Chiba walked through the busy streets of Konoha toward the Ninja Academy.
There was no helping it—his home was too far from the main district. To get to school, he always had to pass through the heart of the village.
He wasn't a masochist. Being stared at or whispered about made his skin crawl, but he had learned to endure it.
When he finally entered the classroom, Chiba quietly went to his usual corner seat.
As always, no one sat in front of him or to his right. No one ever wanted to share a desk with him.
Three years had passed like this. Chiba worked hard, studied seriously, and practiced relentlessly.
If he wanted to change his miserable situation, there was only one path—to become stronger.
When he'd first enrolled and learned about chakra refinement, he had tried it immediately.
To his surprise, he succeeded in just half a day. Ordinary students took one or two days to do it.
Still, there was one person whose talent shone even brighter—Namikaze Minato, a civilian-born prodigy.
In only three years, Minato had surpassed the heirs of the Uchiha, Hyuga, and Nara clans to become the Academy's top student.
With his warm smile and calm presence, Minato was the perfect model student—handsome, popular, and universally admired.
Chiba, though equally striking in appearance, was treated like a shadow no one wanted to acknowledge.
Resting his chin on his arms, he waited for class to begin.
There wasn't much he could do now except attend school and wait—for Uzumaki Kushina to appear.
As thoughts spun in his mind, Chiba began to piece things together.
Having seen through the hypocrisy of Konoha, he started analyzing Kushina's strange history.
Years ago, when Minato and Kushina were still Genin, Kushina had been kidnapped by three ninjas from the Hidden Cloud. They were all at least special jōnin level.
When she had nearly reached the border and lost hope, Minato had tracked her down through a secret mark and miraculously rescued her. A Genin defeating three Cloud elites—impossible.
Even more suspicious, Konoha hadn't detected a single one of the kidnappers until it was too late.
Were the village's sensory units sleeping?
Chiba's mind raced through possibilities until one chilling thought struck him—the Nine-Tails' vessel.
At that time, Kushina was not yet the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki. Uzumaki Mito, the First Hokage's wife and the first Jinchūriki, was nearing death.
Konoha, desperate to maintain its power balance, had brought Kushina—an Uzumaki orphan—to the village to inherit the burden. She never had a choice.
In her memories, Kushina's loneliness and suffocation were unbearable. Though she hated it, she had to accept her fate.
Part of that acceptance came from her bond with Minato Namikaze. She loved him deeply, and staying in Konoha meant staying with him.
But what if that bond had been engineered?
Perhaps Konoha's elders had orchestrated the entire "rescue" to tie Kushina's emotions to the village—and to Minato.
By nurturing her affection for the young hero who "saved" her, they could ensure her loyalty and make her willingly accept the role of the Nine-Tails' host.
If Chiba's guess was right, then Kushina had been used as a tool from the very beginning—and so had Minato.
As that realization sank in, Minato turned and caught Chiba staring. Their eyes met briefly.
Chiba immediately looked away, pretending to be distracted.
Minato hesitated for a moment, then smiled faintly and went back to his conversation.
Chiba's heart pounded. If his suspicions were true, then Konoha was far darker than he had ever imagined.
Even Minato—the future Fourth Hokage—might be nothing more than a pawn.
Taking a slow breath, Chiba calmed himself. Whether these theories were right or wrong didn't matter. He would leave Konoha someday anyway. What mattered now was power.
The Third Great Ninja War was coming—a storm that would decide everything.
Without strength, he wouldn't even survive long enough to prove his suspicions.
Just then, the classroom door slid open.
Their homeroom teacher, Hayabusa Masada, stepped inside. And behind him—
A small, red-haired girl.
Chiba's eyes brightened instantly. After three years of waiting, she was finally here.
Uzumaki Kushina.
Standing shyly beside the teacher, Kushina bowed slightly.
Masada-sensei introduced her with a smile. "Everyone, this is our new transfer student—"
Before he could finish, Kushina blurted out nervously, "I'm Uzumaki Kushina, dattebayo!"
She clapped a hand over her mouth, blushing. The nervous tick had slipped out again.
Chiba couldn't help thinking she was cute.
But the class erupted into laughter.
"Look at that red hair!"
"She talks so weird."
"Is she even from around here?"
Kushina's shoulders stiffened. She touched her crimson hair self-consciously, her small hands trembling.
"Alright, that's enough!" Masada barked. "Quiet down!"
Kushina bit her lip, fists clenched tight. Then, with a sudden burst of fire, she shouted,
"I'll show you all! I'm going to be the first female Hokage of this village!"
The room went silent. Everyone stared at her in disbelief.
Then Minato stood up, smiling kindly. "That's amazing. I want to be a Hokage the villagers can be proud of too."
Kushina pouted, eyeing him suspiciously. "You? You don't look like Hokage material at all."
Masada chuckled awkwardly, scanning the room for a free seat. Most were taken—except around Chiba.
He frowned slightly, annoyance flickering in his eyes. "Well, there's nowhere else. Sit over there for now."
Kushina followed his gaze. The space around Chiba was empty, coldly isolated.
She noticed the way other students snickered as she walked past.
Her lips pressed together in defiance. Head held high, she stomped toward Chiba's desk and dropped into the seat beside him.
And for the first time in years, Chiba didn't feel completely alone.