Rather than wasting the few remaining puppets, it would be far more cost-effective to use their space-jumping ability to indiscriminately destroy towns—or even take out the already-established chakra cannons!
"Could it be they're trying to hunt down Boruto and the others, eliminating the most promising new generation of shinobi before they rise?"
"That's possible... but then why send a half-crippled puppet? And with no backup puppets in the area either…"
"This is bad—we've walked right into a trap!"
After just a moment of reflection, both Sasuke and Neji arrived at the same conclusion.
This half-destroyed puppet was just a decoy. Hunting Boruto was never meant to succeed—it was a distraction.
The real target... was someone else entirely.
Just then, a puff of smoke appeared in front of Sasuke. A small white messenger snake slithered out and spat out a scroll.
"Ryūchi Cave has been attacked!"
...
As Boruto's team was ambushed...
The remaining puppets had already gathered together. During this time, they hadn't been hiding in the shadows out of fear of being hunted down by the entire shinobi world. That kind of passive strategy wouldn't work for long.
No—only by staying mobile and maximizing their agility could they turn the lack of elite combat power in the shinobi world into an advantage for themselves.
All these puppets were closely linked to Ōtsutsuki Toneri.
And Toneri himself was almost completely enslaved by Momoshiki. While under control, he had virtually no consciousness of his own. In essence, it was Momoshiki who was using Toneri as a relay to command the puppets.
As a key member of the Ōtsutsuki clan's chosen elites, Momoshiki was arrogant—but his abilities far outclassed his peers.
Don't be fooled by the fact that he was once repelled after descending upon the shinobi world. That was simply the overconfidence of a genius underestimating his opponent.
But the moment he began to take the shinobi world seriously, treating it as a worthy adversary...
His power would become something else entirely—something far beyond what he showed upon his initial arrival.
Now, Momoshiki's strategy...
Was to feint an attack on Boruto and the other new-generation shinobi, forcing the high-level forces of the shinobi world to split their attention to protect their families.
Thus, he'd create an opportunity—for the puppets to once again probe the hidden...
Gods of the shinobi world.
Ryūchi Cave was his chosen target this time.
Although the mist covering the continent prevented Momoshiki from using the combined power of the Tenseigan and Rinnegan to peer into time itself and locate Naruto, Kinshiki, or Karasuki...
The puppets' data-gathering was not so restricted.
After a period of lurking, he had confirmed with high probability that Naruto and Kinshiki had been hidden away by Orochimaru in the dwelling place of a god.
And the master of Ryūchi Cave just happened to match the spiritual presence of the divine figure he had previously clashed with.
This further convinced him—there was only one surviving wild god left in the shinobi world.
As long as he prepared a proper test in advance and eliminated the major forces of resistance in the open...
The chances of successfully slaying that god were quite high!
...
Within Ryūchi Cave...
Several puppets used their powerful space-jumping abilities and their combat strength, each capable of assassinating a Kage-level opponent, to easily breach the entrance.
They charged into the vast underground network, unleashing energy weapons and Wood Release attacks.
Explosions tore massive craters into the outer cavern walls. Countless branches of the God Tree wildly absorbed the abundant natural energy inside. Pollen with hallucinogenic effects filled the air. Razor-sharp wooden spikes shot up from below.
The giant snakes rushing in to reinforce the defense were quickly overwhelmed. Their massive bodies only made them easier targets for the agile puppets.
Their coiling and constriction techniques were useless against puppets with body strength equal to the God Tree's. And though their poison, enhanced by nature energy, could corrode the puppets...
It was too slow—and lacked the speed to strike true.
Snakes died in droves, either pierced by laser beams...
Consumed as nutrients for the God Tree's growth...
Or forever trapped in illusions woven by the poisonous pollen.
Even the strongest serpents were defeated by the combined might of the puppets.
Just as the invaders were about to reach the Dragon Vein and lay eyes on the White Snake Sage...
Three Snake Princesses emerged from the mist.
This time, the unstoppable puppets had finally met a real challenge.
The ever-present mist completely nullified their space-jumping ability.
Each of the three Snake Princesses unleashed their unique powers—
One wielded a divine sword and shattered the puppet instantly with a flash of steel.
One transformed into a massive serpent, swallowing a puppet whole and digesting it in moments.
And the last used the white mist to erode the puppet, reducing it to nothing but a stick of wood.
"Direct assault failed. There are powerful warriors under this wild god's command!"
Momoshiki's heart tightened. All the puppets he had created—he was about to lose them all today.
Impossible.
Unless… this wild god was even stronger than he had imagined.
No—that couldn't be. His pride wouldn't allow him to accept that a remote...
Once-colonized and ravaged planet like this could rise again.
Even if this planet had once shone brilliantly—one of the few life-bearing worlds to rival Takamagahara in the heavens—
He still refused to acknowledge it.
...
Momoshiki stopped his approach toward Earth and hovered in space. He used puppet armor crafted from Toneri's power to shield his physical body.
He activated the enslavement seal—Toneri's soul and forehead flashed with a six-pointed star seal—and Momoshiki's consciousness invaded...
Toneri's soul.
In this way, he took direct control of a less-damaged puppet through Toneri's soul.
This time, he was going to test with his own hands...
Just how strong this so-called White Snake Sage truly was.
A surge of bright blue soul energy, carrying immense chakra, poured into the puppet's body.
Clang!
The empowered puppet instantly morphed its arm to block a divine blade slicing in from the side.
It was swallowed whole—but the three Snake Princesses couldn't digest the puppet infused with both Momoshiki's and Toneri's power.
They had no choice but to spit it out, narrowly avoiding having their bellies split open.
Still, one of them was heavily wounded by the puppet under Momoshiki's control. The other two, though armed with divine swords, were steadily pushed back.
...
"White Snake Sage, I appreciate the gesture, but it's time to let me out."
In the deepest part of Ryūchi Cave, a red-haired young man undid the seals binding him, stretching his body with a bit of stiffness.
It was Naruto—who had used Living Corpse Reincarnation to transfer into a new body.
"The battles ahead will be even more crucial. You are the key to victory for the shinobi world... Just wait a little longer."
The White Snake Sage sighed softly. She didn't want to stand by and watch her children and grandchildren perish...
But to fight that looming terror from the future...
She had no choice but to endure. Only by gathering strength in secret could they grasp even the faintest hope for the shinobi world.
...
A wave of white mist surged from the depths of Ryūchi Cave.
Sasuke was reverse-summoned into the cavern.
Locking eyes with Naruto for just a moment, Sasuke immediately activated Amenotejikara, phasing through the white mist—
And dashed toward the three Snake Princesses, who were still engaged in battle with the puppets.
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