After handling things on his father's side, Naruto walked over and stepped lightly in front of Kushina, who had fallen to the ground.
Kushina looked at the mysterious figure, her expression one of surprise, her pupils reflecting the silhouette of the fox-masked man in the Hokage cloak before her.
Naruto gazed at his mother and said softly, "Leave this to me, and don't move."
"Trust me. Dattebayo!"
Hearing that final word, Kushina's pupils dilated to their maximum, her face frozen in shock.
For a moment, her mind went blank—all her thoughts shattered by those words.
Naruto said nothing more, as he reached out his right hand and placed it on Kushina's shoulder.
Instantly, the Adamantine Sealing Chains receded back into Kushina's body, and the barrier that had been blocking Hiruzen and the others dissipated like smoke.
When the Sky Screen showed Hiruzen and the others again, the viewers saw that they had fallen to the ground, and another mysterious figure clad in a black cloak vanished in a flash.
Adult Sasuke instantly recognized it as his own current attire.
However, he shook his head slightly with an expressionless face; while this scene on the screen was interesting, Amenotejikara had no way to travel through time.
Or could there be another ability in the Rinnegan he hadn't yet discovered?
---
[Konoha, Year 60. Hokage Office]
Hiruzen was somewhat speechless. What was the meaning of this? He wasn't even allowed to watch?
Meanwhile, on the screen, Naruto stared at his infant self, silent for a long time.
But by now, the Nine-Tails had already lost its patience. "You bastards!!"
It roared again, its pupils blood-red, its nine tails lashing wildly behind it. And without Kushina's chakra to sustain them, the golden chains binding it snapped one by one.
"Naruto, you can handle this yourself, right?"
The scene shifted to Naruto's mental world, where another identical Nine-Tails lay on the floor, one eye open and the other closed, watching Naruto with a mischievous look.
"I can't give you too much chakra right now."
A smile curled on Naruto's lips. "Yeah, that's what I figured. Otherwise, my careful disguise would be blown."
He looked down at his cloak and touched the fox mask on his face, a hint of pride in his voice.
Hearing Naruto call it a "careful disguise," Kurama slowly closed its eyes and couldn't be bothered with him anymore.
This guy wore a mask but didn't even change his catchphrase—and he called that a disguise?
"Hmph."
"By the way, did you look in a mirror after putting that on?"
"Eh??" Hearing Kurama's words, Naruto's face instantly scrunched up.
---
[Konoha, Year 50. Hokage Office]
Minato looked at the Naruto on the screen, his lips involuntarily twitching.
This kid was truly... lazy beyond belief. Not to mention his current self, even the version of him on the screen would probably soon figure out who he was.
Meanwhile, on the screen.
"Take this!!"
The Nine-Tails' massive claw came sweeping down toward the three of them with the sound of whistling wind.
Minato and Kushina tensed instantly.
But to their shock, the Nine-Tails' giant claw was unable to advance even an inch further when it was less than a meter away from them.
The enormous claw hung suspended in midair, blocked by a single right hand raised gently by the mysterious figure before them.
"What's with this power?" Not only them—the Nine-Tails itself was equally shocked.
This guy had actually stopped it with pure physical strength alone?
It was the Nine-Tails—the strongest existence among the Tailed Beasts!
Just then, Naruto slowly closed his eyes, and then snapped them open.
Around his eyes, beneath the mask, orange markings appeared—unmistakably the sign of Sage Mode activation.
---
[Another Timeline]
Watching this scene, Jiraiya's eyelids twitched.
This was the future Naruto?
Activating Sage Mode in a split second?!
And then there was himself—he still needed the help of the two elders at Mount Myōboku to enter Sage Mode. The gap between people was truly wider than the gap between sky and earth.
On the screen, Naruto flashed forward, appearing midair in an instant, and threw a punch straight at the Nine-Tails' tail.
However, to hide his identity, Naruto didn't dare use many of his abilities; this punch didn't have any effect on the Nine-Tails. Instead, the Nine-Tails swept its tail forcefully, knocking Naruto back dozens of meters.
But Naruto was undeterred; using the momentum, he appeared in mid-air again, his hands forming a cross.
"Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Poof! Poof! Poof!
Countless masked Narutos surrounded the Nine-Tails. They all reached out, grabbed hold of it, and pulled together.
"Wha… ah…"
Under the Nine-Tails' shocked gaze, its entire world was flipped upside down. To Minato and Kushina, the sight was even more astonishing.
The Nine-Tails' enormous body was actually lifted by these clones, slammed down, and crashed heavily onto the ground.
Pop! Pop!...
Naruto dispelled all his clones, and as the smoke cleared, he stood directly before the Nine-Tails.
Moonlight fell upon him, his Hokage cloak fluttering in the wind, and the words "Seventh Hokage" gleaming brightly in the silver light.
But soon, one of the Nine-Tails' tails twitched—then its entire body rose again.
"You… you've made me very angry!" The Nine-Tails roared under the moon, its voice echoing loudly.
A massive black Tailed Beast Ball began to form in the Nine-Tails' mouth, stirring up fierce winds.
Seeing this, Naruto instinctively began to form a Rasengan in his right hand. But he seemed to quickly remember something, and before the Rasengan could fully form, he proactively dispersed it.
'What?!'
But Minato, who was observing from behind, had his pupils dilate with shock.
His own signature Jutsu. Blond hair. Blue eyes. Everything pointed to one conclusion.
"Minato… this…" Kushina's heart pounded wildly, confirming her suspicions even more—but she still didn't dare to be certain, and sought confirmation from her husband.
Meanwhile, Naruto was still feeling relieved. 'That was close. Almost gave myself away.'
The Rasengan was too distinctive—right now, only his father and the Pervy Sage could use it. If he used it, his identity could no longer be hidden.
At the same time, in his mental world, the voice of Kurama rang out with a hint of helplessness.
"Forget it. Looks like I'll have to give you a hand."
But before Naruto could even respond, Minato had already stepped up beside him, slowly extending a hand.
His palm opened, and he placed it beneath Naruto's hand.
The Rasengan that Naruto had just dismissed began to reform in his palm.
When Naruto finally realized what was happening and turned his head to look at Minato standing side-by-side with him, he saw the man smile at him.
"This Ninjutsu is very suitable for your massive Chakra reserves."
"And as the Seventh Hokage, you should be able to master it easily."
"As a Hokage myself, I also want to help and not just stand by and watch."
When the camera turned to Kushina, she was holding baby Naruto in her arms, staring directly at the scene of father and son standing side by side.
"Mm!" In response to Minato's words, Naruto finally seemed to snap out of it—his voice carrying a slight nasal tone, as if holding something back.
By the time he responded, the Rasengan in his hand had grown from just a small sphere to something massive.
Stirring music began to play, instantly transporting everyone back to that hot-blooded era.
---
[Konoha, Year 60. Land of Waves, Tazuna's house]
Team 7, still waiting for the bridge to be built, was not training today and had gathered together to watch the Sky Screen.
By now, Naruto was already teary-eyed, constantly wiping his tears away.
He made a decision right then; after seeing this scene, he would learn to form a Rasengan with one hand.
*****
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