Chapter 337: Otsutsuki
Konoha Village at night was exceptionally quiet. Moonlight spilled across the streets, the night wind carrying a chill, but this coolness fell far short of the ice in Sasuke's heart at this moment. Boruto and Sasuke stood side by side on a small bridge spanning a stream, the sound of flowing water beneath particularly clear in the silence.
To be fair, this world held no malice toward him. Sasuke had even seen his long-deceased parents again, spoken those words buried deep in his heart for years that he'd thought he'd never have the chance to say... Thinking carefully, the price for this gift didn't seem unacceptable.
However, for Uchiha Sasuke who remained supremely proud in his bones, these reasons were far from enough to smooth over the surging shame in his heart. That absurd feeling of seeing "another self" develop that kind of relationship with Naruto still stuck in his throat.
"...Sasuke-san," Boruto carefully spoke, breaking the silence. "Were your childhood relationships also that good? I mean! Without that kind of relationship! You two..."
Realizing he'd said the wrong thing, Boruto immediately stammered, not knowing how to salvage it. Sasuke couldn't help thinking—when had this child's mouth become so troublesome?
"What I mean is! Under different circumstances! Your relationship with Dad could actually be so... uh, 'normal,'" Boruto dug himself deeper. "Good thing it won't affect our..."
He couldn't continue because Sasuke was watching him with that seemingly calm yet spine-chilling gaze. Boruto swallowed and obediently shut his mouth.
"Yes," Sasuke's voice seemed especially cold in the night wind. "So in comparison, you who only cause me trouble are not bad."
This statement—unclear whether sarcastic or sincere—plunged the atmosphere into silence again. The two merely quietly stood at the dim bridge head.
"...Then Sasuke-san," Boruto couldn't help speaking again, attempting to ease the awkward atmosphere. "Do you think there's a world where Dad is actually a girl?"
"..." Sasuke slowly turned his head. "You want to discuss this topic?"
"Uh... I'm joking." Boruto hastily waved his hands, realizing he was adding fuel to the fire again.
A night wind blew past. The water surface beneath the bridge rippled with glittering light. Boruto gazed at those shattered moon reflections, his voice suddenly becoming downcast.
"Sasuke-san... what about this world's Mom?"
His tone revealed rare vulnerability—profound worry for his mother.
"Mom, she's very gentle, sometimes very stubborn... If Dad doesn't choose her, what will she do?"
Hearing this, Sasuke froze. Observing the unease revealed on Boruto's face, he realized this parallel world's various possibilities similarly troubled and distressed this youth.
"Boruto, remember—this isn't our worldline. Your mother is still in our future now. She remains your mother. This point will never change."
Sasuke organized his words—rare for him. "Moreover, though I don't know much about your mother, Naruto once told me about her." Sasuke's gaze looked toward the distance. "She used her own persistence to 'choose' your father and brought him to her side. This strength cannot be shaken by any other insignificant 'possibilities.'"
"And Boruto, if this world's Hinata knew Naruto had another... girl beside him," he subtly paused, "perhaps what you worry about won't happen from the start."
Boruto froze, obviously not expecting Sasuke to so patiently comfort him. After carefully considering these words, the gloom on his face gradually dispersed, revealing a relieved smile. "Haha, you're right. We just need to protect our world well, safeguard the possibility we've already decided."
Though saying this, Boruto privately decided to find an opportunity to visit this world's Hyuga household.
As the atmosphere recovered its ease, Boruto half-jokingly said another sentence. "Right, in this world's future, will the me here have to call Sasuke-san Master's Wife?"
CRACK.
As the words fell, Sasuke's hand resting on the bridge railing violently squeezed out a deep imprint. Wood shavings rustled down from between his fingers.
Sasuke's gaze became terrible again. Boruto immediately realized he'd said the wrong thing, hastily supplementing: "Um! What I meant is! I think Sasuke-san's Sharingan is really cool! So... I..."
Realizing this statement might make things worse, Boruto wisely closed his mouth.
"Boruto..." Sasuke's voice was so low it almost seemed like a sigh. "Let's go. Training."
"Eh? Now?" Boruto looked somewhat surprised at the already high-hanging moon.
"Yes," Sasuke turned. "After all, we don't know when Urashiki will attack. Let's make the most of our time."
"I see... alright..." Though agreeing verbally, an ominous premonition surged in Boruto's heart. He felt tonight's training probably wouldn't be easy.
---
The next afternoon, the training ground at Konoha's edge currently gathered four people, each conducting different training.
Uchiha Satsuki was concentratedly practicing ninja tool throwing, each shuriken precisely hitting the distant target's center.
Not far away, Uzumaki Naruto sat cross-legged beneath tree shade, carefully reading through a thick scroll. Sasuke felt that scroll looked somewhat familiar.
Uzumaki Boruto somewhat distressedly moved his body, occasionally revealing grimacing expressions due to muscle soreness. Last night's training guidance from Uchiha Sasuke had been stricter than he'd imagined. Though the other had obviously held back strength ensuring he wouldn't truly injure him, the high-intensity training still made his body protest.
This morning, Boruto had deliberately found the Hyuga main family estate. Hiding in the distance, he'd seen this world's mother—Hinata Hyuga. She was training together with a youth only seen in family photos—his uncle Neji Hyuga, a relative who'd already sacrificed himself before his birth.
While observing, Boruto discovered this world's mother interacted with Neji with gentle, natural expressions, completely showing no loss or regret. Could it be true as Sasuke said—this world's mother had chosen a different path from the start?
Unfortunately, before he'd observed long, Neji's Byakugan sensed his presence. Boruto could only hastily flee the scene, heart feeling mixed about this discovery.
Uchiha Sasuke stood at the training ground's edge, seemingly casually leaning against a tree trunk but actually maintaining constant vigilance.
Though nominally the monitored subject, he was actually executing a protection mission, quietly awaiting Urashiki's attack.
When exactly would Urashiki come? The Plow had previously said "several days later," but this vague time range prevented peace of mind. Sasuke calculated the worst possibility in his mind—now!
Sasuke violently widened his eyes. Simultaneously, a frivolous yet dangerous voice came from above.
"Finally arrived. The plan was disrupted, but whatever... I'll just harvest the annoying ones together."
Everyone looked up. A white-clothed figure wielding a red fishing rod floated in midair, gazing down at everyone on the training ground with a mocking smile, pupil-less eyes flashing with dangerous light.