Inner Peace

Sakura did not stop Sasuke from trying; she even decided to attempt it alongside him.

"The sealing jutsu Master uses is different from ordinary ones; it can act upon multiple targets. Once it's set up, it makes no difference whether it's one person or two."

Naruto said, "I'll remind you both one more time: since Master said this training is somewhat 'cruel,' the actual experience will definitely be even more terrifying than you expect."

Sasuke and Sakura had already steeled their resolve and were not intimidated by Naruto's words.

Two days later, the sealing jutsu was complete, and Naruto brought Sakura and Sasuke to their secret base—that cabin with the peculiar design.

"Eh, why does it feel... so spacious inside this house?"

Sakura looked around the room, ran outside to confirm, and then ran back in: "It's really bigger than it looks from the outside!"

Naruto: "This is a secret base built by Master himself. Since the village is covered in barriers, it's only natural for Master to add a few layers of special sealing jutsu to this secret base."

"Sealing jutsu can have this kind of effect?"

Sasuke was somewhat intrigued, but his gaze was immediately drawn to the center of the room: dense, intricate patterns covered the floor, forming a large circle.

Sasuke pointed at the floor: "Is that the sealing jutsu used for training?"

"Correct."

Naruto pointed to the center of the circle: "Lie down in there, and I'll activate the sealing jutsu."

Sakura and Sasuke lay down.

Naruto: "While we haven't started yet, I'll ask one last time: are you mentally prepared?"

Sakura: "I am."

Sasuke took a deep breath: "Begin."

Naruto pressed his hands onto the floor, outputting chakra to activate the sealing formation.

Sakura and Sasuke instantly lost consciousness.

"I hope you won't be left with any psychological trauma."

Naruto clapped his hands, walked out of the house, and began his own daily training.

In the evening, as the sun was about to dip below the horizon, Sakura and Sasuke woke up.

Neither of them rushed to stand up, continuing to lie there and slowly adjusting their breathing until Naruto entered the room: "Yo, you're awake. How do you feel?"

"Great, but terrible."

Sasuke sat up, his expression and tone calmer than ever before. Although he remained expressionless, the cold indifference of the past was gone: "Master was right; it truly was an exceptionally cruel trial. There were several times I doubted whether I was going insane."

"Same here."

Sakura held her forehead as she stood up: "This is the most effective training I've ever experienced in my life, but I absolutely never want to do it again."

"How come you two suddenly seem like adults?"

Naruto scratched his head: "How long were you in the Sealing Space?"

"I don't know."

Sasuke: "There was nothing in the Sealing Space to use as a reference, so my sense of time passing quickly became blurred."

"Although it was blurred, I had this lingering feeling of having lived through an entire lifetime."

Sakura said with a touch of emotion, then asked Naruto: "How much time has actually passed?"

"We came here at seven this morning, and it's five o'clock now; exactly ten hours."

Naruto said: "You two haven't eaten anything all day, let's go back and have dinner first!"

Sakura and Sasuke exchanged a glance and nodded calmly: "Alright."

After eating, Sakura and Sasuke headed toward their respective homes without saying a word.

Uchiha Clan compound.

Sasuke walked alone down the street, his gaze passing over house after house. His emotions remained calm, but his black eyes underwent a continuous series of changes:

Single-Tomoe...

Two-Tomoe...

Three-Tomoe...

Hexagram...

Finally, in the center of the hexagram, a smaller black hexagram appeared.

"Thinking about it carefully, there are many things worth questioning."

"Next time I see my brother, I'll ask him."

Haruno Household.

"Dad, can I take a look at our family genealogy?"

"I suppose you can, but why the sudden interest in the genealogy?"

"I just wanted to know if we've ever had any powerful ninjas in our family."

"Ha, well, you're going to be disappointed~ Your grandfather, and your great-grandfather, were just ordinary people."

"What about my grandparents on Mom's side?"

"They were ordinary people, too, of course."

"Though, when I was little, I heard your grandmother mention that she came from some ninja clan, but she didn't have any talent and couldn't become a ninja."

"What was the name of that ninja clan?"

"I don't know. That was so long ago, how could I possibly remember clearly?!"

"It's okay if you don't remember~ Don't be angry, Mom, I'll help you wash the dishes."

The next day, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura continued their daily training as usual.

In the evening, as the three of them were returning from their training, they passed by a hot spring inn. Suddenly, Naruto heard his father speak: [Naruto, could you check out this hot spring inn next to us?]

"Dad, you can't even soak in a hot spring right now, can you?"

[I sense a familiar chakra. It should be Jiraiya-sensei.]

"Dad's teacher?"

Naruto: "I remember Mom saying that guy is a perverted old man, and she told me not to go near him."

[This... Jiraiya-sensei is a bit lecherous, but he is a very excellent ninja. He took good care of me back in the day.]

Naruto: "Mom?"

[Go ahead.]

Kushina: [But once you go in, if you find a lecherous old man peeping, don't hesitate—give him a punch!]

Naruto: "Oh!"

Minato let out a wry laugh.

"Sasuke, Sakura, you guys go ahead."

Naruto suddenly stopped and pointed at the hot spring inn next to them: "I'm going in to find someone."

Sasuke and Sakura were a bit puzzled, but they didn't ask questions and nodded, leaving first.

Walking into the hot spring inn, Naruto looked at the interior decor: "Come to think of it, I've never been to a hot spring. Since I'm already here, I might as well take a soak before I leave."

Following Minato's guidance, Naruto quickly found a suspicious white-haired old man in a corner of the hot spring pool, his face almost pressed against the partition, emitting a "hee-hee-hee" sound.

"He really is peeping!"

Naruto decisively gathered chakra in his right hand, accelerated, and threw a punch with all his might.

Sensing the movement behind him, Jiraiya turned his head reluctantly, only to see a fist rapidly enlarging in his field of vision—Bang!

"Sss... that hurts!"

Jiraiya soaked in the hot spring, gently rubbing the swollen spot on his face, and looked at Naruto: "You're really just like Kushina..."

Naruto grinned: "I'm her son, after all!"

Jiraiya: "Aren't you also Minato's son? Why don't you learn a thing or two from him?"

Naruto: "My dad listens to my mom."

"...It was Minato who told you to find me, wasn't it?"

Jiraiya quickly changed the subject: "I haven't been in Konoha for all these years. I thought the old man would take good care of you, but instead... I've let Minato and Kushina down. Getting punched by you is what I deserve."

"You definitely deserved it."

Naruto nodded solemnly and said seriously: "Peeping is wrong."