Kitazawa clearly remembered that when Naruto and the others were dragged into the power of the Dragon Vein in the original timeline, they hadn't arrived together.
They had been scattered.
To avoid that outcome, he immediately released a steady flow of chakra and linked it to his three students.
"The interior is unstable," Kitazawa warned calmly. "Stay close to me. Don't wander."
With that, he led Naruto, Shino, and Hinata into the hall that housed the Ryūmyaku Seal.
Seeing this, Kakashi followed suit, channeling his own chakra to bind Sasuke, Kimimaro, and Neji together.
Even now, Kakashi couldn't fully grasp Kitazawa's purpose.
If the goal was simply to defeat Mukade, there was no need to bring the students at all—let alone expose them to this kind of danger.
With just the two of them, the squad leaders, they could have drawn Mukade out and resolved the mission cleanly.
But Kitazawa was his superior.
So Kakashi chose to trust him.
The two groups entered the hall almost simultaneously.
"…Is that a Flying Thunder God kunai?"
Kakashi's eyes widened as he focused on the center of the chamber.
As the Ryūmyaku Seal crumbled away, what it revealed was not a jutsu array—but a kunai.
At first glance it looked ordinary, yet its blade was etched with complex sealing formulas, along with four distinct characters:
Sword of Ninja Love.
Kakashi's breath caught.
He recognized it instantly.
It was his sensei's—Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze's Flying Thunder God kunai.
How…?
What mission had he gone on back then?
Why couldn't he remember any of it?
He didn't even remember this kunai.
Before he could think further, surging purple chakra washed over the hall and enveloped the Flying Thunder God kunai.
Instinctively, Kakashi reached out to grab it.
The moment his hand moved—
The kunai trembled.
Space warped around it, tearing apart like fabric, and an overwhelming flood of purple chakra swallowed everything.
Kitazawa looked around.
Naruto, Hinata, Shino—none of them were in sight.
Only endless, roiling purple chakra.
Yet the chakra connections were still intact.
They hadn't broken.
Kitazawa immediately increased his output, stabilizing the link.
After a few seconds of violent turbulence, the world lurched—and then abruptly went still.
His feet hit solid ground.
The purple chakra vanished completely, replaced by endless yellow sand.
A desert.
Kitazawa steadied himself.
Then he felt something clutch tightly at his thigh.
He looked down.
Hinata was holding onto him, her fingers trembling.
Her face was pale.
That reaction was understandable.
They had been hurled through time itself, separated from everyone else, surrounded by nothing but chaos.
For someone her age, the fear must have been overwhelming.
Seeing him again, she had instinctively sought safety.
Kitazawa, by contrast, remained calm.
He already knew from the original story that the time transfer itself carried no lethal danger.
"What just happened?" Naruto exclaimed as he scrambled to his feet, brushing sand from his clothes. "Where are we?"
Unlike Hinata, his fear quickly gave way to curiosity.
"We were in the hall a second ago," he continued, spinning around, "and now we're in the desert!"
Shino adjusted his glasses, eyes sharp. "The purple chakra must have transported us here."
Naruto suddenly froze. "Wait—where's Sasuke? And Kakashi-sensei?"
"With Kakashi there, they'll be fine," Kitazawa said evenly.
Naruto visibly relaxed. "So what now? Do we go look for them?"
"Shino," Kitazawa said, "scout the area."
Shino nodded and raised his arms. A swarm of Kikaichū poured forth, dispersing in all directions.
"Hinata," Kitazawa added gently, patting her head, "are you alright?"
"I—I'm fine," Hinata replied quickly, realizing her position. She released him at once, stepping back, cheeks flushed, eyes lowered.
"That's good," Kitazawa said softly.
A moment later, Shino spoke again.
"Kitazawa-sensei… I can't find Kakashi-sensei or the others. But there's something ahead."
"What is it?" Kitazawa asked.
"A massive city," Shino replied. "Made almost entirely of metal."
"A city?" Naruto blinked. "In the middle of a desert?"
"I can't explain it either," Shino admitted.
"Then let's investigate," Kitazawa said. "Kakashi and the others may be there."
He already knew the answer.
This was Rōran—before its fall.
They had successfully traveled into the past.
Guided by Shino, the group advanced for roughly ten minutes.
Then the city came into view.
"So… cool!" Naruto breathed.
Towering metallic structures stretched into the sky, their surfaces gleaming in the sunlight—utterly unlike anything in Konoha.
Even Shino and Hinata couldn't hide their amazement.
Heavy footsteps echoed suddenly.
A group of puppets—earthen and humanoid—emerged from all sides, surrounding them.
Without a word, the puppets raised their arms.
Purple chakra erupted from their palms, forming a dense storm of senbon.
Naruto and the others had been on alert from the moment the puppets appeared.
The instant the attack came—
They moved.
Defenses snapped into place as the battle began.
"Wind Release: Gale Palm!"
Naruto clapped his hands together, releasing a fierce gust of wind that surged forward and smashed into the incoming senbon.
"Secret Technique: Insect Wall!"
Aburame swept his arms outward. A torrent of Kikaichū poured forth, stacking layer upon layer into a dense wall of living insects that absorbed the attack.
"Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams—Sixty-Four Palms!"
Hinata stepped in front of Kitazawa, her movements fluid and relentless. Her palms struck in rapid succession, scattering the remaining senbon before they could draw close.
"Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
As soon as the danger eased, Naruto shouted again. Hundreds of shadow clones burst into existence and charged the puppets in a roaring wave.
The pressure on Shino and Hinata eased immediately.
"These are puppets," Shino said, scanning the battlefield. "Which means someone is controlling them."
"I can see chakra threads," Hinata added, her Byakugan active—but her brows knit together in confusion. "They extend underground… no, farther than that. Beyond the range of my vision."
"Underground?" Shino echoed instinctively.
"There's no one beneath us," Hinata clarified. "The threads simply… disappear."
Shino's expression darkened. "This kind of puppet control is unheard of."
Normally, a puppet master could only control a handful of puppets at close range.
But this opponent was manipulating dozens—possibly more—from an extreme distance.
It defied everything they knew.
"Rasengan!"
Naruto leapt high, slamming the spinning sphere of chakra into the puppet before him.
Boom!
The violent rotation tore straight through its body. The puppet split apart from the center, collapsing into fragments of cracked clay.
"Another wave incoming!" Hinata warned instantly.
"Bee Bomb Technique!"
Shino unleashed a swarm of explosive insects. They slammed into the approaching puppets—and detonated in a chain of violent blasts.
Suddenly, six kunai clattered into the sand around them.
Shino's eyes widened. "Who—?!"
He hadn't even seen them coming.
"Are you shinobi of Konoha Village?"
A blond guy wearing a mask appeared without warning.
Yet his gaze wasn't on Shino or Hinata.
It was locked onto Naruto.
Because Naruto had just used the Rasengan.
The jutsu he had created.
The jutsu only he—and his sensei Jiraiya—knew.
Why does this child know it?
There was no doubt.
This was Minato Namikaze.
He had been carrying out a mission in Rōran when he sensed the violent chakra fluctuations and rushed over—only to witness a child wielding his own technique.
"We're from Konoha," Shino answered cautiously, then glanced at Minato's forehead protector. "Are you… as well?"
"Yes," Minato replied with a nod. "But this isn't the place to talk. I'll take you somewhere safe."
Shino didn't respond immediately.
Instead, he looked to Kitazawa.
The sudden appearance of this man was too strange.
Even with a Konoha forehead protector, trust didn't come easily.
"The puppets here are endless," Minato added quickly. "Continuing to fight them will only waste time."
He could already tell—this calm man was the squad leader.
Minato himself was confused.
He could rationalize not having met Kitazawa before.
But Naruto? Hinata? Shino?
Children this talented should have been impossible to miss.
"Then please," Kitazawa said calmly, a faint smile on his lips, "lead the way."
Minato snapped into motion.
"Flying Thunder God."
The world blurred.
In the next instant, they stood inside a building—high above the metallic cityscape of Rōran.
"Whoa! Mister, that was incredible!"
Naruto's eyes sparkled as he spun around. "How did we get here so fast?!"
"Do you know any space–time ninjutsu?" Minato asked gently.
"I do!" Naruto answered without hesitation. "Flying Thunder God!"
Minato chuckled. "That's right."
At this point, he was convinced.
No other village could produce a group that combined the Rasengan, Kikaichū, and the Byakugan.
"…Huh?" Naruto froze.
He remembered Hiruzen telling him something important.
Only two people in Konoha's history had mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique—
The Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama.
And the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze.
Shino and Hinata exchanged stunned looks as well.
Kitazawa, listening quietly, couldn't help but smile to himself.
This really is interesting.
"What's your name?"
Minato couldn't help asking. Of everyone present, the boy with blond hair and boundless energy drew his attention the most.
After all—he knew the Rasengan.
"My name is Uzumaki Naruto!"
Naruto answered instantly, chest puffed out with pride.
"…?"
Minato froze.
Uzumaki—a name he knew all too well. Kushina's clan name.
Naruto—a name he knew just as clearly. The hero of Jiraiya's Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Ninja.
A name he had once planned to give his own future child.
Blond hair. Rasengan. Uzumaki Naruto.
…Could this be my son?
No. Impossible. He and Kushina weren't even married yet.
"Mister," Naruto asked curiously, "my dad also knows the Flying Thunder God. Were you his teammate?"
That was the only explanation Naruto could think of.
"…Who is your father?"
Minato paused before asking.
"The Fourth Hokage—Minato Namikaze!"
Naruto replied proudly.
"—?!"
Minato nearly choked.
I… became the Fourth Hokage?
No—that wasn't even the most shocking part.
I have a son… this old?
Minato pressed a hand to his forehead, thoughts racing. After a long silence, an absurd—but undeniable—conclusion formed.
If this boy isn't lying… then he must be from the future.
With that realization, Minato slowly regained his composure.
If these children truly came from the future, then there were rules—unspoken but absolute. The past and future must not intertwine too deeply.
In the original timeline, Minato himself had followed those rules.
He hadn't questioned Naruto further.
He hadn't acknowledged him.
And in the end, he had sealed their memories and returned everything to its proper place.
"How old are you?"
Minato asked gently, resting a hand on Naruto's shoulder.
"Nine!"
Naruto answered cheerfully.
He didn't notice the subtle change in Minato's tone—or the emotion hidden in his gaze.
"To master both the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu and the Rasengan at your age…"
Minato smiled faintly.
"That's truly extraordinary talent."
What else could he say, knowing this was his future son?
"That's because Kitazawa-sensei taught me!" Naruto grinned.
"…Kitazawa?"
Minato blinked, the name stirring something familiar.
"You don't know Kitazawa-sensei?"
Naruto frowned in confusion.
"In Konoha, everyone knows him!"
Minato's brows furrowed.
Then it clicked.
Ichiraku Ramen.
The day it opened—half-price.
The day before he departed for Rōran.
He remembered standing in line with Kakashi, Guy, Shizune, Asuma…
And another young man.
Handsome. Polite. Ordinary.
Kitazawa.
Minato had greeted him casually, never giving him a second thought.
Afterward, he had taken Kakashi, Shibi, and Chōza to Rōran.
Minato looked at Kitazawa again.
So I misjudged him… badly.
Anyone capable of teaching Naruto the Rasengan and Shadow Clones could not be ordinary.
Late bloomer?
Or someone who had always concealed his strength?
"Hello," Kitazawa said calmly, extending a hand.
"I'm Kitazawa. Thank you for your help."
Their past interactions had barely amounted to a few exchanged words. Back then, Kitazawa had been unremarkable—before the system, before everything.
"I should be the one thanking you." Minato replied, shaking his hand sincerely.
"Hey, mister!"
Naruto suddenly remembered something.
"You still haven't told me your name!"
"I…"
Minato hesitated, then glanced at Kitazawa.
"May we speak privately?"
"Of course." Kitazawa nodded knowingly.
"Naruto, take a short break with the others."
The two walked off to a quiet corner.
"What I'm about to say," Minato began gravely, "may shock you."
Kitazawa blinked.
Why does that sound so familiar…?
"I am Minato Namikaze."
Minato removed his mask.
"You… you're the Fourth Hokage?!" Kitazawa exclaimed, feigning disbelief.
"As unbelievable as it sounds," Minato said, replacing the mask,
"You've traveled into our timeline—the past."
"Can you explain everything?" Kitazawa nodded and recounted their journey through the power of the Dragon Vein—carefully omitting his role in orchestrating Mukade's actions.
"So it was the Dragon Vein…" Minato murmured after listening.
"I never imagined it could do something like this."
"It may also be related to the Flying Thunder God kunai you left behind." Kitazawa added.
"…That's possible." Minato fell into thought.
The Flying Thunder God was a space–time ninjutsu.
Perhaps, empowered by the Dragon Vein, it had crossed a new boundary—time itself.
"Setting that aside…"
Minato took a breath, his voice lowering.
"Naruto… he really is my son?"
"Yes."
Kitazawa nodded.
"He's the child of you and Kushina-senpai."
Minato closed his eyes briefly.
"So that's how it is…"
He wasn't even married yet—and the future had already given him a son.
Even with his strong resolve, that truth took time to settle.
"We came here because of Mukade and the power of the Dragon Vein." Kitazawa continued.
"Once Mukade is defeated, activating the Dragon Vein again should return us to our timeline."
Staying here would only fracture the future.
His purpose was clear—complete the mission, then leave.
"That's good." Minato nodded, collecting himself.
But even as he agreed, a new question surfaced in his eyes—one he hadn't yet voiced.
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