Chapter 86: A Future Yuhi Kurenai
A new day.
Hanekawa arrived at Tsunade's house early.
As expected, she wasn't awake yet.
He opened the front door, walked into the living room, and stopped in front of her bedroom, raising his hand to knock.
A moment later, the door opened.
Tsunade's eyes were closed, as if she were sleepwalking.
Hanekawa instinctively looked up, and his pupils dilated in shock.
Because she had just woken up, Tsunade's pajamas were askew, sliding off her shoulder and hanging loosely, creating a spectacular view.
"Master Tsunade."
Hanekawa turned around and said in a low voice, "Please put on some clothes. I'll make breakfast."
"Mmm."
Tsunade mumbled a response.
After a few seconds, she yawned and opened her eyes.
Tsunade pulled up her pajamas, and then noticed the large patch of bare skin that had been exposed.
Did that brat see something?
"Whatever. He's just a kid."
Tsunade raised an eyebrow, not caring.
She turned back into her room and quickly changed, then went to the bathroom to wash up.
Not long after, the two of them were sitting at the dining table.
"Where are we meeting Minato-senpai?"
Hanekawa handed Tsunade a pair of chopsticks and asked.
"Right here."
Tsunade casually pulled out a kunai. "Minato will arrive at eight o'clock."
"Is this a Flying Thunder God kunai?"
Hanekawa examined the kunai. It had the Flying Thunder God marking on it, along with the four kanji for "Sword of Love and Peace."
"Yep."
Tsunade explained, "Minato can instantly teleport to any place where he's left a Flying Thunder God mark. Of course, there's a chakra limit."
"That's so convenient."
Hanekawa sighed with admiration.
"It is, but it's incredibly difficult to learn. There are only two people in the entire Leaf Village who can use it."
Tsunade shook her head. "It's almost eight o'clock. Let's eat."
"Thank you for the meal!"
Hanekawa put his hands together and began to slurp his noodles.
At exactly eight o'clock, a slight spatial distortion appeared out of thin air in the living room.
Namikaze Minato's body materialized.
Unlike his usual attire, he was wearing a gray bodysuit and a jonin vest, and he was wearing a mask.
"Lady Tsunade."
Minato greeted them with a smile. "And Hanekawa, good morning."
"Why are you wearing a mask? Take it off."
Tsunade looked at his mask, feeling a little unaccustomed to it.
"ANBU ninjas are not allowed to take off their masks while on a mission."
Minato refused. "It's the rule."
Hanekawa remembered that in the movie Naruto Shippūden: The Lost Tower, he had indeed worn a mask.
But later, when he met Uzumaki Naruto, he still took it off.
A bull-headed warrior would never take off his mask, unless he was a warrior of true love.
"Whatever."
Tsunade didn't try to persuade him further. She stood up. "Let's go."
Hanekawa locked the door and followed them out of the village.
"Rōran is located within the Land of Wind. We might encounter ninjas from the Hidden Sand Village, so we must be careful."
Minato warned. "If we do, try to avoid fighting as much as possible."
Hanekawa thought of Sasori of the Red Sand.
He was Lady Chiyo's grandson and was considered the strongest puppet master in the ninja world.
At this point in time, it was unknown whether he had killed the Third Kazekage and defected.
It was because of his actions that the Third Kazekage disappeared, which eventually triggered the Third Shinobi World War.
After entering the Land of Wind, the environment changed abruptly.
Gusts of wind howled, yellow sand flew, heatwaves rolled, and all that could be seen were deserts.
"Put this on."
Minato handed Hanekawa a windbreaker.
"Thank you, Minato-senpai."
Hanekawa put on the dust-proof windbreaker and pulled up the hood. He immediately felt much better.
"There are many places in the ninja world with worse environments than the desert. You have to learn to adapt."
Tsunade said casually.
"Yes, Master Tsunade."
Hanekawa nodded.
"Having a student feels great."
Minato smiled.
"You can apply to be a team leader with the Old Man."
Tsunade paused. "Or maybe you won't have to. In a couple of years, he'll probably come to you on his own."
"Why?"
Minato was slightly taken aback and asked.
"There are many talented students in Hanekawa's class."
Tsunade explained. "The Old Man naturally won't miss out."
Minato immediately understood.
If the Hokage line wanted to add new geniuses, he was the most suitable person to be their teacher.
After all, Sarutobi Hiruzen was getting old, and all three of the Legendary Sannin had already had students.
He was the only one who hadn't.
"I wonder which three students the Third Hokage will assign."
Minato immediately thought of Hatake Kakashi.
Besides Hanekawa, he was the most talented and the strongest.
And he was Sakumo Hatake's son, so he couldn't be assigned to an ordinary team leader.
As for the others, he thought Sarutobi Asuma was the most likely.
He was the Hokage's son, after all.
"Hanekawa is definitely not for you."
Tsunade chuckled.
"I wouldn't dare steal Lady Tsunade's student."
Minato smiled brightly at her words.
But because he was wearing a mask, neither Tsunade nor Hanekawa could see it.
The three of them continued on their journey.
On the morning of the second day, they finally reached their destination.
"It's really spectacular."
Minato looked at the huge buildings in the distance and couldn't help but say.
"It's truly unbelievable."
Tsunade agreed.
Tall, thin buildings were clustered together, forming an iron city.
Compared with the deserted desert surrounding them, it looked especially shocking.
"According to the ANBU's intelligence, Rōran didn't look like this before. It was the new minister, Anrokuzan, who rebuilt it."
Minato snapped out of his trance.
It's a shame there's no Shi Siming, Hanekawa couldn't help but inwardly complain.
"It seems this Minister Anrokuzan is a powerful man."
Tsunade looked away. "Are we going to confront him directly?"
"We have two mission objectives: the queen of Rōran and the legendary Ryūmyaku."
Minato shook his head. "We have to expose Anrokuzan's true identity to the queen of Rōran and then seal the Ryūmyaku."
He clearly had a plan and spoke in a very organized manner.
"Then let's split up."
Tsunade thought for a moment. "You go find the Ryūmyaku. Hanekawa and I will go find the queen of Rōran."
"Sounds good."
Minato took out a Flying Thunder God kunai and handed it to Hanekawa.
As for Tsunade, he had given her one before.
"Thank you, Minato-senpai."
Hanekawa took it.
With a Flying Thunder God kunai, he had at least an extra layer of protection.
Although in the original story, Minato was always late to a fight.
"Let's go in."
Minato reminded them. "Stay safe."
"Mmm."
Tsunade nodded slightly.
The three of them walked towards Rōran. As they got closer, they could appreciate the architectural style that was so different from the Hidden Leaf Village.
"I'll go on ahead."
Minato paused. "After I find the Ryūmyaku, I'll teleport to you."
With that, he leaped away and quickly disappeared among the buildings.
"Rōran is too big. It's difficult to find people."
Tsunade looked around. "I'm giving you a task. Use genjutsu to find out the location of the queen of Rōran. Remember not to cause too much of a stir."
"Got it."
Hanekawa knew she was testing his abilities again.
"Stay cautious."
Tsunade nodded slightly.
"Mmm."
Hanekawa entered Rōran, concealing his presence.
The streets were deserted, which was very strange.
He thought for a moment and then understood why.
In the original story, when Uzumaki Naruto traveled back in time, he just happened to run into the celebration for the new queen of Rōran, Sāra's, ascension to the throne.
Thinking of this, Hanekawa walked towards the center of the city.
Not long after, he heard cheers.
Hanekawa saw the crowd and Sāra on the tower.
She wasn't very old, probably sixteen or seventeen, and had beautiful long red hair.
So where's Uzumaki Naruto?
Hanekawa remembered he was supposed to come out and be her hero.
Just then, the puppet behind Sāra on the tower suddenly shoved her.
She lost her balance and began to fall.
Hanekawa frowned slightly. Just as he was about to step out, he saw a dark figure dart out and catch Sāra.
His heart fluttered, and he quickly followed.
"Little boy, have we met somewhere before?"
Just as Hanekawa arrived in front of a building, he heard a pleasant voice.
What kind of an old-fashioned pickup line is that?
He turned around and was stunned.
It wasn't Uzumaki Naruto who had saved Sāra, as it was in the original story. It was a beautiful, charming young woman: Yuhi Kurenai.
She was wearing a green jonin vest, and her long black hair was tied back in a ponytail.
Her face was delicate, and her red lips were plump and inviting. But her ruby-like eyes were filled with confusion.
"We must have met."
Kurenai frowned.
Hanekawa gave her a very familiar feeling.
"Hey! Who are you guys?"
Sāra couldn't help but ask.
"Your Majesty."
Hanekawa looked at Kurenai and explained, "We're from the Leaf Village. We're here to protect you."
"You're also from the Leaf?"
Kurenai's eyes lit up, and she quickly asked, "Who's your team leader?"
"Tsunade."
Hanekawa thought for a moment and said.
"The Hokage?"
Kurenai's expression suddenly darkened. "You're lying to me. The Hokage can't be here, and she only has one student."
She was on a mission from Tsunade to hunt down Mukade and reinforce the seal on the Ryūmyaku.
Hanekawa raised an eyebrow.
Tsunade still became Hokage after all?
"I'm not lying to you."
Hanekawa shook his head. "Where is your teammate?"
"I got separated from him. I don't know where he is."
Kurenai paused. "But he's very strong, so you don't need to worry too much."
For some reason, she instinctively believed what the little boy in front of her was saying.
"Who is he?"
Hanekawa already had a hunch.
"He's the Hokage's student, Hanekawa."
Kurenai suddenly had a look of realization. "Oh! Now I know why you look so familiar. You look just like Hanekawa did when he was little!"
Hanekawa's mouth twitched.
What kind of situation is this?
His presence had indeed changed the future.
Under normal circumstances, Yamato, Uzumaki Naruto, Sai, and Haruno Sakura should have been hunting down Mukade.
But now, it was a future Yuhi Kurenai and Hanekawa instead.
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