Oddity by KKephemeral

Chapter 6 - Sensor

I soon realized two things about Kushina. One – she is crazy for both Ramen and Seals. I think it is an Uzumaki thing. Her love for Ramen is obviously inherited by Naruto. As the series didn't showcase any other Uzumakis that much, I could safely say that. On the other hand, seals are what they became known for. So, neither didn't faze me much.

But the second thing I realized about Kushina is that she had no concept of social restrictions. She did what she wanted when she wanted. Social concerns and peer pressure be damned. Danzo constantly questioned me on social etiquettes after learning that I was spending time with Kushina. I think he was afraid that she will undo all the social etiquettes that were drilled into me for two years. And just for that fact alone, I loved hanging out with Kushina.

While I was with her, I was not a Senju. One of the members of the fabled clan which co-founded Konoha. I was just Hatorama – a four-year-old kid. She gave me space to be myself. Even Biwako had some expectations from me. On the other hand, Kushina didn't expect anything from me. I was grateful that she didn't stereotype me and place undue expectations on me. To her, I was just a kid and I was thankful for that.

But my fourth year in the world of Naruto wasn't a smooth sailing ship either. Midway through my fourth year, I was brought back to reality in a nasty way. Sakumo's fateful mission occurred.

When I heard about it, I was both shocked and relieved. Shocked because I had forgotten what this world entailed and was going on with my life as a happy child. While my thought process was that of an adult, I had conveniently embraced the kid aspect of this new life and was even enjoying it. My relief came from the fact that I was just a kid and nothing I did could change Sakumo's condition. Also, a tiny part of me was relieved to note that the events were transpiring as it did in the original timeline despite my inclusion.

Yeah, it's a shameful thought, I agree. But you have to understand that I had never gotten a concrete evidence that my presence hadn't changed anything. Tsunade's departure was both born of her sorrow and love for me. Asuma falling out with his father was the only logical conclusion noting that Hiruzen was the Hokage and had his duties. Even my suspicions on Danzo and Orochimaru were just that – mine and mine alone. None of that had assuaged me that everything was as it is in the series.

But, the Sakumo incident was a different thing. It would need an extraordinary amount of coincidences to occur one by one to create it. The simplest explanation was that everything was as it is in the original series, except for my inclusion.

It was both frightening and relieving at the same time.

If the events stayed its course, then I would have to face a world war, two invasions, a Bijuu attack and eventually all the shit will hit the fan when the last world war occurs in something akin to humanity versus aliens.

It also made me think if I was going to do anything about it. Sure, it would sound cool to interfere and make things right. But, I am a strong believer of the saying "The road to hell is paved with good intentions". Going up and blindly messing with the timeline was not my thing. That way I wouldn't even be aware of the ripple effects it causes. What if my interference changes the final outcome for the worst? At least, Naruto and Sasuke defeat the Moon bitch in the original timeline.

Now that I had a new lease on life, should I squander it by simply messing up the original timeline? What if I get offed for my interference in the middle and the final outcome becomes terribly wrong? Wouldn't it be my fault?

Then again, would I even have the power to change things? I remembered watching the final war and feeling most of the characters in the series were being useless regardless of their skills. Only S-rank shinobi and people protected with plot armor were even able to stand a chance. Even that wasn't a big one. What could little old me do? What did I have? Will the name Senju alone would be enough to change things?