Chapter 240:
Outside the Hidden Leaf Village.
"The coordination between those two is incredible…"
Hanabi murmured to herself as she watched the battlefield on the other side.
With their well-practiced teamwork, Naruto and Sasuke firmly controlled the rhythm of the battle.
"No." At that moment, Future Boruto, supported by Kakashi, stepped up beside Hanabi. His expression grew grave as he looked toward Naruto and Sasuke's battlefield. "It may look like Uncle Sasuke and Dad have the upper hand, but they're only maintaining that through constant exertion of stamina and chakra… And that Imperial Armor seems strange…"
"Imperial Armor! What are you doing?!"
Evilmoku, noticing the armor was deliberately going on the defensive, shouted loudly.
"Naruto!"
"Right, Sasuke!"
Though they didn't speak aloud, their deep bond allowed them to understand each other's intentions with just a glance.
Naruto charged forward, shielding Sasuke who followed closely behind. Just as they were about to reach the Imperial Armor, Sasuke—who had been hiding behind Naruto—suddenly leapt into the air, his Kusanagi sword crackling with lightning.
"Chidori Spear!"
A flash of lightning shot from the sword's tip and struck the Imperial Armor in the chest, producing sparks, but it failed to deal any real damage.
"Rasengan!"
Naruto formed a Rasengan in his right hand.
"Amenotejikara!"
Just as Naruto was about to strike the Imperial Armor, Sasuke and Naruto swapped places midair.
"Giant Rasengan!"
The small Rasengan in Naruto's hand instantly expanded and slammed into the Imperial Armor.
"Planetary Devastation!"
Using Naruto's Giant Rasengan for suppression, Sasuke ensured that his Planetary Devastation would land accurately.
"Imperial Armor!" Evilmoku's face twisted with frustration. "Damn it! We'll have to retreat!"
Black Emperor's control over the Imperial Armor was only temporary; continuous brainwashing was required for sustained dominance. If the armor were sealed here, once the control period ended, it would only strengthen the Leaf Village—and Evilmoku couldn't afford to be held responsible for losing the Imperial Armor. Besides, this operation was spearheaded by S.H.I.E.L.D.—he was only participating as an ally.
A black mist suddenly enveloped the Imperial Armor.
"What?!"
Naruto's face showed shock.
Now that the target was gone, Sasuke naturally saw no point in fully executing Planetary Devastation. He stopped its release early, saving a bit of chakra.
Elsewhere, the four ancient mutated beasts each found an opportunity to withdraw.
Other than Captain Hydra, who managed to fight one of them to a stalemate, the others—Flame Dragon Armor, Wind Eagle Armor, and the combined efforts of Boruto and Sarada—were completely outmatched.
Although they had the advantage, Evilmoku didn't forget that Future Boruto was still watching them closely from the sidelines.
"You got lucky this time… but I'm sure S.H.I.E.L.D. will take care of you."
As the black mist enveloped the four ancient mutated beasts, and finally covered Evilmoku himself, he turned to the group and said.
Only after Future Boruto confirmed with his Pure Eye that all enemies had retreated did everyone breathe a sigh of relief.
"Naruto, are you okay? Actually… the Shikamaru in the village is a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent."
Sasuke looked over at Naruto and said.
"Yeah, I know." Though they had narrowly claimed victory, Naruto's expression remained serious. He nodded, then turned to Shikamaru. "In fact, S.H.I.E.L.D. has already begun operations inside the village…"
As Naruto explained the situation within the village, the others gradually realized the true scale of the crisis Konoha had faced. If not handled properly, it wasn't just about the village being destroyed—it could mean handing it over to enemy forces entirely.
"Then what about Mom and Himawari?!"
Modern Boruto turned to Naruto, but got only silence in return.
"At that time, I couldn't be sure if Hinata and Himawari were part of S.H.I.E.L.D. or not."
After a long pause, Naruto replied quietly.
"You bastard!"
"Hey, calm down, Boruto."
Sarada quickly held back the enraged Modern Boruto, who looked ready to attack Naruto.
"She's right. Calm down, Boruto. Besides, what Dad did was the right call."
Future Boruto spoke to his younger self. Thanks to the healing power of the Nine-Tails' chakra within him, his body was slowly recovering.
Even with the incredible regenerative powers of the Nine-Tails, it had taken this long just to recover a little—showing just how formidable the Imperial Armor truly was.
"Next, we need to find a way to take Konoha back."
Naruto looked toward Shikamaru and clenched his fist.
"To be honest, relying on just the few of us to take back the village from S.H.I.E.L.D. is… unrealistic." Shikamaru rubbed his chin and his distinct stubbled goatee. "The bigger issue is that to this day, we still lack solid intel on S.H.I.E.L.D."
"Captain Hydra, do you know anything about S.H.I.E.L.D.?"
Sasuke turned to the Captain Hydra standing beside Kakashi. Up until now, all information on S.H.I.E.L.D. had come from the Jar Merchant. But ever since his death, Konoha had lost its only intelligence source.
"I don't." Obito shook his head. "Truthfully, I'm just a warrior developed by Hydra specifically to fight S.H.I.E.L.D. I don't have access to classified information."
"I see."
Though Sasuke couldn't deny his disappointment, he managed to maintain a calm expression.
"Actually, for this operation, I set up a temporary base outside the village. The Fifth Mizukage Mei Terumi, Sixth Mizukage Chōjūrō, as well as Kōsuke Hōji and Juuzou Suzuya from the CCG are all there…" As Naruto spoke, he looked toward Kakashi. "Oh, and Kakashi-sensei, Might Guy is there too."
"What?! Are you serious, Naruto?!"
Kakashi exclaimed, visibly emotional.
In truth, Kakashi had long given up hope that Might Guy was still alive. With one leg lost, Guy's strength had drastically decreased, and on top of that, he couldn't use ninjutsu. Considering S.H.I.E.L.D. was leading this assault, it was only natural for Kakashi to assume Guy hadn't survived.
"Yeah." Naruto nodded. "Apparently, he ran into Kōsuke Hōji and Juuzou Suzuya on the road. As a condition for joining the CCG, Might Guy was able to stand again."
"What?!"
In the midst of all this despair, that was one of the few pieces of good news. Although Kakashi narrowed his eyes with a look of happiness, he quickly realized something.
"Wait… Guy joined the CCG?"