Chapter 314:
The pincer attack by the zombies quickly shattered the Mist Village's front-line defenses. Shuyu, Sarada, and Modern Boruto formed a triangle, standing back-to-back as they faced the encircling zombie horde.
Golden chakra in the shape of a fox's head enveloped the group.
"Boruto, can you hold out until dawn?"
Shuyu stood beside Modern Boruto and asked.
Modern Boruto merely shook his head silently. A heavy tension settled between the three survivors.
"Raging Torrent Collapse!"
A black figure descended from the sky, thrusting a trident into the ground. Marks of water appeared beneath the feet of all surrounding zombies, and water tornadoes burst forth from the marks, launching the zombies into the air.
"That form... looks kind of like an Armored Warrior..."
Sarada murmured as she looked at the figure clad in Black Rhino Armor.
"Boruto, are you all okay?"
Removing the Black Rhino Armor and revealing his true appearance, Kagura spoke.
"Kagura?!" Modern Boruto's face lit up with joy at seeing someone he knew still alive. "Kagura, what happened back there? Why are zombies coming out of the village?"
"It was Shizōma's doing. He seems to have gained the power of a Mutant Beast. Unfortunately, just as I was about to defeat him, he was taken away by a black mist," Kagura explained.
"I see..."
Modern Boruto fell into thought.
"Boruto, we have to inform the Hokage about what happened in the Land of Water," Shuyu said from behind.
"I'm staying in the Land of Water," Kagura suddenly said. "There may still be survivors here—I have to save them. Also, Shizōma plans to become the new Daimyō of the Land of Water. He wants to use the zombies here to unify the ninja world. Please pass that message on to the Hokage as well."
"Hmm..."
Modern Boruto hesitated for a moment before saying, "Shuyu, Sarada, I'll leave it to you to return to Konoha and report everything that's happened here to my dad."
"Boruto, you..."
Sarada looked at him, as if she had more to say but couldn't get it out.
"I'm going to help Kagura rescue the survivors of the Land of Water. Besides, I still have to save Mitsuki."
"Where is Mitsuki now?"
Shuyu asked.
"His most recent transfer was from the Mist Village to the capital of the Land of Water," Kagura answered.
"But..."
Sarada clearly wanted to say more, but Boruto smiled and waved his hand.
"Don't worry, Sarada. With Kurama protecting me, I won't get bitten by zombies. Besides, now that Kagura has become an Armored Warrior, even if we run into a Mutant Beast, we have the power to fight back."
Looking at Modern Boruto, Shuyu seemed to see in him the same determined figure as Naruto—the one who had always chased after his little brother.
"Alright."
"Shuyu?!"
Sarada was visibly surprised, puzzled as to why Shuyu would agree to let Boruto stay.
"Sarada, let's head back."
Land of Fire – Konoha Village
Sarada, keeping only one Rinnegan eye open while resting the other, took a moment to steady her breathing.
"There's just enough eye power left to teleport the two of us back to Konoha."
"Sarada, go home and get some rest. I'll inform the Hokage."
"...Sigh."
As Sarada opened her mouth to respond, Shuyu vanished instantly, leaving her standing alone on the street, still wanting to say something.
Hokage Office
After knocking, Shuyu stepped into the room.
"Shuyu, when did you get back? Did you find Boruto?"
Naruto looked up from his paperwork and asked.
"Hokage-sama, a biohazard outbreak has occurred in the Land of Water."
"What?"
Naruto was momentarily stunned.
Once the Konoha Anbu had gathered Sasuke, Shikamaru, the future Boruto—who was highly knowledgeable about zombies—and Tsunade, who was researching a cure for the bioweapon, Naruto relayed everything Shuyu had reported.
"I didn't expect a biohazard to break out in the Land of Water..."
Shikamaru rubbed his chin and turned to Future Boruto. "Boruto, did something like this happen in your timeline too?"
Future Boruto shook his head. "I'm not sure. Actually, the future has already changed. Many of my memories have become blurry. But one thing I know for certain: the full-scale zombie outbreak across the ninja world is still destined to happen."
"At least we've discovered another Armored Warrior," Sasuke added.
"His name's Kagura, right? Grandson of the Fourth Mizukage of the Mist Village," Shikamaru said.
"Fourth Mizukage?" Tsunade furrowed her brows, then suddenly recalled, "Oh, that shorty. I always wondered why Mist Village let a kid be their Mizukage."
"...Granny Tsunade, we can talk about that later."
"Boruto stayed behind in the Land of Water to find Mitsuki. Meanwhile, that bastard Shizōma plans to become the new Daimyō and use the zombies to conquer the ninja world..."
Shikamaru paused in thought and looked at Naruto. "Naruto, we need to send someone to the Land of Water. Not only to protect Boruto but to sabotage Shizōma's plan to export the zombies!"
"Right."
Naruto nodded and turned to Future Boruto.
"I'll handle it. Since the zombies in the Land of Water fear water, fire, and sunlight, that means they're the lowest tier—only capable of spreading infection."
"Are you sure you're up for this, Boruto? Maybe I should send Sasuke with you..."
"No need, Dad. Sasuke-sensei probably has other important missions. Besides, in my future, I had to deal with zombies across the entire ninja world."
"Alright. I'll leave this mission to you, Boruto."
Land of Rain – Amegakure
The rain poured. The wind howled.
"According to intel, there's supposed to be an old lab of Orochimaru's here."
Sai walked along the road, speaking to Sasuke beside him.
"Yeah."
"That Boruto from the future—he's already departed for the Land of Water?"
"Yeah."
"Can't believe it... a biohazard outbreak in the Land of Water. No wonder Naruto's so concerned about Orochimaru's lab here in Amegakure—he's probably worried there's some kind of bioweapon inside."
"Yeah."
"...Looks like Amegakure's development hasn't made any progress at all."
"Yeah."
Sai fell silent, starting to feel a little dejected.
They followed the passage downward, deeper underground.
"According to the map, Orochimaru's lab should be just ahead."
"Yeah."
A metal door appeared before them. Just as Sai reached out to pull it open, a burst of brilliant light exploded from the door.
"Explosive tags!"
Sai shouted just as the sound of the blast roared out.