Whoosh!
The wings on the back of the Perfect Susanoo gave a sudden, powerful beat.
The two brothers on its palm only felt their vision blur. When their sight returned to normal, they found themselves already high in the sky.
"Did he escape?" Future Sasuke observed the chasm on the ground below. The strange chakra from before had already vanished.
He didn't believe that the slash from earlier could have finished off Black Zetsu.
How could a being who had lived since the time of the Sage of Six Paths die from an attack of that level?
"Who are you?" Itachi Uchiha, having calmed down, asked.
Future Sasuke guided the two into the crystal on the forehead of the Perfect Susanoo.
At close range, his face was reflected in their pupils.
Upon seeing his face clearly, both of their pupils contracted.
This guy's face… why does it look exactly like Sasuke's (mine)…
"Don't resist." Future Sasuke looked at them. In his exposed right eye, a Mangekyo Sharingan with a complex pattern met their gazes.
Their minds were instantly drawn into a world of genjutsu.
Itachi is one thing, after all, he has the Mangekyo; but how is this world's version of myself also so resistant to genjutsu?
Feeling the drain on his chakra, Future Sasuke was inwardly shocked.
This level of pupil power was already nearing the peak of a three-tomoe Sharingan.
Drip~
The sound of a liquid dripping drew his attention back.
Looking down, he saw a steady stream of blood flowing from Itachi's waist.
His expression changed slightly, and he hurriedly helped to bandage the wound.
If things went as expected, the two should now be immersed in his genjutsu world, listening to him explain his origins. They probably wouldn't have the presence of mind to bandage their own wounds.
"Thankfully, it's three years earlier. Itachi's body hasn't reached the point of an oil lamp about to run dry yet."
While bandaging, he also took the opportunity to check Itachi's physical condition.
Although this Itachi wasn't the Itachi from his original world, the resonance stemming from the depths of their shared bloodline couldn't be faked.
From a certain perspective, the Itachi before him was also his older brother.
A past regret now had the possibility of being mended…
Thinking of this, Sasuke suddenly felt that this journey through time wasn't entirely a bad thing.
He suddenly felt a bit grateful to Urashiki. If he hadn't used the space-time ninjutsu tool, Karasuki, the regret in his heart might have accompanied him for his entire life, until death.
As for who to find to treat Itachi's old illness…
He looked up in the direction of Konoha. Itachi had sacrificed so much for Konoha. If Tsunade was unwilling to treat Itachi's injuries…
He didn't know what he might do.
Konohagakure.
On a simple training ground, two figures intertwined, the collision of fists and feet producing muffled thuds.
"Keep your hand movements tighter, otherwise your face will be exposed to the enemy; that sweep kick needs to be faster; straight punch, don't just go straight back and forth, like this!"
As he spoke, Shadow Clone Naruto #1's arm suddenly bent, his right elbow striking Boruto in the chest and sending him flying.
"If I were the enemy, I wouldn't have aimed there just now, but at your vital points."
"Remember, change your ingrained combat thinking. When fighting an enemy, it's fine to be a bit more underhanded with your methods. Anyway, no matter how much he curses you from underground, you won't hear it."
"Understood!" Boruto got back to his feet. His dad had controlled his strength very well. When he fell, apart from his butt hurting a bit upon landing, he was otherwise fine.
Naruto glanced up at the deep crimson sunset in the sky and stopped the two from continuing their training.
"Let's continue tomorrow."
"It's still early. Let's train a little longer," Boruto said, his movements pausing.
"In the morning, you thought training was tiring. Now that it's evening, I'm feeling tired too," Shadow Clone Naruto #1 looked at him with a half-smile.
"Ahaha…"
Boruto's gaze drifted, and he scratched his head with an embarrassed laugh.
Who knew the training would be this effective…
In the morning, he got beaten up right from the start. He wasn't a masochist, so why would he enjoy training that involved getting thrashed immediately?
"Let's continue tomorrow. Combining work and rest is the superior way," Naruto (the original) said, shaking his head. "Dripping water penetrates stone; what's needed is perseverance."
"Get a good rest tonight." After Shadow Clone Naruto #1 finished speaking, he vanished in a puff of white smoke.
"Come over and watch the fishing rod for me."
Handing the fishing rod to Boruto, Naruto stretched lazily. Ever since Hinata and the others had left, he had been sitting here all afternoon, and his backside had gone numb.
"Didn't you say we were going to eat?" Boruto looked uncomprehendingly at the float in the stream.
"You won't starve."
Naruto said, scooping up the net from the stream and showing Boruto his catch of the day.
"Can you even cook?" Boruto's eyes were full of doubt. Ever since he could remember, his dad had rarely cooked.
And every time he said he was going to cook, it was actually either instant noodles or taking him and his sister to Ichiraku Ramen.
"Little guy, you should hold a sense of reverence for all unknown things," Naruto said, speechless. Was the him from another world so untrustworthy to his own child?
He expertly handled the ingredients. To be honest, he didn't particularly like eating fish; he simply enjoyed the process of fishing. But since he'd caught them, he couldn't just not eat them, right?
The glow of the western sunset slowly faded, replaced by a night sky adorned with a multitude of stars.
Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle~
Beside the bubbling pot of soup, the two sat opposite each other.
Smelling the rising aroma, Boruto took a bite with some skepticism.
Hmm, edible, and it tastes pretty good…
"Not bad, right?" Naruto asked with a smile. "Cooking is just something that comes with practice."
"I can't guarantee other ingredients, but when it comes to river delicacies, I'm quite confident."
"Surprisingly delicious," Boruto nodded slightly.
"The first time always has some external factors enhancing it, but if you eat it a few more times, you'll find it's actually just so-so."
Hearing his words, Naruto gave a startled laugh.
How could he not know his own cooking skills?
"Hurry up and eat. After you finish, I'll take you to a hot spring."
Seeing him put down his bowl and chopsticks, Boruto asked with confusion, "It's so delicious, yet you're eating so little?"
"No matter how delicious something is, you'll get tired of it if you eat too much. Besides, I didn't exercise much today, so I'm not hungry."
Boruto nodded and continued to eat heartily with his bowl and chopsticks. He was starving; he had barely rested at all today.
Naruto sat quietly to the side, adding firewood to the campfire for him and occasionally asking him some questions about the future.
He looked at the boy before him, a sigh welling up in his heart.
How long had it been since he'd experienced this feeling…
Perhaps it was because of the connection deep within their bloodline. Eating with the little guy always brought him a sense of comfort.
"Boruto, do you have a girlfriend yet?"
He suddenly somewhat understood his mother's thoughts from the Dragon Vein timeline.
Cough, cough, cough!
Boruto quickly turned his head to the side, coughing violently to avoid spraying the food in his mouth into the soup pot.
"I'm only twelve."
"Which little girl do you often hang out with?" Naruto asked curiously. "Himawari doesn't count."
"…Sarada," Boruto said after a moment's thought.
"Whose daughter is she?"
The little guy was the eldest son of Konoha's Seventh Hokage. A little girl who could hang out with him probably didn't come from an ordinary family either.
"Uncle Sasuke's."
Boruto had no intention of hiding it anyway; the dad in this world basically knew everything already.
"Not bad." Recalling Future Sasuke's strength, Naruto nodded with satisfaction. "And his wife is?"
"Aunt Sakura."
"…"
The image of Sakura's affectionate attitude towards Sasuke when Team 7 had just been formed surfaced in Naruto's mind. He suddenly felt that this outcome wasn't so unacceptable after all.
"The little girl, uh, Sarada, what's her personality like?"
"A bit hot-tempered." Boruto's expression soured slightly.
"As long as you don't mind… Hmm?"
Naruto suddenly whipped his head around, looking towards the distant horizon.
"What's wrong?" Boruto followed his gaze.
"Is this a top-tier powerhouse of the future?"
Naruto slowly stood up. In the distant sky, a colossal being, radiating a brilliant azure light, like a demon or a god, broke through layers of clouds, creating a visible shockwave as it sped towards Konoha.
"This is… Uncle Sasuke's Perfect Susanoo?!" Boruto's eyes widened abruptly. "What happened?"
Hokage's Office.
Shizune burst through the office door, her expression frantic. "It's not good, Lady Tsunade…"
"I see it." Tsunade stood by the window, her expression grave as she watched the colossal being rapidly approaching in the distance.
"Shizune, issue the order, Level One Alert!" she commanded.
"Yes!"
"A Perfect Susanoo? Who on earth could it be?" Tsunade's eyes were filled with doubt and incomprehension.
"Madara Uchiha? Impossible, he's already dead…"