"By the way, Naruto, do you want to come and learn too?"
Naruto waved his hand.
"I want to focus on learning Sage Mode right now. As for Sealing Jutsu, I think what I know is already enough."
"I see..."
Kushina sighed softly, then perked up again, her tone becoming serious.
"Speaking of Sage Mode, your father learned it from Jiraiya-sensei back then. When you study Senjutsu with Jiraiya-sensei, you must be extremely cautious!"
"And... whatever you do, don't pick up his bad habits! Uh..."
She leaned in closer and lowered her voice, speaking quickly with an embarrassed yet expectant tone: "I mean... learning some... well, it's not like it's completely forbidden? After all, you're all grown up... Mama actually kind of wants to hold a grandchild, you know..."
Kushina felt anxious for Naruto every single day.
She could see the feelings of so many girls, yet Naruto hadn't managed to successfully hold hands with a single one.
Sometimes Kushina couldn't understand the thoughts of kids these days; back when she was twelve or thirteen, plenty of people were already dating!
Naruto facepalmed.
He was only thirteen this year; if Kushina wanted to hold a grandchild, she'd have to wait another ten or twenty years!
Previously, Naruto wanted to increase his strength to face future crises.
After the Konoha Crush Plan.
Naruto realized that with his current strength, if he mastered Sage Mode in the future, he couldn't imagine how Ōtsutsuki Urashiki could possibly survive.
If Urashiki died in the future, Boruto and Sasuke probably wouldn't have come.
Given his strength and knowledge of the enemy's intel, if his future self couldn't defeat Ōtsutsuki Urashiki, Momoshiki, and Kinshiki... he might as well follow Brother Hu's example, put a sack over his head, use 'Abandoning the Body Origin', and go have an underwater party with Qu Yuan.
Fun fact: Abandoning the Body Origin is known as the 'End of Life'.
Brother Hu prepared three backup plans at the time, but all three failed, so this move is also called 'Triple Drowning'.
After the mother and son finished dinner, Kushina cleared the table, reminded Naruto a few more times to rest well and not overwork himself in training, and then hurried off with her things to Grandma Mito's for her 'remedial lessons'.
The house suddenly became quiet.
Naruto went to his room and began organizing everything he had learned and known, preparing to develop new Ninjutsu.
After creating the Vacuum Attack, Naruto had kept a trump card in reserve, planning to integrate senjutsu chakra into it.
As the saying goes, Ninjutsu isn't stronger just because it's older; it evolves with the times.
The current Vacuum Attack could still hold its own in the early-to-mid 'Eye Technique' era, but by the 'Tattoo' era, it wouldn't be enough against those cheaters.
The things that retain their value best in the Ninja World are actually Sealing Jutsu and Taijutsu.
Sealing Jutsu go without saying.
So let's talk about Taijutsu.
I am a Taijutsu Ninja; I train in the bitter cold of winter and the scorching heat of summer, often putting in several times the effort of others just to keep pace with them.
We Taijutsu Ninjas are seen as all brawn and no brains, looked down upon, with bleak prospects, lacking long-range options, weak, and hard to promote—where Gentle Fist is considered the Peak of Taijutsu.
In summary, techniques flourish while physical power wanes.
Are you finished?
Now that you're finished, I'm going to use the Eight Gates (holding back a laugh).
Ever since being instantly pulled into the Tsukuyomi Space by Uchiha Hikari, Naruto realized that even in this era, he wasn't invincible.
He currently couldn't open the Eight Gates to the eighth gate, and his resistance to Genjutsu was very low, especially against Mangekyo-level Genjutsu.
If he hadn't been cautious and transplanted Shisui's eye before entering Uchiha Hikari's sealing site, he might have fallen right then and there.
The pride he felt after leveling Konoha vanished in an instant, effectively curing him of any arrogance.
The next day, Sakura Haruno's home welcomed an unexpected guest.
Karin.
"You are... Karin?"
Sakura was somewhat confused as to why Karin would come looking for her.
Karin pulled Sakura to a nearby park and then asked directly.
"You have feelings for Naruto that go beyond just being teammates, don't you?"
"Eh?"
Sakura reacted like a cat whose tail had been stepped on; she jumped back half a step, her cheeks turning bright red instantly. She waved her hands frantically, her voice rising in panic.
"No, no! Karin, what are you talking about! How could I possibly... for Naruto..."
Her words came to an abrupt halt because Karin had already stepped forward, suddenly closing the distance between them.
Karin tilted her head slightly, her glasses reflecting the light, her tone flat yet carrying a knowing certainty that saw through everything:
"Really? Not at all?"
That gaze seemed to pierce through all disguises, striking straight at the heart.
As Sakura met Karin's eyes, she felt as if her thoughts were completely laid bare, and her forced composure collapsed instantly.
She opened her mouth to deny it again, but found her voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz, and the heat in her face showed no signs of receding.
Seeing her try to cover things up while blushing all the way to her neck, Karin already had her answer.
She curled her lip, thinking: We're both girls this age, who are you trying to fool?
That kind of look, that subconscious attention, and the reaction when his name was mentioned... Sakura's mind was currently a mess.
"Did you come all this way just to ask me that?"
She didn't understand why Karin would suddenly ask this. Was it because she also liked Naruto, or was she asking on Naruto's behalf?
"There's a very formidable rival. Although I hate to admit it, I really do need help from others."
"Ino and I are good sisters..."
"I already went to Ino Yamanaka and she didn't agree. Besides, I'm not talking about Ino Yamanaka, I'm talking about Uchiha Hikari."
Sakura:???
Huh?
Sakura's brain buzzed as if struck by a silent thunderbolt.
"Wait, you mean..."
She struggled to organize her words.
"Sasuke... toward Naruto...?"
Karin was stunned, then gave a look of pure disgust as if to say 'what on earth are you blathering about'.
Sasuke and Hikari—those two names don't even sound the same!
"Not Sasuke, I said Uchiha Hikari."
She emphasized the name 'Hikari', as if stressing that this was a completely different person.
"But."
Sakura's thoughts were still stuck in that shocking speculation and couldn't pull themselves out.
"Isn't Sasuke the only Uchiha left?"
Sakura didn't react immediately because she remembered that the Uchiha were all dead.
"She was found by Naruto outside the Village."
"I see."
Under a tree on the other side of the park.
Boruto silently listened to the conversation between Karin and Sakura.
What does 'Dad brought back another Uchiha from outside the Village' mean?
Was Dad a male incubus or some GalGame master in his youth?
He was scared to tears.
Fortunately, Mr. Sasuke had gone to the Uchiha clan grounds to investigate. Otherwise, if he had heard this conversation, the consequences would be unthinkable.
At the same time, Boruto became increasingly expectant to see his parents from this timeline.
He looked through the gaps in the leaves at the clear blue sky of Konoha.
Just how outstanding were Mom and Dad when they were young?
One could charm a whole crowd, and the other could stand out from a whole crowd.