The Joy of Having Two-in-One!

After Natsu Yuu left, the atmosphere at the scene grew much more relaxed.

With a Sage present, Naruto and the others had been too nervous to truly let loose, no matter how playful they were.

Right after that,

Orochimaru was the first to take away his "Isshiki-model" Eight-Branched Serpent experiment, preparing to move it to a secret base for safekeeping.

Naruto also used his Six Paths Chakra to help Kawaki regenerate and repair his arm.

But since it had hurt so much just now, Kawaki's mind had been exhausted. He probably wouldn't wake up for a while.

Meanwhile, Minato examined Ada as well. Only after confirming that nothing else was wrong with her did he finally relax a little.

"Dad, are you really going to unify the world over there?" Naruto asked Minato curiously.

Who would have thought his own father would take such a domineering path? It was clearly beyond anything Naruto had expected.

"A lot has happened on my side, too. I didn't agree with it at first, but gradually I realized that unification wasn't necessarily a bad thing. At least, keeping things as they were couldn't prevent wars from breaking out. So we might as well try a different path. Blindly following the old traditions wasn't necessarily a good thing, either. Besides, even a few decades ago, the very concept of Ninja Villages didn't exist. Lord Hashirama and Lord Tobirama agreed with that, too..."

Minato spoke at length. He might have been doing well now, but he had gone through plenty of hardships before this.

Few people could take abstract principles to heart, but experiencing the pain of "a bag of rice" for yourself tended to leave a lasting impression.

Just like Naruto right now.

Before Hinata, Sasuke, and the others got into trouble, Naruto had hesitated.