... the bell was out, the expected formation didn't appear....
Minato Namikaze instructed Kakashi, Obito, and Rin to pair up and spar, while he himself stood before Roy with the bell in hand, smiling as he said, "To be honest, before you arrived, I was planning to have you team up with Kakashi and the others to snatch this bell from my hand. However, "
Having seen Roy demonstrate various skills while carrying logs through the forest... Minato Namikaze immediately changed his mind, looking seriously at Roy, he said, "I think, with your strength, you shouldn't need their help."
"Is that a compliment?"
"Of course," Minato Namikaze said solemnly, "From the moment I announce the start, please treat me as an enemy."
"Enemy," Roy muttered the word, straightening his back, and with it, his imposing vibe underwent an earth-shattering change!
"Boom!" A powerful and unmatched Nen spread out from the boy as the center, crushing towards the surrounding area!
In the distance, just a training field away from Roy and Minato Namikaze, Kakashi fought Obito and Rin alone, staggering from the impact of the Nen, nearly crashing into Obito's upward swinging punch, looking back in astonishment.....
At the center of the training field, Roy's black hair flew wildly as if he emerged from the sun, his mouth releasing the 'scorching truth,' his gaze firmly locked on Minato Namikaze, calmly saying, "I have always treated my enemies with the intent to kill, so, "
"Teacher, are you sure you're serious?"
Minato Namikaze's blonde hair was blown back, facing the powerful practice, thinking: "Such strong chakra!"
Instead of retreating, he advanced, smiling easily, "Of course!"
The man backhanded his kunai, twirling it deftly through his fingers before grasping it firmly, narrowing his eyes at Roy as he said, "You've already called me teacher, if I don't understand your strength, I might make the wrong judgement during a mission."
"Indeed,"
Understanding oneself and the enemy, one can fight a hundred battles without loss, yet... Roy glanced towards a certain direction behind him, saying, "The teacher is right, but I think it's necessary to have a witness, should anyone get hurt, there should be an explanation."
"Tap... tap....." Footsteps sounded,
Following Roy's gaze, Minato Namikaze looked in the direction Roy was looking....
A figure clad in a white ceremonial robe emerged from a corner of the dense forest, followed by the familiar Hokage hat, and beneath it, a face weathered with age....
"The Third?!" Minato Namikaze was taken aback, looking again,
Hiruzen Sarutobi stepped out from the dense forest, glanced at him and Roy, saying with a smile, "I didn't come to be a witness."
"Whether it's the back of the hand or the palm, I wouldn't want to see either hurt...."
The current Hokage said... stepping into the range of the practice, facing Roy's Nen, sensing the blend of 'light' and 'heat', 'attraction' and 'repulsion', 'wind and fire' and 'lightning', 'water flow' and 'rock', stopping in his tracks, he locked onto Roy, saying, "This isn't the 'Chakra Refining Technique' the school teaches!"
[Chakra Refining Technique]: Derived from 'physical strength', a product processed through 'physical strength'... compared to the Four Major Principles of 'Nen', the so-called mix of 'physical energy' and 'spiritual energy' is inevitably still a bit shallow....
Roy looked calmly at Hiruzen Sarutobi, "School doesn't teach early graduation either."
Hiruzen Sarutobi: "...."
His breathing paused,
He glared helplessly at Roy, "Look at your own strength, does it make sense to stay at school?"
Being able to match blades with a spearhead, yet claiming to be a student who hasn't graduated from ninja school... Surely, if the other major ninja villages knew, they would suspect Konoha of boasting, trying to strike fear into others!
"I'm not even seven yet." Roy replied nonchalantly, "I haven't reached graduation age, is there anything wrong with that?"
Seven years old... If Roy hadn't mentioned it, it would be fine, but upon mentioning it... Hiruzen Sarutobi, Minato Namikaze, and even Kakashi, Obito, Rin, forced to stop nearby, all fell silent.
Even though Kakashi graduated from ninja school at six, but looking at his age, creating his own jutsu, casting techniques without hand signs, casually handling time-space ninjutsu... Kakashi wished his mask was longer, enough to cover his whole face, saving... the embarrassment of facing others......
Indeed, he's only seven... That's Hiruzen Sarutobi,
Indeed, he's only seven... That's Minato Namikaze.....
At this moment, the South Forest was enveloped in an eerie silence, occasionally a bird would cut through the sky, a chirping sound breaking the immersion.....
Hiruzen Sarutobi came back to his senses, waved Roy over, "Let's talk after the training, kid... You come with me...."