Father and Son

Hui arrived in the small room without drawing any attention, as the space was currently plunged into darkness.

It seemed his Shadow Clone had played a vital role; having no time for further observation, Hui used the Flying Thunder God Technique to quickly teleport the remaining seven people away.

He would leave the task of comforting them to his Shadow Clone, hoping those guys wouldn't mess it up again.

To Hui, the only difference between Space Leap and the Flying Thunder God Technique was whether or not a Shortcut was formed on the spot.

But the moment the last person left the room, a shrill alarm began to blare throughout the entire Root base.

Damn it, was there some method I didn't detect? Everything went fine with the Anbu last time; could it be something on those seven people?

Damn it!

Flying Thunder God Technique

Hui's figure vanished abruptly from mid-air.

A squad of Root ninjas kicked the door open roughly, scanning the entire room, but they found nothing.

Inside the small town, Hui brought the group to this secluded paradise.

"Little Boss! How come you're the one bringing people over today?"

Toshio recognized Hui's figure from afar and wore his familiar smile, but when his gaze swept over the cowering children behind Hui, his voice faltered.

"Ah, why do these kids have so many small wounds? I'll take them to the doctor right away!"

Despite having just met, the children clung tightly to Hui, as if grasping at the only life-saving straw.

When Toshio approached, they instinctively shrank back behind Hui.

"Sorry, Toshio." Hui's voice was low, his eyes sweeping over the children's dirt-streaked faces.

"I rescued them from a certain place... they likely can't go back. I'm counting on you!"

Toshio nodded solemnly: "Leave it to me!"

He crouched down to be at eye level with the children, deliberately softening his tone: "Don't be afraid, come with me. There's hot food and clean beds here."

"Oh, and the sister doctor will even give you candy!"

Toshio's past experiences made him very skilled at this; he had guided many people over the years.

A new light seemed to spark in the children's eyes. They moved hesitantly, and as Toshio turned to lead the way, they followed toward the town clinic.

Hui stood where he was, watching their retreating backs.

Suddenly, one child turned around and called out in a raspy voice: "Thank you, Little Boss!"

Seeing this, the other children followed suit, turning around and waving clumsily to express their gratitude.

Hui froze, and he instinctively raised his hand to wave back at them.

At this moment, Chuanhe had already arrived at Hui's side.

"How do you feel?" Chuanhe placed his hand on Hui's head and ruffled his hair vigorously.

Hui ignored the large hand on his head, his gaze still fixed ahead.

"Father, why is there war in this world? Why must people hurt each other?"

"Sorry, Hui, that question is too complex." Chuanhe looked at these new members just as Hui did.

There was little he could do; one could find a multitude of such people anywhere in this world, and Chuanhe could only let things take their course.

"Father, is there a true path to peace?" Hui's voice trembled slightly.

Chuanhe turned his head sharply to look down at his son.

"Hui, why would you have such thoughts? This is not something you should be considering at your age." Chuanhe's voice was incredibly stern.

Hui placed his right hand over his heart, where an inexplicable feeling echoed; Hui understood this was Yuki's emotion.

But this wasn't just an echo of Yuki's memories; at this moment, Hui truly felt the same way.

Doesn't the Reverse-Memory Well only contain beautiful memories?

Hui was actually a bit confused, but this familiar feeling undoubtedly came from the tattoo.

"Father, you come from the stars—there must be a method for peace different from this planet, right?"

"Enough! Hui, let's not discuss this anymore. This is not a problem for you to consider; just focus on your studies." For the first time, Chuanhe lost his composure in front of Hui.

Because Chuanhe had discovered a major problem: Hui's dreams were changing too quickly. If this continued, he would be trapped in this endless vortex for the rest of his life.

Hui stared blankly at his father; for him, this was the first time Chuanhe had ever been angry with him.

With a child's natural instinct, he wanted to shrink away, but he held his ground.

He truly wanted to know the answer; everything he had seen at the Root base today was challenging the limits of his perception.

If the village was like this, what was the battlefield like?

Hui only felt himself trembling.

Chuanhe was very agitated now; he had clearly planned everything out, and Hui only needed to follow his plan.

Why ponder the question of peace here? The issue is far too broad; true peace is fundamentally impossible in this world!

Chuanhe looked at Hui beside him. The boy was still staring at him stubbornly, his small frame trembling incessantly.

Was there something wrong with the way he had planned things? Everything, absolutely everything, shouldn't have turned out like this.

Planning? It seemed he had walked down the same path himself, never asking about Hui's preferences, blindly arranging everything for him.

So that was it; he had already become the very person he hated most.

Chuanhe took a deep breath, suppressed his emotions, wrapped an arm around Hui's shoulder, and pulled him down to sit on the ground.

Chuanhe and Hui locked eyes.

"Hui, there is no true peace in this world. Peace is merely a term created by humanity."

Hui did not speak, simply watching Chuanhe in silence.

Through the reflection in those eyes, Chuanhe vaguely saw that his own complexion was poor, his expression stiff.

Through that reflection, Chuanhe's thoughts began to drift, and the pattern of the entire world seemed to shift, starting from that light. It was his memory.

Chuanhe sank into distant recollections.

In the past, the "village" he belonged to had been just as chaotic as this world, and a group of lovely people had stood up, fighting without a second thought.

Chuanhe had only seen their battles before, but now, he saw so much more.

His feelings had been incredibly complex when he watched Hui take a Kunai onto the battlefield, but now, watching Hui step into the abyss without hesitation, his emotions were a chaotic mix of bitterness and sorrow.

Was this how their parents felt? Chuanhe closed his eyes.

Was this Hui's dream? A dream—a word that felt so distant to Chuanhe.

Because he had no idea what his own dream was; what he was doing now was merely a promise he had made to Yuki.

Chuanhe opened his eyes once more. The moonlight was perfect, casting a unique serenity upon the earth.

Watching the moonlight, Chuanhe looked up at the sky.

The night sky was pitch black, yet filled with dazzling stars. That milky-white river of stars spanned the entire firmament, like a magnificent ribbon drifting through the night.

Stars?!

He, who claimed to be a four-dimensional being, had lost the most important dream of all.

Now, he finally remembered his original dream—to stand upon the stars.

A brand-new sensation echoed throughout Chuanhe's entire body; it was the feeling he had when he was still a boy chasing his dreams.

Having seen enough, Chuanhe said slowly, "I do not know how to achieve true peace, but I will tell you what methods of peace are known."

"That is enough!" Hui revealed a joyful smile.

"However!" Chuanhe's tone suddenly turned serious.

"Hui, no matter how much you crave peace right now, I will only give you one chance. And no matter how you intend to achieve it, you must wait until you are an adult before taking action!"

"The moment your body perishes, you are to... return to me! The second I sense your Soul Sealing Technique exposed to the outside, all of this ends!"

The expression on Hui's face froze, but he soon replied with a look of determination, "Everyone has only one life; this is only natural."

"Fine, it's a deal! I will tell you the methods after I resolve the Uchiha issue." Chuanhe's tone became cheerful, and he pulled Hui into a firm embrace.

"Huh? Father, you're cheating!" Hui let out a sound of dissatisfaction, but his face was filled with happiness.

Hui was very happy at this moment, because Chuanhe had finally decided to support his dream.