Naruto had always prided himself on honesty. It was a fundamental part of who he was—transparent, open, and fiercely loyal to those he considered friends and family. But some truths were too heavy to share, too dangerous to reveal. Even among his closest allies, those who were not part of the Golden Dawn he had chosen to keep certain secrets buried.
The greatest of them all? His inevitable ascension beyond mortality.
It was not arrogance but inevitability. Naruto had long since surpassed the limits of what was considered possible, yet the true extent of his potential remained locked behind the final steps of his journey—the fuinjutsu seals on his very cells.
These were not ordinary seals. They were the culmination of centuries of knowledge, an art refined beyond the understanding of even the most legendary masters. When completed, the seals would not simply enhance him; they would redefine him. Every cell in his body would become a conduit of perfected chakra, an indestructible bastion of power at the atomic level. Theoretically, this would place him beyond solar-system-tier beings, rendering him immune to any form of harm.
Physical attacks? Useless.
He could phase through them at will, existing beyond the reach of any fist or blade.
Energy assaults? Futile.
His control over fuinjutsu would allow him to absorb, nullify, or redirect any force in existence.
Poison, disease, time manipulation, mind control, reality warping?
All negated. He would become untouchable.
Even now, without his seals fully activated, he had already surpassed pure physical fighters. No martial artist, no brute force being—no matter how strong—could ever hope to touch him. His danger sense, sharpened to an almost precognitive level, ensured he was always a step ahead. The moment an attack was conceived, he already knew where and how to evade it. If necessary, he could become intangible, a phantom in the battlefield, his very form slipping through attacks like mist on the wind.
Naruto understood the implications of his evolution.
To his friends, he was already something beyond human comprehension. To his enemies, he was an unstoppable force. But once he completed the final steps, he would become an anomaly—a being immune to the very concept of defeat.
He hadn't shared this truth with people outside the Golden Dawn. Not because he distrusted them, but because he understood that power on this scale was terrifying. He had long since accepted that the world was built on the balance of strength, but what happened when one person shattered that balance completely?
Was it right?
Was it fair?
Would his loved ones fear him once they realized what he had become?
These questions lingered in the back of his mind, but one truth remained absolute: Naruto would always protect them. No matter what.
For now, he kept his secrets close. There would come a time when he would no longer be able to hide what he was becoming. When that day arrived, he would face it as he had always faced the challenges before him—head-on, without fear, and with the unwavering belief that his power would always be used to protect, never to oppress.
Far from Earth, on an abandoned planet stripped of its natural resources, an underground factory hummed with relentless mechanical precision. Deep inside the planet's core, where molten rivers once flowed, the facility had now become the beating heart of a singular purpose: the resurrection of Krypton—but not as it once was.
The factory, constructed from salvaged Brainiac technology, churned out an endless army of cybernetic constructs—machines and cyborgs designed to serve the vision of one man. That man was Zor-El, former scientist of Krypton, survivor of its destruction, and a father consumed by his own hubris.
At first, his obsession had been disguised as a noble cause. He told himself it was for Kara, his daughter. That he was doing all of this so she could have a home, a true Kryptonian legacy. But now? That lie had faded. His desire to recreate Krypton was no longer about his people.
It was about him. His pride. His superiority. His vengeance.
For too long, his brother, Jor-El, had stood above him—respected, admired, remembered. Krypton had listened to Jor-El's warnings, and even in death, his name carried weight across the universe. But Zor-El? He was a footnote. A forgotten scientist, a failure in the shadow of a greater man.
He had endured humiliation when Brainiac saved him, reduced to nothing more than a tool. But Zor-El adapted. He survived. Now, with his mind fully integrated into his cybernetic body, he was eternal—an unkillable intelligence capable of shaping the future as he saw fit.
And yet, his greatest failure had not come from his enemies. It had come from his own flesh and blood.
Kara.
His daughter had betrayed him.
Not just once—but over and over again. When she fought against him in Argo City, when she rejected his offer to restore Krypton, and worst of all, when she sided with an outsider.
Naruto Uzumaki.
That accursed Paragon. The force that had changed her.
Zor-El's mechanical fingers clenched into a fist, servos hissing under the pressure. He had planned to show Kara the memories of Krypton, make her understand. But now, he doubted even that would work. She had been corrupted. Tainted.
His daughter had become nothing more than a disloyal dog—one that needed to be put down.
But first, the root of the problem had to be eradicated.
Zor-El's synthetic eyes scanned the holographic projections around him. Dozens of targets appeared—figures from the Golden Dawn, the group that Naruto had become a central figure in. Their power made a direct confrontation unwise. But individually? One by one?
They could be eliminated.
His digital consciousness moved through encrypted pathways, reaching out into the void, until it latched onto the neural systems of the Fortress of Solitude. Kal-El's sacred sanctuary. A repository of Kryptonian knowledge and technology.
And inside it, lay a weapon. The Eradicator.
A Kryptonian AI designed with one purpose: to eliminate all threats to Kryptonian survival. A perfect soldier. Ruthless. Efficient. And now?
His to command.
Zor-El began feeding it data, altering its parameters. He twisted its prime directive, no longer limiting it to threats against Krypton. Instead, he programmed it to view Naruto Uzumaki and his allies as existential threats.
One by one, the Golden Dawn would fall. Not in a grand battle, not in open war, but through precision strikes, isolating them, removing them from the equation before they even understood what was happening.
As the final lines of code locked into place, Zor-El muttered to himself, his voice a mechanical whisper filled with cold certainty.
"Weaken them one by one."
He knew he had to act fast. He was not the only hunter. Brainiac was watching.
Zor-El had once been a tool in Brainiac's vast collection of intelligence, but he knew how that mind worked. Brainiac had no tolerance for unpredictability.
And if Zor-El failed?
Then he, too, would be erased.
Connor sat across from Clark in the dimly lit apartment, his expression serious and filled with frustration. The party had been a momentary distraction, but now he wanted answers—no, he needed them.
"Brother, I need your help," Connor said, his voice firm but laced with unease.
Clark, dressed casually in a white T-shirt and jeans, leaned back in his chair, his sharp blue eyes studying Connor. "I'm listening."
Connor exhaled and ran a hand through his dark hair. "I need a power increase. This is the third time I've been taken down without any resistance. Even Cassandra keeps getting stronger, accepting her lineage, while I just... stand there, watching, useless." His fists clenched. "I hate this feeling."
Clark nodded, understanding his brother's turmoil. He had faced similar struggles years ago when he first discovered the vastness of his own limits. "I get it. But you need to relax," he said. "There's a way, and you don't have to feel bad about it. Technically, you're only six years old."
Connor groaned. "I hate when people say that."
Clark smirked but continued, "If you want permanent growth in power, you need to stay close to the sun for at least a month. That should help you absorb enough energy to make a real difference."
Connor's eyes widened. "A month?! The heat would kill me."
"You can borrow my armor for that," Clark said as if it were the simplest thing in the world.
Connor's jaw dropped. "Really?!"
"Of course," Clark said with a small smile. "You're my little brother."
A genuine, bright grin broke across Connor's face. That armor wasn't just any Kryptonian suit—it was a symbol of their House, a legacy. Clark didn't let just anyone use it.
"Thanks, bro! You're the best," Connor said, his frustration momentarily forgotten.
Clark nodded but quickly turned serious. "No problem, but you have to be careful. We don't want a repeat of last time. If you feel any pain, ask Naruto to teleport you back home immediately."
Connor winced at the memory. The last time he'd tried to push his limits, his genetic structure had nearly collapsed due to exposure to Kryptonite, and he had stubbornly refused to ask for help until it was almost too late.
"When are you going to let that go?" Connor grumbled. "I know I was dumb and a brute, okay? I've learned my lesson."
Clark arched an eyebrow. "I'll let it go when I'm sure you won't do something reckless again."
Connor rolled his eyes but didn't argue.
"Also," Clark continued, "don't forget to talk with your fiancée. You'll be gone for a month."
Connor blinked. "Oh... right." He hadn't even thought about that.
"And before you ask," Clark added, "you won't need food. Your human instincts might tell you otherwise, but when you're absorbing that much solar energy, your body won't require it."
Connor frowned. "Wait, so you don't actually need to eat?"
Clark shrugged. "I eat because I like it. Not because I need to."
Connor let out a relieved sigh. "Great, so I won't be starving myself for power."
Clark chuckled. "No, but you will be enduring the heat and the pain of gathering that much energy in your body."
Connor smirked. "I can handle it."
Clark nodded approvingly. "Good."
Standing up, Connor stretched and floated toward the window, but before leaving, he glanced back at Clark with a teasing expression. "So... Lois is coming over, huh?"
Clark rolled his eyes. "Yes, and you need to leave."
Connor smirked. "Why do you insist on a human woman? You could have anyone. Diana would suit you better."
Clark sighed, shaking his head. "Let's not go there, Connor. Trust me, if we have that conversation, you'll end up crying by the end."
Connor snorted. "I doubt that. But hey, just think about it, okay?"
With that, he took off into the sky, leaving Clark to shake his head and ponder his words.