When Uchiha Kei received the information from the direction of the Land of Rōran, he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow, then a smile of "interest" appeared on his face.

"So the ability to traverse time is still intact... The only question is, did the ones who traveled through come from this world's future—or a parallel world's future?"

"In any case, let's go take a look! Some things, you won't know the truth of until you see it for yourself."

With this rather "simple" thought, Uchiha Kei did not hesitate to activate the shadow clone he had stationed in Rōran.

Instantly, in Rōran, Uchiha Kei's shadow clone recovered from its sealed state.

Originally, this clone had been used as a network signal booster. But ever since Kei had activated the super signal generator provided by the system, he had placed it in Rōran.

Therefore, the clone was no longer needed as a transmitter.

Instead, the shadow clone became a backup body Kei left in Rōran, one that could be used directly whenever needed.

Just like now—after receiving a WeChat message from Orochimaru and the others, Kei couldn't wait to activate it.

And although it was a shadow clone, Kei could control it in real-time through the mental network, meaning he projected his consciousness directly into the clone to operate it.

That was exactly what Kei was doing now. After all, the message Orochimaru and the others had sent was far too interesting and had completely piqued Kei's curiosity.

Soon, Uchiha Kei met the visitors from another space-time: several boys and girls who had been "resting" in the same room.

To Orochimaru, Sasori, and the others, these kids were total strangers. But to Uchiha Kei, they were very familiar—so familiar, in fact, that it gave him the illusion of lost memories returning. Because these were the original story's main characters.

Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, and Sai.

Yes—these three were the ones who, in the movie The Lost Tower, had traveled to the past through the Dragon Vein.

And now, they had returned again from the future, for the same reason as in the movie: to pursue Mukade, the major antagonist, who had traveled through the Dragon Vein.

However, unlike the original where the Land of Rōran was just a bunch of decaying nobles and impoverished citizens, the current Rōran—while still struggling—had improved significantly over the past few months under Minato Namikaze's administration. After all, the major nobles of Rōran were now under Konoha's control.

And with a large number of powerhouses present in Rōran, there was no way Mukade, who in the original barely reached Kage-level by relying on the Dragon Vein, could act as arrogantly as he did before.

Thus, this man—who in the original storyline caused a national catastrophe—was swiftly captured, and even got a dual beatdown from both Orochimaru and Sasori.

It was quite miserable. Frankly, he walked right into his own destruction.

Orochimaru's evaluation of Mukade was: "A clueless fool. Thinks himself powerful, but in reality, he's just a weak and ignorant idiot."

That haughty disdain was only natural for Orochimaru now. A Mukade who hadn't yet obtained the Dragon Vein? Not even worth mentioning.

Sasori, at least, offered a slightly higher assessment: "He's someone who's mastered quite a few forbidden puppet techniques—reminds me of my former self. But that's all. After all, my current pursuits are completely different now."

Yes—Sasori now viewed the pursuit of human puppets and obsessive traditional puppet development as beneath him. He saw his past goals as shallow and foolish—nothing more than the delusions of an idiot.

Of course, only these two—both qualified to study abroad in the mental network world—could say this. The original versions of themselves would not have looked down on Mukade like this.

What? What became of Mukade now?

Well, since the interrogation had already been completed, naturally he was locked up and squeezed for every last drop of value.

Ambitious types like him deserved to be tightly bound, harshly interrogated, and forced to contribute their final worth.

After all, the guy was a rogue ninja from the Hidden Sand Village.

And for a rogue like that, human rights don't apply—especially when his first act upon appearing was trying to seize control of Rōran and use the Dragon Vein to complete his ultimate puppet technique.

Meanwhile, the three who had chased Mukade through time—Naruto Uzumaki and his companions—were treated far more kindly. After all, the forehead protectors on their heads bore the symbol of the Hidden Leaf. And when it came to Leaf shinobi, Orochimaru and the others always showed some favor.

However, the information they brought back made Orochimaru show a wry, amused smile after meeting Uchiha Kei: "These three kids became extremely cautious and fearful the moment they saw me. That blonde one even shouted at me to give 'Sasuke' back. I don't know who Sasuke is, but it seems that in the 'future,' I became a rogue ninja and kidnapped a boy named Sasuke."

Yes—Orochimaru had already figured out that the trio came from the "future." After all, they had captured Mukade and interrogated him first. And Naruto Uzumaki was definitely not the type who could keep secrets. Once all the clues were laid out, Orochimaru—with his sharp intellect—needed only a moment to understand everything. Nᴇw ɴovel chaptᴇrs are published on novel·fire.net

To that, Uchiha Kei curiously asked, "Orochimaru-senpai, you don't seem surprised that you became a rogue ninja in the future."

Orochimaru chuckled. "Oh, I was surprised. So I asked them a few more questions—and then used that rogue Sand shinobi Mukade to find out more about that world."

"In the end, I was able to confirm—it's merely a parallel world. It has no connection to ours."

The parallel world theory wasn't anything too profound. Though there was no such concept in the Shinobi World, the great library and school modules of the mental network world had plenty of related knowledge. As a super exchange student, Orochimaru had naturally studied these subjects thoroughly.

So now, for Orochimaru to conclude that the group came from a parallel world was perfectly reasonable.

And for Kei, there was nothing surprising about Orochimaru having such an understanding. After all, he was the one pulling the strings behind Orochimaru—who better to know how monstrous he'd become?

In fact, compared to the fact that Naruto and the others came from a different timeline, what truly interested Orochimaru was that their arrival confirmed the reality of the parallel universe theory.

Without a doubt—for a super-scientist like Orochimaru, that was the more worthwhile subject of study.

As for the information Naruto and the others had brought with them from the parallel world, Orochimaru and Sasori had already organized it completely—and even conducted DNA verification on the young trio.

Orochimaru said, "That girl named Sakura Haruno is from the civilian Haruno family in the Leaf. However, her family actually possesses Senju blood. Her mother is a descendant of the Senju who integrated into the Leaf—but the bloodline concentration is low."

"As for the boy named Sai, he's also a civilian. But according to DNA verification, his older brother was once a shinobi who served in the Root. Of course, that person has now been transferred to the ANBU."

"As for that child Naruto Uzumaki… Heh, it's fascinating, Kei-kun. That boy is actually the son of Minato and Kushina. Moreover, he inherited his mother's personality—and the Nine Tails. He's the new generation Jinchūriki."

"It's clear that a lot has happened in that world—events completely different from our own."

By the end, the smile on Orochimaru's face had deepened.

Because this immense disparity had made him truly feel the vast difference of a parallel universe.

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