157. Knowing

"So, Shikaku." Mitokado Homura's voice rose unusually high. "Are you saying that, before we discovered that rift, people from the other sea may already have been infiltrating our Ninja World for who knows how long—and that some of them could still be hiding here even now?"

Inoichi had just stepped into the Hokage's office when he ran straight into that shrill interrogation. To be honest, he'd always thought the Hokage Advisor had an awful voice. It sounded like a duck's.

Wow.

As he took in the crowd gathered in the office, he couldn't help adding another thought.

What, was the Fourth Shinobi World War about to begin?

Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi, Mitokado Homura, Utatane Koharu, Kakashi, Shikaku, Asuma, Kurenai, Shibi Aburame, Hayama Shirakumo, Maruboshi Kosuke, and several masked Anbu Captains... Add himself, and that was practically the entirety of Konoha's power base and top combat forces.

"If a Tailed Beast from some village fires a Tailed Beast Ball in here right now, the Fourth Shinobi World War could end before it even starts."

Inoichi silently made this not particularly funny gallows-humor joke to himself, then walked over to a corner. At the moment, even he was only here to listen in and get up to speed. The Hokage would ask him to speak when the time came.

"You'd better take responsibility for what you're saying, Shikaku!" Mitokado Homura lowered his voice, but his tone remained confrontational. "If what you say is true, then Konoha—and even the entire Land of Fire—will have to launch an investigation and impose strict controls. We'll also need to send out a large number of people to search. This is a matter of the utmost importance!"

"Not only will this cost us a great deal, it will also invite questions from the daimyo. And once we take action on such a large scale, the other countries and villages are bound to notice. Even if we don't inform them, they'll send a large number of spies to infiltrate us and investigate. Then we won't be able to keep the rift secret anymore! They'll inevitably get involved and try to claim a share, and the hard-won advantage of being first will vanish!"

As soon as Homura finished speaking, Inoichi, who'd been watching, noticed with amusement that although Shikaku's expression hadn't changed, years of friendship had taught him to read the faint twitch at the corner of his eye. Shikaku was surely rolling his eyes and mocking their intelligence.

Shikaku had also noticed Inoichi entering. Their eyes met for an instant, and they exchanged looks that said, "I'll explain later" and "Hahahaha." Then Shikaku turned to Mitokado Homura.

"Advisor, I don't believe we have the right to conceal information that concerns the survival of the entire Ninja World. Besides, my responsibility is limited to analyzing and drawing conclusions from the information we have. The final decision rests with Lord Hokage and the advisors."

"There are three reasons for my conclusion."

Shikaku held up three fingers.

"First, according to Lord Jiraiya's secret message, when he discovered the rift, two 'fruits' had already 'leaked' through from the other world, and one had been eaten. So we can tell that the two worlds had already begun 'interacting' before we discovered the rift."

"Second, based on the photos Kakashi brought back, we can infer that the other world had encountered and fought with other worlds before we did. They must understand this phenomenon better than we do, so it's more likely that they discovered the rift and took action before us than the other way around."

"Third, based on what Kakashi and Lord Jiraiya encountered when they entered that world, they were discovered only two days after arriving, according to Kakashi... Keep in mind that they'd seized a ship the day before and were sailing across the open sea. They'd locked up the entire crew and hadn't come into contact with anyone else. Even so, they were still caught up with by the man who could turn into magma, and then surrounded..."

Shikaku calmly and methodically laid out his reasoning. In doing so, he also brought those who'd arrived more recently up to speed—though, admittedly, it was hard to believe.

"Two worlds?"

Inoichi's mind was rocked by a storm, while Shikaku continued.

"The enemy's forces consisted of one flagship and seven escort ships—we'll call them that for now. Apart from the [Magma Man] leading them, there were five swordsmen who could unleash sword energy with their bare hands, two giants, three people with special abilities, seven capable fighters with no obvious distinguishing features, and more than a hundred 'ordinary sailors' who could withstand Explosive Tags and Rasengan with their bare bodies..."

At the latter part of Shikaku's statement, those present exchanged puzzled looks. The shinobi couldn't understand how "withstanding Explosive Tags and Rasengan with their bare bodies" fit with "ordinary sailors."

"So there's no way they just happened to stumble upon them with a force like that!" Shikaku's expression remained blank, but his tone was resolute. "It seems more likely that someone had been lying in wait near the rift and keeping watch. They must have spotted Kakashi and Lord Jiraiya early on, then followed them and sent their coordinates while waiting for the main force to assemble. Kakashi also said earlier that the enemy seemed to want to capture them alive, not kill them."

"So, taking all that into account..." Shikaku met Mitokado Homura's gaze. "That's how I reached my conclusion: the other side had been observing our world for a long time. And since Lord Jiraiya never left after discovering the rift, and someone was always watching it, I doubt their infiltrators have had a chance to return to their own world yet."

Anyone who heard Shikaku's reasoning couldn't help feeling convinced. Then Utatane Koharu slowly spoke.

"Shikaku, that was well put. You truly are the 'brains' of Ino-Shika-Cho." Then she changed tack. "But Advisor Mitokado also has a point. You must be prepared to accept the responsibility that comes with your words. That's what it means to be a true shinobi. We only want to make sure you fully understand the weight of what you've said. It will affect many things, not just you."

Shikaku nearly laughed in disbelief.

He hadn't expected that, even after he'd said so much, the two advisors would still be trying to disclaim responsibility and distance themselves from the issue... Damn it, they hadn't even started doing anything yet.

It was no wonder Shikaku was so angry. The two advisors had kept up this same routine throughout the past few hours of meetings. No matter what proposal someone made, they could always come up with a pile of high-minded arguments against it... Did anyone present really need them to spell out the pros and cons? How often did anything in this world have a perfect solution?

Shikaku understood it all too well. Even if he changed his position and said the chance of infiltrators being present was tiny and there was no need to worry, they'd probably switch angles and argue that they had to stay on guard... In the end, if the decision proved right, everyone would be fine. If it proved wrong, the two of them could still slip away unscathed, saying they'd voiced their objections at the time, but the esteemed heroes had been in the prime of their lives and wouldn't listen to the wisdom of their elders, so there'd been nothing they could do...

Damn it, how could Konoha function with a bunch of parasites like these in charge?

Shikaku cursed under his breath. Not wanting to get dragged into another argument with the two of them, he turned to the Hokage, who had yet to speak.

Then Sarutobi continued not to speak.

Koharu showed no sign of letting Shikaku off the hook. She continued, "There's also what Homura said just now. We need to take it seriously... This incident isn't just a crisis. It may also be an opportunity. Didn't Jiraiya and Kakashi say the other world has many resources we don't?"

"Fruits that grant strange abilities, sturdy blades, unfamiliar technology, a different system of power... If Konoha can obtain them before the other great nations, we'd grow stronger, and our influence in the Ninja World would surely increase. I don't see why we shouldn't try to find a way to communicate with them..."

"I disagree!"

Kakashi immediately objected, his tone firm. "The risk is simply too great. Given the other side's combat strength and what they've done to other worlds, I believe separating the two worlds is the only safe choice!"

Utatane Koharu gave a cold snort. "Kakashi... Remember your place. Your job is to provide information and carry out orders. You don't have the perspective we do."

"That's not just my opinion. Lord Jiraiya also—"

"..."

"..."

The argument continued in the office. The Hokage still said nothing. Shikaku was talking about convening another Five Kage Summit, Kakashi was emphasizing the power of the other world, and the two advisors were still arguing the opposite side... Maybe someone had once knocked their mouths crooked, and now they could only call out in the opposite direction.

Inoichi muttered a curse to vent on behalf of his old friend. His ears kept taking in the various arguments, but his mind had already started to drift away.

For some reason, even though everyone in this small office was discussing matters concerning the world... no, two worlds, Inoichi himself hadn't expected that, after the initial shock and confusion, he'd accepted it all so quickly. After that, his thoughts hadn't stayed focused on the debate, either.

He was just thinking that he probably really wouldn't make it home tonight. This meeting was going to go on for ages.

He'd wanted to have a heart-to-heart with Ino...

"Inoichi."

A soft voice called out beside him. Inoichi turned his head and saw Asuma had come over at some point.

"Ah, Asuma," Inoichi said. "What's up?"

"After the meeting, I need you to help me with something. Come with me to the dungeon... It's an order from the Hokage, too."

"What's going on?" Inoichi frowned. The dungeon wasn't an ordinary prison. It was Konoha's most heavily guarded facility, reserved for important prisoners, and the Anbu were directly responsible for its security.

"You've probably got the general idea by now." Asuma's voice carried a hint of exhaustion. He hadn't returned to Konoha with Kakashi; because they'd been on different missions, he had only gotten back an hour ago.

"I brought back a prisoner." Asuma nodded at Inoichi, whose eyes had slowly widened. "That's right... He's from the other world."

The next day.

No matter how immense the changes about to unfold might be, until those changes truly arrived, the ordinary people who made up most of the world usually remained unaware.

When the first ray of sunlight fell on Kage Rock, Ichiraku Ramen on the street corner hadn't opened yet, but the rich scent of its broth was already drifting through the air. Shinobi gathered in twos and threes in front of the bulletin board, while farmers carrying hoes walked past them, yawning as they made their slow way toward the fields outside the village.

Everything seemed as usual.

But for Rock Lee, it wasn't.

He seemed to have... crossed into another world.

"You...!"

Rock Lee angrily grabbed Naruto by the collar and roared, "Who the hell are you? Why are you wearing Naruto's clothes?"

Naruto raised both hands halfway and gave him a helpless smile. "Lee, it's me. I'm Naruto..."

"Where's Naruto!" At that moment, Lee couldn't hear a word Naruto was saying. Tears were welling in his eyes. "What did you do to him, you bastard! He's my teammate, Konoha's Blue-Gold Beast!"

"...Haha." Naruto scratched his cheek and could only manage an awkward laugh.

But Lee's tears began pouring down like a broken dam. His grip on Naruto's collar weakened, and his hand slowly slipped away. Then he fell to his knees.

"Damn it..." Lee pounded the ground helplessly. "Getting so handsome... That's not youthful at all, you bastard...!"

"Lee, don't be like that... I just got a haircut."

Seeing that Lee had lost all his strength and fight, Naruto could only crouch down and pat his back to comfort him.

A lot had happened the night before, but today he'd still gotten up as usual to go for his morning training. Then, as planned, he'd run into Team 10 training without Might Guy... and things had somehow ended up like this.

The others had been fine. They'd been surprised, but that was all. Lee was the only one who'd reacted so strongly, as if he'd been betrayed...

"Where'd you get it cut? It looks pretty good," Tenten teased as she came over. "I didn't think Naruto could look so cute once he dressed up a bit. Guess I'll have to give you a discount from now on. We have a house rule: cute kids get a discount."

"Don't tease me, Tenten," Naruto replied. It was already past the time training was supposed to start, but strangely, he didn't feel anxious. On the contrary, he was in a pretty good mood.

"I got it cut at a barbershop called [Mingmie Chijian]. The owner was really good, and the staff were nice, too. Ino took me there."

"What?!"

Lee sprang up as if resurrected from the dead and grabbed Naruto by the collar again. "You even have a girl?! You're lying to me, right? Ino's a boy, right? The name just sounds like a girl's name! You wouldn't betray me, would you, Naruto?"

"That's enough!" Tenten couldn't take it anymore and punched Lee. "Calm down!"

"Haha..." Naruto kept laughing awkwardly, not knowing what to say. He suddenly felt he still had a lot to learn about socializing.

After Tenten dragged Lee off to lecture him, Naruto and Neji were the only ones left there without anyone noticing.

One of them didn't know how to talk, and the other didn't like talking. The atmosphere fell silent for a moment, but it wasn't awkward. Neither of them was very good at reading the room, so neither felt uncomfortable.

In the end, Naruto was the first to speak.

"Um... Neji, you're from the Hyuga Clan, right?"

"?"

Neji stared at Naruto with two wide, white eyes.

What do you think?

This time, Naruto really did feel awkward.

Then he gave up on small talk and asked the question he'd left unasked yesterday.

"Hinata's your younger sister, right? I haven't seen much of her lately, so I wanted to ask how she's been."

"..."

Neji still didn't say a word, but Naruto could clearly sense that his expression had turned odd... and seemed to carry a hint of displeasure.

Naruto, who only knew the original story in fragments, didn't know that Neji and Hinata had a poor relationship at this point. So he assumed Neji, as her older brother, thought Naruto was interested in his sister and was unhappy about it.

"No, that's not it. Hinata and I got along pretty well at school, so I just wanted to ask casually." Naruto quickly explained, offering a reason that may or may not have been a lie.

"You and Lady Hinata are close?" Neji gave Naruto a puzzled glance. "I didn't know Lady Hinata had any close friends..."

?

Naruto frowned slightly. Neji's distant way of speaking about Hinata surprised him.

"But if it's you... I suppose it's no wonder you don't know." Neji's expression returned to normal.

"Don't know what?" Naruto asked with a frown.

"Everyone in Konoha knows." Neji gazed up at the sky, his voice devoid of emotion. "The current young lady of the Hyuga Main Family, Hinata Hyuga... has been unconscious for a month."