To generate the patch for the CWE-476 (NULL Pointer Dereference) vulnerability in the given code slice, we need to follow a structured approach. Here are the reasoning steps:

### Step 1: Root Cause Analysis

1. **Understanding the Code Context:**
   - The function `X509_to_X509_REQ` is converting an `X509` certificate to an `X509_REQ` (certificate request).
   - `X509_REQ *ret` is initialized using `X509_REQ_new()`.
   - `EVP_PKEY *pktmp` is assigned the result of `X509_get_pubkey(x)`.
   - The function `X509_REQ_set_pubkey(ret, pktmp)` sets the public key for the `X509_REQ` object.

2. **Identifying the Vulnerability:**
   - The function `X509_get_pubkey(x)` returns a pointer to an `EVP_PKEY` structure.
   - If `X509_get_pubkey(x)` fails, it returns `NULL`.
   - The subsequent call to `X509_REQ_set_pubkey(ret, pktmp)` does not check if `pktmp` is `NULL`.
   - If `pktmp` is `NULL`, passing it to `X509_REQ_set_pubkey` can lead to a NULL pointer dereference, causing undefined behavior or a crash.

### Step 2: Fixing Strategy

1. **Adding a NULL Check:**
   - Before using `pktmp`, we need to check if it is `NULL`.
   - If `pktmp` is `NULL`, handle the error appropriately (e.g., by returning an error code or performing cleanup).

2. **Implementing the Patch:**
   - Insert a check after `pktmp = X509_get_pubkey(x);`.
   - If `pktmp` is `NULL`, handle the error (e.g., log an error message, clean up resources, and return).

### Conclusion

The patch ensures that the function does not proceed with a `NULL` `pktmp`, thus preventing a NULL pointer dereference. Here is the patched code with the added NULL check:

```c
<     pktmp = X509_get_pubkey(x);
<     i = X509_REQ_set_pubkey(ret, pktmp);
---
>     pktmp = X509_get_pubkey(x);
>     if (pktmp == NULL)
>     {
>         // Handle the error appropriately, e.g., log an error, clean up, and return
>         // For example:
>         X509_REQ_free(ret);
>         return NULL; // or an appropriate error code
>     }
>     i = X509_REQ_set_pubkey(ret, pktmp);
```

### Detailed Reasoning Steps:

1. **Initialization and Resource Allocation:**
   - `ret = X509_REQ_new();` allocates a new `X509_REQ` object.
   - `pktmp = X509_get_pubkey(x);` attempts to get the public key from the `X509` certificate.

2. **Checking for NULL:**
   - `if (pktmp == NULL)` checks if the public key extraction failed.
   - If `pktmp` is `NULL`, handle the error by freeing the allocated `X509_REQ` object (`X509_REQ_free(ret);`) and returning `NULL` or an appropriate error code.

3. **Proceeding Safely:**
   - Only if `pktmp` is not `NULL`, proceed with `i = X509_REQ_set_pubkey(ret, pktmp);`.

By following these steps, we ensure that the function handles the potential NULL pointer dereference safely, thus mitigating the CWE-476 vulnerability.