[System Initialising…]
[Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore – Selected][New Gift Acquired: Dumbledore Family's Bloodline – Purity 100%][Gift Initiated][Albus Dumbledore's Talent Acquired]
[System Store Initiated. All raw materials and books from the wizarding world are available. Gold is the only currency accepted.]
[Host is advised to begin practising magic. As mastery increases, further knowledge will unlock. Initial knowledge of Transfiguration, Charms, and Potions has been directly loaded into the host's mind.]
[New Gift Detected: Elder Wand is now available. Accessible via wand space. No other items may be stored.]
A stream of notifications echoed in Minato's mind as he stared blankly ahead.
Thankfully, he was a baby. Nobody questioned a dumb expression.
After going through everything, he grumbled inwardly,'Stingy system. Gold? Seriously? Couldn't you pick literally anything else?'
[Sorry, host. System currency is fixed. Transactions are limited to gold.]
'Great. So what, I start robbing feudal lords now? Not like villages are swimming in gold, especially during back-to-back ninja wars.'
A pause.
'…Wait. Why am I even thinking about robbing people?'
That thought sat there for a second.
'Did my morals just… shift? No. Think properly. If I rob nobles, they'll just raise taxes and squeeze the common people harder. That just makes things worse.'
Another pause.
'…That sounds like a problem for future me.'
He moved on almost immediately.
'First things first. Dumbledore's knowledge.'
BUT.
'Where the hell is Garry?'
The memory clicked.
'Kushina and Mikoto… wait…'
A slow realisation crept in.
'Don't tell me… that guy ended up as an Uchiha.'
A pause.
'Uchiha Fugaku.'
Minato's expression didn't change, but inside, he was already annoyed.
'That bastard's probably living comfortably in the Uchiha clan, surrounded by resources, while I'm stuck in an orphanage.'
Another pause.
'Yeah… I definitely need to find him and take advantage of that.'
Naturally, he ignored the small detail that he was the reason Garry was here in the first place.
Meanwhile — Uchiha Clan, Patriarch's Residence
A two-year-old Fugaku Uchiha stared at the system screen in front of him.
The only difference from Minato's system : [Gellert Grindelwald – Selected]
Everything else remained the same. Unlike Minato, Fugaku had already confirmed one thing: Andrew was here.
He just didn't know who.
'That bastard made it here too…' Fugaku thought, irritation clear even in silence.'I'll settle that fall with him later.'
His thoughts shifted.
'But who is he now? Someone important? Some random civilian? Or not even in Konoha?'
He clicked his tongue internally.
'I'd rather he be someone useful. I might actually need help fixing this mess of a clan.'
"Fugaku! Fugaku! Mikoto is here, come play!" his mother's voice called out.
"Coming!"
The name alone snapped him out of it.
Mikoto.
In his previous life, Garry had already liked her. Now, with them growing up together, that attachment hadn't exactly faded.
Fugaku stepped outside.
"Fugaku, look what I got!" Mikoto ran up to him, proudly holding out a small toy kunai.
He greeted her mother first out of habit, then let Mikoto drag him toward the courtyard.
"I'm going to be a great kunoichi!" she declared, eyes shining. "I'm starting kunai practice!"
Both of them were only two years old, but that didn't matter. In this world, kids grow up fast.
By four, physical training starts. By five, chakra extraction begins, especially for clan children.
While Mikoto excitedly showed off, Fugaku smiled along. Inside, his thoughts were far less cheerful.
'This world is insane. Strength decides everything. Kids get sent to war. The clan's future is doomed. The village is rotting from the inside. The hokage isn't helping. And on top of that… aliens.'
A pause.
'And somehow, I'm supposed to deal with all that… and track down Andrew… and fix whatever mess a god created.'
He exhaled slowly.
'Yeah. Let's start with magic.'
'At least the knowledge is already there. Otherwise, I'd have to actually study, and that would clash with shinobi training.'
Another thought surfaced.
'System, do you have Secrets of the Darkest Arts or Magick Moste Evil?'
A catalogue appeared instantly, listing prices.
'…Of course it costs gold.'
'I'll figure that out later.'
He frowned slightly.
'Grindelwald mastered dark arts, but I don't have access to that yet. Just charms, transfiguration, and a bit of prophecy.'
'Still… dark arts could be useful as a last resort. But not now, if nothing changes, I still have some time, let's get the basics done first.'
A more cautious thought followed.
'I need Occlumency and a Patronus also to keep dark arts in check. No point going insane halfway through.'
While Fugaku planned for worst-case scenarios, Minato ...
Back at the Orphanage
... was being absolutely harassed.
One month old, and already popular.
Several older girls surrounding him were poking his cheeks, laughing at every tiny reaction he made.
Externally: helpless baby noises came, but internally:
'Oh come on! Don't you people have anything better to do?'
'I swear, I'll get revenge for this when I grow up. I'll poke you back.'
Wait a minute.
'…That sounded wrong.'
'Whatever.'
He shifted slightly, still trapped.
'With this face, no wonder they can't stop. Yeah… makes sense.'
Confidence restored instantly.
'This is it. My popular phase starts now. I'll show that idiot Garry what real charm looks like.'
Another thought interrupted.
'…Or I could just wait for Kushina.'
A pause.
'Yeah. That works. I'm a loyal man.'
This statement, unfortunately, made zero sense.
The girl didn't know he existed. Worse, she technically didn't exist yet.
It was February. Kushina would be born in July. Minato had six months to wait just to share the same timeline as his so-called "loyalty."
Still, reality didn't stop him.
'I won't even get privacy here… and holding a wand like this is impossible. Fine. Wandless magic it is. Then comes silent casting.'
'Or maybe both simultaneously, can't chant anything with my current vocal cords.'
And just like that, Minato started practising magic.