"Konoha Year 51, May. That means the current me hasn't even been born yet."
Sasuke felt somewhat confused after learning the exact year.
The version of himself in this space-time had not been born yet?
That felt very strange.
What he found even stranger was how these events could already exist in May of Konoha Year 51.
Madara had been resurrected, Nagato, the leader of the Akatsuki Organization, was on Konoha's side, Orochimaru had defected from Konoha, and Tsunade of the Sannin had become the Fourth Hokage.
This was completely different from what he remembered.
Where had the changes begun?
All these familiar people existed, and the only person Sasuke did not recognize was Seiryū.
Yet such enormous differences had appeared!
Fugaku's lips twitched.
"I had only just chosen a name for you. I don't even know whether the child will be a boy or a girl, and now."
He had met his son before the boy had even been born.
He was probably the only person who had ever experienced something like this.
No, Minato had experienced it as well.
The feeling was truly strange.
Sasuke fell silent.
He looked at Minato and Tsunade.
"What exactly happened here? I remember that after the Third Shinobi World War ended, Minato-san became the Fourth Hokage."
"Why is Tsunade-sama the Fourth Hokage here?"
Although Sasuke had not yet been born in May of Konoha Year 51, he had studied history and knew exactly what had happened.
By Konoha Year 51, the Third Shinobi World War had ended, and Minato had already become the Fourth Hokage.
How could Tsunade hold that position now?
Perhaps these questions would help him understand what unknown changes had occurred in this space-time.
Minato explained, "Because Tsunade-sama never left Konoha. With her reputation and strength, no one in Konoha was more suitable to become Hokage."
"And the Third Shinobi World War hasn't ended yet. It has only paused. No, it would be more accurate to say that Madara is the true enemy behind the Third Shinobi World War."
"Isn't that something that only happened during the Fourth Shinobi World War?"
Sasuke muttered before continuing, "Why was Madara resurrected at this point in time? In my space-time."
He looked toward Nagato, whose Rinnegan remained in his eye sockets.
"Madara chose Nagato, the leader of the Akatsuki Organization, as his representative and manipulated the Akatsuki together with Obito."
"In the end, Madara was resurrected during the Fourth Shinobi World War through the Rinnegan's Outer Path: Samsara of Heavenly Life Technique."
Madara had already been resurrected here, which was one of the things that shocked Sasuke most.
The resurrected Madara also possessed the Rinnegan.
Did that mean this space-time had two pairs of Rinnegan?
One pair belonged to Madara, while the other belonged to Nagato.
Could Orochimaru have cloned another pair of Rinnegan?
"The Fourth Shinobi World War?"
Hearing Sasuke's words, everyone present except Seiryū became solemn.
The Third Shinobi World War had not even ended here, yet another space-time had already experienced another great war?
And Madara had once again been the enemy?
"Obito?"
Hearing Obito's name, Minato froze for a moment.
He asked, "Why was Obito involved? Obito controlled the Akatsuki Organization? I remember the Akatsuki was founded by Yahiko, correct?"
With Obito's impulsive personality, did he even have the ability to lead such an organization?
Judging from Sasuke's tone, Obito had also played an extremely important role.
Was this truly the Obito Minato knew?
"That doesn't sound right."
Jiraiya also spoke.
"I know the Akatsuki Organization's ideals. They pursue peace. How could they possibly have any connection to Madara?"
It was too strange.
How could the Akatsuki Organization be connected to Madara?
"Nagato's Rinnegan originally belonged to Madara. Before reaching the end of his lifespan, Madara manipulated Obito and caused him to fall into darkness."
Sasuke briefly explained what he knew.
"Obito controlled the Akatsuki Organization under Madara's name and used Nagato's Rinnegan to capture the Tailed Beasts."
"Finally, during the Fourth Shinobi World War."
These were events Sasuke had personally experienced, so he understood the entire situation.
Could all these changes have begun during the Third Shinobi World War?
"I don't really know what happened in your space-time."
Seiryū joined the conversation cheerfully.
"But in this space-time, Madara never died."
"After obtaining Setsuna's Mangekyō Sharingan, he came out and began causing trouble. He even captured seven Tailed Beasts."
When had the changes begun?
Naturally, they had begun with Seiryū, the transmigrator.
With his appearance, events had already developed in an unpredictable direction.
"Wait, Setsuna?"
Hearing the familiar yet distant name, Sasuke thought for a moment and remembered him.
He frowned.
"Wasn't he the Great Elder of the Uchiha Clan?"
"I remember that he died during the Third Shinobi World War, and he had not awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan before his death."
Why was Setsuna involved?
And why had Madara not died?
Shouldn't he have died of old age in Konoha Year 50?
Seiryū did not appear embarrassed.
"I killed Setsuna, and he awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan before he died."
"Then Madara's spy in Konoha, that white creature, removed his Mangekyō Sharingan after Setsuna died."
After a brief pause, Seiryū continued, "That Mangekyō Sharingan possessed a Dōjutsu capable of controlling puppets, so Madara used puppet bodies to act in his place."
"Perhaps he found a way to restore his lifespan, which was why he didn't die of old age."
Looking at everyone's confused expressions, Seiryū found the situation rather amusing.
It was quite entertaining.
He was the only person who understood the entire situation.
It felt like watching someone struggle with a question when he already knew the answer.
The feeling was unexpectedly satisfying.
Sasuke fell silent.
There were far too many differences between this space-time and his own.
However, the greatest difference was Seiryū's existence.
It was as though this person had appeared out of nowhere.
Sasuke truly had no memory of him!
He was extremely curious about Seiryū's identity and looked toward him.
"Pardon me for asking, but who are you? I have no memory of anyone like you."
Were all these changes connected to him?
Sasuke already had a suspicion.
"Naruto once said the same thing. It seems the version of me in other space-times really didn't survive."
Seiryū gave a deliberately sorrowful sigh.
Then he briefly introduced himself.
"My name is Uzumaki Seiryū. I am a member of the Uzumaki Clan, a disciple of Jiraiya of the Sannin, the future partner of the Fourth Hokage, Tsunade, and the future Hokage's assistant."
"I am also currently Konoha's greatest genius. I have developed nearly two hundred new Ninjutsu and am considered a Ninjutsu genius who surpasses the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama."
"I am the perfect Jinchūriki of the Dragon Vein, the foster son and future son-in-law of the Yūhi family, and I am known as Konoha's Shinigami, among other things."
He had too many identities.
He could not introduce all of them at once.
Sasuke fell silent.
As expected, everything remained unfamiliar.
He had never heard of Seiryū.
And this person, who looked about the same age as Boruto, was actually Tsunade's future partner?
However, Sasuke did not dwell on that and instead focused on something more important.
"What do you mean by saying you didn't survive? It sounds like you know the reason."
"Exactly what it sounds like."
Seiryū's eyes flashed.
He knew Sasuke might have connected it to something, so he continued.
"I wasn't originally from Konoha. Shinku-san brought me back. I most likely awakened the Uzumaki Clan's constitution, which allowed me to survive despite being near death."
"Based on what you and Naruto have said, the version of me in the other space-time must have died. That was when the differences began."
"Because I survived, certain events changed."
"The clearest example is the Rasengan. Its development progressed faster because of me, and I was one of the people who helped create it."
"Also, because that troublesome woman Tsunade believed I was ill and wanted to cure me, she remained in Konoha. Eventually, her strength and reputation allowed her to become the Fourth Hokage."
"Simply because I survived, a space-time with a different course of history appeared. Do you understand?"
He had given them another explanation based on parallel space-times.
He truly was an impressive plagiarist.
He had brought entirely new changes to the shinobi world!
Sasuke narrowed his eyes and identified the key point.
"In other words, all these changes began with you?"
He recognized and understood everyone else.
Seiryū was the only person before him whom he had never heard of.
It was indeed very likely that all the changes had originated with him.
Seiryū nodded slightly.
"Perhaps. After all, I also seem to be a Child of Prophecy. Maybe surviving instead of dying is what made me the Child of Prophecy."
He had once visited Mount Myōboku and met the Great Toad Sage.
There, he had heard a new prophecy about a Forbidden Child whose choice could bring either destruction or rebirth.
It had sounded very mysterious.
However, it also suited Seiryū's situation extremely well.
After being influenced by the consciousness of the Dragon Vein, Seiryū had indeed considered destroying the shinobi world and creating a new one that accepted his ideals and followed his will.
That truly resembled the description of a Forbidden Child.
"A Child of Prophecy."
Sasuke seemed to understand what the term meant and nodded, as though accepting the explanation.
The Naruto he knew had indeed been the Child of Prophecy who saved the shinobi world.
If Seiryū was also a Child of Prophecy, then it was possible for changes beyond Sasuke's understanding to occur.
Jiraiya muttered, "Could that truly be the reason? Different changes brought about by the Child of Prophecy."
After hearing about the Child of Prophecy and the Forbidden Child, he also understood immediately.
Everything now had a reasonable explanation!
Seiryū continued, "I once used the identity of Sage Seiryū to deceive Naruto, and he told me what he knew."
"From his explanation, I learned that the histories of these two space-times were once identical."
"All the changes began with me, the Child of Prophecy."
"Because of my existence, everything in this space-time changed drastically."
Now that he was the Forbidden Child of Prophecy, it was normal for him to possess something unusual, right?
There was no need to explain that he was a transmigrator.
The identity of the Child of Prophecy could explain many things as well.
That was right!
He was simply that extraordinary.
All these changes originated from him being the Child of Prophecy.
It was perfectly reasonable!
Sasuke looked Seiryū up and down before nodding.
"You do possess several unusual qualities. In terms of strength, I'm afraid I may not be your match either."
"You flatter me. You aren't weak either, and your Rinnegan even has tomoe."
Seiryū grinned and asked enthusiastically, "Do you want to fight and test our strength? I'm rather interested in what you can do."
He wondered whether Sasuke could trigger a mission.
Although Seiryū had completed one mission and obtained the High-Level Bakudō Compendium, he had lost the chance to complete Ryota's mission, and Madara had also escaped.
Sasuke was not weak, so it might still be possible for the system to issue a mission.
Perhaps something like a Quincy Invasion mission?
After all, Sasuke's Complete Body Susanoo also used a bow.
Sasuke shook his head.
"Forget it. I still need to recover Chakra to deal with Urashiki Ōtsutsuki. He came from our space-time, so I naturally can't ignore him."
Urashiki had escaped.
Considering the Ōtsutsuki Clan's desire for the Tailed Beasts, he would definitely act again.
Naruto had not yet been born in this space-time, so Urashiki would most likely target Kushina, the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki and Naruto's mother.
Sasuke was still a shinobi of Konoha.
Since Urashiki came from his space-time, Sasuke naturally could not stand by and do nothing.
There was another reason as well.
They did not know how to return to their own space-time.
After Karasuki finished speaking earlier, the pink turtle had withdrawn into its shell.
No matter how they called to it, it refused to wake.
They were trapped here.
Sasuke's explanation was reasonable, so Seiryū could not continue asking him to fight.
Seiryū then pretended not to know anything about the Ōtsutsuki Clan and asked, "What exactly is the Ōtsutsuki Clan?"
The differences in this space-time's history could be explained through the Child of Prophecy.
However, Seiryū did not intend to reveal his knowledge of the Ōtsutsuki Clan.
He still had to maintain the act.
Otherwise, it would be difficult to explain, and he was too lazy to do so.
This was also something the others wanted to know.
As the Fourth Hokage, Tsunade carried a heavy responsibility, so she continued the discussion.
"I remember that in mythology, the Rabbit Goddess and the Sage of Six Paths also carried the surname Ōtsutsuki."
"Could the Ōtsutsuki Clan be connected to the Sage?"
"They belong to the same clan."
Sasuke had already fought members of the Ōtsutsuki Clan and had joined forces with Naruto to defeat Momoshiki, so he knew a great deal about them.
He began explaining.
"Ōtsutsuki Kaguya did not come from this planet. She was an outsider who arrived from beyond the stars. The Sage of Six Paths, Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo, was her son."
"The Ōtsutsuki Clan is a race that came from beyond this world. Their goal is the Tailed Beasts and the fruit of the Divine Tree."
(To be continued.)
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◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)