When young Kakashi finished relaying everything he knew to this world's Kakashi and Might Guy—
"You're saying Obito is still alive?!"
"That's right. He's being used by Black Zetsu and Madara." Young Kakashi pointed toward young Obito's direction. "You've already seen his Mangekyō Sharingan ability. He's extremely difficult to deal with."
"Then where is he now?"
"Just like Itachi Uchiha, he's also… in the Akatsuki organization."
"I see."
"You'd better be mentally prepared. Everything involving Minato-sensei and the Uchiha clan is tied to him. And Danzo Shimura's persecution of the Uchiha clan as well. I suggest you find a way to let Sasuke know the truth earlier. We've been to a future where he killed Itachi, was consumed by regret, and ended up hating Konoha."
The weight of that information was overwhelming for everyone present.
Hashirama Senju was no exception. After learning that, following his and Tobirama's deaths, Madara had survived for so many years, and that everything stemmed from a grand deception caused by a stone tablet, he found himself completely at a loss for words.
On Minato Namikaze's side, his conversation with this world's Naruto Uzumaki was also coming to an end.
After saying their goodbyes, the people from the mission scroll world noticed their bodies slowly turning into milky-white light, fading bit by bit.
"I didn't have time to seal the cursed seal on this world's Sasuke," Minato Namikaze said.
"That's fine. I'll take care of it," Hashirama Senju replied. "My and Tobirama's sealing techniques aren't bad. After all, the Senju and Uzumaki are close relatives."
Minato nodded.
"I misjudged things. I thought that reducing Konoha's losses this time, preventing the Third Hokage's death, and removing Sasuke's cursed seal were this world's regrets…"
He paused and looked at this world's Naruto.
"It seems the real regret is that Orochimaru failed to summon the Fourth Hokage. You never got to meet this world's Fourth Hokage."
With that, everything clicked for everyone.
If they hadn't come to this world, the Fourth Hokage would never have been summoned. Naruto might never have learned who his father was, and would never have had the chance to talk to him properly.
Sasuke looked at his counterpart from this world.
"Get rid of that ugly cursed seal first. As for revenge, we'll think about it after we fully understand the truth."
"…Yeah."
Everyone vanished from this parallel world, fully expecting to return to their own time.
But to their surprise…
They appeared once again in a dense forest.
Even from far away, the thunderous roar of a waterfall could be heard.
They leapt onto the tallest nearby tree. Across the waterfall stood the statues of Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha, facing each other and forming a seal of confrontation.
"Is this the Valley of the End?"
"Why didn't we go back? Why did we end up traveling here instead?"
"At least this time, we've been together from the very beginning," Minato said as he gazed at the two distant statues. "According to legend, this is where the fiercest battle between the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, and Madara Uchiha took place. That earth-shattering fight lasted an entire day and night, even changing the terrain itself…"
"Everyone thought it was Hashirama-sama's victory, but in the end, it turned out to be a draw."
If Madara had truly died back then, there would have been no 'Masked Man,' and many of the events that followed would never have happened.
Young Kakashi said, "If this keeps up, maybe one day we'll actually travel back to before the Valley of the End was formed, and stop their fight altogether."
Sakura looked around at the landscape.
"This place must have originally been flat ground, right? They fought hard enough to create a waterfall and a lake. Just how brutal was that battle?"
"Wait!!"
Obito Uchiha suddenly shouted, "Kakashi, look at those electric arcs over there! Don't they look like your Chidori?!"
No sooner had he spoken than the waterfall below the Valley of the End exploded into towering waves. Even from this distance, the sound reached them clearly.
"There's someone there! Let's go!!"
Minato Namikaze and Kakashi Hatake led the two eras' Team 7 toward the base of the Valley of the End's waterfall.
For some reason, an intense sense of unease gripped them all.
Who could possibly be fighting there?
As they drew closer, the synchronized screech of Chidori rang out again. Crackling arcs of lightning intertwined in the air…
That meant the people fighting there were very likely Kakashi or Sasuke.
And as for who could be battling either of them in this place, everyone's thoughts converged on the same possibilities.
Obito Uchiha vs. Kakashi Hatake.
Or…
Sasuke Uchiha vs. Naruto Uzumaki.
Faster.
Trees and scenery blurred past behind them.
And yet, it still didn't feel fast enough.
At last, a different light appeared ahead. They were about to break out of the forest and reach the exit at the base of the waterfall.
The deafening roar of the cascade mixed with the sound of lightning striking water.
Any human voices were completely drowned out.
Only when they burst out of the forest, under the blinding sunlight, did they finally see—
Two figures standing in the open daylight.
"It's already too late, Naruto!!"
The members of Team Minato and Team Kakashi heard the shout coming from the other side of the waterfall.
The next instant, the cry of Chidori rang out in unison.
They saw—
Sasuke Uchiha grabbing Naruto Uzumaki by the collar and lifting him up…
Then driving the Chidori in his hand straight toward Naruto's heart!!
"!!!"
Everyone froze, including Minato Namikaze.
For a moment, they even forgot to rush forward and pull Naruto down from Sasuke's grip.
Kakashi Hatake's mind overlapped the scene with the memory of killing Rin back then. His body trembled as regret flooded him for ever teaching Sasuke the Lightning Release technique he had developed himself.
"No, it didn't hit the heart!"
Rin spoke up quickly.
"At the critical moment, Naruto pushed Sasuke's Chidori hand aside a little. It pierced his shoulder instead!"
Only then did the others finally feel like they could breathe again.
"I'm stopping them!" Obito Uchiha moved to rush forward.
"Wait!"
Naruto suddenly reached out and stopped him.
Sasuke didn't say anything, but he also seemed to be thinking.
Naruto said, "I think it's better not to interfere right now."
Faced with the others' confused looks, he continued.
"If Sasuke and I were really fighting like this, it would mean we've both put our lives on the line to resolve something that absolutely has to be resolved. If we step in and stop this fight now, then that problem will never truly be settled."
It was just like how they hadn't interfered with the battle between the other world's Naruto and Gaara before.
If they hadn't fought, then even if they'd directly told Gaara about his mother and Yashamaru, he might not have truly accepted it. He might not even have believed them.
Only by fighting and deciding a winner could they finally calm down.
"Right, Sasuke?"
Naruto suddenly tossed the question to the Sasuke beside him.
Sasuke nodded, exactly as Naruto expected.
"Yeah. I think the same."
Kakashi, Minato Namikaze, and the others chose to trust Naruto and Sasuke. They stayed hidden in the forest, watching the battle unfold.
Even so, Minato had already taken out a Flying Thunder God kunai, and Obito Uchiha stood ready with his Mangekyō Sharingan.
"If I sense anything going wrong, I will intervene and stop you in this world."
"Mm."
Naruto and Sasuke both answered softly.
They looked toward the lake not far away. There, the cursed seal covering Sasuke Uchiha's body was slowly receding.
"You avoided a fatal blow, but you can't form hand seals to use ninjutsu anymore, can you?"
Sasuke Uchiha, now with only the two-tomoe Sharingan, wore a twisted expression. That Chidori just now had truly been meant to kill Naruto Uzumaki.
That fact was clear to everyone watching from afar, whether it was Team Minato or Team Kakashi.
Naruto Uzumaki, who was facing that Sasuke Uchiha directly, understood it even more clearly.
"It's over!"
Sasuke Uchiha's hand tightened relentlessly around Naruto Uzumaki's neck.
Both teams watching held their breath in tension.
Naruto said, "Don't worry. It won't end like this."
He reassured Sakura.
"That Sasuke doesn't have many injuries. They've probably only just started fighting."
Just like when they watched Gaara and Naruto fight before, Naruto would still be incredibly strong even without guidance from the Fourth Hokage or support from the mission scroll. Strong enough to defeat Gaara.
"But why, Sasuke-kun…?" Sakura couldn't understand. "Why would he try to kill Naruto?"
No one answered her. But at that moment—
The Naruto Uzumaki fighting Sasuke Uchiha suddenly erupted with red chakra. His pupils, teeth, and nails all transformed into a demonic fox-like state.
Naruto grabbed the hand choking his neck, his strength so overwhelming that Sasuke Uchiha was forced to let go.
The atmosphere instantly turned eerie.
The lake beneath the waterfall churned violently under Naruto Uzumaki's chakra. Sasuke Uchiha had no choice but to retreat, staring intently with his Sharingan at the flow of chakra inside Naruto's body…
And that was when he saw it.
So did the Sasuke and Obito watching from the sidelines.
Behind Naruto Uzumaki, it was as if a monstrous creature as massive as Shukaku was standing there.
A crimson, ferocious fox.
"That Naruto Uzumaki has gone berserk," Obito said. "With my Sharingan, I can see that the Nine-Tails inside him is extremely enraged right now!!"
Sasuke said, "Yeah. As long as the Sharingan is active, you can see that enormous demon fox behind Naruto!"
"The wound is healing!" Rin exclaimed.
She was referring to the gaping hole in Naruto Uzumaki's shoulder, pierced through by Sasuke Uchiha's Chidori. It was healing at a speed visible to the naked eye. Nine-Tails chakra. The last time, when they had been completely helpless against Dan Katō's injuries, Kurama had used this same chakra to save his life.
On the surface of the lake…
Naruto Uzumaki, who had been hanging his head, slowly lifted it, placing tremendous pressure on Sasuke Uchiha across from him.
The whisker-like marks on his face, beast-like fangs, and crimson, animalistic pupils made Naruto Uzumaki look downright ferocious.
Minato, Sasuke, Sakura, and the others all noticed the tears slipping from the corners of Naruto's eyes.
"Sasuke!! I will never hand you over to someone like Orochimaru!! Even if I have to break your arms and legs! Smash every bone in your body! I'll still stop you!!"
"What the hell are you?!"
"I'm your friend!"
The immense power contained within the slender body of Naruto Uzumaki erupted across the lake's surface. Even Sasuke Uchiha couldn't help but think to himself—
Is he some kind of monster?
But the answer Naruto gave him was only one thing.
Friend.
Just those two words.
Sasuke: "..."
Fine then, dead last. You're finished.
Watching the two of them fight, Team Minato and Team Kakashi could clearly feel the deep sorrow pouring out of Naruto. Beneath the waterfall, the two boys clashed in a fierce exchange of taijutsu and ninjutsu.
Back and forth, blow for blow.
The battle was spectacular, yet it was nothing like a Chūnin Exams match. It was more like what Naruto had said. There was an unbreakable knot in both of their hearts. The harder Naruto tried to untie it, the more tightly Sasuke pulled it closed.
Watching their battle…
"Don't you think Sasuke and Naruto are a lot like Madara Uchiha and the First Hokage?" young Kakashi said.
At the same time, Minato patted the Naruto standing beside him on the shoulder.
"There's a new mission on your scroll."