The timeline of the Naruto series is arguably the most chaotic among all long-running manga, possibly even more so than Gintama, which started off in a Sazae-san-like mode from the get-go.
Even Gintoki, who never missed an issue of Jump, couldn't figure out exactly when Sakumo committed suicide.
That's why Gintoki graduated early to become a ninja.
Only by doing so could he take on missions sooner, get promoted faster, and gain access to the village's higher-ups to stay informed about internal developments.
This way, perhaps he could prevent the White Fang from meeting such a tragic fate.
That frequently seen, goggle-wearing kid who always politely greeted him as "Aniki" and let himself be bullied—Obito—might also...
Speaking of which, Rin was truly adorable—both sweet and sensible, completely unlike that gluttonous, voice-actor-wasting, utterly unremarkable girl at home!
They were like night and day!
...
The trio formation is the eternal trope and essence of shonen manga in Jump, after all—its core themes being friendship, effort, and victory... or perhaps you could add bonds to that?
"So, why are you reassigning me to another squad Old man? Did you hit your head on the way out and lose your marbles? Getting senile? Maybe you should step down and let Gin-san take over already."
In the Hokage's office, Gintoki, who had become a Chunin in just one year and was now seven years old, was picking his nose with his pinky, his dead fish eyes rolling as he lazily muttered sarcastic remarks.
"Shut up, Gintoki!"
Sakumo, standing beside him, whispered a warning and gave Gintoki's head a solid knock with his fist.
"The Third Hokage is only looking out for you!"
"Hahaha..." The good-natured Third Hokage simply chuckled. "It's fine, Sakumo. I don't mind. In fact, I quite like Gintoki. At least he speaks his mind and never resorts to flattery."
"Old man Third, are you an M or something?"
"What's an M?" the Third asked.
"It's... mmmph!"
Before Gintoki could finish, Sakumo clamped a hand over his mouth.
The Third might not know, but Sakumo certainly did!
Having long ago learned from Gintoki what "S" and "M" meant, Sakumo glared at him through gritted teeth.
If Gintoki dared say that in front of the Third, his ninja career might as well be over!
"Anyway, the reason for this meeting is to adjust your team assignment slightly. It's nothing major—the real reason is that you're simply too outstanding, Gintoki."
The Third finally turned serious, his face showing a hint of pride.
Ever since Sakumo's eldest son became a ninja, the team he was assigned to had maintained a 100% mission success rate.
Their casualty rate had always been zero.
Even when they encountered ambushes and attacks from enemy ninjas during missions, they always emerged unscathed.
The Third had once asked their team leader about it, and the answer was always the same: the reason they pulled through every time was because of Gintoki.
He might seem lazy, but his attention to detail was impeccable.
He might appear to fight without rules or tactics, but at critical moments, he always struck the enemy's weak point with deadly precision.
Even the team leader admitted that on multiple missions outside the village, they had only survived thanks to Gintoki.
Keeping such talent in that team was a waste.
It had to be acknowledged—his average teammates and mediocre team leader were holding Gintoki back.
So, at the suggestion of Gintoki's team leader, after discussions with the higher-ups and Sakumo's approval, Gintoki was reluctantly reassigned from his original squad to an elite team.
That's right—Gintoki was now paired with Minato, who currently had no teammates, forming a two-man squad.
And it wasn't a mentor-student relationship; they were equals.
Incidentally, Minato was only sixteen at the time.
Gintoki couldn't wrap his head around it.
What exactly was this arrangement?
Was he stealing the spot of his younger brother—the one who had been an edgelord since childhood, always covering his face with a mask, just like that purple-haired guy he'd known since they were kids?
"Looking forward to working with you, Gintoki. We'll be teammates from now on."
Staring at Minato's bright blond hair—which really did make him look like a little sun—Gintoki didn't hesitate before pointing at Kushina standing beside him and quipping to the Third.
"Sorry old man, but can you switch me to another team? I just can't get along with a normie bastard who's got a girlfriend."
"Pfft!" Kushina couldn't hold back a snort, then raised an eyebrow teasingly at Minato.
"Oh? A normie bastard with a girlfriend, huh?"
"Uh hehe..." Minato laughed awkwardly, then bent down to speak to Gintoki.
"Gintoki, these kinds of things should wait until you're a bit older..."
"Are you looking down on Gin-san?! Are you saying Gin-san is small? Let me tell you the truth, Gin-san here already has hair down there—"
BAM!!
Kushina punched Gintoki to the ground as her face turning red.
With a big lump on his head and smoke rising, Gintoki was completely silenced.
"What is this child saying?!"
"Hahaha..." Minato quickly tried to mediate, "Calm down, Kushina. Didn't we already hear from Sakumo-san? He said Gintoki often says strange things and asked us to be patient with him..."
With that, to prevent Gintoki from continuing to spout nonsense in the Hokage's office, Minato apologized to the Third Hokage and carried the unconscious Gintoki out of the office.
.....
In front of the Amaguri Dango shop, Gintoki sat on a wooden bench outside, eating tri-colored dango while patting Minato's shoulder.
"You're actually not that bad! Don't worry, Gin-san's got your back from now on! With Gin-san around, promotions and raises are guaranteed!"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'll be counting on you then."
Minato was inwardly amused but played along.
At the same time, he couldn't help but think that Sakumo was right—this little genius of Konoha could be bribed with just a few sticks of dango!
"Kid, you have no idea how lucky you are. Originally, I saw darkness between your brows—you wouldn't live past ten years. But now that you have Gin-san, the Naruto encyclopedia, I guarantee you'll be safe and sound!"
"Naruto? What's that?" Minato asked curiously.
"Don't worry about it. You can use it as your future son's name if you want."
"My son?" Minato's face turned red.
This little genius really had no filter.
Thankfully, he'd already convinced Kushina to leave earlier—if she were here, he'd die of embarrassment.
"By the way, have you two already—"
"Alright! Gintoki! Tomorrow at 10 AM, Konoha's front gate!"
Knowing exactly what Gintoki was about to ask, Minato stood up abruptly.
He couldn't let that conversation continue, or it'd be over for him!
"Tch! So stingy!" Gintoki clicked his tongue in disdain.
"What's the big deal? We're both men—can't we talk about manly topics?"