Chapter 356: Naruto, Father, Mother
"Huh? Where is this?" Despite many ninja intercepting them, the sheer number of Naruto's shadow clones made it so that quite a few had already approached the Hokage Building. One Naruto, while running along the street, noticed a shop out of the corner of his eye and showed a surprised expression.
"I didn't expect Ichiraku Ramen to be open already! It's been so long since I had ramen! How about... I grab a bowl first? After all, there are plenty of clones to handle the rest."
Naruto rubbed his hands together in anticipation, about to make his decision.
Just then, someone walked out of Ichiraku Ramen.
"Didn't expect that even the enemies invading Konoha would have heard of Ichiraku Ramen."
With golden hair gleaming in the sunlight, dressed in a blue combat uniform and a green Konoha jonin vest, Namikaze Minato stared coldly at Naruto.
"You are..."
Naruto's pupils suddenly contracted, and his voice trembled involuntarily.
Before he could finish speaking, Minato disappeared in an instant.
A cold kunai was placed against Naruto's neck.
"Although I don't know why you're doing this, you better be prepared to explain yourself."
Minato, holding the kunai, appeared beside Naruto, giving a warning.
Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't say so much to an enemy. But for some reason, looking at the boy in front of him, who shared the same hair color and hairstyle as himself, Minato felt a sudden tremor in his heart. His tone became less stern than before.
"Huh? You're still..."
At this moment, another Naruto shadow clone leaped down from the rooftop, just about to greet the Naruto below. Then, he noticed Minato standing just behind them.
Just like before, this new Naruto opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but his mind went blank.
"Minato, leave this to me!"
A fiery figure suddenly rushed out of Ichiraku Ramen, leaping into the air above Naruto. With her fist clenched tightly, she shouted:
"Take this... and fall down!"
In that instant, Naruto looked up, staring dumbfounded at the beautiful woman descending from the sky, with strikingly red hair, aiming a punch directly at him.
Naruto remained motionless.
"She must be... Mom."
Whoosh!
The fierce wind swept in.
The next moment, the delicate fist stopped right in front of Naruto's face, going no further.
Uzumaki Kushina halted her attack, equally stunned as she gazed at Naruto up close. For some reason, her eyes suddenly reddened.
"Why?"
Kushina couldn't understand why she suddenly felt the urge to cry.
How embarrassing!
At the same time, within Kushina's stomach, the Nine-Tails raised its head, curiously gazing at the Naruto outside. For some reason, it felt a familiar presence from this boy.
Was it just an illusion?
"What a touching scene, isn't it?"
Not far away, standing on a rooftop unnoticed by anyone, Hagoromo Gengetsu clapped his hands lightly as he watched the reunion of Naruto's family.
It had been a long time since he'd just been an onlooker.
The last time was during the Chunin Exams, watching the drama between Orochimaru and Hiruzen Sarutobi, the master and disciple.
Compared to that, witnessing the reunion of Naruto's family was far more satisfying.
It was worth the time spent observing.
"I wonder what would happen if I stepped in right now and turned this happy reunion into a bloodbath?"
Gengetsu suddenly had this thought but quickly shook his head.
He considered himself a mentally stable person. Besides, he had to thank Naruto for his considerable efforts in the previous battle.
So, if there are beautiful moments that can remain unbroken, it's better not to destroy them.
Gengetsu glanced at the three frozen figures.
Is this thing called family connection truly something that transcends worlds?
He pondered for a moment, preparing to continue watching.
Bang! Bang!
The Naruto standing before Minato and Kushina suddenly turned into white smoke and disappeared. Not just there—at that moment, all of Naruto's shadow clones vanished.
The reason?
Gengetsu's gaze shifted toward the Hokage's office.
Naruto's real body had already arrived there.
A good show is never too late.
Gengetsu had already guessed Naruto's purpose, but with nothing else to do, he thought watching it unfold wouldn't hurt.
After all, no matter how big of a commotion Naruto made, to him, it was nothing more than a fleeting firework.
If it shined particularly brightly, he wouldn't mind clapping once more.
"Grandpa Third!"
After a game of cat and mouse, Naruto's real body successfully broke into the Hokage's office. The first thing he saw was the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, sitting behind his desk with a pipe in his mouth.
Though he had fewer wrinkles than Naruto remembered, and his energy seemed much higher, at that moment, seeing this familiar version of the Third Hokage living his daily life, Naruto couldn't help but call out with red eyes.
The news of the Third Hokage's death during the Chunin Exams had come so suddenly.
Naruto hadn't fully processed it before the man who had been a large part of his life was already laid to rest in a coffin forever.
In the recent Shinobi World War, after his death, Naruto hadn't had the chance to speak with the Third Hokage or even Minato.
When he was revived, it was at the very end of the war, where all those resurrected with Reanimation were obliterated by Gengetsu's Truth-Seeking Balls.
The Third Hokage had managed to survive till the end.
However, at that time, Naruto had been too busy dealing with Kaguya Otsutsuki and Gengetsu to have any time to talk with him.
In all seriousness, this was the first time Naruto had seen the Third Hokage face-to-face since the Chunin Exams.
Of course, it would have been better if those tense Anbu members around hadn't been present.
Seeing Naruto barge in, the Anbu were ready to strike.
Hiruzen Sarutobi waved his hand, signaling them to pause.
Hearing Naruto sincerely call him "Grandpa," his expression softened, and he spoke kindly:
"Child, do we know each other?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced up, noticing the Konoha forehead protector Naruto was wearing.
He could be sure that there wasn't any record of this boy among Konoha's shinobi.
And he had no memory of him.
"I..."
Naruto wanted to say they knew each other, but then he remembered that this was a different world, and Grandpa Third didn't know him. For a moment, he was at a loss for words.
One of the Anbu captains, who had been silently observing Naruto, made a subtle gesture, indicating to the Third Hokage that this was the best time to strike.
Hiruzen Sarutobi thought for a moment but shook his head.
Facing this boy, who had caused a great commotion in Konoha and now barged into the Hokage's office, he remained patient and spoke kindly:
"Child, take your time. First, introduce yourself."
Hearing this, Naruto pushed down all his thoughts and nodded.
"My name is Uzumaki Naruto."
Uzumaki?
Hiruzen Sarutobi instinctively glanced at Naruto's hair—wasn't it supposed to be red?
Naruto continued, "My position in Konoha is... uh, I'm a Genin of Team 7. My sensei is Kakashi, and my teammates are Sakura, Sai, and Sasuke."
Hiruzen Sarutobi: "Kakashi... sensei?"
"Yes!" Naruto lifted his head, speaking earnestly, "I know it's hard for you to believe, Grandpa Third, but I must tell you the truth."
"I'm not from this world! I'm a ninja from Konoha, but from a different world, more than ten years in the future!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi: "..."
The Hokage's office fell into silence.
After a moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi finally spoke, but not to Naruto. He turned to the Anbu beside him and said:
"Call someone from the Konoha Hospital."
He then looked at Naruto and slowly said four words:
"A drug test, please."