Chapter 199:
Along the way, Boruto noticed Hanabi trying to speak several times but holding back. He asked, "What is it, Hanabi-nee?"
"...Boruto, didn't you feel bad at all about killing that zombie girl?"
"Not at all." Future Boruto responded immediately. "To me, no matter who it is, once someone becomes a zombie, they're no longer human."
Inside the Daimyō's residence, which had been breached by Evilmoku, corpses lay strewn across the ground. Shinki clutched his arm and stood off to the side, breathing heavily, wincing from the intermittent pain.
"That was the last one…" Evilmoku said as he casually twisted the neck of a child zombie, then turned his gaze toward Shinki in the distance.
"Damn it!"
Although he felt guilty for failing to protect the Daimyō, this wasn't the time to dwell on it—if he didn't escape now, he'd die too.
Shinki knew very well that someone who could injure him so badly in just one move was not someone he could handle.
"Where do you think you're going?"
Just as Shinki turned around, Evilmoku appeared beside him and landed a punch to his side.
Even though Shinki quickly used his Iron Sand to defend himself, he was still sent flying—straight into the arms of the arriving Future Boruto.
"You alright?"
"You are…" Looking up at the forehead protector on Future Boruto's head, Shinki continued, "You're a ninja from the Hidden Leaf Village?"
"Yeah." Future Boruto nodded and gently set Shinki down. Staring at Evilmoku ahead of him, he said, "Didn't expect to run into you here."
"I didn't expect it either, but it works out perfectly. With my new and stronger body, I won't lose to you this time!"
"Jar Merchant, please protect Hanabi-nee and Shinki."
"Got it."
"Hey, be careful. Don't underestimate him…" Shinki warned Future Boruto.
"I never underestimate any opponent." With that, Future Boruto instantly activated his Super Nine-Tails Chakra Mode.
"What an incredible chakra… When did the Hidden Leaf have a ninja this powerful?" Shinki exclaimed as he looked at Future Boruto's glowing form.
"I see now… I could only sense it after getting this body. That golden aura of yours contains something beyond just chakra… Looks like you received help from another alien race. But you're not the only one who's gotten help!"
Black energy surged out from Evilmoku's body.
The two of them turned into afterimages, clashing in a series of fierce collisions that caused even more destruction to the already ruined buildings around them.
Although Future Boruto had the upper hand in each exchange, none of his attacks managed to deal real damage to Evilmoku.
Clasping both fists together, Future Boruto smashed them down on the back of Evilmoku's head, slamming him from mid-air into the ground.
"Rasengan Barrage!"
Future Boruto bombarded the downed Evilmoku with Rasengan after Rasengan.
"What a spectacular sight…"
Shinki murmured, stunned.
It's not every day someone gets to witness over a hundred Rasengan strikes in a row.
Hovering in the air, Future Boruto was breathing heavily—even he was fatigued after unleashing that many Rasengan consecutively.
"So that's all you've got…"
As the dust settled, Evilmoku stood back up, completely unscathed. He looked up at Future Boruto with a sneer.
"What?! He's perfectly fine after all that?" Hanabi exclaimed in shock.
"This is the advantage of the Xenobeast race," the Jar Merchant said with a grave tone. "They may not have fancy attack methods, but their bodies can withstand most forms of damage in the universe. That's why the Xenobeasts nearly brought about the universe's destruction once. The only ones who can truly harm them… are the Armor Warriors!"
"Armor Warriors? I think my foster father mentioned them once… Something about only those with the Daimyō's bloodline being able to transform into Armor Warriors…"
"That's correct." The Jar Merchant nodded and turned to Shinki.
"But… all the Daimyō's bloodline was wiped out by that guy…" Shinki said through clenched teeth.
"Boruto!" Hanabi called out worriedly as she saw Future Boruto reengage in close combat with Evilmoku.
Though Future Boruto was able to dodge after every strike, relying on his speed, the toll this kind of fighting took on him was immense.
"How many more of those attacks can you still manage?"
Catching Future Boruto during a brief moment of fatigue, Evilmoku counterpunched and sent him flying.
"Boruto, are you okay?"
Hanabi rushed over to his side and helped him up from the ground.
"I'm fine, Hanabi…" Future Boruto said as she supported him. "Look out!"
Evilmoku appeared before them in an instant.
Just as Evilmoku's punch was about to hit Hanabi, the Jar Merchant leapt in between them and blocked the blow.
"Hah!" The Jar Merchant instantly transformed into Super Saiyan mode.
"That form… I see, so this guy learned it from you."
Evilmoku cautiously pulled back to widen the distance.
"Boruto, let's retreat for now," Hanabi suggested.
"Alright." Future Boruto nodded, opening a space-time portal with his Rinnegan.
Evilmoku didn't try to stop them from leaving. After all, he'd already achieved his goal: preventing the five Armor Warriors from reappearing in the ninja world.
Hidden Leaf Village.
"Where is this?"
Still disoriented after stepping through the portal, Shinki looked around in confusion.
"This is the Hidden Leaf! We're back in the Hidden Leaf Village!" Hanabi said happily, supporting Future Boruto.
"Hanabi, take Boruto and Shinki to the hospital. I'll go find Naruto," the Jar Merchant said.
"Alright."
Hokage's Office.
"Jar Merchant! You're back?" Shikamaru asked as the Jar Merchant walked in during his report to Naruto.
"Shikamaru, Naruto…"
"Uh-huh, I see. I didn't expect it… So even Boruto couldn't handle that Ōtsutsuki Isshiki," Naruto said after listening to the explanation.
"And worse, the entire bloodline of the Wind Daimyō was wiped out by Evilmoku," Shikamaru added, frowning deeply. "That means we'll never be able to gather the five Armor Warriors again."
"Actually, we don't need to worry about that," the Jar Merchant said. "We misunderstood from the start. It's not that only people with the Daimyō's bloodline can summon the Armor. The ones who can become Armor Warriors are chosen by the Light-Shadow Stones themselves. It's just that when two equally qualified people appear, the one with the Daimyō's bloodline is more likely to be recognized by the Light-Shadow Stone."