"That's different..."
Naruto was only thirteen, so he could not explain his reasoning with any profound arguments. He simply thought of Kushina, another mother who had used every ounce of her strength to protect him.
Kushina, pierced by the Nine-Tails' claw, had held him in her arms while crying and repeatedly telling him, "I love you."
In the main timeline, Naruto had once told Grandpa Rikudō that although it might sound disrespectful, he thought his own mom and dad were much better than Kaguya Ōtsutsuki.
But after coming to this era and meeting Kaguya before she ate the Chakra Fruit, Naruto, who naturally viewed things through empathy, suddenly realized that there was no real comparison between them.
He should never have compared them in the first place.
Recently, the topic Naruto and Sasuke discussed most often was probably their respective moms and dads.
Sakura, Shikamaru, and Kiba would join in too. Although most of what they said consisted of complaints, Naruto could still glimpse how they lived. He could tell that Kiba's parents, Shikamaru's parents, Sakura's parents, and Sasuke's parents all loved their children in their own ways.
Because Naruto's identity and position were different from what they had been in his original world, he also had the chance to visit his friends' homes.
He remembered Sakura arguing with her mom, while Shikamaru and Kiba were scolded so severely by their moms that they could not even raise their heads.
Sasuke and his older brother Itachi had yet to adjust completely. They were always cautious around their own family, looking pitiful as they wanted to draw closer but were afraid to do so.
Sakura's mom and dad would repeatedly bow to Kakashi-sensei and Obito, asking them to be patient with their daughter and take good care of her. Their excessive enthusiasm embarrassed Sakura, but Naruto thought those ordinary parents were simply doing everything they could, even humbling themselves, to secure more opportunities for their child.
Sakura scolding Naruto whenever he played a prank was perfectly normal for Team 7. Sakura's mom would remind her to be friendlier to Hokage-sama's son, then hurry to bring Naruto drinks and snacks.
Her desire to keep Naruto from disliking Sakura could not have been more obvious.
Sasuke's mom would cook delicious red bean soup with freshly grilled mochi. She gave Sasuke and his older brother Itachi plenty of space, allowing them to readjust at their own pace.
She would tell Naruto and Sakura stories about the brothers when they were little. Though she never said it outright, she was helping them rediscover who they had once been.
She even dug out Sasuke's favorite childhood toy.
When Naruto saw the little green dinosaur, he doubled over laughing. Sasuke snatched the toy away in embarrassment and tried to hide it, only to bump straight into the doorframe. His clumsy display made Sakura laugh, along with Itachi Uchiha, who always acted like an outsider afraid to overstep his bounds.
Although it had not been very long, after returning to the altered mission scroll world and making it through the admittedly difficult adjustment period, Naruto had spent the past month or two living the life he had wanted throughout his entire childhood.
"I used to think my mom was way better than Grandpa Rikudō's mom, but now I finally understand..."
Despite his young age, Naruto's words carried a strange power. Whenever he empathized with others, they could feel his emotions as well.
"My mom, Sasuke's mom, Sakura's mom, Shikamaru's mom, and Kiba's mom are all different, but every one of them worries about their children in their own way."
Kannabi Bridge Minato felt both proud and deeply moved by those words.
There had been many moments like this.
Whenever he heard Naruto speak, Minato felt an urge to hurry back to their parallel world with his students and start trying for a child with Kushina.
Naruto's words even moved Indra and Ashura, who shared the same chakra, though neither of them had ever met their own mother.
After meeting their father from this era, the first thing they had heard him say to them was that their existence had been a mistake.
Deep down, both brothers could not help wondering.
Had their mother still been alive, might she have found a way to resolve the conflict between them?
Even so, as Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki gazed upon the devastated land, he remained convinced that his mother was beyond saving.
"Hamura and I never intended to kill Mother. We only wanted to seal her away and give her time to calm down."
Naruto stared at him. "Will sealing her really make her calm down?! Do you honestly believe that?!"
The Nine-Tails lowered its gaze.
Caught between Naruto and the Six Paths Old Man of this era, there was nothing it could do. However, through Naruto's mind, it knew exactly what he was thinking about.
Naruto was thinking about the Nine-Tails itself.
As the Nine-Tails, it had been sealed away time and time again.
It had once been ordered to protect, watch over, and maintain the balance of this world. Yet eventually, it had become nothing more than a natural disaster in the eyes of humanity.
Naruto might not have convinced the Rikudō Sennin of this era, but he had convinced Ashura, who had also changed after coming to their world.
Always wanting to do something for his older brother, Ashura stepped beside Naruto.
"Father! I also beg you to consider another way! I believe Grandmother..."
Ashura never got to finish.
Just as Naruto and Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki reached an impasse, unable to persuade one another, an overwhelming force suddenly appeared above them, accompanied by Kaguya's distinctive voice.
["Have you found yourselves new allies, Hagoromo, Hamura?"]
["But you should already know..."]
["I am an immortal and omnipotent goddess. You have no hope of victory."]
"Mother!"
"Mother!"
"Mother!"
Only after hearing Hamura's calls did Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, floating high in the sky, take notice of them.
["Two Hamuras?"]
["What strange thing have you done this time, Hagoromo?"]
["I shared my chakra with you so that you could use it, not so that you could turn that power against me."]
["Hagoromo, Hamura."]
["You have both disappointed me."]
["What meaning is there in sharing chakra with those weak humans? You are destined never to defeat me."]
Weak...
He was Madara Uchiha.
For the first time in his life, no, in both of his lives, someone had called him weak.
Since returning to Konoha, he had already reclaimed his Gunbai Uchiwa and scythe. His expression twisting fiercely, he drew his weapons and prepared to challenge Kaguya himself.
She was nothing like the weakened pregnant woman they had met before.
The woman before him had crimson lips and wooden shard-like horns growing from her head. This Daughter of the Hour of the Rabbit was an opponent truly worthy of fighting.
"Hey! Uncle Madara!!"
Naruto tried to stop him, but only managed to reach out helplessly.
"Madara!!"
Hashirama tried to stop him, only to run over and stand beside Madara to face Kaguya together.
The others, including Obito and Kakashi, had no idea what to do.
Adult Kakashi stared at them speechlessly. "Do those two even remember our mission?"
"Knowing them," Adult Obito replied, "there's a ninety-nine percent chance they've forgotten."
Madara Uchiha immediately unleashed Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!
Hashirama Senju's Wood Release was like tossing dry kindling into a raging blaze, causing the flames to surge even higher!
They clearly had no intention of resolving this peacefully!
Kaguya continued to regard them with contempt. She converted the flames into chakra and absorbed them into herself.
However, when she saw Hashirama Senju's Wood Release, she tilted her head slightly.
["The power of the God Tree?"]
She glanced into the distance, toward the place where the God Tree stood.
Only after confirming that the God Tree was unharmed did she resume fighting them.
Kaguya had already eaten a Chakra Fruit. Furthermore, for more than twenty years, she had used Infinite Tsukuyomi to offer the lives of countless young people to the God Tree, and all the power the tree had converted from those lives had been given to Kaguya Ōtsutsuki.
Even a Susanoo several times larger than Madara's could not pose a true threat to her power.
Only by combining Hashirama Senju's Wood Release with Madara's attacks could the two produce any noticeable effect at all.
Sasuke, Naruto, Obito, and the others watched the battle in stunned silence.
In their minds, Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha had always been among the strongest beings they could imagine.
A battle between those two alone would have been an earth-shattering clash for the ages.
Yet now, even after joining forces, they could barely fight Kaguya on equal footing?!
"I knew Aunt Kaguya from the Fourth Shinobi World War was strong, but I never thought she was this strong, dattebayo!"
"What are we supposed to do now?!!" Ashura was completely at a loss. He looked at his father in his youth, then at his grandmother battling Hashirama and Madara in the sky, before helplessly turning to his older brother and Naruto for guidance.
Naruto was dumbfounded too.
Had everything he had just said been for nothing?!
Uncle Madara was far too eager to fight!
And what was Uncle Hashirama doing? Why had he immediately joined him?!
Wait! Why were Tobirama and Izuna charging in too?!
Standing across from Naruto, Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki watched the situation unfold, then called past him to his younger brother.
"Hamura! This is our chance! While Mother is occupied fighting them, we'll find a way to complete the seal!"
"Older Brother..." Hamura Ōtsutsuki hesitated. "All right."
"!!!"
Naruto watched the two Ōtsutsuki brothers rush past him. Without thinking, he chased after them and blocked their path.
"I said I'd stop you!"
It was not only because of the mission. More than anything, he wanted the Grandpa Rikudō of this era to try once more and reconcile with Aunt Kaguya as mother and son.
The boy's gaze was unwavering.
Sasuke hesitated for only a second before stepping beside him.
Sakura followed, along with young Obito, young Kakashi, and Rin.
Adult Kakashi, Adult Obito, and Minato Namikaze moved behind the children as well.
Naruto's words had not been wasted.
At the very least, they had moved his companions and prompted them to make their choice.
They chose to follow him, trusting him without reservation and standing ready to help him no matter what happened.