As Danzo's soul completely dissipated, everyone fell silent—especially Sasuke.
Was this some twisted form of revenge?
But then... why couldn't he feel happy at all?
Instead, an indescribable, complicated feeling churned in his chest.
Not only Sasuke felt this way. Even Itachi, Fugaku, Mikoto, Uchiha Hikaru, and the others around him were the same.
Among them, Itachi felt it most deeply. Having spent years inside Root, he was fully aware of Danzo's actions against the Uchiha Clan. He had even personally leaked clan intelligence to Danzo himself.
By all logic, this should've brought him peace. He had finally witnessed, with his own eyes, the disappearance of that wretched man. In a sense, this was revenge for Shisui.
But Shisui was no longer here…
And now that revenge had been delivered, all that remained was emptiness.
Tobirama looked around at everyone deep in thought and shook his head slightly.
"Hikaru, is there anything else?" he asked. "If not, I'll return to the research institute. I still have many experiments to finish."
Without waiting for a reply, he turned to leave. Though he often said, 'As Hokage, one must be ruthless,' Tobirama was human after all.
And as long as one is human, it's impossible to completely shed emotion. How could he not feel sorrow, knowing that his former disciple had fallen so far?
All he wanted now was to immerse himself in his work—to numb the ache in his heart.
"It's fine for now," Uchiha Hikaru replied. "But be sure to come home tonight. We'll talk then."
Tobirama gave a short nod and vanished.
Then, Hikaru turned to Sasuke and Boruto.
"Danzo's situation has been resolved. So what's your next move? Are you going to find Naruto and tell him everything?"
"Or are you planning to hide in the shadows and protect him?"
Sasuke hesitated.
Originally, he'd intended to deal with Urashiki on his own with Boruto, so as not to interfere with the timeline. But now that Hikaru had informed him about the existence of the World Tree—and how this world and theirs were merely branches on different limbs—there was no longer any reason to worry about that.
Rationally, it made more sense to work with Hikaru and the others, take Naruto somewhere safe, and then confront Urashiki together.
But emotionally, another problem weighed on him.
He didn't know how to face Naruto in this world.
Even though they weren't from the same timeline, his feelings for Naruto were still the same—deep, tangled, and difficult to express.
Mikoto, who stood nearby, noticed Sasuke's internal struggle. As a mother—even if this Sasuke came from another world—she could tell exactly what he was feeling. Their experiences may have differed, but Sasuke was still Sasuke.
A textbook tsundere.
And not just him—many Uchiha carried that same personality quirk. Mikoto had helped with enough matchmaking in the clan by now to understand it perfectly.
"Why don't you and Boruto stay with us for now?" she offered. "As for Naruto, he's staying with Jiraiya, so he's plenty safe."
Fugaku nodded in agreement. He didn't believe Urashiki posed a serious threat to Konoha at this point.
The former Legendary Sannin were all here, and the First and Second Hokage had been reincarnated—both immortal and possessing near-limitless chakra.
On top of that, Fugaku, Itachi, and Saya—wielders of three Mangekyō Sharingan—were present. And Hikaru was already nearing the Stability of the Rinnegan.
Not to mention, Sasuke had his own unique Rinnegan. In his eyes, there was simply no reason to fear Urashiki.
"That's right," he added. "You're welcome to stay here. We've got a few guest rooms—one for you and Boruto."
At that, young Sasuke suddenly perked up.
"Yeah, yeah! That way you can train me too, and then I'll finally be able to beat that Naruto idiot!"
"Think about it—if I beat Naruto, it's basically the same as you beating Naruto! We're both Sasuke anyway!"
Sasuke's older counterpart felt his resolve falter.
What!?
Beat Naruto?
Damn. That offer was far too tempting. He didn't even know how to refuse it—especially since it was Mikoto and Fugaku who made the offer.
But... what about Naruto's safety? What about Urashiki?
As he wavered, Itachi, who had remained quiet this whole time, stepped forward and delivered the final blow.
"Sasuke," he said gently, "stay here with us for a few days. Don't worry. As long as we're here, nothing will happen."
He smiled—calm, familiar.
Looking at Itachi's face, Sasuke almost said yes then and there. But before he could respond, Hikaru stepped up behind him, hands clasped behind his back, and gave him a gentle push forward.
"Alright, alright. You and Boruto are staying. Why not? This is your home too."
"Or would you rather be out there waiting to become an orphan again?"
"Don't worry about Urashiki. I've got my own way of handling him."
With that, Uchiha Hikaru took Saya's hand and leapt down from the Hokage Rock, leaving Sasuke's family and Boruto behind.
Boruto looked around at Mikoto, Fugaku, Itachi, both Sasukes—past and future—and suddenly felt very out of place.
What the hell... am I surrounded by Uchiha...?
…
At that moment, Hikaru and Saya found Jiraiya and Naruto at the training grounds.
"Ah! It's Brother Hikaru and Sister Saya! Why are you here?"
Jiraiya blinked at the two of them, caught off guard.
Don't tell me they're here to push us to go to Hidden Cloud with Team Omoi already…?
That couldn't be. They had agreed there was still a week left.
Hikaru strode up to Naruto and ruffled his prickly, hedgehog-like hair.
"What? Can't I bring your sister Saya along to see you?"
"Well, actually... she wanted to test your progress. See how much you've improved."
Naruto's eyes lit up immediately. He rolled up his sleeves, pumped and ready.
"Really!?"
"Alright then, Sister Saya, come on! I've gotten way stronger with all this training!"
Saya—understanding Hikaru's real intent—nodded calmly. Clearly, he didn't want Naruto to learn about Urashiki. Otherwise, with Naruto's temperament, he'd definitely charge straight into battle without thinking.
"Well then, show me what you've got."
The moment the words left her mouth, Naruto rushed at her.
Meanwhile, Hikaru took the opportunity to pull Jiraiya off to the side, under the shade of a nearby tree.
"That Naruto kid... seriously," Jiraiya muttered. "You and Saya just happened to be passing by the training ground? Come on."
"He actually fell for that?"
He shook his head and sighed.
"Alright, out with it. What do you need from me?" Jiraiya asked, eyeing Naruto as he was cleanly overpowered by Saya in hand-to-hand combat.
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