"Are you two done chatting? I still don't know what's going on," Sarra interrupted. "Why do you need to protect me?"
"Your Majesty, have you not considered the reason you fell?" Haneul prompted.
Sarra was taken aback, remembering that someone had pushed her. But at that time, there were only puppets behind her, and the only one who could control them was Anrokuzan. "Impossible!" she said, her face full of disbelief. "How could Uncle Anrokuzan deceive me?!"
Uncles are all bad guys, only thinking about money—oh, wait, unifying the ninja world. Just as Haneul was about to speak, he heard footsteps.
"The puppets have found us!" Kurenai's expression changed. A group of puppets surrounded them. Water Style: Raging Waves! She clapped her hands together, and a massive amount of chakra erupted, forming a water tornado in front of her that washed over the puppets, sending them flying. "Let's go!" she shouted, grabbing Sarra. Haneul followed with a Body Flicker.
A third of the puppets survived the attack and fired purple chakra arrows at them. Water Style: Water Formation Wall! Kurenai slammed her hand on the ground, and a wall of water rose to block them. But the delay allowed more puppets to close in.
"This way!" Just then, Tsunade appeared in front of Haneul. She looked at the puppets and lifted her leg. Painful Heaven Leg! The ground cracked around her, and shards of stone shot out, shredding the nearest puppets into scrap metal.
"It really is Lady Hokage?!" Future Kurenai's eyes widened.
"What Hokage? Who is this young woman? I've never seen her before," Present Tsunade thought, confused, but she grabbed Haneul and ran. The four of them soon found a secluded house and shook off the puppets.
"Lady Hokage," Future Kurenai said, bowing to Tsunade.
"...?" Tsunade was completely bewildered. When did I usurp the throne?
"Wait here for us," Haneul said, pulling Tsunade aside.
"What is going on?" Tsunade asked, looking at the future Kurenai.
"Master, whatever I'm about to say, you must not freak out," Haneul said, preparing her.
"I'm a ninja. I don't freak out. Stop being so mysterious and just say it," she said, rolling her eyes.
"She is Kurenai Yuhi," he said seriously.
"Which Kurenai Yuhi?"
"The daughter of Shinku Yuhi," he explained. "She is the Kurenai from the future, sent back in time by the Dragon Vein."
"...Maybe I should check you for injuries after all," Tsunade said after a few seconds of silence.
"..." Haneul grabbed her wrist. "Don't you think she looks just like an older version of her? And she thinks you're the Hokage."
Tsunade fell into deep thought. It was ridiculous, but she did look like Kurenai. Did I really become Hokage? It felt strange. She never wanted the position, so why did she end up with it? Was it because of Haneul? She suddenly remembered his birthday wish from last year.
"Let's focus on the mission for now," Haneul suggested. Tsunade nodded. "One more thing," he said seriously. "To avoid problems with the timeline, we should ask as little about the future as possible."
"If what you say is true, then after the mission is over, we should probably seal each other's memories," Tsunade said, proposing the same solution as Minato in the movie.
They rejoined the others. "I've discussed it with the queen. She will take us to confront Anrokuzan," Future Kurenai said.
"Let's wait for Minato first," Tsunade said, suppressing her strange feelings. The main priority was the Dragon Vein. Sealing it was the only way to stop Anrokuzan. And without sealing it, Future Kurenai and the future Haneul might not be able to return.
"Huh? Senior Minato is here too?" Future Kurenai asked, surprised.
"Do you have a way to contact your teammate?" Haneul asked, changing the subject.
"I've tried, but I haven't gotten a response," she said, frowning. "It's... as if he's not in Roran at all."
Not in Roran? Haneul thought of a possibility. The Dragon Vein's time travel wasn't fixed. Perhaps the future him had been sent to a different timeline.
While they waited, Future Kurenai curiously looked at Haneul. "Little boy, what's your name?"
"First, you tell me yours," he countered.
"Kurenai Yuhi," she said with a smile, patting his head. Hey, who taught you the head-patting move?
"Sister Kurenai," he said with an innocent smile, changing the subject again. "Your Water Style is amazing. Can you teach me?"
"Of course," she said proudly. "In the village, my Water Style is ranked in the top five."
Top five? How many Water Style users are there in Konoha, anyway? he thought.
"Let's go over there and spar," he said, pulling her along. He wanted to see if he could farm a Water Style talent from her.
"Hey, your name!" she called after him.
"Tachibana Taki," he said, making up a name on the spot.
The spar began. Water Style: Water Trumpet! A massive torrent of water shot from her mouth. Haneul dodged with his Body Flicker. She kept up with him, her kunai coated in a blade of water. He blocked with his sword, the force making his arm go numb. He realized she was using water jutsu developed by the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju. Not far away, Tsunade, who was observing, noticed this too and finally believed Haneul's story.
"I give up!" Haneul said, creating distance. He had achieved his goal. Two lines of text appeared before him.
[D-Rank Talent Trait 'A Lot of Water' effect upgraded.]
[Water Style talent increased by 100% from its base rate.]
A 70% increase in one go. It was a huge victory.
"You're really amazing, little boy," Future Kurenai said pointedly. "At your age, I was nowhere near your level. But there was someone who was quite similar to you."
Has she figured it out? Just as Haneul was about to speak, he felt a spatial distortion. Minato Namikaze appeared.
"Senior Minato," Haneul pulled him aside and explained the situation. Minato accepted it more readily than Tsunade. "Did you find the Dragon Vein?"
"It's beneath Roran," Minato said. "But I'm missing the central control location."
"As the queen, Sarra should know where it is," Haneul said. "Let's go confront Anrokuzan now."
"Alright," Minato agreed. He didn't believe one Anrokuzan could defeat both him and Tsunade.
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