Chapter 17: Mikoto's Anger

Swish!

In everyone's eyes, Minato's figure was merely a golden flash before disappearing without a trace.

"Wind Release, Great Breakthrough!" 

Jiraiya acted decisively, releasing the wind release jutsu he had been preparing. Instantly, a powerful gust of wind, as if it had physical substance, swept out from his mouth, far stronger than Uchiha Homura's Fire Ball Jutsu.

Whoosh!

That fiery ball of flames was directly scattered by the strong wind, the fire sparks dispersing like fireflies, though fortunately they had lost their destructive power.

This all happened so quickly that even the chunin-level teachers barely reacted in time.

"Bang!"

As their frozen expressions eased slightly, they turned towards the source of the sound.

Dust rose lightly from the ground. Minato had subdued Uchiha Homura, pinning him to the ground, his fist stopping just inches from the other's face. In his azure eyes was a truly angry expression.

"Uchiha Homura, have you gone mad?" Minato angrily said. He was not enraged that the other had used such a powerful jutsu against him, as this duel was one he had agreed to.

What he could not tolerate was that Uchiha Homura had completely disregarded the safety of their other classmates. 

Although they were still young, with their current abilities, the others could have been seriously injured or even killed.

He glanced sideways and saw Jiraiya, who had suddenly appeared, his expression momentarily stunned. But when he saw the two people at the edge of the fireball had been rescued, the weight on his mind gradually lifted.

The fist stopped just inches from Uchiha Homura's face was tightly clenched, trembling slightly, but ultimately did not strike down.

At this moment, Uchiha Homura's expression was also frozen. What Minato had considered only after releasing the Great Fireball Jutsu, Homura had not even thought about at the time, his mind completely blank and out of control.

He had almost made an irreversible mistake.

"If you still want to fight, I'll oblige, but... our conflict should not involve anyone else." 

Minato stood up, his body swaying slightly. The speed he had just employed had consumed his chakra rather intensely, but he was quickly steadied by a slender white hand reaching out to support him.

It was Kushina.

While the onlookers were still stunned by the battle, Kushina showed no signs of being shaken, concerned only for Minato.

"Are you okay?" Kushina's voice trembled as crystal-like tears welled in her eyes.

Outwardly, her personality was bold and unrestrained, but she still possessed the tenderness of a girl. Kushina could see that Minato had accepted Uchiha Homura's challenge out of provocation.

All of this was to prevent others from harming her, just like last time when Akasaka had verbally insulted her.

Hearing her words, Minato's face instantly reddened as he swiftly avoided Kushina's support.

Kushina blinked in surprise, seeing Minato's flushed face, her expression growing anxious. "Are you hurt? Why is your face so red?"

Minato waved his hand with a smile, "Haha... I'm fine, don't worry."

Kushina's worried look instantly turned skeptical.

Minato temporarily moved away from Kushina and deeply bowed before Shindo Kunio, "I'm sorry, Shindo-sensei. I had promised to handle this properly, but an accident still occurred."

Shindo didn't know what to say, as Minato was not really responsible for what had happened.

"Thank you, Lord Jiraiya."

At this moment, the remaining ninja instructors from the Academy and the two children Jiraiya had rescued were all expressing their gratitude. Among the teachers was Uchiha Homura's homeroom teacher, his expression grave.

Jiraiya was not concerned about their thanks, only frowning as his gaze swept over Minato and the prone Uchiha Homura on the ground.

"I'm sorry," Uchiha Homura said in a hoarse voice, his expression extremely complex.

Jiraiya's gaze softened slightly. Uchiha Homura had taken the initiative to admit his mistake, which set him apart from those Uchiha clan members who habitually abused their clan's reputation.

After all, he was still very young, so the Uchiha clan's way of thinking had not yet taken deep root in his mind.

Minato paused briefly where he stood, then turned slightly to face Uchiha Homura, "You should apologize, but you've got the wrong person. It shouldn't be me."

His expression was also rather complex. So after saying a word to Shindo-sensei and getting his permission, Minato left the training ground on his own.

Kushina and Mikoto, who had just reacted, followed after him.

Neither Minato nor Uchiha Homura mentioned who had won their duel, but the final outcome was not without an answer.

The situation gradually calmed down, but due to Uchiha Homura's actions, the afternoon classes did not proceed as scheduled and were instead changed to self-study.

And one of the people involved, Minato, was not questioned at all. For the entire afternoon, he just sat at his desk, deep in thought, not saying a word.

Many students in the class occasionally glanced his way, but they were not really considering the aftermath of today's incident. They were simply amazed by Minato's abilities.

Not only the level he had demonstrated, but it seemed that in the end, he had even defeated the top student, Uchiha Homura.

As a result, some of Uchiha Homura's admirers switched their allegiance. Minato's looks were originally no worse than Homura's, and in fact, he had a gentler air compared to the Uchiha's sharp features.

But at this moment, Minato had no mind to notice such things. He was thinking about what had been happening to him recently.

He had been acting impulsively far too often, and it all seemed to be connected to Kushina.

Who was the red-haired woman who frequently appeared in his mind, and what was her connection to Kushina?

He could not make out her face clearly, but her long red hair was virtually identical to Kushina's.

Soon, it was time for classes to end. A figure bolted out of the classroom as if fleeing, his expression panicked.

However, just as he stepped out of the classroom door, the Minato who had previously been sitting dazed at his desk now stood before him.

Akasaka was stunned. After witnessing the battle between Minato and Uchiha Homura, he understood that the two were on completely different levels in terms of ability.

He had leaked information about Kushina to Uchiha Homura.

But contrary to his expectations, no punishment came. Minato bowed to him and said, "Akasaka, I went too far before, and I shouldn't have laid hands on you."

Minato had wanted to apologize to him a week earlier, but since Akasaka had not been at the Academy, it got delayed.

"Please don't do anything like that again, no matter what. We're all in the same class, we're comrades. I hope you won't harm others again in the future."

Minato said calmly, and then left while Akasaka's body froze in disbelief.

Gradually, his taut nerves and body relaxed, but at that moment, two figures walking together stopped in front of him.

It was Mikoto and Kushina.

The latter frowned slightly, clearly disliking Akasaka, but she did not immediately turn and leave out of consideration for Mikoto.

"You..." Akasaka had just started to speak when a sudden sharp pain came from his abdomen.

His expression mirrored that of his stunned classmates who had just stepped out of the classroom but stopped, because the person who had struck him was none other than the ever-gentle Mikoto.

Yet Mikoto seemed unbothered by their shocked looks. She glared at Akasaka, anger refusing to leave her pretty face.

"Those who betray their comrades are the worst. Even if Minato doesn't hold it against you, I'll make sure you remember that any actions that harm others will have consequences!"

Mikoto's strike was not light. Although she did not possess the abilities of Uchiha Homura or Minato, she was far stronger than her peers

Akasaka half-crouched in the corridor, crying whether because of severe pain or awakening.

Mikoto, on the other hand, pulled Kushina, and walked away amidst many surprised eyes.

(end of chapter)