Naruto found himself standing in his sealed space once again, facing both the fox and the unfamiliar man who had just appeared.
He frowned, feeling a little confused.
"Wait… didn't you just tell me to get rid of that ghost guy?" Naruto turned to Kurama, his brow furrowed. "And now you two are acting like you're on the same team?"
Kurama let out a deep sigh, his tails twitching slightly.
"Naruto, don't be stupid," Indra said, folding his arms. "A few words of persuasion aren't enough to change the influence of Ashura's will on you. It's not something you can just brush away."
"…Then what do you suggest?" Kurama asked, genuinely curious.
Indra smirked. "Take your time. Influence isn't something that can be overturned instantly."
He was confident.
After all, unlike Ashura, whose will only existed as a chakra reincarnation within Naruto, he was here in his real body. He had the advantage. And with Kurama siding with him, dissolving Ashura's will was only a matter of time.
If he couldn't even do that, then he might as well return to the Pure Land and stop wasting his time fighting Ashura's reincarnations every generation.
Indra looked at Naruto thoughtfully and asked, "Tell me, is there something you really want to do right now? Maybe I can help you achieve it."
He assumed Naruto would ask for more power. He wasn't entirely confident in training him, but if it meant swaying him away from Ashura's influence, he was willing to try.
Naruto scratched his head, deep in thought. Suddenly, his eyes lit up.
"Can you help me bring Sasuke back?"
Indra blinked. "...Huh?"
Naruto's voice became more urgent. "Sasuke was taken away by those guys from the Otherworld! You must have some way to bring him back, right?"
Indra raised an eyebrow. He turned to Kurama.
Kurama lazily flicked his tails. "Uchiha Sasuke," he explained, "is your descendant. He's also the current reincarnation of your chakra. To gain more power, he willingly went to the empire in the Otherworld."
"It wasn't voluntary!" Naruto immediately snapped back, glaring at the fox. "Sasuke was deceived by those guys!"
Kurama rolled his eyes and scoffed. "Oh, sure. Not voluntary. He was 'deceived.'"
Naruto clenched his fists. "Sasuke wouldn't just leave like that!"
Indra watched the exchange with mild amusement.
Honestly? He was more inclined to believe Kurama.
Kurama had no reason to lie to him, and from the way Naruto was acting, he seemed more desperate than rational.
Indra sighed. "Even if Sasuke left of his own accord, you still want to bring him back?"
"Of course!" Naruto exclaimed without hesitation.
Indra studied him. "If he left to grow stronger, then maybe he had his own reasons. Shouldn't you respect that?"
"I can train with him!" Naruto argued. "He doesn't need to go with those guys!"
Naruto clenched his fists. His mind flashed back to all the times he had trained with Sasuke—climbing trees together, pushing each other to the limit, reaching the top side by side.
The bridge in the Land of Waves…
Sasuke standing in front of him, shielding him from Haku's ice needles…
Sasuke, who had fought to protect him.
Sasuke, who had always been there.
Naruto refused to believe Sasuke had left him behind.
Indra's face twitched.
There was something… strange about Naruto's attachment to Sasuke.
Kurama visibly shuddered. "Naruto, you little brat, do you even hear yourself? You sound like your wife ran off with someone else."
"…" Indra remained silent, his expression unreadable.
But deep down, he had to agree.
Why did the reincarnations of his and Ashura's chakra always end up like this?
First it was Madara and Hashirama, now Naruto and Sasuke.
This wasn't how it was supposed to be!
He and Ashura had been normal brothers. Their relationship had started strong before their ideologies clashed. That was all!
Why did their reincarnations keep developing in such… weird directions?!
Indra cleared his throat, pushing those thoughts aside. "Listen, I can't bring Sasuke back for you."
Naruto's face fell. "Seriously?"
Indra felt a vein pop in his forehead. He inhaled sharply to calm himself. "But," he said, "if you accept my training and work hard, maybe you can bring him back yourself."
Naruto's eyes immediately lit up. "Really?!"
Indra smirked. "Doesn't that sound more meaningful? Bringing him back with your own strength?"
"Yeah!" Naruto nodded enthusiastically.
"Good," Indra said, pleased. "Your current foundation is weak, but that's fine. Kurama and I will train you together."
"…"
Kurama's ears twitched. "Wait. What do you mean 'we'?"
Meanwhile, in the Land of Wind
At the ruins of the ancient Loulan city, Kakashi, Obito, and Senju Hashirama activated the Flying Thunder God teleportation array.
In the blink of an eye, they arrived.
Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro were trembling.
Now they understood.
These people…
They weren't just legendary figures brought back to life.
They were from another world.
An invading force from an Otherworld ninja empire!
Obito studied Gaara carefully. "...Hey, are you Gaara?"
Gaara's expression remained cold. "Hmph."
Obito raised an eyebrow. "Wow, you still don't have eyebrows in this world either, huh?"
"…What?" Gaara's frown deepened.
Temari coughed, trying to suppress a laugh. "Wait a second," she said, realizing something. "Are you saying there's another Gaara in your world?"
"Of course," Obito said. "But our Gaara is way better than this one."
"…"
"Our Gaara is a top student at Imperial Central University," Obito added smugly. "One of the strongest among his peers."
Gaara stared, unamused.
"And," Obito continued, "he doesn't have tattoos or wear eye shadow like some wannabe punk."
Gaara stiffened. "Tattoos? Eye shadow?"
Temari burst out laughing before quickly covering her mouth.
"He's talking about the dark rings around your eyes," she explained, still snickering. "Because you never sleep."
Gaara scowled. "Those aren't eye shadow, idiot."
Kakashi sighed. "It's because Sunagakure's sealing methods are flawed. Their Jinchūriki suffer from unstable seals that allow the tailed beast to constantly interfere with their minds. Unlike Konoha's Nine Tails Jinchūriki, who only experiences interference during emotional fluctuations."
Obito's mouth fell open. "Wait… so this kid can't sleep at all?"
Kakashi nodded grimly.
Obito was speechless. "Just to use the tailed beast's power… they put their Jinchūriki through this hell?!"
Senju Hashirama clenched his fists.
"This is all my fault," he muttered. "If I had never distributed the tailed beasts, this never would have happened."
Bai Kakashi shook his head. "No, the real problem isn't the distribution of the tailed beasts. It's the greed and incompetence of the ninja villages."
Gaara suddenly flinched.
Shukaku was growing restless inside him.
"Shukaku's acting up," Gaara muttered.
Hashirama narrowed his eyes. "Then let me help you."
He placed a hand on Gaara's forehead.
Swish!
In an instant, Hashirama entered Gaara's sealed space.
Shukaku's eyes widened in terror.
"DON'T COME ANY CLOSER!"
Hashirama smiled. "One Tail, you're a little too active. Let's calm you down for a bit, shall we?"
His hands came together in a seal.
"Sage Art: Myojinmon!"
A massive red torii gate descended from the heavens, slamming down onto Shukaku's back with a thunderous crash.
Shukaku howled, struggling against the weight—
But it was useless.
The seal had been reinforced.
Gaara's body relaxed. For the first time in his life…
His mind was completely silent.
And for the first time in years—
Gaara knew what it felt like to be at peace.
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