Going to get my thoughts on this out here randomly, don't mind me if they're not entirely coherent. So obviously, with Minato alive, some things have changed. Most significantly, the Uchiha never followed up on the idea of rebelling. Two, Kumo never made an attempt on Hinata, and Kushina was able to save Hinata's mother(Hitomi here, not sure if there's a canon name-let me know and I'll use it.) with a little Uzumaki chakra. Don't know if she had that ability canon, and honestly, I don't particularly care. The canon is great, it's... well, why we're all here. I won't follow it 100% though, which you should expect as Naruto has a family here.
I'm prone to mistakes, might be some plot holes, characters will be 'OOC' given the difference between the canon world and mine, but bear with me here, I'll get better as time goes on. Also, there will be some in-universe stuff I'll be pulling right out of my ass, you'll se a little bit of that with fuinjutsu in this chapter. All I can say is... well, you'll have to deal with it, I don't exactly have a resource I can learn about in-universe theory.
For those of you curious, this isn't quite a 'RTN Hinata' deal. She is more forward, but still dreadfully shy where our blonde hero is concerned. I don't want to spoil too much though. Lastly, I may do a one-shot on how I envision this AU's Uchiha conundrum if there's enough interest. Let me know!
"Now, as for team assignments..." The Fourth Hokage tapped his chin thoughtfully with his pen as he considered the list of names before him. Within the current graduating years, there were a lot of significant names. He knew it was an impossible task to make everyone happy, but signing off on the teams of clan heirs and heiresses wasn't going to be a simple task. Not only that, but his son was in the mix, and while that wasn't overly complicated-he had the utmost faith in his child-the red-haired woman peering over his shoulder was undoubtedly a different story. Not in her faith, mind you, but her nonchalance about their son's team assignments.
"I figured you might have some input." Minato said, his eyes crinkling as he smiled at his wife. She took the information splayed before them thoughtfully. "Shikamaru-san might be a good choice. Fiercely intelligent, a... concerning work ethic, but it will improve in time." She suggested. Minato shook his head, "taken. Ino-Shika-Cho," was all the prodding he needed for Kushina to frown. Her husband grinned wider in response, and directed his pen to tap on a name.
"Hinata Hyuga?" Kushina considered the thought. The girl seemed capable enough, certainly the most skilled in taijutsu in their graduating year by a decent margin, and with good marks. Kushina was a little apprehensive though. "I don't know..." She admitted.
"Well, she's driven to succeed," Minato almost snickered, there was one particular blonde-haired motivator that girl, it was way too obvious. While yes, he was reasonable, and understood that there were risks for distraction where love was involved at their age particularly... He figured the girl was schooled enough that it would be a non-issue. Plus, while she was excellent by academy standards, apparently she was routinely bested by her younger sister, and he was aware the pale-eyed girl needed a significant confidence boost. Naruto was decidedly fit to provide that.
"And she's got quite the little crush on Naruto, it's rather cute-don't you think?" He expected his wife's response to be jovial, a quiet laugh to mingle with his own.
He froze in place when his confused gaze upturned and her flowing red hair whipped it's anger, defiant of gravity and reason. Her tone was a deadly chill that lingered in the air long after the words left her lips. "She's got a what, on my who?" Beaded sweat rolled down his temple as he swallowed thickly. Oh Kami, he only hoped the Hyuga heiress would forgive him eventually. He should have known Kushina would be blind to the girl's very, very obvious infatuation. She was blind to anything that involved their son, and more deeply rooted still, her social development had been stunted by her status as the village's jinchuriki. Naruto was better off, but only just. Despite his best attempts, many just couldn't accept Naruto as a savior. He was a symbolism of their fear, and fear begets hate. They never did anything outright, such as attack-that would be foolhardy even for the bravest man.
But their quiet whispers and outright ignoring the boy did take it's toll, even if he was loved at home and his status was unknown to his classmates that came from shinobi heritage.
So, perhaps it wasn't a surprise that this was news to his wife, and he feared it was too late to take the revelation back. He coughed forcefully, trying to bring his wife to reason. "O-Or, there's Satsuki Uchiha," he attempted to smooth things over. "Top kunoichi, very well rounded, and she's got that natural Uchiha competitiveness that I imagine will clash surprisingly well with Naruto's own." Kushina's anger seemed to wilt, but it was clear she hadn't let this subject go. Even so, Minato murmured a sigh of relief. With the ball rolling now, it was easy to let his tongue move faster than his mind. He was the fastest for a reason, after all.
"I know for a fact they've pushed each other before, during the tree climbing exercise, they bickered like an old-" He tensed as the back of his head was whipped by a stray lock of flowing red hair. Shit.
"Do NOT finish that line!" She hissed, throwing her hands up in the air and pacing now, an unending back and forth as she gathered her thoughts. "Are you sure either of those g-either of them are really good for Sochi? Perhaps that Aburame, or even the Inuzuka..." Minato took it as his opportunity to interject. "I've already been eyeing those two. Kurenai came to me and requested a team, I think Shino and Kiba's talents would work well together, and there's another girl, Sakura, that I believe has unique chakra control that will have her take to genjutsu like that." He offered a helpless shrug. Kushina's eyes narrowed.
"You didn't want my input!" She accused. His guilty look confirmed her new theory. "You just wanted to warm me up to the idea!"
"Okay, fine. You're right, but you have to trust him here. It's not like he's going to have time to worry about girls when I'm sending him on C-ranks." Ever the brilliant strategist, his plan worked perfectly. Her short fuse shifted from the potential of their son's lost innocence, to their child leaving the village. "I don't think so." She said protectively. "My Sochi's going to be nice and safe, doing D-ranks until he's ready. What would happen if... if..." She trailed off, trying to think of anything suitably horrific enough for her husband not to send their baby off to die. She spied an unopened letter, nestled beneath the list of names they were reading. Perfect. She seized the letter, waving it back and forth frantically. "What if Iwa got their hands on him?" She tossed him the letter, which he caught curiously. He hadn't seen this one, and with the animosity between their villages, it was exceedingly rare that any communication happened.
He undid the letter, his eyebrows jumping as he skimmed. "Interesting." He commented idly, causing Kushina to abandon her heat in favor of curiosity and round the table. "What is?"
"They're going to send a team to the Chunin exams this year. Surprising, but..." Minato cast his gaze her way. "Doesn't really help your case, now that I think about it."
"I. Give. UP!" She slammed the paper down, stampeding away to fume, and undoubtedly coddle their nearly teenaged son until he managed escape. He sighed as he set the paper aside. He uttered a silent prayer to Kami, leaned back and offered the slightest, self-indulgent grin. He was worried for his son, it was the boy's misfortune that he inherited his father's dashing good looks. It was worse, still, that the boy had a habit of purring-a low, quiet rumble in his chest-whenever his whiskers were stroked. Oh, when the girls found out about that one...
Naruto Uzumaki reached up to touch his forehead, savoring the feel of the polished headband he now wore.
Yes, Uzumaki. His father insisted he keep the last name, a nod to his mother's lost clan. Naruto, to his part, really didn't mind it in the slightest. Everyone with a pair of eyes knew who his father was anyways, and he loved learning about the Uzumaki and his fallen homeland, Uzushiogakure. Well, loved it, as bittersweet as it may be.
His passing the test had been narrow, though. His mother told him that not just because of his tenant, but his natural Uzumaki-enhanced chakra coils, a simple clone jutsu would be so difficult as to be completely useless. Instead, he was allowed to pass with the use of another, similar technique-shadow clones. It was his favorite technique, or perhaps, the favorite one he knew. His father had promised to teach him the Rasengan after his first C-rank, and would pass on the Hiraishin on one condition-Naruto had to create his own jutsu. He slumped a little lower in his seat when he thought about that, he was still working on it, but... It was hard, damn it!
He'd do it though, some day, and some day soon. Then he'd Flying Thunder God the hat right from his dad's head, believe it!
"Oh, Kami." Satsuki drawled in the seat next to him, rolling her eyes to heaven. "I just can't," her tone was utter exasperation. "You say it even in your head. It's unbelievable." Naruto's mood soured further. "What are you talking about?" Satsuki fixed him with a mock glare. "You know what I mean. 'Believe it!'" She mocked in a higher pitched tone, causing his face to flush. "How would you even know I thought it?" The fact that he didn't deny the accusation was all it took for the girl's lips to pull into a tight smirk. "One, you didn't deny the accusation," she listed, before holding up a second finger. "Two, your whiskers twitch when you do that vocal tic."
For an instant, the blonde-haired Genin looked stricken. "No, they don't. They're a birthmark, they can't twitch."
"Uh huh, you tell yourself that." Satsuki was happy to drop the topic, now that footsteps could be heard in the hall. Not to mention, in order to rib her friend, she'd revealed the fact she was even watching him in the first place. She felt him growl, and prepare to retaliate verbally, but Iruka beat him to the punch. "Good morning," Iruka greeted, smiling at the low reply from his students. Or, for those that passed the second Genin test, his former students. "I am so proud of each and every one of you. It's been an honor to teach you, to show Konoha's next generation what the Will of Fire is all about. For those of you that pass the second exam, this will be the last time I see you in my class. Consequently, today is a short one."
He scanned the class one more time, before his gaze fell to the paper. "With me, I have the team assignments. After I call them out, remember your teammates and await the arrival of your Jonin-sensei, they'll take it from there."
As Iruka called out team assignments, Naruto's thought process was interrupted by a voice above and behind him, Hinata Hyuga leaning across her desk to speak quietly. "Do you know the team assignments beforehand?" He grumbled, sighed, and crossed his arms. He would, but his dad apparently had the foresight to hide that particular document. "No," he admitted. "Not for lack of trying." Satsuki hummed. "Hope I don't have you on my team, then." She teased. "What good is a ninja who can't even secure a document?" Once again, Naruto's low growl of 'bastard' was foiled by Iruka. "Naruto Uzumaki..." His posture was straightened immediately.
"...Hinata Hyuga..." That was punctuated by a quiet, relieved sigh behind him, and the sudden tensing of the Uchiha beside him that he didn't catch. "...Satsuki Uchiha, team 7, under Kakashi Hatake." Naruto was elated. Two of his friends, and the man he nearly considered an older brother was going to be his sensei. Unfortunately, that did mean one thing was certain...
"That bastard," Naruto's first uninterrupted 'bastard' of the day, and it wasn't even directed at Satsuki. What was the world coming to. "...is going to be at least an hour late. Get comfortable." Sure enough, the three Genin that comprised squad 7 were the last in the classroom, long after even Iruka had departed. Naruto could occupy himself, thankfully, and opening a notebook, he began to write. His teammates, desperate for anything to break up the monotony, were suddenly at rapt attention.
"What are you working on?" The Hyuga heiress prodded, studying the complex looking matrix he was scribbling at breakneck speeds.
"Well, Dad said I couldn't learn Hiraishin until I have my own technique. So that's kind of what I'm working on. He tapped the end of the seal with his finger as his chewed his lower lip. "This is a gravity seal, set within a location matrix. It's usually used for tracking, but it does have a secondary use case, it also acts as a... filter, I guess. Usually, if I activated the gravity seal, everything would be attracted to it-or, because it's just a piece of paper, it'd stick to everything." He corrected. "But, with the location matrix in place, activating the gravity seal will only attract it to other items that have the same location matrix." To prove his point, he upturned his palm and quickly drew the same location matrix, a pulse of chakra to the page was all he needed to have the notebook fly from the desk, to slap against the palm of his hand.
"See? I'm just... well, working on making it actually useful." He admitted, deactivating the seal. Hinata's awe was overshadowed by Satsuki's nonchalance. She kicked her feet up on the desk, folding her arms behind her head. "Tch. Tell me when it can blow something up."
"Of course you'd say that, arsonist bastard!" Despite himself, Naruto grinned-everything was right in the world, now.
"I arrive to pick up my team, and they're already bickering and name-calling." Kakashi leaned against the doorframe, an unimpressed look on his features, belying his own amusement. No, Naruto thought, leaping onto the desk to berate the late, famed copy-nin. Now everything's right in the world.
"So, why don't you tell me a little bit about yourselves? Likes, dislikes, dreams, hobbies..."
"Well," Naruto was eager to begin, and neither girl seemed bothered by having him go first. "My name's Naruto Namikaze-Uzumaki. I like food-particularly ramen, fuinjutsu, training, and my friends. I dislike people that betray their friends. My hobbies are training, practicing fuinjutsu, and..."
"Both of those are training, idiot." Satsuki informed, to which his eyes narrow. "I'll also add that I dislike bastards that interrupt their friends, too!" He crossed his arms before picking up again. "I have a few dreams, but they're more than that, they're eventualities. I will become Hokage one day. I will make my ancestors proud, and I will revive the Uzumaki clan in Konoha." There was a pregnant pause, a satisfied Naruto, a Hyuga heiress suddenly poking her fingers together. Kakashi eye-smiled. "All very admirable. Next?" Satsuki sat forward this time, lacing her fingers together, and resting her head atop them.
"My name's Satsuki Uchiha. I enjoy training, learning new jutsu-" her foot moved to stamp Naruto's, when he opened his mouth and dared to repeat her earlier line. "-and tomatoes. I dislike hotheaded idiots that always have something to say. My dream is to make my family, and my clan proud. I will become a legend among Uchiha, this village."
"No hobbies, huh? Alright, then. Lastly..."
"My name is Hinata Hyuga," the heiress continued, before Kakashi finished. "I like cinnamon buns, learning," her pale eyes shifted, almost imperceptibly toward Naruto. "...and... and... I dislike very few things. The only thing I truly hate in this world are people that are truly evil. That use others for their gain, or derive pleasure from other's pain." She took a deep breath, quelling the ferocious blush that threatened to claim her features. My hobbies are few, I like flower pressing, and... theory crafting, which ties into my dreams. I want..." Her gaze shifted toward her teammate again, this time noticed by the Uchiha, if the scowl were anything to go by. "...t-to be a good leader for my clan, kind, like my mother-but strong, like my father. I want to show my clan the error of their ways, and bring unity between the branches. I want to show my clan that tradition isn't everything, and develop my own style of the Gentle Fist."
Well, kid's got a lot on her plate. Kakashi thought idly, but her heart's in the right place. I don't foresee any teamwork issues with them either, except... Maybe between those two. While he wasn't particularly excited about the prospect of dealing with a love triangle-or whatever it actually was, given Naruto seemed perfectly oblivious, as usual-it seemed a relatively minor issue he figured could be worked out eventually. "Then you have the rest of the day off. Tomorrow, I'll administer your second Genin exam, and we'll see if you all have what it takes to make those dreams reality."
He vanished, a swirl of smoke and flutter of leaves, and Hinata frowned. "He never even introduced himself." Naruto chuckled and stood, interlocking his fingers behind his head and starting off. "That's Kakashi for you." Satsuki seemed to debate a moment before rising as well. "Naruto, do you want to come over to my place? I know Mom would love to have you for dinner." Naruto turned, and regretfully shook his head. "Please, tell Mikoto-chan I would, but Mom would kill me if I didn't spend my last bit of free time at home. See you guys tomorrow." With that, and a chakra-enhanced jump, Naruto departed.