Pushing Through the Limit Chapter 78: The Space Between

I’d only been here once before and even then it’d only been for a brief moment, but now that I wasn’t forcefully being dragged through time and space, I was truly able to acknowledge the void around me.

It was... Vast wouldn’t even begin to describe it. Infinite seemed to fit it better, but even that somehow seemed too small... At least, that’s what my senses were telling me.

The void stretched on endlessly, growing in all directions. That much was easily enough for me to acknowledge.

What I was struggling with was the small flecks of light. Each one on their own seemed to be comparable to the void I was standing in. Each one was infinite in size... And yet, they were small enough to fit in the palm of my hand.

It was like I’d been using the Hiraishin to appear in millions of locations at once. It was pushing me to the edge of sensory overload. The only thing that kept me standing was my experience with memory feedback from my use of Shadow Clones.

“You might want to hurry this up,” Kurama suggested. “We shouldn’t spend too much time here.”

Spend time here... That was ironic.

“Naruto...”

‘Yeah, I know,’ I thought back.

This place... wherever it was. It wasn’t compatible with life. It was rejecting me... And my body was rejecting it.

For someone like Hagoromo who was already dead and was composed of pure Chakra, this wouldn’t be an issue, but as for me... I wouldn’t be able to stay for too long, lest I end up joining him here permanently.

“You know... For the longest time, I’ve been wondering why exactly I was here,” I admitted, staring directly into Hagoromo’s Rinnegan. “I can only think of a handful of beings that would have the power and the means to reach into another dimension and pluck a person out of it.”

“And you believe that I was the one that did it,” Hagoromo hummed. “I will admit that your suspicions were not unfounded. I did have a hand in your being here.”

Well... At least I could stop worrying about Kaguya being the one that dragged me here... Although it did raise a few more questions. Primarily...

“Why?”

I didn’t regret the life I’d lives so far... In fact, it was pretty much the opposite. I’d loved it. Sure there were ups and downs and there were probably a few things I could have done better, but such was life. If given the chance, I’d do it all over again.

“The answer to your question might not be as satisfying as you imagine,” Hagoromo said evenly. “It will however require that you have a rudimentary understanding of the location you now find yourself in.”

That was simple enough. I’d been here twice after all and both times I’d arrived doing the exact same thing. “I’m getting the feeling that this isn’t actually a place,” I hummed. “At least not one that exists within a timeline.”

Hagoromo nodded. “You are correct. We are currently in a space outside of time. Still experiencing it, but not partaking ourselves. All is laid bare here. I’ve spent countless eons observing events... Both past and future... Great and terrible.”

That sounded more than a little lonely. I know that Hagoromo was pretty much a god, but this seemed a bit too much, even for him. I couldn’t imagine ever doing something like this myself.

“It does,” Kurama agreed. “I wouldn’t think too deeply about it. He appears to be at peace here.”

‘I suppose so.’

Even dead, he still had an enormous amount of power. Who’s to say that he was stuck here? For all I know, he could enter and leave the afterlife as he pleased... Simply choosing to be here right now as a courtesy to me.

“So you came across my timeline then?” I guessed.

“In a manner of speaking,” Hagoromo replied. “I happened across it by accident and in doing so found an opportunity... One that could potentially prevent some of the terrible things yet to come. Since I couldn’t know what would happen to my own timeline until I made a change, I grabbed a single... Unassuming soul and brought it back with me... Placing it at the time where it would be able to make the most changes.”

“The Chunin exams,” I muttered, rubbing my chin. That was where this all began. “When you said that you were trying to prevent some of the terrible things yet to come, were you talking about the Fourth Shinobi War? The Infinite Tsukuyomi? Kaguya’s resurrection?”

“Among other things,” He answered, nodding solemnly. “I simply wished to prevent as much loss of life as possible. Had things remained the same, tens of thousands of Shinobi would have lost their lives in the Fourth Shinobi War... More if my mother was resurrected... All if she won.”

I’d never really considered Kaguya winning because I’d done so much to prevent it, but there likely were entire realities where she or Madara won and the world was consumed by the Infinite Tsukuyomi.

I had to wonder if the timeline I was on was doomed to lose. I could see why Hagoromo would go out of his way to prevent that from happening.

“So what happens now that I’ve taken care of things?” I asked.

“There is still a chance that Kaguya could be resurrected. So long as Zetsu is alive and the Gedo Mazo exists, he’ll continue to look for a way to bring her back... Even if it takes another thousand years. You may have averted her resurrection in that other timeline, but not your own”

Right, I might have been getting ahead of myself... Although, in my defense, all that I needed to do now was kill Obito and Zetsu. Both were fairly illusive, but there was only so far they could run when the entire world was after them.

“In the grand scheme of things, what I’ve done to your timeline is inconsequential,” Hagoromo continued. Shifting from his meditative pose, his form flickered and his Shakujō suddenly collided with what passed as the floor, causing the void to ripple.

“What the hell?” I muttered as reality began to distort.

Holding out my hand, I watched as a second hand hovered above my own, almost as if it were a reflection. Looking around, I found that it wasn’t just my hand. To my left and my right, there appeared to be a reflection of me that went on infinitely... Like a mirror that had been held in front of itself.

It was extremely disorientating. The only constant that remained the same was Hagoromo himself who appeared to have a slight hue around him, but other than that, remained whole.

“This moment in which we are talking is not singular. It is shared between an uncountable number of others,” Hagoromo continued. “Each choice you’ve made has ultimately led to this point in your life and each choice you make after this will take you down different paths.”

Spinning his staff, the surroundings distorted once more and I found myself staring at something odd... A different, somewhat older version of me was fighting an odd looking man alongside Sasuke with a blonde kid who looked a lot like me watching from a distance.

The image distorted once more, before settling onto another image of that same version of me, only he was impaled by several black rods and there was another man standing in front of him. One with black vertical marks stretching down his face.

Again, the world blurred and again I was greeted with another image. This one, however, was a little different. The other Naruto was there and was using Kurama’s cloak, only it looked strange, in that it was glowing red instead of yellow.

The image faded to black and I once more found myself standing in the void with Hagoromo waiting patiently.

“Well... That was fun,” I muttered to myself. “I take it that those were alternate versions of myself.”

“In a sense,” Hagoromo nodded. “That was what could have happened during your original timeline. Whether it’ll happen this time around remains to be seen. As it goes, there is a chance that you won’t have to deal with them. Then again, it could be far worse. Such are the consequences of meddling with time.”

So that’s what would have happened to the original Naruto if Hagoromo hadn’t stepped in. It was a little concerning, but then, I was far more prepared and now had the benefit of knowing that there could be other threats out there.

There was also something odd that I’d noticed. That last state... It seemed fairly powerful, but something like that generally came with a heavy cost. Since it was the last image Hagoromo showed me, I guess that means that he died there.

Still... Something about that state felt off.

“I know what you mean,” Kurama muttered.

“At least we have something to look forward to after dealing with Obito,” I joked.

“Potentially.”

Yeah, potentially... That didn’t mean that I wasn’t going to prepare for it. Worst case scenario, nothing happens and I trained for nothing. Best case scenario... I’m ready for them. Doing nothing and hoping for the best however... Yeah, that was just asking for trouble.

 “So... Is that everything?” I asked

“For the most part, yes,” Hagoromo replied. “What happens next will be entirely up to you.”

“About that,” I began. “Do you think that you could let me know how things turn out?”

For the first time since I’d been here, Hagoromo’s face showed a hint of emotion. “Unfortunately, I cannot. Your future is yet to be written. The best I could do is look into another timeline that somewhat resembles yours, but I would not be able to guarantee its accuracy,” He finished, smirking.

Well that kind of sucked... I guess I was just going to have to do this the old fashioned way then and live my way through time... Like I’d been doing all along.

I should probably leave. I didn’t really have any reason to stay. Hagoromo had answered my main question and... The longer I stayed here, the more comfortable I grew with not leaving which, in itself, was an uncomfortable thought.

“You don’t seem to be in danger of dying yet, but I do agree,” Kurama muttered. “The sooner we get back to our own time, the better.”

Yeah. I just had to... Wait.

Hagoromo created the Biju, so, in a way, he was kind of like their father, right?

“I don’t like where this is heading.”

Oh, how the tables have turned.

“Hey, Hagoromo, would you mind if we take a quick look at my timeline?” I asked, grinning. “There’s something that I feel you should see.”

“If you’re certain,” Hagoromo said evenly. “What point would you like me to witness?”

“Naruto... Don’t you dare.”

“My last birthday,” I replied. “While I was in my mindscape.”

“Son of a bitch!”

‘You know it,’ I smirked. ‘This is for telling Kushina about that mommy thing.’

Tapping his staff to the ground, the void warped around us and we were greeted to Kurama’s form, standing on both legs, holding a fake microphone.

“I’m a bitch, I’m a lover, I’m a child, I’m a mother...”

“Never before have I felt hate and embarrassment such as this,” Kurama groused.

Ah... Sweet revenge. It didn’t really compare to what he’d done, but it was sweet regardless.

“What... Is this?” Hagoromo asked, seemingly shocked.

“This... Is Karaoke,” I smirked. “And that... Is Kurama really getting into it.”

Watching in disbelief, Hagoromo’s shoulders began to shake before he let out a deep laugh that echoed throughout our surroundings. Wiping his eyes dry, he smiled at the image.

“Just kill me already and get it over with.”

“I am glad, Naruto, that Kurama has gained a brother like you. It’s good to see that, although he has been through tough times, he can still have fun.”

“Without his help, I wouldn’t have gotten this far,” I smiled. “Now, how about we look at a few other moments?”

...PTL...

With a bright flash of light, I landed on my feet next to Jiraiya and Konan, both of whom had fallen over. Taking a deep breath of actual air and not whatever it was I was breathing back in that void, I exhaled slowly, allowing myself to relax. The whitish silver colour of my raincoat fading back to its original black.

“That’s it,” Jiraiya groaned, spitting out a mouthful of sand as he sat up. “We’re never doing that again... Unless... We are back right?” He asked, glancing between Konan and myself.

“By all accounts, we should be back in our original time,” Konan replied. “But... That was before the formula was altered.”

That was a fair point.

‘Kurama.’

“You know you could just sense for yourself,” Kurama grumbled. “Yes, we’re back.”

‘Thanks... Just thought I’d get a second opinion.’

Holding my hand out, the Shakujō I’d left behind zoomed across the room before coming to a stop in my hand while the other nine Truth Seeking Orbs spread out behind me. “We’re back,” I said, glancing at the orbs. And that makes ten... A complete set.

Removing the remains of the hand I’d left behind, I tossed it into the caustic Chakra below, destroying it. I’d probably be for the best if I took care of that before we left. While it wasn’t as volatile as it had been before we left, it still had the potential to go off and glass this section of the desert if left alone.

“That’s a relief,” Jiraiya breathed.

That it was. I really didn’t want to spend any more time messing with... Well... Time. There were just too many things that could go wrong.

Hearing a loud crack, we all turned our gazes back to the center of the room... More specifically, the eye in the center where all the Chakra was funnelled. It’d just cracked and was currently leaking a large amount of volatile Chakra.

“That’s not good,” Jiraiya muttered just as the eye shattered. “Oh, come on. Can’t we get a break?!”

“Sensei, move,” Konan said. Stepping in front of him protectively, she began to coat the floor in dozens of sealing tags, forming an array that would hopefully seal the leak.

It wouldn’t be enough. The array was fine, but the paper wasn’t a good enough medium... Not for something like this. The closer seals were already beginning to burn out. It needed something a little more durable.

Clapping my hands together, I added my own Chakra to the mix in the form of a tree that helped siphon off the excess Chakra.

Standing next to Konan, I locked eyes with her and we each nodded.

Stepping through the volatile mix of Chakra, I pressed my hand at the base of the tree and funneled my Chakra through it, helping to repair the damage done to it so that it could continue to keep the brunt of the caustic Chakra at bay while Konan got to work.

Forming dozen’s of seals, she plastered the tree in her paper, further suppressing the Chakra that threatened to boil over.

After a few moments, our work was done and the Chakra settled down once more through the combination of Mokuton and Fuinjutsu, both of which were working in tandem.

“That seems to have suppressed it for now,” Konan noted, examining her work. “We shouldn’t linger here for too long.”

In time, the seals would eventually degrade. Hopefully by then, the tree will have become resistant to the Chakra that it’s holding at bay.

As for the river of Chakra down below... The danger of it exploding was somewhat muted, but I was still going to leave a few seals behind that should keep it in check.

“That’s some pretty good work,” Jiraiya said, looking over the various seals that covered the tree. Reaching into his pouch, he removed a sealing tag of his own and began to scribble something down. “But if I could make one suggestion...”

Slapping his palm against the tree, the seal he’d designed pulsed with Chakra and spread out, connecting to the various tags before dying down. Crossing his arms, Jiraiya appeared proud of himself while Konan gave him a dull look.

“What am I supposed to be looking at?”

“What?!” Jiraiya spluttered. “I added a replication array to your seals along with a multiplier. Every time one burns out, it’ll use the Chakra it contains and form two more seals.”

“Oh,” Konan hummed. “That does sound useful. Unfortunately, that’s beyond the limit of my knowledge when it comes to seals. I understand what you’re saying, but not really how it works.”

“You... But... Time travel,” Jiraiya said, struggling to form a coherent sentence.

“That took me a long time to figure out and I didn’t need to understand how everything fits together,” Konan replied.

That explained a lot.

Giving up, Jiraiya shook his head in disbelief. “I’m starting to think that we only managed to survive through dumb luck.”

I mean... He wasn’t wrong to think that Konan might have gotten a bit lucky, but there wasn’t actually anything wrong with her seal array. It was crude and could have stood to be refined, but it still got the job done.

“We should probably head back to Konoha,” I said, changing the subject.

It was a bit difficult to remember exactly what time it was... Mostly because I’d spent the last few days in a completely different time in Ame, but I was pretty sure that we’d spent around an hour following Konan’s trail... Maybe more.

“And you thought time zones were confusing,” Kurama laughed.

Jiraiya hummed his agreement. “That might be a smart idea. You coming, Konan?” He asked, holding out his hand.

Looking at his hand, Konan exhaled slowly. “That depends,” She answered. “If I return with you, will I be locked up again? If so, then I believe that it will be better if we part here. I’ve been absent from Ame for too long. With the coming war, I believe it would be best if they have a leader.”

Yeah... Leaving Konan here might not be such a great idea. She was strong, I’d give her that, but Obito was still out there and I wouldn’t put it past him to attack her on sight.

“Well,” Jiraiya said, shooting me a quick look. “I’m sure that at least one of us will be able to convince Tsunade to let you walk free.”

“I’ll talk to her,” I sighed.

I did have a few things I needed to tell her... And a few favors I needed to ask, so I may as well talk her into leaving Konan. It’s a good thing that Tsunade let the other Kage know that we’d captured her and that she was a member of the Akatsuki or this would be far more complicated.

“That’s good enough for me,” Jiraiya nodded. “You can come along with us and then we’ll figure out how to get you to Ame from there.”

“Fine,” Konan sighed. “Let’s get this over with. If I am locked up again, I’ll be expecting one of you to break me out, alright?”

“Deal,” Jiraiya grinned.

...PTL...

Teleporting to Tsunade’s office alongside Jiraiya and Konan, I was greeted to the sight of her looking over the village with her hands clasped behind her back while her clones handled her work. One of which, upon noticing us, dispelled.

“Naruto,” Tsunade breathed, visibly relaxing as she turned around. “You’re back.”

“Hey,” I greeted her cheerfully. “I hope that we didn’t take too... Long...” I trailed off as Tsunade, having volted over her table, pulled me into a tight hug. “Is everything... Alright?”

“You tell me,” Tsunade muttered. “It was your clones that doubled over in pain and popped.”

Doubled over in... Right. They must have felt some feedback from when I initially absorbed that Chakra. I guess it was just too much for my clones.

“Sorry,” I apologized. “It’s... I’ll tell you about it later.” I decided.

“So long as you’re alive, that’s all that matters,” Tsunade murmured.

“I’m alive too, by the way,” Jiraiya announced, waving his hand in front of us. “And so is Konan for that matter. Seriously, you’d think that we don’t matter.”

“Yes, well... I’m glad to see that you’re also alright, Jiraiya,” Tsunade said. Pulling back, she looked over the three of us, raising an eyebrow at Konan’s presence. It didn’t help that we were all wearing the same type of raincoat. “I see... So, that’s what was so urgent and why you needed Naruto... Let me guess, you needed him for the Hiraishin?”

“Yeah,” Jiraiya nodded. “It was the only lead I had on Konan.”

“Speaking of...” Tsunade gestured for her clones to surround the former Akatsuki member.

“Actually,” I said, stopping her clones. “While we were out, we had some time to talk things through and we... Jiraiya and I,” I specified, nodding towards the older Toad Sage. “Think it would be for the best if Konan wasn’t locked up again.”

Shooting me a suspicious look, Tsunade looked over towards Jiraiya who nodded firmly, before settling on Konan. “And what do you have to say about all of this?”

Konan met her gaze . “I’ve... Seen the harm that the Akatsuki has caused and wish for the chance to undo the wrongs that I helped cause... Starting with Ame.”

Looking for anything that would tell her that she was lying, Tsunade sighed. “Tell me... Outside of Ame, is anyone aware of your connection to the Akatsuki?”

“Not to my knowledge, no,” Konan replied.

“And your little field trip today? Did you come across anyone that might recognize you.”

“Again, no.”

“Good... Try and keep it that way.” Stepping back around her desk, Tsunade sat down, locking her fingers together. “I don’t know what’s caused this sudden change of heart, but, since both Jiraiya and Naruto are vouching for you, I’ll trust them and allow you to return to Ame.”

“You... Will?” Konan asked, her cool facade breaking for the first time since we’d been back.

“Yes, yes. I’m just benevolent like that,” Tsunade waved her off. “Just be sure to keep your time here in Konoha silent, or... We’ll have problems, alright?”

“...Alright,” Konan replied, looking a little unsure.

“Excellent,” Tsunade nodded. “Now, I trust that was the last surprise for today. Naruto, I still need you to transport the Mizukage back to Kiri and... What?”

Chuckling softly, I slipped my hand into my pouch and removed several storage scrolls. Unwinding one, I placed it on Tsunade’s desk. “Actually... I do have a few more surprises left for today.” Releasing the seal, Hanzo’s weapon suddenly appeared... Much to Tsunade’s confusion.

“A Kusarigama?” She hummed, fingering the blade. “It’s of remarkable quality, but I don’t see what’s so important about it.”

“Well, actually, I was hoping that you would be able to examine it for me. I’m pretty sure that it’s coated in Salamander venom,” I explained. “And who knows what else. I thought that maybe Itachi or Sasuke could use it for their upcoming mission.”

Hell knows that I didn’t have any use for it.

“Salamander venom... Wait, is this Hanzo’s Kusarigama?!” Tsunade asked, dropping it on her desk. “Where’d you find this?”

“In The Land of Rain,” I replied, drawing a short laugh from Jiraiya. “Oh, while I’m at it...” Unsealing my next scroll, I hefted Madara’s Gunbai over my shoulder. “You might also want to take a look at this as well,” I continued, handing the weapon over to Tsunade.

“Wait a minute,” Jiraiya said. “When did you get that?”

“A went out and took care of a few chores when you and Konan were sleeping this morning,” I explained, adding to Tsunade’s confusion and suspicion. “...Killed a few problematic people.”

“I’m starting to see that,” Jiraiya muttered. “Who else?”

“The usual suspects,” I shrugged. “Danzo, Black Zetsu, Obito... I was able to follow him back to his base in the Mountains’ Graveyard, so I know exactly where it is now. Speaking of...”

Unsealing the final scroll I had on me, I placed a glass jar containing Obito’s Mangekyou on Tsunade’s table.

Blinking at the sudden addition to her desk, Tsunade’s eyes narrowed as she picked up the jar and began to examine its contents. “I’m... Not sure what to make of all of this,” She murmured, inspecting the various items. “I have an idea on what’s going on, but it seems a little...” She trailed off, unable to find the right word. “Is Obito still alive?”

“He is,” I replied.

“Then that all but confirms it,” Tsunade said, placing the jar back on her table. “How you manage to get yourself pulled into these things, I’ll never know. This is the last surprise, right?”

“Well...”

Smiling, my Shakujō  formed in my hand while the other nine Truth Seeking Orbs slipped out of my raincoat, hovering behind me.

“Oh, for the love of...” Tsunade palmed her face, laughing.