"Before he died, Jiraiya-sensei said there's only one way to defeat the masked man."
A trace of remembrance crossed Tsunade's face. Even in this world, it had been Jiraiya who brought back the crucial information.
"That method is the sealing scroll—the Scroll of the Red Moon."
At that moment, a voice came from behind Uzumaki Naruto.
He turned sharply, his eyes widening in disbelief.
Standing there… were his parents.
Alive.
"Dad… Mom… you're really alive…"
The words slipped from Naruto's lips in a daze.
The next instant, Uzumaki Kushina's fist came crashing down, slamming him straight into the ground.
"What kind of thing do you say to your parents who just got back from a mission?!"
Her red hair flared wildly, writhing like a mass of tentacles as her temper exploded.
"Ahaha…"
Watching the diary, Namikaze Minato let out an awkward laugh. He knew Kushina all too well—she really was just like that, fiery to the core.
"That's definitely Kushina," Jiraiya muttered with a helpless chuckle. "Some things never change."
In the video, Minato continued speaking.
"Before he died, Jiraiya-sensei received a prophecy at Mount Myoboku. According to it, the masked man would be defeated by the Scroll of the Red Moon that he brought back."
"The Great Toad Sage's prophecies are always accurate, so Jiraiya-sensei risked his life to obtain the scroll. But he was gravely wounded and couldn't make it back to the village… in the end, he lost his life."
Minato's voice grew heavy as he spoke.
Everyone watching realized at once that this Scroll of the Red Moon was very likely the only way to defeat Uzumaki Menma in that world.
"That guy… is he really that strong in this mirror world?"
Uchiha Sasuke could clearly sense the fear people in that world had toward the masked man—toward Menma. Even from scattered remarks, his overwhelming power was evident.
Every major village had tried to take him down. Even the Kage themselves had made attempts.
None of them had succeeded.
"Or is that what his talent was supposed to look like all along… and he just never had anyone to guide him before?"
Sasuke couldn't help but wonder.
If the future Naruto could reach Six Paths Level, then that meant he had always possessed that kind of potential. Had it simply been delayed?
Under normal circumstances, could he have grown into someone powerful enough to threaten all the great villages?
As he watched Naruto interact with his family in that fabricated world, a flicker of envy passed through Sasuke's eyes.
It was fake. It was all part of a genjutsu. Even Naruto himself kept calling them impostors.
But even so…
He wanted that chance too.
He wanted to see his parents again.
But he knew, with absolute certainty, that he would never have that opportunity.
"That world really is something…"
Hatake Kakashi looked at the scene, his expression turning wry.
In that completely inverted world, his personality had essentially swapped with Guy's. He had become a man bursting with energy, while Guy—who was always full of vigor—looked utterly drained.
Still, when he saw himself fighting side by side with Minato once again, a complicated feeling rose in his chest.
How long had it been since he last fought alongside his teacher?
He had thought that moment would never come again.
And yet, here it was—realized in a world born from illusion.
"If Naruto could see this… he'd probably be really happy."
Kakashi watched as Naruto gradually changed. At first, he had rejected this world completely, refusing to acknowledge those fake parents.
But after being saved by them, little by little, he began to accept it.
Kakashi let out a quiet breath.
If Minato hadn't died in the Nine-Tails' attack… maybe this was what things would have been like between them.
Naruto was sinking deeper into that world, slowly accepting it—the kind of world he had always longed for, where opening the door meant his parents would be there, waiting for him to come home.
"Sorry, Naruto…"
Minato sighed softly.
This time, in their world, he would give Naruto the home he had always dreamed of.
Minato himself had grown up an orphan, so he understood all too well what kind of family Naruto longed for.
That world had everything Naruto wanted—a father, a mother, everything he had wished for all his life. Even if it was fake, even if it was only temporary, even a single moment of warmth meant something to him.
But before Naruto could fully settle into that illusion, Menma heard that Konoha had obtained the Scroll of the Red Moon.
He came.
And he didn't come alone.
With him were the Nine Masked Beasts.
They destroyed the Hokage building with ease.
Even as Konoha's jonin fought desperately to hold them back, they couldn't stop the summoned beasts Menma had called forth.
The Menma of that world had completely fallen into darkness.
Even when facing his own parents, he showed no hesitation.
"How did he end up like that? He'd even kill his own parents?"
Minato's brows drew together tightly. For a moment, he found himself thinking about Naruto's future upbringing.
He absolutely couldn't let Naruto walk down that same path.
He should follow the Naruto from the normal timeline instead.
Then the thought shifted.
Maybe it wasn't about upbringing at all.
This was a genjutsu world. In this world, everyone's personality was the exact opposite of their real selves.
That was why a Naruto as twisted as Menma could exist.
There was no point trying to draw lessons about parenting from a world like this.
Minato let out a quiet breath, realizing he had let his concern cloud his judgment.
In the video, during the chaos, Menma seized Sakura and took her away.
Naruto had barely come to his senses when he heard the news. He immediately urged everyone to go rescue her.
"No, Menma," Minato said, shaking his head. "We're not that exceptional. We can't risk our lives for someone else."
"How can you say that…?"
Naruto stared at him, stunned.
The figure in front of him—the one that had been gradually overlapping with the father in his memories—now began to split apart again.
"We may be shinobi, but we're still human," Minato continued. "What if you died? We'd be worried about you, Menma."
His words were full of concern.
But in that moment, he became completely different from the father Naruto remembered.
That father would never have said something like that.
And he would never have abandoned a comrade from the same village.
That man had been a true hero of Konoha.
"So this is where the difference lies for Minato in that world…"
Jiraiya sighed as he watched.
In this world, everyone was the mirror opposite of themselves.
That meant the Minato who looked so similar to the one in his memories was, in truth, the complete opposite.
The Minato he knew had been a once-in-a-generation genius, with unmatched talent, unwavering resolve, and decisive action.
That was why Jiraiya had stepped aside in the race for Hokage and supported him instead.
Did anyone really think he had given up that position simply because he didn't care about it?
That was part of it, sure.
But more importantly, he had seen in Minato everything a Hokage should be.
And yet, in this Tsukuyomi world, Minato was ordinary—and afraid.
Yes, shinobi were human, and fearing death was natural.
But this was Minato.
The radiant young sun.
How could he make a choice like that?
Jiraiya let out a long breath.
"If it were Sensei, he would never say something like that," Kakashi said, frowning. "No matter the situation, Sensei would never give up or choose to cling to life at the cost of others."
A trace of displeasure showed on his face. To him, the Minato in this Tsukuyomi world felt like a distortion of the man he remembered.
He knew that his teacher would have gone to save her.
If Minato had been the kind of person who feared death above all else, he never would have died during the Nine-Tails' attack.
"So even if they look the same, they're not the same person. Naruto too… that Menma may look like him, but an imitation is still just an imitation."
"So that's what my mirror self looks like…"
Minato sighed softly.
It was the exact opposite of who he was.
In his life, he rarely hesitated. The only times he ever wavered were in extreme situations, like being forced to choose between his wife and his child.
In any other circumstance, he always made decisive choices.
Right or wrong, he never stood still.
Even so, he could understand the thinking of that version of himself.
After all, shinobi were still human. No one was obligated to fight when death was certain.
And yet, it was precisely because most people were like that… that a few extraordinary individuals rose above the rest.
To accomplish what seemed impossible.
To create miracles that should never have been achievable.
In the video, Naruto slowly pulled himself out of the illusion.
He separated the Minato and Kushina in front of him from the parents in his memories.
Bending down, he picked up the Flying Thunder God kunai from the ground.
"I have to go."
"You don't have to," Minato said quickly, stepping forward to stop him. "There's no need to play the hero."
"I'm not actually from this world."
Naruto made his decision.
He would leave this false world behind and stop clinging to its gentle illusion.
And so, he spoke the truth.