Author's Note: I've decided to update this early and just set a bunch of reblogs, because ever since tumblr messed with the links and tagging system, I don't think my stories are coming up in searches or anything...Besides, I'm really excited about this chapter! Prepare for feels!

As usual, unedited until I get to it

Also, the fanart above was done by the talented sajirah over on tumblr, so if you get a chance head over there and give a like/comment as thanks!

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Sakura isn't sure how long she is unconscious, but when she comes to, Kakashi is leaning over her, while her teammates watch her with a mixture of amusement and resignation.

"After everything you went through today, this is what makes you faint?" her instructor asks her lightly, and helps her to her feet.

She is blushing furiously, and trying not to meet anyone's gaze. Except, she can feel Future Sasuke's gaze on her, a piercing thing that makes goosebumps rise on the backs of her arms, but also comforting somehow.

I wonder how he does that...

Beside her, her Sasuke radiates irritation, and she has the rather ridiculous notion that he would like to put himself between her and his adult self.

"Sakura," Sasuke's future self says, a question in his voice, and Sakura remembers that he was asking her something. She snaps her eyes up toward him, forcing herself to pay attention.

He said there's something he wants to check? Sakura remembers. He means with the Sharingan, doesn't he?

She's not entirely sure how she feels about that, but the earnest expression on his face, different from the usual blank one, causes her to nod wordlessly.

Future Sasuke nods in thanks. "Look into my eyes. This won't hurt."

Hesitantly, she raises her eyes to meet his. Immediately, she is lost in the deep black depths of his eyes. There's something in their colouring, and she wonders if it's the glare of the sunlight, but are they a shade lighter than she's used to her Sasuke having?"

"Your eyes are different," she tells him quietly.

"Yes. It's an evolved form of the Sharingan."

"Now, that's not it. They're...well, they're not as angry as my Sasuke's," she tells him as his irises turn red. "They remind me...of your brother's."

The last thing she hears in the real world is the shocked inhalation of breath beside her, and then she is somewhere else entirely.

The world around her is black and white, like the negative image of a developing photograph. The only bit of colour she can see are Sasuke's eyes as he gazes down at her, before his attention is drawn by something else. Something black falls in front of her—a lot of somethings, she realises, and reaches out to catch one.

A feather?

She looks beyond it then and gasps as she suddenly finds that someone is standing behind Sasuke. A familiar someone in a long black coat with red clouds.

"Sa...Sasuke! Watch out!" she cries, pointing behind him.

She expects him to whirl around and lash out, the way he did when he first rescued her. Or the way she knows her Sasuke would react to the sight of his brother. But the movement is languid, as if he is reluctant to turn but knows he must.

She is hit then with a memory of surprising clarity.

The world bleeds red and black, and she is standing alone before Itachi Uchiha.

"Sarada?!" she cries, looking for the girl.

"You will not find her here," he tells her coolly. "She has other matters to concern herself with."

Sakura's mind rebels at this, her inner self battling to come to the surface but coming up against a wall, and with great difficulty, she raises her fingers to her chest, trying to perform a hand sign.

"You will not be able to dispel this genjutsu," Itachi says, "although you are making an admirable effort." Is she? She can't tell. This world of black and red is suffocating, and she can barely keep focussed on the image of the man before her. "I detect a remarkably strong second will within you."

A will that is trapped beyond her reach by this terrifyingly bleak world.

"Why do you care so much for my brother?" Itachi asks without segue, in his deceptively mild voice. "Is it some girlhood fancy?"

All around them, images from her past surround them—

Her and Ino fighting to sit next to Sasuke in class. Sakura offering him a box of chocolates while he walks by. Sakura cheering Sasuke on with all the girls in their group as he and Naruto fight.

"No...there's something else here..."

Sakura grits her teeth, unable to break herself out of the onslaught of memories that overwhelm her again. Tears pour down her cheeks as she relives all of those moments, the embarrassing, the frightening, the painful.

She can't break away from his gaze.

The images replaying around them are different now. Sakura stands in front of Sasuke, holding a dagger with shaky hands as he and Naruto lie unconscious behind her. Sakura skidding across a splintering floor to stop an immobile Sasuke from injuring himself on landing. Sasuke curled in a fetal position, Sakura throwing herself in front of him even as a half-transformed Gaara throws a giant fist of sand her way. Diving off of a cliff to save an unconscious Sasuke from drowning in the sea—

"I see," Itachi says, and the images fade.

Sakura gasps as she is released, and slumps forward a little. Itachi peers at her more closely now, with speculation.

"You would do anything to protect him."

"Yes," Sakura bites out without hesitation, louder because she wants to ensure she can speak under her own power.

"You would give your life for his."

"Yes!"

He nods, thoughtful.

"I cannot personally interfere in the course of events you have found yourself in. There is too much at stake to chance it," he tells her. "But I can lend you something to help protect Sasuke. Should you find yourself in a position where all hope is lost."

"What?" Sakura gasps. "You want to...help him? But I...I don't understand."

"And I don't have the time to explain it to you," he replies. "I'm expending enough energy as it is carrying on a similar conversation with the other girl. Your daughter."

Sakura clenches her fists. "If you hurt her—"

"I have no interest in harming either of you," Itachi dismisses, and raises his arm. There is a flurry of black feathers, and a giant crow appears, settling on his arm. One of its eyes gleams with a—

"Sharingan!" Sakura gasps.

"Yes," Itachi says. "This crow has a specific role to play. A means of saving Sasuke from the darkness consuming him. You know of what I speak."

Images of Sasuke losing control, of the curse mark covering his body, his eyes becoming more and more hostile every day—

"I cannot risk it using its ultimate ability beyond erasing my memory of these events—"

Wait, what?

"—but it will be helpful to you if you have no other choice, and if Sarada fails."

"But I thought you said...you couldn't interfere!"

"I can't," he tells her patiently. "My summon is a different matter. It will have enough chakra to help you if you find yourself facing certain and imminent death with zero probability of survival. Then it will return to me."

"Because it's linked to your time," Sakura realises, her thoughts a convoluted mess of panic and anxiety as she tries to understand why Itachi Uchiha wants her to save his brother.

"You have a keen mind," he tells her, approving.

Before she has time to process the fact the most infamous shinobi in Konoha just complimented her, the crow takes off, making a beeline for her.

Sakura cries out, taking a step back, but can't stop the creature from barrelling into her. Pain explodes in her chest, like the thing is burrowing through her sternum and ribs, and then it's abruptly gone again without even an aftershock.

Breathless, she stares up at Itachi in confusion.

"Why?" she whispers.

"I have confidence that all will be revealed in proper time," he dismisses. "Perhaps I will even be able to tell him..."

He trails off, and the blank façade flickers for an instant.

"Tell him what?" Sakura whispers.

Itachi shakes his head. "That is not for my future sister-in-law to hear first. As it is, our time runs short."

"Wait, you can't just...say something like that, and just—!"

Itachi's Sharingan wheels within his eyes, and words vanish from her mind.

"You will not remember this. When the genjutsu dispels, you will only have memory of fighting against your worst fears," he tells her. "When you wake up, you will get yourself and Sarada as far away from me as possible. Your lives and the entire timeline is dependant on that."

Sakura finds herself nodding.

Itachi gives her one last piercing look—like a craftsman evaluating his newly made tool for imperfections—and then nods. Striding forward, he reaches out to her.

"I hope next time...we meet under better circumstances..."

Two fingers tap against her forehead and the world shifts.

Sakura gasps as the memory releases her, and suddenly she is back to standing behind Sasuke's future self. He is tense, like he's seeing a ghost or living a nightmare, and she expects him to lash out. Meanwhile, Itachi is gazing at them both, looking startled, like he didn't expect to see them.

His eyes snap to Sasuke's, and for a time there is a heaviness in this strange realm of memory and thought. The two men, so alike and so different, size each other up.

Then, to her shock, he smiles.

"You're taller than me," he tells Sasuke.

And then—she nearly has a heart-attack here—Sasuke smiles back.

"Maybe you're just short," he suggests.

Are they...are they joking with each other? Sakura wonders, and this is not the reaction Sasuke would have for his brother, past or future.

"I did not think you would find this imprint," Itachi confesses, smile fading.

"You always plan several steps ahead," Sasuke replies, equally serious. "If you felt there was a need to place a safeguard within Sakura, it stands to reason you could foresee an instance where I might have to investigate how such a thing occurred."

"I hoped Sarada would succeed in finding you, and that this wouldn't be necessary," Itachi says, and glances at Sakura. "She lives?"

"Y-yes," Sakura stammers.

"It relieves me to hear it. When I saw you both here, I assumed the worst.

"How are you here?" she wants to know.

"When I placed the crow within you, I also placed this imprint of myself. It's similar to a shadow clone. Once it dispels, it will return to me, just like the crow did. It will bring with it all memory of this meeting," Itachi explains. "I have created a seal on it to release only at the moment of my death." Sasuke's fist clenches. "This way, I cannot impact the timeline more than I already have. And..."

He trails off, looking guiltily at Sasuke, which this flies in the face of everything Sakura knows about Itachi Uchiha.

What the hell happens between my time and Future Sasuke's?!

"Perhaps it is a selfish hope, but I hoped my final thought could be of the bright future you have built for yourself," Itachi continues.

"It's not selfish," Sasuke says quietly, and though his face remains composed, there's anguish in his eyes.

Itachi sees it too, because his eyes soften; guilt morphs into shame.

"I'm sorry," he says, the words almost a whisper. "For everything."

Sasuke is quiet for a spell, and then takes a step forward, then another. Sakura's hands clasp to her heart, wondering if this is what causes Sasuke's odd calm in the face of his clan's murderer to break.

But instead, he places his arm on his brother's shoulder.

"I know," he tells him, quietly. "You were in a position where every choice led to bloodshed. Nothing will ever make what you did right—" Pain flashes across his Itachi's face, "—but I understand your reasons."

Itachi swallows.

"I see," he says at last, like he's not sure what else to say.

"When I was younger—" Sasuke's eyes flit to Sakura, and she knows he's talking about her Sasuke, "—I wouldn't have been able to. I couldn't. But I know the coming years are going to be difficult. There are things you have to do and plans you have to put in place. If you don't, there is no future for our family." Itachi inhales sharply at those two words. "Or anyone else's."

And all of this is going over Sakura's head even as she tries to parse the meaning behind the two men's conversation, but Itachi seems to understand what is being said.

"I thought so," he remarks, resigned. Then he turns away, spine straightening, as if he is preparing for an unpleasant task. "Time is short. The chakra I placed in the seal will run out soon. Sasuke—"

"This time I intend to have the last word," Sasuke interrupts him, earning a surprised look. "I never had the chance to say this before you were...gone." His arm moves from Itachi's shoulder to rest upon his head, and then he leans forward, pressing their foreheads together. "No matter what you do from now on, at the end of the all...I will love you forever."

When he pulls away and straightens up, Sakura watches in awe as a single tear traces a path down Itachi's cheek. Her own eyes begin to well and her throat aches, because she might not know what's going on, but it's clear what's just happened.

Itachi's soft smile from earlier appears. Whether he is overcome by the gravity of the moment, or if he is respecting Sasuke's wishes for the last word, he doesn't speak as he backs away from them.

He glances at Sakura, nodding at her in gratitude or approval or something she can't decipher, and then back to Sasuke in wordless communication. A beat later, his form vanishes in a swirl of feathers.

Sasuke stands for a moment staring at the spot where his brother's image resided, and then slowly turns to face Sakura directly. In that same instant, she finds herself back in the real world, desert stretching out on either side and wind brushing sand against her cheeks.

Their eyes remain locked for another long second, and then he suddenly leans forward, hugging her to him.

"Sakura...thank you."

And now she does begin to cry. There's no other option but to hug him back.

ナルト

Sasuke stares at the two figures before him, his mind an utter blank since Sakura uttered those fateful words.

"They remind me...of your brother's."

It's not possible. Sakura has never met his brother, how would she know—?

His adult self is maintaining eye-contact with Sakura, and Sasuke knows that something is going on right in front of him, something he has been purposefully left out of, and he doesn't know why.

It has to do with Itachi...why is Sakura...!

He takes a step forward, his only thought to somehow interrupt what's happening, to demand his future self explain what's going on. Before he can take another, a hand catches his wrist.

"Sasuke."

Sakura's future self is behind him, gazing down at him with soft eyes. In his anger, he thinks for a moment that it's pity, until he sees actual sadness on her face. He doesn't care.

"Let me go," he orders.

"I can't," she says quietly. "I can't let you hurt yourself."

"Hurt myself?! I won't—!"

"There is only so much new information that a human brain can process in a short time," Future Sakura tells him quietly. "For minds that are still developing—especially minds that are as tied to their emotions and abilities as yours are—that capacity is lessened. I would say I don't know how you're still standing right now, except I know you. You have a staying power beyond your years." She her mouth momentarily quirks, almost fondly, before the expression vanishes and she stares down at him with serious eyes. "But I won't let you risk working yourself into a seizure over information you are going to have to forget in a moment."

This Sakura, this woman in front of him is calm and logical, showing no trace of the begging or crying he has come to associate with her younger self. There is a gleam in her eyes and a set to her mouth that almost dares her to challenge him on it, and he's seen that before, hasn't he?

"I don't care about that," Sasuke tells her, using all of his effort to keep his voice level. "If you know me, you know what finding Itachi means to me. You know that I will sacrifice anything, even my own soul, if I have to—!"

"I know that," she interrupts him, and he startles, because Sakura never interrupts him when he speaks. "No one knows that more than I do. And that time, it's closer than you think. But it's not now. And you may be willing to sacrifice even your own happiness for a fleeting moment of knowledge...but are you willing to sacrifice hers?"

Sasuke blinks at this, following Future Sakura's gaze as she tilts her head just beside him.

A few feet away, Sarada stands with her good hand clenched in a fist against her chest, her eyes reflecting confusion at his anger. Then, she takes a step forward.

"I don't..." she begins, barely above a whisper, and then she squares her shoulders. "I can't understand what you're feeling right now...and I don't know the full truth of things...but please...I don't want the last memory I have you like this being angry and in pain."

"Especially since there's enough of that in the future," the adult Sakura says. "Sasuke...will you...just take this moment?"

His entire body is tense, muscles ready to spring, teeth gritted, and his eyes flit back to where his future self and Sakura still stand frozen in front of one another. His chance...

Suddenly, Sarada is in his line of vision, and with a look of determination, she moves forward. He wonders if she's going to punch him again, but instead he feels her arm loop around his neck and she hugs him close to her, burying her face into his left shoulder.

What...?

It has none of the force he's seen her wield today, none of the crushing strength his Sakura inadvertently expends on him from time to time. There's a gentle, tentative quality of the gesture.

He stares, straight ahead, unmoving and thought racing too fast to capture.

And then, from behind, another pair of arms encircle him, and the Future Sakura's chin settles on his right shoulder. He goes tense, not sure what to do.

"You have a family," Future Sakura tells him, and the total assurance in her voice washes over him. There is no doubt or hesitation, just a plain fact.

Maybe...maybe this one time...

His body relaxes, and quite without his permission, his arm curls upward to wrap around Sarada's back.

...I can be weak...

His eyes soften just a moment, and he surrenders to the embrace of his future.

Several feet away, his future self stirs, and leans in to hug Sakura, and Sasuke thinks maybe, just this once, he can understand why.

ナルト

"Uchihas are such drama queens," Boruto complains to Mitsuki, who simply grins at him in his usual way. "I always thought it was Aunt Sakura that Sarada got it from, but maybe not."

"You have no understanding of irony, do you?" Konohamaru remarks with only a little sarcasm.

"I don't see irony here," Naruto grumbles. "All I see is Sasuke getting all the attention, as usual."

"That isn't true, Naruto," a voice says in his ear, and he turns slightly to find Hinata bending toward him, an amused smile on her face. Before he's entirely aware of it, she leans in and kisses him on the cheek.

It's the first time anyone has voluntarily kissed him, and it's not something he would ever have expected from Hinata. Or, well, his Hinata. The blood rushes to his cheeks, and he thinks he loses function in his tongue for a while.

"What about me?" Future Naruto grumbles.

"What about you, stupid old man?" Boruto demands, and he and his father begin to glare at each other. And then the Future Naruto musses up Boruto's hair, and Boruto hugs him around the middle.

Kakashi and Konohamaru exchange glances.

"As heartwarming as all this is," Pakkun interrupts in a grumpy voice. "We should start planning our exit."

"Yes," Future Sasuke says, standing up and facing them all. Any trace of softness on his face is gone, once more arranged behind a carefully blank façade. "We need to coordinate our efforts."

Future Sakura and Sarada release Sasuke, who looks like he doesn't know what he's supposed to do now, and Naruto can relate because his cheek is still buzzing from Hinata's kiss. Sakura, expression dazed, gazes up at him in undisguised adoration.

Geez, even when he's old she's crazy about him. How is that fair?

Sasuke's future self frowns at the younger Sasuke, as if he wants to say something to him, but then makes a minute shake of his head. Instead, he goes to crouch down in front of Pakkun, who begins to talk about something to do with dimensions and probabilities. Naruto is amused to see the grave way in which the man nods and replies.

"They have to collaborate to create a larger portal, considering how many of us that have to go through," the Future Naruto explains to him. "And Sasuke will need to open is for longer so that he can erase your memories before it closes."

"I know that," Naruto replies, crossing his arms at the somewhat patronizing, teacherish tone his adult self is using. "I saw with Orochimaru, you know."

"In the meantime, I'll send one of my other ninken along to Tsunade," Kakashi says to Future Naruto. "If we're all to forget this, she has to recall all the other shinobi in the area."

"She's not going to do that without explanation why," Future Naruto says.

"That's why I'll give her the Roran code."

"Ah. Right." Future Naruto musses the hair on the back of his head. "I forgot about that one."

"That one what?" Naruto demands. "What's the Roran code?"

"It's a part of a confidentiality system only the Hokage and ANBU learn. When one of my hounds gives her the code-word, she'll understand and treat the whole affair as S-rank. She will know that our team is under a memory seal and won't bring it up again."

Naruto brings. "Huh. You mean, you have a secret code about time travel?"

"They didn't used to. But your father had an interesting mission once..."

Future Naruto chuckles nervously. "Speaking of things I forgot..."

Naruto gapes. "Wait...you mean...wait, my father is going to travel in time? Am I going to get to meet him?"

He remembers Sakura's words in the dank underground tunnels.

It might be, in the future, that you travel in time—or your dad travels in time—and you get to meet.

He hadn't really thought she was right before, but now...the possibilities overwhelm his thoughts.

Enough of this! the demon within him snarls out impatiently. I've waited long enough!

And before Naruto can react, he is in his own head, standing in the dank recesses of his mind, the fox straining against the bars of the giant cage. They aren't alone, however.

Naruto's adult self stands in front of him, along with a very large, very free Nine Tailed Fox beside him.

"What the heck do you think you're doing?!" Naruto yelps. "You let it out?"

His Future self doesn't reply, gazing past him and into the cage. Then he sighs. "I had forgotten about this. We've been a team for almost longer than we haven't."

What drivel are you spouting?! the caged fox demands. What did you do to bind me, into no more than a tame pet.

'Tame pet' my ass, the Nine Tails beside the adult Naruto snorts. I do what I want.

I don't believe you!

Don't start with that mouth. You ought to mind your elders.

Quisling! Traitor! You've given yourself over to your captor! the caged fox growls, the hackles on its neck raising and eyes rolling in fury.

I haven't given myself over to anything. Naruto and I are partners. It's a mutual respect thing, which you wouldn't understand as you are now.

Do not lecture me on respect! I understand it well, and this whelp has done nothing worthy of it! the demon fox hisses, the heat and stink of its breath surrounding Naruto.

"Hey!" he snaps, disgusted and a little bit offended.

Perhaps not yet, but it is as you say, the Nine Tails acknowledged. He is still a whelp. He learns. And he is not like the others. Mito initially bound us to be used as a weapon. Kushina tried to allow us to fade into obscurity within her.

"Kushina?" Naruto repeats, the name one he has been hanging on to since Kakashi spoke it. "My mom? She was...she had the fox inside her, too?"

His future self nods solemnly, and Naruto is momentarily stunned by the revelation.

Naruto has never done such a thing, even in your time, the Nine Tails continues, speaking to his former self. And in mine, he has even gone so far as to sacrifice himself so that we and the other Tailed Beasts could be free.

"What?! There's more of you?!" Naruto demands. He sort knew already, considering his encounter with Gaara, but he thought the two of them were it.

That...can't be, the demon fox bites out. You lie!

Why would I lie? Why would I need to lie? I'm standing before you, without a cage, and without an Sharingan here to compel me. You would feel it if Sasuke Uchiha involved himself in any way. It is just us here.

The younger fox remains uneasy, still not knowing what to say or believe.

"Kurama," the Future Naruto says gravely, and the fox hisses in shock at, what Naruto realises, is his name. "I know it's hard to understand this, or even believe it. But I vowed I would not let any harm come to you or the other Tailed Beasts. In my time, you are all free to do as you like. But we cannot get to that point without your cooperation.

The caged fox narrow its eyes.

"We need to ensure your knowledge of today's events is erased, to ensure history proceeds as it was meant to. Something is coming, something that could destroy all the Tailed Beasts, and everything else. If you alter history with all that you've learned, I know you will end up nothing more than a sacrifice for someone else's search for power."

The Nine Tails beside him nods, frowning as if at a bad memory.

"So..." the Future Naruto trails off, and then to everyone's surprise, suddenly folds forward in a bow. "Please give us your permission to alter your memories."

There is a long, astonished silence in the chamber.

Naruto looks at the unchained Nine Tails, then at the man he will become in the future, and then at the fox in the cage. He really has no idea what is happening, but he knows it is important.

And so, he turns and bows to the fox himself.

"Please," he says, and then adds, "Kurama."

The silence in the chamber now is more considering than astonished, and Naruto mentally crosses his fingers hoping this will work.

At last, the caged fox growls. Very well. But only because I fee like it. And I will have my freedom one day.

He then turns and shows them his tails, a clear dismissal.

As the Narutos both straighten up, the older one shifts and smiles up at the Nine Tails. "I forgot how moody you used to be."

Kurama flips him the middle finger. Yeah, well, you were a tool once, too.

They exchange a look, and then a beat later, Naruto finds himself and his Future Self standing alone in a vast, bright expanse. Crystal water laps gently at their feet.

"So...that's it?" he asks his future self.

"Yep. All we need now is for Sasuke to do his thing and everything's good again," Future-Naruto grins.

"Good?" Naruto repeats, unable to understand the sentiment. He glares. "Are you kidding me?! Just how old are you that you think things are good?! People hate me! And all for no other reason than because I have the de...because I have Kurama locked inside me! Which neither of us wanted, and all of that was because of...because of my..."

"Father?" Future Naruto prompts.

"How could you forgive him?!"

His future self thinks for a moment. "It's...not really something I can explain. I was a lot older when I learned the truth."

"That's a crap answer and you know it!"

"You're right." His future self is watching him with a frown on his face, like he's weighing a decision in his mind, and then nods to himself. He takes a step forward, his hand outstretched toward Naruto. "I think if I'm careful...I can just...for a few seconds, at least..."

"What the heck are you doing?!" Naruto demands, but his adult self's palm has pressed against his abdomen. Heat spirals upward from somewhere behind his navel.

"It won't trigger a full release of the seal," his future self says, more to himself than to Naruto, which is just as well because it makes no sense. "But just enough to..."

His words trail off, and suddenly a figure coalesces beside them. There's that sound again, of cloth rippling in the wind, but it's louder now. The smell of ozone fills the air, and when Naruto looks up, he is lost in blue eyes that look exactly like his.

Minato Namikaze stands beside them, the long coat of the Hokage flowing behind him, even though there is no wind here.

"Naruto," he says, in a soft voice, and tilts his head to the adult version in a questioning manner.

Future Naruto waves. "Hey, Dad."

"You know about the seal."

"I do. You saved my life. Well...will save my life. Will save everyone," the future Naruto says. "But you're not here so I can tell you that."

"I know," the newcomer says, and gazes down at Naruto, whose throat feels close and whose heart feels like it's stuck in a vice.

This is...this is his...

"You're...the Fourth Hokage," he manages, because the other word is still too hard to believe.

He has only ever seen the man's face carved into rock, and he thinks now that there is little likeness between the two. The Fourth Hokage's face is not stern or intense the way it is on Hokage Rock, but soft and whimsical. His features are a little sharper and more defined than Naruto's, but there is no arguing the resemblance between them. Especially looking at his adult self standing beside him.

He sees now why Kakashi was so taken aback by Jikken's features, which were twisted and perverted. He thinks if he had known what the Fourth Hokage looked like before, he would have recoiled, too.

"...Dad," he says, tentative, questioning, and he has never addressed anyone this way before. The word feels weighty on his tongue.

The man before him, this stranger that isn't really, smiles then. "Yes."

And Naruto is trapped between so many urges right then, he doesn't know what to do. Eventually, he lets his body make the decision.

With a yell, he throws himself forward, and headbutts his father in the gut.

Minato Namikaze makes a startled noise and falls backward into the water surrounding them. Future Naruto winces, and says, "Right...should have seen that coming."

"Why the hell would you ever seal a demon inside your own son?!" Naruto yells, feeling rage twist up within him along with hurt and happiness and amazement.

Tears and snot run down Naruto's face as he watches the blond man—his father—get to his feet. "I guess I deserve that. Naruto. I am sorry."

"You think that sorry makes up for it?" Naruto bites out, but its more a sob than a sneer.

"I can only hope so."

It's not anymore of a sufficient answer than his future self gave him, but it occurs to Naruto there isn't enough time. He can spend the next seconds or minutes glaring at his father and crying, or he can listen to his future self. And so, he throws himself forward again—Minato looks as if he expects to be hit again—and wraps his arms around his father's middle, pressing his face into his chest. And even if this is all in his head, there's a protective warmth radiating from his father's body, and an overwhelming comfort.

"Dad..." Again, the word is heavy, but it's one of the most cherished ones to ever cross his lips. He eventually looks up, meeting his father's warm gaze.

"You look so much like your mother," he says, "especially with that face."

Naruto's heart beats faster. "Really?"

"Hm." His father places a hand on his head. "I am so proud of you. Every you. I will see you again. And if I'm not mistaken—" he shares a meaningful look with Future Naruto, "—you will meet your mother, too."

Words fail here.

"Part of us is always with you," his father continues, and as Naruto draws away from him, he rests his hand on his heart. "Deep within."

"That's all the time we have," Future Naruto says. "Any longer, and you won't have enough chakra left for its original purpose."

"Of course, "their father nods and steps back from them. He smiles at them both in turn. "But I got to see my son as a young man, and all grown up." He begins to fade in front of them. "What parent...could ever ask for more?"

ナルト

Kakashi isn't entirely sure why Naruto suddenly begins to tear up, looking like he's in pain, but with a smile trembling on his lips. Shooting an inquiring look at Future Naruto, he gets a shrug in return.

"There was a much-needed meeting to be had," he tells him. "In any case, Kurama is on board. He'll submit to Sasuke's Mangekyō this once."

"That's good," Kakashi says. "I don't need to tell you the disaster it would be if he remembered all this." He sighs, looking upward. "Either way, I'm going to place the wards for a Memory Sealing Jutsu. I'll recognise my work, and if I think I've hidden my memories, I'll know better than to look into it too deeply." He addresses Future Sasuke. "That way I won't disturb whatever genjutsu you place on us."

"Hm," the other Sharingan user nods. He glances over at his younger self, and Kakashi thinks he notices his fist clench.

"Are you going to tell me to keep an eye on you?" he asks, only half-joking.

"It wouldn't do any good," Future Sasuke replies. "What is meant to happen, will happen."

"Right," Kakashi says, knowing it's the truth and hating that it is. The words jog his memory. "And Obito? Can you tell me how he...? Is he...?"

But his student from the future simply raises an eyebrow at the obvious question. Kakashi nods, knowing there's no point to wandering down that particular rabbit hole. As much as he wants to and as curious as he is...

He's probably better off not knowing.

A shinobi must always put the mission first. He clenches a fist. What utter crap...

To cover his disappointment, he turns his attention to his summoning scroll and, pressing a bit of the blood from his already injured finger, he calls up one of his hounds.

"Shiba," he tells the tiny white-furred mutt, "take a message to Lady Tsunade."

"You got it, boss, what is it?"

"Just the one word," he says. "Roran."

"We're ready," Future Sasuke says, straightening up.

"Are you sure, Papa?" Sarada wants to know. "You used a lot of chakra just getting us here. Maybe we should wait a little longer."

"Just because we're in this dimension doesn't mean we can afford to relax. Every second we stay here, all of us outside our proper time, it reopens the wound in the timeline."

"Right..." Sarada muses, while her mother approaches Future Sasuke, stopping in front of him with a tilt of her head. They trade glances, and there's a minute nod from Future Sasuke that Kakashi only sees because of his Sharingan. Future Sakura's lips ease into a warm smile and she looks down, almost shy.

Kakashi expects he's about to see her hug or kiss him—that's how these adventures always end, right? The way they're looking at one another, he's seen that before in his own time.

Speaking of them...

Sakura and Sasuke are staring up at their future selves with rapt expressions he has only ever seen on their faces when they are trying to get a peek beneath his mask. It's possible they've even forgotten to breathe.

So, when the two adults suddenly turn away from each other without any kind of gesture or word, Kakashi wants to laugh at the way they both suddenly deflate into confusion and unmet expectation.

Not that I'm not a little disappointed to, but...

Sarada does laugh and comes over to hug her mother's past-self. "See what I mean?"

"That's...that's so not fair..." Sakura complains.

"What you mean, 'see what I mean?'" Sasuke asks, a bit of a sulk in his voice.

Sounds like he's going back to normal, too.

"Time to say your goodbyes, kids," Future Naruto announces. "Team 7—!" Everyone looks up at this, and he laughs. "Ah, right. Team Kakashi, you need to put some distance between Team Konohamaru."

Boruto and the young Naruto bump fists, and Sarada hugs young Sakura one last time. Sasuke folds his arms, like he is trying to stay above it all, but Sakura snatches a hand out and grabs him by the collar, bringing him close to Sarada.

"Sakura—you're...choking me!"

Mitsuki observes all of this with a serene smile upon his face, as if all of this is as it should be in his mind.

"You have a good group of kids," Kakashi tells Konohamaru. "Whatever you're doing, keep doing it."

"Well, if Lord Sixth is telling me so, what else can I do but obey?" Konohamaru replies with a grin, that instantly reminds Kakashi of the gap-toothed runt that follows Naruto around in his time.

"Goodbye, Kakashi-sensei," Hinata says, leaning in to hug him. He feels his cheeks redden a little, embarrassed by the affection.

To cover it, he goes to stand beside his students, and once more finds himself surveying the two groups that face one another. Past and Future.

Kakashi smiles.

How can I put this?

Naruto sticks his hand out, offering his future self a thumbs up; the adult returns it with a grin. The adult Sakura exchanges determined looks with her past self, as if silently bidding her to stay strong. Sasuke and his adult version frown at one another with mutual discomfort. Boruto and Sarada wave enthusiastically from behind their parents, while Hinata and Konohamaru observe with smiles on their faces.

I really...love you guys.

Pakkun trots out between the two groups, and with a look of concentration, opens a small pocket in the air above him. Future Sasuke's Rinnegan gleams, and the pocket widens until it is the size of a door. Beyond it, Kakashi can see the spot where his team first encountered the time bubble the day before.

"Go! Now!" Future Naruto orders, and with a few final glances in the direction of their futures, Kakashi's students leap through the window. He follows as well, once more feeling the odd sensation of being drenched and electrocuted at the same time.

Once back on the forest road, the four of them turn back toward the portal to the desert dimension, and face the Future Sasuke. Sweat beads upon his forehead, and he bites out, "Now, Kakashi."

Kakashi nods, crouching down and pressing a dagger to the ground. A warding circle appears around him and his students, creating the telltale traces of a Memory Seal.

"All of you, look into my eyes," he orders, and his Sharingan spins to life in front of them. "Once this portal closes, you will remember nothing. You will not try to find out what happened. You will continue on the paths that have been set for you."

A hazy lull falls over Kakashi, and he has to marvel at the strength of Sasuke's Sharingan. He doesn't think his own will ever reach that level...

"Goodbye, Lord Seventh," Mitsuki calls from behind them. "It was interesting to meet you at this age."

The last thing any of them hear before the portal snaps closed, is Naruto:

"EEEEHHHH?!"

つづく

There! I think I managed to put in everything that people have been wanting to happen for the past two years. I hope it was worth the wait!

Look for the Epilogue tomorrow!

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