Just as Minato was about to act, Kushina, who had been holding it in, was the first to erupt.
She rushed forward, knocking the unprepared Uchiha Mahui to the ground with a punch. Then, grabbing his collar with both hands, she spun him around like a great windmill, sending everyone around them flying.
Terrified, the group of students obediently shut their mouths, not daring to mock her any longer. After all, even the second-ranked student in the class, Uchiha Mahui, had been defeated. Who among them would dare provoke this "tomato"?
"Run! The Bloody Habenero is hitting people!" one of the beaten students yelled out Kushina's new nickname as he ran for his life.
"You're the Bloody Habenero! Your whole family are Bloody Habeneros!" Hearing this, Kushina, who was in the middle of a beatdown, flew into a rage and cursed him out on the spot. She blocked the student before he could leave the classroom and gave him a sound thrashing.
Minato watched this scene and shook his head with amusement. It seems I don't need to step in.
That was right. In the original story, Kushina had defeated a Genin who was about to graduate right after arriving in the village. These little brats were no match for her.
"Hmph! This is what will happen to you if you mess with me again," Kushina said, pointing at the remaining students and threatening them domineeringly.
But when she looked at Minato, her expression faltered. She immediately turned her head away. That yellow-haired guy didn't help me just now. Hmph, saying my hair is beautiful was just a lie.
In a bad mood, Kushina left the classroom directly, leaving behind the gossiping students.
"Everyone, listen to me. We should care for our new classmate, not bully her. If anyone bullies the new student in the future, then I won't mind bullying them back."
While the kids were murmuring, Minato stood up and warned the students in the class. Then, without looking back, he walked out of the classroom, heading in Kushina's direction.
"Hehe, something's off with Minato this time. There's a story here!" After Minato left, Shikaku, who was standing to the side, showed a very gossipy smile. Even Inoichi Yamanaka next to him nodded in agreement. Only Choza was oblivious, stuffing his face with food.
These three were the ones closest to Minato in the class.
After leaving the classroom, Minato quickly found Kushina's figure and followed her from a distance, wanting to see where she lived.
But as they reached a stretch of forest, two figures blocked Kushina's path. It was Uchiha Mahui, along with another person. This person was not only wearing the Uchiha clan's attire but also had a forehead protector on his head. He was a graduated Uchiha clansman.
"You're the one who beat up my little brother," said Uchiha Mahui's older brother. On his way home, he had seen his brother's bruised and swollen face. After learning the reason, he immediately brought his brother to get revenge. The Uchiha clan's honor could not be tarnished.
"So what? It's his fault for being so weak," Kushina said fearlessly. She then pointed at Uchiha Mahui. "And you're a coward. You can't win a fight so you go get your big brother. How pathetic."
"Bastard! Don't you dare insult my brother! Daring to look down on my Uchiha clan, I'll teach you a lesson today so you know the Uchiha are not to be underestimated."
The furious Uchiha Qinghui reached out to grab Kushina's hair, intending to teach her a good lesson.
Uchiha Qinghui was a Chunin. His move was fast and sudden, and Kushina couldn't react at all.
"Smack!"
A hand appeared and blocked Uchiha Qinghui's move. It was Minato.
"Bullying the weak, is that the glory of the Uchiha clan?" Minato looked at Uchiha Qinghui mockingly, completely unafraid of retaliation. I have backers too.
"Damn you. You must be the Minato Namikaze that Mahui often talks about. Today, I'll show you that being a ninja isn't something a commoner like you can handle." Uchiha Qinghui pulled out a kunai and lunged at Minato.
Minato retreated to Kushina's side, wrapped an arm around her waist, and used the Body Flicker Technique to appear a short distance away.
"Stay here for a bit. There's a problem over there I need to solve." Minato smiled at Kushina, then turned to look at Uchiha Mahui with an annoyed expression.
"Oh ho, not bad. You even know the Body Flicker Technique. But you've probably never seen this jutsu. Today, I'll let you see the pride of my Uchiha clan, Fire Release." Uchiha Qinghui said as he formed hand signs.
"Fire Release—Great Fireball Technique!"
However, just as the great fireball shot from his mouth, he saw a Flame Bullet rushing toward him.
It turned out that while he was forming hand signs, Minato had also begun. Compared to Uchiha Qinghui's sluggish speed, Minato's was incredibly fast.
"Boom!"
The Great Fireball and the Flame Bullet exploded not far from Uchiha Qinghui. A strong blast of hot air spread from the explosion. Seeing this, Uchiha Qinghui quickly retreated, but Uchiha Mahui was out of luck, as he had been standing right next to his brother.
Coincidentally, a small ball of fire flew out from the explosion at high speed, its target being Uchiha Mahui.
"Ah!"
A mere academy student like Uchiha Mahui couldn't possibly dodge the clash of two C-rank Fire Release jutsu, not even the after-effects. The ball of fire ignited his clothes and began to burn him.
Seeing this, Uchiha Qinghui rushed to his brother's side, ripped off his clothes, and relieved Uchiha Mahui's crisis.