Just as the various timelines of the Shinobi World were still reeling from the shock of Six Paths Naruto and Sasuke, and the Ōtsutsuki clan, the Sky Screen dissolved into white light and quietly faded.
[Konoha, Year 83. Naruto's Home]
Naruto sat on the sofa, his expression heavy.
"There are actually other Ōtsutsuki in the world? No—more likely, like Kaguya, they are beings from outside the world."
And Ōtsutsuki Momoshiki… was the future enemy?
He would have to bring Sasuke back to discuss countermeasures.
---
[Konoha, Year 60. A valley outside Konoha]
Naruto was still lost in the image of Six Paths Naruto on the screen, a bit of drool forming at the corner of his mouth.
That golden chakra cloak, those floating black orbs, and that overwhelming presence—absolutely awesome!
Though Sasuke wasn't as mesmerized as Naruto, he couldn't quite suppress a smile.
Just then, a hand landed on each of their shoulders, snapping the two out of their reverie.
They turned around—and saw Jiraiya and Kakashi.
"Alright, you two. Snap out of it. That's just 'one' possible future. If you don't work hard, you won't achieve it," Jiraiya said gravely.
Kakashi nodded in agreement. "That's right. You two bear the heavy responsibility of confronting the Ōtsutsuki clan on the moon. You can't afford to get complacent."
"Didn't you want to learn the Rasengan, the Chidori, and Sage Mode?"
Hearing that, Naruto and Sasuke's eyes lit up instantly. They nodded eagerly like chicks pecking at grain.
"Good. Naruto, you come with me." Naruto immediately moved behind Jiraiya.
"Kakashi, I'll leave Sasuke to you."
"Understood, Jiraiya-sama." Kakashi naturally agreed.
Sasuke brushed off the hand Kakashi had placed on his shoulder, shoved his hands in his pockets, and silently walked behind Kakashi.
"Sakura, I'll send word to Tsunade shortly. I'm sure she'll have arrangements for you."
"Yes," Sakura was full of confidence.
Although the future shown on the screen was only Naruto and Sasuke's—she believed that with enough effort, she wouldn't fall far behind them.
---
Time passed quickly as Team 7 trained.
Soon, a new week arrived.
Kakashi brought Sasuke to Konoha's training ground ahead of time.
Since the last screen broadcast, the threat of the Ōtsutsuki clan had loomed over the entire Shinobi World.
The other major villages had stopped sending assassins after Naruto and Sasuke, which relieved much of the pressure on Kakashi and Jiraiya, allowing them to train in peace.
Because it was still early, the training ground was empty. A few rows of tall wooden training posts stood silently, fallen leaves scattered among them, adding a touch of desolation.
"Sasuke."
Kakashi stood in the middle of the open area, his gaze on the boy across from him.
"You've already grasped the theory of the Chidori. And after the special training, your physical conditioning has reached the required level too. So today we'll start with practical application."
With that, Kakashi slowly raised his right palm.
CRACKLE!
The sound of thousands of birds screeching exploded in Sasuke's ears.
"I have already told you that the Chidori is the combination of both nature transformation and form transformation of Lightning Release chakra. Did you see clearly? Feel its form and the flow of its chakra."
Sasuke held his breath. His Sharingan had long since activated, the two tomoe spinning rapidly, fixed on the violent lightning in Kakashi's palm.
Only after Sasuke had taken in as much as he could did Kakashi dispel the lightning.
There was no helping it—because he couldn't turn off his Sharingan, Kakashi's chakra reserves were extremely limited. Even a demonstration had to be timed carefully.
"Now, try to gather your Lightning Release chakra in your palm."
Sasuke closed his eyes immediately, focusing all his attention on channeling his chakra.
Just then, an extremely faint sound—like the first chirp of a hatchling—emanated intermittently from between Sasuke's tightly clenched fingers.
Though the sound was faint, to Kakashi's ears it was like a thunderclap.
'So this is what a true Uchiha is like?'
No, that wasn't it. Obito was far worse than this back then.
Or perhaps this was the talent the Sky Screen spoke of—the genius destined to reach Six Paths-level in the future.
Though astonished, Kakashi's face betrayed nothing. He simply told Sasuke to continue practicing.
Several more hours passed.
By the time Jiraiya arrived with Naruto, and Sakura showed up at the training ground at the agreed time—
All they found was a panting Sasuke, and Kakashi leaning against a tree, reading Icha Icha Paradise with a calm expression.
Naruto came running over, hopping and skipping. Seeing Sasuke covered in sweat, he grinned: "Hah! Sasuke! What are you doing? Worn out already?"
Sasuke glanced at him but didn't answer.
He took a deep breath and slowly raised his right hand.
CRACKLE!
Blue lightning burst to life in his palm. Though not as violent as Kakashi's demonstration, it was already a passable shape.
The chirping of birds echoed across the training ground.
Naruto's jaw dropped: "Whoa! You learned the Chidori?!"
Sasuke dispelled the lightning, shoved his hands back into his pockets, and snorted. "What do you think?"
Naruto put his hands on his hips and laughed. "Ah, I was gonna show off myself, but you beat me to it."
"Check this out!"
He formed hand signs and shouted, "Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Poof!
Sakura jumped back a few steps, startled by the two sudden Narutos.
Jiraiya stood nearby, arms crossed, wearing a knowing smile.
"Watch closely!"
Naruto's original body and his Shadow Clone stood side by side.
One hand raised high—one Shadow Clone gathered chakra, while the other handled the form transformation.
Spinning, compressing, condensing.
A blue chakra sphere took shape in Naruto's palm.
"Rasengan!"
Naruto held up the spinning blue sphere, looking triumphantly at Sasuke. "How about it? Pretty impressive, right?"
Sasuke stared at the Rasengan, his lip twitching. He hadn't expected Naruto to have mastered it too—and from the looks of it, even more proficiently than he had with the Chidori.
"It's okay," Sasuke said, turning his head away with a slight pout.
"What do you mean, 'it's okay'?!" Naruto wasn't satisfied. "It's obviously amazing!"
Jiraiya walked over and patted Naruto on the head. "Alright, alright, don't get cocky. You've only just started with the Rasengan. You're still far from mastering it."
Naruto rubbed his head and muttered, "Pervy Sage, can't you just say something nice for once?"
Sakura stood nearby, a smile on her face.
She walked up to a large tree, took a deep breath, and clenched her fist.
"Cha!"
WHAM!
The trunk let out a dull, heavy thud, and the whole tree shook violently.
Cracks spread from the point of impact, and with a loud crack, the tree snapped in half and crashed to the ground.
The training ground fell silent for a moment.
Naruto's eyes went wide, his jaw nearly dropping. "S-Sakura?!"
Sasuke was also stunned, staring at the fallen tree, then at Sakura's fist.
Sakura brushed the wood chips off her hands and raised her chin proudly. "What do you think? I'm not just standing around either!"
Jiraiya let out a low whistle. "Tsunade's taught you well."
Kakashi jumped down from the tree, tucked Icha Icha Paradise away, and swept his gaze over his three students.
Sasuke's Chidori was already taking shape, Naruto's Rasengan was coming along, and Sakura's monstrous strength was already solid.
"Not bad," he said, a rare compliment. "You've all made great progress recently."
Naruto grinned: "Of course! We're going to be the strongest!"
A smile tugged beneath Kakashi's mask. "Now that you've grown stronger and the other villages have stopped bothering us, Lady Tsunade has assigned us an external mission."
The three members of Team 7 looked at him.
"We'll set off once another broadcast ends."
Naruto's eyes lit up. "What kind of mission?"
But Kakashi kept them guessing. "You'll find out when the time comes."
*****
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