"It seems we've actually 'collided' within the rift of spacetime."
He whispered, his voice steady and devoid of any panic.
Before his voice faded, the staff in his hand transformed into the Sword of Nunoboko, and he made a gentle swipe forward.
There was no earth-shattering boom; instead, the space ahead was silently torn open like fabric, revealing a rift with edges shimmering in a rainbow-colored halo.
At the other end of the rift, the familiar sight of the research institute was faintly visible.
Naruto used his Chakra arms to shield the three children, then stepped forward, vanishing straight into the rift.
A second later, light and shadow shifted, and the sensation of solid ground returned.
After returning to their original spacetime, the three children were all gasping for breath.
After the Karasuki had issued its alarm, they thought they wouldn't be able to make it back!
Naruto looked at the spacetime rift thoughtfully and reached out, pulling the Karasuki out from across the void.
He seemed to understand now how the Sasuke from another world had appeared in his timeline.
He had taken the attitude of letting things happen to teach a lesson and hadn't stopped the children from touching the Karasuki, which resulted in two Karasukis colliding within the spacetime rift.
This caused the Sasuke and Boruto from another parallel world, along with Momoshiki Ōtsutsuki, to end up in his world's past.
Fate truly is a curious thing.
"Oh my, that was truly dangerous."
Naruto chuckled as he deactivated his Six Paths Mode, the majestic golden Chakra around him receding like a tide, his expression relaxed.
In stark contrast to him were the shaken faces of the three children beside him.
Himawari, Taichi, and even Yuto were still immersed in the lingering fear of the spacetime rift nearly collapsing just now.
"Alright, Himawari, Taichi."
Naruto turned around and gently ruffled the hair of the two children.
"Once we get back, your big brother and I won't tell your mother about this."
He paused intentionally, and seeing the hope light up in the two children's eyes, he continued, "However, you must take this as a warning. Understand?"
"Understood!"
Overjoyed, the two children nodded hurriedly.
"Dad, you spoil them too much."
Yuto stood to the side with his arms crossed, unable to watch any longer.
He felt that his father's way of handling it—making a big deal of it only to let them off lightly—wasn't a deep enough lesson for these two audacious rascals.
"Hey, look at you."
Naruto turned to look at his eldest son and suddenly laughed, his smile carrying a hint of mischief and reminiscence.
"You're just like your Grandpa Hiashi was back then. He used to always say I spoiled your Mother Hanabi too much, and later he said I was too submissive to Hinata and lacked the bearing of a head of the family."
"Look at her now; isn't your Mother Hanabi's personality quite good?"
Yuto's mother was Ino, and his maternal grandfather was Inoichi Yamanaka.
Regarding how they addressed everyone, Naruto had discussed it with the elders and finally decided to have the children call their own mother's father 'Grandpa', while calling other elders of the grandparent generation 'Grandpa' or 'Grandma'.
"Dad, don't brag about that kind of thing."
Yuto facepalmed helplessly.
"Besides, Shinachiku has picked up bad habits from you too."
"Ahaha, is that so?"
Naruto scratched his cheek, feeling a bit embarrassed at being lectured by his son; however, he really wasn't very good at educating his children.
"Speaking of which," Himawari asked softly, with a mix of curiosity and lingering fear, "why is everyone in the Village so afraid of you, Dad? Even though you're so nice to everyone."
Naruto blinked his azure eyes and gave a somewhat nostalgic smile. "Well... because when Dad was young, I did a little bit of 'remodeling' for Konoha Village."
"Back then, I thought about it for a long time and then wondered, why should I be the one to leave the place where I grew up?"
Hearing their father's words, which seemed to lack a proper beginning or end, the children were all somewhat dissatisfied.
"Was it really just 'remodeling'?"
Yuto expressed deep doubt; he had heard some vague legends.
"Of course!"
Naruto gestured as he led the children outside. "This place didn't used to be a canyon, and there were no trams on the circular mountains."
"Aside from the Hokage Rock, it was basically just a big flat area..."
Before he could finish, a fair hand suddenly reached out from the side and accurately pinched his ear.
A female voice tinged with a hint of reproach rang out.
"Alright, alright, those past events are over. Also, Naruto, why did it take you so long to find the children and come home?"
The newcomer was none other than Uchiha Hikari.
She was dressed in dark casual clothes, her long black hair tied back, revealing an exquisite but slightly aloof face; her Mangekyo Sharingan glowed in the dim light like gemstones harboring flames.
Time had not dulled her edge; it had only allowed her beauty to settle into something deeper.
Upon seeing that Naruto and the children were unharmed, the Mangekyo Sharingan in her eyes slowly faded back into ordinary black eyes.
"Ow, Hikari, gently, gently! The kids are watching."
Naruto tilted his head in cooperation, yet his tone carried an affectionate smile.
"Mom..."
Taichi had just opened his mouth when he fell silent under Hikari's indifferent glance.
"You three, go back first."
Hikari let go of Naruto's ear, her tone brooks no argument.
"Yuto, take your younger brother and sister home. I have something to say to your father alone."
"Okay, Mother Hikari, we'll head back right away."
Yuto immediately complied, grabbing his siblings by their hands and swiftly leaping onto the roof to leave, his movements even more agile than before.
He knew that Mother Hikari usually didn't say much, but once she did, it meant things needed to be taken more seriously.
Dad, you're on your own!
Only when the children's silhouettes had completely vanished into the night did the deliberate aloofness on Hikari's face soften, replaced by genuine concern.
She turned to Naruto, looking him over carefully. "I felt you activate Six Paths Mode just now, even if only for a short time. What happened?"
As a powerhouse who had once fought alongside Naruto against formidable Ōtsutsuki enemies, her perception was also extremely keen.
Naruto looked at the clear worry in her eyes and reached out to take her hand.
"Can't you just let me play the role of the omnipotent, reliable father in front of the kids once in a while?"
He said with a smile, trying to lighten the mood.
"Don't give me that in front of me."
Hikari gripped his hand back, her hold tightening slightly as she stared at him tensely.
"You know I can tell the difference. What really happened?"
Naruto shook their joined hands, his tone carrying a reassuring certainty.
"Don't worry, it's already settled. I have plenty of tricks up my sleeve, in every sense. It's not like you don't know."
Hikari thought of something, and her pretty face flushed red.
"I never realized you were so improper before."
She looked away and whispered.
Naruto leaned in closer, his warm breath brushing against her ear as he said with a mischievous smile, "I was talking about methods for fighting and escaping. Oh? Hikari, where did your mind go?"
Hikari snapped her head back, but the blush deepened, clearly visible under the moonlight. "If you weren't thinking of something else yourself, why would you think I was getting the wrong idea?"
Their shadows overlapped under the moonlight, standing very close together.
Naruto watched her rare display of such a vivid, bashful expression, and his smile deepened, filled with doting and satisfaction.
He put his arm around her shoulder and gently pulled her into his embrace.
"Alright, I'll stop teasing you."
He whispered, rubbing his chin against the top of her head.
"Everything's really fine now. Let's go home."
Hikari stayed quiet in his arms for a moment, then gave a soft "mm," her aloof aura completely melting away as she leaned submissively against his shoulder.