Thump~
Hearing the sound from outside, Boruto lazily propped himself up, sleepily rubbing his eyes. Looking at the man standing by the window, he asked:
"Uncle Sasuke? How did it go? Did you find him?"
"...No." Sasuke shook his head, recalling what he had investigated the previous night. "We might not have actually returned to the past."
"But didn't Karasuki say we returned to the era when Granny Tsunade was Hokage?" Boruto asked, puzzled.
Whether it was the Hokage faces on the cliff or the topics people were discussing, everything confirmed they had gone back to the past.
"This era is indeed the era of the Fifth Hokage's governance, but it's not the era we're familiar with," Sasuke said with a slight shake of his head.
"Uncle Sasuke, the more you explain, the less I understand," Boruto said, scratching his head in confusion.
"First it is, then it isn't."
"According to my investigation last night, the mainstream course of events in this world does align with the 'past' in our memories, but many details are completely different," Sasuke explained with a soft sigh.
"For example, Akatsuki should have started capturing Tailed Beasts three years later, that is, after your father returned from training with Jiraiya;"
"But in this world, Akatsuki has already begun capturing Tailed Beasts at this time and is clashing with the hidden villages;"
Boruto nodded, only half-understanding. He didn't have a deep understanding of the events of this period. The things he knew from Granny Tsunade's time as Hokage were mostly major events recorded in Ninja Academy textbooks, like the Fourth Great Shinobi War.
"I once defected from Konoha, you know that, right?" Sasuke turned to look out the window.
"I know." Boruto's eyes lit up. That was so cool!
As a disciple, how could he not know about his master's glorious past?
"But in this world, right now, I'm not the only one from Konoha who became a missing-nin."
"Who else?"
Sasuke looked at him, and Boruto felt a chill run down his spine. "Uncle Sasuke, you're scaring me looking at me like that..."
"The other missing-nin is your father, Naruto Uzumaki."
"What?!"
Boruto shot up, unable to sit still, staring at his master in disbelief.
His old man defected?
He never thought Uncle Sasuke liked to joke around. How could someone who loved the village more than his own family possibly become a missing-nin?
But looking at his master's serious gaze, Boruto understood that he wasn't kidding.
"Why did Dad defect?" he asked, baffled.
"We might only know the reason when we meet him," Sasuke said.
He didn't believe the rumors. Unless forced by circumstances, who would willingly betray their own village?
He himself had hesitated back then, let alone Naruto...
"Then where do we need to go to find Dad?" Boruto was also at a loss.
He had thought this mission would be easy, that finding him in Konoha, no matter how big it was, would just take some time. But who could have imagined this?
Who could have thought that this world's version of his dad—
Had defected!
"Let's try to find the Dragon Heritage organization first." Sasuke also sighed. The shinobi world was so vast; finding one person was easier said than done.
"What's the Dragon Heritage organization?"
"You'll have to ask your old man that."
Meeting Boruto's uncomprehending gaze, Sasuke proceeded to recount everything he had gathered the previous night about the Dragon Heritage organization and Naruto's deeds.
After listening, Boruto's expression was a mix of incomprehension, astonishment, surprise, and horror.
This was insane!
His own father had become a terrorist, and the leader of the terrorists at that!
An image couldn't help but form in his mind: his dad, dangling a cigarette, speaking like a ruffian, holding a kunai and robbing people on the road.
Yikes!
Just thinking about it felt horrifying.
Of course, there was also an unavoidable trace of curiosity. He was truly fed up with the image of his dad sitting behind a desk all day, sleepy-eyed and scratching his head.
"Hey? That's not right!" Boruto suddenly slapped his thigh.
"What's wrong?" Thinking he had discovered something, Sasuke's expression also tensed.
"How could a well-bred lady like Mom fall for a hooligan dad? It's over, it's over, does this mean I'm going to disappear in the future?!" Boruto thrashed wildly on the floor matting in panic.
Sasuke: "..."
Honestly, for a split second just then, he really wanted to end his idiot disciple with a single stroke.
So, after all he had said, this kid hadn't heard a thing.
"You won't disappear." He pressed a hand to his faintly throbbing head.
"Hmm?" Boruto did a carp-flip, sitting up abruptly, and excitedly grabbed his arm.
"Uncle Sasuke, are you telling the truth?"
"You mean, in your memory, young Dad was also thuggish?"
"No." Sasuke pried his fingers off one by one. "Your old man might have been a bit brainless, but he was definitely not a common thug or ruffian."
"You could even say he was full of righteousness."
"Am I really going to disappear then?" Boruto grabbed his hair with both hands, squatting down in despair.
"This world is just a parallel world. No matter what happens, you won't disappear, understand?" Sasuke sighed.
Boruto let out a sigh of relief, but then seemed to remember something and quickly asked:
"So, you're saying we've traveled to the past of a parallel world?"
Sasuke nodded.
"Which means we don't have to be so conservative in our actions!" Boruto said, pleasantly surprised.
Knock, knock, knock~
A sudden knock on the door echoed into the room.
"Could it be that the room fee is due?" Boruto walked towards the door, puzzled.
In this world, they shouldn't have any visitors.
Shua~
Looking at the figure outside the door, Boruto instantly froze on the spot.
Although the face before him was a bit more youthful than the one in his memory, it was definitely the same person.
"Da... Uh! Hello, can I help you?" Halfway through his sentence, remembering their earlier conversation, Boruto quickly corrected himself.
However, looking at the 'Dad' before him, who was slightly taller than himself by a head, his eyes couldn't help but lighten up.
Casual attire, short hair that was messy yet stylish, a katana at his waist, and more importantly, that air of leisurely self-assurance.
So cool!
No wonder Mom pursued him.
Looking at the face that was seventy percent similar to his own, and how the boy had addressed him earlier, Naruto thought inwardly: So it's true!
Just like when he had traveled through time to the Dragon Vein, these two must have also accidentally arrived in this timeline from another parallel world.
But for some reason, even knowing this little guy was his future son, he really wanted to punch him.
"What's... your name?" Naruto asked.
"Uh, Boruto. My name is Boruto." After a moment's hesitation, Boruto still gave his name.
"And you, sir?" Naruto turned his head to look at the man standing by the window.
"...Jugo." Sasuke gave someone else's name. Unlike Boruto, his name was somewhat distinctive.
Jugo?
More like Sasuke, probably...
Naruto didn't expose him. He also had experience with time travel, so he naturally understood the other's reservations.
"May I come in and sit down?"
"Yes! Please come in!" Boruto quickly stepped aside.
Watching the figure walk into the room, Sasuke also felt bewildered.
Was this the surprise?
Just moments ago, they were tearing their hair out trying to find this person, and now the target had delivered himself to their door.