How could Arthur, of all people, have lost?
Little did he know, Alice was not at all like the others from earth. A woman like her had gone beyond recognizing this world as a playground. No, she was someone who saw the truth in things.
Perhaps she didn't know that she could actually die here; her approach to survival was predicated on collaboration, having spent time with others not only to train but also to understand their strengths, weaknesses, and the dynamics of teamwork.
When trying to take that into consideration, Arthur understood why Alice was considered the fourth strongest otherworldly ninja, a rank that should have not been overlooked.
She was, after all, the same person who had managed to bind him while he was in Sage Mode.
To think that one of the less-known clans talked about among the lore could be this strong.
But was the Yamanaka clan built that differently? Not even close.
The trap Alice had used to corner Arthur was one that required great tactical foresight, signifying that she had been thoroughly prepared to use it for emergencies.
What else was interesting about her was that, unlike the others from earth—who relied predominantly on force—Alice was barely affected by Arthur's psychological warfare. Her emotions were in check, and her knowledge of combat was greater than what he had originally expected.
Now on top of Madara's statue, Arthur took a moment to recover.
His mind still felt damaged with each thought coming to him in fragmented pieces. If anyone attacked him now, they'd have a big advantage due to how vulnerable he was.
It was good that he managed to escape because, had he been off by even a fraction, executing the Flying raijin would have failed. That or teleported both him and Chōji, where the latter could have finished him off.
Arthur took a steady breath to try and understand what Alice's earlier technique was.
There was no way she could have possibly executed anything that quick; it was faster than the speed of thought.
That's when he remembered the world he was in, that white void. The main times a place like that was ever showcased were when two or more people's hearts connected. Other than that, one other technique—not related to a Jinchūriki—could force someone there.
'The spiritualization jutsu…'
In this world, chakra was comprised of physical and spiritual energies. Alice was heavily gifted in the latter. That meant that most of her techniques were all spiritual-based—something very hard to counter.
Alice was not like Jada, whose ninjutsu strength could be overpowering. Nor like William, who wielded so much chakra that he didn't know what to do with it.
Alice thrived in the workings of spiritual combat. Not even the creators of the ninja world knew what that entailed. And because Arthur's spiritual energy side of his chakra wasn't trained as much as his physical side, she had a major advantage.
Ka-boom!
The entire statue shook as Arthur tried to regain his balance.
That had to have been the results of Naruto and Sasuke fighting. But before Arthur could see it for himself, he ran toward cover.
'Is he here…?' he asked, trying to scan the area. 'Crimson gaze…'
As his vision expanded, his suspicions were confirmed. Lodged between a rock and a hard place was none other than Zetsu.
Had the creature seen him?
Arthur calmed himself, knowing that this infamous Akatsuki member—who loved to spy from anywhere—had not taken notice of his arrival.
Just then, Zetsu materialized from the ground and began walking away into the forest.
That could only mean one other thing: the fight below had ended.
Arthur therefore came out from hiding and slowly walked toward the edge of the statue. There, he looked down into the valley and saw an interesting sight: an unscathed Naruto carrying Sasuke on his back.
This was a scene most fans would have drooled to see—a moment where the Naruto Uzumaki triumphed over Sasuke Uchiha at the Valley of the End.
"Come on now, Sasuke," the boy softly murmured. "It's time to finally take you back…"
No, this was not at all what was supposed to happen.
A cooling sense of urgency rose within Arthur. He had let everything escalate to this point. So there was no way he was going to sit idly by and let the main character have his way.
Arthur briefly shut his eyes to calm himself. 'Seven heavenly breaths: first activation.' Next, he breathed evenly to maintain his focus. One inhale, one exhale, one inhale, one exhale. 'Simian Sage Mode…'
Swoosh!
He dashed from the statue's head, bounced off the stone lips, and sprinted down the contours of the valley toward an open area below.
Approaching the valley's edge, where the ground sloped downward, he crouched low to prepare for a tremendous leap.
Suddenly, a shiver ran through Naruto, which made the whiskers on his face stand on end. And when he turned, bang! he met the full force of Arthur's fist plunging into him!
The impact was visceral, practically echoing through the clearing as Naruto was propelled backward, crashing into several trees with a booming crack before falling unconscious.
Birds flew in every direction.
Had Arthur been a step too late, Naruto would have activated his Nine-Tails Chakra Mode. And had he been a step too early, Zetsu would have come crawling back.
Even now, as Arthur stood tall, he had his Crimson Gaze amplified to ensure no one was around to see that impactful punch.
How could he of all people let Naruto take Sasuke back to the village?
After risking his neck to bring the Uchiha all the way here, after dealing with the Sound Four's incompetence, after suffering the sting of defeat from Alice—no more mistakes could be made.
Arthur slowly made his way to where Naruto had landed. He was very exhausted, so much so that he didn't have the chakra to do anything now. Add that to his deteriorated mental state, he couldn't even form a Flying raijin mark.
Arthur just stood there, shadowing the boy.
He wasn't at all surprised that Naruto had won against Sasuke. Naruto had the Nine-Tails' chakra at his disposal, one of the most powerful creatures in existence. The outcome was only logical.
Now, Arthur had the capacity to end the story that anchored this world—to slaughter the boy without a second thought, ending the very narrative that others would expect to unfold.
Doing that this early, however, was an extremely terrible idea!
If Arthur were to eliminate Naruto, the flow of events would be irrevocably altered. Too many mistakes have already been made. And Arthur needed Naruto for his later plans. More than he needed Sasuke.
At that, he returned to the fallen Uchiha boy.
'So much trouble,' he thought, picking Sasuke up.
A scene like this, Arthur dragging the second main character away, really displeased Arthur. This boy had put him through far too much trouble, entangled within arcs and chronicles that wasted the limited time he had.
✟
Some time later.
Rain began to gradually pour heavily over Sasuke's unconscious form. His back was toward the grass, and when more droplets continued to fall onto his face, he stirred awake.
When he looked, there was an opulent city not far off in the distance.
Confused, he rose slowly, feeling an ache pulse through his neck. Then he remembered—he remembered his recent confrontation with Naruto.
Anger burst inside him.
It took him a moment to finally calm down, and when he did, he walked toward the edge of a cliff where he saw a sign that read 'Water Country'.
How he had gotten here remained a mystery, but one thing was certain: he could feel Orochimaru's chakra through the air thanks to the cursed mark.
Sasuke wanted more answers than anyone.
How had he arrived here of all places? Where was Kaito? And, more important to him, how had he possibly lost to Naruto so easily?
Now Sasuke was just as desperate for power than ever before.
As he walked away into the forest, blinds in a stately office from within the city closed.
Seated behind the desk was Arthur, and he was only a little pleased. Pleased because Sasuke was doing exactly as he predicted: he was going to seek after Orochimaru even after suffering that loss.
A moment ago, after he had recovered enough chakra, he had successfully teleported Sasuke to the Water Country, evading the capture that would have ultimately led to his doom.
Arthur would have gladly placed a Flying raijin formula on the boy, but he was out of chakra again, and his mind was still disoriented.
Sure, he could have knocked the Uchiha out—if the latter woke up—and wait, but the boy had already suffered so much damage that Arthur thought he might kill him.
Sad to say, Arthur was not in the right state of mind. No thanks to Alice.
Either way, Sasuke was free to pursue Orochimaru, ensuring that the story would go as Arthur had desired. Because without this event, he wouldn't have been able to better calculate the upcoming timeline—the very gears that would allow Shippuden to commence.
'Two and a half years,' he thought.
That was an insane amount of time considering how slow things were progressing.
What exactly did happen during that time in the original story?
If he recalled correctly, after having failed to bring back Sasuke, Naruto chose to depart for training with Jiraiya. In parallel, Sasuke's journey toward power took a darker turn at Orochimaru's base, where he expressed his singular focus on acquiring strength. Sakura, meanwhile, continued to excel in her medical training under the Fifth Hokage.
With those concluding scenes, everyone saw Naruto return to the village after two and a half years.
But before all of these things could happen, there was a long period comprised mainly of filler arcs.
That was one of the main reasons most fans dreaded this world: it had too much filler with only a select few worth knowing.
Arthur was not going to bother with most of those arcs. Not after he already strategically placed himself in the best possible position.
Sasuke and Orochimaru would not make another appearance until that time skip ended. So the only people who could make Arthur act were those from earth.
Naruto, of course, was the biggest outlier. Would he go out into the world with Jiraiya again? Or would he follow a different course and dedicate himself to trying to find Sasuke? He had the Nine-Tails' chakra now and people like William by his side.
Who would want to stop him other than the Akatsuki?
Within the confines of Arthur's office, he rested his arms on the desk, placing his hands over his lips to think about the next arc.