The moment Kakashi saw the image on the screen clearly, he froze in his seat like he'd been struck by a petrification jutsu.
A tidal wave of emotions—too complex and overwhelming to name—erupted inside him like a volcano, instantly tearing apart his calm façade.
He shot up from his chair. His exposed eye widened, locked onto the screen with an intensity that made his breath hitch.
—"This... this is impossible!"
This time, what appeared on the screen wasn't the fleeting, blurry glimpse of a red-haired figure from the night before.
No.
This time, it was a vivid, unmistakably real image.
A beautiful woman stood in the kitchen, preparing dinner with practiced ease. Her long, fiery red hair blazed like sunlight through autumn leaves. She wore an apron and had a warm, vibrant smile on her face—radiating a gentle energy that lit up the entire room.
Her profile was soft, her brow carrying a hint of strength, her eyes bright and full of warmth, brimming with love for life itself.
—It was her.
It was Kushina Uzumaki—alive, as if she had never left.
As if none of the tragedy had ever happened.
Kakashi's gaze darted across the background of the scene.
The cozy, lived-in kitchen. The familiar layout of the living room beyond the kitchen door. The furniture. The decorations hanging on the walls.
This place… this style… this apartment layout—
—It's here. It's definitely here.
—This is Minato-sensei and Kushina-senpai's home!
He was absolutely certain.
Back then, as Minato's most trusted student, Kakashi had been to this home countless times—discussing missions with his sensei, sharing meals with his kind, fiery-tempered mentor's wife...
The details might differ slightly from his memory, but the structure, the atmosphere—everything matched.
But there was one problem.
This house—
After the Nine-Tails attack twelve years ago, in order to erase any connection between Naruto and the Fourth Hokage, and to protect the boy, the Third Hokage had ordered this place to be sealed off completely.
Even the records of it were buried under top-level secrecy.
Naruto… he couldn't possibly know this house even existed—
Let alone what it looked like inside.
So what the hell was going on here?
Last night's brief glimpse of a red-haired figure might've been explained away as coincidence or subconscious imagination.
But this?
This clear, vivid image—this exact match of the real-life location—
There was no way this was coincidence.
No way Naruto could've imagined it.
[Ding! Emotional fluctuation detected from Hatake Kakashi! +1000 Emotion Points!]
"Kakashi-sensei? Are you okay?"
Sakura's voice called out in concern.
She and Sasuke both looked over, confused by how rattled and uncharacteristically shaken their teacher seemed.
To them, the screen just showed a warm-looking red-haired lady making dinner. It was a peaceful, cozy scene. Why was their teacher reacting like he'd seen a ghost?
…
—Tsk tsk… Truly worthy of being the Sixth Hokage.
In the shadows of the last row in the theater, Shiyu chuckled as he watched the numbers on his system panel climb with glee.
—Never thought Kakashi, who always seemed so aloof and lazy, would turn out to be a hidden jackpot of emotional energy. Just a little push, and the numbers skyrocket.
Rubbing his chin, eyes glinting with cunning, Shiyu refocused on his system:
[Dreamweaver System]
Current Dream Level: 1 (7450 / 100000)
Dream Targets Reached: 1
Current Viewers: 3
Active Dream Realm Slots: 1
Current Dream Realm: [Flash Unbroken] – This time, on the night fate dictated his death, the Yellow Flash thwarted the enemy's plot.
According to the system, this kind of realm wasn't a simple illusion, but a "fragment of a parallel world"—a simulation based on the real world, where key turning points could unfold differently, spawning alternate futures.
—"Only by anchoring the dream in that kind of realistic possibility can you stir real emotional resonance… Kakashi isn't just reacting to an image. He's seeing a past—or future—that could have existed."
That said, Shiyu was also aware of his limitations.
At Level 1, he couldn't freely create realms or rewrite dreams from scratch.
He could only adjust the outcome of one pivotal moment in the dream target's life.
That was exactly why he had chosen Naruto as his first subject.
Because Naruto's life was filled with too many regrets, too many what-ifs.
All it took was altering that single, tragic starting point… and everything else would change.
The emotional shift—the powerful contrast—would be immense.
—"Heh… Kakashi-sensei, enjoy the show. This is a 'truth' from another possibility."
Shiyu's gaze drifted back to the screen.
…
Inside the dream realm, Naruto looked utterly dumbfounded.
He sat on the soft living room couch, staring blankly around him.
This was… a home?
A clean, bright, warm home.
The air was filled with the mouthwatering smell of food, drifting from the nearby kitchen.
He turned his head and saw a dining table covered with a checkered cloth, already set with steaming, delicious-looking dishes.
His favorite miso ramen.
Golden tamagoyaki.
Fresh green salad.
And a big, glossy plate of perfectly braised pork belly.
Across the room, in the open kitchen, stood the red-haired woman.
She moved with graceful ease, humming a tune slightly off-key as she added spices to a simmering pot.
The dream sunlight streamed through the kitchen window, outlining her features in a soft, radiant glow.
Naruto stared, heart pounding uncontrollably.
That red-haired lady…
Who was she?
She felt… so familiar.
So warm.
Just then, as if sensing his gaze, the red-haired woman turned to him and gave the gentlest, most affectionate smile.
Holding a steaming plate of fried chicken, she walked out of the kitchen and set it on the table. Then, with a playful but doting tone, she called out to the still-stunned Naruto:
—"Naruto! What are you sitting there for? Go wash up! Dinner's ready!"