Chapter 31.

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No Flames.

Day Time.

Forest.

Katasuke, Konohamaru, Boruto, Mitsuki, Sarada, and Chamaru, in their usual outfits, continued to watch Koji, in his usual outfit, who was still standing on his Boiler Toad's head and looking down at them. The 6 of them watched as the Boiler Toad disappeared as Koji now stood on the graveled ground.

"Indeed, it was such a magnificent battle... So you defeated Ao, eh... I'm impressed." Koji said.

"You are Koji Kashin, right? Why don't you take this opportunity to introduce yourself...?" Konohamaru asked. "What type of organization is 'Kara'? And what purpose are you mobilizing for?"

Koji placed his hands together. "Well, that's too bad... That there's no reason for me to answer that question. You understand, right...?" he asked.

Katasuke, Konohamaru, Boruto, Mitsuki, Sarada, and Chamaru suddenly looked around as 4 pillars from the ground around them.

Koji used the Mirrored Ram → Snake hand signs. "Fūinjutsu! Sealing Jutsu: Frog Gulp!" he said.

Katasuke, Konohamaru, Boruto, Mitsuki, Sarada, and Chamaru felt that they couldn't move anymore.

"Urgh!" Konohamaru said.

"Guh" Sarada said. "I can't move...!" she thought.

Koji pulled his hands apart as he lowered his left arm and raised his right arm as he summoned fire from his right hand. "Such bad luck... Honestly, I just wanted to say to you all that I wished to see more of your great endeavors. But I also have my own agenda. So it's farewell for now. That's all I can say." he said.

Konohamaru slowly moved his left hand as he unzipped his flak jacket to reveal a seal on his chest, placing his left hand on it. "Fūinjutsu: Kai!" he said.

Katasuke, Boruto, Mitsuki, Sarada, and Chamaru looked at Konohamaru.

Konohamaru walked forward and stopped, lowering his left arm as he grabbed his flak jacket with his right hand. "As you can see, I'm wary by nature... I am always prepared with some type of sealing technique, 'kore...!" he said.

"... Hmph. I'd say that's expected of someone like you." Koji said.

"... Sensei...!" Boruto said.

Konohamaru looked at Boruto. "Don't worry. Because even if I die, I'll protect you all, 'kore." he said then looked at Koji again, lowering his right arm.

"Alright then... show me a little bit... of a Konohagakure Jōnin's true strength..." Koji said.

Konohamaru looked at Koji for a moment before he ran towards him then tried to punch him but Koji blocked the attack with his right arm and jumped into the air. Konohamaru made a Raengan with his right hand before he jumped after Koji, who smirked.

"Rasengan!" Konohamaru said.

Koji suddenly made a Rasengan with his right hand.

Katasuke, Konohamaru, Boruto, Mitsuki, Sarada, and Chamaru suddenly became surprised.

"That's...!" Sarada said.

"... Him too...?!" Boruto asked.

Konohamaru's Rasengan and Koji's Rasengan clashed.

"Gu... whoa!" Konohamaru said.

Koji and Konohamaru landed on the ground a few feet away from each other as their Rasengans disappeared.

"... Just now... that wasn't any sort of scientific ninja weaponry! It was a real Rasengan...! Just who in the world... is this guy?!" Konohamaru thought.

"Besides my dad and Sensei, there's even someone else who can use Rasengan...?!" Boruto thought.

"... You bastard...! Who are you...?!" Konohamaru asked.

"Konohamaru Sarutobi... You're quite formidable. But you've got a long ways to go." Koji said, smiling for a moment then stopped.

Konohamaru clenched his teeth. "... What...?!" he asked.

"Ribbit..." an unknown sound said.

Konohamaru heard the sound before he looked down at his upper right leg to see a small frog before it burst into flames on him as he was on fire. "Urghhhhhh!" he said.

Katasuke, Boruto, Mitsuki, Sarada, and Chamaru watched in horror.

"Sensei!" Boruto said.

"Trance of True Flames... Regardless of strong winds or heavy rain... The flames of purgatory will never be extinguished." Koji said.

Konohamaru yelled in pain.

"Sensei...!" Sarada said.

"Damn it... Cut it out...! Stop it...! Stop...!" Boruto said then raised his right hand as he now had more marks on his right palm.

Koji looked at Boruto, surprised. "'Karma'...?!" he said.

Sarada looked at Boruto. "... Boruto...?!" she thought.

Boruto's right palm started to absorb the jutsu.

"The paralysis is fading...!" Sarada thought.

"Boruto... So he 'absorbed' the fuinjutsu...?!" Mitsuki thought, looking at Boruto.

Boruto grabbed his right arm with his left hand. "Wooooooah!" he said.

The flames on Konohamaru went to Boruto, who absorbed it with his right palm as he released his right arm.

Konohamaru closed his eyes as he fell to the ground on his stomach.

Mitsuki and Sarada ran to Konohamaru.

"Sensei!" Sarada said.

Boruto panted as his right palm stopped absorbing, he held his right arm again with his left hand.

Koji noticed the marks on the right side of Boruto's face. "... How astonishing... By no means did I expect to witness the 'Karma' here... I had always thought that it was Naruto Uzumaki who defeated Momoshiki." he said.

"You're complaining too much, you jerk... You think so highly of yourself!" Boruto said, separating his arms.

Mitsuki and Sarada were crouching down near Konohamaru, who opened his eyes as he was sitting up a little bit, as they watched the scene.

"What is that...?" Sarada asked.

"Tha- that's... Boruto...?!" Konohamaru asked.

"The pattern on his hand is progressing...! Just what is this 'power'...?!" Mitsuki asked.

Katasuke looked at Boruto, surprised. "... Young Master...!" he said.

"... Boruto...!" Sarada said.

Boruto suddenly crouched down before he pulled up his right sleeve with his left hand to see the markings before he became surprised. "Gu...!" he said. "What is... this thing...?! What the heck is happening to me...?!" he thought then he closed his eyes and fell down on the ground.

Sarada stood up before she ran over to Boruto. "Boruto!" she said then crouched down next to him.

Koji walked over to Boruto and Sarada.

Sarada looked up at Koji, who stopped in front of them, before she took out a kunai from her pouch with her right hand. "Kuu...!" she said.

"... I see... Seems like it's the first time you're using this 'power'..." Koji said.

Mitsuki and Sarada watched as Koji turned around and walked away.

"Thank you for showing me such an interesting thing. I suppose that I'll be retreating for now. Since Ao is dead, you have my gratitude." Koji said.

"... Hey, wait up...! Just what was that 'power' from back then...?! What happened to Boruto?!" Sarada asked.

Koji continued to walk away.

Sarada became annoyed as she ran towards Koji. "I told you to wait up!" she said.

Mitsuki stood up and ran over to Sarada and grabbed her from behind with both arms to stop Sarada from going to Koji. "Sarada!" he said. "Compose yourself...! There are plenty of things that I want to ask him as well. But now, those things don't matter in comparison to the lives of both Boruto and Sensei, right?"

Koji stopped walking. "How wise. As expected of Orochimaru's child." he said then placed his hood on his head with his left hand then walked away again. "I'd say that have judgement.

Everyone except Boruto watched as Koji walked away.

Boruto's mark went back to normal.

...

40 minutes later.

The 6 of them walking away in the forest.

From left to right, Sarada and Boruto were walking away as Sarada placed Boruto's left hand over her neck as she grabbed his left arm with her left hand.

Chamaru was walking ahead as Katasuke, Konohamaru, and Mitsuki walked behind.

"Didn't you just collapse as if you were dead?! It's a miracle you're even able to stand up like this right now." Sarada asked.

"No... It's really not a big deal..." Boruto said.

"... For now, it certainly seems like nothing at all... But just what is that 'power'...?" Sarada thought.

Boruto looked at his right palm.

"But at any rate, let's return back to the village immediately. There's a vast amount of things to report on." Konohamaru said.

Katasuke smiled. "Ah, you're right. I'm so exhausted too." he said.

Mitsuki looked at the right side before he jumped on the right side.

"Oi! Mitsuki?!" Konohamaru asked.

Boruto removed his left arm from Sarada before he jumped after Mitsuki.

Mitsuki placed his left hand on a nearby tree as he noticed something up ahead.

Boruto landed next to Mitsuki on the right side. "What's wrong?" he asked then looked forward to see a broken puppet. "Oi... What's that...? Isn't that a puppet...?! Like the ones we fought at the blimp..."

Katasuke, Konohamaru, and Sarada suddenly appeared next to them on the right side.

"You're right. Why is it in a place like this...?!" Sarada asked.

"The crash site is still a far ways ahead... Seems like it's a different one, and not one that we fought, right?" Mitsuki asked.

"What do you mean?" Boruto asked.

"Was someone else fighting it here...?" Konohamaru asked.

"... Let's investigate." Mitsuki said then walked forward.

The 6 of them walked towards the puppet and stopped near it.

Mitsuki crouched down as he placed placed his right hand on the broken puppet. "It's frame is completely cold... It's seems as though a long time has passed since it was broken apart." he said.

"This puppet was completely destroyed... No matter what they tried, they were unyielding, but still...!" Sarada said.

"So that means that the person who did this... has an outrageous combat ability..." Konohamaru said.

Katasuke looked around. "Also in the same vein, there are so many aged puppets that have tumbled over here... To a location that's so far away from the blimp..." he said.

"It is possible... That someone in possession of the 'cargo' escaped all the way here...?" Konohamaru asked.

Everyone looked at Chamaru, who started to bark.

"Chamaru! What's wrong?!" Boruto asked.

Everyone ran to where Chamaru to see a boy that looked to be 13 years old and had fair skin, short, bushy black hair, the sides of which are shaven and blond in color, grey eyes, a black tattoo of the Roman numeral Ⅸ under his left eye, and in his usual outfit, a pair of piercings on his right eyebrow, light grey stud earrings, a white shirt, a light grey sleeveless vest jacket with stripe patterns on his collar, long black pants, a dark purple studded belt, and black sandals that reached his lower legs, was laying on the unconscious on his back.

Sarada suddenly the unknown boy's chakra to see that he was still alive. "This boy..." she thought.

"It's someone who's collapsed...! Did this guy defeat those puppets...?!" Boruto asked. "Judging from Chamaru's reaction, it seems that he's alive."

Chamaru continued to bark.

"Alright. So we don't know if he's an ally or foe... Whether it's regarding the blimp or 'Kara', we ought to discover some information. Potentially, it's a trap..." Konohamaru said.

Boruto looked at Konohamaru. "Well in any case! He even got injured and collapsed!" he said then jumped forward to the unknown boy.

"Aye...! Wait a second, Boruto!" Konohamaru said.

Boruto landed on the left side of the unknown boy as he crouched down next to him. "Oi, are you okay?!" he asked. "Hang in there..." then immediately noticed a red rhombus on the unknown boy's left palm. "... This guy... Has the same 'seal' as me...?!" he thought.

...

5 minutes later.

Katasuke, Chamaru, and Team Konohamaru (except Mitsuki who was standing up) were crouching down as they surrounded the unconscious unknown boy. Konohamaru was on the left side of him, Sarada was near his left leg, Boruto was on the right side of him, Mitsuki, was near his right leg, Katasuke was a few feet in front of him, and Chamaru was near his head.

"He must be very exhausted... to have fallen unconscious. All of his injuries are just abrasions." Konohamaru said.

"Not even any bone fractures." Sarada said.

"Moreover... Of course this is worried-some... 'kore." Konohamaru said.

"It's the same as Boruto's... Who is this person..." Sarada asked.

Katasuke looked around the area to see puppets. "It's probably because the puppets came chasing after this boy all the way here... And then he brought them all down on his own. Everything seems unbelievable." he said.

Boruto suddenly looked down at the mark on his right hand as it started to hurt. "Urgh!" he said.

"Boruto?!" Katasuke, Konohamaru, Mitsuki, and Sarada asked, worried.

"...Guh..." Boruto said then grabbed his right arm with his left hand.

"... Urgh..." the unknown boy said.

Boruto noticed what the unknown boy did. "... He also felt that pain...? Seems like it's the same as mine..." he thought.

"...Urgh..." the unknown boy said as he started think about what happened earlier.

...

Flashback.

Night Time.

A medium sized Light Brown House.

Inside.

There was some gravel on the wooden floor.

The unknown boy, who was younger, had on his old usual outfit, no piercings, a long sleeved hooded black shirt, and long black pants, was laying on his left side next to the wall as he was recently bruised.

"... Urgh..." the unknown boy said.

The unknown boy opened his right eye to see an obese man that looked to be in his 30s, had light brown skin, short spiky dark brown hair, black eyes, dark brown sideburns, in his usual outfit, a sleeveless beige shirt, long black pants, and black sandals, and a man that looked to be in his late 20s, skinny, had fair skin, long black hair tied in a ponyhawk style, a broad nose, large black pupils, a black diamond-shaped marking resembling Kāma on his chin, and in his usual outfit, lots of small silver hoop earrings on his ears including his ear lobes, a black Roman numeral "Ⅳ" tattooed below his left eye, long sleeved high collared black shirt, beige long capri pants, black sandals, and a black hooded cloak that covered his head, were sitting at a brown table across from each other as a white candle was between them.

The unknown obese man had a clear bottle of alcohol in his left hand as he was drinking from it before he stopped.

"Once you relinquish him, your son will never return, understood?" the skinny man asked.

The unknown obese looked at his son on the right side of him. "... Hmph... He's empty... Not even any redeeming qualities... except for becoming my punching bag." he said then looked back at the unknown skinny man. "To think you'd give me such a large sum of money for this brat... heehee. Are you god? or something?"

The unknown skinny man brought out a silver briefcase with his right hand and placed it on the table and released it.

"Ohoho." the obese man said then grabbed the briefcase with both hands and opened it. "Ehhh! This will be fantastic! Hahaha! It's just like a dream!" grabbing some of the money with his hands. "Gaaaahahaha!"

The unknown boy became sad that his father sold him away.

...

20 minutes later.

The unknown boy was sitting against one of the walls as he had his arms folded. He suddenly looked up to see the unknown skinny man approached him before he crouched down in front of him.

"Up until now, you've only had terribly bitter emotions... But that's the end of it all." the unknown skinny man said.

The unknown boy became surprised.

"I took over your custody. You've endured it so well up until now... Please make yourself at ease. Because from now on..." the unknown skinny man said then unhooded himself with both of his hands. "I am your father. Kawaki."

"There's nothing to be afraid of. Well then... Come here." the unknown skinny man said, reaching his right hand to Kawaki.

Flashback Ends.

...

Kawaki started to move. "... Urgh... Guh..." he said.

"He's waking up...!" Boruto said.

"... M... Me..." Kawaki said.

Konohamaru suddenly became surprised. "Everyone, get far away from him! Right now, hurry!" he said.

"... Eh...?" Boruto asked.

Katasuke, Chamaru, and Team Konohamaru stood up and quickly jumped away.

Kawaki woke up and stood up before he started screaming. "Don't touch me!" he said then he started to float as a surge of energy surrounded him.

"Uwoahhh!" Boruto said.

Kawaki was now on the ground as the surge of energy disappeared. The dust clouds and graveled remained.

Katasuke, Chamaru, and Team Konohamaru were now crouching down a few meters away from Kawaki.

"... At any rate. There's no mistaking it, this guy definitely took down those puppets 'kore..." Konohamaru said.

Katasuke, Chamaru, and Team Konohamaru stood up again and jumped closer to Kawaki before they stopped.

Kawaki looked at Katasuke, Chamaru, and Team Konohamaru. "... Who are you assholes...? Are you pursuers from 'Kara'...?" he asked.

"... Pursuers...? You're wrong, dattebasa! We are..." Boruto asked as he tried to step forward but stopped.

Konohamaru looked at Boruto and held up his left arm. "Boruto, wait!" he said then looked at Kawaki. "... Excuse him... I am Konohamaru Sarutobi. We are Konohagakure shinobi from the Land of Fire."

Kawaki stayed silent for a moment.

Koji, who was silently standing on one of the trees, had his arms folded as he watched the scene below. He looked to the left side to see an unknown woman, who looked to be in her 20s, had fair skin, long, curly blonde hair, unusual grey eyes that had vertical lines running along the irides, a black tattoo of the Roman numeral Ⅰ in the center of her forehead, and in her usual outfit, long sleeved dark purple shirt that had poet-like sleeves, a black skirt, long black and white striped tights, white long high-heeled sandals, and a black cloak, landed on the tree branch next to him.

The unknown woman placed her right hand on her right hip. "It's always that same expression whenever I see you, Koji. Seeming so annoyed... That's rude of you." she said.

Koji looked forward. "Nice to see you, Delta. Thought you weren't invited." he said.

"Just for your information, Jigen gave me permission. Because you were being slow, I came to see the state of affairs." Delta said.

Koji looked at Delta again. "Hmph... Too bad you don't seem to have much faith in me. Is an 'Outer' accompanying you?" he asked.

Delta looked forward. "Well, just in case, I invited Garo along. Let's be spectors and see what he can do, then." she said.

Koji looked forward. "... Well, well... That simple minded guy, eh..." he said.

"What do you Konoha shinobi want from me...?" Kawaki asked.

"We have no intention of doing any harm to you. We happened to arrive here while we were investigating a blimp that had crashed within our country's territory." Konohamaru said. "We would like to know the circumstances... So would you mind telling us about it?"

"What basis do I have for confiding that to you assholes...? I just want you to leave me alone, alright?" Kawaki asked.

"Sorry, but we can't do that. According to our own provisions, we must take guardianship over you. If you resist, we'll even have to do so with a bit of force." Konohamaru said.

"... I get it already. Seems like you want to die." Kawaki said then turned to leave.

Boruto held up his right hand. "W-wait up, dattebasa!" he said.

Kawaki stopped and looked up at Boruto.

"You know about this, right...?! You have it on your left hand too, right...?" Boruto asked.

Kawaki became surprised. "That's...!" he said.

"... Hold on...! What's the meaning of this...?!" Delta asked.

Koji stayed silent.

"'Karma'...! ... You... Why do you have that...?" Kawaki asked.

"... 'Karma'...?" Mitsuki questioned.

"... 'Karma'... Well, what about... this...? What the heck is this thing?!" Boruto asked.

"That child...! Why does he possess 'Karma'...?!" Delta asked.

"2 'Karma'... Well then, what's going to happen...?" Koji thought.

Kawaki became serious. "Quit screwing around...! As I thought, they are pursuers from 'Kara', eh...!" he said.

"No, you're wrong about that!" Boruto said.

"Please...! Calm down and listen to what we have to say!" Sarada said.

"I don't care about what you assholes are or whatever your circumstances may be... If you wanna come for me, just come already. I'll turn the tables right back against you." Kawaki said.

Sarada suddenly an unknown chakra coming towards them.

Suddenly an explosion happened in between Katasuke, Team Konohamaru, Chamaru, and Kawaki. They covered their faces with their hands for a moment then they looked in the direction of the unknown man that looked to be in his 30s, had fair skin, brown slicked hair, black eyes, and in his usual outfit, a grey shroud, long sleeved black shirt, long black pants, a grey mask across his head, with part of it resembling a gas mask, a brown belt belt with pouches on it, and grey mechanical limbs.

"What?!" Boruto asked.

The unknown man raised his right arm. "I'm sorry for intruding such a busy moment." he said. "Allow me to 'recover'you... The precious 'vessel'."

"Who is that...?!" Boruto asked.

"... It's been one after another... Just what the heck is going on...?!" Sarada asked.

"... You're an asshole, Garo...!" Kawaki said.

"There's shinobi from Konoha too... So they were already in contact with the 'vessel', eh... Seems like like old man Ao failed then, eh... What a disgrace to the 'Outers'..." Garou said.

"Tch... That idiot. He keeps blabbering non-stop..." Delta said.

"... 'Vessel'..." Sarada said.

"That seems like what Ao was talking about when he was searching the blimp for the 'cargo'." Konohamaru said.

"Assholes like you shouldn't keep treating me as an object, you pig...! This time, I won't ask forgiveness for blowing away your jaw..." Kawaki said.

"Don't try to look smart, you empty bastard... Be obedient and I'll take you home..." Garo said.

Sarada looked at Kawaki again. "... 'Vessel'... No way...!" she said.

"... Ahh... Regardless of how the situation goes, this is the aim of 'Kara'... The 'Vessel' seems to be this boy." Konohamaru said then looked at Kawaki.

Garo raised his left arm at them. "Of course I still have a grudge about my jaw. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about it... I won't kill you... However... It'll hurt as if you were dying!" he said then blasted something at them with his left arm.

The attack landed near them as they covered their faces with their arms. They uncovered their faces to see Kawaki heading towards Garo on his left side, becoming surprised.

"He's fast...!" Mitsuki thought.

Kawaki's right arm transformed before he attacked Garo with it but Garo blocked it with his left arm.

"... Just as I expected... You've been considerably weakened... Hehehe. This guy is going to be a simple task..." Garo said.

"Don't make me laugh. My handicap is perfect for fighting an asshole like you!" Kawaki said.

Boruto watched the battle with interest.

Kawaki continued to hit Garo with his transformed right arm, Garo still continued to block the attacks with his mechanical arms. Kawaki landed on the ground before his right arm transformed even more and extending it at Garo. Garo jumps up into the air to avoid Kawaki's attack. Kawaki looked up as he tore his morphed right arm to his regular self as he ripped more of it off. Garo he used his right arm to fire attacks at Kawaki, who dodges them by running.

As Kawaki continued to run as he continued to dodge Garo's attacks, he suddenly stopped and looked up at Garo before he transformed his right arm again and launched some of his right arm flesh at him.

Garo stopped attacking Kawaki as he was hit by Kawaki's attacks.

Katasuke, Team Konohamaru, and Chamaru became shocked as they continued to look up at the battle.

"... What is that...?! His body... How did he do that...?!" Boruto asked.

"This huge man is merely using what you'd call a generic Scientific Ninja Weapon... But what the heck is that boy's body...?!" Katasuke asked.

Garo landed on the ground as he was standing a few meters away from Kawaki.

Katasuke panted as his right arm became regular again.

"You're already out of breath? Bwahaha... Your power is steadily degenerating, isn't it?" Garo asked Kawaki.

Kawaki stopped panting as he ran over to Garo. "Damn it!" he said, transforming his right arm again.

When Kawaki made it to Garo's location, he started to attack Garo with his right arm again but Garo blocked it with his right arm and smashed Kawaki into the ground, making a crater.

Kawaki closed his eyes as he grunted in pain. "Gwahh!" he said.

Garo smirked. "Heh... gotcha...!" he said then lifted his right arm away from Kawaki.

Kawaki, who was now unconscious and his right arm became regular again, was laying on his back.

Katasuke, Team Konohamaru, and Chamaru became shocked again.

"Ah...!" Boruto said.

"You... You won't die even at this point..." Garo said before he picked up Kawaki with his left arm and raised him up in the air. "You've finally become docile... Had you obediently followed my orders the beginning, you would've gotten out of going through such a painful experience..."

"That guy... is going to take him away, dattebasa!" Boruto said then ran over to Garo and Kawaki.

"Boruto, wait up! The situation is getting overly complicated...! Right now, we shouldn't move recklessly." Konohamaru said.

Boruto stopped running as he and Sarada looked at Konohamaru.

"... Even if you say that...!" Boruto said.

"... Sensei...!" Sarada said.

"The scope of this mission obviously makes it S-rank! It's too dangerous. For now, the top priority is to protect your lives...!" Konohamaru said.

"... But...!" Sarada said.

"That Garou guy...! Seriously, even after he'd been told to handle him with care...! It's as I thought, we should have replaced everything, starting with his brain." Delta said.

"... Calm down. The critical point is what happens from now on." Kashin said, folding his arms again.

"... Uhhhh... It would be troublesome if you woke up enroute and got into a violent rage... Should I break your arms and legs?" Garo questioned.

Boruto and Sarada looked up into the air to see Garo lifting Kawaki into the air more.

Boruto suddenly grabbed his right arm with his left hand, looking down at it. "Urgh...!" he said.

Katasuke, Konohamaru, Mitsuki, and Sarada looked at Boruto, worried.

"Boruto...?!" Sarada asked.

"... Guh...!" Boruto said then he started to notice the Kāma activated and expands over his right arm and the right side of his face.

"Again...! Just like last time...!" Sarada thought.

"Urgh..." Boruto said, grunting in pain.

Garo looked at Boruto. "Hmm...? What's going on?" he asked.

Kawaki became conscious and opened his eyes before his Kāma activated and expands over his left arm and the left side of his face. He touched Garo's left arm with his left hand.

Garo looked at Kawaki as he became surprised.

"... Oi... Do you really have time to look away...?" Kawaki asked before released himself from Garo's grip and blew up Garō's left gauntlet with his left hand.

"... Oh..." Garo said, surprised.

Katasuke, Team Konohamaru, and Chamaru became surprised as they looked at what Kawaki did to Garo.

"Owwww!" Garo said.

Kawaki stood a few meters away from Garo.

"... You bastard...! W-where did you get that sort of power from...?!" Garo asked.

Kawaki started to walk towards Garo. "It wasn't me... It was this guy... That's why I hate this." he said.

Garo raised his right arm. "... Guh... Don't come any closer...!" he said.

Boruto became even more surprised before he looked down and pulled up his right sleeve with his left hand to see the markings before he became surprised again, releasing his right arm as he raised it. "What...?! Something is... It feels like something is seeping in...!" he thought.

Kawaki continued to walk towards Garo.

"Are you listening to me yet?!" Garo asked, backing away in fear a little bit before he fired at Kawaki with his right arm.

Kawaki stopped and raised his left arm before he absorb Garō's attack with his Kāma then lowered his left arm.

Garo became surprised.

"He absorbed it...! It's the same as when Boruto did it..." Mitsuki said.

When Kawaki made it to Garo, he transformed his right arm and pierced it through Garō's torso.

"... Ah... Guh..." Garo said.

Katasuke, Team Konohamaru, and Chamaru became surprised as they looked at what Kawaki pierced Garo's torso.

"He pierced him... th-through the body... in one strike...! ... What a guy...!" Konohamaru said.

Kawaki removed his right arm from the morphed portion again.

Garo fell on his knees. "... Guh...!" he said then became surprised when Kawaki placed his left hand over his face.

"I warned you... I won't be saying sorry for only your lower jaw this time around..." Kawaki said.

"W-wait... I'm begging you...! It was my bad... Stop it...!" Garo said.

"Your breath stinks, pig-bastard." Kawaki said then used his Kāma to blow Garō up.

An explosion happened around the area as craters formed around them.

Katasuke, Team Konohamaru, and Chamaru covered themselves as wind and dust clouds came their way.

"Uwoahh!" Katasuke said.

Garo was dead as the lower half of his body remained on the ground.

Delta placed both of her hands on hips as she and Koji watched from afar.

Kawaki panted as he stood on the ground again, lowering his left arm.

"Hehe... Oh Kawaki. He managed to blow away all of those intrusive guys from Konoha. What a capable child, eh..." Delta said.

"... Look closely, Delta. Seems like he can still keep going..." Koji said.

Kawaki stopped panting as he looked to see Boruto raising his right hand as he used his Kama to protect himself, Katasuke, Konohamaru, Mitsuki, Sarada, and Chamaru, who were now crouching down.

Boruto panted.

Konohamaru looked at Boruto. "Boruto... He absorbed that guy's attack and protected us...!" he thought.

Kawaki and Boruto looked at each other.

"You assholes... Considering how you hinted about it, it seems like you don't know about 'Karma'. Doesn't seem like you've mastered it well at all." Kawaki said.

Boruto lowered his right arm. "... I don't know...! Even I, myself... don't know what it's about!" he said.

"Feigning ignorance... From now on, even if you pursue me... The mountain of corpses will only increase. Go back and tell that to Jigen." Kawaki said.

"You...! You've made me really irritated, dattebasa...! Properly listen to what people say for a bit!" Boruto said.

"2 'Karma'... There's no mistaking it... They were definitely in 'Resonance'. So this is the reason Jigen was do fixated on Kawaki...? I need more information..." Koji thought.

Katasuke, Team Konohamaru, and Chamaru looked at Kawaki, who gasped and crouched down on the ground. Boruto's markings disappeared.

"... Guh...!" Kawaki said before he raised his left arm to see that his markings disappeared then clenched it. "... Damn it... Even... this thing... if I don't..." he closed his eyes before he fell on his stomach, now unconscious.

"O-oi...!" Boruto said.

"... This is... What you'd call 'overheating'...!" Katasuke said.

Team Konohamaru and Chamaru looked at Katasuke.

"Eh...?! That's..." Sarada asked.

"During the previous battle's circumstances... If by any chance his body is..." Katasuke said.

"Well, well... looks like this was inevitable. Is it okay if I take care of all of those guys from Konoha, Koji?" Delta asked.

"No, Delta. We should not get involved with them." Koji said.

Delta looked at Koji, confused. "Eh?" she asked.

...

5 minutes later.

Katasuke, Team Konohamaru, and Chamaru surrounded the unconscious Kawaki.

Katasuke was crouching down near Kawaki's head as he examined him with his hands.

"As expected... This child's body is not like an ordinary person's..." Katasuke said, removing his hands from Kawaki.

"Well, I mean... If you were to watch the battle just now, you can pretty much guess that. Same as Ao-occhan, then that fat dude from before... Everyone was equipped with Scientific Ninja Weaponry, right?" Boruto asked.

"... No... You can't even compare this guy's body to their's..." Katasuke said.

"Eh...?" Boruto asked.

"Let me put it this way... I would dare say that it's as if his existence itself is as a Scientific Ninja Weapon..." Katasuke said.

"... What do you mean...?!" Konohamaru asked.

"So what do you intend on doing, Koji Kashin...?! Do you feel like letting those guys take the 'vessel'...?!" Delta asked.

"That's right... I understand that the purpose of the mission... is to bring back the 'vessel' without fail. But not right now... Let's gather more information." Koji said.

Delta looked forward. "I came here to retrieve it myself... But that idiot Garo kept blabbering too much. But don't you think we should at least deal with those guys from Konoha?" she asked.

"It's pointless right now to be concerned with things such as information leaking... That was back when the blimp crashed. Beside, whether they're aware of it or not... In the end, they will have no choice but to give in to a larger 'power'. Even if they don't like the world that's approaching, they will come to know it. And that terror that will carry the name 'Kara'." Koji said.

Delta looked at Koji for a moment before she looked forward again. "Tch... Well that's fine with me... Jigen also warned me of it... It won't go according to your principles, though..." she said.

"... This is... amazing... It's on par with the prosthetic hand of the Nanadaime... or it's possibly even a superior technology! All of his blood vessels and his nervous system have been modified...! And to think that there are scientists who possess this sort of technology...! It's completely different from that huge man from some time ago, and even Ao-dono...! This body... is already a work of art...!" Katasuke said then smiled as he raised both of his fists up. "Good gracious... There's a genius like me who exists out there somewhere! Oh yes!"

"Now is not the time to be rejoicing... So what do we do with him? Do we fix him?" Boruto asked.

Katasuke stopped smiling as he lowered his arms. "That would be impossible!" he said.

Boruto and Sarada looked at Katasuke, surprised. "Didn't you just say you were on the same level of genius?!" they asked.

"... So this genius... I wonder if he manufactured him out of nothing?" Mitsuki asked. "Just like how I was produced from cloning technology."

Boruto and Sarada looked at Mitsuki surprised. "Eh?!" they asked.

Mitsuki smiled at Boruto and Mitsuki. "... What...? You didn't know? I'm the clone of a shinobi made by someone named Orochimaru. I'm a synthetic human being." he asked.

Sarada placed her right hand on her forehead.

Boruto was still surprised. "Didn't you say, 'I'm an artificial human being'...! Don't just go around bluntly saying something so ridiculous..." he said.

"I suddenly have a headache..." Sarada said.

"Mitsuki-kun, I've discussed things about you with the 7th Hokage in private. But the technology that was used for this child differs from what was for you. He's different from you, Mitsuki-kun. You were produced with inorganic technology based on genetic engineering... He was a human being who was made into 'something different', through inorganic technology... That way of phrasing it would be accurate." Katasuke said.

"Those people from 'Kara' kept referring to this child as a 'vessel'... And then there was that crashed blimp... The ship's cargo that Ao was searching for must certainly be this exact 'vessel'... It's this child." Konohamaru said, placing his left hand on his left hip as he stood up.

"He's probably a very important being to those guys... But at the same time, for us, he'll be a load of information we'd like to know about." Katasuke said.

Boruto and Sarada stood up.

"Well no matter what, I can't just leave this the way things are. Anyway, let's take him home with us to the village. Let's head to where my father is!" Boruto said.

End of Chapter 31.

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