Chapter 303: Older Sasuke and Boruto

In the Hokage's office, Natsuro learned from the ANBU observing Nagato and Konan about their recent situation, and he nodded in satisfaction.

As expected, even if he didn't say anything, Jiraiya-sensei would do his best to integrate Nagato and Konan into Konoha for their own good.

After all, as long as they didn't fully integrate into Konoha, they would always be viewed with suspicion.

And given Nagato and Konan's identities, it was almost impossible for them to gain complete trust. The only difference was the level of surveillance placed on them by the ANBU.

He also hoped that the two of them would quickly adapt to life in Konoha so that he could start assigning missions to Konan.

In fact, he had considered whether to assign Konan to a team, but it didn't seem like a good idea. If someone were to be teamed up with Konan, it would naturally be to monitor her.

However, given Konan's strength, anyone monitoring her would need to be even stronger. After considering the options, the only suitable person for the job seemed to be Sasuke. But if he assigned Sasuke to monitor Konan, what would be the point of bringing her over in the first place?

Natsur had brought Konan here to make her work for him. Sasuke could already take on missions alone, and having Konan with him would only improve efficiency slightly, which wasn't particularly significant.

So in the end, he decided to let Konan carry out missions on her own. With her personality, as long as Nagato remained in Konoha and was well taken care of, she likely wouldn't turn against them. Besides, she didn't seem like the type to plot betrayals.

With that thought, Natsuro felt at ease and shifted his attention to another matter.

"Have we verified the intel that Konan provided on the Akatsuki?" Natsuroi asked.

"It's been confirmed, all of it is accurate. However…" Shikaku said with a wry smile.

"They're not very familiar with all the members of Akatsuki," Natsuro finished his sentence.

"Exactly." Shikaku nodded and continued, "It seems that Akatsuki doesn't have a strict hierarchical structure. Their system is more like a bounty hunter network, where the leader provides a platform but doesn't interfere much with the members' choices or investigate their identities in depth."

As he spoke, Shikaku handed him a report containing the latest information on Akatsuki's known members.

"That makes sense," Natsuro nodded thoughtfully.

He took the report and scanned through it, listing the current Akatsuki members:

Masked Man, who claims to be Madara Uchiha.

He possesses space-time abilities that allow parts of his body to enter another dimension, making him impervious to most ninjutsu and weapon attacks.

Status: Alive.

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Zetsu, divided into White Zetsu and Black Zetsu.

Their abilities are highly mysterious and rarely displayed. It is known that White Zetsu has exceptional intelligence-gathering capabilities, while Black Zetsu can suppress its presence and even take control of the body it attaches to—a fact Konan only recently discovered.

Status: Alive. 

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Kisame Hoshigaki, a powerful Water Release user with an enormous chakra reserve.

Status: Alive.

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Hidan, an enigmatic figure with immortality and the unique ability to perform the "Curse Ritual of Jashin."

Status: Alive.

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These were the only Akatsuki members still alive.

"Huh? Kakuzu is dead?" Natsuro was surprised. "That guy had five hearts, he shouldn't be that easy to kill."

"Yes," Shikaku confirmed. "According to Konan, Kakuzu was ambushed and killed by the Hidden Cloud Village while attempting to capture the Eight-Tails. However, the Eight-Tails still ended up in Akatsuki's hands."

Shikaku sighed. "Now, the only Tailed Beast that Akatsuki hasn't captured is Konoha's Nine-Tails."

He glanced at Natsuro. The greatest credit for this went to their Hokage, after all, they had witnessed the Chibaku Tensei firsthand in the village.

Shikaku still found it hard to believe that such a technique was even possible for a human. What was even more unbelievable was that their Hokage had neutralized it effortlessly…

It was simply, Shikaku looked at Natusro again, it was too reassuring to have such a powerful Hokage.

"So the Eight-Tails has fallen into Akatsuki's hands?" Natsuro frowned, pondering. This was different from the original timeline, but it wasn't entirely impossible. After all, the team that attempted to capture the Eight-Tails this time was far stronger than in the original story.

"Have our informants sent back any updates?" Natsuro asked, seeking further confirmation.

Shikaku shook his head. "The Hidden Cloud Village is currently under strict lockdown. Even our informants are unable to make basic contact with us."

Natsuro nodded. Although no direct confirmation had been received, such a high level of security in Hidden Cloud suggested something significant had happened. With the complete Eight-Tails and the Nine-Tails chakra he had provided, Six Paths Obito would likely be even stronger.

At that moment, an ANBU suddenly entered the room.

"What's the matter?" Natsuro put down the report and looked at the ANBU. Generally, when ANBU reported in person, it meant something had happened in the village.

"Lord Hokage, two unregistered individuals have been spotted wandering around the village, seemingly searching for something," the ANBU ninja vreported.

"A man and a woman?" Natsuro asked. But then he frowned, Nagato and Konan were already registered, so that couldn't be right. Perhaps the ANBU hadn't confirmed their identities yet?

"No, Lord Hokage, it's two males, one adult and one child," the ANBU ninja clarified.

He then proceeded to describe their appearances:

The adult's features were unclear, but he had black hair, one eye covered, and only one arm. His attire was rather peculiar.

The child had short blond hair and overall looked very similar to Naruto Uzumaki when he was young.

The ANBU ninja hesitated for a moment before adding, "Even the whisker marks on his face are the same."

"Hmm, keep observing them," Natsuro instructed. "If anything happens, inform your captain and have him check it out."

As for the current ANBU Captain? Naturally, it was Sasuke.

"Understood," the ANBU ninja replied before departing.

Although Natsuro heard that the child resembled Naruto, he didn't dwell on it too much. After all, there were many people in the world who looked alike.

As for why the ANBU noticed and reported these two individuals? It was because their timing was suspicious.

Even though Nagato and Konan hadn't attacked Konoha directly, Chibaku Tensei had triggered an earthquake, collapsing numerous buildings. While Konoha's recovery had been swift, the village was still in the process of rebuilding and had not yet fully reopened to outsiders.

Given the situation, every new arrival was being closely monitored and registered. For two individuals to appear without registration was indeed suspicious.

However, what Natsuro didn't know was that when the ANBU said the child resembled Naruto, they meant it quite literally, including the whisker marks.

If he had known this, he would have had a certain suspicion.

Even though he hadn't watched Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, he was well aware of Boruto Uzumaki's existence.

For now, Natsuro simply assumed that some other foolish village was trying to take advantage of Konoha's recent turmoil to infiltrate the village.

At this moment, the two individuals mentioned by the ANBU ,one adult and one child, were standing in front of a ramen shop.

"Wow, Mr. Sasuke, is this the original Ichiraku Ramen? Was it such a small shop back then? Amazing! I can't believe it!" The young boy, who bore a striking resemblance to Naruto as a child and wore a red vest, excitedly pointed at Ichiraku Ramen.

His loud exclamations quickly attracted the attention of several passersby.

"Boruto, stop making a fuss," the older but young adult beside him, dressed in a coat and wearing a hat, called out.

"Well, I just can't believe it will grow into such a big place in the future," Boruto scratched his head and chuckled softly.

The Older Sasuke sighed and said, "Forget about that. Right now, we need to find Naruto as soon as possible. Our mission here is to protect him from Urashiki."

After taking a quick glance inside Ichiraku Ramen, Older Sasuke led Boruto away.

"Mr. Sasuke, do you have any idea where my dad might be?" Boruto asked as he followed.

"If it's Naruto, he's either at home or at Ichiraku Ramen. There's also the possibility that he isn't in Konoha, which would be troublesome," Older Sasuke frowned as he looked toward the Hokage Rock, where five faces were carved, along with an unfinished section where a new one was being added.

"Is this the period when Kakashi serves as the Sixth Hokage?" Older Sasuke wondered. But Kakashi became the Sixth Hokage after the Fourth Great Ninja War, so if Urashiki went to such great lengths to travel here, then…

After the war, Naruto's strength wasn't significantly different from what it would later become. So what exactly was Urashiki after?

At that moment, Boruto suddenly tugged on Older Sasuke's sleeve and pointed ahead. "Mr. Sasuke, look, it's Aunt Sakura! Let's ask her where my dad is!"

With that, Boruto waved his hand and started walking toward Sakura.

However, he had only taken a few steps before Older Sasuke covered his mouth and pulled him back.

"Mmmph… mmph!" Boruto struggled for a moment before finally freeing himself, looking at Older Sasuke in confusion.

"Didn't Karasuki tell us to proceed with caution?" Older Sasuke reminded him.

But by then, Sakura had already noticed them and approached. She looked at them curiously, one of them bore a resemblance to Sasuke, while the other looked a lot like Naruto when he was young.

"Excuse me, were you just calling me?" Sakura asked.

"Sorry, we made a mistake," Older Sasuke replied, studying her carefully. Notably, there was no diamond-shaped mark on her forehead.

This meant that at this point in time, Sakura hadn't yet used her Strength of a Hundred Seal.

If she hadn't used it yet, that indicated they hadn't reached the period of the Fourth Great Ninja War. However, the Sixth Hokage's monument was already being built, which suggested it was after the war…

Clearly, these two pieces of information contradicted each other.

But now wasn't the time to dwell on such things. Older Sasuke quickly led Boruto away, leaving Sakura standing there alone.

Sakura watched them go, frowning slightly. They both looked somewhat like Sasuke and Naruto, but she was sure she had never seen them in the village before.

Were they outsiders? She pondered for a moment but didn't dwell on it.

Meanwhile, Older Sasuke, now away from Sakura, looked up at the unfinished Sixth Hokage monument.

"Mr. Sasuke, did you notice something?" Boruto asked curiously.

"I need to confirm the exact time period," Older Sasuke replied.

"Oh…" Boruto nodded.

Older Sasuke then opted for a straightforward method, asking the locals. However, to avoid suspicion, he let Boruto do the asking since he was just a kid.

Before long, Boruto returned, looking absolutely stunned. Older Sasuke, who had been listening from a distance, had already gathered some shocking information.

For instance, the person Boruto questioned vividly described the scene of Chibaku Tensei, confirming that they were in the time period when Nagato attacked Konoha.

No wonder some of the buildings were still damaged. Older Sasuke nodded to himself, but something still seemed off.

Although he hadn't been in the village during Nagato's attack, he clearly remembered that the destruction should have been much worse than what he was currently seeing.

Then Boruto asked the person who the current Hokage was, and the response left both of them dumbfounded.

"Of course, it's the Sixth Hokage, Lord Natsuro Shindōkawa!"

Boruto and Older Sasuke were completely shocked, they had never heard of this name before!

After Boruto and Sasuke left, the person they questioned thought for a moment, then hurried toward the Hokage Building to report the suspicious individuals.

To him, these were simple, common-knowledge questions, the Chibaku Tensei event was impossible to hide, and as for the Sixth Hokage's identity? That was just basic knowledge!

Who didn't know who their Hokage was? These two were definitely suspicious! They needed to be reported.

"Mr. Sasuke… this is really weird," Boruto muttered, still in disbelief.

"Yes… there are two possibilities," Older Sasuke narrowed his eyes and said.

"The first is that Karasuki deceived us, and Urashiki Otsutsuki actually traveled to an even earlier time period, altering history so significantly that even Konoha has changed drastically."

"No way…" Boruto was stunned. If that was true, then what was the point of them coming here?

"That can't be," a voice suddenly chimed in from Boruto's backpack. A turtle emerged and pointed at Boruto. "If Urashiki had already killed the Seventh Hokage, Boruto himself would cease to exist."

"Huh… that actually makes sense," Boruto nodded. If Naruto had died, then he wouldn't have been born in the first place.

Older Sasuke also nodded in agreement with Karasuki's logic.

"The second possibility is that Karasuki wasn't lying, but this place… isn't our world. We've arrived in a world that is very similar to ours but has subtle differences."

"That does seem possible," Karasuki mused. "Space-time travel itself is an anomaly, and you engaged in battle during the transfer. That could have caused a spatial distortion, sending you to an alternate timeline instead of your intended destination."

"So, Mr. Sasuke, does that mean we're in another world that's eerily similar to ours?" Boruto asked, his eyes widening as he looked up at the Hokage Rock.

The Fifth Hokage was still Tsunade, and Akatsuki existed, meaning Nagato had attacked Konoha. This indicated that history was mostly the same.

However, the Sixth Hokage was someone completely unknown.

Older Sasuke didn't respond immediately. He was still processing the situation and trying to accept the existence of parallel worlds.

But one thing stood out, Tsunade was still the Fifth Hokage, and Akatsuki had attacked Konoha. That meant the biggest change was likely… the identity of the Sixth Hokage.

"Regardless, we still need to find this world's Naruto," Older Sasuke finally said. "Even in this world, he should have the Nine-Tails inside him. If Urashiki gets to him, he can still achieve his goal."

"Oh, right! But how are we supposed to find my dad in this world?" Boruto scratched his head before hesitating. "And… in this world, would he even be my dad?"

"…Let's go to Naruto's house first," Older Sasuke replied after a brief silence, deliberately avoiding the latter question.

With that, the two of them began making their way toward Naruto's home.

In front of Naruto's residence, a figure with a long sword on his back stood with his arms crossed, leaning against the wall.

When Boruto and Older Sasuke saw this figure, they both froze. Boruto, in particular, kept looking back and forth between the figure and Older Sasuke…

As if to say, "Mr. Sasuke, look! That's you when you were younger! And you still have both arms!"

Older Sasuke trembled slightly at the sight of the figure. He hadn't expected that, in this world, his younger self was still in Konoha at this point in time, and even more surprisingly, he was part of the ANBU.

Now, Older Sasuke was extremely curious about this world's version of himself and what experiences had led him here.

However, he knew this was not the time for them to meet. Ultimately, Older Sasuke chose to pull his hat down lower and tried to quietly walk past the other Sasuke, pulling Boruto along with him.

"I've been waiting for you two for a long time."

The next moment, Sasuke, the younger one, opened his eyes and spoke.

Older Sasuke froze in place.

"Uh… we don't know each other, do we?" Older Sasuke asked, cautiously eyeing his younger self.

"Your movements today have been under my surveillance," the younger Sasuke replied coldly. "You've been going around gathering information and now you're heading directly to Naruto's house. Speak, are you members of the Akatsuki?"

As he spoke, he unsheathed the sword from his back and fixed a sharp gaze on Older Sasuke and Boruto.

"Ahem… sir, you must be mistaken," Older Sasuke said, raising his hands in a non-threatening manner. "We're not members of the Akatsuki. We're just traveling street performers who arrived in Konoha today. That's why we're so curious about everything here."

"Street performers wouldn't be able to enter Konoha without registration, especially under the current security measures. You're lying," the younger Sasuke's voice grew colder.

Damn. Older Sasuke cursed inwardly.

I completely forgot that Nagato's attack just happened, so Konoha's security must be at its strictest. That's why our movements were exposed so quickly…

"Uh… Mr. Sasuke, what do we do now?" Boruto whispered, nervously tugging on Older Sasuke's sleeve as he stared at the younger Sasuke's drawn sword.

Older Sasuke looked around and noticed more Anbu agents emerging from the shadows, surrounding them completely.

He let out a wry smile.

He… honestly had no idea what to do either.

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