Chapter 411: Little Boruto
The relentless public speculation across the Shinobi World naturally did nothing to sway the decisions of the high-ranking officials within the Shinobi Alliance. They wielded the absolute strongest power on earth.
Peace had been achieved entirely because of their existence. To maintain that peace, one required absolute, uncontested power—this was a fundamental truth that every village and nation understood flawlessly. Only by guaranteeing their own military might could they ensure that global stability endured.
As for the instigators stirring up the civilian populace, the Shinobi Alliance immediately dispatched specialized hunter-nin units to track them down globally, simultaneously issuing high-level bounties through the World Shinobi Association.
Every rogue and bounty hunter in existence joined the hunt. In fact, many rogue ninja began slaughtering each other for the rewards. Though they shared the same status as deserters, they were by no means comrades; the Shinobi Alliance manipulated this psychological vulnerability flawlessly.
Gradually, the destabilizing elements across the world were suppressed once more. Before long, no one dared to raise their voice in protest anymore. They had no choice but to abide by the system established by the Shinobi Alliance and live out their lives quietly.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
As time steadily ticked by, the Taijutsu Training System finally achieved full, multi-dimensional operational capability. The Five Great Shinobi Villages each selected a batch of elite trainees to enter the system. While training under the harsh environments, the candidates would also utilize space-time barriers to travel to the Falls of Truth on Genbu (Turtle Island) to forge their willpower.
To conquer one's inner darkness was the absolute prerequisite to scaling the absolute zenith of the taijutsu path. Even Naruto and his peers stepped in to experience the trials firsthand.
Meanwhile, within the Land of Demons, a cloaked figure was traversing the vast, desolate desert. Behind him lay one of the country's prominent fortresses.
"Uncle Tonbo, as expected of you. To think you could devise such a terrifyingly efficient training method."
Even while traveling abroad, Sasuke constantly kept tabs on the happenings back in Konoha. Originally, during the Toneri Otsutsuki crisis, he had prepared to return to the village to assist. However, once Tobitake Tonbo and the others single-handedly neutralized the entire meteor threat, he casually resumed his journey of redemption without any lingering worries—only occasionally returning to Konoha to ensure the expansion of the Uchiha lineage.
He had actually slipped back to test the Taijutsu Training System himself and found it to be an flawlessly optimized method for physical conditioning. It was highly effective even for someone of his tier. The specific applications within the system involved concepts that even he didn't naturally possess. If someone could truly conquer the entire training regimen, they would likely ascend to a level of power surpassing both himself and Naruto.
"But the Otsutsuki... there should be a ruin located around here."
Sasuke shifted his gaze toward a specific coordinate within the Land of Demons. During his investigations, he had gathered rumors of a legend stating that ages ago, terrifying monsters had descended from the sky into this territory. They possessed deathly pale skin and horrific, awe-inspiring eyes.
By cross-referencing local folklore with ancient historical records passed down through generations, Sasuke had finally pinpointed the direction of an Otsutsuki ruin. This time, the ruin was his primary objective.
Legend dictated that a catastrophic battle had once unfolded there. Though the citizens of the Land of Demons had forgotten most of the details over the centuries, Sasuke successfully excavated the relevant data using his elite shinobi track-and-field intelligence skills.
"If I can find the time, I should head back to train in that system too," Sasuke thought. "I can't afford to let the younger generation overtake me."
...
Waaah...
Inside the Konoha Hospital, newborns were entering the world one after another, their cries interweaving into a unique symphony of life. This phenomenon had been persisting for quite some time, signaling the grand awakening of Konoha's newest generation.
Hinata cradled her newborn son, a gentle, radiant smile gracing her lips. "Boruto... I feel so incredibly happy."
Naruto sat right by her side, keeping her company. Staring down at Boruto nestled in her arms, a wide grin broke across his face. He was officially a father now.
"Ah, Boruto is so adorable! He definitely inherits my style from when I was a kid."
Looking at Boruto's features, Naruto was reminded of the photographs and video recordings Tonbo-sensei had shown him. Those files actually contained footage of Naruto during his early childhood, and the resemblance to Boruto was striking.
As for the name Boruto, it had been chosen by Uncle Tonbo. Finding a fitting name for a child was simply too difficult for Naruto. Furthermore, the name aligned perfectly with Naruto's wishes. He was well aware of his own intellectual shortcomings and deeply hoped his child would grow up to be highly knowledgeable—erudite—rather than someone who felt completely drained the moment they tried to study standard academic concepts.
Hinata giggled softly. "Boruto is way handsomer than you were."
"No way, I was plenty handsome too!" Naruto whined playfully.
"Our other friends are due soon too. When the time comes, their kids can be classmates with Boruto," Naruto added as a sudden realization struck him. Ino, Sakura, and the rest of their circle were all nearing their due dates, trailing just a few months behind them. They might very well end up in the same academy class.
Lately, he had seen Asuma-sensei's daughter, who was absolutely precious, as well as Tonbo-sensei's youngest son. Tonbo-sensei's boy was completely bald, giving him an incredibly adorable, mascot-like vibe. Naruto was just glad Boruto wasn't bald.
Hinata noted, "Boruto's eyes look just like yours, but they seem so much brighter." She gazed into Boruto's eyes, noting that while the iris color was virtually identical to Naruto's, they possessed a brilliant clarity—almost as if a highly unique aura were sealed within them.
Deep within Boruto's physical form, an microscopic neural thread subtle traced its way through his entire physiology, mapping out his complete biological blueprints and transmitting the data to an external location.
...
"As expected of the future Child of Destiny. This physical talent is undeniably superior to ordinary children," Tobitake Tonbo thought, standing atop a massive tree branch just outside the Konoha Hospital as the data streamed into his consciousness.
Today was the day Boruto entered the world, so he had naturally come to observe the next generation's savior while subtly harvesting his biological metrics.
The current Boruto was fundamentally different from his future self; he did not yet bear the Otsutsuki Karma. This was the absolute pristine window to collect his pure biological data—specifically, the genetic sequence behind the Jogan.
Tonbo had been monitoring this meticulously. From the very day Hinata conceived, he had manipulated a trace neural signature left within her body to gather comprehensive data on the entire process of embryonic development, leading up to Boruto's birth today.
As his personal power continued to scale to unprecedented heights, Tonbo's covert techniques had evolved to such an extreme depth that they were completely undetectable even to the Byakugan. Currently, the only two individuals capable of perceiving his subtle operations were Orochimaru and Kabuto, simply because they possessed independent research archives and could slowly deduce it through laboratory experimentation.
He had successfully secured Boruto's genetic blueprint. The genesis of life truly was a miracle, much like that bizarre physical pathway inside Saitama's brain. It wasn't something that could be easily categorized or explained by basic science—not even Orochimaru could fully map out the variables, as the fusion of two lineages to birth an anomaly was a highly chaotic, intricate process.
"The Jogan... is it truly the ultimate weapon destined to counter the Otsutsuki? Or perhaps, I can alter the course of the future entirely myself."
Tonbo recalled the ancient prophecy delivered by the Great Toad Sage. According to those visions, it was ultimately Boruto who would resolve the looming crises of the Shinobi World, striking down every adversary. Furthermore, a clone of Jiraiya would eventually become his secondary mentor.
Rather than placing the fate of the universe squarely on Boruto's shoulders, Tonbo vastly preferred to engineer a resolution through his own methodologies. Nevertheless, the trajectory of Boruto's growth was a vector he couldn't afford to neglect.
Reflecting on the future timeline where a time-traveling Boruto could comfortably suppress a younger Naruto despite being the same age, it was clear the boy would grow to be an absolute powerhouse. Whether Tonbo could ultimately outmaneuver fate itself depended entirely on the pieces he laid down now.
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