"That would be…"
Boruto almost answered on reflex, then bit his tongue at the last second and stopped himself.
Naruto glanced back at him, confused. "What's wrong?"
"Uh…" Boruto scratched his head, searching for words. "I just think… talking too much about the future might not be a good idea. It kind of… takes away the excitement."
"…Yeah, that makes sense," Naruto said after a moment, nodding. He didn't press further.
Boruto finally let out a quiet breath of relief.
There was another reason he'd stopped himself. In this world, Naruto's future wasn't fixed yet. The person Naruto might fall in love with… might not be the same as in Boruto's world.
And if that was different, then maybe Boruto himself wouldn't even be born here.
Boruto looked ahead at Naruto's back.
Even if his dad never had time for him in Boruto's world, Boruto still wanted himself to exist. Even here. Even like this.
"Hey," Naruto called, noticing Boruto lagging behind. "You okay?"
"Yeah," Boruto said with a smile, quickening his pace. "I'm fine."
Naruto tilted his head, puzzled, but soon started enthusiastically introducing everything around them.
"That's the Yamanaka flower shop. Ino's mom used to run it, but now it's mostly hired staff. Ino still helps sometimes. You know Ino, right?"
"Of course," Boruto nodded. "Inojin's mom."
Naruto blinked. "Inojin? Tōma and Ino's kid?"
Boruto froze.
Right. This world really was different.
"…It's nothing," Boruto said weakly, his smile trembling.
After a while, he asked quietly, "Dad… do you know someone named Sai?"
Naruto thought for a moment, then shook his head. "Nope. Never heard that name."
"I see…" Boruto replied softly.
Naruto glanced at him. Another future person who hadn't shown up yet, maybe.
"Want to go inside?" Naruto asked, gesturing toward the flower shop. "Though Ino's probably not here."
"No, no, it's fine!" Boruto waved his hands quickly. Then he changed the subject. "Tōma-san… he's older than you, right?"
"Huh? No," Naruto said. "We're the same age. He just matured freakishly early. Back when we were kids, he was already taller than everyone else."
Naruto laughed, lost in memory.
Boruto watched him quietly. Yeah. Their relationship really was close.
Naruto continued the tour. Akimichi BBQ. Tenten's weapon shop. Jiraiya's bookstore, which Naruto introduced with a suspicious cough.
"You know this place really well," Boruto said, impressed.
"Of course!" Naruto puffed up proudly. "I ran all over the village when I was a kid. I know everything."
"Tell me about it," Boruto said eagerly.
"…There's not much worth telling," Naruto said, scratching his head. Some memories were better left unsaid.
He quickly pointed ahead. "That's the Hyūga compound. Biggest clan in the village. You know them, right?"
"Of course," Boruto nodded. The layout was different, but the location was the same. He used to visit here often.
The gate was half-open, and sounds of sparring echoed from inside.
Naruto and Boruto quietly peeked in.
Neji stood on defense while Hinata attacked, clearly guiding her rhythm. It looked like practice, not a real fight.
Naruto's eyes lit up.
Boruto's breath caught.
His mother, young and shy.
And his uncle… alive.
He'd only seen Neji in photographs before.
After a while, the sparring ended.
"You've improved again, Lady Hinata," Neji said with a gentle smile.
"Thank you, Neji-niisan," Hinata replied softly. "And thank you for practicing with me."
She'd noticed it too. Neji smiled more these days.
They turned toward the gate.
"You've been watching for a while," Neji said calmly. "You can come out."
Naruto stepped forward with Boruto.
"N-Naruto-kun…" Hinata blushed faintly.
"You two are still training? That's awesome," Naruto said sincerely.
"Training is necessary," Neji replied. "Though usually you're still at the back mountain at this hour. And this is…?"
"Ah, this is Boruto. He's my—" Naruto hesitated.
"My junior," Boruto jumped in quickly. "Nice to meet you."
"Right, my junior," Naruto echoed.
Neji studied them. They did look alike. Strange, but not impossible.
"Would you like some tea?" Hinata asked shyly. "I can prepare it."
Naruto waved his hands. "No, no, we were just—"
"Stay a while," Neji said, smiling. "You're already here."
Naruto finally nodded.
Boruto watched everything with sparkling eyes.
He was witnessing his parents' early days firsthand.
Peak content.
Inside, Hinata poured tea while Neji sat beside Boruto, leaving two seats together.
Naruto and Hinata sat down, both quietly red-faced.
Boruto covered his eyes for a moment. This was too good.
Hinata refilled Boruto's cup gently.
"Th-thank you, ma—" Boruto bit his tongue hard and stopped.
Naruto didn't notice.
Boruto exhaled in relief.
Then Naruto drained his tea in one gulp and looked at Hinata expectantly, clearly asking for more.
Boruto stared at him in disbelief.
Even now… jealous?
Amazing.
Eventually, Naruto and Boruto left.
They wandered until evening, finally stopping outside a familiar shop.
"Hungry?" Naruto grinned. "My treat."
"Ichiraku Ramen?" Boruto said immediately.
"Huh? How'd you know?"
"…We're literally standing in front of it. And you love ramen."
"Ramen is the best!" Naruto said proudly.
Inside, Boruto greeted a younger Teuchi and Ayame, earning a playful scolding for calling Ayame "auntie."
After eating, they headed back to Naruto's apartment.
That night, Boruto took the bed while Naruto slept on the floor.
After a long silence, Naruto spoke softly.
"…Am I any good in the future?"
Boruto understood immediately.
He smiled gently. "Yeah. You are. Just… kind of dumb."
Naruto laughed quietly. "Good. That's enough."
"Good night," Naruto said, voice thick.
"Good night," Boruto replied.
Meanwhile, Sasuke brought his future self back to the Uchiha compound.
He handed him a broom.
"Help me clean. You know the place."
The older Sasuke paused, then nodded.
Later, at the training ground, Sasuke spoke plainly.
"I want to be Hokage. I can't waste time. Can you help me?"
After a pause, the older Sasuke said, "I can show you how to truly use the Mangekyō… and Susanoo. But no Tsukuyomi this time."
Sasuke met his gaze and nodded.
As the genjutsu activated, Sasuke's eyes widened.
"…This is—"
"My past," the older Sasuke said quietly. "Maybe it'll help you."
Neither of them realized that sharing those memories would lead to something completely unexpected.