Boom! Boom!
The sound of battle filled the quiet air of Rōran, echoing through the towering hexagonal buildings as dozens of armored guards clashed with hundreds of shadow clones. Once a silent city, Rōran was now alive with the sounds of combat as the boy's shadow clones tore into the guards with relentless energy.
Bang!
The guards' combat abilities were limited, and while their armor provided formidable defense, it wasn't enough against the sheer number and power of the young man's shadow clones. The boy's clones moved with precision and force, subduing the guards within only a few rounds. Broken pieces of armor littered the stone ground, and wisps of smoke rose where defeated clones had vanished.
Still, the armored guards weren't finished. Dark purple energy pulsed from the top of a nearby building, transforming into dozens of streaks that shot downward, striking the guards with an eerie, crackling sound. The purple light wrapped around them, causing their armor to shimmer and begin to repair itself, restoring cracks and dents within moments.
"What is that?" Kushina whispered, stopping beside Minato as they observed from a distance.
Minato's expression was grim. "The power of the Dragon Vein," he said, meeting her gaze. Without another word, they resumed their approach, moving swiftly through the shadows as they watched the guards' armor repair in front of them.
With hollow, purple-tinged eyes, the guards moved mechanically, unaffected by fear or pain, their attacks now carrying a faint trace of the Dragon Vein's immense power. The young man's clones continued to push back, each one calling on their collective strength to fend off the relentless wave of guards.
"Rasengan!"
A familiar, swirling sphere of blue chakra collided with an armored fist still radiating dark purple energy. For a moment, the Rasengan and the guard's attack were locked in a stalemate, both forces crackling with energy. But as the last remnants of the Rasengan dissipated, its residual force tore new cracks into the guard's armor.
Bang! Bang!
The young man's clones weren't invincible, however, and one by one they vanished in puffs of smoke as the guards' attacks broke through. On the rooftop, the boy, seated cross-legged, felt each blow resonate back to him. His body shuddered with the force of the transferred damage, his muscles twitching from the strain. The Dragon Vein's power was potent, and its energy seemed to amplify each impact.
Just as he was catching his breath, he sensed it—a faint, unusual fluctuation within Rōran's dense energy field. It was barely perceptible, but his senses were honed enough to detect the difference.
"Found it!" he whispered, a spark of joy flashing in his deep blue eyes. He glanced down at the nearly destroyed field of shadow clones below. Though his forces were dwindling, he had finally located something that could be the key to Rōran's mysteries.
Summoning natural energy, he activated Sage Mode, feeling the surge of power stabilize within him. His eyes transformed, his pupils shifting to horizontal slits as eye shadow appeared around them, a mark of his connection to nature.
More armored guards were already scaling the building, their eyes empty yet locked onto him with eerie precision. They moved like a single-minded entity, each step synchronized with the others.
Undeterred, the boy leapt forward, his movements amplified by Sage Mode. He punched and kicked the air, and with each strike, an invisible force blasted the guards backward. They crashed into the walls with resounding cracks, their armor splintering and embedding them into the stone.
But for every guard he knocked away, two more seemed to appear. Frustration surged within him. "This is never going to end!" he muttered, forming a hand seal to summon more shadow clones.
Just then, Minato and Kushina arrived at the battle scene, their eyes drawn to the striking blond-haired figure at the center of the fray.
"Who is that?" Kushina whispered, her eyes fixated on the boy's forehead protector—the unmistakable leaf symbol of Konoha.
Minato's gaze was intense, his focus shifting between the boy's appearance and his combat skills. The Rasengan, Sage Mode… it all pointed to something impossible, something that resonated deep within him.
The boy in front of him, the one wielding the Rasengan and using Sage Mode, wasn't just any shinobi from Konoha. This was his son, Naruto—their son, from the future.
The reality hit Minato with the force of a hurricane. He felt a rush of joy and shock mixed with sadness, his mind reeling as he processed what he was seeing. The boy's yellow hair, blue eyes, the same determination etched into his features… and the unmistakable six whisker marks on his cheeks. It all confirmed what he already knew in his heart.
But before he could answer, Naruto, locked in his own world, continued his assault on the guards, oblivious to his parents' presence. More guards leapt to intercept him, but Naruto's speed in Sage Mode kept him a step ahead. As one guard lunged forward, Naruto's body twisted midair, forming a Rasengan in his palm with blinding speed.
"Rasengan!"
The Rasengan smashed into the guard's chest with a burst of blue chakra, sending him flying back and colliding with another guard. Using the momentum, Naruto flipped in the air, landing on a nearby wall, where he kicked off with immense force, hurtling himself forward like a missile.
"Minato, that's your jutsu!" Kushina exclaimed, her voice thick with emotion. The Rasengan was unmistakable, a jutsu Minato himself had created.
But Minato was lost in his own thoughts, his heart racing. He remembered Kushina's final words on the night of her death, her desire to see Naruto grow up, to witness the man he would become. And now, by some twist of fate, here was their son, standing before them in Rōran. It was a reunion that defied time and space, transcending life and death.
"Minato, we have to move! He's getting away!" Kushina's urgent tone snapped him from his thoughts, and together, they leapt forward, closing the distance between them and Naruto.
As Naruto dashed forward, more guards appeared to block his path. He maneuvered with ease, his Sage-enhanced reflexes keeping him one step ahead. But just as he neared the edge of the platform, one of the guards halted and, to Naruto's surprise, spoke.
"You've escaped me twice now, boy," the guard said, his hollow eyes glinting with malice. "Do you really think there will be a third?"
Naruto's eyes narrowed, sensing the strange intensity in the guard's voice. But before he could react, a dark purple light condensed on the rooftop above him, forming a viscous sphere of energy. The orb grew rapidly, its dark surface pulsating before crashing down with terrifying speed.
Naruto's instincts kicked in, and he leapt to the side, narrowly dodging the descending sphere. Boom! The energy ball struck the ground, sending tremors through the earth and leaving a massive crater. Ripples of lightning-like energy shot out from the impact, crackling dangerously as they spread.
Naruto landed safely away from the crater but felt the energy ripples closing in on him. His heart raced as he realized he couldn't avoid them.
Swish!
In a blur of speed, a figure appeared beside him, reaching out just as the energy ripples were about to engulf him. A hand landed firmly on Naruto's shoulder.
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