"What? You want to see Kakashi-sensei? No way, absolutely not!!" The moment Rin voiced her bold request, Ishikawa rejected it without hesitation.
Are you kidding me? He was still in the growth stage, and things were finally going smoothly. He had already established connections with both Kakashi and Tsunade. He had powerful techniques like Chakra Enhanced Strength and Lightning Chakra Mode at hand, and his progress was unfolding in a stable, orderly fashion.
If Nohara Rin suddenly showed up in Konoha now, wouldn't that be like tossing a fire into a pile of dry wood?
He didn't want to be exposed so early under the watchful eyes of the Third Hokage or worse, Danzo, and end up dead before the plot even began, becoming nothing more than a tragic footnote!
"Don't reject me right away. I just want to confirm something. I won't reveal myself or speak to Kakashi—I'll just secretly…"
"Spying in secret? That's even worse!" Before Rin could finish, Ishikawa cut her off with a firm shake of his head.
"Kakashi-sensei is an elite jonin now. With your current strength, do you really think you can sneak around him? If our secret is exposed, it could cause a major disruption between the two worlds. Either I or Konoha could vanish from existence!"
With Kakashi's instincts, he might freeze in shock upon seeing Rin, but the moment he snapped out of it, he'd undoubtedly use his Sharingan to hypnotize her and dig out the truth behind the mysterious intruder who dared toy with his memories of a fallen comrade.
What then? How would Ishikawa deal with that?
"Then what if I use a shadow clone?" Seeing Ishikawa's strong resistance, Rin bit her lip and offered a compromise in a resolute tone.
She trusted Ishikawa, but the truth he shared had been far too shocking. As a ninja, she was kind, but not naive enough to rely solely on someone else's words.
This concerned the fate of Minato's team, of Konoha itself. She had to verify it with her own eyes.
And Ishikawa's reaction itself was evidence. If he refused outright, it meant there was something he didn't want her to see!
"A… shadow clone?" Ishikawa paused, frowning as he looked into Rin's serious gaze. He could tell, if he refused now, a rift would grow between them.
That rift could break the bond they had painstakingly built. And if the trust between two Gatekeepers broke, then what was the point of this double-gate power? His golden finger would turn into his execution order.
Even though I'm a little proud of Rin's growth, why do I feel so damn annoyed? What kind of nonsense is this 'Two Time Door' thing? Can't I be the one in control for once??
With a sigh, Ishikawa finally nodded.
Caution was necessary, but excessive caution would only bring harm. If he rejected her now, it could cause cracks in their already delicate partnership, and that wasn't something he could afford.
In the shinobi world, broken trust always preceded disaster.
Anyway, it was just a shadow clone. Even if something went wrong, the risk was low. It was a fair trade for trust.
"Thanks, Ishikawa." Rin beamed with relief, her voice sweet with gratitude.
At the same time, she exhaled softly in her heart. Looks like I overthought things. If Ishikawa was really hiding something, there's no way he'd let me go check for myself.
But since he agreed, how could she not go and confirm things?
I wonder what Konoha looks like fourteen years into the future…
"Just this once. Next time, even if it's just a shadow clone, I won't allow it. Don't forget your promise: keep everything strictly secret. No contact, no interaction!" Issuing his final warning, Ishikawa turned away and walked toward his door.
"I understand," Rin replied with a calm smile, not at all offended by his stern tone.
After all, she fully understood the risks involved. The two worlds were connected—any misstep could cause irreversible chaos.
If she were in Ishikawa's shoes, she wouldn't trust an outsider with the fate of herself or her entire village so easily, either.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu…" Sticking out her tongue in mock guilt at Ishikawa's retreating figure, Rin quickly formed hand seals and activated the technique.
"Crack…"
Almost the instant Ishikawa opened the door, Nohara Rin's shadow clone darted out and vanished into the night.
Though her chakra had improved significantly after spending time on the door handle, the clone wouldn't last long—she had to move fast.
"Miss Rin, how about we make a deal?" Glancing at the absent-minded and expectant Nohara Rin, Ishikawa suddenly had an idea.
"Deal? What kind of deal?"
"The easiest way to change your fate is by becoming stronger. I'll give you Lady Tsunade's Chakra Enhanced Strength Training Method to help you do that. In return, once you master it, I want you to teach me how to train in it too, and help me get a sealing technique."
"What?! You have Lady Tsunade's training method for Chakra Enhanced strength?" Rin's eyes widened in disbelief. She completely ignored the second half of Ishikawa's sentence as she shouted in surprise.
That was Tsunade-sama, one of the legendary Sannin of Konoha! Rin had just been thinking how she wished for Tsunade's overwhelming strength to stop being so weak—and now, the answer practically landed in her lap.
"Yeah, Lady Tsunade gave it to me. If you don't believe me, you can go ask Kakashi-sensei," Ishikawa said casually, shrugging as he pulled out the scroll labeled Chakra Enhanced Strength from the cabinet.
Truthfully, Ishikawa felt a bit helpless about what looked like a one-sided deal.
Right now, he had four challenging techniques on his plate: the Mystical Palm Technique, Rasengan, Lightning Chakra Mode, and Chakra Enhanced Strength. For someone like him with average talent and limited chakra, even with the door handle plug-in, it was too much at once.
So, to ease the burden, he decided to entrust. And the Chakra Enhanced Strength was perfect for Rin—it suited her both in talent and personality.
Besides, helping Rin grow stronger wasn't just for her sake. A powerful ally meant better defense for their shared dimensional gate. Once she mastered it, she could pass her experience back to Ishikawa, making his learning curve much smoother.
"No need for more convincing. I agree!" Nohara Rin accepted without hesitation and clutched the scroll with trembling fingers. Her eyes glistened with emotion as she looked at Ishikawa, like someone discovering a priceless treasure.
She never imagined that Ishikawa, someone her own age, could offer her something so precious. For someone who had been lost without a training direction, it was like being handed hope.
"Uh… you mentioned a sealing technique?" Just as she was about to open the scroll, Rin paused and blinked awkwardly. "I got so excited I forgot to ask about that part..."
"It's rumored that the Fourth Hokage's sealing techniques are top-notch," Ishikawa began, his eyes flashing with purpose.
"To protect our secret, I need a sealing method to block off memories, something that can stop others from reading our minds. The higher the level, the better."
Of course, the real person he was aiming for wasn't Minato Namikaze himself, but rather Uzumaki Kushina, the final heir of the Uzumaki clan and a sealing arts prodigy.
However, Kushina's existence was a classified secret in both eras, so he could only nudge Rin in that direction subtly.
"Teacher Minato knows sealing techniques, too?" Rin blinked in surprise, but she was secretly overjoyed.
If she could get her hands on a sealing technique to lock away memories, she'd be able to travel between timelines freely without worrying about disrupting anything.
Meanwhile, above the rooftops of Konoha…
A black shadow zipped swiftly across buildings, weaving under the shroud of dark clouds and soft moonlight. Then suddenly, as the moonlight spilled onto the Fourth Hokage's monument, the petite figure came to a dead stop.
Her pupils constricted. Her body trembled slightly. "The Fourth Hokage… It really is Minato-sensei..."