Time moved quickly, before anyone realized it, seven long years had already passed.
In those seven years, much had changed. The most obvious was the Leaf Village itself. Konoha now pulsed with a vibrancy it had never seen before, its streets alive with new energy.
Signs of modern craftsmanship and technology dotted the landscape, proof of progress and innovation blooming even in a village built on tradition.
Yet, some things remained untouched. The Hokage Rock still bore only five faces, eternal guardians carved into stone, each one a testament to the generations that had carried Konoha from its founding to the present day.
And now, within the home of the man known as the strongest in the shinobi world, a storm of voices was rising.
Well… not exactly a quiet storm.
"HUH!?" Tsunade shot to her feet, rolling up her sleeves with fire in her eyes. "What did you just say, Guts!?"
Before she could actually swing, Kurenai hurried to block her path. Even she, though, wore a complicated expression.
"Guts… are you really being serious this time?" she asked, hesitation in her voice.
"Or is this just another excuse to sneak out and wander? Don't forget, the last time you 'vanished,' you were gone for an entire month before showing your face again…" Her tone turned helpless, as though she was bracing herself for another headache.
"Hahaha! Kurenai nailed you this time, Sen-Guts!" Anko leaned back with a grin, her tongue darting over her lips in her usual teasing way.
"If you really are heading out, then take me with you! I'm rotting from boredom over here ugh!" She groaned, throwing her head back dramatically.
"Hmm…" Mei, who had been calmly observing the whole exchange, finally spoke. Tapping her lips with one finger, she narrowed her eyes.
"Somehow… my intuition tells me Guts isn't joking this time." Her gaze shifted toward her husband, who had been sitting in silence all this while, listening to their chatter.
There he was...Guts, seated in the garden, long rough hair stirring with the wind, giving him the wild aura of a beast untamed.
Yet when his sharp eyes softened as they fell upon the women around him, that beastly air blended with something gentler.
He listened quietly as they voiced their concerns in their own unique ways.
A grin tugged at the corner of his lips. Just as he was about to speak, however, a soft, delicate voice chimed in... so sweet it instantly drew his attention, as though the whole world had shifted toward that sound.
"Papa… here, I finished it! Take a look!"
The soft, cheerful voice belonged to Hina, who stood proudly with a sketchbook in her tiny hands.
The little girl's hair swayed as she smiled sweetly, her every move brimming with the elegance of someone who pretended to be mature far beyond her age.
"Mm? Let's see…" Guts leaned forward, his sharp eyes softening as he accepted the drawing.
But before his hands could reach it...
"Yoink!"
A blond blur zipped past and snatched the paper.
"Got it!" Erza laughed, holding the drawing high above her head as she dashed behind Tsunade's leg.
"What's this, huh? Some lovey-dovey picture of Papa?" Her voice carried that tsundere mix of mockery and embarrassment, cheeks faintly flushed.
"Erza! That's mine!" Hina stomped her foot, puffing her cheeks in frustration.
Erza stuck out her tongue, waving the sketch dramatically like a flag. "Hmph! If you want Papa's attention, you gotta fight for it, sis~!"
But her victory was short-lived.
From behind, a pair of crimson eyes gleamed.
Kanna moved silently, expression blank as ever. Without a word, she slipped behind her sister, grabbed her by the collar, and tugged her forward like a cat hauling prey.
"Prank failed," Kanna announced flatly, tugging the drawing free. She handed it back to Hina before delivering Erza straight to their father.
"Traitor!" Erza squeaked, struggling with flustered cheeks. "Why'd you take her side?!"
Kanna didn't answer... her gaze lingered instead on the sketchbook now safe in Hina's hands.
It was a drawing of Guts himself, seated in the lawn, long hair flowing in the wind, his wild aura captured perfectly, yet with a smile so gentle it made him look almost otherworldly.
"…Not bad," Guts murmured, lips tugging upward. He reached out and ruffled Kanna's hair with a warm smile. "Good work, Kanna."
For a brief second, Kanna's stoic mask cracked. The corners of her lips twitched upward into a tiny smile but she quickly hid it, staring blankly again as if nothing had happened.
Erza, meanwhile, crossed her arms and huffed, cheeks puffed. "Tch… fine. But next time, Papa, I'll win for sure!"
The warm moment was cut off by the sound of a pop!
In the corner, Rakan's nose bubble burst as he rolled in his sleep.
"Rakan!" Hina scolded, puffing herself up like a little adult. "How can you sleep when Papa's talking about something important?!" She raised her hand and gave him a light bonk.
But even half-asleep, Rakan twitched aside, dodging effortlessly. His eyes cracked open lazily.
"…Meat."
That was his first word.
Before anyone could react, his form blurred and after a moment, he reappeared with an armful of roasted skewers, dumplings, and steaming bowls of ramen.
"Oi, oi…" Anko muttered, rubbing her temple. "He's exactly like you, Guts."
"Dad!" Rakan grinned, tossing a skewer his father's way.
With practiced ease, Guts caught it midair, giving his son a sharp nod of approval.
Rakan responded with a confident thumbs up.
No more words needed. Father and son had achieved a perfect, unspoken understanding.
"Unbelievable…" Kurenai sighed, though the corner of her mouth softened.
"Fufufu~" Mei covered her mouth with a smile, eyes shining warmly at the chaos—the proud Hina, the sulking Erza, the stoic Kanna hiding her smile, and Rakan already munching like a little beast.
This was the strongest man in the shinobi world. But here, surrounded by the storm of his wives and children... he was simply a father.
Each of the children carried not only their father's blood but also the spirit of their mothers.
Erza, the blonde tsundere, was unmistakably Tsunade's daughter stubborn, fiery, yet with a hidden softness that only surfaced when it came to her Papa.
Hina, the charming little lady, was Mei's child through and through... graceful, composed, and always trying to act like the reliable elder sister.
Rakan, with his black hair and wild aura, could only belong to Anko... reckless, mischievous, and carrying Guts instincts to an absurd degree.
And finally, Kanna... calm, sharp-eyed, and expressionless on the outside, yet hiding a heart that quietly longed for praise was Kurenai's daughter, the reflection of her mother's quiet strength.
---
Guts watched the scene before him with a faint smile. His wives bickering, his children causing chaos, the warmth of family filling the air… yet his gaze slowly shifted inward.
For the first time in years, he opened the system menu he had long ignored.
[Congratulations, Host. You have completed all achievements in this world.]
[A new dungeon world has been unlocked: The One Piece World.]
[Note: Upon entering, you cannot leave until the plot of that world concludes. If you forcefully depart, the coordinates will be lost permanently.]
[Additional Note: Time flows differently between worlds. One month in the Naruto world equals one year in the One Piece world.]
The words burned across his vision.
Back then, when he first saw this message, he had hesitated. For seven years, he chose not to answer it.
Seven years of warmth. Seven years of laughter, of love, of simply living alongside the people who had become his everything.
And yet…
The feeling never truly left him. The itch in his chest. The whisper of something beyond.
The shinobi world… he had already conquered it. There was nothing left that could challenge him here.
If fate demanded he remain forever, he would have accepted it gladly, content to spend his days rotting away in peace with his wives and children.
But now...this chance. This open door.
The fire in his heart that had never died, no matter how old he grew, began to stir again.
That childish yearning for adventure, the thrill of witnessing new horizons, of stepping into the unknown… it was calling to him.
"…Tch." A grin tugged at his lips as his eyes hardened.
He had already made his decision. He would go.
But before he stepped into another world, there were things he needed to settle here.
Closing the system window, Guts exhaled slowly, his gaze drifting back to his family, the smile returning to his face.
𝘼/𝙉: 𝘼 𝙗𝙤𝙣𝙪𝙨 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙢𝙮 𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡! ⬇️ 𝙉𝙖𝙧𝙪𝙩𝙤: 𝙍𝙚𝙗𝙤𝙧𝙣 𝙖𝙨 𝙃𝙞𝙙𝙖𝙣 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙄𝙢𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙖𝙡
𝙎𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙮 𝙙𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙥𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖 𝙛𝙚𝙬 𝙋𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧 𝙎𝙩𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚... 𝙞𝙩 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙥𝙨 𝙖 𝙡𝙤𝙩.