What If: A World Where the Yellow Flash Never Died

The instant Kakashi Hatake saw the image on the screen, his entire body froze stiff in his seat as though he had been hit by a petrification jutsu!

Then, an indescribably complex surge of emotion erupted like a volcano, instantly crushing all his composure and pretense.

He shot to his feet, his exposed eye wide as he stared fixedly at the screen.

"Th-That's impossible!"

This time, the screen no longer showed the blurry glimpse of a red-haired figure from the night before.

Instead, it displayed a completely real, crystal-clear figure!

She was a beautiful woman with dazzling flame-red hair, wearing an apron and a gentle yet vibrant smile as she busily prepared dinner in the kitchen!

The lines of her profile were soft, though there was a hint of heroism between her brows. Her bright, warm eyes were filled with a love for life.

It really was Kushina Uzumaki!

A living, breathing Kushina Uzumaki, as if she had never left!

And that was not all.

Kakashi's gaze rapidly swept across the background of the scene.

The cozy, lived-in kitchen, the layout of the living room visible through the kitchen doorway, the furniture, the decorative paintings hanging on the walls...

This room... this decorating style... this floor plan...

"It's here! It has to be here! This is clearly... clearly Minato-sensei and Kushina-senpai's home!"

He was certain he could never be mistaken.

Back then, as Minato-sensei's most trusted student, he had visited this place countless times to discuss missions with his teacher and... eat with his teacher's wife...

Although some details in the image differed slightly from his memories, the overall structure and feeling were absolutely the same place.

But...

This house...

In order to completely erase the connection between Naruto and Minato, and to protect Naruto's safety, shortly after the Nine-Tails incident ended twelve years ago, the Third Hokage had ordered this place sealed and dealt with completely.

Even the relevant records had been classified as top secret!

Naruto... he could not possibly know this house existed.

Much less know its interior layout.

Then what exactly was all this before his eyes?

If last night's fleeting glimpse could still be explained as coincidence or a subconscious projection...

What about now?

This utterly clear footage, this perfectly accurate setting, was absolutely no coincidence.

Nor was it something Naruto could have imagined out of thin air.

[დინ! Emotional fluctuations from Kakashi Hatake detected! Emotion points +1000!]

"Kakashi-sensei? What's wrong?"

Sakura's concerned voice came from beside him.

Both she and Sasuke looked curiously at Kakashi, who was so agitated that he had lost his composure.

To them, the scene on the screen was perfectly ordinary. It was just a gentle-looking red-haired aunt cooking. What was so special about that? Why was their teacher reacting so strongly?

"Tsk, tsk, tsk... as expected of the Sixth Hokage."

From the shadows in the last row of the screening hall, Shigure grinned from ear to ear as he watched the numbers on the system panel soar again.

"Who would've thought that among Team Seven, Kakashi, who usually looks the most unmotivated, would be the real hidden gold mine for emotion points? A little provocation, and they just keep shooting up."

Shigure stroked his chin, calculation glinting in his eyes.

He looked at his system panel again.

[Dream Fulfillment Master System]

[Current Dream Fulfillment Level: Level 1 (7450/100000)]

[Number of Dream Fulfillment Targets: 1]

[Audience Count: 3]

[Dream Instance Limit: 1]

[Current Dream Instance: Undying Flash—This time, on the night he was destined to die, the Yellow Flash thwarted the enemy's plot.]

According to the system's explanation, such instances were not entirely illusory fantasies. Instead, they were "parallel world fragments" simulated and constructed by the system based on the real world.

Within these fragments, certain crucial points in history could change for some reason, giving rise to a future completely different from that of the main world.

"Only possibilities based on 'reality' can maximize the participants' genuine emotions and create intense emotional fluctuations... Kakashi is reacting so strongly because he isn't merely seeing footage. He's seeing a 'past or future that might have existed.'"

However, he had also noticed the system's limitations.

With his current Level 1 authority, he could not freely create instances. He could not treat someone else's dream like a blank sheet of paper and draw upon it without restrictions.

He could only make "minor adjustments" based on a crucial point in a "dream fulfillment target's" life.

The only thing he could alter was the course of that one "key point."

This was also an important reason Shigure had chosen Naruto as his first target.

Naruto had far too many "regrets" and "possibilities."

As long as the initial tragic point in his life was changed, everything that followed would undergo earth-shaking changes.

That immense contrast and possibility were precisely the best catalysts for emotion points.

"Hehehe... Kakashi-sensei, enjoy it. This is... the 'reality' of another possibility."

Shigure's gaze returned to the screen.

In the scene, dream-Naruto seemed somewhat dazed as well.

He sat blankly on the soft sofa in the living room, looking around in confusion.

This was a... home?

A very clean, bright home that was also... filled with warmth.

The air was filled with the enticing aroma of food, drifting over from the kitchen beside him.

He turned his head and saw a dining table covered with a checkered tablecloth in the center of the living room. It was already laden with a lavish spread of steaming dishes.

There was his favorite miso ramen, golden omelets, bright green vegetable salad, and... a large plate of braised pork belly that looked absolutely delicious.

On the other side of the living room, in the connected open kitchen, a figure with dazzling red hair was busy at work.

Her movements looked practiced. She hummed a tuneless little song as she added seasonings to a pot of soup.

The sunlight in dreams was always so brilliant.

It streamed through the kitchen window and fell across her profile, outlining a soft, beautiful silhouette.

Naruto looked at that figure, and his heart began racing uncontrollably.

Who was this red-haired aunt...?

She felt... so familiar... so close...

Just then, the red-haired woman seemed to notice his gaze. She turned around and gave Naruto an incredibly gentle smile.

Carrying the last large plate of fragrant fried chicken, she walked out of the kitchen, placed it on the dining table, then called out to the still-dazed Naruto in a lively, doting voice:

"Naruto! What are you sitting there foolishly for? Go wash your hands! Dinner's ready!"