It felt like waking from a dream long past—one of those hazy, endless dreams that linger even after opening your eyes.
In the dream, Naruto felt warm all over, as if bathed in the gentle sunlight of a winter morning.
Sunlight? he thought. Don't tell me… I've been reborn at home?
His consciousness began to stir, but strangely, his body wouldn't obey him. It was moving—running, in fact!
Wait, I'm not home. So… where am I?
Suddenly, he heard his own voice.
"Kiba, how's it going?!"
His tone sounded anxious, urgent.
Then another familiar voice answered, gruff and impatient.
"I'm focusing on tracking Sasuke's scent! Stop talking, you're distracting me!"
That voice—Kiba's.
Right! He'd just been with Kiba—searching for Sasuke!
Naruto's soul flickered with recognition. Memories surged like pages of an old book turning in the wind, and then—he found it.
This time period… this was when he went to bring Sasuke back!
At that realization, Naruto's soul fully awakened.
And at that exact moment, the Naruto of this era—his physical body—suddenly froze mid-leap. One second he was jumping across the forest canopy, the next he dropped straight from the air.
"Kakashi-sensei, behind him, immediately noticed something was wrong. "Naruto!" he shouted, dashing forward.
He caught Naruto just before he hit the ground, cushioning the fall.
Sakura, Akamaru, Kiba, Shino, Hinata, and Yamato all halted and rushed over.
Sakura knelt beside Naruto, eyes wide. "What happened? He just collapsed!"
Kakashi shook his head. "No idea. One second he was fine, and then—bam—he's out cold."
"Let me see."
Sakura, who had studied medical ninjutsu under Lady Tsunade, motioned for Kakashi to lay Naruto flat so she could examine him.
Hinata stood anxiously at the side, her pale eyes filled with worry.
Inside Naruto's motionless body, his reborn soul was merging rapidly with his younger self.
Finally, after a few moments of silence—and a few chest compressions from Sakura—she was about to ask Kiba or even Captain Yamato to start mouth-to-mouth when Naruto suddenly stirred.
He opened his eyes—just in time to see a certain someone leaning toward him, lips puckered, ready to deliver "rescue breaths."
Naruto blinked, horrified. "Kiba…?"
Kiba froze mid-motion, eyes widening. Their gazes met. The moment stretched, awkward and eternal.
Instantly, Kiba jumped back, flailing his hands. "H-Hey! I can explain! You passed out! Sakura said someone had to do mouth-to-mouth! Kakashi-sensei and Yamato-senpai wouldn't do it—so I—uh—I didn't have a choice!"
His face was crimson by the time he finished rambling.
Naruto sat up quickly, looking himself over. The clothes, the height, the voice—it was all the same. He was back in his teenage body, around sixteen years old!
Kakashi gave a sigh of relief, smiling under his mask. "Good, you're alright. You scared me there for a second. What happened, Naruto?"
Naruto suddenly threw his arms around Kakashi, tears streaming down his face.
Kakashi stiffened in surprise. During the war against the Ōtsutsuki, he had died saving Naruto from an attack. To see him alive again—Naruto couldn't help but sob.
"Sensei… Kakashi-sensei… it's so good to see you again!"
Kakashi blinked in confusion, patting Naruto's back awkwardly. "Uh… sure, sure. I know you look up to me, but we still have to catch Sasuke before he disappears again, remember?"
Naruto quickly released him, wiping his tears. Right! In this timeline, finding Sasuke was their mission.
Sakura, seeing Naruto recovered, sighed in exasperation. "You idiot! You scared us half to death! You just dropped out of nowhere!"
She crossed her arms, muttering, "I checked you over—you're fine! I was about to start CPR, and since no one else would do mouth-to-mouth, Kiba was next in line…"
"Then you wake up right before he started!"
Naruto laughed awkwardly, scratching his head.
Still, he couldn't contain his joy. "Sakura! It's so good to see you!"
He turned to the others, grinning ear to ear. "Yo! Shino! Captain Yamato! Haha—Kiba, quit mumbling over there! And Akamaru—good boy!" He reached out and ruffled the big white dog's head.
Everyone exchanged confused looks.
Sakura leaned toward Kakashi and whispered, "Sensei… are you sure you caught him before he hit the ground? Because I swear, he's acting like he smacked his head pretty hard."
Kakashi rubbed his neck awkwardly. "I… think I did. Pretty sure. Maybe?"
While Sakura questioned Naruto's sanity, he turned and locked eyes with Hinata.
She was standing there, shy and trembling, her fingers fidgeting together. "N-Naruto-kun, I'm so glad you're okay…" she whispered.
Before she could finish, Naruto stepped forward, wrapped his arms around her, and kissed her deeply.
Hinata froze—her eyes wide with shock—as Naruto held her tight, the kiss lingering, full of warmth and longing.
A single tear slipped from the corner of his closed eye.
At that sight, something inside Hinata melted. Her heart pounded wildly. Slowly… she closed her eyes and kissed him back.
The clearing went dead silent.
Yamato, Shino, Kiba—all stood frozen, jaws hanging open.
Even Akamaru and Kakashi's summoned hounds stared, eyes bulging in disbelief.
Kakashi's eyebrow twitched. "Okay," he muttered, half to himself. "Now I'm really not sure if I caught him in time. I think he actually hit his head."
Sakura's face turned bright red.
Then fury replaced embarrassment.
"BAKA! You idiot!" she shouted, stomping forward. "You pervert! Let go of Hinata right now!"
She swung a powerful punch—one that would've sent any normal man flying.
But to everyone's shock, Naruto caught her fist. Effortlessly.
Still holding Hinata close with his other arm, Naruto looked at Sakura with gentle eyes and said softly, "I'm sorry, Sakura. But from now on… I can't let you hit me anymore."
In his arms, Hinata blushed furiously, lowering her head, her fingers nervously twining together against her chest.