This was way too soon for him to process. He was sitting in the grass yard outside of the academy, along with all the other first years, who were looking at the man giving a speech in front of them with awe. Hiro, however, had a look of anxiousness.
‘I never expected to meet the freaking Hokage of all people this soon! Not only that, but I thought that the Will of Fire propaganda speech was Hiruzen’s thing. I didn’t expect Minato to show up!” Hiro thought simultaneously as he tuned back into every word his idol was saying.
“The secret to being an excellent shinobi has nothing to do with how many jutsu you know or how strong your taijutsu is. My master taught me an important principle, essential to being the greatest ninja: guts. My master, Jiraiya of the legendary sannin was the disciple of the third Hokage, making me the third Hokage’s grand disciple. Lord Third’s favorite principle to teach was cherishing the people you love. These teachings have been handed down through generations and I believe that’s what makes them special. I have taught disciples of my own these principles, and one day you might teach them to the people that you love. Did you guys know that Lord Third is the disciple of Lord Second? All of this knowledge. passed down for generations, from such honorable people does nothing but motivate me to be the best shinobi I can be. It should motivate you the same. This comradery is what we call the will of fire. The will of fire is what makes the Hidden Leaf the greatest place in the world. Contrary to what you might have heard, there is only one thing required to become Hokage like me: the will of fire.”
Hiro couldn’t help but be mesmerized, this man, currently, was probably the most formidable shinobi alive, and in his opinion, the greatest sealmaster of all time. He knew that the purpose of the speech was just to spark patriotism in the younger generation, but he still felt in awe at being given this speech by such a powerful presence.
Several kids started murmuring about Minato’s last statement before Yuto sensei shut them up.
“-I would have never been able to be known as the yellow flash without the will of fire,” Minato said with a smile as he looked at the children who seemed in a trance. His gaze met a kid with a skeptical look on his face, who then raised his hand, earning him a glare from Yuto Sensei and the headmaster.
“Um yes?” Minato did not plan on taking any questions as he was a busy man and had places to be after he was done here.
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“Was it not specifically your jutsu that made you the yellow flash? Not only that but based on what you told us, does that mean someone can't become Hokage without being taught by a Hokage?” the odd child asked.
“Oh, well they call me the yellow flash because I’m known for my speed, not any jutsu of mine, but I would have never trained hard enough to attain this speed without possessing the will of fire. As for becoming Hokage, the opportunity is available for every qualified shinobi of the leaf.” Minato lied while rubbing the back of his head awkwardly, he was not the kind of person who liked to talk himself up.
“I don’t believe it is that possible to be so fast. I’ve read about your feats in the third Ninja War. It was said that you are omnipresent on the battlefield, no matter the distance. During your fight with the Raikage, you were able to blitz him with the lightning armor that allows him to move at the speed of lightning, that shouldn’t be possible by just running or even a shunshin.” The boy argued.
Now Minato was intrigued. The knowledge of the flying raijin was not known to the public, and it was a forbidden jutsu. This boy was very insightful.
“Oh really? How is it that you believe I perform my speed?” Minato asked, itching to see what theories, this kid could come up with. He was clearly a fan of his considering that he had read about his feats in the war—with great attention to detail it seemed.
“Well, the only logical conclusion I can come up with would be fuinjutsu.” Hiro said confidently.
Minato’s eyes widened for a second, while the other kids started laughing. “You always talk about seals, but obviously, seals don’t make you fast Hiro.” one girl who always seemed to have disdain for him sneered.
Hiro ignored the chatter and continued, “Fuinjutsu has the greatest utility for battle out of ninjutsu, taijutsu, genjutsu, and fuinjutsu. No matter how strong someone is, proper seals cannot be overlooked. Even the sage of six paths himself, wouldn’t be immune to seals.
Minato looked at Hiro curiously and ignored the previous statement to get back on track. “My experiences on the battlefield can be chalked up to the will of fire.” He said as he resumed his speech.
Hiro slightly panicked to himself, ‘Did I make a bad first impression? Am I suspicious now? That interaction was too stressful I need to shut up when talking to canon characters until canon actually starts at the very least.’
Minato wrapped up his speech shortly and was making preparations to leave when he was stopped by the headmaster and Yuto.
“I am so sorry about Hiro, he has always been a troublemaker, you will have to excuse him!” The headmaster said as Yuto nodded fervently behind him.
“Not at all, I appreciated his insight and engagement. Now if you’ll excuse me, paperwork abounds-” Minato said before he seemingly popped out of existence before their eyes.
“Wow! I’ve never seen him do that, I almost missed it.” the headmaster exclaimed, forgetting completely about his anger with Hiro momentarily.
Getting back to the matter at hand, Yuto interrupted his amazement, “I will handle Hiro don’t worry, he will be punished accordingly.” Yuto was not shocked as he had witnessed the yellow flash in battle during the war.
“Oh, right! Of course.” The headmaster said, regaining focus. “See to it that the boy is properly disciplined. I can’t believe he started questioning the will of fire during the Hokage’s speech!”