As Ryusei, Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and Anon prepared to leave Minato's office, the Fourth Hokage's eyes lingered on Anon. There was something enigmatic about him, something that had always intrigued Minato, but he had never gotten a full picture of Anon's past. Anon's abilities, his mastery of the Void, and his quiet demeanor set him apart from the others. Minato could sense an immense well of power within him, one that had remained largely unexplored in their discussions so far.
Before they could fully step out, Minato's calm voice cut through the air, "Anon, before you go… I don't think I've ever fully understood your history. Where you come from, and how you came to control the Void."
The team paused at the door, their gazes shifting to Anon, who remained still for a moment, as if contemplating whether to reveal more of himself. Ryusei, standing beside him, gave a slight nod, encouraging Anon to speak. Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura looked on curiously as well; even though they had trained with him for years, Anon rarely spoke about his past.
Anon took a breath, turning slowly back toward Minato. His eyes, which seemed to reflect the very depths of the Void, met Minato's with a steady gaze. "My story… is not like yours," he began, his voice low but clear. "I come from a timeline that was erased. It no longer exists."
Minato's brows furrowed, and Naruto shifted uncomfortably, feeling the weight of those words. Sasuke's eyes narrowed, intrigued.
"What do you mean… erased?" Minato asked softly, his attention fully on Anon.
Anon's gaze became distant as he recalled his past. "I was born in a world that, in many ways, mirrored this one. There were villages, shinobi, wars… but something went wrong. A ripple in time, a force more powerful than any of us could comprehend, tore through our reality. Entire villages, nations, people… disappeared. They were consumed by the Void." His voice grew quieter, almost reverent as he spoke of the great force he now controlled.
"I was one of the last survivors. The Void… it claimed everything around me, but somehow, it didn't take me. Instead, I became… one with it. I learned to control it, bend it to my will, and use it as a tool to move between worlds, timelines, dimensions. I've walked through many realities, seen countless versions of you, of me, of all of this." He gestured to the village outside the window.
Naruto, wide-eyed, took a step forward. "So, you've seen other versions of us? How… how different were they?"
Anon's lips twitched in what could barely be called a smile. "Some were heroes, some were villains. Some were stronger, some were weaker. But the truth is, no matter how much a timeline diverges, certain events always remain. Certain people… always rise."
Sasuke crossed his arms, thinking about the implications. "And Orochimaru? He exists in these other worlds too?"
Anon nodded. "In most of them, yes. In some, he succeeded in becoming immortal. In others, he found new ways to manipulate the laws of reality itself. His ambition is always the same: to transcend death, to wield power beyond comprehension."
Minato listened intently, absorbing every word. The pieces were beginning to fall into place. Anon wasn't just a traveler of timelines—he was someone who had seen the worst of what could happen, someone who had faced annihilation and returned with the knowledge of what lay beyond.
As the silence in the room stretched, Ryusei stepped forward. "That's why we're here. Orochimaru has become too dangerous. He's manipulating the very fabric of reality, and if we don't stop him now, he could destroy everything we've fought to protect."
Sakura nodded, her eyes firm with resolve. "We've trained for years. We're stronger than ever. It's time to take the fight to him."
Minato's gaze swept across the team, noting the intensity in their eyes. Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, Anon, and Ryusei had all grown far beyond the shinobi they were when they left the village. He could sense their power, but more than that, he could feel their readiness for the battle ahead. The idea of them going after Orochimaru wasn't something he had considered before, but now, seeing them stand before him, he wondered if they were the ones who could truly end the threat.
"You're asking for an assassination mission," Minato said quietly, folding his hands together on the desk. "To kill Orochimaru."
Ryusei's gaze was unwavering. "Yes. We need to stop him before he destabilizes the world any further. He's a danger not just to this timeline, but to all timelines."
Minato leaned back in his chair, considering. "You've all grown stronger, that much is clear. But this mission… if you fail, it could trigger something far worse than anything we've ever faced."
Naruto's voice was steady, confident. "We won't fail. We've trained for this. Whatever Orochimaru has planned, we'll stop him. I know it."
Sasuke stepped forward, his eyes glinting with determination. "I've fought Orochimaru before. I know how he thinks. But this time, we're going to finish it."
Sakura placed a hand on Sasuke's arm, her resolve matching his. "We're not the same people we were before. We're ready for this."
Anon, who had remained quiet, finally spoke again. "Orochimaru is playing with forces beyond even his comprehension. I've seen what happens when someone like him succeeds in breaking the laws of time and space. I won't let that happen again."
Minato sat in silence for a long moment, his mind racing with the possibilities. Could they truly defeat Orochimaru? Could these five shinobi, who had grown so much in their time away, really be the ones to put an end to the chaos that had been brewing in the shadows?
Finally, he stood, his expression serious but resolute. "Very well. I'll issue the mission. But understand this: this isn't just about strength. Orochimaru has always been a step ahead, always plotting something bigger. You'll need more than power to stop him."
Ryusei nodded. "We understand. We're prepared."
Minato's eyes softened as he looked at Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura—his son, and the young shinobi he had watched grow into warriors. "Be careful. Orochimaru is dangerous, but the world you're returning to is more dangerous still. The energies at play… they're beyond anything we've dealt with before."
Naruto grinned, his usual confidence shining through. "Don't worry, Dad. We've got this."
With that, the team turned to leave the Hokage's office, the weight of their mission heavy on their shoulders but their resolve unwavering. As they walked through the village, the world around them seemed both familiar and foreign. The streets were bustling with life, but there was an undercurrent of tension in the air—a sense that something dark was lurking just out of sight.
The sky overhead was a deep, cloudless blue, but even that felt too calm, too still, as if the world was holding its breath, waiting for something to happen.
"We'll need to gather intel before we strike," Ryusei said, his voice steady as they walked. "Orochimaru won't be easy to find, and he's likely already aware of our presence."
Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "I know where we can start. There are a few old contacts I can reach out to. People who owe me favors."
Sakura's fists clenched as she thought of Orochimaru's experiments, the twisted lives he had ruined. "We need to move fast. If he's destabilizing reality like Anon said, we don't have much time."
Anon remained quiet, his mind already calculating the possibilities. He had seen countless timelines where people like Orochimaru succeeded, where the world had crumbled because of unchecked ambition. He wouldn't let that happen here.
As they made their way toward the outskirts of the village, the sky began to darken, the sun dipping low on the horizon. The wind picked up, carrying with it the faint scent of rain. The world around them seemed to shift, as if the very air was alive with the energy that Minato had spoken of—the latent power that was awakening within the shinobi of the world.
Naruto glanced over at Ryusei, his expression serious for once. "You think we're ready for this? Orochimaru's not like the other enemies we've faced."
Ryusei gave a small smile. "We're not the same shinobi we were before. Orochimaru's been preparing for us, but we've been preparing for him too. We'll finish this."
The team continued onward, the shadows growing longer as night began to fall. The world was changing, and so were they. But one thing was certain: the battle ahead would determine the fate of not just their world, but every world connected by the fragile threads of time.
And they were ready to face it head-on.