Very quickly, Natsuro once again found himself in that strange space.
However, this time, he didn't choose to do anything extra. After all, he only had one chance, if he couldn't return, it would be a huge problem.
Thus, he only carefully sensed the power of traversing time and space, trying to understand its force.
After that, Natsuro sensed a Flying Thunder God mark. He briefly considered it but gave up. He couldn't afford to mess around any longer.
Soon, the spatial-temporal fluctuations disappeared, and as light returned before his eyes, he found himself staring at a field of ruins. As expected, he had returned to Rōran.
However, he sensed that the spatial-temporal fluctuations hadn't completely stopped yet. It seemed someone else hadn't returned.
It should be Kakashi and the other three...
At that moment, Natsuro suddenly frowned. Compared to that, there was a bigger and more troublesome issue, he quickly realized there was no trace of his Spirit Clone.
According to Natsuro's understanding, even if his main body had really died, it shouldn't have affected the Spirit Clone. In that case, the secondary soul would simply become the only soul left and could survive by creating a suitable body.
So why couldn't he sense the Spirit Clone? He couldn't even sense the secondary soul.
Could it be that the secondary soul, after being separated from him, suddenly developed independent consciousness and rebelled?
Natsuro thought about it, then shook his head. That seemed unlikely. Maybe the two worlds had severed the connection between the two souls? And now it couldn't be restored?
Or perhaps, he looked around, this still wasn't his original world.
And that wasn't impossible either. After all, it would be very hard for the dragon vein of another world to influence him. So... could this be this world's dragon vein?
Then...
Natsuro squinted his eyes as he looked at the still-settling spatial-temporal ripples and the four figures who had suddenly collapsed onto the ground.
Kakashi, Naruto, Sasuke, and...
"Menma Namikaze," Natsuro muttered.
The appearance of Menma confirmed that Natsuro was still in another version of his world.
Looking at this Team 7, he thought, it seemed that what he failed to accomplish in his own world, Menma had succeeded in doing here, like joining Team 7.
It made sense. In a situation where the other teams couldn't be easily reshuffled, and considering Menma was someone the Fourth Hokage would pay special attention to, naturally, he wouldn't be placed in an ordinary team.
Or maybe, simply, in this world there were four official graduating teams.
At this point, the four people gradually began to wake up.
"Ugh, my head hurts. I feel like I had a dream, but I can't remember it at all," Naruto groaned, rubbing his head as he sat up. Then he noticed Natsuro nearby and waved, "Hey, Menma, why are you just standing there?"
"What are you talking about, Naruto? I'm right next to you..." Menma said, also rubbing his head. Hearing Naruto's words, he couldn't help but retort.
Still rubbing his head and trying to recall what happened, Menma couldn't remember anything. As expected, their memories had been wiped.
"Huh?" Naruto froze, then suddenly turned and looked at Menma, then at Natsuro. He blinked. "Menma, when did you learn how to make a clone? Is that a Shadow Clone?"
"Don't mess around. In this state, how could I even use Shadow Clone..."
As they spoke, Menma realized something was wrong. He turned and saw Natsuro standing there smiling and waving at him.
"Yo, long time no see," Natsuro greeted.
"You are..." Menma stared wide-eyed at Natsuro, whose face was identical to his own.
Kakashi and Sasuke, who were nearby, also noticed and looked puzzled.
Could it be that Menma wasn't the Fourth Hokage's only illegitimate child? Were there two of them... twins?
"Man, sensei sure got around... Should I tell sensei's wife or not?"
Kakashi felt conflicted. If he didn't tell, he would feel guilty toward his teacher's wife. If he did tell, it might cause problems between them, which he didn't want either.
Sasuke, meanwhile, was simply curious. His eyes sparkled with an innocence not seen in the Sasuke of Natsuro's world, suggesting this Sasuke might not have experienced the Uchiha Clan Massacre.
"We've met before," Natsuro reminded.
Menma immediately recalled it, when he was just a few months old, during the Nine-Tails incident, this person had appeared in the orphanage, in his room.
As he grew up and saw his own reflection, Menma had thought it was himself who changed the Fourth Hokage's fate.
As for how he got back, he had assumed it involved the dragon vein. Now it seemed he had been wrong. The person he met that day wasn't his future self, but the completely unknown individual standing before him now.
Moreover, the person's appearance hadn't changed since that day, suggesting he had traveled through time using the dragon vein too.
Menma gritted his teeth a little. Thanks to this guy, the original story had been completely altered, making his "golden finger" memories practically useless...
But after a glance at Natsuro, Menma sighed. Whatever. It was already like this. Given his current experiences, he no longer wished to see the Fourth Hokage die anyway. After all, the man had treated him well.
So well, in fact, that Menma had sometimes wondered if he was the Fourth Hokage's illegitimate son...
"Can we talk alone?" Natsuro suddenly asked.
Menma nodded. He also had a lot he wanted to ask Natsuro. Given that he hadn't killed him as a baby, it was unlikely he meant any harm.
"I'll be right back," Menma told his teammates and teacher, suggesting they return to Konoha first. Then he left with Natsuro.
The others were curious but agreed.
Once they reached a desert area, Menma asked seriously, "Who exactly are you?"
"Why don't you take a guess?" Natsuro raised an eyebrow.
"Nope. If you don't want to say, forget it," Menma rolled his eyes.
"Hmm..." Natsuro looked at Menma. Maybe because of their different experiences, their personalities were a bit different too. Then Natsuro spoke a name.
Menma's eyes instantly widened, because Natsuro had spoken the name of Menma's past life.
In that moment, Menma's mind was a mess, his thoughts swirling. He stared at Natsuro, frantically analyzing the situation. After a long while, he asked,
"You're not from this world?"
"Smart, as expected of me," Natsuro nodded, smiling.
Menma let out a breath of relief and said, "You scared me half to death. So how did you get here?"
Menma thought about it. His past life's name had never been told to anyone. Only he knew it.
Plus, the person looked exactly like him. Given the existence of time travel, it wasn't hard to boldly guess that this Natsuro was another version of himself from a different world.
Turns out, he was right. As a modern person, the concept of parallel worlds wasn't that hard to accept.
"During the dragon vein mission time-space travel, I sensed your presence and used Flying Thunder God to get to the Fourth Hokage's home. You know the rest," Natsuro briefly explained.
"No wonder..." Menma finally understood why the Fourth Hokage had taken such special care of his orphanage, and why, no matter what he explained, there were always rumors about him being an illegitimate child.
At first, Menma had suspected the Fourth Hokage himself was a transmigrator trying to raise Kabuto's loyalty to Konoha, since Kabuto was the pinnacle of ordinary people in the original series.
But later, seeing how the Hokage seemed to favor him more, Menma started to wonder if he really was the Hokage's illegitimate son. After all, the name "Menma" seemed oddly familiar, almost as if Naruto would have been named Menma if not Naruto...
"So how will you get back? Don't tell me you're stuck here?" Menma suddenly realized something and asked.
"..." Natsuro didn't answer.
"You're really stuck here?!" Menma's eyes widened.
"I'm not completely sure," Natsuro shrugged. Earlier, he had sensed a Flying Thunder God mark, probably from his own world. He planned to give it his all and try; maybe there was still hope.
"So... how can I help?" Menma asked. Clearly, Natsuro had sought him out to ask for help returning, right? But honestly, Menma had no clue what to do.
"I don't need your help. I just want to see how strong the me of this world is." Natsuro said with a smile, his eyes flashing with fighting spirit.
However, to Natsuro's surprise, Menma immediately refused.
"I'm not fighting."
"Why not?" Natsuro asked.
"I know what you're capable of. You once beat the Nine-Tails with just one hand. I don't think I could ever do that, so I'm not about to ask for a beating," Menma said. Previously, he hadn't been sure, but now he could confirm that the person who achieved that feat wasn't Minato, but the guy standing before him.
And no wonder the Nine-Tails always looked like it wanted to eat him alive, the resemblance explained everything.
Natsuro stared at Menma for a long moment. Seeing that he was serious, Natsuro could only nod helplessly. Since Menma refused, he wouldn't force it.
Though they didn't fight, Menma and Natsuro still exchanged stories about their experiences. Menma was curious how Natsuro had become so powerful, after all, even with Minato's help, he himself hadn't grown that strong.
Soon, Natsuro shared some of his past experiences. After all, there was no need to hide anything.
"I see... so in that world, my biological mother didn't die?" Menma muttered to himself. So he really wasn't Minato's illegitimate child, that was a little shocking.
As for having parents, Menma didn't care much. He had memories from his previous life and wasn't particularly eager to suddenly have a mother pop into his life.
The only real upside was that he hadn't had to start life in an orphanage.
Thinking about it, Menma realized that without Natsuro's help, his own starting point would have been a nightmare. Even if he could still manipulate Kabuto, breaking free of the situation would have been extremely hard.
At this point, Menma felt rather grateful.
Regarding strength, Menma realized that Natsuro didn't seem to have anything particularly fancy, except for his body, which had been transformed by natural energy, boosting his physical foundation to an incredible level.
Menma was tempted, but unfortunately, the Grael Ore Vein in his world was already gone...
So Natsuro's path was closed to him. As for fusing the three Sage Modes, while theoretically possible, He felt it was unlikely for him. His body was already a mess, and he didn't have time to research Sage Mode properly.
Even if he managed it, the fusion wouldn't be as perfect as Natsuro's, and he wouldn't be able to maintain Sage Mode indefinitely. Better to stick to his own chosen path.
Menma's experiences, in turn, made Natsuro a little speechless. He seriously doubted whether Menma was really another version of himself, he'd messed up his body too much.
Hashirama cells had replaced almost every cell in his body. Then he had Uchiha blood as well, plus a pair of Mangekyō Sharingan he could open and close at will, and his bones had been replaced with the Kaguya clan's Shikotsumyaku.
According to Menma's plan, he intended to cultivate a miniature Ten-Tails. After all, Kurama could be split in half without issue, so splitting off a tenth or a twelfth of the other Tailed Beasts should be possible too.
As for the materials for the Ten-Tails, he planned to sneak a piece off the Ten-Tails during the Fourth Great Ninja War, or perhaps cut a piece from the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path during an assault on the Akatsuki. If not, he could gather Tailed Beast chakra stored in other objects.
Listening to all this, Natsuro couldn't help but feel that Menma was... something else.
But honestly, this might really be the only path for a "normal" person seeking power.Well, not quite normal, after all, not everyone had an "older brother" several years older who was insanely skilled at research.
That's right, Kabuto. Under Menma's persuasion, Kabuto's dream was now to run an orphanage like Nonō Yakushi and to "protect all orphans." His new catchphrase was, "My brother Menma is invincible!"
Just like Natsuro imagined, a key difference in this world was that the Uchiha clan hadn't been massacred. Sasuke's personality was vastly improved, and Menma, as his teammate, felt it strongly.
Sasuke was now a strong and reliable teammate, a little aloof but warm on the inside and very caring toward his companions.
The Konoha Crush plan had been abandoned too. After all, no matter how bold Orochimaru was, he wouldn't dare mess with a still-healthy Fourth Hokage and a still-alive Third Hokage.
There was even a rumor that Konoha had a trump card capable of easily defeating the Nine-Tails, one they usually kept hidden.
Natsuro suspected that trump card was probably him, and the rumor had likely been spread by Obito.
"If you can't go back, why not come back to Konoha with me?" Menma suddenly suggested. If he could convince a super expert like Natsuro to return, his plans would go much more smoothly.
"No need. I should be able to go back, using Flying Thunder God," Natsuro replied. While talking to Menma, he had tried sensing his marks and found he could vaguely detect the Flying Thunder God imprint from his own world.
Menma was stunned but didn't argue. After all, in theory, as long as he had enough chakra and could sense the mark across worlds, it should be possible.
"Then this is goodbye. I hope your plans succeed," Menma said. He looked at Natsuro with some emotion. He could more or less predict his own future strength, but Natsuro's limits were completely invisible to him.
Still, it didn't matter. At least regarding the Fourth Great Ninja War, he wasn't too worried. With those two cheats (Natsuro and Kabuto), there was no way they could lose. He could just coast along.
"You too," Natsuro nodded, then handed Menma a Flying Thunder God kunai. Menma also handed Natsuro one in return.
After all, Menma was someone the Fourth Hokage personally valued and had a natural aptitude for space-time ninjutsu. Minato had already known that Natsuro could use Flying Thunder God, so he had entrusted Menma with the technique without much hesitation, one more reason Menma had suspected he might be Minato's illegitimate child.
Afterward, Menma used Flying Thunder God to leave, leaving Natsuro alone in the desert.
Natsuro looked up at the sky, wondering, could there be another world, one where he didn't exist at all, just like Menma's situation?
No support from the Fourth Hokage, relying solely on himself...
What would he do then?
He would still have to manipulate Kabuto. After getting Kabuto, there would be no excuse not to use research to gain power. Maybe he would end up using the Guiro Mai technique too.
Actually, Menma wasn't even using the Guiro Mai technique directly. Instead, he had used forbidden research left behind in Konoha by Orochimaru and reconstructed it with Kabuto's help.
Still, in that world, from a young age, Natsuro would have had to face true darkness. Root wouldn't have spared Nonō Yakushi.
Would he have had the power to stop it back then? If not, who knows what he would have become afterward...
He narrowed his eyes. The most likely outcome would be becoming someone who would stop at nothing for power, and seek revenge on everything.
But all that didn't matter now. Natsuro turned his gaze toward a certain direction, the location of the dragon vein.
He thought since no one would be using the dragon vein anymore, no one should mind if he took it.
Instead of letting it sit sealed away, it was better to make use of it.
Soon, Natsuro arrived at the dragon vein's sealing site. It was still sealed with a special Flying Thunder God kunai made by the Fourth Hokage.
He inspected the sealing technique and nodded. As expected of the Fourth Hokage.
Still, they had the same teacher, and most of the sealing techniques Jiraiya taught Natsuro were left behind by Minato, so after a little time, he managed to unravel the seal.
However, he didn't fully unseal it, he only left a small opening for himself to absorb its energy.
The next moment, Natsuro sat cross-legged and began absorbing the seemingly endless power of the dragon vein.
If you want to read more...
Check out the patreon and get 55 chapters in advance -> SaintXI
Currently on Chapter 377: The Dimensional Blade That Severs All