Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or Naruto.

Warning: Non-canon, AU

Enjoy!

… … … … … … … … … … … …

Cerulean blue darted around the room gleefully. Namikaze Minato couldn't help but grin. Finally, finally, his stubborn persistence paid off.

Because after two years of one-sided conversations punctured with reluctant grunts and short responses, his best friend – "Completely unwilling and forced" – has crumbled and allowed him unrestricted entry to his room.

"You done gawking, chibi?"

Minato, still caught up in taking everything in, snapped an automatic reply, "I'm not small!"

A hand landed on his head, a familiar gesture further fuelling his delight.

… …

… …

The blonde still remembered the first time he met the sullen black-haired teen, the way his heart had clenched when the other fled. The newly orphaned three-year-old hadn't known what death was, had thought his parents would return for him later.

He remembered – hazily – the way his mother had kissed his cheeks, tears running down her face and instructed him to run straight and don't look back. Being the child he was, he cried and shook his head. Wailed and tightened his fists around his father's collar, begging them not to go. The man simply gazed at him, the desperation and heartbreak drilling into identical blue eyes. His toddler strength was nothing against an adult's and a moment later he was set on his feet. A large hand prodded him forward and when he looked up, they were gone. Surrounded by trees and never-ending darkness he ran. Through the fear, only one thing rattled in his mind. Run straight and don't look back.

He was a good boy. His father said so on numerous occasions, his mother smiling in that particular way whenever he did something to please her. He wasn't a typical prodigy in terms of learning knowledge, but he could pick out subtle things others might miss like the twitch at the corner of the eye when someone was lying, or what actions endear him to others. And so, being the good boy he was, he followed his mother's instructions.

It didn't take long for Minato to become exhausted. He stumbled over a broken branch and fell with a yelp. Tears gathered in his eyes and would have fallen had it not been a group of black and white figures that abruptly surrounded him. He stilled, panic locking his limbs. One dropped to a knee before him, breaking him out of his frozen state. He flinched, scrabbling backwards until his back hit a trunk. The lithe stranger gracefully lifted a hand, moving the mask to the side. The toddler's attention was instantly drawn to the revealed face. Long, silky dark hair and pupiless white eyes. The adult moved towards him slowly, arms out and away from…his? Her? – it was kind of hard to tell – body. Minato was oddly comforted by this, and allowed his tired body to be examined and carried. Warm arms encircled him – so much like mother's – and he couldn't help the tears that slipped down his cheeks once more. The rocking movement and steady heartbeat lulled him to sleep, and he gladly surrendered to oblivion.

When he came to the first time, his vision was filled with the face of a slightly wrinkled man in white robes and a red hat on his head. He vaguely realised he was still being carried before his mind went blank once more. The second time he came to he was in an unfamiliar room, this time with an older child by his bed. The look in those emerald eyes – unearthly green so dark and yet so bright – jolted something in him. He couldn't place that look. Not even after two whole years of being around the quiet, one-year older child. But he knew since the very first meeting that he would not leave the other alone, not with all that pain sealed within. Minato swore he will make a friend out of the other boy, or he wasn't worthy of calling himself a Namikaze.

In the beginning, it served as a distraction, a way to stop himself grieving when he finally grasped the concept of death. Then he started to realise things about the black-haired boy, Kurayami Hari, during his constant stalking – observations – and one-sided conversations. Despite his prickly attitude and silent demeanour, Hari was always around. Not in full view, of course. The older boy was like a ghost, silent and undetectable. You wouldn't know he's there until he struck. Whenever Minato manages to get himself into trouble, Hari appears, haul him out of whatever tangle with a reprimanding look before disappearing again. Kurayami was a shadow, Minato realises – his shadow, and he couldn't feel anything but comfort.

The black-haired boy had slowly opened up to him alone, teaching the blonde how to read and write. It wasn't until some Academy students decided to rough his group of friends up that Hari added basic self-defence into their lessons. Minato had no complains, not with the talk of the Second Shinobi War going on. He was determined to become a shinobi, and he knew Hari did too. There wasn't a second option for the older of the pair. His unique Kekkei Genkai that allows him to conjure weapons along with his unnatural affinity with all elements were too useful as a weapon in Konohagakure's arsenal of shinobi.

The emerald-eyed senior would have no idea, but to the blonde, he has become Minato's most precious person. He did not have to look out for the younger child, or teach him or sneak into his room in the middle of the night when nightmares surfaced. But he did. Loyalty and trust from Hari were hard to come by, but Minato had both and he wasn't about to let go of it for as long as he lived.

… …

… …

Hatake Sakumo ran a hand through his silver hair, jostling the ponytail it had been tied into. He sighed for the fourth time in as many minutes, slowly making his way to the orphanage located on the other side of the village.

He could have simply shunshin there if he was actually looking forward to giving a recruitment talk to a bunch of bright-eyed, idealistic orphans who had no idea what being a shinobi truly entitled.

So…no. He preferred strolling there.

Not for the first time he questioned the sanity of his Hokage. He was the 'White Fang of Konoha'. On par with any of the Densetsu no Sanin. An S-ranked jounin in his own right. Order him to complete the hardest of missions? Done. Take out a squad of Iwa nin to cripple the enemy line and turn the tide in the Leaf's favour? No problem.

Recruit a bunch of naïve children to replace those lost in the war? Um…well…

Sakumo was no sweet-talker. He was no Jiraiya, who could turn any serious speech to something totally idiotic but equally entertaining. He interacted well with his peers and ninken. That was enough, in his opinion. There wasn't any need to interact with children by the time he became chuunin, thus his predicament. How in the world was he going to give a sugared down version of the war and explain it so that children more or less understood what they were getting themselves into?

Because with the way things are going, this bunch– if they graduate to be genin – will be seeing a bit of battle one way or another.

All too soon the olden building of his destination loomed, a lone figure leaning against the outer fence with arms crossed.

"Kiyomu? What are you doing here?" Hatake gave a small smile to his fellow jounin, who rolled his eyes.

"You're late, Sakumo. Honestly, is giving a recruitment speech that nerve-wrecking?" Fukuda Kiyomu nudged the gate open, letting it swing shut as the two male walked to the main building. "As for why I'm here, Hokage-sama thought it necessary to have a civilian-born jounin help encourage those orphans to sign up and give the Academy a go."

The silver-haired man snorted. The roguish looking scar going down Fukuda's left cheek would definitely fuel the kids' imagination about heroic battles and whatnots.

"Whatever. Let's just get this over and done with."

The matrons and caretakers were in a line, having obviously prepared for the shinobi's arrival a while ago.

Suzuki – no family name – the head-matron bowed politely before ushering them inside. The sound of voices drifted down the corridor, making the White Fang grimace. Those who will become genin would be loosing that carefree laughter soon. Suzuki excused herself, disappearing into the hall full of children to inform them of the arrival of the famous White Fang.

Hatake supressed a shudder at the near swooning tone of the head-matron. Fangirls.

He elbowed his colleague non-too gently when he snickered. The noises died down and Sakumo prodded Kiyomu in first. Grey eyes surveyed the area instantly, picking out potential candidates and sensing chakra levels in each child present. The older jounin stopped in the centre of the room. His gaze drifted to the back corner, drawn to a shock of bright blonde hair.

His eyebrow raised a fraction. The kid was staring at him intently, a far cry from the awed gazes of his fellow orphans. Cerulean blue eyes were narrowed, studying the silver-haired man closely. An amused smirk curled the Hatake clan head's lips.

Now that was a kid to keep an eye on.

The kid's finger twitched and Sakumo's gaze sharpen. Grey eyes blinked once. How did he not sense it when he first walked in?

A brief flare of chakra and a whispered 'Kai' dispelled the genjutsu. Despite the flash of irritation directed at himself, the clan head was impressed. That was a mid-level genjutsu, easily chuunin level. The dark shadows in the corner behind the blonde lightened slightly, and Sakumo was once more taken back.

Black hair. Stoic expression. Pale skin. Eyes too old for a young boy. Exceptionally developed chakra coils.

If it wasn't for his wild hair and emerald-green eyes, he could have been an Uchiha. But it was ridiculous. No matter how uptight that clan was, a child born of half-Uchiha parentage was an additional potential shinobi to the clan. As long as there were dominant Uchiha traits present in the child, the elders will turn a blind eye. After all, that was the way most clans operate. New blood is necessary.

The maybe-Uchiha boy shifted closer to the blonde sitting in front, emerald glaring into grey as if to say his prolonged attention on the pair was unwelcomed.

Hatake Sakumo nodded to himself and broke his gaze, turning to the eagerly waiting children.

Those two will be fine shinobi.

… …

… …

Hari eyed the blonde seriously.

"Are you absolutely certain?"

Minato returned the look and nodded.

"Very well. Just remember, there's no going back."

The two children stepped up to the silver-haired man, his partner recording names on the recruitment sheet. The famed 'White Fang of Konoha' smiled blandly down at them, as if he had not been scrutinising them the moment his speech was over. The two friends had lingered at the back, perfectly content to consider this opportunity and waiting for the enthusiastic crowd of orphans to dwindle as they begin to leave.

"Hello there. Are the pair of you looking to join the Academy this year?"

The Master of Death gave Hatake a flat look. Minato rolled his eyes and beamed at the man.

"Yes, we are!"

Hari sighed inwardly. For an unexpectedly shrewd kid, Minato could be so trusting and open. Which is part of his charisma, he reflected.

"Ok. So…names and age?"

"Namikaze Minato. I am five years old."

"Kurayami Hari. Six."

The eyebrows rose once more.

"Hmm…younger than most, but even if you don't make the cut this year, you can always – "

"We'll make it," the five year old chirped, the older one merely giving a curt nod.

The side of Hatake's mouth quirked up.

"I'm sure you will."

And that was it.

… …

… …

There were two people in the room when Sakumo walked into the Hokage's office later that night.

"How did the speech go, Sakumo-kun?"

"Terrible, Sandaime-sama."

"Oh? Yet you still seem unreasonably delighted."

"It was the…company…I found. A welcome surprise, I must say."

"Really Sakumo. Do tell." The man seated on the office's sole windowsill, crinkling the red marks running down his cheeks with his smile.

"Sure Jiraiya, as soon as I get you back for recommending me for this task to Sarutobi-sama."

"Yeah, yeah. Feel free to get back at me later. We don't have all night, ya know."

The silver-haired shinobi grunted, sitting down on the chair near the office's desk. He handed the clipboard with the names of would-be Academy students over to the Sandaime. He gestured to the last two names on the list.

"Ho?" The Toad sage leaned over his sensei's shoulder to take a look. "And what has got you so interested in them, Sakumo-kun?"

"Potential. They were among the youngest of the bunch, but they had the best attitude for shinobi." The clan head straightened from his slouch. "Which reminds me, do you have their files, Sarutobi-sama?"

The old leader tilted his hat back to stare.

"Why do you need it?"

"Curiosity. Kurayami Hari resembles an Uchiha too much for my liking."

The Hokage hummed and dug through the various drawers in his desk. A moment later two thin scrolls were handed over. Sakumo unfurled the one on Kurayami immediately. He frowned at the lack of either parent's names. No close or living relatives were listed. There was only a paragraph explaining his arrival on the orphanage's doorstep wrapped in a bundle in the middle of the night six years ago, with only a piece of paper with his full name written on it. The physical descriptions also revealed identical birthmarks on both palms.

"Identical birthmarks? Might be nothing special, but worth further observations," he murmured and moved onto the other scroll.

The information on one Namikaze Minato yielded more results in terms of family. Only son of Namikaze Raichi, chuunin of Suna, who was presumed dead. Found by an ANBU patrol and brought to the orphanage at the age of three. Constantly found in the company of Kurayami a week after his arrival.

"So, not an Uchiha after all. They don't tend to leave their babies on doorsteps, half-blooded and otherwise."

Sakumo glanced up to find two pairs of expectant eyes still on him and sighed.

"I would keep an eye on the both of them, Sarutobi-sama. The black-haired Kurayami boy was able to do a mid-level genjutsu that I did not sense until Namikaze gave away his presence. He would make a good assassin. The Namikaze kid on the other hand, it still too trusting. Definitely not assassin material. Everything about him is too…bright. But he will be a fine jounin-tracked shinobi. Both have exceptionally well-developed chakra coils."

A heavy frown settled on the spymaster's face. Even in war, Jiraiya was still idealistic.

"I don't think it is a good idea to throw a young kid, no matter how talented, into the assassination path. ANBU is no place for a six – well, seven year old, if you were thinking to have him drafted in right after graduation. Besides, you'll be separating the best-buds."

"Hmm…Jiraiya brings up a valid point. He needs to be skilled enough to take on these missions first. On top of that, fast-tracking him into ANBU would deprive him of the opportunity to work in a regular team with other genins." Sarutobi Hiruzen waved a hand. "But I believe we are getting too far ahead of ourselves. We do have a whole year to observe, after all."

… … … … … … … … … … … … … …

And before you say anything, yes I know Sakumo and the Sanin did not become famous so early in the Second Shinobi War. But let me remind you once more that this is an extreme AU.

Also, Kiyomu is not an OC. He appears in a Bingo Book very briefly in Shippuden.

So there was a time skip. It will happen a few times. I don't want to write about boring scenes. Character development will be there nevertheless.

Was this chapter too rushed?

Later!

Kagetsuki-taicho