"Wishing you all the best."
True to their word about just having a meal, Kousei and Karin prepared to set off immediately after eating.
They showed no intention of staying in this world any longer.
The Naruto and Sasuke of this world didn't ask further questions either. From the young girl's account, they had already understood how critical the situation was where she came from.
Regarding Obito and Zetsu who had traveled back to the past… both of them, having experienced the Fourth Great Ninja War, knew how terrifying that could be.
In the end, all words turned into a simple blessing.
Beyond that, there wasn't much more they could do to help.
Karin just nodded in response, while Kousei took a deep look at this world's Naruto's face.
"You too."
Just as Kousei had said herself, she had experienced many different timelines over these seven years.
Similarly, she had witnessed many partings and deaths.
Of course, she had tried to prevent some inevitable sacrifices during that time, but due to limited ability, or perhaps fate's design, certain deaths were destined to remain unchanged.
It was precisely after going through such experiences that this little girl truly understood the answer her father had given to her question back then.
'Dying on the path of protecting those you love is also a kind of romantic ending.'
The reason Heroes are called Heroes is because they dare to face bloodshed head-on, dare to confront certain death, yet never lack the courage to sacrifice for the people they love or the things they seek.
…
This time, there was no need to trek all the way to the ancient ruins of Roran.
With the turtle-shaped device, Kousei simply activated the teleportation right on the second floor of Ichiraku Ramen.
With a flash of white light, the two vanished from the spot.
Naruto and Sasuke both looked on in amazement, while Boruto stared blankly at the spot where the two had disappeared, lost in thought.
…
On the other side, Karin and Kousei arrived in a fantastical space.
"Strictly speaking, this should be considered the interstitial space between worlds during travel."
As she spoke, Kousei knocked on the glowing ground.
"Don't leave this area, or I'm not sure where you might end up."
Clearly, during her years of using this device, Kousei had probably experienced some accidents.
Hearing this, Karin simply sat down cross-legged, quietly waiting for the travel to end.
Kousei sat down beside her, and the two began chatting idly again.
"-Speaking of which, judging by the time you arrived, Karin-nee, had the Konoha Chunin Exams ended?"
"They should be considered... over, right? During the final match, two members of the Otsutsuki Clan suddenly burst in… oh right, the Otsutsuki are-"
As she spoke, Karin started to explain, but unexpectedly, Kousei just waved her hand.
"I know, they're the visitors from the sky."
Hearing this answer, Karin didn't elaborate further, instead recounting what happened afterwards and why her hair had turned white.
Unexpectedly, Kousei's expression changed slightly after listening.
"So, in the end, it was you, Karin-nee, who personally dealt with that Momoshiki?"
Kousei's expression was somewhat strange.
"Yeah, that's what the Naruto-san of that world told me, anyway. I don't really remember it myself."
The next moment, Kousei grabbed Karin's hand.
"Just as I thought, it's a [Kama]."
She looked at the diamond-shaped mark on Karin's palm, her gaze slightly grave.
Karin seemed to be noticing this thing on her hand for the first time as well, curiously trying to scratch it off.
"Huh? When did this get here?"
Kousei stopped Karin from trying to wash off the mark using a Water Release Ninjutsu and briefly described its effects.
The so-called Kama was essentially like a 'seed' containing the complete consciousness and memories of an Otsutsuki Clan's member.
Before members of the Otsutsuki Clan who had reached a higher level of evolution realized they were about to die, they might plant this seed inside an intelligent life form to avoid death.
After a period of growth, the Otsutsuki consciousness within the Kama would gradually begin to invade the host's body and will, eventually completely taking over, achieving rebirth.
"Eh!!? So that guy will take over my body in the future?"
Karin said this with a look of nervousness, increasing the force with which she scratched at the mark.
"Theoretically speaking... that's correct."
Kousei first nodded, then, after watching Karin fret for a while, smiled and explained to her.
"But Karin-nee, you don't need to worry. Once we find Dad, he should be able to separate this thing."
"Oh... right."
Karin nodded blankly.
If Kousei hadn't mentioned it, she would have almost forgotten that Naruto was a user of the Baku Baku no Mi. That restructuring ability might really be able to extract the Kama from her body.
"Don't worry. The erosion is a big threat to those with weak willpower, but for a strong person like you, Karin-nee, it won't happen that quickly."
As she spoke, Kousei stood up.
Just as Karin was feeling a bit embarrassed by this sudden, inexplicable praise, she heard Kousei suddenly say.
"Get ready, we're about to 'arrive'."
At the same time, a mischievous, triumphant smile flashed across her face.
"Huh?"
The next moment, the starry river-like scenery around them suddenly vanished, and the two appeared directly in mid-air.
The sudden sensation of weightlessness made Karin instinctively enter her human-beast hybrid form, but fortunately, the drop point wasn't too high.
At least Kousei landed nimbly after a few aerial steps.
"You little rascal... teasing me like that!"
Karin followed her down and proceeded to pinch and squeeze the little girl's cheeks for quite a while before finally calming down.
Before the two could say anything more, two familiar figures approached from the side.
It was Sasuke and Jiraiya.
"Karin... you...?"
From Jiraiya's perspective, it had been over two years since he last saw Karin. He never expected to see his student with completely white hair the moment they met.
This reminded him of Nagato, and he couldn't help but feel worried.
Seeing Jiraiya like this, Karin put on a broad, casual smile.
"It's nothing, just a bit of temporary overexertion..."
As she spoke, she explained the origin of her white hair and mentioned that the Naruto from the other world had replenished the life force she had lost.
Basically, she was telling the old man not to worry too much.
The moment they met, Karin could see that Jiraiya's spirits were really low.
It seemed that not being able to help Kousei had truly made him blame himself deeply.
But now it was finally coming to an end.
"Kousei-chan, next..."
After confirming Karin was okay, Jiraiya turned to look at Kousei.
"Yeah, all that's left is to find Dad."
Infinite parallel worlds, endless possibilities… Kousei had actually managed to get this far by trying them out one by one, using a 'dumb method'.
…
Perhaps fate was truly favoring the group, as this final search didn't take as long as imagined.
About a month after Karin rejoined the team, Kousei successfully found a world that was highly likely to be the one Naruto was in.
After arriving, she only conducted a brief search before immediately choosing to return, then gathered everyone to go to that world together.
"Sasuke-nii, when we arrive in that world, I need you to immediately release your Susanoo to block out the light."
Kousei looked at Sasuke with a serious expression.
"Mm, I know."
Sasuke nodded gently. He hadn't been idle during this time, and at least he had finally managed to summon his [Gundam].
"The spiritual power of the Sharingan can block that light and prevent us from being controlled by the Genjutsu."
Kousei said with a grave expression. If it weren't for her naturally strong mental power and her prior preparation, she might have been controlled the moment she arrived in that world.
But this also proved that world was currently under the effects of the [Infinite Tsukuyomi].
From her initial brief search, Kousei found that there was no so-called Allied Shinobi Forces in that world.
Having learned the details of the Fourth Great Ninja War in more than one world, Kousei knew what this meant.
The Infinite Tsukuyomi was still active, the world hadn't been completely drained, and the moon still hung high in the sky.
This indicated that Kaguya hadn't been released yet. The person currently using this power was likely Madara, or perhaps Obito.
Since the Allied Shinobi Forces didn't exist, the people who could still be fighting against them now were most likely the Uzumaki Naruto they knew.