Inside Hokage Office, the air suddenly fell silent.
Future Tsunade's gaze was like a torch, with a scrutinizing light in his amber pupils, staring at Shinichi with a trace of doubt and confusion that could not be concealed in his eyes.
"Why... you have never existed in my memory?"
Her voice was calm and low, but it carried an imperceptible sense of oppression.
Tsunade was also slightly startled, turned to look at Shinichi, and frowned slightly.
She suddenly realized a problem - her future self didn't recognize Shinichi at all?
The existence of Shinichi seems to have been completely erased by history.
However, Shinichi's expression remained calm, his hands still crossed his chest casually, a faint smile appeared at the corner of his mouth, and his eyes were as deep as night.
"Lord Hokage, this is really a difficult question." His tone was calm, with a hint of teasing.
"Tricky?" Future Tsunade squinted his eyes, the smile on his face remained unchanged, but the sharpness in his eyes became more obvious, "Are you trying to stall me?"
"How is that possible?" Shinichi shook his head slightly and said with a smile, "It's just that... there is no record of me in your memory, it doesn't mean that I don't exist."
After his words fell, Future Tsunade frowned slightly, a trace of thought flashing in his eyes.
"Oh? You want to say that you once existed in this world, but... at a certain point in time, you were erased?" She took a sip of Sake and asked in a playful tone.
Shinichi smiled slightly and said in a meaningful tone, "Maybe... that's exactly what it is."
Tsunade was shocked. She looked at Shinichi, feeling slightly uneasy.
She knew very well that Shinichi was not someone who would easily fabricate lies.
He has always been calm, careful, and even annoyingly cunning at times, but he never lies on this kind of issue. If his future self really has no memory of him at all--
So, what does it mean?
It means some extremely powerful existence, which once completely wiped out all traces of Shinichi in this world!
Not only his name, identity, and past deeds, but even people like Tsunade in the future who are at the pinnacle of power do not remember his existence at all.
It is not an exaggeration to say that a being who can do such a thing is a "god"!
Tsunade's heart suddenly shrank, and his amber pupils trembled slightly, showing a hint of uncontrollable uneasiness.
It was hard for her to imagine what kind of power could completely erase a living person from history.
Is it some kind of taboo time and space magic?
Is it a higher dimensional existence?
Or is it some unknown force that controls the fate of Shinobi World?
"... Are you kidding?" Tsunade frowned, his tone was low, with a hint of anger.
She turned her head sharply and stared at Shinichi's face, her amber eyes flashing with rare seriousness and perseverance.
"You are my most important...'companion' in Konoha, how could I forget you?"
Tsunade's voice rose slightly, with a hint of stubbornness and anger in his amber pupils, and his tone was unquestionable, as if he wanted to use these words to refute all possible futures.
However, Shinichi just turned his head slowly and looked at her quietly, his eyes deep, as if he was looking through her eyes to a more distant time and space.
The corners of his mouth were slightly raised, and his smile was as usual, but with a hint of complicated emotions that was difficult to detect.
"Tsunade, maybe... you will really forget."
His voice was low, as if it contained an indescribable sigh, like some arrangement that had been predestined by fate.
"!!"
Tsunade's pupils suddenly shrank, and his heart seemed to be tightly grasped by something.
She had never heard Shinichi speak in such a tone. The feeling that he seemed to have predicted his fate but was helpless made her feel uncontrollably uneasy.
--How could she forget Shinichi?
--What kind of power can make her forget her most important 'companion'?
She couldn't accept this possibility.
Future Tsunade has been looking at them quietly, with a faint smile on the corner of his mouth, taking in the two people's expressions, and said calmly:
"It seems that you do know something."
Shinichi narrowed his eyes slightly, the smile still hanging on his lips, but he did not answer directly.
Of course he knows--
If his existence has been completely erased by history, there is only one possibility - at some point in the future, he will completely disappear from this world.
Maybe he was killed, maybe he was sealed, maybe some irresistible rules of time and space completely erased his existence...
No matter what the situation is, the final result is - this world will no longer remember him.
But the problem now is--
Who caused his existence to be erased?
Or--
He originally only existed in that time and space, but now they are in a completely different parallel world?
If it's the latter, that means--
Perhaps he has never been erased, but does not belong to the history of this time and space at all!
Thinking of this, Shinichi's mood, which had hit rock bottom, suddenly revived and regained some of its brilliance.
If they are now in a different time and space, and he does not exist in this world, then the problem is much simpler - he is not forgotten, but not recorded by this time and space at all.
His smile became a little deeper, with a bit of freedom and relief.
"That's it." He murmured softly, with a faint smile on his lips.
Tsunade looked at the change in his expression and was slightly startled.
"... What are you laughing at again?" She frowned, vaguely feeling that something was wrong.
Shinichi did not answer, but gently stretched out his hand and rubbed her hair, his movements natural and familiar, with a hint of pampering.
Tsunade was stunned by his actions, then his face turned slightly red and he glared at him. "Hey, what are you doing!"
But Shinichi ignored her protest and gently took her into his arms. His warm hands fell on her back and patted her gently.
His voice was low and gentle, with a touch of indescribable warmth and commitment:
"Silly girl, I told you that I will stay with you until you get tired of it and drive me away."
Tsunade was stunned.
She raised her head and looked into his amber eyes, feeling an inexplicable emotion suddenly surge in her heart.
She didn't know why Shinichi suddenly became so determined, nor why he could still smile so calmly after learning that he might be "erased."
But she knew clearly--
No matter what the future holds, she will never allow herself to forget this person.
Even if the world really erases him, she will definitely find a way to find him and bring him back!
Future Tsunade watched this scene quietly, a trace of complicated emotions flashing through her eyes, but soon, the corners of her mouth slightly raised, revealing a meaningful smile.
"Humph, young man..." She murmured softly, with a hint of nostalgia and playfulness in her voice.
Shinichi glanced slightly sideways, looked at the future Tsunade, and said with a smile, "How is it, Lord Hokage? Are you satisfied with my 'oath'?"
The future Tsunade took a sip of Sake and smiled calmly, "Don't just talk without practicing. When one day it is really wiped out, I won't have time to collect your body."
Shinichi laughed and said firmly, "Then just watch."
Tsunade snorted coldly and turned his head away, but his cheeks turned slightly red.
--No matter what the future holds, at least at this moment, their bond will not change.
"Come with me and I will arrange a place and a new identity for you."
Future Tsunade stood up slowly and placed the wine glass in her hand casually on the table. Her amber pupils glowed faintly under the afterglow of Setting Sun. Her tone was calm, but revealed unquestionable authority.
Shinichi and Tsunade looked at each other, then followed the future Tsunade and walked towards the side door of Hokage Office.
However, just as they were about to step out of the room, the voice of future Tsunade sounded again--
"Also, tell me the story about 'Uchiha Shinichi'."
Shinichi paused slightly, looking deeply at the future Tsunade, and Tsunade also frowned, with a hint of vigilance.
"Are you interested in Shinichi?" Tsunade asked tentatively, with a bit of confusion in his tone.
Future Tsunade smiled slightly, folded his hands on his chest, and leaned against the door frame, with a meaningful light in his eyes.
"Isn't it strange that I am interested in 'a person who has completely disappeared from history'?"
Her voice was steady, but there was a hint of exploration, as if she wanted to pry out some dust-covered truth through these words.
Shinichi narrowed his eyes slightly and raised a faint smile at the corner of his mouth, "It sounds like Lord Hokage is more interested in 'me' than I thought."
Future Tsunade smiled softly and said in a calm tone, "I'm just curious."
Her eyes slowly fell on Shinichi, as if she was observing something carefully, and then she said softly:
"Did you know? As Hokage, I am qualified to access all historical files of Konoha."
She walked slowly to the desk, tapped the table with her slender fingers, and said in a meaningful tone:
"But there is not even a page of records about 'Uchiha Shinichi'."
Shinichi's expression remained calm, but there was a slight ripple in his heart.
Sure enough, his existence was completely erased...
Not only in the memories of the villagers, but also in the official archives, there is no trace left.
What does this mean?
This means that at a certain point in time, he was artificially and completely "erased" from history.
This kind of erasure is even more thorough than the treatment when Uchiha Clan was exterminated - at least, the deeds of the Uchiha Clan still exist in the history of Konoha, and the name "Uchiha Shinichi" does not even qualify as "history".
--If even Hokage cannot check the relevant records, then there is only one possibility.
--It was a higher-level power that completely eliminated all traces of him!
Future Tsunade looked at Shinichi quietly, as if observing his reaction, but Shinichi just smiled indifferently and said in a relaxed tone, "Oh? That's really strange."
Tsunade frowned, with a hint of uneasiness in his amber pupils.
She pursed her lips and whispered, "Shinichi, in my era, you were a famous troublemaker. How could you not leave any records..."
She's right.
Uchiha Shinichi is not a low-key person. He once stirred up the Shinobi World situation, fought against countless strong men, and even experienced several life and death crises with Tsunade.
How could such a person not even leave his name?
Future Tsunade smiled slightly, with a hint of meaningful playfulness in his voice. "So... why don't you tell me yourself, who are you?"
Shinichi looked at the future Tsunade quietly, with the corners of his mouth raised slightly and his eyes as deep as night.
"Lord Hokage, do you really want to hear it?"
Future Tsunade smiled softly, crossed his arms, leaned against the door frame, and said in a calm tone:
"Of course."
"Okay." Shinichi smiled softly, his eyes flickered slightly, and then he spoke slowly -
"I am Uchiha Shinichi, a... person who does not belong to this era."
His voice was low, but with a certain kind of determination, as if everything was already doomed, and he was just waiting for the moment the truth was revealed.
Future Tsunade's eyes narrowed slightly, and the smile at the corner of his mouth deepened, "Huh... A person who does not belong to this era?"
"That's right." Shinichi smiled slightly and said slowly, "Since you are interested in me, then I will tell you... the story of a person who has been 'disappeared in history'."
Future Tsunade narrowed his eyes, his gaze flickered, then smiled softly, turned sideways, and walked outside.
"Then let's talk while walking."
Shinichi and Tsunade looked at each other and then followed them.
Behind them, the door of Hokage Office slowly closed, and the afterglow of Setting Sun reflected on the backs of the three of them, casting a warm golden glow.
However, under this warm light, a story about forgetfulness and truth has just begun--