The Timeline Had Changed

In the late autumn of Konoha's sixty-second year, when Uzumaki Naruto returned to the village, the pack on his shoulder felt three times heavier than when he had left a year and a half ago—not because of luggage, but because of something that had settled in his eyes. Much of the boyish restlessness had been worn away, replaced by an almost razor-sharp focus. He stood before the stone monument at the village gate for a long time. Only when the setting sun stretched his shadow far behind him did he step toward the familiar streets.

The first person he sought out was Sakura.

In the newly built training room of the medical department, the pink-haired girl was practicing the Mystical Palm Technique on a human-shaped dummy. A faint glow of chakra swirled steadily and precisely in her palms. Naruto leaned against the doorframe and watched for a while. Only after Sakura finished a round of training and turned around did he flash a grin. "Yo, Sakura!"

"Naruto?!" The medical kit in Sakura's hands fell to the floor. The next second, she had rushed over and grabbed his ear. "You idiot! Why didn't you tell me before coming back?! And what happened to your hair? It's long enough to braid!"

"Ow, ow, ow! Sakura, go easy!" Naruto bared his teeth in pain, but his eyes were full of laughter. "I wanted to surprise you! And look—" He held out his right hand. Chakra gathered and compressed in his palm, forming an azure sphere twice the size of an ordinary Rasengan. Its internal structure was denser, and it gave off a deep hum as it spun. "Big Ball Rasengan! Pervy Sage said it's powerful enough to blast through three Earth-Style Walls!"

Sakura released him and stared blankly at the sphere. She could feel the terrifying energy contained within it. He truly was no longer the dead last who could barely keep a Rasengan stable a year and a half ago.

"You... got stronger," she said quietly.

"Not strong enough." Naruto dispersed the technique, his expression turning serious. "Sakura, I heard Sasuke... Orochimaru's Living Corpse Reincarnation is still a year and a half away. We need to find a way to bring him back before then."

At the mention of Sasuke, Sakura's eyes darkened. She turned to gather the scattered medical supplies, her voice slightly hoarse. "I know. Every day, I've been studying under Lady Tsunade—medical ninjutsu, monstrous strength, even the basics of the Strength of a Hundred... But Naruto, Orochimaru is one of the Legendary Sannin. Otogakure is heavily guarded. We..."

"That's why we need to get stronger!" Naruto interrupted, his voice carrying unquestionable resolve. "I can't do it alone, and neither can you. But if we work together, and with Kakashi-sensei—oh, right, where is Kakashi-sensei? I didn't see him on my way back."

"The Hokage summoned him," Sakura said. "It seemed like an urgent mission. But Naruto, do you really think we can go to Otogakure now...?"

"Not now." Naruto shook his head, his eyes holding a clarity Sakura had never seen before. "Going now would be suicide. But a year and a half... no, one year. Give me one more year, and I'll definitely find a way."

As he said that, his right hand unconsciously clenched, his nails digging into his palm.

During his year and a half of traveling and training, Jiraiya had been unable to personally guide him for two months due to his injuries. Yet during that time, Naruto had figured out the advanced techniques of the Big Ball Rasengan on his own. More importantly, he had seen the Shinobi World as it truly was—not the illusion of peace within Konoha's walls, but the conflicts along the borders, the struggles of small nations, and powerful forces lurking in the shadows with unknown goals, like Akatsuki.

Sasuke was in the hands of those people. Naruto had to become stronger—strong enough to charge into anywhere and drag that stubborn bastard back.

"Oh, right." Naruto suddenly remembered something. "Sakura, you mentioned the Strength of a Hundred just now? That's Granny Tsunade's ultimate move, right? You learned it?"

"Only the basics." Sakura looked a little embarrassed. "I can barely maintain the Yin Seal for storing chakra, but I'm still far from actually using the Strength of a Hundred. Lady Tsunade said my chakra control is good enough, but my chakra reserves... I'll need at least another three years of accumulation."

"That's still amazing!" Naruto gave her a thumbs-up. "As expected of the genius girl Sakura!"

Sakura laughed at his teasing, but her smile quickly faded. "More importantly, Naruto, the power of your Nine-Tails..."

Before she could finish, the training room door opened. Kakashi leaned against the doorway, his visible eye curving into a crescent. "Well, I heard a certain dead last came back and immediately started harassing the medical department's top student?"

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto lunged at him, only for Kakashi to effortlessly dodge.

"You've grown taller." Kakashi looked Naruto over. "Your presence has changed too. Lord Jiraiya taught you well—despite leaving you to fend for yourself for two months."

"I learned the Big Ball Rasengan by myself!" Naruto protested. Then he immediately grabbed Kakashi's sleeve. "Kakashi-sensei, about Sasuke—"

"I heard." Kakashi cut him off, his tone turning serious. "Naruto, Sakura, the Hokage already has arrangements regarding the plan to rescue Sasuke. But not now."

"Then when?"

"When you're stronger." Kakashi looked at Naruto. "Especially you, Naruto. Lord Jiraiya should have told you that one of Akatsuki's targets is the Nine-Tails. If you don't have enough ability to protect yourself, forget saving Sasuke—you'll become a target yourself."

Naruto clenched his teeth. "That's why I need to get stronger! Kakashi-sensei, do you have a special training plan? An advanced Rasengan? Or a new ninjutsu?"

Kakashi exchanged a glance with Jiraiya, who had just entered. The latter was still leaning on a cane—his ribs had healed, but the lingering injuries needed time to recover.

"Wind Release," Jiraiya said. "Naruto, your chakra nature is wind, one of the most offensively powerful natures. If you can develop a Wind Release ninjutsu of your own and combine it with the Rasengan system, your combat power will undergo a qualitative leap."

"Like Sasuke's Lightning Release Chidori?" Naruto's eyes lit up.

"Stronger than that," Kakashi added. "Chidori combines Lightning Release nature transformation with shape transformation. What you need to do is integrate Wind Release nature transformation into the Rasengan—create a technique that is unique to Uzumaki Naruto."

Naruto clenched his fists. Chakra unconsciously leaked from his body, forming a faint vortex around him. "I'll learn it! Let's start right now!"

"Don't rush." Jiraiya pressed a hand to his shoulder. "Developing a technique of this level takes time, guidance, and... a suitable training environment. Tsunade has approved it. I, Kakashi, and Yamato from ANBU will guide you together. Yamato's Wood Release can suppress Nine-Tails Chakra. If you lose control during training again..."

He did not finish, but Naruto understood. The shadow of the Four-Tails rampage from several months ago, when he had nearly killed Jiraiya, still lingered.

"I understand." Naruto lowered his head. When he looked up again, his gaze was firm. "This time, I'll control it. I swear."

Half an hour earlier, the atmosphere in the Hokage Office had been grim.

Tsunade slammed a diplomatic document onto her desk hard enough to crack its edges with her monstrous strength. "Those bastards from the Cloud Village! I shared Akatsuki's intelligence with them, and they actually replied, 'Thank you to Konoha for the entertaining reading material'?! They even said the Uchiha Clan belongs to Konoha, so if it produced a traitor, it was because Konoha failed to discipline them. They aren't afraid at all—unless Madara Uchiha comes back to life?!"

Jiraiya sat in a guest chair, unusually free of his usual frivolous grin. "It was expected. The Cloud Village has always respected strength. They won't take a threat seriously unless they see it with their own eyes. And because of what happened to Hizashi Hyuga... they never trusted Konoha in the first place."

"Then what about Naruto?" Tsunade rubbed her temples irritably. "We can't get training methods for Jinchuriki from them, and Akatsuki's threat is getting closer. Am I supposed to watch that kid fumble around on his own? What if he goes berserk again...?"

"That's why Kakashi's suggestion is correct," Jiraiya said. "Let Naruto develop his own Wind Release ninjutsu. He has the talent—the Big Ball Rasengan proves it. With Kakashi and me guiding him, plus Yamato's Wood Release as insurance, it's much safer than letting him recklessly experiment with the Nine-Tails' power."

Tsunade fell silent for a long time before finally sighing. "It can only be this way. By the way, you said before that you wanted to investigate Pain in Amegakure..."

"Postponed," Jiraiya said bluntly. "Naruto's training is more important. Besides... I received some intelligence. Amegakure is completely sealed off now. Even the people from the underground bounty exchange can't get in. Going there rashly would be too dangerous."

"What about Akatsuki's movements?"

"They're expanding." Jiraiya's expression grew serious. "They haven't moved against the Tailed Beasts yet, but the frequency and scale of the missions they take are both increasing. In the past six months alone, at least four small nations have suffered coups, and seven Kekkei Genkai families have been wiped out. Akatsuki's shadow was behind all of it. They're accumulating funds, connections, and... experimental materials."

The words "experimental materials" made Tsunade frown. She thought of Orochimaru, of corpses soaking in those cultivation tanks.

"Tell Naruto," she finally said. "One year. I'm only giving him one year. After one year, no matter how his training progresses, he must take part in an official S-Rank mission. Real combat is the best teacher, and the final test."

"Understood."

After Jiraiya left, Tsunade stood alone before the window, gazing at Konoha's lights.

One year. One year for Naruto, one year for Konoha. A year later, Akatsuki's fangs would fully reveal themselves. Then the Shinobi World, which had known peace for more than a decade, would face a war crueler than the three previous Shinobi World Wars.

And before then, she had to make Konoha ready.

In the deepest training ground of Otogakure's underground base, Neji sat cross-legged at the center of a complex pentagram formation. Each of the five points glowed with a different color: red for fire, blue for water, brown for earth, cyan for wind, and gold for lightning. The first four lights were steady. Only the cyan light representing the wind nature flickered, as though it could go out at any moment.

One year had passed. A full year since the Hashirama Cells fusion had been completed.

Over these six months, Neji's chakra system had undergone earth-shaking changes. Under the catalysis of Yang Release power, his fire nature had completed its transformation first. His water and earth natures had then awakened almost on their own, transforming far faster than expected. The lightning nature had already been stable, and now he wielded it as naturally as his limbs.

Only the wind nature remained stuck at the fifteen-percent threshold, refusing to break through.

"Wind is free. It cannot be restrained." Orochimaru's voice came from the observation room, carrying a researcher's cool analysis. "Your chakra system is now deeply permeated by Yang Release power, while the Caged Bird Seal binds you. Both forces suppress the trait of 'freedom.' It is inevitable that the wind-nature transformation will be difficult."

Neji opened his eyes. Within his Byakugan vision, he could clearly see the chakra flowing through his body—five-colored energies like five rivers. Four were broad and calm, while the cyan stream representing wind was thin and fragile, struggling through his chakra pathways.

"Is there a solution?" he asked.

"Two options." Orochimaru brought up a data model. "First, temporarily stop actively drawing upon Yang Release power. Reduce the shaping pressure on your chakra system and give the wind nature room to breathe. But that will cause the transformations of your other natures to stagnate, perhaps even regress. Second..."

He paused. "Force a breakthrough. Use Sage Art Chakra to simulate a natural storm, allowing your body to forcibly awaken the wind nature's instinct through an extreme experience of 'freedom.' But the risk is high. If you cannot control it, the wind nature may tear apart the chakra system you have only just stabilized."

Neji did not make a choice immediately. He rose and walked to the weapon rack at the edge of the training ground, taking down a katana—not a real blade, but a specially made training sword capable of conducting chakra.

"I'll try swordsmanship first," he said.

This had been a new training project over the past half year. Orochimaru had discovered that when Neji used the Gentle Fist, his chakra flow unconsciously tended toward "stability" and "control," which conflicted with the "freedom" and "eruption" of the wind nature. Swordsmanship, especially broad, powerful slashes, could instead stir an energy closer to the wind nature.

Neji took his starting stance, the katana angled toward the ground. Chakra flowed from his palm into the blade, and the edge lit up with a pale cyan-white glow—not the cyan of lightning, but a lighter, sharper color.

Slash!

The blade-light was like wind, leaving a three-meter gash across the training ground's alloy wall. The mark was not deep, but its edges were as smooth as a mirror, an effect only extreme sharpness could produce.

"Wind-nature chakra infusion rate... twelve percent," Orochimaru reported. "Two percentage points higher than last week. Effective, but too slow."

Neji sheathed his blade and panted. That strike had not consumed much chakra, but it demanded absolute mental concentration. In the instant he swung, he had to briefly release his total control over chakra and let the energy flow naturally with the blade's momentum. For a Hyuga Clan member accustomed to precisely controlling every strand of chakra, it was no different from overturning himself.

"I need real combat," Neji suddenly said. "Not imaginary enemies in a training ground, but a real opponent who forces me to go all out."

Orochimaru raised a brow. "You want to spar with Sasuke?"

"No." Neji shook his head. "Sasuke's Lightning Release and my wind nature have no complementary effect. What I need is... a true Wind Release ninja, or at least someone skilled in high-speed movement who can force me into a state of 'freedom.'"

"There is no one like that in Otogakure," Orochimaru said bluntly. "And it is too dangerous for you to go outside now. Konoha's ANBU have been active along the border. Tsunade may already know that you fused with the Hashirama Cells."

Neji was silent for a moment before presenting a proposal he had been considering for a long time. "Then what if... I join Akatsuki?"

The training ground instantly fell silent.

In the observation room, Orochimaru's golden pupils narrowed slightly. The tablet in Kabuto's hands nearly slipped to the ground.

"Explain." Orochimaru's voice was calm, but dangerous undercurrents flowed beneath that calmness.

"Three reasons." Neji sheathed his sword and walked to the observation window, meeting those serpent eyes through reinforced glass. "First, Akatsuki is expanding and recruiting members. With my current strength—Sage Arts, the beginnings of Wood Release, and nearly completed all-nature transformation—I am enough to draw their interest. Second, Akatsuki's target is the Tailed Beasts. They will act sooner or later. Rather than wait until they gather all the Tailed Beasts and create the Ten-Tails, I should infiltrate them early and seize the initiative."

He paused, then voiced the most crucial third point. "Third, Lord Orochimaru, you are still in contact with Sasori of the Red Sands, aren't you?"

The air grew even colder.

Orochimaru stared at Neji for a long time before suddenly smiling. "Where did you learn about Sasori?"

"Intelligence analysis." Neji's expression did not change. "When you left Akatsuki, you took a large amount of research data with you, yet Akatsuki did not pursue you to the death. That means someone within Akatsuki helped smooth things over for you, or at least believed you were more valuable alive than dead. Based on the intelligence you provided before, most Akatsuki members are lone wolves. Only Sasori of the Red Sands is a puppeteer with an interest in biological modification and forbidden techniques. He may be interested in your research results."

It was a perfect chain of logic, a reasonable inference based entirely on the available intelligence.

Orochimaru's smile deepened, but there was no amusement in his golden eyes. "Go on."

"If I join Akatsuki through Sasori's connections, I can become your informant within the organization," Neji continued. "Akatsuki's plan to gather the Tailed Beasts, its members' abilities, even the method of creating the Ten-Tails—you will need that intelligence. In exchange, once I obtain the Ten-Tails' power, I can share part of the results with you. A win-win arrangement."

"Assuming you live long enough to see that day," Orochimaru said coldly. "Akatsuki's members are all S-Rank Missing-nin, each more ruthless than the last. Itachi Uchiha, Kisame Hoshigaki, Kakuzu, Hidan... none of them are people to trifle with. A sixteen-year-old brat like you would be eaten alive, bones and all."

"That is why I need to reach completion." Neji pointed toward the pentagram formation in the center of the training ground. "Once the wind-nature transformation is complete, once I truly possess an all-nature chakra system, together with Sage Arts and the beginnings of Wood Release, I will have the foundation to stand within Akatsuki. And..."

He looked at Orochimaru. "You will give me some insurance, won't you? For example, an improved Earth Curse Mark that cannot be easily discovered? Or certain... forbidden knowledge that can save my life at a critical moment?"

A long silence followed.

Orochimaru turned around and looked at Neji's data on the monitoring screen. Sixteen years old, Quasi-Kage Level strength while in Sage Mode, mastery of the beginnings of Wood Release, nearly completed all-nature transformation, and that terrifying growth rate coupled with an almost cold-blooded ability to scheme.

Letting such a pawn loose could indeed bring astonishing returns. But it could also... turn on him.

"After the wind-nature transformation is complete," Orochimaru finally said. "If your all-nature system stability reaches above ninety percent, I will consider arranging contact between you and Sasori. But for now..."

He pulled up another report. "Focus on what is in front of you. I received word that Sasuke Uchiha recently completed the development of a new technique—S-Rank Lightning Release: Kirin. A single strike is powerful enough to destroy a small fortress."

Neji's heart lurched.

Kirin?! Wasn't that Sasuke's trump card against Itachi in the original story? How had he developed it so far ahead of time? Had Sasuke's growth accelerated because of Neji's appearance and the changes to the plotline?

And what about Naruto? That number-one unpredictable ninja who never followed common sense—how far had he gotten now?

"What has Naruto been doing lately?" Neji tried to make his voice sound like a casual question.

"On Konoha's side, Uzumaki Naruto has just returned to the village after a year and a half of traveling," Orochimaru said. His intelligence network was truly terrifying. "According to our sources, he has mastered the advanced form of the Rasengan, the Big Ball Rasengan, and is currently developing Wind Release ninjutsu under Kakashi and Jiraiya's guidance. The exact progress is unknown, but Konoha is treating it with great importance. Even Yamato from ANBU has been reassigned to assist with his training."

Neji tightened his grip on the katana's hilt.

Big Ball Rasengan... Wind Release ninjutsu development... Just as expected, Naruto's growth trajectory had changed too. At this rate, he might master Wind Style: Rasenshuriken in half a year, not a full year. By then, Konoha's combat power would take shape ahead of the original timeline.

And Akatsuki... They had not begun capturing the Tailed Beasts yet, but their movements were increasing. He had to infiltrate them before they began acting on a large scale.

"Wind nature." Neji turned and walked back to the center of the formation. "Give me one month. I will break through within one month."

He sat cross-legged and formed hand seals. This time, he no longer deliberately controlled himself. Instead, he tried to empty his mind, to sense chakra's most primal flow, to touch that unrestrained power called "freedom."

Within the formation, the cyan light began to surge violently.

In the observation room, Orochimaru watched Neji enter a state of deep cultivation. A complicated glint flashed through his golden pupils.

"All natures... Sage Arts... Wood Release... and such terrifying obsession." He murmured, "Neji Hyuga, will you fulfill my ambitions, or... become my most dangerous enemy?"

Beyond the window, within the eternal darkness of Otogakure's underground base, the gears of time were beginning to turn faster.

Naruto's path of Wind Release, Sasuke's blade of vengeance, and Neji's plan to infiltrate Akatsuki would soon collide with a thunderous crash.

And the storm of the Shinobi World had already revealed its first savage glimmer over the horizon.