The classroom at the Ninja Academy was completely packed, with students from three different classes squeezed into one room.
It made the room feel very cramped.
At that moment, Gin walked in, looking completely exhausted.
"Over here!" Kushina waved her hand.
Namikaze Minato and Hyuga Kiyoshi were already sitting down, having saved a seat just for him.
It was thanks to the fiery Kushina — after all, nobody dared to compete with her for a seat.
Gin slumped into the chair, resting his head on the desk and burying his face in his arms.
"Why do you always look so tired every time you're at school?" Kushina asked, puzzled.
Uchiha Gin rarely attended class, but every time he showed up, he looked utterly drained.
Gin lifted his head and glanced at the three of them, the dark circles under his eyes clearly visible.
"I had a sparring match two days ago, and I still haven't recovered," he said.
When Might Duy opened the Fifth Gate, Gin really couldn't withstand it.
But this time was better than the first — he lasted a few dozen seconds longer.
A small victory, worth celebrating.
Unfortunately, his body had suffered serious damage, and even after two days, he hadn't fully healed.
Of course, part of the reason was that his shadow clones had been continuously training and learning ninjutsu without rest.
"Who was it?!" Kushina asked, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
"None of your business," Gin rolled his eyes. Judging by Kushina's look, he knew she was up to no good.
"Tch, like I even care," Kushina pouted and turned away, pretending not to be interested.
Just as Gin was drifting into sleep, he felt someone tug at the corner of his sleeve. He looked up and saw Minato giving him a helpless smile.
Next to him, Kushina had turned her head away stubbornly.
Gin lowered his head back down. Since she didn't want to know, he wouldn't say. Let her stew.
Minato shrugged toward Kushina, signaling that he couldn't help.
Kushina clenched her fists silently, gritting her teeth but saying nothing.
Caught between the two of them, Minato cast a desperate look at Hyuga Kiyoshi.
But Kiyoshi simply turned his head away too.
Minato sighed heavily.
Gin ignored the complicated drama between his classmates. The noisy chatter in the classroom acted like a lullaby, slowly lulling him into deeper sleep.
Maybe it was the classroom itself — some people just slept especially well there.
In his haze, he vaguely heard names being called, summoning students out of the room.
Until he heard a familiar voice.
"Namikaze Minato... Uzumaki Kushina... Uchiha Gin! I'll be your squad leader."
"Huh!?" Gin snapped awake, staring at the man standing at the classroom door.
Jiraiya!!
He looked around the room and realized that only he, Kushina, and Minato were left.
Jiraiya stood there, smiling brightly at the startled Gin.
"Surprised? Excited?"
Gin wiped the sweat off his forehead and gave a strange, unreadable smile.
"More like horrified," he muttered.
It seemed the entire timeline of the Naruto world had already shifted. Although he knew that his butterfly wings would eventually alter history, he didn't expect it to happen so soon.
The biggest shock: Kushina becoming Jiraiya's disciple.
In the original timeline, Kushina wasn't particularly strong — apart from her Uzumaki clan's sealing techniques and the Nine-Tails' power, she didn't have many standout skills.
That was because after graduating from the Academy, she hadn't met a good mentor.
But if she became Jiraiya's student, everything would change.
Still… why had things turned out like this?
"I'm sure you all know who I am," Jiraiya said proudly, standing at the podium with his chest puffed out.
Kushina: "Pervert."
Minato: "Unreliable Jonin."
Gin: "Heh."
Jiraiya missed a step and stumbled to the floor.
Apparently, his reputation among the students was already in ruins.
Standing up and dusting himself off, he continued, pretending nothing had happened.
"You all seem to have a big misunderstanding about me. Let me reintroduce myself properly," he said.
Without waiting for their response, Jiraiya began:
"I'm Jiraiya, a Jonin… I like writing… I want to publish a great book… Things I dislike... hmm, not much… My dream is for world peace."
Minato scratched his head and then gave his own introduction:
"… I like reading books… I don't particularly dislike anything… As for my dream, I want to become Hokage."
"I'm the one who'll become Hokage!" Kushina immediately protested. She looked around and then gave her self-introduction too.
After Kushina finished, everyone's eyes turned to Gin.
Gin sat there dazed, still thinking about how the course of ninja world history might change — and whether his future knowledge was still useful.
Besides his "golden finger" (cheat abilities), that knowledge was one of his biggest advantages.
"Gin, it's your turn," Minato reminded, patting him on the shoulder.
"Me, huh..." Gin rubbed his chin and said seriously, "I'm Uchiha Gin. I like tsundere blondes, and gentle, black-haired onee-sans..."
"HEY! Cut it out!!" Jiraiya rushed forward to cover Gin's mouth. This was supposed to be about hobbies, not weird fetishes!!
Didn't he see that Kushina's hair was already standing on end?!
"Do it properly!" Jiraiya whacked Gin on the head.
This kid was completely hopeless.
Gin rubbed the big lump forming on his head, wincing. Jiraiya's punches were no joke.
"Fine, fine," Gin relented. He resumed his introduction more seriously:
"I like ninjutsu — all kinds of ninjutsu. I dislike anything that's uncontrollable. As for my dream… for now, I just want to live a long life."
After all, his ultimate goal was immortality.
First milestone: live for a thousand years.
"Hmm, interesting," Jiraiya said, giving Gin a thoughtful look.
Though Gin's personality and appearance were nothing like Orochimaru's, their underlying nature was strangely similar.
A research type, maybe?
Jiraiya knew the Four Forms Technique (Shishiki no Jutsu) was likely invented by Gin.
No wonder even Orochimaru had pushed to have Gin accepted into Jiraiya's squad.
"You're not secretly developing any weird hobbies, are you?" Gin asked, crossing his arms and dodging Jiraiya's scrutinizing stare.
"Stop twisting things, you brat!" Jiraiya yelled, ruffling Gin's hair aggressively.
"Alright, that's it for today. Tomorrow morning, meet at Training Ground 5 at 5 AM. Don't eat breakfast — you'll puke it up," Jiraiya said with a mischievous grin.
Yeah, right. Like anyone would believe that.
Gin looked up at the ceiling.
In the original timeline, Kakashi used this exact trick on Naruto.
—
After leaving the Academy, Gin split ways with Minato and Kushina.
While walking home, Gin unexpectedly ran into someone.
A narrow, gloomy alleyway, with a chilling wind blowing.
Standing in front of him was a man wearing a kimono, whose face, although cold, wasn't yet twisted with evil. He even had a trace of righteousness about him.
Time truly was a ruthless blade.
"So, what do you think of the teacher I picked for you?" Orochimaru said first.
Gin wasn't surprised.
He sighed helplessly. It was clear that Orochimaru had orchestrated his placement into Jiraiya's team.
"It's alright, I guess," Gin answered.
"You sound less than thrilled," Orochimaru said, raising an eyebrow.
After all, Jiraiya was an elite Jonin. Many students would kill for the chance to be his disciple.
"It's not dissatisfaction," Gin said, blowing his bangs aside. "I just feel… he and I aren't a good match."
He didn't want to get too close to the 'Prophecy Clan'.
What if the toads of Mount Myoboku suddenly branded him "Child of Darkness"?
Jiraiya might kill him on the spot.
After all, Gin was a huge anomaly when it came to the Great Toad Sage's prophecies.
"I see," Orochimaru said noncommittally.
In the past, Jiraiya had been his dear friend, their bond tied to the will to protect the village.
But now, Orochimaru felt their paths were diverging.
Orochimaru lowered his voice.
"Gin-kun, how much do you know about the darkness of this village?"
Gin gave Orochimaru a surprised look. Was this really a conversation they could have openly?
Scratching his head, Gin put on an innocent smile.
"The village is full of light, how could there be any darkness?" he said.
Orochimaru stared at Gin without blinking, then laughed softly.
"It seems you know a lot, Gin-kun."
"Come on, Lord Orochimaru, no need to joke around. What's your real purpose for showing up here?" Gin asked bluntly.
"I want you to accept my mentorship after tomorrow's session," Orochimaru said.
"And what about Jiraiya-sensei?"
"He's already agreed."
Gin looked up at Orochimaru's pale but handsome face, feeling a deep sense of confusion.
Why go through all this trouble?
He didn't understand — but he was definitely shocked.
Was this some kind of betrayal?
—
Meanwhile, Jiraiya was perched up in a tree, watching two figures walking down the street.
A blonde female ninja and a blue-haired male ninja.
Tsunade and her boyfriend, Dan Kato.
"I was too late after all," Jiraiya muttered sadly.
He opened a notebook and began sketching.
Quickly, Tsunade's portrait appeared — and just as quickly, he scribbled it out in black ink.
"Tsunade... I'm happy you were able to move on," Jiraiya said, forcing a smile.
He looked up at the stars above, but his thoughts drifted to the three students he had received earlier that day.
And to the new prophecy from the Great Toad Sage.
"Little Jiraiya… I had another dream," the old sage had said.
"I dreamt of light and darkness intertwining, and I saw two paths for the ninja world."
"I don't understand," Jiraiya had replied.
"The Child of Prophecy is gone. Now only the Child of Light and the Child of Darkness remain. They will usher in a new era of change."
"The fate of the world depends on which of them wins."
"If the Child of Light wins, the ninja world will have lasting peace."
"And if the Child of Darkness wins?"
"The world will fall into endless war and infinite evolution. Ninjas will become as gods, and the stars themselves will become their battleground. But endless battle will consume everything."
"The Children of Light and Darkness will both become your disciples. You must guide them, teach them, help them grow..."
"And then, you must make a choice."
(End of Chapter)