Revitalizing the Uchiha clan starts with becoming a Kage.

This appears to be the power of the dragon vein that has been blatantly suppressed.

However, just as Jiang Si was overjoyed...

next second!

"Boom!"

A violent tremor followed, and then another surge of purple light erupted from all around.

"What is this? Could it be!?"

Before the general could react.

"Splash splash splash!"

The purple light that suddenly covered everything instantly engulfed Jiang Si.

Then.

The general suddenly felt everything go black.

Consciousness also sank into darkness!

393. First Encounter with Loulan

A brilliant purple light shone forth.

Violent tremors.

Although the ancient kingdom of Loulan is now in ruins, it was once a symbol of prosperity and wealth before the Third Shinobi World War. Most importantly, even after so many years, the power of the Dragon Vein still runs deep within the hearts of the people in the surrounding area, including the Fourth Kazekage of Sunagakure, Rasa. He simply lacked the time and ability to focus on it, not the power of the Dragon Vein. Therefore, the striking scene in the ruins of Loulan instantly attracted the attention of some, including the Sunagakure ninja guarding the border region adjacent to the Land of Rivers. These people knew very well what lay hidden in the ruins of Loulan!

Although they were dozens of miles apart, the towering purple pillar of light was still too dazzling. The Jonin commander of the Sand Ninja garrison narrowed his eyes the moment he saw it. He immediately ordered his other Sand Ninja to report the news to their Kazekage in the village through special channels, while he himself led several Sand Ninja at top speed toward the ruins of the ancient Loulan Kingdom.

Meanwhile, in another oasis region dozens of miles away from the ancient Loulan Kingdom, a beautiful young woman with red hair, around twenty years old, had a sudden thought almost the instant Si Dong was unsealed. The towering purple pillar she saw further confirmed her prediction.

'The power of the Dragon Vein—is it from the Sand Village? Or the Leaf Village? Or perhaps someone from another ninja village? Never mind, whatever it is, that's all in Loulan's past, and it has nothing to do with me anymore!'

The red-haired woman sighed softly, silently thinking to herself, almost subconsciously. As she turned to leave, she gently stroked a short sword tucked at her waist—a specially made chakra sword clearly for ninjas!

The commotion caused by this towering pillar of purple light clearly wouldn't be limited to just the Sand Village ninja and the red-haired woman. They were simply the closest and quickest to notice it. The Loulan Dragon Vein still held considerable renown in the ninja world, and it was foreseeable that in the coming days, a large number of secret agents from various ninja villages, even ANBU, would infiltrate this area. Their intentions would be unanimous: to investigate what had happened at the Loulan Dragon Vein, and most importantly, to find out who was responsible. The Sand Village would suspect the Leaf Village, while other ninja villages would suspect both the Leaf Village and the Sand Village. And the Leaf Village would suspect everyone!

The hard-won peace between countries may be disrupted again by this incident, but for the time being, it has little to do with Jiang Si. The moment he was swept into that purple wave, Jiang Si found that he could not control his body and his consciousness sank into it almost instantly.

It's unclear how much time passed, but as Jiang Si's consciousness gradually returned from the darkness, a faint light shone on his eyelids. The control of his body that he had completely lost was also fully restored at this moment. When Jiang Si slowly opened his eyes...

"Oh? You're finally awake, big brother. By the way, are you a local? Can you tell me where this place is?"

A very cheerful and bright voice rang in Jiang Si's ears.

Sho Sina also fully regained his senses. Subconsciously, his heart tightened. It was almost an instinctive reaction. His muscles tensed up, and he did a somersault, flipping and leaping to create a safe distance.

"Eh? You're a ninja too? Which ninja village are you from? Are you from Konoha too? Hmm? I don't mean any harm, you don't need to be so nervous!"

The speaker of these clear words seemed to sense the general's wariness, so he deliberately took two steps back before continuing to speak.

Jiang Si truly did not sense any malice from the newcomer, and his heartstrings relaxed slightly. However, just a second later, the figure of the person who spoke came into Jiang Si's view.

Even with Jiang Si's magnanimity and mindset, he couldn't help but let his pupils shrink suddenly.

'Naruto Uzumaki!'

It required almost no thought; the name that subconsciously surfaced in Jiang Si's mind was that of the person who was being conceived.

Indeed, the figure standing in front of Jiang Si at this moment is none other than the true protagonist of the original work—Naruto Uzumaki. His cheerful and sunny smile, his golden hair gently fluttering in the wind, and his familiar clothes—everything about him perfectly matches the description in the original work!

Seeing Naruto Uzumaki, the true protagonist of the original work, up close.

Shoji was unusually absent-minded and dazed for a moment. No matter what, Naruto Uzumaki was one of the most beloved protagonists in the anime Shoji watched in his 'previous life'. Even though there were some things about this protagonist that Shoji wanted to complain about or even dislike, he was still a part of Shoji's youth in his previous life!

Of course, it's not to the point of being particularly unusual.

But it was indeed enough to cause a slightly different ripple in the depths of Jiang Si's heart. It was also when he saw Naruto dressed in the standard Shippuden outfit of a fifteen or sixteen-year-old from the original work, the obviously familiar scene around him, and combined with his previous behavior, as well as that purple light.

Jiang Si could also guess with 100% certainty what had happened to him. He must have traveled through time and space because of the power of the dragon vein. That's right, it wasn't just a simple time travel back to the past, but more like a space travel to another parallel world!

The reason is simple: his previous actions in the ruins of the ancient Loulan Kingdom, and his current appearance here with Naruto Uzumaki, constitute the biggest time paradox. The two cannot possibly exist on the same timeline. If they are two people in the same space-time, there must be inexplicable contradictions between them.

This is why, after seeing Naruto Uzumaki, Shoji could easily conclude that he had traveled through time and space to a past timeline in a parallel world. Only in this way could the paradoxical relationship between the two in the timeline be explained.

Moreover, this is something that is 100% certain.

Across from him, Naruto, seeing Shoji's silent demeanor, assumed he was still wary and didn't think much of it. After all, Naruto was the kindest character in the original story. He tugged at his headband and, with a cheerful smile, continued, "My name is Uzumaki Naruto, a ninja from Konoha. Could you tell me your name first? Big brother? Uh? You must be older than me, right?"

It must be said that he truly lives up to his reputation as the protagonist with the most charming attributes in the original work. His infectious smile and the gentle feeling that is 100% from the depths of his heart are really easy to make people like. Even the expression in Shoji's eyes softened a lot at this moment, and Naruto, who noticed this, also smiled a little more.

"Um, my name is Shoji, and I'm also a ninja. I'm 18 years old this year, so I should be a few years older than you. If you don't mind, you can call me Brother Shoji, and I'll call you Naruto-kun, okay?"

Jiang Si smiled slightly and spoke with a gentle expression.

"Yes, of course, that's no problem. Brother Si, you don't need to call me Naruto-kun anymore, just call me by my name. I knew you were a ninja, your movements were so smooth just now. By the way, Brother Si, are you a local? I had an accident and I don't know why I suddenly ended up here. Can you tell me where this place is?"

Naruto said with a chuckle.

Naruto's personality is naturally very outgoing. Most importantly, even though Naruto is not a pure Uzumaki clan member and did not learn the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode during this period, and did not truly master the Nine-Tails' unique ability to sense malice, he is still more perceptive than the average person. In the simplest terms, Naruto has a very strong subjective intuition!

He could easily discern the goodwill and malice in others' hearts more easily than the average person. The feeling that Shoji gave Naruto at this moment was very comfortable, which was why Naruto was so close to Shoji. Otherwise, Naruto was not only simple-minded, but also not a fool, nor was he a recent graduate who lacked experience and was easily deceived. Naruto in Shippuden was relatively mature. If someone really approached Naruto with malice, no matter how simple or kind he was, he would still be able to tell!

"Well, I'm not a local, but I can tell you where this is. This is Loulan, located between the Land of Wind and the Land of Rivers. I'm here to carry out a mission!"

Jiang Si said with a light laugh.

"Oh? Brother Si, are you here on a mission too? What a coincidence, I also took on a pursuit mission. It's all Tsunade's fault, she made me lose my way, so I... Eh? Wait a minute, what did you say? This is Loulan!? Ah!?"

All I can say is that Naruto is still Naruto. Perhaps he will mature, but the deep-seated personality issues are not easy to change. His unparalleled, extraordinary reaction time means he is more than a beat slow in reacting.

Naruto's eyes widened instantly, his mouth gaped open, and he stared at Shoji in the opposite seat with an expression of disbelief. At that moment, his voice rose to its highest level.

This perfectly captures Naruto's expression and demeanor.

As Shoji looked at Naruto's all-too-familiar "silly mode," a handsome smile couldn't help but appear on his lips.

'Naruto is still Naruto after all, hehe!'

Jiang Si chuckled inwardly, but outwardly remained expressionless as he continued, "Yes, this is Loulan. What's wrong? Naruto, is your mission also to be carried out in Loulan?"

"This? That's true, but... but shouldn't Loulan be ruins? Shouldn't it have been destroyed long ago? How could this be Loulan?!"

Naruto peered through the hole above at the towering buildings outside, his face scrunched up like a bun, still wearing an expression of disbelief as he spoke.

Although he knew exactly how Naruto got here, Shoji still pretended to be surprised and said, "What do you mean by ruins? Although Loulan is a small country, it is very prosperous. Um, if you don't mind, Naruto, could you tell me how you got here? Also, could you tell me what your mission is? Of course, if it's inconvenient, then forget it."

"Oh! Of course, that's no problem!"

Faced with Shoji's question, Naruto did not hesitate at all and told Shoji everything about the mission he was to carry out and how he had come here. Although Naruto was a carefree person and even a little thick-skinned, he was definitely not a stupid person. The reason why he told Shoji all this information was firstly because, as mentioned earlier, Naruto did not sense any dangerous aura or hostility from Shoji, and secondly because this information was not classified information at all, and telling it would not have any impact.

"Oh? You came here because you were chasing after a rogue ninja from Sunagakure, accidentally triggered the Fourth Hokage's seal, and were then drawn into the power of the Dragon Vein?"

As the two headed outside, Jiang Si listened intently to what Naruto had to say. Combining this with his own memories, Jiang Si could basically deduce that the current development was almost identical to the original story. Before he woke up, Naruto had already met the red-haired girl, who was the last queen of the Loulan Kingdom. The only difference was, of course, his own unexpected appearance!

Naruto is still very concerned about the identity of that girl.

"Hehe, although I haven't seen it with my own eyes, based on your description, I can roughly confirm that the girl should be the Queen of Loulan Kingdom. Moreover, Naruto, if I'm not mistaken, you must have traveled through time, from the future back to the past. In other words, you are a person from the future!"

Emerging from underground, basking in the bright sunlight, Si glanced admiringly at the towering, majestic buildings before turning with a smile to Naruto beside him, and saying with a light laugh.

"What? That little girl is the Queen?"

When Naruto heard that the red-haired girl he had just met was actually the queen of a country, his eyes almost popped out of their sockets. But only a second later, when he heard the second half of Shoji's sentence, this time Naruto no longer had any 'internet lag'!

He stared in disbelief, a look of utter shock on his face, and exclaimed, "Huh? Time travel? Back to the past? Eh? What does that mean? Does that mean this is the old world? No, then I should be... Huh? This... Brother Si?"

At this moment, Naruto's brain seemed to freeze, which was actually quite natural. Anyone would show a similar expression when faced with a similar situation. There are people who can calmly accept it, but they are extremely rare!

"Yes, I'm not joking with you, Naruto. Your words just now prove it. For example, Loulan is still fine now, but from what you said, we know that in your era, Loulan had already been destroyed, the power of the Dragon Vein was sealed, and your Konoha's Hokage was already the Fifth Hokage, the famous Tsunade, one of the Legendary Sannin. In this era, Loulan still exists, and the power of the Dragon Vein is still being used by the people of Loulan. Your Konoha's Hokage is only the Third Hokage, not even the Fourth, let alone the Fifth."

It might seem strange, but when facing Naruto, Shoji always felt a little reluctant to deceive him, so he was very careful in his choice of words. Without actively revealing his identity, he would try to use some vague words to define and express his current identity and position.

Of course, according to Jiang Si's own speculation, even if his identity is exposed, it will not be a big deal. People in different timelines will not affect the development of characters in each other's worlds. It is just that being a little cautious is perfectly fine unless it is absolutely necessary.

Is that so?

Naruto's expression was clearly complicated at this moment. Even someone as simple-minded as him could clearly understand what time travel meant.

"Can I go back?!"

Naruto's entire face became wrinkled, and he looked extremely distressed.

“I think it’s possible. Since you were forcibly pulled into the power of the Dragon Vein by that Sand Ninja named Centipede who broke the seal of the Fourth Hokage you mentioned, what you need to do now is to find Centipede, kill him, and then use the power of the Dragon Vein again. It’s very likely that you can return to your own era!”

While the exact mechanism of this time travel isn't entirely clear, Shoji is absolutely certain that both Naruto's and his own time travel are inextricably linked to the Centipede and the Dragon Vein, with a 99% probability of connection. In the original story, after the Centipede's death, Naruto and the others successfully returned to their previous state of chaos. If an explanation is necessary, Shoji can only speculate that it's related to quantum mechanics. The time travel occurred because the Centipede and Naruto's quantum entanglement was caused by the Dragon Vein's outburst, and the unique nature of the Dragon Vein's energy distorted spacetime, forcibly sending the Centipede, Naruto, and Yamato back to the past.

After Centipede's death was confirmed, the entangled quantum particles completely dispersed and returned to the previous normal mode, once again activating the power of spacetime to correct the deviation in spacetime contradictions and send Shoji and Yamato, who did not belong to this timeline, back to their world!

It is very likely that I came here because of the influence of the dragon vein power, but at a very special point, I was simultaneously entangled with the quantum of Centipede and Naruto, and thus came to this space-time. Of course, these are just speculations of Shoji alone. Whether they are true or not, we still need to find Centipede to confirm!

"Oh! Now that you mention it, it makes a lot of sense!"

Naruto clenched his right fist and lightly tapped his left palm, his eyes lighting up as he spoke.

"But where are we supposed to find Centipede? We don't have any information at all!"

Naruto scratched the back of his head and said with some distress.

"Well, if we really want to find him, it's like looking for a needle in a haystack. But there's someone in this Loulan Kingdom who is very suspicious. This person suddenly appeared in Loulan Kingdom a few years ago. Before that, there was no information about him at all. Combining the information you gave me, Naruto, this person is very likely the Centipede you're looking for. He probably traveled to the past and came to this era a few years earlier than you!"

Jiang Si continued speaking slowly and deliberately.

"Really? Who is it? Brother Si, tell me quickly!"

A hint of obvious surprise appeared in Naruto's azure eyes.

"Yeah, that's it, yeah?"

Just as Jiang Si was about to reveal that An Lushan was Baizu (a character from a Chinese folktale),...

"Danger!"

Suddenly.

"Boom!"

Just as the two were about to reach the vicinity of the central tower, a loud bang suddenly erupted from the tower.

"boom!"

"Splash!"