Rewind a few minutes.
In Konoha, after Sasuke dropped him off, Boruto immediately ran to his house, preparing to retrieve Himawari.
Though Himawari had ruthlessly stabbed him with a kunai last time, killing him instantly, Boruto didn't blame his little sister at all.
He knew she did it to protect their mother, and Ōtsutsuki Isshiki was the root cause of all the tragedy!
This time, he would never let the enemy succeed again.
Boruto sprinted at full speed, with many Konoha ninjas starting to intercept this "Ōtsutsuki Boruto."
But most were easily evaded by Boruto. Compared to Hokage Code, he knew Konoha's layout best, swiftly navigating familiar streets and alleys, easily shaking off numerous pursuers.
The few ninjas he couldn't evade were decisively knocked out by Boruto.
Though Boruto, after "turning dark," wasn't absurdly ten times stronger, his growth during this period was not to be underestimated. Under normal conditions, he had Jōnin-level combat strength.
This already surpassed the power of over eighty percent of Konoha's ninjas.
In a rush, Boruto finally returned to his home.
Sadly, the once-warm house was gone.
All that remained for Boruto was half a ruined building, the result of the Ten-Tails infant's attack last time. It hadn't been fully repaired, clearly showing how cold Konoha's atmosphere had been during this period.
The new Hokage, replacing the Seventh Hokage's son, Uzumaki Kawaki, hadn't returned to this house even once.
In recent days, only Himawari stayed alone in the house, stubbornly refusing to stay elsewhere.
She repaired the damaged house by herself.
Though slow and exhausting, it at least eased some of Himawari's heartache.
As someone involved, Himawari's suffering was no less than Boruto's.
Overnight, her father and mother had fallen, her brother was captured, and her other brother, who became Hokage, acted cold, like a stranger.
To Himawari, the entire village felt like a cold, alien hell.
And she was so weak she didn't even have the power to seek revenge—Himawari was perhaps the most anguished and sorrowful.
In recent days, many friends and adults came to comfort her.
Sadly, none of it worked, leaving her to keep repairing the house.
In her innocent, fragile worldview, it was as if fixing the house could restore everything—her father, mother, and missing brother could return.
*WHOOSH!*
Boruto leaped over the courtyard fence, landing in the yard, and caught a glimpse of Himawari sitting on a beam, alone, holding a plank to repair the house.
"Himawari…"
Boruto muttered her name, his heart aching. Aside from his sealed father, Himawari was arguably his only remaining blood relative.
Oh, and Aunt Hanabi.
"Ah!"
Himawari was startled, but upon turning and seeing Boruto, her face instantly changed, filled with boundless anger.
"Ōtsutsuki Boruto! You—!!!"
Seeing her mother's killer appear, Himawari was both terrified and furious, wanting to kill Boruto again to avenge her mother.
"I'm sorry, Himawari."
Boruto muttered softly, immediately rushing toward his sister, preparing to knock her out and take her away.
He didn't have time to linger in Konoha.
Panicked, Himawari tried to flee, but she couldn't match Boruto's speed. In the blink of an eye, Boruto was in front of her.
He reached out, ready to knock her out.
*SWISH!*
A bright blue light flashed, a sharp blade infused with wind chakra slicing through half of Boruto's right palm!
Luckily, Boruto sensed the danger and quickly withdrew his hand. Otherwise, half his arm might have been severed.
"Chakra Blade? You're…!"
Boruto instantly recognized the metal chakra short blade in "Himawari's" hand—it was Sarutobi Asuma's former weapon, later inherited by Sarutobi Konohamaru.
*POOF!*
"Himawari" exploded into a puff of white mist.
The next second, Konohamaru, wielding two blades, emerged from the mist, attacking Boruto ferociously.
Clearly, that wasn't the real Himawari.
It was Konohamaru, cunningly using Henge no Jutsu to transform into Himawari, sitting in the most conspicuous spot to draw attention and lure Boruto closer.
Indeed, Himawari had been repairing the house, but Konohamaru was always guarding her, not only to protect his mentor's only daughter but also to ensure Himawari didn't take drastic measures.
Just moments ago, hearing the explosion at Sarada's house and seeing Ōtsutsuki Sasuke slice the Hokage building in the distance, Konohamaru realized an enemy attack!
So he quickly used a clone to hide Himawari inside the house while his real body transformed into her to draw attention.
He wasn't sure if the enemy would target Himawari, but if he could seize the chance to trap them, it would be ideal.
Unexpectedly, he successfully lured Ōtsutsuki Boruto this time, though he couldn't kill him in one strike!
"Konohamaru-sensei? It's you!"
Boruto dodged while exclaiming in shock.
He never expected Himawari to be Konohamaru in disguise.
(Good, good, good! Konohamaru-sensei, using your cunning and trickery against your own people?)
Blame himself for being too eager to save his sister, ignoring this risk.
"Shut up, who's your sensei! Ōtsutsuki Boruto, die!"
Konohamaru cursed angrily, swinging his blades sharper, as if creating a blue storm, intent on killing Boruto.
Against the evil Ōtsutsuki who killed Lady Hinata, he truly wanted to reduce him to ashes.
Such was the terror of Omnipotence!
Everyone Boruto once knew now saw him as an enemy, doing their utmost to kill him.
All the ninjutsu and strategies once used against enemies were now turned on him.
If they hadn't previously encountered Konoha's eccentric ninjas like Orochimaru and Edo Itachi, the situation might have been far tougher.
"Where's Himawari?"
Seeing he couldn't explain to Konohamaru, Boruto directly asked for his sister's whereabouts.
"Your target is Himawari? I won't let you succeed again!"
Konohamaru naturally wouldn't tell, attacking fiercely while cursing.
"Sorry, Konohamaru-sensei!"
Boruto's eyes sharpened. No longer dodging, he decided to defeat Konohamaru first, then force him to reveal Himawari's location.
Though his right palm was severely injured by Konohamaru and temporarily unusable, even with one hand, he had to take him down!
"Rasengan!"
Boruto formed a Rasengan with his left hand, charging at Konohamaru.
"Rasengan!"
Konohamaru was shocked, also forming a Rasengan, clashing with him.
*BOOM!*
The two Rasengans collided, unleashing a powerful explosion and impact, kicking up clouds of smoke.
"How do you know Rasengan?"
"You taught me!"
"?!!!"
Konohamaru was baffled. How could he have taught Rasengan to an Ōtsutsuki? It must be a lie!
"Fūton: Rasengan!"
Boruto attacked again, raising his hand to create a stronger Fūton Rasengan.
Konohamaru's pupils narrowed, not daring to be careless, immediately unleashing an Ōdama Rasengan.
"Ōdama Rasengan!"
The two enhanced Rasengans collided and exploded, the massive shockwave not only creating a crater over ten meters wide but also destroying the remaining half of the house.
Boruto and Konohamaru retreated together, sliding to the courtyard fence, barely withstanding the impact.
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
From the half-destroyed house, blasted by the shockwave, two figures quickly emerged.
It was Konohamaru's clone, carrying Himawari, trying to use this chance to escape the battlefield.
They'd been hiding in Naruto's house, thinking it was the "darkness under the lamp," relatively safe. But who'd have thought Boruto and Konohamaru's battle range was so vast, even the remaining house was destroyed?
"Himawari!"
Boruto kicked the courtyard fence, using the recoil to accelerate toward Himawari.
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Enra!"
"Go!"
Konohamaru on the other side activated Kuchiyose no Jutsu, summoning Enra, transforming it into an Adamantine Staff, and hurling it at Boruto.
The Adamantine Staff quickly split into dozens of rods, forming a cubic cage that trapped Boruto, locking him in place.
Kongō Rōheki!
Though young summoning beast Enra wasn't as strong as its father Enma, when transformed into an Adamantine Staff, it was still incredibly tough, not easily breached. Hiruzen once used this technique to briefly withstand Hashirama's casual Wood Release.
Though it sounds absurd, it was still a powerful technique unique below super-Kage level.
(Amazing, Konohamaru-sensei really has many tricks!)
(And his chakra and combat skills are stronger than mine—ordinary methods might not defeat him quickly. Better focus on saving Himawari…)
Boruto muttered to himself, concluding.
As Naruto's early student, Konohamaru, though far from those freaks, had solid fundamentals and was among the rare Kage.
Of course, he was only on par with Chōjūrō and Kurotsuchi, considered lower-tier among Kage.
At the same time, Boruto tested the Kongō cage's toughness, finding that even a Compressed Rasengan couldn't break through quickly.
But he had no time to slowly dismantle the Kongō cage.
Seeing Konohamaru's clone about to take Himawari away.
"Surrender! This is the Sarutobi Clan's secret jutsu—it's not easily broken."
Konohamaru landed nearby, seeking an attack angle while pressuring Boruto with words.
But the next second, he suddenly noticed Boruto, trapped in the Kongō cage, turn into a puff of blue smoke and sink into the ground.
Then he shot a hundred meters, emerging from the ground, directly attacking his clone and Himawari.
Boruto stabbed Konohamaru's clone with a kunai, successfully grabbing his sister Himawari.
This left Konohamaru's real body with wide eyes, utterly bewildered.
(Damn? What happened?)
(How did he escape Kongō Rōheki?)
(Was that some kind of Doton?)
(Impossible! He didn't even form hand signs!)
(And what Doton can move a hundred meters instantly?)
(That speed's practically teleportation! If such a Doton existed, Iwagakure would've unified the ninja world!)
(Could it be some Ōtsutsuki special ability?)
(Hmm! Must be!)
(This Ōtsutsuki Boruto having that weird ability is normal!)
Though shocked by Boruto's strange ability, Konohamaru wouldn't give up. He wouldn't let Ōtsutsuki Boruto kidnap Himawari!
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
On Boruto's side, after grabbing his sister Himawari, he immediately knocked her out, slung her over his back with one hand, and prepared to retreat.
But carrying someone, Boruto couldn't activate the Shukuchi taught by Lux.
He could only find a way to break through with Himawari.
In the eyes of other Konoha ninjas, this was purely the enemy Ōtsutsuki Boruto kidnapping Himawari, and they'd do everything to stop him.
Boruto had only taken a few steps when another figure blocked his path.
"Ōtsutsuki Boruto!!!"
With blue light enveloping his body, blood at the corner of his mouth, but brimming with killing intent, Mitsuki appeared in front.
*BOOM!*
With another loud noise, a plump figure descended onto the battlefield, blasting a large crater in the ground, blocking Boruto's left escape route.
"This is the Ōtsutsuki Boruto who killed Hinata? He's so small?"
Former Fifth Hokage Tsunade, still beautiful, hid her dice in her chest, frowning at Boruto and Himawari in confusion.
"He's no ordinary enemy—don't let your guard down!"
With a charismatic voice, Yakushi Kabuto emerged from the alley's shadows on Boruto's right, pushing up his glasses.
To protect the orphanage children, he was forced to step in.
Moreover, with the Hokage building split, their Eighth Hokage missing, Shikamaru could only anxiously summon all the top combat forces available.
Finally, Konohamaru caught up from behind, joining Shikamaru to block Boruto's retreat.
Boruto looked around, under immense pressure.
He just wanted to take his sister Himawari, but now he was surrounded by Konoha's top brass!
Sage Mode Mitsuki, former Fifth Hokage Tsunade, orphanage head Yakushi Kabuto, plus Konohamaru and Nara Shikamaru.
This was practically five Kage, right?
Though Konohamaru and Shikamaru were a bit "watered down," there were at least four standard Kage, plus a wildcard like Kabuto.
Facing this lineup, how could he fight?
Why was it that when fighting other villains, Konoha was always short-handed, but when he became the villain, they attacked full force?
This shouldn't be!
It made no sense!
But this could only be blamed on Boruto's bad luck.
Facing Ōtsutsuki Sasuke's earlier declaration of the Fifth Great Ninja War, Konoha naturally had to gather all combat forces early, which is why they recalled Tsunade and others.
When Kawaki and the others attacked Isshiki earlier, it ended too quickly, and Konoha's war preparation system hadn't even reacted.
Now that it had, they were naturally rallying many people.
"Ōtsutsuki Boruto, release Himawari!"
"What do you need? We can talk!"
Shikamaru took the initiative to negotiate, hoping Boruto wouldn't harm Himawari.
If not for her, they might have already attacked and killed Boruto!
"Don't dream of escaping—you won't get away!"
Kabuto snapped his fingers, and nearby Anbu ninjas received orders, immediately activating a barrier.
Four Violet Flames Formation!
Four dark purple barrier walls quickly rose around them, locking Boruto and the others inside, completely blocking his escape routes.
Boruto looked around, under immense pressure.
His heart ached with sorrow.
The noble prince of Konoha had become the village's enemy.
But he didn't blame the village or others; after all, he was now Ōtsutsuki Boruto, Hinata's killer.
Thus, facing any hostility or malice was only natural.
But asking him to release Himawari and surrender?
Sorry, that wasn't possible!
Boruto bit a kunai in his mouth, tore a cloth strip with his left hand, tied Himawari to his back, then his eyes sharpened, activating Kama Phase One!