Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 342 Alternative Plan

The condensation of the "Source Core" went unexpectedly smoothly. The moment he possessed it, Naruto finally understood why only those who possessed the "Source Core" could use the box. The conversion of the "Source" no longer required him to exert his full strength. Oh, of course, this conversion could only occur for the time being with relatively simple materials, such as chakra, air, and natural energy.

After making some attempts, Naruto was very satisfied with himself. However, when he used "Source" to erode the seal on his soul, the long-lost pain returned.

"Naruto! Are you alright? Wait, what's this..." Kurama noticed the abnormality immediately, and his chakra surged forth, enveloping Naruto completely. However, this didn't have the immediate effect expected; the pain persisted, only becoming a more subdued, dull ache.

"It seems... I need to finish this quickly." Naruto recovered from the pain and immediately realized that it was caused by the soul possessing the "Source Core" being more powerful, making his body more overburdened. Although... he had considered this possibility, he was still somewhat caught off guard when it actually happened.

According to the intelligence, the final form of "Source Core Life" seems to be a body forged from pure "Source," allowing them to completely break free from environmental limitations and roam freely in the universe. Naruto had assumed this forging must be active, but it turns out to be semi-passive, as the "Source Core" autonomously converts matter within a certain range into "Source," and the body housing this soul is naturally the first to be affected.

If it weren't for the box, he wouldn't have attempted this so quickly; it just goes to show that plans never keep up with changes. It seems that if he wants to live a little longer, he must temporarily lock up the "source core" after dealing with the box. Hopefully, the rune will still be effective.

"Thank you, Nine-Ra, I feel much better."

"What kind of weird thing have you come up with? Even I feel my chakra slowly draining away."

Naruto was taken aback and quickly scanned Kurama. Fortunately, Kurama was truly tough and had a large chakra reserve, so his soul wasn't directly burned. He finally understood why his other self in his sea of ​​consciousness had thrown the two troublesome creatures underwater before killing Mouryou—it was truly to save their lives!

"Let's hurry back and deal with that trouble." Naruto didn't answer, but instead flew back to the spaceship without wasting a second, bathed in brilliant golden light. He even intimidated Tobirama, who wanted to cause him trouble, and the group quickly got down to business, studying the Box of Elysium.

How should I put it? Naruto's intuition is always remarkably accurate. Although he couldn't "read" the intricate writing on the inside of the box, he easily guessed the way to open the door. Tobirama finally saw the "dangerous item" he had long suspected and which had to be sealed in the box, and his extremely sour face softened a little.

"That must be the so-called 'dark universe life'... Why does it feel a little familiar..."

"Anyway, it's good that the seal was successfully completed. We can't let such a dangerous thing remain in Naruto's body, right, Naruto?"

However, no one answered their words. When they turned around, they found that the Nine-Lama's power was still working, but he was sitting in a chair, unconscious.

The two seniors instantly appeared beside Naruto, one to treat him and the other to ask Fushimi to open the medical pod. Ready-made things aren't necessarily the best, nor are they necessarily useful, but Tobirama did indeed retrieve biomedical research from the database immediately and even unearthed the medical pod that hadn't been set foot in for a long time.

Anything related to living things is susceptible to the ravages of time. Everything here has expired, and most of it has been emptied by previous users, leaving only the large instruments that are simply too heavy to move. Tobirama is not yet able to create the kind of miraculous medicine described in the documents, the kind that supposedly can even revive the dead. However, he is not entirely without a foundation. Inspired by White Zetsu cells, and having made some modifications to Hashirama's cells, he has finally stabilized these restless things.

He had secretly tried it before, and Naruto's body didn't reject the modified cells, but he hadn't yet reached a conclusion on how to use them to achieve the best results. But now that Naruto was critically ill again, and seeing his older brother's solemn expression, he knew that this "illness" was probably incurable, so he had no choice but to take the risk.

With the combined efforts of Hashirama, Kurama, and Tobirama, they finally managed to snatch Naruto back from the clutches of death. This brat's mental fortitude is simply unbelievable; after suffering such severe physical trauma, he woke up very quickly and even had the mood to joke around with them!

At that moment, the urge to hit the child surged, but it was quickly suppressed.

We can't hit him, we can't hit him. He was just saved, and it doesn't look like he'll fully recover...

I thought I was about to go to the Pure Land, but suddenly I couldn't breathe, and everything went black...

"Your alveoli are ruptured, how are you breathing?!" Tobirama wanted to punch him through the glass. "Stop using chakra and stay quiet!"

Naruto pouted, looking aggrieved, and continued "speaking" relentlessly: "My clone in Konoha..."

"Don't worry, we'll handle it. You don't need to worry about Hui or Konoha." Hashirama had touched Naruto's body directly, and he knew exactly how badly Naruto had been rescued. He felt more heartache than anger, and couldn't bring himself to say anything harsh.

"Take a nap, and you'll be able to come out when you wake up."

Finally, Naruto emerged, but after two impacts, his body was indeed overwhelmed. Even if his outward appearance didn't show it, his internal condition remained dire. Moreover, the "Source Core" was only sealed, not gone. Whenever he used the "Source" again, the seal would immediately break, dealing another fatal blow to his research, which had just begun to get on track.

"You're still thinking about that thing? The database says 'Source Core Life' can't die in the normal sense... but who knows what you'll look like after you turn into a floating thing? What if you can't help at all and just stand by and watch?" Kurama's "persuasion to live" mission continued. He had never worried so much in his life. Naruto was truly his destined nemesis!

“You’re right, that’s definitely a problem. What if the Impure World Reincarnation fails after we get the ‘Source Core’? That would be troublesome.” As a result, Naruto didn’t think about living; instead, he started thinking about his “afterlife.”

"Kurama, can you seal my chakra? Shall we try?"

Nine-Tailed Raman gritted his teeth for most of the day, but in the end he still offered up one of his tails.

This is unbearable...