Konoha Hospital.
A small, one-eyed White Zetsu stood on the windowsill. Aside from the distinctive Mangekyō Sharingan spinning in its socket, it had only a mouth painted black and a tiny tail that wagged restlessly.
The woman lying unconscious on the bed had cherry-red hair—instantly recognizable. She was the target the little one had been searching for.
Just as it activated its Mangekyō ability, a hand suddenly seized it from behind. The little creature stiffened in fear and slowly turned its head.
It was another figure in a cloak—similar pale skin, similar oddly constructed body… but not its "Father Recognisable other enemy—one who had come specifically to take its eye.
The little one tried to activate its Mangekyō to escape, but the cloaked man slammed it against the windowsill with one hand. With the other hand, he dragged a blade across its face, carving deep and forcefully enough to gouge out the Mangekyō Sharingan.
"Y–You…"
The little one tried to speak, but the cloaked figure had no intention of letting it finish. He stuffed a handful of explosive tags into its mouth, flung the tiny body high into the air, and—
Boom!!
The explosion echoed across the entire hospital wing.
Medical-nin rushed toward the source of the sound. The cloaked man calmly removed one of his own eyes, pressed the freshly stolen Mangekyō Sharingan into the empty socket, and reconnected the optic nerve in one fluid, practised motion.
By the time Shizune burst into the ward, the cloaked figure had already activated a space-time ability and vanished.
Shizune reached the window. The night air was full of drifting smoke, and the blown-apart remains of the little creature were falling like pieces of shredded paper.
She whispered, horrified, "Who dares attack Konoha Hospital…?"
...
Meanwhile, at the pass, atop a protruding stone pillar—
Uchiha Shin was preparing to attack Sarada. When he threw off his black cloak, the uniform underneath made everyone freeze for a moment.
The long-lost red-cloud-on-black—Akatsuki robes.
"Akatsuki has revived!!" Boruto exclaimed.
"Yes," Shin replied.
Below him stood multiple White Zetsu with the Uchiha crest stitched onto their clothing, each one equipped with the same Sharingan. They stood in lines, waiting for their "father" to speak.
But the little one sent earlier never returned with Sakura. Instead, another man appeared from a vortex of space-time.
He said coldly, "You all go create some trouble for me."
Shin froze. "Who are you? Wait—your eyes?!"
The Mangekyō suddenly activated. A violent space-time vortex swept away the letter Shin had been holding—along with all the White Zetsu waiting below. In the next instant, the entire group was transported… directly to Boruto's location.
Naruto continued comforting the devastated Sarada, though she remained preoccupied with her doubts about her parents. Since her father refused to answer her, she could only try asking the woman in the photo herself.
But before she could act—
Shin and his forces were dumped out of a space-time distortion above them like falling debris, forced into battle before they even understood their situation.
Shin surveyed the scene. All of his subordinates were teleported here with him. With no opportunity to retreat, he could only brace himself and confront Naruto and the others.
"It's done, Shin," the leader said.
"Yes, Father!" the White Zetsu shouted in unison.
Before their feet even touched the ground, the entire group unleashed a storm of kunai, shuriken, and chain-blades. Shin himself released a fan-shaped volley of double-edged weapons.
Naruto had barely finished consoling Sarada when he heard the sharp whistle of metal cutting the air. Instantly, he expanded Kurama's chakra cloak, forming a wall of golden chakra that blocked every projectile.
As they landed, Naruto blinked in surprise at the sight of so many Sharingan. But his attention quickly locked onto Uchiha Shin in the Akatsuki cloak.
Shin glared back. He had intended to ambush Naruto, but being forcibly teleported here ruined that plan—and more importantly, robbed him of an immediate escape route.
As a leader, his subordinates were expendable. But he could not afford to die.
Sasuke stepped out of the tower a moment later, creating a tense standoff. Boruto and Sarada stood behind Naruto and Sasuke, watching.
Naruto immediately activated Kurama Mode. The chakra formed an enormous fox head, shielding the three behind him. At the same time, Sasuke darted forward to strike.
Shin launched himself from above, meeting Sasuke mid-air. Their weapons clashed—Kusanagi against a kunai—before Shin flicked his sleeve, releasing another explosion of blades.
Sasuke's Sharingan caught them instantly, parrying all with near-superhuman speed.
Metal was scattered in every direction.
When the two clashed again, Shin triggered his Mangekyō ability. The blades he had thrown earlier halted mid-air and shot toward Sasuke from behind like guided missiles.
Shin's lips curled into a smile—
—But Sasuke's left eye flashed violet.
A sound like distorted wind tore the air, and in the next instant, Sasuke and Shin had switched positions.
The homing blades struck Shin instead.
Sasuke spun around, Kusanagi already raised. Using gravity, he drove the sword downward, aiming straight for Shin's heart.
"Father!!" the White Zetsu cried.
A rain of shuriken flew at Sasuke, trying to force him back—
But Sasuke summoned a skeletal purple Susanoo. The shuriken clattered uselessly off the enormous spectral ribs.
A single slash.
Shin's arm hit the ground with a wet thud.
His scream tore through the battlefield.
Bleeding heavily, Shin retreated toward his subordinates. One White Zetsu stepped forward anxiously.
"Father, are you—"
Shin seized the White Zetsu's arm—
—and tore it off.
He pressed the severed limb against the bloody stump on his own shoulder, forcing his body to integrate it. The White Zetsu gritted its teeth silently and waited for the pain to pass.
Sarada watched the scene, her eyes wide, stomach churning. She had never seen bloodshed up close, much less self-mutilation.
Boruto, on the other hand, stayed calm. He remembered that Shin's ability was "object manipulation"—his original ambush strategy from the canon never happened, so he had been forced to reveal his power too early.
Now the injured Shin retreated while the clone army charged forward.
Dozens of Mangekyō White Zetsu swarmed Naruto and Sasuke.
Sasuke, with only one arm and no guardian Susanoo armour, could not easily fend off so many at once.
At that moment, Boruto stepped forward from Kurama's protective shield.
He clasped his hands together.
Shadow Clone Technique!
Countless Borutos appeared, evening the battlefield in an instant.
"Boruto!?" Naruto muttered, shocked.
Each clone engaged a Mangekyō White Zetsu head-on. Even though the Zetsu wielded bizarre, custom weapons, the clones were holding their ground without falling behind.
The White Zetsu were stunned. In their minds, the power of the Mangekyō Sharingan combined with their "proud Uchiha lineage" should have overwhelmed everything.
Yet Boruto's clones were matching them blow for blow.
While all attention shifted to Boruto—
—Uchiha Shin quietly turned and fled.
He had never once intended to fight to the death.
Naruto sensed him instantly. Leaving a shadow clone to guard Sarada, the real Naruto sped after Shin in a streak of golden light.
Shin, without the little one's Mangekyō, had no access to space-time escape techniques. And this wasn't his laboratory—he had no extra weapons to manipulate. His mobility and attack range were crippled.
He bolted through the forest, cloak whipping in the wind.
But even at full speed, he was no match for Naruto.
In seconds, Kurama's cloak was right behind him.
Cornered, Shin spun around, dragging off his Akatsuki robe. Beneath it, his entire body was studded with dozens of Sharingan—like grotesque decorations embedded in his skin.
Boruto, who had just finished off his part of the battlefield, looked over and said loudly:
"You even researched Akatsuki so thoroughly—don't you know Akatsuki members are guaranteed to die the moment they take off their cloaks?"
After defeating the White Zetsu, Sasuke and Sarada retreated to Naruto's clone. Sarada trembled slightly, still shaken by the battle.
Sasuke glanced at his daughter… then at Boruto—who was drenched in sweat, splattered with debris, and fighting brutally without hesitation.
Boruto's inner thoughts: Put pressure on her.
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