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Konohamaru was also there, bouncing excitedly at the memorial stone honoring fallen heroes. Hiruzen gave Naruto a small, approving smile, and Naruto nodded respectfully in return.
Naruto then turned his attention toward his parents. They were looking at him with wide eyes—filled with a mix of surprise and happiness. He walked up to them and gave a slight bow.
"Father. Mother," he greeted politely.
Minato smiled gently. "Well, Naruto, I must say... it's quite a surprise that you've actually managed to graduate. It's really something else."
Naruto simply nodded.
"Well then," Minato continued, "maybe we should celebrate a little. After all, you've just graduated from the academy… and after attending it for only one day."
Naruto shrugged. To be honest, he didn't have many celebrations with his family—but one wouldn't hurt, right? So, he let it go and nodded in agreement.
Meanwhile, Menma and Mito came out of the academy building as well. Minato and Jiraiya both noticed the strange looks in their eyes and wondered what was going on. But for now, Jiraiya focused on something else—he had to find out the secret Naruto was hiding. There was just no way Naruto could have graduated this early. It seemed impossible.
After all, Jiraiya had personally trained Menma and Mito. Both of them possessed incredible potential, yet they still weren't ready to graduate. Even though they could perform all the required jutsu, they would likely fail the written portion—or the substitution jutsu, which demanded a higher level of chakra control than they currently had.
Minato broke the silence. "All right then. Maybe we should head home. Your mother cooked a lot of ramen to celebrate."
Kushina smiled brightly at that. But then she noticed Menma slowly walking toward them, his expression unreadable. She gave Minato a questioning glance.
"Menma, Mito—how was your first day at the academy?" Kushina asked warmly.
Both siblings glanced at her—but their expressions made Kushina pause. In their eyes, it almost felt like their mother was mocking them, even if unintentionally. After all, their older brother had already graduated on his first day, while they had only just begun.
To Menma and Mito, it didn't feel like encouragement.
It felt like a painful reminder.
To Menma and Mito, it felt as if their mother was unintentionally taunting them. Their older brother had already graduated—on the very first day—and here they were, only beginning.
For them, today didn't feel like the first true day at the academy. The actual first day had been more of a small introductory tournament. Today had been the start of formal classes, but Naruto had already surpassed that.
Naruto noticed their reactions but said nothing. Minato nodded and said, "Alright then, we should head home."
He quickly made a hand sign and teleported them to their household.
Konohamaru was already jumping around excitedly. He leaped toward Naruto with wide eyes.
Hiruzen chuckled. "Heh, don't mind him. My grandson is quite the energetic one. It seems he's taken a liking to you, Naruto."
Naruto looked at Konohamaru, who was trying to grab at his hair and tug on his headband. Naruto gave a small smile and nodded respectfully toward Hiruzen.
Everyone soon took their seats around the dinner table as Kushina headed to the kitchen. She turned back with a curious smile.
"It's quite a surprise, Naruto. Mind telling us how you actually graduated? I didn't know you were reading such high-level books. The academy exams aren't that easy."
Naruto shrugged. "I've been reading those books for quite a while now—whenever I visit the library. Most of the time I'm already out of the house, so I decided to use that time to learn."
Minato nodded thoughtfully. "And what about the jutsu? Where did you learn them?"
Naruto looked at him and replied, "Some of them were in your library. They were always lying around. As for the jutsu used in the graduation exam, I asked Gai-sensei about them. He briefly explained the D-rank techniques, and I found them in the library too. They weren't that hard to learn."
Minato looked taken aback. "So… you were reading scrolls from the library all this time? Why didn't you tell me?"
Naruto looked at him plainly. "You never asked."
Minato blinked in surprise. He finally realized what had happened. He had always been busy training Menma and Mito outside, while Naruto was likely inside the house, studying scrolls and quietly mastering techniques.
Minato leaned in. "Naruto… did you read other scrolls too?"
"Yes," Naruto replied. "I also read the Fuinjutsu scroll that was on your desk."
Minato's eyes widened. "Wait… Naruto, can you already perform the Fuinjutsu?"
Naruto gave a casual shrug. "Yes. They were quite easy. I can it's… pretty interesting, to be honest."
Kushina blinked, stunned. "You've been learning jutsu on your own? That's... incredibly impressive. Which level are you at now?"
Jiraiya chuckled and said, "Well, Minato, he might even be able to store his own custom scrolls already, huh? Don't try too hard, kid—you might blow something up."
Naruto gave him an odd look and replied, "I'm at Level Five."
There were several blinks of disbelief around the table. Jiraiya asked, "What… what are you saying, kid? Can you even make a storage scroll to begin with?"
Naruto shrugged again. "They're pretty easy. I even modified one." He tossed a scroll forward before Minato could say anything.
Minato caught it and began examining the scroll. His eyes widened slightly. This was no ordinary storage scroll—it had nearly ten times the standard capacity and included an additional feature to store almost anything. He was shocked. He had considered developing something similar himself but never got around to it.
"Quite impressive," he finally said. "So Naruto, what do you have in mind?"
Naruto leaned back and said casually, "It depends on you, Lord Hokage. I could join a team, though I'd much prefer an apprenticeship—if you ask me."
Minato blinked. "And why is that?"
Naruto replied, "Well, first of all, I'd like to work at my own pace. Second, since I'm only eight years old and have already graduated, I've seen how the current graduate class treats me. They don't like me. Most of them think you gave me the answers, or that I somehow cheated on the exam. It would be hard to build proper teamwork with that kind of mistrust. And frankly, I have little patience for people who waste my time."
Minato nodded. "That does make sense. The same thing happened with Itachi Uchiha when he graduated early. His team couldn't keep up with him, so we had to make an exception and give him an apprenticeship."
He paused, deep in thought. Maybe I could ask Itachi to take Naruto as his apprentice… or perhaps Kakashi? He weighed the options silently.
Meanwhile, Jiraiya was still watching Naruto with a mixture of surprise and curiosity. This isn't how it was supposed to be… he thought.
He noticed that both Menma and Mito were stealing glances at their older brother, quiet and distant throughout the entire conversation. Curious, Jiraiya decided to check on them.
"So, Menma, how was your first day at the academy, huh?Did you make any friends? " he asked, completely unaware of the turmoil brewing in their hearts.
He leaned forward, continuing, "Remember, your class is filled with kids from the major clans. If you want to become Hokage one day, you'll need their support. Those classmates will grow up to be future clan heads—just like you'll grow up to become Hokage, right?"
Menma blinked, looking at his godfather—but then his eyes narrowed. It felt more like a subtle jab than encouragement. Here he was, just beginning his journey… and his older brother, Naruto, had already graduated on the very first day.
He forced a smile toward Jiraiya, but the bitterness was clear. Tsunade, watching closely, noticed the tense atmosphere between Menma and Mito.
"I'm not hungry anymore," Mito muttered suddenly. She stood up from the table and left without another word. Everyone noticed her reaction but chose not to say anything.
Naruto, finishing his meal, stood up as well. "Well, Mom, Dad, I'm heading outside to train for a bit."
Before anyone could respond, he vanished.
Minato's eyes immediately narrowed. That wasn't normal. The technique Naruto had used wasn't a standard body flicker—it was something far more advanced. Only a blur remained where he had stood, and not even Minato, the fastest shinobi in Konoha, had been able to follow it.
Just like Shisui… or maybe even beyond, he thought. Had Naruto created a new speed-based technique on his own?
A small burst of pride bloomed in Minato's chest. So, he's following in my footsteps… maybe even surpassing me someday. Could he become the next Yellow Flash? Or even Hokage?
Kushina, on the other hand, was torn. She was worried about Menma and Mito. Their spirits had seemed low throughout the entire evening. She looked toward Minato and saw the same concern flicker across his face, buried beneath his thoughts about Naruto.
Meanwhile, Jiraiya leaned toward Tsunade and whispered, "Maybe we should talk to Menma and Mito later. Something's clearly bothering them. I don't know what exactly… but they seem pretty down."
Minato and Kushina nodded in agreement, as did Tsunade.
None of them noticed the quiet observer in the corner: Hiruzen Sarutobi. The retired Hokage was eating alongside Konohamaru, his grandson, who was cheerfully focused on his food. But Hiruzen's eyes had followed Naruto when he disappeared.
He narrowed his gaze slightly. Like father, like son, huh?
Then, with a quiet sigh, he simply resumed eating. The boy graduated after attending only one day of the academy... and his family didn't even realize just how much he's changed.