Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 323 Universe

Naruto, who was "happily awarded" the position of observing in the village, was a mystery in terms of his feelings. However, his companions were quite happy, especially his seniors who knew about his other side. They were practically bursting with joy and spreading the news far and wide.

Is being placed in solitary confinement something to be proud of?

"Whether it's glorious or not depends on the reason. At least you don't have to run around the world doing missions anymore, so the pressure will be less."

This statement amused Naruto, who slammed a special "key" on the table and said, "Is dealing with the things in this room considered stress-free?"

Now, everyone had no choice but to keep quiet again.

"Is Tsuna so eager to train you? This is a good thing, isn't it? When it comes time to recommend you, there will be less resistance. Maybe you won't even need any outside help before you become Hokage."

"I think Granny Tsunade just found these things annoying but couldn't avoid reading them, so she dumped them all on me to make a summary, right?"

"Haha, how could that be? Xiao Gang is very responsible. He will definitely see things through once he says he will take on them."

Naruto knew this, of course, but he also knew how swift Tsunade's retirement had been shortly after the Fourth Shinobi World War; she'd even handed over a large batch of documents awaiting review during the handover. While Tsunade was certainly reliable in crucial moments, that didn't stop her from slacking off in unimportant areas!

In short, whether it's going to work or going on a mission, life goes on. Naruto served as a "three-no" Jinchūriki for a while—no trouble, no talking, no ostentation—only appearing in a few fixed places each day, which gradually eased the tension of his advisor. But as everyone knows, when a child is quiet and well-behaved, they're definitely up to something. Naruto wasn't really idle; his internal and external work gradually stabilized, and there were no matters requiring his special brainpower for the time being. So, he used all his extra energy to research the "Source."

The spaceship's database was enormous; Naruto spent over half a month painstakingly reading through it, only to discover that most of the written research was limited to paper, consisting of empty theories without any experimental data to support them. Therefore, while Naruto knew that the "Source" could be compressed, he had no idea what the limits of compression were, or to what extent compression constituted a qualitative change—there were no records whatsoever. Furthermore, these research reports all mentioned the concept of "Source Core Lifeforms" to varying degrees, and referred to this type of lifeform as "God."

“The ‘source’ is so difficult to separate and store. Even if they are left in a completely still space, they will gradually fuse into atoms under the influence of some unknown factor. In the history of the universe, perhaps only the race of ‘gods’ can use them perfectly. But ‘gods’ always keep the concept of ‘source nucleus’ a secret. Is it because they are afraid that the real secret will be discovered?”

"Mortals cannot kill true 'gods.' This is a concept that all civilizations in the universe agree on. As a result, civilizations are subject to the supervision and protection of 'gods,' and no one dares to rebel against the status quo. 'Gods' often communicate the boundaries of the universe. The attacks of those 'dark universe' legions are extremely fierce, and ordinary fleets are simply powerless to resist them. They are probably 'gods' in the 'dark universe' as well."

"I believe the existence of 'God' is necessary. According to research, the characteristics of 'Source' and 'Darkness' will make the universe composed of these two substances perpetually restless. This is the cruelty of nature, but also its beauty. Only an endless cycle can create a world of continuous life. Therefore, is 'God' composed of a single substance truly the final form of life evolution? I reserve my opinion on this."

"With the Emperor Star above, is this the fall of a 'god'? The observed ripples are more chaotic and intense than expected, but there is no energy attack that the spaceship cannot withstand."

"...This is the fourth time we've observed those ripples. There's more than one source, and the situation seems dire. Although the ship is hiding behind a rocky asteroid, the aftershocks almost destroyed its shields. It seems the 'source' is indeed beyond reason, and existing theories have to be overturned. It's getting increasingly unsafe here, but only in times like these can we collect more 'source'...I need to think about this some more."

"I understand now, 'Source' is the true source of all things! Oh, and we should also add 'Source Universe.' The existence of the soul dimension has long been proven. I originally thought that the matter that constitutes the soul was different from the matter that constitutes matter. This explanation is a bit convoluted... but it doesn't matter. What matters is that the smallest unit after the soul is cut is probably also 'Source'! It is a kind of matter that can penetrate all dimensions. Simply solidifying the space of the material dimension cannot prevent the 'Source' from changing!"

"...The thirty-sixth explosion, its power is comparable to the nineteenth...How many people have been lost? No, they were 'gods'...No, they were 'source core life forms,' 'humans' fighting for the universe."

"Why was the aftershock so powerful! The core of the spaceship is fine, but the auxiliary propulsion system is severely damaged and it can't even turn over in the ground... The signal is lost? What happened? Isn't this a spaceship that has been incorporated into the 'Temple'? The Temple's communication system should have omnidirectional coverage of every planet... Ah, I understand."

"...It's the Imperial Star that has fallen."

To be honest, Naruto was starting to miss Tobirama's concise, clear, and meticulously worded research reports. This report was more like a record, and it conveniently included the reasons for the cosmic war and the spaceship crash. The report mentioned "boundary" more than once; does this mean Earth is actually very close to a boundary? This information, no matter how you look at it, is bad news.

The cosmic war ten thousand years ago was most likely a Pyrrhic victory. After the victory, the universe lacked oversight, which is why predatory civilizations like the Otsutsuki could wreak havoc on planets. Similarly, the universe also lacked guardians, which is why traces of 'dark universe life' appeared on Earth—because no one was left to protect the universe from these beings.

"Looking at it this way, you won't be even busier in the future, will you?" Kurama forced himself to understand those seemingly profound terms, and after reading the report in sync with Naruto, he asked the soul-searching question.

"...Thank you, I really didn't know that if you hadn't told me." Naruto replied weakly. What bothered him more was that the image reflected in the water was completely different from any other version of himself. Could it be his form after becoming a "Source Core Life Form"?

But why did his memory abruptly stop at the moment of his death? All his other memories were things he recalled unintentionally. Did that "reflection" do something?