But heaven knows where they would find milk powder in this small village of theirs.
Moreover, the people in this village harbor ill intentions toward them; even if they found milk powder, they wouldn't dare give it to the child.
Let's get out of here first.
Uzumaki Naruto quickly made a decision, Sasuke thought it was fine.
They sent a message to the Assistant Supervisor explaining the specific details of the mission, then the two of them took off running.
With their strength, carrying a child was no different than not carrying one at all; they reached the city with ease.
However, before they could even run into the city, they were blocked by a wall; inside the wall was a shop.
To be honest, this looked quite wrong; there was hardly anyone around, so why would anyone open a shop in a place like this?
The door opened, a slender hand reached out.
Naruto pulled the child closer to his chest, Sasuke took a step forward to shield him.
“Welcome to the Wish Shop.”
A black-haired beauty dressed in a Japanese kimono walked out; she flicked the cigarette in her hand, her long sleeves swaying with the movement.
“I am the shop manager, Yuuko Ichihara.”
In the middle of the wilderness, a shop run by a beautiful woman in a kimono—everything about this felt indescribably eerie.
"Shop, do you have any baby formula?" Uzumaki Naruto suddenly poked his head out from behind Sasuke.
Chapter 66
Faced with Uzumaki Naruto's inquiry, the knowledgeable Yuuko Ichihara was also momentarily speechless.
No one had ever asked such a question after meeting her!
But asking whether the shop sells milk powder didn't seem to be wrong in any way.
After all, whether it's called the Happiness Shop or the Three Blessings Shop, as long as there's a shop at the end of the name, it's only natural to ask what kind of things they sell.
Yuuko Ichihara tilted her head slightly, casually brushing non-existent dust from her clothes with her long sleeves. "This is a shop where any wish can be granted."
She placed particular emphasis on the words "wish" and "shop."
“Of course, everything is equivalent, so fulfilling a wish requires paying a corresponding price.”
Uzumaki Naruto froze for a moment, then asked in confusion, "A price for buying baby formula? What kind of price? How much money?"
Yuuko Ichihara felt helpless,
“It's not milk powder. What is sold here are wishes—the wishes you desperately want to achieve.”
Uzumaki Naruto nodded seriously. If this shop didn't sell milk powder, that would be a problem; the kid was still hungry.
Seeing the other's reaction, Yuuko Ichihara knew that Naruto didn't understand, so she explained faintly,
“There are no coincidences in this world.”
“Your arrival here is inevitable.” [Note 1]
It was even harder to understand. Uzumaki Naruto pondered for a moment, "Even though it feels like you're saying something important, we're in a bit of a hurry right now. Do you want to wait until we've finished buying the milk powder?"
"Such a stubborn simpleton," Yuuko Ichihara gripped her tobacco pipe tightly. Could he not just forget about that damn baby formula!
Uchiha Sasuke, who had listened to the entire conversation in silence: suddenly felt like laughing.
Although Naruto proved himself to be a very reliable man.. boy during the Fourth Shinobi World War, it didn't stop his IQ from suddenly dropping every now and then.
"The dead last hasn't changed much either," Sasuke thought with a hint of amazement, repeating it to himself—he actually hadn't changed much.
“Is there something wrong with this child?” Uchiha Sasuke asked, while thinking about Naruto, whom he had met for the first time.
Finally, someone who understands. Yuuko Ichihara sighed, "This child cannot survive in this world."
"He isn't crying because he's hungry, but because he is being rejected by this world." After saying this, she looked at Uzumaki Naruto, so stop obsessing over that formula!
If you want to survive, you must be sent to another world.
Naruto understood those simple words immediately, but once he did, he couldn't help but hold the child in his arms tighter.
This was the daughter he had just acquired, before he could even get used to her, he was actually being asked to send her somewhere else!
"What do you need us to do?" In contrast, Uchiha Sasuke's expression remained calm.
This kid really knows how to act; Yuuko Ichihara cast an appreciative glance.
“Bring her with you and follow me.”
Yuuko Ichihara flicked her long sleeves and made an inviting gesture inward. Sasuke went first, followed by Naruto, the two of them walked into the room one after the other.
"You just said that wishes require an equivalent exchange." Uchiha Sasuke did not let the previous topic drop, his question striking straight at the core.
Then what price must we pay?
Yuuko Ichihara's eyes swept over the child held in Uzumaki Naruto's arms.
“Someone has already paid the price for you.”
The two people who had just stepped inside were stunned. Before they could even voice their questions, a hexagram array lit up beneath their feet. In the next second, the scene before them shifted, changing from the interior of a wooden house to a corner alleyway on a bustling street.
“Where is this place?” Uzumaki Naruto asked in surprise, looking toward the street where people were passing by.
The familiar Japanese on the shop signs meant they probably hadn't left Japan yet.
Yuuko Ichihara answered, "Yokohama."
"Is this Yokohama?" Uzumaki Naruto raised his voice, constantly scanning his surroundings, his brows furrowing.
No, it feels different.
Whether it was the low-rise buildings or the temperament of the people around them, everything was completely different from the place they had once stayed.
But upon closer inspection, some of the shop signs did indeed have Yokohama written on them.
Yuuko Ichihara explained calmly, "It's just a parallel world."
This is Yokohama, ten years before your timeline.
Similar worlds with similar laws are more conducive to growth.
Uzumaki Naruto looked at the child in his arms.
Strangely enough, the child in his arms had stopped crying as soon as they arrived in this world, was now looking at him with wide, bewildered eyes.
At this, their initial seventy percent doubt toward the conversation turned into ninety percent.
You had better decide quickly on how to settle this child.
A hexagram formation began to appear beneath Yuuko Ichihara's feet again.
“Three hours later, I will take you back to your original world.”
After saying these words, she vanished before the two of them.
Sasuke, what are we going to do?
Uzumaki Naruto frowned and looked toward Uchiha Sasuke.
The problem of the child's crying had been resolved, but now a new problem lay before them.
In this vast sea of people, they were strangers in a strange land; how were they supposed to find an adoptive parent?
Uchiha Sasuke didn't know what to do either. By the time his family's affairs occurred, he was already able to live independently, he had no experience in this regard.
“An orphanage?” he suggested a solution.
No, no." Uzumaki Naruto shook his head hurriedly. "Nakajima Atsushi's life in the orphanage here was far too miserable, having so many children together in an orphanage doesn't sound like a normal childhood.
“Even if I can't raise her, I can't let her suffer elsewhere.”
He said solemnly, "At the very least, she deserves a normal childhood!"
After saying that, he even brandished his fist to show his determination.
"What is a normal childhood like?" Uchiha Sasuke asked. Even for him, as the youngest son of the Uchiha Clan leader, his daily life could hardly be considered a normal childhood, to say nothing of his life after the clan's massacre.
"A normal childhood should be.. uh.." Uzumaki Naruto also faltered; having lost both his parents at a young age and being viewed as a hated demon fox by most of the villagers, he knew even less!
The two stared at each other, unable to come up with a single complete description of a normal childhood.
"At any rate, there won't be that many kids hanging around together!" In the end, Uzumaki Naruto could only conclude it this way.
Given that they didn't want to send them to an orphanage, these small children couldn't live independently on their own, the two of them discussed it and decided it would be better to find someone to adopt them.
"We really need to find someone good." Uzumaki Naruto sighed; he had lived under other people's roofs since he was a child and had suffered enough hardships.
Uchiha Sasuke raised his hand to touch his eyes; if all else failed, he could simply use his Sharingan to drop a hint to someone.
Of course, they certainly wouldn't let the other party suffer a loss, the appropriate compensation would be provided.
The two of them raised their feet, preparing to use their ninja information-gathering abilities to look for the adoptive parents, but Uzumaki Naruto suddenly poked Uchiha Sasuke with his elbow.
“Hey, do you think that person is that.. that president of the Dazai and Oda Sakunosuke Detective Agency?”
Uchiha Sasuke looked in the direction Uzumaki Naruto was pointing, a man with white hair wearing a scarf walked past from ahead; looking at his face, it was none other than a much younger Fukuzawa Yukichi.
His expression was serious and his aura was extraordinary; even as he simply walked down the street, he exuded an aura of inviolable solemnity.
Hey, that witch just said this is Yokohama from ten years ago, which means both Dazai Osamu and Oda Sakunosuke are here!
Uzumaki Naruto's eyes lit up. Uchiha Sasuke could tell by his expression that he wanted these two to help raise the child, but after discussing it for a while, the two realized that this was not a good idea.
"Dazai Osamu, I don't think he's very suitable for looking after small children," Uzumaki Naruto said hesitantly after thinking about Dazai Osamu's usual behavior.
Uchiha Sasuke nodded. Not only was he unsuitable, he was completely incapable.
Setting aside the fact that we don't even know if he's an adult or where he's living now, his love life is just too messy." Having listened to a bellyful of gossip at Port Mafia, Naruto shook his head vigorously, "No, no, we absolutely cannot leave Xiaomoli in his hands.
Oda Sakunosuke isn't much better, either.
Uchiha Sasuke spoke up; he had quite the authority on this matter, having lived at Oda Sakunosuke's place for a period of time.
“His profession is too dangerous, the pay is incredibly low!”
Hearing that the pay was low, Uzumaki Naruto's head shook even more vigorously. He thought of his former life. "This won't do! If the money is low, won't Xiaomoli have to eat instant noodles every single day?!"