Were these people reinforcements sent by the village… or Konoha shinobi belonging to this time period?
Looking at the young man before him Shinju guessed it was probably the latter.
At least, that was some good news. It meant that the time he had crossed into wasn't too far from his own era.
Maybe… he could even live to meet everyone again in the future?
But even with that optimistic thought—he was still furious! (╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻
At that moment, Shinju's resentment toward that traitor, Mukade, multiplied several times over!
Chōza frowned at the unfamiliar boy standing in front of him.
"I'm only a few years older than you—why are you calling me uncle?"
"And another thing—how do you know me when I've never even seen you before? (￢‸￢) ?"
Shinju opened his mouth, wanting to explain what had happened to him.
Just then, from the front of Chōza's squad, a masked ninja who seemed to be the captain spoke up.
"Now's not the time for this. Let's deal with these puppets first!" --003d_--003d
As he spoke, the masked ninja pulled out a strangely shaped kunai from seemingly nowhere, preparing to attack...
Suddenly, Shinju's calm voice cut in from the side.
"I'll handle this."
Before the masked man could even leap forward, Shinju had already completed his hand seals and shouted,
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
"Fwoooosh—!!"
A massive fireball erupted from Shinju's mouth, roaring toward the swarm of puppets in the sky!
"Boom!!"
The explosion tore through the air, blasting every puppet in the sky to pieces!
Even more absurdly, the clay dolls closest to the flames began to melt!
The Konoha shinobi: ⊙▽⊙,!!!∑(°Д°ノ)ノ
What the hell—when did the Great Fireball Jutsu get this overpowered?!
"You—you—you…"
Chōza just stood there, utterly dumbfounded, trying and failing to recall how such a ridiculously strong guy could possibly know him.
Unlike the others' stunned expressions, the masked ninja's gaze lingered thoughtfully on Shinju's bright red hair.
Then he said, "This isn't the right place to talk. Let's move somewhere else and discuss this properly."
Shinju nodded—he also wanted to figure out what exact time period he had landed in.
After saying goodbye to Sara inside the cave, he followed the masked ninja and his team out.
Inside the cave, Sara blinked in confusion and murmured,
"What a strange ninja… but he's kinda handsome. (●´∇｀●)"
"Oh right—the ceremony's about to start. I need to get ready..."
...
In a quiet corner of Roran City.
The masked man asked,
"You're a Konoha ninja too, right? But from what I know, the Third Hokage didn't send anyone else to Roran."
Since Chōza's presence confirmed their Konoha identity, Shinju didn't hesitate and explained everything—his bizarre time travel included.
"So you're saying… you came from the future?" the masked man said, clearly shocked.
Shinju nodded. "Most likely. I just don't know if I can go back."
The masked man patted Shinju's shoulder reassuringly.
"If what you're saying is true, there's always a way. I know a bit about space–time ninjutsu myself. Once you defeat that rogue ninja who broke the seal and restore it, you might be able to return."
Shinju nodded. "I hope so."
Then, pointing at the man's mask, he hesitated before saying,
"By the way, masked… could you take that mask off? You seem a bit familiar to me..."
He felt that way because he'd noticed the strange kunai the man had pulled out earlier.
The masked man didn't hesitate—he simply removed the patterned mask.
A sharp, well-defined face appeared before Shinju's eyes.
The moment he saw it, Shinju's thoughts froze for a second—just as he expected.
This man was none other than the Fourth Hokage carved into Konoha's Hokage Rock—Naruto's father, Namikaze Minato!!
No wonder he understood space–time ninjutsu!
"What's wrong? You've seen me in the future, haven't you?" Minato asked with a teasing smile.
Shinju nodded seriously.
"You'll become an incredible shinobi in the future."
Then, after a short pause, he added with a smile,
"And your son too."
"Oh? You know my son?" Minato asked with interest. "Is he a handful?"
Shinju nodded. "Very."
After a brief exchange, Minato's team packed their gear, preparing to depart.
"Whether you're really from the future or not," Minato said, "I'll still give you this warning—leave Roran while we're on this mission."
"Roran City is dangerous right now."
With that, the group vanished, leaving Shinju standing there with a wry smile.
"Man… he's cautious as ever."
With a sigh, Shinju sat cross-legged and closed his eyes.
Just as Minato had said—if he wanted to return, he needed to find Mukade first.
Since he had been transported through contact with the seal, Mukade was probably dragged into this era too.
But even after scanning almost the entire city of Roran with his mental senses, Shinju couldn't detect any trace of Mukade's chakra.
"Don't tell me that guy already escaped Roran?" he muttered, frustrated.
If that were true… he might have to search the entire ninja world to find him!
Just as Shinju was deciding his next move, the noise of a crowd rose outside.
He stepped out from his corner, leapt onto a tall tower, and looked down over Roran.
In the distance—fireworks, colorful giant puppets, street stalls, bright lights—people were gathered everywhere, celebrating joyously.
They all seemed excited, shouting "Her Majesty the Queen!"
"Is there some kind of festival going on?" Shinju wondered.
Right then, Sara appeared on a raised platform in the city square, dressed in formal attire, smiling brightly as the crowd cheered.
Two enormous puppet attendants stood behind her.
The curiosity of a modern-day crowd lover still lived in Shinju's heart, so instead of leaving, he lay flat on the tower rooftop, ready to watch whatever performance came next.
On the platform, Sara—her long red hair shining under the lights—pressed her hands down, signaling for silence.
Her voice echoed through the special chakra amplifier:
"My people, I am Sa—"
Bzzzt—
Her voice cut off suddenly! The amplifier crackled with static!
From his vantage point, Shinju saw Sara suddenly fall from the platform!
Acting on instinct—and on his personal belief that "helping others in need isn't about bravery, it's about being human"—Shinju extended his hand!
"Whoosh!"
His arm transformed under the influence of Wood Release chakra, turning into a massive vine that reached down toward the falling Sara!
...
In the shadows near the plaza.
Minato, who had been preparing to intervene, froze mid-action as he saw the enormous wooden vine.
Σ(っ °Д °;)っ
Startled, he turned to his two teammates.
"Since when did our village have another Wood Release user?!"
"Was he really from the future?!"
"Wait—don't tell me… Wood Release is common in the future? Σ( ° △ °|||)︴"