Chapter 123:
"Flame Dragon Armor, Combine!"
Tentō raised the Flame Shadow Stone high above his head and shouted loudly.
A beam of light shot down from the sun, passing through the Flame Shadow Stone held aloft and bathing Tentō in its glow.
His field of vision instantly expanded, and his short stature shot up as he transformed into the Flame Dragon Hero. His perspective opened up significantly, and he could now hear faint sounds that would normally be inaudible.
As a transformed Armored Warrior, Tentō could clearly feel his body becoming more agile.
Excitedly, Tentō looked down at himself. A heavy red chestplate that radiated a sense of security covered his torso, and his vital joints were all protected by red armor. The rest of his body was wrapped in a black bodysuit that clung tightly to his skin.
Despite appearing hefty, the suit felt light as silk on Tentō. It didn't burden him at all, nor did it restrict his movements in the slightest.
"This is the Light and Shadow Armor specially designed to combat Ability Beasts—Flame Dragon Hero! I'll leave the Evil Ginseng Beast to you!" said the Jar Merchant.
"Mm."
Flame Dragon Hero flexed his wrists, then strode toward the Evil Ginseng Beast, gradually accelerating until he broke into a run. With fists slicing through the air with a shrill whistle, he landed a heavy punch on the creature's chest.
A punch like this would have been impossible for the old Tentō, but with the Light and Shadow Armor, such a powerful blow came with ease.
Where he once needed to use a jutsu just to make the Evil Ginseng Beast stagger back a step, now a single punch from Flame Dragon Hero achieved the same result.
The Evil Ginseng Beast, knocked backward, retaliated by spraying a highly corrosive venom at Tentō. Sparks flew as it struck his armor.
But while this venom could corrode most materials, it was still incapable of damaging the Light and Shadow Armor. Tentō, as the summoner, remained largely unaffected.
While everyone's attention was focused on the Ability Beast, on the other side of the battlefield, Shojoji kept retreating. As he neared the warehouse doors, he suddenly turned and fled.
"Don't run!"
"Let him go," Shuyu said, grabbing Boruto. "Don't underestimate the other Konoha ninja. He won't get far."
There was another reason—Shuyu still didn't fully trust the Jar Merchant's identity as a member of Hydra.
Although only the higher-ups in Konoha knew that the Hydra organization and S.H.I.E.L.D. were enemies, well… having a brother so close to the modern Hokage made things tricky.
Elsewhere, even though the Light and Shadow Armor held a clear advantage against Ability Beasts, Tentō's lack of combat experience began to show. Once his rhythm was broken, he quickly fell behind. Several clumsy, swinging punches were easily dodged by the Evil Ginseng Beast, which finally landed a kick that sent Tentō rolling across the ground.
"Tentō!" Boruto stepped forward, concerned, ready to assist—only for the Jar Merchant to hold him back. "What are you doing?"
"Boruto, facing an Ability Beast is something every Armor Summoner must go through. Besides, regular ninjutsu can barely hurt those creatures. And look—Tentō is already back on his feet."
Boruto looked over at Tentō, who had been knocked down.
Getting up from the ground, Tentō twisted the switch on the side of his belt. A projected hologram appeared from the front of his belt, forming the shape of a weapon.
"Blazing Bow!"
Armed with the Blazing Bow, Tentō fired repeatedly at the Ability Beast while adjusting his position. However, his aim left much to be desired.
Out of ten shots, maybe three would hit.
After a round of continuous firing, the Blazing Bow vanished from Tentō's hands.
It hadn't been dismissed—its energy had simply run out.
The Blazing Bow wasn't particularly powerful to begin with. It was mainly a support weapon—its function, in game terms, was to interrupt enemy posture and set up for follow-up attacks.
Because of its sudden disappearance, the Evil Ginseng Beast seized the moment to counterattack. But Tentō, now much more agile, dodged all of the incoming venom sprays with ease.
"I don't fall for the same trick twice," Tentō said coolly as he dodged. Just as he prepared for a second wave of attacks, the Evil Ginseng Beast, glowing with a sickly green light, suddenly dissolved into a cloud of black mist and escaped.
"What! It ran away too?!"
Tentō ran to the spot where the Evil Ginseng Beast had stood, incredulous.
"Running away when you're losing—pretty standard move, kid," the Jar Merchant said, walking up beside the transformed Flame Dragon Hero.
Just then, the perpetually late Konoha ninja finally arrived as reinforcements. Sai, leading the group, looked around at everyone and said, "Glad you're all okay. We were delayed because we ran into the fleeing Shojoji halfway here."
Then Sai turned to Flame Dragon Hero. "And you are?"
"The Armored Warrior, Flame Dragon Hero—transformed using the Flame Shadow Stone," the Jar Merchant explained.
"Didn't you say only those with the bloodline of a daimyo from the great nations could use the Shadow Stones...?" Sai trailed off, realizing, "Wait—are you Tentō?!"
Because of the drastic height change, Sai hadn't made the connection right away.
"Mm." Tentō nodded and released his armor transformation. His adult-like stature shrank back to that of a child.
"Did you destroy the Ability Beast?"
Tentō shook his head. "It got away."
"I see... Well, let's report everything to the Hokage first. We'll debrief at the Hokage's office," Sai said, instructing the other Konoha ninja to secure the scene and begin the investigation.
Hokage's Office.
"This is the Shadow Stone?" Naruto asked, examining the stone placed on his desk. He then looked to the Jar Merchant. "You're saying only the Light and Shadow Armor can fight the Ability Beasts?"
"Compared to most ninjutsu, the Light and Shadow Armor can deal significantly greater damage to Ability Beasts. So..." The Jar Merchant looked at Tentō. "We must strengthen Tentō's abilities as the Flame Dragon Hero."
In an instant, Tentō became the center of attention in the Hokage's office.
"But... he's just a child..." Naruto looked at Tentō, clearly conflicted.
After all, Tentō was the daimyo's only son. And historically, no daimyo had ever personally gone into battle.
"When you hold a position, you must accept the responsibilities that come with it. As Hokage, your duty is to protect the village and its people. As daimyo, it's his responsibility to fight the Ability Beasts. It's just that over time, the daimyos have forgotten that duty and focused only on luxury."
"Let me do it!" Tentō suddenly declared, eyes firm. "I will shoulder the responsibility of defeating the Ability Beasts and saving the ninja world!"