Chapter 92 – The Weight of Time
As Naruto was about to move, he suddenly stopped and turned toward Queen Sara.
Dad, Sasuke, Kakashi… and that person with Otsutsuki-like chakra—but not quite Otsutsuki… they're all coming this way anyway, he thought. No need for me to rush there myself.
He looked at Sara. She wasn't a shinobi, and she lacked chakra to travel at his speed. It would be dangerous to take her along.
It's better to wait here, Naruto decided.
He turned to her with his usual friendly tone.
"Hey, Sara… did anyone with puppet techniques come to Rōran recently?"
Sara blinked.
"Yes, he did. He's a good man. He made Rōran rich again by creating new ways to use the Dragon Vein. He's the Prime Minister now. My mother trusted him greatly. He came here about six years ago. His name is… Anrokuzan."
Naruto's expression darkened instantly.
So it really is Mukade. He must be the one how when to kill Sara and have complet control on the dragon vein
His mind flashed back to that mission from his teenage years—when Mukade disappeared into the Dragon Vein's light.
So that's how it is. When he traveled through time, he arrived six years earlier and built power in secret…
Naruto frowned, crossing his arms.
Guess I'll have to finish the mission I started when I was sixteen—except this time I'm thirty-five.
He chuckled softly.
Time's funny like that.
But then another thought struck him.
If Mukade arrived six years earlier… and I came just few minutes before Sasuke, that means whoever the Otsutsuki is—he hasn't arrived yet. He'll be next.
Naruto's eyes sharpened.
We'll have to be ready when that happens.
---
Meanwhile, on Minato's side—
Akira and Kakashi emerged and landing beside the Fourth Hokage.
Minato turned sharply, his voice stern.
"What happened? Why didn't you two follow my orders? A shinobi who breaks formation during a mission risks everything—our cover, our safety, the success of the task."
His blue eyes hardened.
If a ninja ignores orders, they'll be branded as rogue and hunted down. That's how shinobi world works and at war time this role is more strict
Akira stood straight but didn't back down.
"Brother Minato… we need to finish this mission quickly. A dangerous enemy is coming. I'm not sure when, but if we're still here when they arrive—we'll all die before we even realize what hit us."
Minato's eyes widened slightly. He knew Akira well. The boy never exaggerated. If he said "dangerous," it meant something beyond imagination.
"So you're saying the enemy is already here?" Minato asked quietly. "The one in front of us—or the one behind?"
He had already sensed both new chakras entering Rōran: Naruto and Sasuke. One carried a light as bright as the sun; the other, a deep stillness that cut like a blade.
Akira shook his head.
"Neither. The real enemy hasn't arrived yet."
Minato frowned.
"Then why say we must complete the mission quickly, not retreat?"
Akira smiled faintly.
"Because this is my first mission, Brother Minato. And I don't want my first one to fail."
For a moment, Minato said nothing. The desert wind swept past them, carrying grains of sand like fragments of time.
Minato finally nodded.
"Then let's move. We'll finish this—before the storm arrives."