Kushina?

Mr. Uemura felt a headache coming on. The Third Hokage himself had told him that Kushina's background was special and that he should take extra care of her. But now, Kushina had gone and hit a bunch of kids—practically a third of the class.

"You're lying! You all made fun of me and gave me those awful nicknames!"

Kushina had quickly shed her earlier timid demeanor, transforming into the feisty, red-hot chili pepper she was known for. She was all thorns now—anyone who got too close would get pricked.

"Enough! All of you, shut up!"

Mr. Uemura shot a stern look at the tattletales. He knew exactly which students were the troublemakers. Sure, Kushina was at fault, but they weren't innocent either.

"Takuya, Minato, you two come to the office as well."

Why me? I was just watching the show.

Takuya sighed, standing up alongside Minato, and followed Kushina and the beaten-up students to the teacher's office.

"Takuya, that Kushina girl is really fierce. Since you're sitting next to her, you'd better be careful," Minato whispered as they walked.

"What?"

Takuya, lost in thought, hadn't been paying attention and turned to look at him.

Was I talking too quietly?

Minato blinked in surprise and raised his voice.

"I said, that Kushina girl is really fierce! Since you're her seatmate, you better watch out so you don't get hit!"

"Is that so?"

Takuya stifled a laugh, patting Minato's shoulder with a sympathetic look.

"I think you should worry about yourself. I have a feeling you're the one who's going to get hit."

"Huh?"

Me? Get hit? By who?

Before Minato could fully process Takuya's words, he felt a pair of eyes boring into him. Instinctively, he looked up and shivered.

Kushina had stopped in her tracks, her fists clenched and was glaring at him with a fierce expression. Her long red hair was starting to float—definitely a sign she was about to lose her temper.

"Good luck!"

Takuya quickly slipped away.

"Hey! You traitor!"

Minato felt like crying—he was sure Takuya had just thrown him under the bus.

Why can't I keep my mouth shut? Now I'm in for it!

Kushina shot Minato a threatening look and then turned away with an irritated huff.

In the teacher's office, Takuya summed things up quickly.

"These idiots made fun of Kushina and gave her rude nicknames, so she hit them. That's the gist of it."

"Yeah, that's pretty much it,"

Minato echoed nervously. After already angering Kushina, he didn't dare say anything that might make things worse. The last thing he wanted was to get cornered after school and take a beating.

Mr. Uemura rubbed his temples, trying to ease the headache he felt coming on.

"Takuya, you shouldn't talk about your classmates like that."

"If they're useless and just like to cause trouble, what else would you call them?"

Takuya glanced at the group in the office with a cold, indifferent look.

Everyone he glanced at quickly lowered their heads, too afraid to meet his gaze. None of them dared to argue against being called useless.

"Takuya, you..."

Mr. Uemura sighed in frustration.

If it were anyone else, he might have scolded them, but Takuya had a point. Besides, he wasn't exactly on friendly terms with these classmates either.

The reason? Just like Kushina, he'd been given a nickname—"The Silver-Haired Uchiha Freak."

Takuya had started waiting for them after school, and anyone who dared cross him got a beating. Before long, these students started avoiding him like the plague.

"You and Minato can head back to class now,"

Mr. Uemura said, dismissing them with a wave before turning to Kushina.

"Kushina, this has turned into a pretty big deal today. I think it would be best if you went home and brought a parent back to discuss this. How does that sound?"

Pffft...

Takuya, who was just about to leave with Minato, burst out laughing at the suggestion.

Minato blinked in confusion, unsure of why this was funny. Isn't it normal to call your parents after getting into a fight?

Call a parent?

Who's she supposed to call? Tsunade?

Oh man, if Tsunade gets called to school, that's going to be something!

"Takuya, how about I come over to your place for dinner tonight? I can stop by the market after school to pick up some groceries," Minato suggested, eager to change the subject.

"Sure, whatever you think. I'll handle the rest."

"No problem!"

The two were neighbors and classmates, so they were closer than most. After Takuya had invited Minato over for dinner once, Minato kept trying to come over for meals.

"So, let me get this straight—you got teased by your classmates, so you hit them, and now they want you to bring a parent to school?"

Tsunade grumbled, scratching her tousled blonde hair in irritation. She'd been enjoying a late sleep when Kushina had dragged her out of bed.

Once she was awake enough to understand the situation, her irritation grew.

"Who asked you to bring a parent?"

Tsunade's temper flared instantly.

"I've been getting into fights since I was a kid, and no one ever dared to ask me to bring a parent!"

"Give me a few minutes—I'm going to teach them a lesson!"

Before Mito Uzumaki passed away, she had asked Tsunade to look after Kushina, so there was no way Tsunade was going to let this slide.

Not only did Tsunade think Kushina wasn't in the wrong for hitting those kids, but she also believed they deserved it. It reminded her of a certain perverted troublemaker who always got on her nerves.

After a quick wash that didn't do much to cover up the smell of alcohol, Tsunade stormed to the Ninja Academy with Kushina, kicking the office door open.

Inside, Mr. Uemura was struggling to deal with the angry parents of the beaten students. He was about to yell when the door was suddenly kicked open, but when he saw who it was, his anger vanished.

"Who the hell—oh, um..."

Seeing who had entered, Mr. Uemura quickly jumped up from his chair and offered it to Tsunade.

"Lady Tsunade, welcome."

But Tsunade wasn't in the mood for pleasantries. She shot a cold glare at the confused parents before turning to Mr. Uemura with a smirk.

"So, you're the one who told Kushina to bring a parent?"

"Uh, yes, I did..."

Why didn't I check the calendar before leaving the house today?

"Well, here I am. So, what's the problem? Don't waste my time, I've got a nap to get back to. And as for you all..."

Tsunade leaned back in the chair, crossing her legs, and pointed at the parents who had come to complain.

"Your kids bullied my little sister on her first day, and I haven't even dealt with that yet. If this isn't handled properly, I'll have my sister wait for them at the gate every day after school!"

Even though Tsunade hadn't yet earned the title of one of the Sannin, her fiery temper was well-known throughout Konoha. Combined with her status, she could practically walk on air in the village.

She was also the only one among the future Sannin who dared to openly scold Danzo and the two elders. Not even Jiraiya or Orochimaru would go that far, no matter how angry they got.

"I think I just saw Lady Tsunade!"

Tsunade was a celebrity in Konoha. Being the granddaughter of the First Hokage and officially recognized as the "Princess of Konoha" by the Daimyo made her impossible to miss.

Minato was buzzing with excitement.

Takuya yawned, slumping over his desk as he mumbled,

"What's there to be excited about? Shouldn't you be more worried about your safety? Tsunade is Kushina's guardian, and you just pissed Kushina off. What do you think she'll do to you?"

"..."

Minato's excitement evaporated, his smile freezing.

Please don't see me, please don't see me.

When Kushina came back to class, Minato silently prayed that she would overlook him and just let him be.

Thankfully, while Kushina was still angry, she wasn't in the habit of hitting people without reason.

Though she was annoyed with Minato for saying she had a bad temper, she wasn't planning to corner him after school.

Once school let out, Minato grabbed Takuya and ran.

He didn't want to take any chances of getting caught by Kushina.

Dude, that's your future wife. Could you embarrass yourself any more?

After the fight, Kushina gradually found her place in the class. The kids she had beaten up now gave her a wide berth.

Even Minato kept his distance.

"Takuya, would you like to have lunch with me?"

Kushina hesitated for a while before finally pulling out the oversized bento box she had prepared and inviting Takuya to join her.

Minato had just stood up to head over to Takuya when he saw this and quickly changed direction, leaving the classroom in a hurry. He clearly hadn't forgotten Kushina's fiery temper.

Not only was Kushina strong, but she was also easily the strongest in their grade. The only one who didn't seem to fear her was Takuya.

Minato might have been a genius, but at this point, he was still just an ordinary kid—not yet the fastest man in the ninja world.

At this stage, the best thing Minato could do when faced with Kushina was to steer clear.

"Sorry, I'm not a big fan of rice balls or sashimi."

Glancing at her bento box, Takuya politely declined and grabbed his lunch, heading after Minato.