"Naruto, did you find any clues related to Mukade?" Obito asked.
Although he had many questions in his mind, he felt it would be better to ask them individually rather than in a group. He thought it would be better to ask on his own.
What they knew so far was that Naruto and Yamato knew Kakashi and Guy, but they didn't know Mutsuki, him, or Rin. They might know Asuma, but since they didn't respond, it couldn't be confirmed.
"We've searched many places, asked a few people, but found nothing. Mukade wouldn't have not traveled through time, would he? If that's the case, then Sakura and Sai are in danger," Naruto said, a trace of concern flashing across his face.
Yamato's expression was also very serious; things had turned out to be more complicated than he had expected.
"It's not very convenient here. Let's move to a room to discuss," Mutsuki suggested.
Although there was no one nearby, it was still best to be cautious.
Kakashi and Yamato both nodded, and then everyone went to Mutsuki's room.
"When we were investigating Anrokuzan today, we also kept an eye out for any clues related to Mukade. Not only did we not find anyone who looked like him, but even the name 'Mukade' doesn't seem to have appeared in Roran," Obito said, sitting cross-legged.
To make it easier to find him, Yamato had given them a portrait of Mukade, so they had been trying to keep an eye out for him during their mission.
Rin poured water for everyone and then brought it to them.
"Just like our findings," Yamato said, taking the cup and thanking her. "I asked many of the residents near where we traveled. That day, aside from Naruto, there was no one who seemed suspicious."
Yamato had used Transformation Jutsu to carry out his investigation. He wasn't surprised that Naruto was deemed a suspicious person; knowing Naruto's personality, he would surely start asking random people questions as soon as he traveled through time.
However, when Yamato pretended to be on a bounty hunt and showed the residents a portrait of Mukade, all his inquiries were met with negative responses, which made him feel uneasy.
This meant that Mukade might not have traveled through time and was likely still in the original timeline. It also meant that Sakura and Sai, who hadn't traveled through time either, would have to face Mukade, who had absorbed the power of the Dragon Vein. Moreover, it suggested that returning might be very difficult for them.
After hearing Yamato's information, Kakashi furrowed his brows. The absence of suspicious individuals wasn't a big deal, because if Mukade was a cautious Ninja, he wouldn't have allowed himself to become a noticeable anomaly in the crowd.
But if even the portrait was denied, there were only two possibilities: One was that Mukade had been lucky and no one had seen him when he appeared, and then he quickly used Transformation Jutsu to conceal his whereabouts.
The second possibility was far worse: only Naruto and Yamato had traveled through time, while Mukade hadn't come over.
"Damn it, he was the one who caused the anomaly, how is it that only Captain Yamato and I traveled through time?" Naruto became anxious at the thought that his teammates might be in danger.
"Since Mukade will appear in the future, can we just stay in Roran and wait for the time Mukade appears, then defeat him in one fell swoop?" Obito suddenly thought of a good plan.
Naruto widened his eyes and looked at Obito, realizing that it seemed to make sense, though he wasn't sure how many years they'd have to wait.
"This won't work. Naruto and the others are from the future, which means our world will still have a Naruto and Yamato. If they keep waiting here, wouldn't there be two of them in the world? How are they supposed to coexist?" Kakashi shook his head.
Obito's plan was too idealistic, and having two people from the future stay in the present—who knows what kind of impact that would have on history? It wasn't even certain if they could return to the original future, let alone set up an ambush for Mukade.
Obito thought for a moment and realized that Kakashi's point made more sense. If there were two of him, he would have to compete with himself as a rival.
"We can't stay here for too long. The longer we stay, the more irresponsible it is to the Ninja World and to history," Yamato said solemnly in agreement.
Kakashi's ability to think of this surprised Yamato. Despite being young, Kakashi-senpai was still Kakashi-senpai—reliable when it mattered most.
"You don't have to worry. Mukade definitely crossed over," Mutsuki said with certainty.
Yamato looked at Mutsuki. Though he now knew that Mutsuki was not the Fourth Hokage, based on Mutsuki's performance, it was clear that Mutsuki was a very dependable Ninja who wouldn't make baseless claims.
"According to your descriptions, Mukade, along with the Fourth Hokage's seal, absorbed the Dragon Vein's power, causing it to go out of control. Eventually, you two crossed through time, so..." Mutsuki began to lecture, using his profound Ninjutsu knowledge.
To make sure everyone was convinced, he even used some of his Flying Thunder God techniques in his explanation. Everyone was left stunned. Though they didn't fully understand, they could tell the information was far from simple.
"So Mukade must have crossed through time just like you. The reason for the current situation might be that Mukade arrived earlier than you, maybe a few weeks, months, or even years earlier," Mutsuki concluded.
"If that's the case, then we won't be able to find him at all. The Ninja World is so vast; who knows where he could have gone?" Naruto scratched his head in frustration.
Mutsuki's explanation was long and profound, giving an impression of something powerful and deep, yet because Mutsuki was so friendly, Naruto readily believed his explanation.
Yamato thought for a moment and agreed that Mutsuki's explanation made the most sense, but his expression still didn't relax. As Naruto said, the Ninja World was so big, and finding one person was extremely difficult.
"I don't think he's left Roran. Since he wants to obtain the power of the Roran Dragon Vein, how could he let Roran, with no hostile Ninja interference, slip through his fingers?" Mutsuki said, pushing his glasses with his left hand.
"As for why we couldn't find any information, it's probably because he's worried that you two might have come along and changed his appearance," Mutsuki said.
"Tomorrow, I'll go and negotiate with the queen to see if I can get some relevant information from her."
Naruto gave Mutsuki a thumbs up in thanks. "Big brother Mutsuki, thank you so much! You really are amazing!"
Although everyone was confused, Mutsuki was able to extract useful information and ultimately find the answers they needed.
"Of course! You should see who this is. Yumi-sensei can do anything!" Obito, a loyal follower of Mutsuki Sage, immediately began to promote his belief.
Pat!
Mutsuki pressed his index and middle fingers together and gently tapped Obito on the head, smiling helplessly. "I'm not omnipotent."
Obito chuckled a couple of times, unfazed by the divine punishment. It was reasonable for the all-powerful Mutsuki Sage to be humble.
"Thank you so much, Mutsuki-sama," Yamato bowed and expressed his gratitude.
He was really curious about Mutsuki. Why did this gentle and approachable powerful figure have no reputation in later generations? Could it be because he died too early in battle?
Thinking of this, Yamato's mood became heavy. Even if he could deduce this outcome, he couldn't do anything to help Mutsuki.
"If Kakashi-senpai were here, what would he do?" Yamato couldn't help but think.
Although Kakashi often bullied him and frequently acted off-plan during missions, the results were always good, so Yamato trusted Kakashi a lot.
As Yamato thought, he saw a younger version of Kakashi sitting across from him. After Obito and the others finished discussing their mission, Mutsuki and his team began to exchange information about their own mission. Kakashi was seriously reporting their day's findings to Mutsuki.
"Young Kakashi was actually quite cute, his eyes were so bright. Why did they turn into those dead fish eyes later?" Comparing the young and older versions of Kakashi, and then glancing at the loving atmosphere of Mutsuki's team, Yamato vaguely began to understand something.
Although there were four people, he only knew Kakashi.
After everything was discussed, the meeting began to break up. Mutsuki started to research Sealing Jutsu, Rin went to wash up, and Obito and Kakashi started arguing and bickering. Naruto and Yamato returned to their room.
Four hours later, the door to Obito's room creaked open very softly. Obito stuck his head out, looked around to make sure he wasn't seen, and then quietly sneaked over to Naruto and Yamato's room.
Obito knocked lightly on the door twice, then tiptoed inside.
"Obito, why are you being so sneaky?" Naruto asked, puzzled.
Yamato's face showed a look of hesitation. He had a rough idea of Obito's intentions. Sneaking into their room at night, what else could he want to know except about the future?
"Ahem, it's nothing. I just wanted to ask some questions," Obito said without hiding anything, quickly stating his purpose.
"Don't you guys know Yumi-sensei? I mean, before you traveled through time," Obito stared intently at Naruto and Yamato. He had been restraining himself all day, but he really wanted to know the answer.
"I don't know him. Today is the first time I've met Mutsuki-sama," Naruto shook his head in response.
Mutsuki was special, and Naruto felt that if he had met him before, he would definitely not have forgotten.
After Naruto's answer, Obito shifted all his focus to Yamato. Yamato appeared much older than Naruto, so he probably knew more.
"I don't know Mutsuki-sama either," Yamato thought for a moment and, in the end, didn't avoid the question and answered Obito directly.
He truly didn't want to change history, but faced with Obito's almost pleading look, Yamato couldn't remain silent or lie.
"Though, this shouldn't have much of an impact," Yamato reassured himself in his heart. Before coming here, he hadn't even heard of Mutsuki Yumi.
"How is that possible..." Obito's face showed a look of confusion.
In his mind, someone as exceptional as Yumi-sensei, no matter how low-key, shouldn't have been this obscure.
"Then who serves as the vice-principal of the Academy?" Obito continued asking.
Yamato shook his head, indicating that he wasn't sure about this matter.
"Vice-principal? Does the Academy even have a vice-principal?" Naruto asked, puzzled.
He only remembered that the Hokage was the principal of the Academy, and then nothing else.
Obito's mind was racing, trying to think of other places where there would definitely be traces of Mutsuki.
But to his surprise, he couldn't think of anything. First, Mutsuki was very low-key, and even when he had defeated a strong opponent like the candidate Raikage, he had asked them not to spread the word. Furthermore, Obito wasn't clear if Mutsuki held any other positions besides at the Academy.
"Damn Kakashi, Yumi-sensei is so amazing, doesn't he ever tell anyone about his achievements?" Obito, frustrated, angrily scolded Kakashi in his mind.
The most definite information so far was about the future Kakashi. The future Kakashi was Yamato's Senpai and also Naruto's sensei.
Obito felt that if Kakashi had just shared some of Mutsuki's story with Naruto, things wouldn't have turned out this way.
"Then what about Rin? Don't you have any impression of her? Has Kakashi never mentioned her?" Obito sighed deeply and then changed the subject.
Naruto and Yamato both shook their heads. They didn't know her either; they had never even heard of her.
Upon receiving this answer, Obito clenched his fist so tightly that his nails dug into his flesh, but he still didn't relax.
He couldn't imagine a future without Mutsuki, a future without Rin. He couldn't believe such a future existed, and he didn't want that kind of future.
"You should know Minato-sensei, right?" Obito bit his tongue, forced himself to calm down, and then continued asking.
"Mm." Yamato nodded. "Minato-sama was the Fourth Hokage of Konoha. He was the greatest contributor during the war."
Since the previous misunderstanding about the identity, the fact that Minato Namikaze was the Fourth Hokage had basically been leaked, so Yamato felt there was no harm in saying more.
"How did Minato-sensei die? What happened?" Obito directly asked about Minato's cause of death.
As Hokage, Minato Namikaze couldn't have died without a clear reason.
Yamato closed his eyes. He wasn't sure whether he should continue or what the consequences of speaking out might be.
"Captain Yamato, do you know? If you do, just say it. Wouldn't it be great if we could stop the Fourth Hokage's death?" Naruto said to Yamato.
He wasn't very clear about this matter. He knew very little about the Fourth Hokage, only that Jiraiya would occasionally talk to him about it.
For example, Rasengan was something the Fourth Hokage developed over three years. The Fourth Hokage was truly a genius ninja.
"Naruto, it's not that I don't want to say anything, but if history changes, what will happen to the world when we return? Will it be the same as before, or will it change along with the shift in history?" Yamato opened his eyes and said helplessly.
"If the change is for the better, and the Fourth Hokage survives, and Konoha becomes stronger, then that would naturally be good. But if, because of our recklessness, something goes wrong and Konoha is destroyed, then we would become the criminals of history."
Yamato didn't know much about the Fourth Hokage's death either. The details of the event were highly classified. He only knew that the main cause was the Kyuubi rampaging, and the Fourth Hokage died sealing the Kyuubi to protect the village.
So Yamato really didn't dare to say anything recklessly. If his good intentions caused more harm to Konoha, that would be a real problem.
Yamato didn't believe he had the ability to change the course of history, so he chose to maintain the status quo. At least this way, they wouldn't return only to find that Konoha had disappeared.
Naruto opened his mouth but couldn't think of how to counter Yamato's words.
If it were just his own life, Naruto could stand up and refuse, daring to take the challenge. If he won, both Mutsuki and the Fourth Hokage would survive; if he lost, he would die.
But Naruto couldn't gamble with the lives of others. He didn't have that right.
Obito also felt the weight in Yamato's words. Although it was just the two of them, they were already bearing the weight of the entire future.
However, Obito still didn't want to give up. Without Yumi-sensei, without Rin-chan, and without Minato-sensei, he didn't want that kind of future. He refused to accept such a future. He wanted to create a future where everyone could survive.
Bang, bang!
Just as Obito was about to say something, the door was suddenly knocked on.
Obito looked around and finally locked his gaze on the wardrobe in the room, then hid inside.
During the day, Mutsuki had already expressed his stance on dealing with future ninjas. Obito didn't want to make Mutsuki worry.
Before entering, Obito specifically whispered to Naruto and Yamato not to mention that he had come.
"Is it little Kakashi-sensei? Why is he being so cautious?"
Hiding in the wardrobe, Obito listened to the conversation and realized that the visitor was not Mutsuki, but Kakashi.
"Does this guy Kakashi also want to know about the future?" Obito controlled his breathing and quietly listened to the conversation.
Kakashi gave Naruto a speechless look. Although he was called "sensei," he didn't feel an ounce of respect. Who calls their sensei "little"?
Yamato felt a headache as he looked at the youthful version of Kakashi who had just entered. Kakashi-senpai was not easy to deal with.
"I have some things I'm curious about and would like to ask you." Kakashi explained his purpose after sitting down.
Naruto felt that this situation seemed familiar. He had just experienced this kind of entrance and opening remark.
Sure enough, Kakashi immediately began asking about Mutsuki, Rin, and Obito.
On these matters, neither Naruto nor Yamato withheld any information, as they didn't know anything about Mutsuki and the others in the first place.
However, to Yamato's surprise, Kakashi didn't ask about Minato but instead started talking about himself.
"Since one of you is my future disciple and the other is my future junior, then tell me what the future me is like," Kakashi said after thinking for a moment.
Upon hearing this, Naruto became excited.
"Kakashi-sensei, you really should pay attention to the time! The future you is basically a chronic latecomer. You're always late, never on time, and when you are late, you make up those ridiculous excuses like meeting a lost old lady or encountering a black cat that makes you lose direction in life," Naruto complained.
Naruto had been putting up with this about Kakashi for a long time.
Kakashi looked a bit dazed. The always-punctual Kakashi was often late in the future, and these excuses felt strangely familiar—helping an old lady.
"Could it be that Obito guy..." Kakashi remained silent, continuing to listen to Naruto's story.
"Always slacking off. You said you were going to teach Wind Release Chakra Nature Transformation, but you were just sitting there reading Icha Icha Paradise. Fortunately, Captain Yamato was diligent."
"I need to clarify something—it's not that I'm diligent, it's that Kakashi-senpai tricked me into doing all the work," Yamato had to step in as Naruto talked about things involving him.
Yamato realized that whenever he teamed up with Kakashi for missions, he always ended up exhausted because Kakashi would unconsciously make him do all the work.
Kakashi twitched his mouth. What's going on? He felt like the future version of himself was such a jerk.
"I knew it. Kakashi is no good," Obito, who was hiding in the cupboard, couldn't help but mutter to himself.
"Though, Kakashi-senpai does have some merits. No matter what the mission is, as long as it's led by Kakashi-senpai, it will always be completed. No matter how the process goes, the result is always good." After venting, Yamato couldn't help but praise Kakashi for being reliable.
Kakashi's expression remained unchanged. This was starting to look a little more like him.
"After suffering multiple setbacks, I ended up like that in the end..." Kakashi, through the image of his future self, could basically confirm that many important people around him had died.
"Did you ultimately fail to protect the people you wanted to protect?" Kakashi touched the White Fang Tanto on his back.
In order to protect the ones he cared about, Kakashi was willing to die in battle, but the future seemed to contradict his beliefs. In the entire Mutsuki squad, only he had survived.
"If you think of me as your Kakashi-sensei or Kakashi-senpai, then tell me everything about the future I care about," Kakashi said, with an extremely serious expression.
He wasn't someone who liked to manipulate emotions, nor did he enjoy exploiting the feelings of future ninjas for the future version of himself, but there was something Kakashi hated even more: watching the people he cared about perish.
Time travel was an incredibly bizarre thing. Now, two ninjas from the future were right in front of him, and they had learned of their comrades' deaths. Kakashi had to consider whether this might be his one and only chance to save them.
He didn't want to regret one day in the future that he hadn't done everything in his power to change the fate of his comrades' deaths, so he chose to use their emotions, albeit in a more underhanded way.
"If I can't protect my comrades, then living on alone has no meaning. If Yumi-sensei and the others die, no matter who the enemy is or how strong they are, I'd rather die at their hands than escape on my own," Kakashi said seriously.
He was showing his determination, but also holding them captive. His meaning was clear: if Mutsuki and the others were destined to die, then he couldn't go on living without them.
"Little Kakashi-sensei..." Naruto looked at Kakashi, slightly frantic. If he knew more, he would have already said everything.
On the side, Yamato was filled with deep self-blame and confusion.
He didn't know how to choose. Revealing the future could very well change history and cause unforeseen accidents, but if he didn't speak up, they might never see Kakashi again after they returned. The lazy, carefree, yet reliable person he remembered would be gone forever.
"Kakashi..."
Obito, hidden in the closet, was moved by Kakashi's words. In his mind, Kakashi no longer seemed as detestable as before.
"Tell me everything. Please trust me, trust that we can make Konoha and the Ninja World better," Kakashi said sincerely, taking the White Fang Tanto from his back.
He knew that changing the future was very risky, and quite immoral for people from the future, so Kakashi chose to bear it all alone, with only him to blame in the end.
Bang!
Yamato suddenly raised his arm and gave Kakashi's head a firm knock.
Kakashi looked at Yamato in confusion. He could sense that Yamato didn't have any intention to attack or kill him.
"Damned Kakashi-senpai, always bullying me. I've wanted to knock you on the head for a long time," Yamato thought about the feeling from earlier and felt a sense of relief, as if a weight had been lifted. It felt even better than soaking in a hot spring.
Kakashi: ...
So now he's settling the score with the future Kakashi, huh?
Yamato's knock made Naruto feel a bit restless. This was his chance to knock Kakashi-sensei on the head—small Kakashi-sensei at that. If he missed this, he knew he'd never have another opportunity again.
"Really, Kakashi-senpai is always such a troublemaker, no matter how old he gets," Yamato sighed, preparing to tell them everything he knew.
In the end, he chose to trust Kakashi, the Kakashi-senpai he had always relied on.
There was no way around it. Yamato could sense that because of their arrival, history had already started to change.
If he didn't answer Kakashi's question, then Kakashi might really die, and that would mean the change in history could have a chain reaction that would lead Konoha to an unknown future.
Since the future was already changing, Yamato chose to trust Kakashi.
"The Fourth Hokage died very early, he was the shortest reigning Hokage. He died because..." Just as Yamato was about to reveal the cause of the Fourth Hokage's death to Kakashi, the door was suddenly knocked again.
"Don't tell anyone I was here. Let me bear this alone," Kakashi quickly whispered, then swiftly moved to the only place to hide in the room, the wardrobe.
Since he was the only one left alive in the future, he would bear this burden alone.
"Little Kakashi..." Naruto started to speak, noticing that someone was already inside, but Kakashi moved too quickly. Before Naruto could finish his sentence, Kakashi had already opened the wardrobe.
Silence--
Kakashi and Obito locked eyes. The entire room fell into complete silence, with only the faint sound of knocking at the door.
"Kakashi, heh, what a coincidence," Obito chuckled awkwardly.
Kakashi's expression was hard to maintain. He had just prepared himself for such a heavy burden, only to realize that another person also knew.
Though feeling somewhat speechless inside, Kakashi still hid with Obito in the wardrobe and quietly listened to the sounds outside.
"Rin-chan, it's you! What's going on?" Naruto greeted her casually.
"Sorry to interrupt, I just have a few questions," Rin smiled gently.
Inside the wardrobe, Kakashi and Obito exchanged a silent glance. So, the three of them had the same idea after all.
Yamato helplessly rubbed his forehead with his right hand. What was this situation? The three of them might as well have come together to ask, it would have saved them some words.
The questions Rin asked were almost the same as those from Kakashi. Naruto and Yamato answered her questions fluently, without hesitation.
So fluent, in fact, that it almost seemed as though they hadn't even thought about their answers, which caused Rin to eye Naruto and Yamato suspiciously. She began to feel like they were trying to deceive her.
Yamato felt speechless. He'd explained it several times already—how could it not be smooth?
After just a few questions, the sound of knocking came from outside the door again, but this time it was much louder than before.
"Yamato, Naruto, are you guys awake? It's Mutsuki," came Mutsuki's voice from outside.
Upon hearing Mutsuki's voice, Rin quickly scanned the room and then made a beeline for the wardrobe.
Yamato, Naruto: ...
What is this, the bond of a class?
Yamato really wanted to create a new wardrobe right there using Wood Release to hide Rin in. Three people in one wardrobe was a bit too cramped, not to mention awkward.
When the wardrobe opened, Rin was stunned. On one side was Obito, who was awkwardly smiling, and on the other side was Kakashi, who seemed to be barely holding it together.
Although Rin had no idea what was going on, with Mutsuki coming over, she had no choice but to enter the wardrobe and close the door.
"Mutsuki, are you here to ask about the future?" Naruto asked directly.
Since everyone in the Mutsuki class seemed to want to know about the future, and Yamato was willing to share, Naruto thought it wouldn't be necessary to make things so complicated, like a spy mission. They could just have a chat.
"No," Mutsuki smiled and shook his head in response.
Since he remembered the original storyline very clearly, and this period of Naruto knew less than he did, there was no need for him to ask Naruto.
"Although the incident during the day was a misunderstanding, my disciples and I still owe you an apology. If you have any requests, feel free to tell me, whether it's to learn Ninjutsu or to meet someone from this era, I will help as much as I can," Mutsuki said.
"Mutsuki, you're so kind, but I... Ninjutsu..." Naruto, who had been smiling, suddenly froze in place as he thought of something.
He thought of someone, someone he missed dearly, someone he wanted to see but could no longer.
"Mutsuki, do you know the perverted Sage? His name is Jiraiya, he's one of the Konoha Three Sannin," Naruto asked, looking at Mutsuki with burning eyes.
Naruto realized this was the past, and Jiraiya was still alive at this time. He just didn't know what the current Jiraiya was like compared to the one he knew.
"Jiraiya-sama is a famous figure in the Ninja World and one of the Konoha Sannin, so of course, I know him," Mutsuki nodded, acknowledging Naruto's excited expression.
"Naruto..." Yamato wanted to remind Naruto not to further affect history.
But then he thought, given the situation, it seemed that meeting Jiraiya wouldn't have too big of an impact. It certainly wouldn't be as significant as what Kakashi and the others might do.
"Mutsuki, please, I just want to meet him once," Naruto said seriously. He had something very important to say to Jiraiya.
"I'll do my best, but I can't guarantee you will meet him," Mutsuki reminded him.
Jiraiya was currently commanding a ninja unit in the war with Hidden Rock, and it would be difficult for him to find time to meet a stranger, even if that stranger would later become someone very close to him.
As for Naruto, they were traveling through time due to the influence of the Roran Dragon Vein. Mutsuki felt it would be better for them not to leave Roran for now.
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