Once the room finally settled down, Hiruzen said earnestly, "Hashirama-sama, you will always be the greatest Hokage, because you were the one who founded Konoha..."
Hashirama froze for a moment, then burst into extremely smug laughter.
"That's the disciple I raised with my own hands! Everyone see that? It's all thanks to my teaching..."
"Hahahahahaha!"
Everyone burst into good-natured laughter.
Although Hiruzen using Tobirama as an example had put them greatly at ease, none of them wanted Lord Hokage to have such a "stain" on his record. Altering their collective memory a little couldn't be helped...
It was better for Lord Hokage to remain Lord Hashirama's disciple!
Tobirama's expression turned subtle as he sneered inwardly.
So his scheming elder brother wanted to steal his disciple?
Madara wasn't the only one. He'd have to dedicate a whole thread to Hashirama on the shinobi world's forum too!
No one in the shinobi world dared say more than him...
The Naruto from the other timeline felt his blood boiling as he listened!
"Words can actually have this much power? That's amazing, Third Hokage!"
Naruto muttered excitedly, "I've gotta learn how to do that..."
It wasn't that he didn't want to call him "Third-ojiichan"...
It was just that Hiruzen's current appearance really had nothing grandfatherly about it. He was an exceptionally strong and composed middle-aged man.
The Nine-Tails from the other timeline silently stared at Hiruzen, exhaled deeply, and narrowed its eyes.
'Why does this guy remind me of the old man?'
'Isn't this Konoha? Why does it feel more like Ninshū...'
What the Nine-Tails from the other timeline didn't know was that, at that very moment, the Sage of Six Paths was listening from the ramen stand with a look of pure enjoyment, nodding along enthusiastically.
Look at this...
This was the power of mutual understanding and trust between people!
This was exactly it!
As expected of Ninshū's successor several generations removed!
Perhaps there were still some differences between the Will of Fire and Ninshū, but the Sage of Six Paths had always been willing to humbly listen if someone pointed out where he had gone wrong in that regard. Unfortunately, no one had done so yet...
And probably no one ever would. As for why, that was difficult to say.
The Sage of Six Paths knew a thing or two about fighting.
'That Ōtsutsuki who once planted the Divine Tree together with Mother has appeared...'
'Another pair may arrive in the future as well. This will be an extremely severe test for the shinobi world.'
'Even Hamura's descendants have appeared. Heh...'
'In the most extreme case, as many as four Ōtsutsuki might become enemies of the shinobi world. That would be unfair to its shinobi...'
'A thousand years ago, there were only two of them.'
The Sage of Six Paths narrowed his eyes.
'I know a thing or two about natural energy. Those Cursed Seals created by that shinobi named Orochimaru aren't bad, but his approach is still somewhat misguided. If they're going to be used to kill Ōtsutsuki, some of the proportions need to be adjusted...'
'The arrival of these people from another timeline is also a good thing for Konoha. Even setting technology aside, they have value simply by helping unite people's hearts.'
'I should give them a hand...'
The mysteries of space-time were difficult even for the Sage of Six Paths to fathom.
But when it came to the Dragon Vein, a rare supernatural phenomenon native to the shinobi world that had merged with chakra, there was one thing the Sage of Six Paths could confidently say: stabilizing its transmission wouldn't be particularly difficult...
He knew a thing or two about fūinjutsu.
'If the shinobi of this world can defeat multiple Ōtsutsuki through their own strength, then even with Hashirama, Asura's reincarnation, taking part, that will still be enough to prove that my Ninshū was right!'
'Hiruzen, keep it up!'
Defeating the Ōtsutsuki with the power of the shinobi world itself...
Just imagining such a day made the Sage of Six Paths feel that, if it truly happened, he might personally undo Six Paths: Chibaku Tensei and let Kaguya out to take a look...
Because by then, there would be no need to say another word about who had been right and who had been wrong!
Smiling, the Sage of Six Paths glanced toward Sasuke, who was far away in the Valley of the End playing with Naruto, and said softly, "You two boys don't need to worry anymore either..."
A few days earlier, when Sasuke and Naruto had come to the ramen stand together, they had talked about the history of the shinobi world.
They thought it had been far too cruel.
If their comrades and elders in the village died in battle, they would be devastated...
The Sage of Six Paths made a decision.
As long as Konoha's shinobi fought bravely against the Ōtsutsuki and ultimately emerged victorious, what would be the harm in him learning from that shinobi called "Senju Tobirama" just once?
This would merely be a tiny, insignificant reward for Ninshū and the Will of Fire!
The Pure Land did indeed belong to the entire shinobi world, but the Sage of Six Paths had unrestricted access to it...
As for whether Senju Tobirama was actually in the Pure Land...
That was for the Sage of Six Paths to decide.
Since Hiruzen said he was there, whether he actually was or wasn't could be adjusted as necessary.
A trivial matter...
There was no reason to let it interfere with Konoha's current prosperity!
The Sage of Six Paths continued smiling as he listened to Hiruzen's concluding remarks.
On the stone tablet in the Hokage's office, advanced principles concerning the Kekkei Threads secretly began appearing within its deeper layers, along with a few refinements the Sage of Six Paths had personally devised for Hiruzen's fūinjutsu over the past several days...
"The problems in that other timeline absolutely cannot be blamed on its shinobi..."
Hiruzen said solemnly.
"I believe the problem was with the Hokage! As the Third Hokage, he should naturally bear primary responsibility for the village, so none of you should take all the blame upon yourselves..."
"If the people are at fault, the fault lies first with the Kage. If the Kage is at fault, the people should not bear the blame..."
"Anyone who sits in the position of Kage must have that resolve..."
Hiruzen looked toward Orochimaru.
"Remember that."
Orochimaru nodded seriously.
Mito quietly explained to the bewildered Hashirama, "What he means is that if the Kage makes a mistake, the shinobi shouldn't be punished for it. But if the shinobi under the Kage's leadership make mistakes, then the Kage should first reflect on his own failings..."
"That sounds a lot like me..." Hashirama scratched his head. "Don't you think so, Nine-Tails...?"
"Sure..." The Nine-Tails rolled its eyes at Hashirama.
This plant-brain was getting unbearable!
"Everyone from the other timeline, thank you for the valuable intelligence."
Hiruzen thought for a moment before continuing, "Here's what I think. Since we've managed to meet, we're all Konoha shinobi in the end. We should find ways to help one another..."
"Just as Tobirama-sensei's guidance reached me from the Pure Land through my dreams, giving me the inspiration I needed to take that final step and overcome my limits, perhaps this encounter can also become the catalyst for change in your timeline. If travel through the Dragon Vein can be stabilized..."
"If we have troops to spare, we could also provide you with appropriate support."
The prerequisite, however, was that the Dragon Vein had to be stable. Hiruzen wasn't particularly optimistic about that.
Strict testing would be necessary...
After all, the lives of his own shinobi had to be protected.
Only once that condition was met could they consider what came next.
Part of this was an attempt to change the course of the other Konoha and thereby strengthen his talent.
But it was also because Hiruzen had noticed the eager expressions on the faces of Konoha's shinobi...
They all seemed to want to go over there and settle some things for their own peace of mind!
In the shinobi world, simply resolving one's inner frustrations and achieving emotional clarity could actually produce a considerable increase in combat strength, because chakra was fundamentally a mixture of spiritual and physical energy.
Naruto and Yamato from the other timeline listened with shining eyes!
Whoa...
If these Konoha shinobi came to their world...
Then maybe they wouldn't have to be so afraid of the Akatsuki anymore?
"Can it be done, Orochimaru? Stabilizing the Dragon Vein, I mean..."
Hiruzen asked.
"Probably. That text contains very comprehensive information about the Dragon Vein, but let me test it first. Sensei, if we're lucky, we might succeed on the first attempt. If not, we'll have to postpone it..."
Orochimaru chose his words carefully.
"All right. Just do your best." Hiruzen nodded.
It was a matter of probability. There was no point trying to force it.
However, the Hokage had overlooked one detail: probability in the shinobi world was sometimes "pseudorandom"...
"Just a couple more things..."
"After this meeting ends, discussion of the other timeline should initially remain within a small circle, then spread gradually and in an orderly manner."
"Our friends from the other timeline, please spend some time walking around the Konoha of today and seeing it for yourselves. Once you've gained a deeper understanding of it, you can return and speak with the shinobi of your world. Next time, you can send a proper delegation..."
At the mention of a delegation, Orochimaru quietly spoke up.
"By the way, you can tell the other me about the Dragon Vein..."
"All you need to do is spread the word throughout the shinobi world. He'll find a way to come to you, and I'll help you deal with it."
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes as he spoke.
Yamato and Naruto from the other timeline exchanged glances and instinctively nodded.
"But the Orochimaru from our world hasn't been seen for quite some time..."
Yamato said cautiously, "There are rumors that Sasuke may have killed him. Lord Third sealed away the use of his arms, and Tsunade-sama said he wanted to change bodies..."
"Killed by Sasuke?"
Orochimaru repeated the words, nearly losing his composure.
That man from the other timeline who shared Sensei's name had only sealed his arms?
Orochimaru couldn't imagine what he would possibly do if his own sensei ever decided to spar with him using both hands...
How was he even supposed to deal with that...?
"No matter how terrible your Orochimaru is, he shouldn't have fallen that easily. It's possible he's currently inside Sasuke's body, waiting for an opportunity. I'm sure he'll find some way to resolve the situation himself."
"Alternatively, you could bring Sasuke here. Fugaku and Mikoto are here, along with his elder brother and the entire Uchiha clan. He'd be interested..."
Orochimaru shifted his line of thought and made another suggestion.
Naruto from the other timeline nodded repeatedly.
This seemed like a temptation even that heartless Sasuke couldn't possibly refuse!
A dream-fulfillment technique!
"If you need it, we can transplant some First Hokage cells and a Cursed Seal into you as a welcoming gift between our two villages."
Hiruzen said with a smile.
Naruto's eyes lit up.
Getting stronger?
He desperately wanted to become stronger so he could drag Sasuke back to Konoha...
As for the Cursed Seal, Naruto instinctively associated it with Orochimaru's power and felt that it wasn't exactly clean.
But when he looked at Orochimaru sitting beside Hiruzen with a faint smile, those thoughts immediately disappeared.
This Orochimaru was the Hokage Advisor...
How could his Cursed Seal possibly be the same?
It was definitely harmless!
"Um..."
"Is there anything we can do to help you?"
Naruto from the other timeline seemed to have been infected by the Will of Fire. He turned toward Yamato beside him.
"Captain Yamato, we might not be very strong, but we can't just keep taking things from them without giving anything back!"
"Even if we're all Konoha shinobi, that still wouldn't be right..."
Hiruzen was slightly surprised.
As expected of Minato and Kushina's son.
He was a polite, good-hearted child.
Minato and Kushina also sighed softly. The couple planned to take Naruto from the other timeline home that evening and have dinner with him, Obito, and the younger Naruto so they could have a proper talk.
Yamato from the other timeline pondered for a few moments before nodding firmly.
"I'll take responsibility for this. Once we return, I'll report everything to the Hokage..."
"If there's anything any of you need our help with, we'll do it!"
Guy from the other timeline abruptly sprang to his feet.
"This is youth transcending space and time! Yamato, if anything happens, I'll take responsibility with you! I'm sure Lady Fifth Hokage will understand..."
Duy looked at the other timeline's Guy with considerable satisfaction.
After this entire comparison between the two worlds...
It seemed that only father and son, along with Sakumo, had consistently possessed the Will of Fire...
And Lord Third, of course...
Such was the power of youth!
Orochimaru stared at Yamato from the other timeline and pondered.
'This Yamato is a mature specimen who was transplanted with Hashirama-sama's cells and has been fused with them for many years... His biological samples and data are extremely valuable. I should talk with him...'
'It should help with the further development of Hashirama cells.'
Orochimaru's reasoning was correct.
In the original timeline, Kabuto had used Yamato's cells to enhance the White Zetsu, achieving excellent results.
"Um, how about I show everyone a really powerful ninjutsu first!"
Naruto from the other timeline eagerly raised his hand.
Invisible chakra spiraled together in his palm!
At long last, the miraculous ninjutsu known as the Rasengan had appeared in Hiruzen's shinobi world!
"This move is called the Rasengan. Jiraiya-sensei taught it to me, and it's really powerful! He uses it all the time..."
Naruto excitedly explained, "It was invented by the Fourth Hokage..."
As he said this, Naruto looked toward Minato.
He still wasn't quite used to the fact that he was actually the Fourth Hokage's son...
Minato gave Naruto a gentle smile and raised a thumb toward him.
"Well done, Naruto!"
Naruto suddenly felt a painful tightness in his chest, though he didn't know why...
If everything had followed its original course, Minato should have developed the Rasengan during the Third Shinobi World War, drawing inspiration from the Tailed Beast Ball to create something he could use against tailed beasts.
But in the current Konoha, the Uzumaki and Uchiha were already responsible for dealing with tailed beasts, while Minato's physical training and advanced fūinjutsu also allowed him to injure them...
And so, the Rasengan had never been created.
"But this technique is really difficult!"
Naruto steadied himself before explaining, "You have to start by learning to control a water balloon, and then use a rubber ball..."
"An interesting concept..."
Hiruzen carefully observed the Rasengan.
"Non-elemental chakra rotating at high speed. It looks like multiple chakra natures could be incorporated into it, creating compound transformations of both form and nature."
"For someone with large chakra reserves, it would be an extremely effective means of delivering offensive power..."
"It should be possible to release it from your hand. Naruto, can you do that?"
Naruto from the other timeline stared at him blankly.
How had he seen through it at a glance?
"Well... you can add a chakra nature. I added Wind Release! But it's really difficult..."
"And adding Wind Release chakra is extremely dangerous. It damages the Chakra Pathways..."
Naruto dispelled the Rasengan and scratched his head.
"Sensei, did you figure it out? This technique is quite interesting... Knowing that it's something the other Jiraiya uses makes me want to learn it..."
Orochimaru spoke with a smile.
Jiraiya's face darkened.
Why did that sound so weird coming from him...?
Naruto from the other timeline imagined Orochimaru using the Rasengan, and the corner of his mouth twitched.
Wouldn't that completely mess everything up?!
"What, trying to test me?"
Hiruzen glanced at Orochimaru and smiled as well. "Which version do you want to see?"
"The one with a chakra nature added..."
Orochimaru thought for a moment.
He didn't doubt Naruto's description of how difficult the Rasengan was to master.
But he had even greater faith in his sensei's understanding of ninjutsu...
Naruto, Yamato, and the others from the other timeline stared intently at Hiruzen.
After all...
Every one of them had witnessed just how much grueling effort Naruto had put into developing the Wind Release Rasengan.
This Hokage might be powerful, but...
Hiruzen slowly raised his hand.
A fully formed Rasengan appeared in his palm in an instant!
Wind Release chakra poured into it, and white blades emerged around the spherical mass as it began emitting a loud hum!
It was none other than Wind Release: Rasenshuriken!
Naruto, Yamato, and the others from the other timeline stared in utter disbelief.
"I see..."
"Your chakra control isn't sufficient. The Wind Release chakra is leaking out and causing backlash that injures you. Mastering Sage Mode to stabilize it or simply continuing to improve your chakra control would both solve the problem..."
The Wind Release: Rasenshuriken bounced lightly on the tip of Hiruzen's finger...
It was quite clearly no longer attached to his hand.
"This technique does have impressive destructive power. Its structure is clever, and it has plenty of room for further development."
"Any shinobi with sufficiently large chakra reserves could benefit from learning it. It's an ingenious way of simplifying nature and shape transformation, especially for those who primarily fight at close range..."
As Hiruzen spoke, white light appeared around his palm. He closed his hand around the Wind Release: Rasenshuriken and extinguished it in his grasp, reclaiming the chakra back into his body.
Naruto, Yamato, and the others from the other timeline opened their mouths one after another like a row of dominoes, staring dumbfounded at the sight.
Wait...
Hokage-sama, what are you doing?
Fifth Hokage Tsunade had specifically said that Wind Release: Rasenshuriken could shred the Chakra Pathways and inflict damage on a cellular level...
Were you popping a balloon just now?
Even a balloon should at least make a sound when it pops!
"Kid, you'll get used to it eventually..."
Orochimaru shrugged. "Sensei knows a thing or two about ninjutsu. He also knows a thing or two about making sure other people can't use ninjutsu. Perhaps you'll get the chance to see that for yourselves later..."
Naruto from the other timeline looked utterly confused.
What did he mean by making sure other people couldn't use ninjutsu?
Then Naruto looked around and saw that all the surrounding shinobi regarded the scene as completely normal. When a Rasengan also appeared in Minato's palm...
He couldn't take it anymore.
He had the strange feeling that everyone was about to start making Rasengan together!
After the meeting ended, Naruto from the other timeline returned home with Obito, Minato, and Kushina.
Fugaku, wearing a mysterious smile, returned home with Tobirama to wait for Itachi to finish school.
Yamato from the other timeline left with Hashirama, Mito, and the others...
Neji from the other timeline obediently followed Tenzō and Hizashi.
Guy from the other timeline walked off with an arm around Duy's shoulders...
Sakura and Tenten were taken around the village by Sakumo.
Sai went to find his father in this timeline, who had yet to marry—Ida of Root...
The Dragon Vein seemed to have become the ultimate dream-fulfillment technique, surpassing even the sacred Impure World Reincarnation...
Hiruzen went off to train.
He was considering how to master the final gate of the Eight Gates...
And Kaguya had decided to have a talk with him!
However, after a thousand years, the Sage of Six Paths finally made a move himself...
At that very moment.
In front of Konoha's ramen stand.
Ōtsutsuki Yuren—the father of Toneri—stared at the thriving Konoha, his composure completely shattered...
How could things possibly have turned out like this?!
Worst of all, when Ōtsutsuki Yuren attempted to activate the Caged Bird seals on the Hyūga clan's shinobi, he was shocked to discover that they no longer worked...
What was going on?!
Beside him, Toneri, who had been born without eyes, asked his father,
"Father, was the Sage of Six Paths's world wrong?"
Just as Yuren was about to lose control...
If the Sage of Six Paths was right, wouldn't that mean all their mutual slaughter had been wrong?!
The Giant Tenseigan would lose its purpose, and their interpretation of Ancestor Hamura's final wishes would have been wrong as well...
'This absolutely cannot be allowed. A shinobi world like this cannot exist!'
As Ōtsutsuki Yuren's thoughts grew increasingly twisted, his eyes swept wildly across the Konoha villagers around him, as though he were about to lash out and attack them at any moment!
Suddenly, it was as though heaven and earth themselves had frozen.
The Sage of Six Paths's enormous hand clamped over Yuren's face and slammed him into the ground. Yuren couldn't muster even the slightest resistance, and the impact cleared his mind considerably...
"Young man, you are unworthy of calling yourself Hamura's descendant."
"Now, get out of Konoha..."
"The child stays."
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