Naruto: Flash Reborn — Minato’s Second Life

After spending the night resting in a small town within the Land of Hot Springs, the group set off back toward Konoha.

Unlike their rushed journey coming here, they now traveled at a normal pace.

"Finally going home!"

In the evening, the gates of Konoha finally appeared before the four of them. Minato couldn't help but exclaim with heartfelt emotion. After being away for such a long mission, he'd never missed the village this much. He was already eager to see Kushina again.

But calculating the time, even after tonight, there was still one more day before the ten-day holiday at the Ninja Academy ended.

That worked out fine anyway—he could use this time to rest properly.

There was, however, something else he needed to do first.

"All right, you two head home and get some rest. Junko and I will handle reporting the mission."

Once inside the village, Sakumo addressed Minato and Yan Uchiha. By then, he had already reclaimed both of their Leaf forehead protectors.

They had only temporarily assumed the rank of Genin for this mission; they did not yet hold official Genin status. Therefore, they were not involved in mission handover or debriefing.

"Tch," Yan Uchiha scoffed.

Minato's expression changed as he looked at Sakumo. "Senior Sakumo, there's something I need to discuss with the Third Hokage. Could I go with you?"

Before the Chakra Aptitude Test, he had met with the Third once, requesting permission to serve as Kushina's personal guard. The latter had given him only a vague answer.

With one event following another, Minato took it as a test from the Third—his way of assessing Minato's worthiness.

Now that he had returned from the mission in the Land of Hot Springs, he wanted confirmation whether he had met the required standard.

If successful, Kushina's expression of quiet sadness would fade—just a little. Being with him gave her a bit more freedom.

Hearing this, Sakumo replied, "I cannot take you directly to meet the Third Hokage without permission, but I can ask his opinion and see if he is willing to meet you."

This was the rule, so Minato had no choice but to wait for Sakumo's reply.

"I'll give you an answer tomorrow morning."

With that, Sakumo turned his gaze to Junko Watanabe, who gave a slight nod. In almost an instant, both of them vanished.

Yan glanced at Minato. His expression over the past few days had gradually returned to what it used to be while attending the Ninja Academy.

"See you at school then!" Minato waved goodbye. Yan, however, ignored him and walked away toward the outskirts of the village.

Due to their duties in patrol and security, the Uchiha clan had been stationed near the Konoha prison, out on the village's outskirts. This arrangement seemed to have started since the time of the Second Hokage.

After Yan left, Minato stood there awkwardly for a moment, twitching his lips slightly, before leaving directly.

Once the four went their separate ways, the Leaf ninja on guard duty sighed wistfully. "The kid who died two days ago mustn't have been much older than them..."

His sigh caught the attention of another ninja assigned to the escort mission. The latter nudged his arm and whispered, "You'd better watch your mouth next time."

The first ninja gave a slight nod before ending the conversation.

...

Back home, staring at the empty room, Minato found his inner emotions more unsettled than usual.

Before, he had disliked returning home alone.

But after truly witnessing life and death firsthand, he realized how precious it was just to come back alive.

When someone dies, everything ends—there's no emotion left, nothing at all.

First, he went to his parents' room and silently wished them peace in the afterlife.

Afterward, Minato thoroughly cleaned himself and changed into fresh clothes.

He placed the keepsake hairpin before him, a soft smile slowly spreading across his still-youthful face.

Yet suddenly, an unprecedented exhaustion seemed to surge from deep within his soul.

Instantly, all strength drained from his body. Fatigue gradually robbed him of consciousness, and right where he stood, he collapsed into a deep sleep.

[Roar!]

At that moment, a chilling roar echoed outward as if from within Minato's body—but it weakened rapidly until finally fading into silence.

...

In Konoha, the Uchiha clan.

"Whoosh."

Within this prestigious Konoha family, a thin figure pushed open a door and stepped quietly outside.

Through the narrow crack of the half-shut door, one could glimpse a stern-faced man inside—his expression seemingly frozen in unyielding seriousness.

Yan Uchiha exited the room and shut the door tightly behind him before turning and walking away.

He leapt onto the roof tiles. Out on Konoha's outskirts where only Uchiha families lived, there were few structures to block the moonlight streaming down in brilliant clarity.

His face remained heavy with thought. In the final moments of the mission, he seemed once again to have fallen behind Minato Namikaze.

His own reckless judgment had led to Junko Watanabe's injury, and ultimately it was that guy's technique that subdued Tachiyama Shinsaburo.

As he reflected carefully now, the difference between himself and Minato wasn't about raw power.

It came down to tactical intuition—an ability not simply acquired through study, but forged through repeated exposure to real combat.

This was his very first mission; that guy had also just completed his first mission. And yet, the gap between them was significant.

The night deepened as Yan continued pondering.

Suddenly, a figure much thinner than himself appeared right before him.

She looked toward him as well, and the two locked eyes.

"Uchiha Mikoto?"

Yan Uchiha blinked in surprise. The family discipline was strict—children should've been in bed hours ago. He himself had returned late only because of the mission.

Moreover, Mikoto hadn't come from the direction of her residence, but rather from the main entrance of the Uchiha district.

In his memory, Mikoto Uchiha had always been a very neat girl. Yet although she wasn't exactly dirty right now, her appearance was noticeably disheveled.

More importantly, a trace of travel-worn exhaustion lingered between her eyebrows—just like how he looked after returning to the clan recently.

Likewise, Mikoto felt puzzled by Yan Uchiha's presence here.

But she didn't press the matter further. Deep within her eyes, there seemed to be a new emotion taking root—one Yan had never seen in her before.

Mikoto turned away and dashed toward her home.

That expression felt oddly familiar to Yan Uchiha. He suddenly recalled.

When completing this mission and personally killing his first person, the exact same feeling of detachment had appeared in his own eyes.

...

...

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