Chapter 321:
Ichiraku Ramen, Konoha's Second Branch.
The bad weather meant there were barely any customers in the shop.
Shunhi sat idly inside, watching TV, while Shuyu maintained his ninja tools off to the side.
The shop door opened. Even though it was strange that someone would come out in this awful weather, Shunhi still stood up to welcome the guest.
"Welcome to—"
Shunhi's voice trailed off and faded away, which caught Shuyu's attention.
He looked up toward the entrance.
"How is that possible?!"
His gaze shifted repeatedly between Shunhi and the visitor.
"I didn't expect it either—turns out there really is another me in this world." The Dark Shunhi said as he examined the shop's interior. "What surprises me is that in this world, I've fallen so low—willing to run a ramen shop. In my world, the Shinobi World is already under my control. As for Sasuke and Naruto, they've long since been killed by me."
"What exactly are you planning to do?"
Uchiha Shunhi looked at this version of himself from the dark parallel Shinobi World.
"Bring change to this world, of course. In the Shinobi World under my rule, both technology and healthcare have fully modernized. We even made it to the moon not long ago."
"...Well, congratulations, I suppose."
Shunhi responded after a moment's thought.
"But, since I can't stay here for long, I'll spare your life. Eventually, I'll leave this world to you to manage."
The Dark Shunhi said this seriously.
"Th... Thanks, I guess..."
He cast a glance at Shuyu, then turned and left.
"What the hell just happened?"
Shuyu turned to Shunhi, clearly bewildered.
"It must have been when Peace Star was en route to the Infinite Energy source. The high-speed movement must've triggered a space-time fluctuation, creating a rift that brought another version of me from a parallel Shinobi World."
"Is there anything we can do to stop him?"
"There's only one way... we have to kill him."
In reality, this "Dark Shunhi" was just a native resident of a branch system within this world, implanted with altered memories to mistakenly believe he was a dimension traveler.
"Won't that affect you?"
"No."
Shunhi shook his head.
"I see."
Shuyu nodded solemnly. Although he hadn't shown it outwardly, he was furious over the Dark Shunhi killing his younger brother.
"Wait. If we're going to deal with another version of me, you won't be enough on your own. We'd better get Minato, Kushina, and Obito involved too."
"Got it."
Dark Shunhi floated in the sky above Konoha, letting the rain drench him.
He clasped his hands together. "Ice Release: Frozen Wasteland!"
The falling rain ceased, replaced by a raging blizzard.
Konoha's streets were buried in heavy snow; houses and skyscrapers were gradually encased in ice.
Dark Shunhi slowly descended to the ground.
"Uncle Shunhi?!" Naruto appeared in front of him in a flash, surprised. "Are you okay? With this kind of weather, you really shouldn't be out."
"Uzumaki Naruto. I didn't expect that in this world, not only did you survive, but you even became Hokage."
"Naruto, be careful. I sense malice from him."
Kurama's voice echoed from within Naruto.
"Mm."
Naruto, no longer the careless kid of the past, nodded calmly. His life was no longer just his own—it now belonged to his wife, his children, and the entire village.
"Nuclear Release: Atomic Fist!"
Dark Shunhi suddenly appeared in front of Naruto, throwing a punch toward his chest.
Though Naruto managed to protect himself in time with the Nine-Tails cloak, the explosion triggered by the Atomic Fist still blasted him away. Naruto stabilized himself mid-retreat and quickly made hand seals: "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Hundreds of Naruto clones surrounded Dark Shunhi.
"Nuclear Release: Nuclear Contamination!"
Dark Shunhi pressed both palms to the ground.
The thick white snow melted away, and the ground began turning a sickly green.
As each clone touched the green-tinted ground, they vanished into white mist.
By retrieving the memories from his destroyed clones, Naruto realized the ground was being poisoned. If that toxic contamination spread across the village, ninety percent of Konoha's residents could die.
"Uncle Shunhi, what are you doing?! This is the village you've lived in your whole life...!"
"Relax, Naruto. I'll rebuild Konoha when I'm done."
Dark Shunhi was completely unmoved by Naruto's words.
"Lightning Release: Chidori Sharp Spear!"
A beam of lightning shot down from the sky, forcing Dark Shunhi to pull his hands away from the ground to evade. With his palms lifted, the spread of the green contamination halted.
"Sasuke?!"
Naruto looked to his side, delighted to see Sasuke land beside him. The summoned hawk in the sky let out a cry and flew off.
"Naruto, what the hell are you doing?"
Sasuke questioned why Naruto hadn't gone all-out yet.
"Well, the opponent is Uncle Shunhi…"
Naruto squinted and scratched his head awkwardly.
"Idiot. Can't you see? That's not Uchiha Shunhi at all."
"Huh? Really? But he looks just like him..."
Naruto looked the dark version over closely.
"Sasuke's right. He's not the real Shunhi."
At that moment, SpongeBob (Minato), Patrick Star (Kushina), Hydra Squad Captain (Obito), and the Flaming Cloud Evil God (Itachi Uchiha) landed in the four cardinal directions—east, west, south, and north—surrounding Dark Shunhi.
"You guys!"
Naruto looked toward the assembled S.H.I.E.L.D. members.
"Don't worry," SpongeBob said with a smile. "The S.H.I.E.L.D. director is out, so we have control of our bodies for now." He then turned toward the surrounded Dark Shunhi. "Alright everyone—let's go!"
"With this many people, if I'm not careful, I might really end up losing here..."
Dark Shunhi clasped his hands, and a green orb began to swell between them, pushing his palms apart.
"Stop him, now!!"
Although he didn't know exactly what Dark Shunhi was planning, the Flaming Cloud Evil God sensed danger and was the first to charge forward.
"Nuclear Release: Nuclear Burst!"
As soon as his hands slammed together, the glowing orb detonated with a massive explosion. The resulting shockwave blasted the four attackers back.
Taking advantage of the chaos, Dark Shunhi made his retreat.