Chapter 326: Voice
Time returned to the present.
Everything happening before his eyes was too fantastical. Naruto, who'd suddenly gained a son, instantly entered a system crash state.
Realizing he'd spoken incorrectly in his urgency, Boruto hastily scrambled up from the ground, flustered and stammering as he tried to explain. "Um... I..."
"Sorry, he seems to have mistaken you for someone else. We've troubled you."
A man beside him heavily concealed by clothing quickly grabbed Boruto's arm and, speaking these explanatory words at extreme speed, immediately pulled Boruto back several steps, deliberately creating distance.
However, this low and familiar voice was impossible for Naruto to mistake no matter what—too familiar.
"Sasuke-san? Why? Didn't the Plow say we won't affect this worldline? Can't we just explain clearly to Dad and have him let us stay by his side?" Boruto lowered his voice, puzzledly questioning his companion beside him.
"Calm down, Boruto. Strictly speaking, this Naruto isn't your father. Revealing too much about the future—we can't yet determine what effects it'll have on this world. Therefore, we'd better keep our identities secret."
...That should definitely be Uzumaki Boruto, right?
Watching those two ahead deliberately lowering their voices in conversation, Naruto had already reached a definite conclusion. Simultaneously, that familiar voice let him almost confirm the other person's identity. Two options rapidly flashed through his mind:
A: Shirou Emiya
B: Uchiha Sasuke
The answer was already self-evident.
The two still cautiously conferring completely didn't realize their identities had been exposed. Sasuke was racking his brain, thinking how to naturally stay beside the Naruto they'd just encountered without arousing suspicion.
Simultaneously, he also perceived many details in this world held significant differences from his memories. Most obvious was this Naruto's height before his eyes—considerably taller than the Naruto from the same period in Sasuke's memory, visually estimated to be slightly taller even than his teenage self, physique also appearing more upright.
This discovery made Sasuke more convinced they'd truly arrived in a parallel universe different from the original worldline.
Speaking of which, Naruto vaguely remembered from Boruto-related discussions that someone seemed to mention some original arc about adult Sasuke and Boruto traveling to past Konoha for some reason. However, Naruto hadn't actually watched that portion's specific content.
But if this truly was a time travel plot, according to this world's setting, standing before him should be the female version—Satsuki. Could it be these were the male Sasuke and Boruto from the main world? This speculation made Naruto sink into deeper contemplation.
"Yo, Naruto, found you. Long time no see."
A carefree and familiar voice came from not far away, breaking this subtle atmosphere. Jiraiya was walking this way. Most bandages on his body had been removed—only a small white bandage remained stuck atop his head. After half a month's recuperation, his injuries had finally basically healed, though his walking posture still carried some carefulness.
Boruto and Sasuke simultaneously turned hearing the voice. Boruto immediately widened his eyes, recognizing the arrival—he'd recently seen this person's photo in albums. His father's master, one of the legendary Sannin.
"Oh, Jiraiya-san, have your wounds healed? That's wonderful." Naruto politely responded, corners of his mouth carrying a gentle smile, then his tone shifted, carrying some teasing. "But next time, please don't peep."
"You brat, don't say that kind of thing so politely." Jiraiya complained irritably, extending his hand to rub his forehead where bandages hadn't completely been removed.
Naruto naturally knew Jiraiya had very likely been beaten into the hospital by his mother. But Kushina, out of guilty conscience, had fabricated the reason that Jiraiya was caught peeping and beaten. This excuse unexpectedly aligned with Jiraiya's image in everyone's minds.
Jiraiya was currently indeed quite troubled. Having finally recovered freedom, he couldn't conduct his beloved "research" activities. On one hand, due to his special status—as the designated next Hokage, if the scandal "Hokage peeps at women's hot springs" spread, probably even the Third Hokage would curse him bloody.
On the other hand, though Kushina respectfully called him sensei like Minato, her attitude on such matters was identical to Tsunade's. If she discovered him, she'd really beat him to death, forcing him to restrain himself considerably.
"Hmm? Who are you two? Don't think I've seen you in Konoha before—not villagers, right?"
Jiraiya noticed those two strangers behind Naruto who'd been staring this way. He slightly narrowed his eyes, feeling the two gave him a peculiar sense of familiarity yet was quite certain he'd never seen these two faces.
"Um... we..." Boruto momentarily lost words, not knowing how to respond to this sudden situation, instinctively looking toward Sasuke beside him.
"We're street performers." Sasuke quickly took over, voice steady without a trace of fluctuation, fabricating a seemingly reasonable identity. "Walking through streets and alleys throughout the Land of Fire, like this."
To make this lie more convincing, Sasuke had somehow already produced a bright red balloon from his sleeve. He lightly tossed the balloon into the air, then snapped his fingers crisply.
Pop.
The balloon burst on cue. Pre-packed colorful confetti scattered down, glittering with brilliant radiance in the afternoon sunlight, appearing quite beautiful.
But according to Naruto's memory, at this time Sasuke's covered eye should hide a Rinnegan. This seemingly simple little trick—couldn't this be a simplified version of Planetary Devastation?
"Though we can't compare to proper ninja, we know some simple jutsu and earn money performing with this." Sasuke continued fabricating lies with unchanged expression.
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