A few more days passed, and Yuna and Naruto were currently on a ship heading to a hidden island near Kumo. The duo was presently sitting on the ship’s railing and enjoying the salty sea air.

After a few minutes of comfortable silence, a scowl appeared on Naruto’s face, and he started speaking.

“Is this war really necessary, nee-san? Couldn’t we have prevented it?”

Yuna pondered Naruto’s questions for a short moment and then answered him.

“With by combining Hisoka’s knowledge about the future and the Uzumaki clan’s resources, we could have probably prevented it.”

Naruto’s eyes widened when Yuna confirmed his guess.

“Why didn’t we? Won’t a lot of people die because of this war?”

“Probably, but there are two good reasons for this war to happen.”

“Good reasons? What good reasons could war possibly have.”

Yuna sighed deeply when she heard Naruto’s question. Naturally, she agreed with Naruto. The number of wars that had a good reason behind them was minimal. That was also the reason why rebellions were called rebellions and not wars. After all, the word “war” was pretty much always associated with something negative, which would drastically complicate recruiting people for your cause.

“The first reason exists, due to how unique this war is. Usually, war is a conflict between two or more nations against each other. Even after the war is over, people will continue holding grudges. These grudges rarely vanish and will take at least three generations to fade away. Usually, those grudges lead to more wars.

However, in this war, there will be no such grudges. Either all of our enemies die, or we get trapped inside a genjutsu. No matter what, there will be no grudges.

This means that after we win this war, there is a genuinely high chance for this continent to enter an age of prosperity and peace. Obviously, that won’t last, but it’s better than nothing.”

Although Naruto clearly wasn’t happy about what he had just heard, he could at least understand what Yuna meant. In conclusion, it was for the greater good.

However, Naruto was also aware that if that was the only reason, Yuna wouldn’t accept it. She simply wasn’t the “greater good” kind of person.

“Okay, I can more or less accept that, but what is the other reason? That should be the main one, right?”

Yuna nodded her head in agreement while her face twisted in disgust, surprising Naruto.

“It is fate. As the child of prophecy, you are fated to confront Kaguya in the end and seal her away. This war is the safest way to reach that outcome.”

Naruto’s eyes bulged when he heard that. Naturally, he had heard about being the so-called “child of prophecy”, but he had always dismissed it as nonsense. Before Naruto could say anything else, Yuna started shaking her head with an annoyed expression on her face.

“Frankly, you will feel fate’s fetters very heavily during that fight. So far, you were almost always near me, someone not influenced by fate, but that last battle is inevitable, so I can’t do anything about it.

I’m an anomaly in this world; there is no doubt about it. Considering the current you is significantly stronger than you would be without my presence, I believe you will feel heavily restricted during that fight after all…”

Yuna stopped talking and allowed Naruto to come up with his own conclusion. It took a few minutes, and then he widened his eyes in surprise.

“No way. The fates of Indra and Ashura. Sasuke and I need to fight her together?”

Yuna only shrugged her shoulders at that. Frankly, she had no idea and only considered it to be a possibility. It’s not like she knew what fate had in store for Naruto. She could only make guesses based on what Hisoka had told her. Obviously, that wasn’t the least bit reliable since this was another timeline. Yuna had no idea if Kaguya would really pop up or if another Ootsutsuki would come out. Hell, she didn’t even know whether it would be an Ootsutsuki.

“I’m not sure, but it’s a possibility.”

Naruto’s frown deepened as he started thinking about his situation. He somewhat doubted that Sasuke would be willing to cooperate. Somehow, Naruto thought that even if it caused the whole world to be trapped inside a genjutsu, Sasuke would still come after Yuna for the sake of his useless pride.

Naruto sighed deeply as he continued thinking about what he should do, and after a few more minutes of silence, he resumed talking.

“You previously mentioned that you are not influenced by fate and that you severed that connection yourself. Is it possible for me to do the same?”

Obviously, Naruto would rather not be forced to team up with Sasuke. Even fighting alone would be a better alternative in his book.

Yuna saw the determination in Naruto’s eyes and could only sadly shake her head.

“Currently, that is impossible. The closer someone is to a fated incident, the harder and riskier it becomes too severe their fate. Even if I currently had the power I wielded in my previous life, I would have advised you against making me do it.”

Naruto made an ugly expression when she heard that Yuna would rather not do it even when she would be at the peak of her power. Evidently, he would have been the one to suffer if she did, but it still showed Naruto how deep he was stuck in this nonsense.

As he continued contemplating, he realized something else.

“However, that means that it should be much easier after that incident is over, right?”

Yuna nodded in approval when she heard Naruto’s question.

“You are correct. After this whole mess is over, I should have the necessary strength to help you do it.”

Determination appeared on Naruto’s face as he gave Yuna a nod of acknowledgment.

“Then please help me with this, nee-san.”

“Hehe, obviously. No longer being fettered by the string of fate feels fantastic. Trust me, Naruto.

“I do, nee-san.”

Good job distracting him from figuring out that you want this war to happen because you want to duke it out with Madara.

‘Pah, no need to act coy. We both know that you have the same desire.’

*Cough* True.

‘Besides, the two reasons I told Naruto are true. Even I wouldn’t sacrifice a bunch of innocent people so that I can fight some strong. I might be crazy, but I’m not crazy crazy.’

Although that makes no sense: that makes sense.