Chapter 2: Return 2

Mountains, rivers, forests, everything in sight was disintegrated into ruins. The impact of power that could exert strength to kill a near-immortal being devastated anything near the site of the explosion.

Naruto slumped with weakness, automatically deactivating all the powers that he activated as the last straw of hope.

"Naruto!" Sasuke promptly ran towards Naruto who was falling.

Barrages of voices from the frogs also resounded.

"Tsk, just how of an idiot are you, to even not stop at the risk of dying to save someone, I really admit my defeat!" Sasuke gloomily said.

"HAHA, Sasuke, I could feel my body breaking up so I just wanted to say something quickly, be the Hokage!" Naruto smiled as he stared at Sasuke willfully.

Naruto patted Sasuke in his hand and suddenly, strong surges of lifeforce flowed through Sasuke's body, replenishing what vitality Sasuke lost due to forcefully awakening his Eternal Mangekyo.

Sasuke was shocked but after inspecting Naruto, he could feel the Chakra in his system slowly vanishing.

Sasuke tried to stop it but Naruto clasped him heavily.

"Don't do that, my chakra will freely disperse as this continue so please accept it, you know that it's a waste to pass by this opportunity!" Naruto weakly said.

Sasuke bit his lower lip with anger but knowing that Naruto fully makes sense, he let his only friend give him his final gift.

"Protect everyone as the other Hokages have done, you have the power and the heart, please protect them not just for me, but also for yourself, treat it as a solace where you can heal the wounds of the heart, and let go" Naruto continued.

Sasuke silently nodded but still cannot hide the grief he was experiencing.

Due to being unstable to Rinne-Sharingan's awakening, Sasuke as such clearly dies after exhausting his reserves but with Naruto's bestowal, Sasuke's new eye was stabilized and his Rinne-Sharingan is completely awakened permanently.

After the battle, the whole world was shocked by the news.

The Son of Destiny, The Jinchuurikki of Nine-tails, The Hero of War, and The Seventh Hokage, died after battling a god.

This legendary feat was passed down through generations, reminding them of the Will of Fire, the will to protect their loved ones even through torturous burns of an insidious flame.

The world mourned the loss.

In a strange place where nothing is present but a levitating old man with a third eye and yellowish water, Naruto can be seen looking up.

"Old man, how was that, I was revered as a hero, hehe" Naruto tried but still cannot hide how upset he was.

Aside from glory, he wished to have a loving family, something that he lacked after the incident between the Nine-tails and his parents.

"That was fascinating, that kind heart really was something that cannot be found even though thousands of years have passed, I, Otsusuki Hagoromo, wanted to reward you, is there anything in your mind?" Hagoromo, the Sage of the Six Paths, offered.

Naruto thought for a while and settled for a rather impossible answer.

"Can you turn back time?" Naruto asked casually.

"Hmmm, I can but there will be risks, well with your heroic actions, I think I could bear it with ease as gratitude" Hagoromo smiled heartily.

Naruto after hearing it froze for a second and an electricity of excitement enveloped him.

"Is…that really true?" As he stuttered from doubt, Naruto's mind was in shambles.

Looking back at the memories flashing in his eyes, fulfilling the regrets he had in the past were going to be remedied.

How joyous was that?

Hagoromo performed hand seals and a mysterious power enveloped him.

Naruto in that dimension disappeared, maybe crossing through time by now.

Lights covered Hagoromo as he disintegrated, seemingly vanishing.

"Naruto, this is my last gift to you, I hope that on your endeavor this time, you will gain what you want…" Hagoromo smiled at his own end, tired of the countless vicissitudes he has.

"Hamura, it seems that I will be following you now, off I go" the dimension cracked into pieces like glasses and was swallowed by the void, erased of its existence.

Waking up, Naruto opened his eyes gently, still drowsy from being asleep.

Looking at his fingers, which were smaller than what he could remember, and the real skin from his right hand which was always covered with bandages as it was a prosthetic one.

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!"

Naruto's voice echoed through the house.

"I…I…I am really back!" Naruto was full of electrifying happiness.

"I promise, this time, this time, I will live better than the past, It was such a good day, Dattebayo!" Naruto jumped cheerfully from delight.

"NARUTO! IT IS SIX IN THE MORNING, CAN YOU LET OTHERS SLEEP MORE?!" An angry neighbor shouted.

"Yes, Sir!" Naruto shouted from his lungs accidentally.

"I SAID ******** BE QUIET!" the neighbor was soon incensed.

This made Naruto laugh, he really was back.

Looking at the objects in his small room, he could see a green band with goggles attached with it, it bring back memories.

"It was an item that accompanied me through loneliness, I lost it some time in my life but I will surely treasure it this time" Naruto ran towards the bathroom and bathed, clothing himself with his signature orange clothes, he tied the goggles on his forehead.

"I could remember that because I was not an official ninja, I pretended to be one by wearing goggles, it really was so silly, haha" Naruto looked at himself through the mirror, remembering a face that resembles him.

"Maybe I will look better if I copied dad's hairstyle, let us work hard for it!" Naruto left a mental note in his own mind.

Leaving his room, he was met with a vast village and the cold refreshing air produced by the trees surrounding the Konoha.

He ran towards a shop near the gates of the village, his favorite restaurant the Ichiraku Ramen.

Arriving at the store, the familiar smell wafted through the surroundings, making Naruto's stomach rumble.

"Old man, I wanted to order the usual, please!" Naruto boisterously said.

"Coming!" Teuchi's voice resounded from the back of the store.