Butterfly Effect

Hinata glanced at the pile of Naruto manga and answered weakly, "I... I drew them myself."

She might have been innocent, frail, and kind, but she was not stupid.

Much of what those books described was undeniably real. Calling them books of prophecy would not have been an exaggeration.

Ino and Sakura had lent her the prophetic books because they trusted her.

Hinata decided that no matter what, she could not betray that trust!

"You drew them yourself?" Hinata's old father gave her a faintly amused look.

"Mm."

The little girl gave a timid reply.

"Not a bad hobby. You can draw some normal things, but don't go down the wrong path."

Hearing her father say that, Hinata's face flushed crimson.

She knew that the path she had chosen would draw doubt from many people, perhaps even cruel insults.

But she would keep walking it without wavering!

Because this was what she truly wanted to do!

Hyuga Hiashi suddenly asked, "Did Sakura Haruno give them to you? Or Ino Yamanaka?"

"Huh?"

A trace of panic flashed through Hinata's eyes. Her expression changed slightly, but she immediately forced her little face into a calm mask.

"Mm, I understand."

Experience trumped youth. Hiashi's little bluff had immediately gotten him the answer he wanted.

"You... draw less of that messy stuff in the future. I think that set of Naruto is actually pretty good..."

Sighed, Hiashi paced away.

He was desperate too!

His daughter had the same temperament as her mother—gentle on the outside but unyielding within. If he truly resorted to corporal punishment, she would probably hate him for the rest of her life.

His education of Hinata over the years had always been wrong. Was he supposed to refuse to repent and keep making the same mistake?

Of two evils, choose the lesser!

Although the Hyuga clan head felt unbearably awkward as a man while reading Naruto, between yuri danmei and Female Supremacy, he chose the latter.

Recalling what he had read in the prophetic book last night, Hiashi, who had been about to return to his study, stopped in his tracks.

"I never expected Neji to think that way... I should go see him first."

Land of Wind, Sunagakure.

For two straight days, the three members of Team Seven had wandered around idly, enjoying themselves.

Although there was also a Sunagakure faction in the Virtual Reality game Shadow Breaking the Firmament, its scenery and customs were vastly different.

"The food here is pretty good, but it's a shame there's no Teuchi's ramen!"

Naruto kept stuffing food into his mouth. Beside him, several shadow clones clutched all kinds of food.

Chestnuts, freeze-dried tofu, takoyaki, hamburger patties...

Sakura had bought plenty of girls' daily necessities. Her mood seemed to have improved considerably, and she had temporarily suppressed her longing for her parents.

With her meticulous mind, she thought of a question. "Every native in the virtual world is incredibly lifelike. Every one of them has their own thoughts and emotions. If I hadn't entered with my memories of reality, I might have thought I was in another world."

"If that's the case, why did Instructor Wang Yan insist on sending the three of us in?"

Naruto's mouth was stuffed full of food. He mumbled a few words, but no one could understand what he was saying.

Sasuke pursed his lips. "Training! The year we spent in that world greatly tempered our minds. Among people our age, our mental maturity is far greater! Haven't you noticed that even a guy like Naruto is much more reliable than before?"

Deep down, he vaguely had other thoughts as well.

For example, Gaara. In the prophetic book, he was the future Kazekage.

Perhaps Instructor Wang Yan was setting up a grand game, using the Five Great Nations as chess pieces!

Hearing that, the Little Blonde forcibly swallowed the food in his mouth and was about to argue.

But Sasuke gave him no chance to speak and cut him off directly. "The instructor is summoning us. Hurry!"

A moment later.

Sunagakure's conference hall.

"You arrived right on time."

Wang Yan nodded slightly and gave the three children an approving look. "After all, the flow of real time and the virtual game's time are not synchronized. Being one hour late here is equivalent to half a month in the world of Shadow Breaking the Firmament."

Without further ado, Telekinesis stirred, and three differently colored helmets landed on their heads.

The three entered the Virtual Reality game world at the same time and successfully connected with Rasa and Gaara.

At that moment, Wang Yan suddenly discovered that the Resource Points inventory had abruptly surged by ten thousand.

"These Resource Points have nothing to do with Sunagakure. Let me see where they came from."

After tracing them briefly, Wang Yan's expression turned strange.

"Hyuga Hiashi and Neji Hyuga... I haven't made arrangements for those two yet... This must be a change brought about by Hinata."

That was the Butterfly Effect. Many things could affect the whole situation with a single tug.

"One hundred and eleven thousand Resource Points is no small gain."

A faint gleam flickered in Wang Yan's eyes.

Game world, Shadow City.

"Finally... I've returned here."

Gaara rode the wind through the sky, standing in midair as he looked down at the city beneath his feet. Countless thoughts churned within him.

Three years!

A full three years had passed. Driven by humiliation, he had trained with everything he had, fought, explored ancient ruins, and survived near-death experiences time and time again. At last, he possessed strength beyond the Kage-level!

"Your use of Scientific Ninja Tools has now reached the pinnacle. You still have many trump cards in hand, and your strength far surpasses mine from back then."

Rasa's lingering soul spoke faintly from within his necklace. "Even so, do not underestimate your opponent! Sasuke Uchiha is the greatest genius in Konoha's history. Perhaps he has also made considerable progress over these three years."

"Understood." Gaara nodded in agreement.

Because their memories of reality had been sealed, Gaara and his father had no blood relation in this world. At first, they had despised each other. They had only joined forces for mutual benefit and, out of necessity, barely supported one another as they moved forward together.

Three years—over a thousand days and nights of sharing life-and-death struggles—had finally forged an unshakable bond between teacher and friend.

Just as Gaara planned to follow Rasa's advice and sneak into the city first to investigate Konoha's faction, a tall figure abruptly appeared before him.

A short blue shirt, a red-and-white fan crest, an arrogant and haughty expression...

Who else could it have been but Sasuke Uchiha?!

Down in the city below, Sakura Haruno gazed up with starry eyes and a lovestruck expression. "Sasuke is even more handsome than before!"

The moment Gaara heard that woman's voice, his face twisted into a savage grimace.

The scenes of his humiliation and crushed dignity resurfaced before his eyes one by one.

The angrier Gaara became, the calmer he was.

He had truly been tempered by experience.

"Let's settle the Three-Year Pact today."

Gaara stared coldly at Sasuke, his voice icy enough to send chills down one's spine.

The Kage-level expert Sakura Haruno had relied on had already been eliminated by him.

His current strength had long surpassed the definition of a "Kage." He had more than enough confidence to defeat Sasuke Uchiha.

His only regret was that his sole friend had been missing for two whole years without a trace. He was most likely dead.

In Gaara's eyes, Sasuke and Sakura were most likely the culprits.

Naruto, I will avenge you.

He silently made that promise in his heart.

However...

"Hey! Gaara! Come on! If you win, I'll treat you to ramen!"

Following that somewhat goofy voice, a Little Blonde appeared in Gaara's field of vision.

"??"

Gaara's face was full of disbelief, as if ten thousand alpacas were stampeding through his heart.

You're fucking alive?

Where the hell have you been these past two years?

You're not a spy sent by the other side, are you?

The momentum he had struggled to build to its peak instantly collapsed...

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