Chapter 163: "You're awake! The surgery was a success, and you're now a lovely girl!" 

At the center of the Roran ruins, atop the seal, Naruto and Sasuke stood hand in hand, with Jiraiya standing at a distance, watching them. Though there was no visible movement, it was clear that Jiraiya was completely focused on them.

If something went wrong, he would immediately use the sealing technique to stop the dragon vein's flow.

He had the strength to do so.

Naruto took a deep breath, holding Sasuke's hand with his left, and placing his right hand on the seal. The seal was still the familiar special Kunai.

He turned to Sasuke. "Ready, Sasuke?"

"Anytime," Sasuke replied. His Sharingan had unconsciously activated. It would be a lie to say he wasn't nervous.

"Then I'm starting!" Naruto's eyes became serious in an instant.

Chakra surged through his arm into the seal. At the same time, a powerful chakra erupted from the ground. With Naruto's strong sensing ability, he was almost instantly overwhelmed by the chakra, unable to move. His eyes were filled with shock.

Sasuke couldn't sense it, but the power of that force was definitely pressing down on them.

The two exchanged a glance but didn't stop. Naruto pushed more chakra out, and in almost no time, he removed the special Kunai from the dragon vein.

Sealing Technique: Reverse Dragon Vein Seal!

Endless light exploded from the ground, a purple aura enveloping Naruto and Sasuke. The intense power tore at their bodies, as if space itself was being torn apart, with countless blades of light hitting them.

"Perverted Sage!" Amidst the light, Naruto gritted his teeth, enduring the pain, and shouted toward Jiraiya. "Now's the time!"

Jiraiya didn't respond, but the moment Naruto shouted, he had already begun forming seals. Chakra flowed from his body, subtly connecting with the Dragon's Rest.

The hand seals were performed at lightning speed. Just a second before the Dragon Vein erupted, he yelled, "Sealing Technique: Dragon Vein Sealing!"

The Dragon Vein sealing technique was created by Namikaze Minato. Essentially, it's a combination of the Flying Thunder God and sealing techniques. Although Jiraiya couldn't use the Flying Thunder God, he didn't need it to break the seal. He had taught Naruto the most violent way to do it, which was to forcibly break through with chakra.

Of course, an ordinary person couldn't do it, but Kurama could.

Kurama's chakra and the chakra of the Dragon Vein were somewhat connected, and the purpose of the seal was to suppress the chakra inside. So, the impact from the outside wasn't as strong as it was inside.

After the seal was broken, Jiraiya immediately used an even stronger sealing technique to reseal the Dragon Vein. This way, the explosion of the Dragon Vein lasted only an instant, and Naruto and Sasuke used that brief moment to travel through time and space.

As the sealing technique took shape, the light slowly faded. Jiraiya looked up at the center, where Naruto and Sasuke, who had been surrounded by light, had already disappeared. Along with them, the special kunai belonging to Minato had vanished as well.

Jiraiya watched as the Dragon Vein slowly calmed down, a look of worry slowly returning to his face.

He didn't speak. He just quietly pulled out his flask, took a drink, and then sat down against the wall, his eyes focused on the center of the Dragon Vein.

They must return safely...

---

"Huh? A strange ceiling..." Naruto looked up at the ceiling in confusion, his head spinning as he sat up from the ground.

"You're awake?" Kurama's voice sounded in the sealing space, and he had a gentle smile on his face. "The operation was a success. You're now a cute girl."

"Oh... huh?" Naruto responded without thinking, then suddenly froze and his face changed dramatically.

The next second, he immediately grabbed his "little brother" to check if it was alright. After confirming everything was fine, he sighed in relief. "You scared the life out of me."

Then he started scolding Kurama: "Kurama! Are you crazy? Why scare me like that?"

"Heh, I'm crazy. Do you have medicine for that?" Kurama replied, smiling.

Naruto was speechless. As expected, Kurama's brain was never normal.

By the way, where is this?

Naruto turned his head and looked around. It was a small room with very simple decor. The structure was made of wood, and instead of a bed, he was lying on a mat on the floor. There was another mat next to him, where Sasuke was lying.

Just as Naruto looked over, Sasuke opened his eyes. He, too, looked confused when he first woke up.

Naruto chuckled. "You're awake, Sasuke. Congratulations, the operation was a success. You're now a cute girl too."

Sasuke: "..."

He didn't say anything. His face didn't change much, but judging by his quick move to check on his "little brother," his mood was probably similar to Naruto's just moments ago.

Kurama: "Just to let you know, I don't have any medicine."

Sasuke clenched his fists. "Are you out of your mind?"

"Yeah, are you going to do something about it?" Naruto chuckled.

"I've seen this episode."

Sasuke's fists clenched tighter. Naruto's level of annoyance was almost on par with Jiraiya. If it weren't for spending so much time with these two, Sasuke probably wouldn't have been able to stop himself from having a real-life showdown with Naruto.

"Ah~huff—" Sasuke took a deep breath and slowly relaxed his fists. "So, where are we? Did Kurama's plan work?"

"I don't know." Naruto pulled off the covers and looked innocent. "I just woke up before you, and Kurama used the same line to fool me. It got to the point where I almost wanted to hit Kurama."

"As long as you know." Sasuke rolled his eyes and reached for the blanket, getting up from the mat. He looked around the room. "This doesn't look like Konohagakure. The architecture looks more like Land of Water."

Land of Water—humid, wooden buildings, raised from the ground.

"True," Naruto nodded. They had visited Land of Water before, so they were familiar with its architectural style.

And the humanities... mainly, Jiraiya was studying the humanities, while the two of them were focusing on understanding the style.

Just as they were wondering whether to go out and take a look, the door to the room suddenly opened. The door was a sliding type, with paper covering it. As the door was pulled open, a dignified old man appeared in front of the two.

Before either of them could speak, the old man immediately spoke up: "Future children, since you're awake, why not come out?"

Naruto and Sasuke were both stunned—not because of what the old man said, but because of his eyes.

Unlike the usual black pupils, this old man's eyes were purple, and there were concentric circles expanding outward. Although they couldn't sense any chakra, in that instant, both of their minds simultaneously told them:

This person is terrifying! Far more terrifying than anyone they've ever encountered—by a hundred times! A thousand times!

"Ugh..." Naruto swallowed, beads of cold sweat forming on his forehead. "These eyes... I remember the perverted sage mentioned before, that these are the legendary eyes of Rikudou Sennin, the eyes that control life and death, the Rinnegan!"

Sasuke clenched his fists, and his Sharingan activated on its own. The curse seal patterns began to spread across his body.

The old man outside seemed to smile slightly—so faintly that it was almost impossible to notice. He looked at the two of them and said, "Don't worry, I mean no harm. On the other hand, you two suddenly appearing in our country has really scared quite a few people."

Naruto and Sasuke exchanged a glance, but said nothing.

Naruto then entered the sealing space, shouting at Kurama, "Kurama! Kurama! Is this person Rikudou Sennin? Did our plan succeed?"

Kurama looked deeply at Naruto... and then at what was behind him. He chuckled and replied, "As for that question, let him answer it for you."

"Huh?" Naruto was stunned, instinctively following Kurama's gaze, and then his expression turned into one of disbelief.

Inside the sealing space, where only Naruto and Kurama had been, there was now a figure standing. The old man looked at Kurama inside the cage, his eyes seeming to carry a hint of sadness. "Kurama, it's been a long time."

"It's been a long time for me, but for you, I suppose you haven't yet separated me from the Ten-Tails' body, right?" Kurama responded with a smile. "As expected, you really can see the future, old man."

"Just a little bit," the old man shook his head.

He then turned to Naruto beside him: "Nice to meet you, child of prophecy."

"Huh? Ah~ Nice... to meet you, grandpa?" Naruto said, a cautious look on his face.

"No need to be so formal," the old man said kindly, stepping forward and ruffling Naruto's hair. "You probably still don't know who I am, do you? I am the messenger of the Shinobi Sect, and my name is..."

"Otsutsuki Hagoromo."

"And in your time, I am also..."

"Rikudou Sennin."

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