Chapter 8: "I Didn't Tell You to Hit Him!"
"Naruto!"
A voice suddenly called out from behind Naruto!
Naruto turned his head in a hurry and saw a man in a Hokage robe standing before him, tears welling in his eyes as he looked at Naruto with a gentle smile.
Boruto reflexively shouted, "Grandpa—Grandpa?!"
But it was as if neither of them heard what he said.
WHAM!
Naruto punched Minato square in the stomach!
"…Dad," Naruto said in a low voice.
Boruto muttered, dumbfounded:
"I didn't tell you to hit him!"
Minato hunched over, trying his best to force a smile.
"Why?"
"Why did you seal the Nine-Tails inside me, your own son?"
"I went through so much pain because of it!"
"Adults always looked at me coldly. It was so hard to make friends!"
"That's why I kept working so hard! Training relentlessly!"
"Just to be acknowledged by everyone!"
"Then I met Iruka-sensei, Kakashi-sensei, and the Pervy Sage!"
"Getting stronger made me happy!" Naruto shouted tearfully.
"But… I… What should I feel?!"
"Should I be happy? Or angry?"
"I don't even know anymore!!"
Wiping his tears, Naruto scratched his head and looked at Minato.
Minato looked at Naruto with guilt in his eyes and said:
"It must have been incredibly difficult for you."
"Naruto, I'm sorry!"
"If people knew you were my son, it might have caused even more problems."
"Sealing the Nine-Tails into you… was because you're my son."
"Your mother and I—we always believed in you."
Minato forced a smile, but deep guilt was visible in his eyes.
Just then, a voice awkwardly cut in:
"Um… Grandpa—uh, Fourth Hokage! Naruto! The quiz from the Sky Screen is starting again!"
Boruto scratched his head, flustered.
"Naruto, is he your friend?" Minato turned and looked thoughtfully at Boruto.
"Um… Fourth Lord Hokage, my name is Boruto! I'm Naruto's new friend!" Boruto said nervously.
"You really look a lot like him. Like brothers," Minato said with deep meaning.
Naruto and Boruto replied without thinking, in perfect sync:
"We're nothing alike!!"
"Not at all!!"
Minato thought to himself:
"This child… must be deeply connected to Naruto. Could it be…?"
"Come to think of it, Naruto did have something similar before… Time-space ninjutsu?"
---
[Sky Screen Commentary Begins]
Ōnoki: "Konoha really got lucky, huh? They actually managed to revive Minato Namikaze!"
Iwa Jonin A: "Lord Third, should we reinstate the previous directive?"
Ōnoki: "Yes, reinstate it!"
Second Tsuchikage: "What directive?"
Kurotsuchi: "Any mission involving Minato Namikaze—immediate retreat! Abandon the mission. It won't count as a failure!"
Second Tsuchikage: "You're that scared of one man? Ōnoki, where's your Will of Stone?"
Fourth Raikage: "Hmph! You don't understand Minato's strength!"
Ōnoki: "Sensei, because I believe in the Will of Stone, I issued that order!"
Uchiha Fugaku: "Want to know why, Second Tsuchikage? Hahaha…"
Fugaku: "Because 50 elite jonin from your Iwagakure were taken out in an instant by Minato!"
Second Tsuchikage: "What?!"
Ōnoki: "It's true. Minato Namikaze is the fastest shinobi in the ninja world. He ended the Third Great Ninja War alone."
Uchiha Izuna: "Fastest in the ninja world? Faster than the Tobirama's Flying Thunder God?"
Fourth Raikage: "You idiot! Ever consider that Minato also uses Flying Thunder God?"
Madara: "You wanna dance with me too?!"
Izuna: "Just wait till I get revived! Kumogakure, was it? I'll remember this!"
Third Raikage: "Aye! Shut up!"
Tobirama: "Looks like the Fourth Hokage is truly impressive."
Fugaku: "If Minato hadn't died, the Uchiha Clan would never have ended up like this!"
Fugaku: "If Obito hadn't died, maybe our clan would have produced the first Uchiha Hokage!"
Fugaku: "But instead, we got saddled with four complete morons!"
[Sandaime Sarutobi, Danzo, Koharu, Homura]: …
Fugaku: "Yeah! I mean you four idiots!"
Hiruzen: "…We were at fault, no question."
Hashirama: "To earn even the Uchiha Clan's approval… Fourth Hokage, you must've done quite well over the years!"
Fugaku: "Lord Hashirama… he was only Hokage for one year!"
Hashirama: "??"
Tobirama: "What's going on?"
---
[Sky Screen System: Ding!]
System: "Enough talking! If you all say everything, what do I even have to show?"
"Want rewards or not?!"
Second Question:
Who leaked Naruto's identity as the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki?
A: Hiruzen Sarutobi
B: Danzo Shimura
C: Kakashi Hatake
D: Uchiha Obito
Only one person can answer!
[Buzz!]
Congratulations to: Old Uchiha Sasuke!
Old Sasuke: "I choose B — Danzo Shimura!"
Kid Sasuke: "Wait… who is this other me?"
Hashirama: "Huh? Why are there two Uchiha Sasukes?"
Madara: "Looks like he's from the future. Time-space ninjutsu again?"
Mei: "The future? That's unbelievable!"
Tobirama: "Is it more unbelievable than this Sky Screen?"
Izuna: "The white-haired fox has a point."
Ōnoki: "But if he came from the future, wouldn't he already know all the answers? That's unfair!"
System: "Do not doubt the fairness of the system!"
"If a future person can answer, that means they didn't know the answer beforehand."
Shikamaru: "Wait… they? You mean more than one person came from the future?"
System: "Ding! As expected of the Nara Clan!"
Congratulations to Old Uchiha Sasuke for answering correctly!
Reward: Restoration of his left arm!
Naruto: "Damn it, Sasuke! Who broke your arm?!"
Naruto: "I'm going to break their arm too!"
Old Sasuke: "No need."
Minato: "Lady Tsunade! Please allow me to leave the village for a while!"
Tsunade: "Fine, just come back alive."
Minato: "I'll try!"
Old Sasuke: "Fourth Hokage! I'm currently at the border of the Land of Rain and the Land of Fire. I have something to tell you."
Minato: "Alright."
---
Land of Rain
"Future Sasuke, huh…"
A man standing in the rain smirked, and in the next second, his figure vanished!
---
At the Rain-Fire border
"Damn it!"
"Our position's been exposed!"
"Send word—evacuate immediately!"
Danzo's voice rose in pitch, revealing his anger, fear, and even trembling.
He had no idea…
That a certain shadowed figure was already walking step by step… closer.