The wind over Konoha carried the scent of sun-warmed stone and early summer rain. Flags fluttered gently above the rooftops, and the Academy bell rang out in the distance — sharp, clear, familiar.
Ren Uzumaki stood quietly on the roof of the Hokage's tower, watching the village below. His blond hair, slightly longer than it used to be, was tied loosely at the back. His face had sharpened — still calm, still quiet — but his eyes held a focus and weight far beyond his ten years.
> "It's been five years…"
He murmured to himself, voice barely a breath.
Five years since the Academy began.
Three years since he graduated — early.
He still remembered that day clearly. The classroom. The stunned faces. The silence.
---
Three Years Ago
Iruka stood at the front of the classroom with a scroll in hand, voice even but heavy with surprise.
> "Effective immediately, Ren Uzumaki has completed the requirements for graduation. This is with permission from the Hokage, under special review."
The class buzzed with shock.
> "He's seven?" "How's that even possible?" "He's Naruto's twin, right?"
At the center of it all, Naruto shot upright in his chair.
> "Huh?! Ren's graduating already?! Without me?!"
Ren stood, quietly, and walked to the front without looking at anyone. He gave a small bow to Iruka and exited the room without a word.
Later, behind the Academy building, Naruto had caught up to him.
> "Why didn't you tell me?"
Ren shrugged. "Didn't want it to feel like I was leaving you behind."
> "You kinda did," Naruto muttered.
Silence.
Then Ren spoke again, softer this time.
> "You'll catch up. I'll wait."
Naruto had smiled — half sad, half proud.
> "Then you better not get too far ahead."
---
Now
At just ten years old, Ren was already a shinobi of the Hidden Leaf — an officially recognized genin. But due to his age, Hokage Hiruzen had placed firm restrictions on his missions: in-village assignments only. No external missions, no danger outside the walls. Not yet.
> "He's too sharp to be treated like a normal student," Iruka had once said. "He's always ten steps ahead."
And the Hokage had agreed — with caution.
> "If we rush him into war, we waste what makes him different."
Ren didn't argue. He never did.
He trained, learned, watched, and waited.
Every C-rank task inside the village — every patrol shift, every courier job, every quiet investigation — he treated with discipline.
> "If I can't fight beyond the walls yet, I'll master what's within them."
His gaze drifted toward the open training grounds below.
Naruto was there — also ten years old, wild and loud as ever, practicing punches with explosive enthusiasm and terrible form.
Ren allowed himself a quiet smirk.
> "Still the same idiot…"
He watched for a moment longer.
> "...but not alone."
He turned away from the edge of the tower and walked back inside.
A quiet shadow of a boy — sharp, still, waiting.
Waiting for the day they'd stand on the same battlefield, not just as brothers…
…but as equals.
---