Hovering in the air, Naruto resembled a golden arbiter, coldly surveying the "blank space" he had created below.
He heard distant cries of alarm, weeping, and disbelieving murmurs, but he did not care.
What came next was the beginning of creation.
"Divine Vacuum Attack: Earth Terrain Shift!"
Naruto slammed his palms together in front of his chest.
Chakra as vast as an ocean thundered into the earth!
Rumble-!
The earth groaned and shuddered even more violently than it had during its annihilation.
But this time, it was not destruction. It was reconstruction!
The bottom of the enormous crater began to writhe, rise, and take shape like a living mire.
An invisible force compressed and leveled the soil and rock, forming an enormous, exceptionally solid and flat circular foundation in an instant.
Then, at the edge opposite Kage Rock, the ground abruptly split open.
An opening was carved out-the site of the future gate.
The foundation was complete. The opening was in place.
The main event had officially begun!
Naruto floated in the air, slowly spreading his arms to either side as though embracing the entire world.
He closed his golden, slit-pupiled eyes.
In his mind, every detail of Konoha, every street, every important building, even the scenery in certain corners...
The scenes of running with Might Guy in the early morning, the streets when Sakura Haruno helped buy breakfast,
The moment he noticed the Hyuga sisters during afternoon training, the instant Ino gave him bellflowers beneath the setting sun...
Roughhousing with Shikamaru and the others at school, competing with Sasuke to see who could teach more bratty kids a lesson at night, racing dogs through the Inuzuka Clan grounds with Kiba Inuzuka and Hana Inuzuka, each riding one of the Gray Maru Brothers...
He had measured every inch of Konoha