396-400

*Chapter 396: Shifting Sands and Chain Reactions*

The shifting sands come together when there is benefit and scatter when there is none.

The wind can disperse the sand, but the sand can also spread everywhere, seeping into every crevice.

This is the current reality of the Land of Wind.

Ten days ago,

In an unexpected move, Sunagakure became the first village in the ninja world to launch a coup against the feudal lord’s regime.

The reasons were numerous,

but at the core of it all was one thing: *money*.

The feudal lord of the Land of Wind neglected his duties, refused to fund the village, indulged in his own luxuries, and let the military decline. He willingly became subservient to the feudal lord of the Land of Fire, hoping to secure Konoha’s protection by outsourcing missions meant for Sunagakure’s shinobi to Konoha, thereby avoiding war—and more importantly, avoiding expenses.

As a result, Sunagakure, economically strangled, stripped of its Tailed Beast, and with significantly reduced military strength, found itself at a dead end.

At that moment, someone handed them a hammer—and even demonstrated how to use it.

Without hesitation, they launched the coup.

For ninjas whose profession involves walking on walls and licking blood off their blades, taking down powerless aristocrats was an effortless feat.

The coup was a success.

However, in the end,

the feudal lord’s bitter laughter and furious curses continued to echo in the mind of the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa.

Before his death,

with tears and snot streaming down his face, his expression twisted with rage, the feudal lord glared at Rasa and pointed a trembling finger at him, cursing with resentment:

"Rasa! Rasa!

"You think you’re powerful, righteous, and remarkable!

"But do you really believe that killing me will end the tragedy of the Land of Wind? Hahahahahaha!

"Don’t be ridiculous!

"You only saw me spending money like water and surrounding myself with servants, but did you ever consider—how much could I possibly spend on my own?

"And you—Rasa—you and Sunagakure, in this barren land of nothing but endless desert, dream of standing shoulder to shoulder with the Land of Fire, supporting tens of thousands of shinobi who burn through money like wildfire!

"You knelt before me countless times, begging me to squeeze every last drop of wealth from this impoverished land and hand-feed it to you!

"Heh…

"And now? You dare to kill the golden goose, drain the pond dry!

"This already deformed nation—now that you’ve poured fuel onto the fire—I can already see your demise!

"Rasa!

"You will go down in history as the greatest sinner of the Land of Wind and Sunagakure!

"And now—I send you on your way!"

With that, the feudal lord—his face contorted in fury, his luxurious robes stained with sweat—dragged a blade across his throat and collapsed lifelessly to the ground.

Within the grand palace,

just beyond a single door, the sounds of silence and deafening cheers clashed.

But Sunagakure did not find salvation as expected after the coup.

Instead, the village quickly spiraled into even greater chaos.

Because after eliminating the feudal lord and even wiping out all the aristocrats in the land,

very little wealth was actually found.

Rasa, the Fourth Kazekage, who had staged the coup to solve Sunagakure’s financial crisis,

was left in an awkward realization:

To maintain its status as one of the Five Great Nations, the Land of Wind had poured all its resources into militarization—

And Sunagakure itself was the real source of the problem.

Seven days ago,

seated upon the throne of Kazekage and ruler of the Land of Wind, Rasa rubbed his temples with force.

Money, money, money!

How could he possibly generate wealth in this godforsaken land?!

For a moment, frustration overwhelmed him, and he let out a deep sigh, scratching his head in exasperation.

At that moment,

his pregnant wife, Karura, entered the room and gently reminded him:

"Rasa, a letter has arrived from Roran. The sender is ‘An Lushan.’"

Roran—

a mysterious tower city that had emerged in the desert six years ago. The city’s current ruler was Queen Sāsha. Due to its lack of commercial activities and location outside the oasis, it generated little taxable revenue. Although technically within the Land of Wind’s borders, the country only recognized oasis territories, leading other nations to refer to Roran as the ‘Roran Kingdom.’

An Lushan was the queen’s chief minister—a reliable man whose exceptional puppet technology had rapidly developed Roran.

"An Lushan?" Rasa took the letter, opened it, and began reading.

"A massive supply of puppets, weapons, and war materials… all for free?"

"That small city has this much wealth?!"

"The only request is for Sunagakure’s strongest to come on July 15th to protect the city from potential ghost attacks during the Ghost Festival Night?"

Rasa’s expression turned strange. He rubbed his eyes and read the letter again carefully.

"Ghosts? There’s no such thing in the ninja world."

"Ridiculous! A prime minister of a nation, afraid of such nonsense. Heh."

A smirk crept onto Rasa’s lips as his eyes gleamed with opportunistic intent.

"Karura, help me write a reply—we need to… ‘stabilize’ them!"

---

Meanwhile,

Sunagakure’s response to An Lushan’s wealth did not go unnoticed.

Already embedded within the village’s upper ranks after infiltrating through the Yunming City operation, Yura discreetly transmitted the intelligence elsewhere.

The Land of Water—

Under the moonlit sky,

Inside a towering mansion on an isolated island, various steel components were scattered across the room.

"Zzzzt—!!"

A brilliant beam of light pierced through the ceiling, prompting furious cursing from the neighboring room, where Oyakata Homura had just put his daughter to sleep.

"It’s the middle of the night! Are you trying to kill my sleep?!"

Inside the workshop,

shirtless and with fiery red hair, Sasori gazed at the glowing chakra core embedded in his chest. A delighted smile spread across his face as he felt power surging through him—

He could easily shut his noisy neighbor up with a single punch.

"As expected, Tailed Beasts are the ultimate clean energy source!"

"With this, even that celestial phenomenon—I can replicate it! Heh, UchihaShinji, I’m about to catch up to you!"

His excitement quickly gave way to frustration.

"The problem is… that woman won’t let me near the Six-Tails anymore."

"Uchiha Shinji’s technique for replicating Tailed Beast energy is in Orochimaru’s hands. Without him, there’s no way to steal it."

"And I can’t just kill Shinji’s little girlfriend to snatch the Six-Tails—that’s too much trouble."

Just then,

a puppet bird sliced through the air, breaching the mansion’s barrier and triggering alarms.

Amid the neighbor’s renewed complaints,

"Yura’s intelligence? Urgent news—what’s Sunagakure up to now?"

Sasori took the bird, retrieved the message from its belly, and read it.

"Rasa, that fool, wants to seize Roran’s Thousand-Tower?"

"Hmm? The place has a ‘Dragon Vein’—an endless energy source?"

A slow, cunning smile spread across Sasori’s lips.

"Well, well… Looks like I won’t even have to search for it."

With that,

he spread his arms wide—

The Tailed Beast reactor in his chest flared to life.

Blue flames erupted from his hands and feet.

A massive thrust of power sent him rocketing through the ceiling, leaving a deafening sonic boom in his wake!

"Waaaaah!"

His neighbor’s daughter burst into tears.

Oyakata Homura, clutching a milk bottle in frustration, seethed with rage.

"Sasori of the Red Sand!"

"Can’t anyone control this guy?!"

(End of chapter)

Chapter 397: The Lost Tower, Naruto Uzumaki

At this moment, in another dimension...

Fierce winds whipped up swirling yellow sand, creating a rapidly moving sandstorm across the desert.

Amid the ruins beneath the raging storm, a team of four dashed forward, chasing after a man with short, brown hair, a gaunt face, and a thin, skeletal frame.

“Mukade! Surrender now!”

However, the man merely looked up with disdain, his gaze fixed on the older version of Yamato leading the new Team 7—Naruto, Sakura, and Sai.

“You’re too late.”

As his words fell, he crouched in the center of the ruins, amidst a crumbling altar with a uniquely shaped kunai embedded in it. A purple pattern emerged on his body, and he absorbed the entire seal beneath him!

“If I combine my puppet technique with the power of the Ryūmyaku...”

His eyes widened as he yanked the kunai from the altar,

“Then, not just the Five Great Nations—I will control the entire world!!”

“Stop!”

Naruto charged forward, shouting, just as a massive purple beam of light, nearly ten meters wide, erupted into the sky.

But before he could reach Mukade, the light engulfed him entirely.

In the next instant,

Time and space rippled slightly, scattering Mukade, Naruto, and Yamato across different points in time.

---

“That’s Rōran!”

Gazing at the city made up of thousands of Gothic towers, resembling something out of a fantasy, UchihaShinji clicked his tongue in wonder.

He couldn’t help but think that if the towers were decorated with more neon lights, the place would have a full-blown cyberpunk vibe.

“There are quite a few puppet sentries around... Hey, are we really just going to walk in?”

Beside him, Hidan shivered as he watched puppets flying between the towers and others lurking in the shadows, disguised as giant statues.

“What else?” UchihaShinji glanced sideways,

An Uchiha goes wherever they please!

“Or do you want me to send you back?”

Hidan’s face crumpled in reluctance,

“Those puppets have spinning blades and drills. They may not kill me, but they sure hurt!”

“Stop whining. Just lead the way this time.”

Noticing how Orochimaru’s scouting missions had made Hidan wary of the puppets, UchihaShinji raised an eyebrow,

“To master the Jashin Cult’s curse techniques in battle, you need strong taijutsu. Looks like Orochimaru’s training is paying off.”

“In terms of taijutsu, you’re already a decent Genin.”

“What? After nearly dying eight times, I’m still just a Genin?” Hidan protested bitterly,

“At the very least, I should be a Special Jonin!”

UchihaShinji’s mouth twitched, but he didn’t take the bait. He simply walked forward, entering the area known as the City of a Thousand Towers.

This city, called Rōran, corresponds to the “Lost Tower” arc in the original series. It tells the story of Naruto being sent back in time by the Ryūmyaku’s power while chasing the ambitious Mukade. He arrives in Rōran at its peak, leading to an adventure in an era when Minato Namikaze was not yet the Fourth Hokage.

According to the timeline, Naruto should be arriving right around now, during the Third Great Ninja War, before Minato became Hokage.

The question was whether Naruto and Minato had already met and sealed the Ryūmyaku, or if that event was yet to come.

And if UchihaShinji accidentally destroyed this city while hunting the White Snake Sage, would the events of the future still occur?

Reflecting on the original storyline, UchihaShinji stepped into the space between the towers.

Suddenly, as if sensing an intruder,

Cold, purple eyes lit up on the surrounding towers!

Then—

Six massive puppets leaped from above, spinning their drill arms and fan-like blades, launching a synchronized attack aimed directly at UchihaShinji’s head!

“What? This area was supposed to be unguarded!”

“Hey,Shinji! Watch out!” Hidan shouted in panic,

But UchihaShinji didn’t even bother to look up. He casually pulled two shurikens from his pouch, flicked his fingers, and threw them with ease.

The shurikens spun upward in spiraling arcs, slicing through invisible chakra threads, severing the power supply.

The six hulking puppets crashed to the ground like marionettes with cut strings.

These Ryūmyaku-powered puppets, which had given Naruto a hard time in the original story, were now reduced to mere playthings before Uchiha Shinji.

Or rather, in front of an Uchiha who mastered shuriken techniques and fought with keen vision, puppet jutsu was inherently inferior.

Staring at the fallen puppets, UchihaShinji stood in silence for a moment.

He felt an odd sense of déjà vu, like a max-level player returning to the beginner’s village.

It seemed like even the challenges in the ninja world weren’t enough anymore. Enemies like these felt more suitable for his training days back in the village.

“Puppets are controlled by chakra threads. To defeat them, you have to target their weak points, or else it’s just a waste of effort.”

He was about to explain more to Hidan when,

A fierce battle erupted in the distance!

Uchiha Shinji looked up, catching a glimpse of a familiar flash of yellow.

“Was that... Minato?”

His eyes widened in surprise. Then, with a mischievous grin, he grabbed Hidan and continued forward.

“Let’s go. Looks like there’s some fun to be had up ahead.”

---

Meanwhile...

“Damn it!”

Covered in dust and dirt, Naruto clutched his blue chakra blade, dodging puppet-launched weapons as he jumped between the towers.

“They just keep coming! Even with the chakra blade, I can’t take them all down!”

Having just learned to use the chakra blade, Naruto struggled to defeat the first wave of puppets, only to trigger more, even deadlier ones.

He prepared to dodge another attack,

But then—

The puppets retracted their masks, revealing cannons that began charging with purple Ryūmyaku energy.

Moments later, they fired devastating energy beams!

“Damn!” Naruto’s eyes widened in horror, realizing he couldn’t escape in time.

With a deafening crash, the bridge between two towers shattered, sending him plummeting into a pile of rubble below.

“Ouch...” Naruto winced, clutching his injured leg.

Looking up, he saw the four puppets hovering above, launching another barrage of chakra-infused weapons.

Cornered, Naruto almost called upon the Nine-Tails’ power when—

“Boom!”

A red-haired figure descended, sending a shockwave that blew away the attacking puppets.

With a casual flick of his wrist, he unleashed a radiant energy blade that sliced through the puppets, reducing them to scrap metal.

Naruto’s eyes widened in disbelief,

“You... You’re Sasori of the Red Sand?!”

“Oh? You know of me?”

Sasori turned, eyebrow raised in curiosity, then his face lit up with excitement,

“Well, well... The Nine-Tails?”

(End of Chapter)

Chapter 398: The Technological Battle Against the Tailed Beast – Father and Son Reunite

At this moment—

Lying on the ground was a blond-haired boy wearing a yellow and black tracksuit, with a gray mesh undershirt underneath and a Konoha forehead protector strapped to his head.

Seeing him, Sasori's face broke into a relieved smile.

“Heh, well, that was easier than expected.”

He had been in need of a Tailed Beast Reactor, and now, right before his eyes, a fresh new Nine-Tails Jinchūriki had appeared!

And better yet, it wasn’t the one from Konoha who had a good relationship with Shinji, nor was it the wife of the Yellow Flash—a woman from the Uzumaki clan.

This meant he could go all out without hesitation or any concerns!

"Hey, kid, mind lending me something?"

On the other side—

Naruto looked at the red-haired young man before him, whose appearance seemed familiar, but whose aura felt completely off.

"Red Sand Sasori?! But… weren’t you already dead?!"

Clearly, the two of them were not from the same timeline.

In Naruto’s timeline, he had already completed the mission to retrieve the Kazekage and had witnessed the death of Sasori, the Akatsuki’s Red Sand Master, at the hands of Chiyo.

Yet now, this supposedly dead man was standing right in front of him!

Was this… a ghost?!

Naruto was so shaken that he instinctively scrambled backward in a panic, using both his hands and feet.

This reaction, however, caused Sasori to misunderstand.

"Hmm? What nonsense are you spouting? No matter, don’t resist—it’ll be over soon, and you won’t feel a thing."

A cold smile spread across Sasori’s face as he raised his palm. A crimson glow spread from his hand up his arm, reaching the Tailed Beast Reactor embedded in his chest.

A deep black sphere quietly emerged from his palm.

"Wait, that’s a Tailed Beast Bomb?!"

"Aren’t you supposed to be a puppet master?!"

Naruto was stunned for a brief moment. Seeing the ominous sphere forming in Sasori’s hand sent shivers down his spine.

As someone who had personally witnessed the devastating power of a Tailed Beast Bomb—having seen even Orochimaru struggle against it—Naruto knew exactly how terrifying it was.

Now, with an injured leg preventing him from dodging, he had no choice but to take the hit head-on.

Naruto didn’t understand what was happening, but he knew there was only one thing he could do.

Clenching his teeth, he didn’t hesitate any longer and reached out to the Nine-Tails inside him. A crimson hue gradually filled his eyes.

“—ROAR!!!”

Although in the original story Naruto often converted his enemies with words,

That was only after he had beaten them into submission first.

Sasori, despite his calm and handsome red-haired appearance, was actually someone with little patience and a short temper.

And now, two hot-headed individuals had just clashed—

In an instant, the battle escalated!

With four tails swaying behind him, Naruto charged forward. Opposing him was Sasori, who had transformed into a ninja-world Iron Man with his Tailed Beast Reactor and Chakra Cannon technology.

The two collided!

"Whoa! Amazing!"

Sitting atop a tower, Shinji watched the two fighters turn the battlefield into utter chaos. He couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement.

“Damn, Sasori’s gear is sick—Ninja Iron Man!”

“Damn, is this the Four-Tails Naruto form? Feels like I’m watching an anime come to life!”

Feeling as if he were watching an ultra-high-definition blockbuster unfold before his eyes, Shinji was genuinely in awe.

He had only one thought—

“This is awesome!”

At that moment, a figure suddenly flashed onto the rooftop beside him.

It was a man with long golden hair, wearing a black and gray flak jacket—the standard uniform of Konoha.

It was none other than Minato Namikaze.

Two more figures swiftly followed, landing behind him. One was a large-built man, and the other wore sunglasses while carrying a massive gourd on his back, remaining silent.

They were Akimichi Dingza and Aburame Shibi—two ninjas accompanying Minato on this mission. They were also the fathers of Akimichi Chōji and Aburame Shino, two future members of the Konoha Twelve.

" Shinji, what are you doing here?"

Standing beside Shinji, Minato sighed, rubbing his forehead in mild frustration.

Recently, Konoha’s spies within Sunagakure had reported that a secret war weapon was being built in the ruins of Roran. The mastermind behind it, Anrokuzan, had close ties with the higher-ups of Sunagakure, and it seemed like he was planning to provide them with an army of standardized puppets.

At the same time, refugees from Roran had traveled great distances to reach Konoha, pleading with the Third Hokage for aid and issuing a mission to protect their queen.

To eliminate this threat from the Land of Wind, the Third Hokage had dispatched a four-man squad—Minato Namikaze, Aburame Shibi, Akimichi Dingza, and Hatake Kakashi.

Minato had actually arrived here before Sasori did.

Under normal circumstances, he would have rushed in to save the blond-haired boy who felt oddly familiar to him.

But just as he was about to do so, he sensed a particularly familiar chakra signature—Shinji’s.

At that moment, he temporarily suppressed his urge to find Naruto and came here to meet Shinji instead.

After all, while Sasori attacking the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki was a major concern,

The bigger issue at hand was Shinji—who had disappeared for nearly a month after single-handedly ending the Third Great Ninja War.

No matter how much Minato personally trusted Shinji, understanding his intentions was now a higher priority.

Moreover, Minato had something he wanted to say to him.

"That’s not important. If you’re here to convince me to return to Konoha, you can forget it, Minato."

Shinji turned to him with a carefree smile.

"I don’t want our friendship to be tainted by meaningless things like that."

"Besides, I have something I absolutely need to do—something neither Konoha nor you can interfere with. Once it's done, I’ll come back for a visit."

Hearing those words, Minato wanted to say something, but after a moment of thought, he simply sighed and smiled.

"Alright. Kushina asked me to tell you—she’d love to have you over for dinner to try her cooking."

"Make sure you come."

Shinji nodded, then turned back to the battlefield below, watching with amusement.

At this moment—

Four-Tails Naruto was sprinting at full speed between the towers, narrowly dodging the Chakra Cannons that Sasori was relentlessly firing from above.

Beside Naruto, the puppet of the Third Kazekage manipulated iron sand to form massive walls, blocking his path.

Further ahead, the puppet of Mifune—a master swordsman with half his face covered—stood precisely in Naruto’s way, gripping his sword’s hilt, ready to unleash a deadly iai slash.

A battle against three Kage-level opponents—this was the true danger of fighting a high-level puppet master.

To make things worse, Sasori had upgraded his weaponry and components, making him even more difficult to deal with than the Six Paths of Pain.

Naruto had initially thought that since Sasori was defeated by Chiyo and Sakura in the Kazekage Retrieval Mission, he wouldn’t be that terrifying.

But now, facing this monster firsthand,

He finally realized just how overwhelming the pressure was when everything was maxed out.

At this moment, the only thing on his mind was—

How the hell did Sakura and Granny Chiyo survive fighting this guy?!

On the other side, Sasori's expression darkened further.

As if trying to prove something, he reached for the Tailed Beast Reactor in his chest and gave it a slight twist.

Watching this, Shinji’s eyebrows twitched. He knew that if the fight continued, whether Naruto unleashed Six or Eight Tails or Sasori went full power, the destruction would be far too great.

So he turned to Minato with a sly smile and asked,

"By the way, that’s your son down there, isn’t it?"

"Aren’t you going to say hello?"

(End of Chapter)

Chapter 399: The Boy Who Terrified the Nine-Tails!

*"My child... with Kushina?"*

Minato Namikaze was momentarily stunned. He fixed his gaze on the young Naruto below. After hearing Shinji's words, he finally understood why he felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity from that child since the beginning.

But how could that child have the Nine-Tails sealed inside him, a power that only Kushina, a jinchuriki, should possess?

Moreover, he and Kushina weren't even married yet. How could they already have a son this old? Confused, Minato was flooded with questions.

However, being who he was, Minato quickly accepted this reality. He looked up at the countless channels transporting the energy of the Dragon Vein connected to the Tower of a Thousand, a hint of realization flickering in his mind.

*"This child... is he from the future?"*

In the next moment, his eyes sharpened. He donned his mask and vanished from sight.

---

Meanwhile, on the battlefield, the fight was intensifying.

As a master puppeteer, Sasori's precise control was forcing Naruto Uzumaki into a disadvantage, step by step, leading him straight into a carefully laid trap.

His main body, the Third Kazekage puppet, and Mifune's human puppet attacked simultaneously!

A roaring chakra cannon, a spiral spear made of iron sand, and a figure that had remained motionless the entire time suddenly drew his sword at this crucial moment.

A crescent-moon-shaped sword light slashed straight towards Naruto's chest and abdomen as he struggled to fend off the first two attacks!

Naruto's eyes widened in shock, his teeth clenched tightly.

*"This is bad!"*

Having not yet completed his Sage Mode training or come to terms with the Nine-Tails to fully harness its power, his overall strength was just reaching Kage-level. Against Sasori, whose skills were fully unleashed, he was clearly at a disadvantage.

*"Captain Yamato isn't here... If I keep pushing the Nine-Tails' power, Pervy Sage's seal won't hold... But..."*

If this continued, he knew he would die at the hands of this mysteriously resurrected foe and lose the tailed beast within him.

Realizing this, he could no longer hesitate.

At that moment, a sinister, tempting voice echoed in his mind:

*"Come on, kid!"*

*"Accept me... Accept your true self. This power is rightfully yours!"*

*"With this power, no one in this world can stand in your way!"*

As the violent emotions embedded in this chakra consumed him, Naruto felt an overwhelming surge of confidence and arrogance.

All the hardships and pain he had endured flooded his mind.

A deeper, more sinister red chakra began to dye his eyes blood-red.

In his inner world,

In a trance, Naruto reached out to the seal that locked the Nine-Tails behind the iron gate.

But just as he was about to pull it off—

*"This is not a power you can control yet."*

A hand wrapped in a blue jumpsuit and armored with shinobi bracers suddenly appeared, gripping Naruto's wrist before he could remove the seal.

Startled, Naruto looked up to see—

A man with blond hair, wearing a Konoha Jōnin vest and a mask. Somehow, he had appeared in his inner world—a place only he and Sasuke had ever entered.

Then, from behind the gate, the Nine-Tails let out an enraged roar, filled with fear and hatred:

*"Yondaime!!!"*

*"This is troublesome... It's an improved version of the Eight Trigrams Seal?"*

Minato looked at the scene behind the gate, his eyes fearless but slightly furrowed.

The Eight Trigrams Seal on Naruto was a modified version made by his future self with Jiraiya's adjustments. Minato needed time to fully understand it before reinforcing it.

The quickest solution would be to trigger two other chakra reserves embedded in the seal—one of which belonged to Kushina.

But doing so might disrupt the failsafe his future self had left for Naruto.

Realizing this, Minato looked at the boy before him and said,

*"First, let's get you out of danger."*

*"Wait for me. I'll be back soon."*

*"Wait!"* Naruto's heart trembled as he felt an overwhelming sense of familiarity from this masked man.

*"Who... are you? And how did you get here?"*

Minato was momentarily stunned but then smiled warmly.

*"Hold on. Don't be tempted by this power. True strength isn't about how many jutsu you know—it's about the willpower within your heart."*

*"If it's you, I believe you'll succeed!"*

*"I believe in you!"*

With that, Minato vanished from Naruto's inner world.

Naruto looked up in shock,

Only to find himself back in the real world, still struggling against Sasori's relentless assault.

Suddenly, he felt himself being embraced by a warm presence. His world spun, and in the next moment,

His vision blurred as the Nine-Tails pulled him back into his inner world.

Inside the cage, the Nine-Tails looked alarmed. Its fur stood on end, and its nine tails flared wildly.

*"Kid, hurry! Tear off the seal!"*

*"I'll give you all of my power! Together, we can destroy that guy!"*

*"Do it now, or today will be your death!"*

*"Wh-what's going on?"* Naruto was stunned, having never seen the Nine-Tails so terrified.

Just then,

In the dark, watery vortex of his inner world,

A series of footsteps echoed,

*Step... Step... Step...*

*"You beast, still trying to manipulate people's hearts?"*

A cold, mocking voice cut through the darkness.

*"Get back in your cage, now!"*

Hearing this, the Nine-Tails' crimson eyes widened. Its fur bristled, and it stood upright in shock!

*"That sinister chakra... It's the Mangekyō Sharingan!"*

*"A power on par with Madara Uchiha's!"*

Completely confused, Naruto looked up to see—

A young Uchiha with wild, flowing hair tied at the waist, wearing a high-collared black shirt adorned with the Uchiha crest. He had a rope belt similar to Sasuke's and loose-fitting pants.

The boy's face was handsome, albeit slightly younger than Naruto's.

His presence exuded an aura of battle-hardened strength.

*"Sasuke? No... He looks like Sasuke, but his presence and power far surpass Sasuke's..."*

*"Who... is he?!"*

Naruto glanced at the Nine-Tails,

If the fox could recognize the masked man as the Fourth Hokage, then maybe it also knew who this mysterious Uchiha was.

At that moment,

*"You... I've never seen you before. A new Uchiha with the Mangekyō Sharingan?"*

Feeling the same dread it once felt facing Madara, the Nine-Tails' fur stood on end as it demanded:

*"Who... Who are you?!"*

*(End of Chapter)*

Chapter 400: Listen, Naruto, He's Your Dad!

"You... Who exactly are you!?"

The Nine-Tails' question sent shockwaves through the underground waters of the Uzumaki Hall, creating massive ripples.

However—

Faced with this inquiry, Naruto saw that the wild Uchiha youth looked completely uninterested in conversing with the Nine-Tails. Instead, his brows furrowed as he shot a sharp glare.

"Beast, are you deaf?"

He spoke indifferently, his voice cold and commanding.

"I told you—"

"Get back in your cage!"

"Outrageous! Even Madara Uchiha wasn’t as arrogant as you, brat!"

Hearing himself being treated like an actual animal, completely denied any chance to speak, the Nine-Tails was instantly furious.

His rage boiled over, his massive form exuding an overwhelming amount of chakra that formed into a violent storm, surging toward Shinji with a howling gust!

Yet, as Naruto struggled to stay on his feet, forced to raise his arms to shield himself against the sheer force of the chakra storm—

He saw it.

The Uchiha boy, who had suddenly appeared in his mental world, merely furrowed his brows slightly.

In the next instant—

Flames ignited. A skeletal frame emerged.

A massive, seventy-meter-long, fiery hand, covered in strange black markings, extended abruptly from the bone structure surrounding Shinji.

Like a spectral entity, the hand passed through the sealed gates of Naruto's mental world—

With a supersonic burst, tearing through the air with a sonic boom cloud—

And smashed directly into the Nine-Tails' face!

*"—BOOM!!!"*

With a single punch, the Nine-Tails was sent sprawling!

Before it could recover, the massive fiery hand opened up, fingers clenching tightly around the beast’s head and slamming it into the waterlogged ground—

Pinning it down, dragging it, grinding it mercilessly across the smooth floor!

*"ROAR!"*

The sheer, overwhelming force made the Nine-Tails wail in agony, its mouth twisted in an uncharacteristic grimace of suffering.

The entire mental world quaked violently, as if a category-eight hurricane had suddenly erupted.

Naruto was forcefully ejected from his mental space.

His eyes snapped open—

And before him—

The same Uchiha boy who had appeared in his mind was now casually sitting at the edge of a towering structure, gazing at him with an amused smirk.

"You're awake?"

Beside him stood a man Naruto had only met once before—his voice warm and gentle, radiating an inexplicable sense of comfort. A blond man wearing a monkey-faced mask.

A short distance away, the red-haired youth he had just fought—Sasori of the Red Sand—was now floating mid-air in front of the tower. He let out a cold snort at Naruto but no longer seemed intent on killing him.

"Apologies," the masked blond man—Minato Namikaze—spoke with a sheepish smile. "The seal inside you was beyond my immediate ability to handle, so I had to call for some outside help for a temporary fix. I hope that didn’t scare you."

"A temporary fix? That giant hand..." Naruto felt a bit breathless as he glanced at Shinji, who looked completely unbothered, as if he had done something as mundane as swatting a fly.

"And you guys are...?"

Just then—

A sharp pain suddenly struck Naruto’s head. A flood of hazy, unfamiliar memories clashed against the ones he already had.

His eyes widened as he stared at Shinji’s face, his voice trembling in shock.

"That face... I think I’ve seen it before—on the Hokage Rock!?"

"No, wait!" Naruto abruptly turned his gaze to Minato. Staring at the masked man's partially revealed facial features, realization dawned upon him.

"The Hokage Rock... It kinda looks like you too?!"

"What the hell—Water Country or Fire Country—"

"Ahhh, my head! What is going on!? I was just chasing after Mukade!"

Gripping his head, Naruto frantically scratched at his hair, making his already messy blond locks even wilder.

Minato exchanged a glance with Shinji, his expression momentarily serious.

After a brief moment of thought, he shook his head and spoke gently, "Don’t overthink it. Like you, I am also a shinobi of Konoha."

"This is Roran. We are currently on a mission here. Why don’t you rest for now? Once our mission is complete—"

"Roran? No way..." Naruto looked around at the vibrant, towering cityscape.

This... This was nothing like the Roran he knew!

"But Roran... It was supposed to be a ruined wasteland!"

Minato patted Naruto’s shoulder, explaining patiently, "That’s exactly the issue. Because of the power of the Dragon Vein, you’ve traveled back in time. This Roran isn’t the one you remember."

"Wait!" Naruto suddenly jolted. "If I’m here, then Mukade must be here too! He’s my mission target—I have to find him and stop him from taking the Dragon Vein’s power to rule the world!"

Upon hearing this—

The other shinobi present—Hidan, Sasori, Aburame Shibi, Akimichi Choza, and even Minato—fell into a brief silence.

Their eyes instinctively shifted toward Shinji, who was still sitting on the tower, acting as though none of this had anything to do with him.

Ruling the world? What a joke. Did that Mukade guy even know who he was up against?

Finally—

Minato shook his head and reassured Naruto, "I’ll keep an eye out for this Mukade, but right now, we have another mission to complete."

"Get some rest first. Once our task is done, I’ll help you find—"

Before he could finish—

Shinji, who had been watching the entire father-son exchange—seeing Minato refuse to acknowledge Naruto—suddenly shook his head.

Reaching out, he placed a firm hand on Minato’s shoulder, stopping him from speaking further.

"Enough."

"Minato, running from this isn’t going to solve anything!"

Minato stiffened slightly, gritting his teeth as he leaned in, his voice lowered to a whisper.

"Ci, time travel isn’t a small matter. We have to avoid knowing too much about each other, or we might risk altering the future in dangerous ways."

However—

Shinji ignored his reasoning.

Instead, he turned toward Naruto, who still looked confused, and smirked with interest.

"Hey, blond brat. What’s your name?"

"Huh? Me?"

Perking up, Naruto grinned widely and introduced himself with his signature enthusiasm.

"My name is—"

"Naruto Uzumaki!"

"Good!" Shinji laughed, giving Naruto a firm pat on the shoulder.

"Time disturbances have affected your memory. You know little of the past, and the future is already uncertain—so don’t dwell on it too much."

"You are now lost within the cracks of time."

"Only by defeating Mukade and fixing this anomaly can you return to your world."

"Uhh..." Naruto frowned, trying to process what Shinji was saying.

Which was perfect.

Because Shinji himself had no idea what nonsense he was spouting—he was just reverse-engineering things based on the original storyline.

Then, with a smirk, he casually draped an arm around Naruto’s shoulders.

Raising his hand, he pointed directly at Minato Namikaze, his voice filled with amusement.

"Listen, Naruto."

"This guy—his name is Minato Namikaze. He is the future Fourth Hokage."

"And more importantly—"

"He’s your dad!"

At those words—

Naruto’s eyes widened to their limits.

"WHAT!?"

(End of chapter)