On the training grounds, the Raikage had already unleashed his full strength—yet even so, he still couldn't take Boruto down.
A faint flush crept up his face. To be unable to suppress a junior in front of everyone… the humiliation was suffocating.
Gritting his teeth, he gathered chakra once more. Lightning-chakra surged violently around his arm, arcs crackling in the air. With a thunderous pulse, he drove his fist forward, the strike distorting the air with a dull, crushing boom.
Boruto, caught completely off guard, was sent flying. He landed hard, blinking in disbelief—How did his strength spike so suddenly?
The spectators murmured in surprise as well. They knew exactly what technique the Raikage had just used—and how damaging it was. That special exertion method would leave his arm numb after only a few uses.
Boruto sprang back to his feet, eyes gleaming. He hadn't expected the Raikage—from fifteen years ago—to still pack that much power. His fighting spirit roared. He hadn't even used his full arsenal yet.
But the Raikage suddenly halted his advance. His expression shifted, and he spoke with deliberate calm:
"That's enough. I've seen what I needed to see. Your strength… is about seventy percent of mine. Impressive. Truly worthy of being called the strongest of the new generation."
Boruto nearly choked. Seventy percent?
Had the Raikage really held back?
Lacking the social instincts to see through the bluff, Boruto accepted the words at face value. Naruto, however, exchanged bewildered looks with the others—each of them silently calling the Raikage out in their hearts.
The Raikage ignored them. He had already lost enough face today; he refused to lose face to a child.
It was one thing for people to say he was weaker than Naruto—but weaker than a freshly graduated kid? Absolutely impossible.
He regretted stepping forward first.
Boruto exhaled, realizing the spar was over. It had only been a test after all.
Yet in such a short time, everyone had caught a glimpse of the terrifying battle power that the future era would wield.
Boruto might be the prodigy of his generation, but he was still only a boy fresh out of the Academy. Even so, the power-level gap he hinted at showed one unmistakable truth: the future shinobi would grow far stronger than the present.
And still… in the face of the coming war, they were like children before a storm.
The burden before them was immense.
However, the match had done something unexpected—it pushed the current Ninja World closer toward unity. But friction still simmered beneath the surface. Even the Raikage felt a sour sting in his chest.
If not for Naruto mediating, the Five Great Nations might have started drifting apart all over again.
But the arrival of Future Sasuke and Boruto had crushed those hidden ambitions. When danger looms from beyond the sky itself, internal squabbles become meaningless.
Countless planets exist beyond their own—why fight to the death over a single one?
Unconsciously, the horizons of every leader present had broadened.
A sense of urgency surged through the crowd. They had to implement the technologies Sasuke had brought—quickly.
Naruto turned to Future Sasuke.
"Sasuke… how long can you stay here?"
The strain of traveling through time was immense—Naruto knew they couldn't remain indefinitely.
"We have about one day left," Future Sasuke replied quietly. "When that time ends, the flow of time will pull us back. We are not meant to exist in this era."
He had learned everything about this timeline the moment he arrived. That was why he sought Naruto immediately.
What came next darkened Naruto's expression.
Future Sasuke explained the truth behind the enemies pursuing them—the Ōtsutsuki who had arrived from the future. Their power was nothing like the versions shown in Boruto's original narrative. Those depictions were impossibly inaccurate.
There was no reality where Boruto and his peers—barely Chūnin-level—could defeat true Six Paths-class Ōtsutsuki.
Never underestimate the intelligence or might of the Ōtsutsuki Clan.
In this world, only Naruto and Sasuke truly possessed the qualifications to fight them.
Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara could barely be considered on the same battlefield.
After all, their origins were rooted in the same divine lineage—the blood of the Sage of Six Paths himself.
And war was drawing near.
"Just rest for today."
Naruto spoke softly. He could tell that the future Sasuke likely hadn't rested even once in his own timeline.
They had obtained all the essential information. Now, what mattered most was implementing it as quickly as possible.
Future Sasuke nodded, then turned his gaze toward his younger self. Because Naruto had interfered with past events, the current Sasuke had not grown into the full Six Paths–level powerhouse he originally would have become.
And so, Future Sasuke planned to strengthen him. He knew the future would demand far more power than the present. He did not want Naruto to shoulder that burden alone—he wanted the two of them to fight side by side.
The direct instruction of a demi-god-tier shinobi—even for just one day—was enough to transform the current Sasuke.
"Sasuke-kun," Future Sasuke said with a faint, almost amused smile, "do you mind a little… exchange?"
Only oneself can truly understand oneself.
Young Sasuke's eyes lit up instantly. "Of course!"
He understood perfectly. Future Sasuke intended to leave him something invaluable. In a sense, they were one and the same.
Becoming stronger had always been his deepest wish—this opportunity was too precious to ever let slip.
"Boruto," Naruto suddenly said, turning toward him with a warm smile,
"do you want to have dinner with us? And… meet your mother?"
Naruto naturally loved this version of Boruto—strong, responsible, and with a mature heart.
Boruto froze. Tears welled up in his eyes, trembling with excitement.
In his timeline, after Naruto had been sealed away, he had entrusted Boruto to Sasuke, while Himawari had been taken to the moon by Hamura.
Afterward, she had thrown herself into battle against the Ōtsutsuki. Once Naruto was sealed, she had refused to keep living idly, knowing Sasuke would protect her children in her stead.
It was painfully reminiscent of the Fourth Hokage and Kushina.
Not long after, an urgent notice was issued from the Imperial Central, ordering adjustments to the ongoing Three-Year Plan.
People across every region were stunned by the sudden shift. Some sharp-minded individuals even began wondering whether a new war was looming.
But the current Ninja World had no visible enemies—so what was happening?
Soon after, a second directive from the Imperial Central was released, and the truth became clearer.
Naruto did not publicly announce the future war. Instead, the announcement stated that creatures from outer space had been detected, and that space itself was a vast, unexplored world. To strengthen the Ninja World's defenses, reforms and talent cultivation would be accelerated.
The message ignited a wave of excitement.
A world beyond their world!
With rapid technological growth over recent years, more and more people had begun to understand the concept of space. But none of them expected extraterrestrial life to appear so soon.
Yet the more insightful individuals—especially the core veterans of the Fourth Great Ninja War—knew the truth.
This was no simple discovery.
War was approaching.