What scared Kakashi even more was that, if Kaede Kitahara's diary was right, this world didn't just have one person capable of ending everything. There were several.
Only now did he truly understand what Kaede Kitahara meant when he said the ninja world was deep.
Deep? This wasn't deep. This was bottomless.
So that meant the so-called "ninja world" they'd all been living in… they'd only been splashing around in the shallow end?
This world was terrifying.
For the first time, Kakashi understood why Kaede Kitahara's writing always felt like it came from someone with no sense of security at all. If anyone knew the future held a moment when Konoha would be destroyed in a single blow, how could they possibly feel safe?
And if that was true… then maybe there really was something special about the Ichiraku Ramen shop that survived Shinra Tensei in the diary's future.
"What kind of eyes were those? Stronger than the Sharingan? Was that technique a dōjutsu?"
Sasuke's fists trembled. He'd always believed the Sharingan was the strongest kekkei genkai in existence. The Byakugan didn't even register to him as competition.
How many legendary Hyuga users were there, really? How could they compare to the history of the Uchiha?
But the Rinnegan's appearance shattered everything he thought he knew. It showed him a world where the Sharingan wasn't the peak. It wasn't even close.
"A leader strong enough to make Uchiha Itachi bow his head…" Sasuke felt an icy dread flooding his chest.
Itachi alone was already strong enough to suffocate him. If behind Itachi stood a group filled with people just as strong, or stronger…
How was he supposed to take revenge?
Maybe… he needed comrades. People strong enough to stand against monsters like these.
That thought brought Naruto to mind. In Kaede Kitahara's diary, Naruto was described as something unbelievable.
A peak towering over the entire ninja world in the next twenty years.
If Naruto was truly someone who could stand beside Uchiha Itachi in the future…
For the first time, the lonely avenger realized he might need someone by his side.
The more he learned, the clearer it became how childish and foolish his dream of solo revenge really was.
"Damn it… how am I supposed to avenge anything like this!"
Sasuke let out a furious, helpless roar.
The diary continued updating.
Today I met Naruto, and he's exactly how I imagined—cheerful, bright, full of that Asura-style optimism. If I were him, I'd have turned evil a thousand times over. But somehow he stays upbeat, even becomes the savior of the ninja world. No way that happens without Asura's chakra nudging him along.
He even pulled off what no Asura ever managed: he brought Indra back, ended the ancient cycle between them, and cut their destiny apart in this generation. Honestly, that alone is insane.
What else would you expect from the most talk-no-jutsu-gifted Asura in history?
Kakashi read silently.
Naruto "turning evil a thousand times" was an exaggeration he fully understood. He thought about Naruto's life, the hatred and disgust he'd endured from villagers every day. If he were in Naruto's shoes… would he have stayed the same?
He didn't know. His own life had been full of grief.
He lost his mother young. His father committed suicide. Then his best friend died in front of him. Then his other teammate. His sensei. His sensei's wife. One by one, every important person in his life disappeared.
He was alone now.
But Asura's… inherited optimism?
Naruto was supposed to be Uzumaki. Even counting from the teacher's side, that still made him part of the Namikaze line. How did Asura enter the picture?
And Asura's chakra… influencing him?
Did Naruto really have something like that inside him?
Kakashi felt a heavy unease. This was his sensei's son. His sensei and Kushina were gone. He had to protect this boy for their sake.
Even if the influence was positive, things involving ancient chakra and reincarnation weren't simple.
And this mention of "generations" of Asura… which meant Asura had more than one reincarnation?
And Indra, standing opposed to him?
What destiny did they need to sever? And why was it happening through Naruto?
Maybe Asura was some kind of hidden role. A spiritual successor passed down across eras. And Indra was the counterpart.
Two forces opposing each other for generations, finally ending their conflict in this one.
Kakashi's thoughts spiraled into chaos. He didn't even know where to begin investigating.
"Savior of the ninja world?"
Sasuke zeroed in on the phrase instantly. Kaede Kitahara's evaluation of Naruto had gone from "peak of the next few decades" to "savior of the ninja world."
The longer this went on, the more ridiculous it sounded. Could that dead-last idiot really become something like that?
Sasuke's emotions tangled together in a knot. He wanted Naruto to become strong enough to help him in the future, but he also refused to accept it.
He was the top student. Naruto was the bottom—the dead last.
Was his future really going to fall behind Naruto's?
He hated the idea.
Naruto's talent is actually pretty good. It's only the Nine-Tails interfering with his chakra flow. I can't fix that. To resolve it completely, he'll have to train under that pervy sage in the future, then it'll be sorted out.
The Uzumaki clan left behind so many sealing techniques made to handle the Nine-Tails, but he didn't learn a single one. What a waste. As the last heir of the Uzumaki, he's got barely any clansmen left in the whole ninja world. Honestly, he's no better off than the Uchiha. Konoha… this is on you.
"Naruto's talent is good… it's the Nine-Tails interfering with his chakra?"
Kakashi finally understood.
With the genius of Namikaze Minato and the fiery brilliance of Uzumaki Kushina, their child could never have been a talentless dunce. There was no way the son of those two should rank last in the academy year after year.
The Nine-Tails' chakra disrupted Naruto's own?
Then that meant…
The seal was loosening.