"Father, are you alright?" Boruto landed back beside Naruto with Sarada in tow.
"Ah, thank goodness. You two aren't hurt, right?" Naruto exhaled, the tension finally easing from his shoulders.
Boruto, still holding Sarada's hand, hopped lightly from branch to branch. His movements were smooth and fast, no less agile than Naruto's earlier dash. Sarada, dragged along behind him, swayed like a kite on a tight string.
"Y-Yeah… I'm dizzy," Sarada muttered weakly.
A little while later, the three of them rested on a stretch of soft grass. Under the wide open sky, the air finally calmed. To Naruto's surprise, when Boruto opened his bento, not even a grain of rice was out of place.
Boruto's inner thoughts: Protecting the bento was the main mission. Saving Sarada just happened along the way.
They finished their bentos and lay back for a moment. The sky above rippled with passing clouds, the same way the grass below swayed in green waves.
"What kind of person is my dad?" Sarada asked quietly.
"I heard he's as strong as my old man," Boruto said, grinning, "but honestly, I think you're gonna be disappointed."
Naruto straightened a little, puffing his chest out. "Your father is a very impressive man. Back at the Academy, lots of girls had a crush on him. Just like me."
Boruto's inner thoughts: Yeah, yeah, sure, Tou-san…
"And he's really handsome. Like me. And he always got first place in ninjutsu. Just like me."
Boruto barked a laugh. "Isn't there only one first place? What, you two shared the top spot? Funny, I don't remember Iruka-sensei ever saying that."
Naruto scratched his cheek, a little flustered. "Haha, Iruka-sensei… he was just joking, you know… hahaha…"
Then he suddenly tensed up and added, "B-But! He's cold, arrogant, and sharp-tongued—the complete opposite of me!!"
Boruto thought: If I had a smartphone, this would be blackmail material for life.
Sarada's face clouded over. The image she'd built up in her heart—a tall, gentle, dependable father—cracked with every word.
...
On the road again, Naruto gently tried to soothe Sarada's mood, his tone careful and kind, like the father she'd always pictured.
Boruto padded along a short distance ahead, Jōgan quietly active, scanning the area for any hidden enemies.
Up ahead, a lone tower rose from the landscape like a stone marker. This was the place where Naruto and Sasuke had once made a promise.
The moment the silhouette came into view, Sarada's steps quickened. All fatigue vanished in an instant as she broke into a run.
Boruto watched her rush on and thought: Didn't she almost collapse from exhaustion a while ago?
Naruto called out, "Boruto, why don't you rest a bit? Honestly, I didn't expect your stamina to be this good. You haven't even been breathing hard."
"No need," Boruto shook his head. "Let's go see Uncle Sasuke first."
The two followed after Sarada and stepped into the tower a few beats later.
Inside, it was dark and empty. Sarada's light footsteps echoed on the stone floor as she stepped forward, her breath just a little ragged. Her glasses reflected a faint glimmer, eyes red and wet. Her whole body trembled between excitement and anxiety.
She turned, ready to finally see her father's face—
Instead, a tall figure with messy hair and a single visible eye stared back at her, cold and unreadable.
Sarada's lips parted. She was about to call out to him when Sasuke said, in a low, heavy voice:
"I never thought you'd be able to find this place."
She froze.
Sasuke's gaze was sharp, almost like an interrogation. His eyes, like blades, sliced straight through the fragile dream she'd been holding onto all this time.
Then, without warning, Sasuke drew the Kusanagi.
The gleam of the blade was ruthless, sharp enough to sever a strand of hair with a breath. Reflected in its steel was Sarada's face—crushed, trembling, full of disbelief.
There was no way—no way he'd actually—
The Kusanagi stabbed straight into the stone pillar behind her, passing by her cheek with a hiss.
Sarada's voice shrank to a whisper. "…Dad…"
Sasuke's hand stopped mid-strike. His expression shifted, an almost imperceptible crack appearing in his cold mask.
"…You're… Sarada?"
"I knew," she choked out, eyes brimming. "I knew from the first moment that you were my dad…"
Naruto and Boruto pushed the door open just in time to see the scene.
Boruto took one glance at Sarada's eyes and the atmosphere in the room and understood—her Sharingan awakening was already a done deal.
Part of him wanted to add: Of course, you recognized her, you've seen her photo. But she's never once seen you in person since she was little—how could she possibly recognize you just like that?
(And as for who the heroine is… well, take a guess.)
The air inside the tower felt heavy, almost suffocating.
A girl who had spent years yearning for her father now stood in front of him, tears streaming down her cheeks, pouring out all the grievances of a decade in one breathless cry.
Finally, Sarada couldn't hold back the question that had been eating at her. Her voice trembled with hope.
"Dad… where did you go? What have you been doing all this time?"
Sasuke replied flatly, "It has nothing to do with you."
"?!?!"
Sarada was struck dumb. She just wanted an answer. Any answer. Even some clumsy excuse, that he was busy, that he couldn't get away.
Instead, she got a wall.
Biting back sobs, Sarada spun on her heel and ran out of the room.
Inside, Boruto glanced over at Sasuke. "Isn't Uncle being a little too cold? Compared to losing someone completely, isn't it even crueler to have someone you love exist, but never really be there?"
"They say unrequited love is despair," Boruto continued. "But being ignored like you don't exist… how is that any different?"
Sasuke looked at him. For a moment, all he saw was an echo of the obstinate Naruto from years ago in Boruto's sharp, mocking gaze.
The scolding poised on his tongue faded. Instead, he muttered, "Children don't need to know about adult matters."
"Yes, yes, sure," Boruto replied dryly, shaking his head as he walked out.
"Your kid?" Sasuke asked.
"Just a brat," Naruto sighed. "But… at least tell Sarada the reason you never came back. Why couldn't you?"
The view outside the window looked like the edge of the world. Stone, sky, and horizon melted together like a sea of clouds at dusk.
Naruto's mind drifted back to a night long ago—the night he'd seen Sasuke off.
Back then, the village had just begun to taste peace. The streets were bright, the air filled with chatter. But Sasuke's path led in the opposite direction, chasing after invisible shadows.
Kaguya had nearly destroyed the world. Somewhere out there in the dark, an existence that even she feared might already have been born.
Before leaving, Sasuke had said those words—and then quietly set off on his journey, wandering alone for years.
Naruto had watched his back growing smaller, thinking: Peace was bought with too much pain to ever be taken lightly.
Sasuke had simply said, "This is my journey of atonement."
And before he left, he added, "Make my mission top secret. Only the higher-ups should know."
Naruto tried to stop him even then. Keeping everything from the people who cared about him… that kind of loneliness is its own punishment.
"At least tell Sarada."
"If she knew, it'd only worry her," Sasuke replied. "Even so, I think a brighter future is more important."
...
Outside, Boruto leaned against the wall, looking down at Sarada.
She was curled up on the floor outside the tower, hugging her knees, small and alone. Her face was buried in her arms. She looked… lost.
"Hey, Sarada," Boruto said quietly. "Just wandering alone in this empty, freezing place—doing 'work' for the sake of protecting the village… that's torture enough already."
She stiffened, then slowly turned her head as Boruto walked over. His expression wasn't joking now—there was only a gentle, steady smile. Just like when he'd told her yesterday, "I'll go with you to find your dad."
"He's not trying to be heartless," Boruto continued. "It's not that he doesn't care about you. It's that the stuff he's carrying is too heavy. So heavy that he has to pretend he doesn't feel anything."
"Boruto…" Sarada whispered. She couldn't understand how he knew so much.
"Ah, after you left yesterday, I used the Transformation Jutsu again and snuck into the restricted section to read up on Uncle Sasuke," Boruto said bluntly.
Sarada: ...
Behind Boruto, Naruto had been listening quietly, a proud smile creeping onto his face as he watched his son comfort Sarada so maturely.
Then, at Boruto's confession, that smile froze.
Naruto's inner thoughts: Unbelievable. So that's what you've been doing with my face.
---
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