The training ground was quiet, save for the rhythmic thud of kunai hitting wood. The air smelled of damp earth and pine needles. Minato Namikaze was already there, his movements a blur of yellow. But he wasn't alone.
Leaning against a nearby tree was a girl with striking purple hair tied in a high ponytail—Anko Mitarashi, though younger and more energetic, was watching Minato with a mix of awe and frustration. Beside her sat a boy with a bored expression, his head resting on his hand: Shikaku Nara.
"You're late, Sosuke!" Anko shouted, waving a half-eaten dango stick. "Minato has already done five hundred laps around the targets!"
Aizen approached with his usual calm demeanor, a gentle smile playing on his lips. "My apologies, Anko-san. I got caught up in a conversation with the Academy librarian. There are so many fascinating records about the founding of the Hidden Leaf."
Shikaku opened one eye, looking at Aizen. "Books again? Man, just watching you two be 'prodigies' is a drag. Why can't we just nap?"
"Because some of us actually want to be Great Shinobi, Shikaku!" Anko snapped, then turned to Aizen. "Come on, show us that 'steady form' Minato keeps talking about."
Minato stopped his training, wiping sweat from his brow. "Glad you could make it, Sosuke. I was just telling them—your chakra control is incredibly precise. I wanted to show you the basic blueprint for a teleportation formula I've been thinking about. It's... messy, though."
Aizen stepped closer, his eyes narrowing slightly behind his glasses. The early stages of the Hiraishin, he realized. Impressive for a child. But it lacks elegance.
"Let's see it, Minato-kun," Aizen said softly.
As Minato spread a scroll on the grass, Aizen felt the presence of someone else. High above in the trees, a masked figure watched them. Anbu. Specifically, someone under the direct command of the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi. Aizen didn't look up, but he felt the man's gaze like a physical weight.
"Here," Minato pointed at a complex series of seals. "The transition from point A to point B requires a massive burst of chakra, but I can't seem to stabilize the landing."
Aizen knelt down, his finger hovering just above the ink. "Perhaps," he began, his voice dropping to a hypnotic frequency, "you are looking at the space between points as a void to be crossed. Think of it instead as a curtain to be folded. If you adjust this seal—the 'Ri' character—to act as a weight rather than a push..."
As Aizen spoke, he didn't just explain theory. He allowed a microscopic amount of his own chakra to bleed into the air. To the others, it felt like a sudden, refreshing breeze. But to Minato, it felt like a door opening in his mind.
"Wait..." Minato's eyes widened. "If I do that... the friction is gone. Sosuke, how did you—?"
"I just read it in an old Uzumaki text this morning," Aizen lied smoothly, his smile never wavering. "A lucky find."
"You're a genius in a different way, Sosuke," Minato said, genuinely impressed.
Suddenly, a loud poof of smoke interrupted them. A small, white pug with a blue vest appeared. "Message for the blonde kid and the glasses kid," the dog barked. It was Pakkon, Sakumo Hatake's summon. "Lord Hokage wants you at the administrative building. Something about a 'special evaluation' mission."
Anko groaned. "What?! Why just them? What about me?"
Shikaku stood up, stretching. "Because they're the ones making the village look good, Anko. Let's go. I'm hungry."
As they walked toward the Hokage's office, Aizen walked half a step behind Minato. He looked at the boy's back—the bright, golden hair, the confident stride.
The Hokage is watching us, Aizen mused. He sees a future hero in Minato. And in me, he sees the perfect advisor. The loyal shadow. How little they understand. A shadow is only as strong as the light that casts it, and soon, I will decide when the sun sets on this village.
Passing through the crowded streets, they saw Fugaku Uchiha leading a squad of Police Force members. The Uchiha leader's gaze was cold, lingering on the two Academy stars. Aizen offered a polite nod. Fugaku ignored him, but Aizen caught the flicker of insecurity in the man's eyes.
The Uchiha... prideful, emotional, and so easily manipulated, Aizen thought. They will be excellent kindling for the fire I intend to start.