Gazing at the mighty black rods whistling past, the Iwagakure shinobi watching from the sidelines, completely unable to intervene, were all plunged into shock.
"Such power, it's already comparable to an S-rank ninjutsu, right?"
"A casual throw, and it's an S-rank ninjutsu. Why do we have to live in the same era as such a monster?"
"..."
Unlike the surrounding onlookers, Code, who was directly facing Boruto's terrifying attack, understood the horror of this assault better than any of them. The Yin-Yang Release's traction lock, coupled with terrifying penetrative power and sealing ability. Even he would suffer greatly if pierced. As for dodging with spatial abilities, he clearly indicated that Kawaki, shrunk to the size of a finger and standing atop a black rod, had already prepared Daikokuten, just waiting for him to use his spatial ability.
Thinking of this, he immediately broke free from the puppet's body, maneuvering the giant puppet beneath him to collide head-on with the black rod, while he himself leaped onto the puppet's back and slipped into a claw mark.
Pow!
Terrifying power directly pierced through the puppet's chest, gouging out a massive hole a full meter in diameter. A fearsome monster that ordinary Jonin would struggle against, lost its life just like that.
Watching the puppets disappear one after another, Boruto knew that Code had already fled to another location. But his attack just now was merely a feint to create an opportunity for Kawaki to absorb chakra; he held no expectation of actually killing Code.
"How is it?"
Kawaki's figure suddenly enlarged, and he stood beside Boruto. Feeling the chakra replenishing within him, he nodded with satisfaction. "Caught a decent quality chakra source. Enough to last me a while."
"I really don't know how many puppets Code made using the Ten-Tails." Looking at the devastated Iwagakure village around them, Boruto's face was filled with helplessness. Up to this point in the battle, the ones they had killed, absorbed, plus the ones Code himself had squandered—if not a thousand, then at least several hundred. Even the weakest puppet possessed the chakra volume of a Chunin. It was hard to imagine just how terrifying the chakra volume of an entire Ten-Tails truly was.
"Let's chase him!"
The two opened a space-time tunnel and, ignoring the approaching Iwa nin, vanished from the spot.
Iwagakure Village.
Ninjutsu Research Lab.
"Is Iwagakure finished too?" Uzumaki Naruto tossed a newly acquired ninjutsu research scroll into a storage scroll and also left Iwagakure. Left behind were only the research personnel and guard ninja, all unconscious on the floor.
Along this journey, following behind Boruto and the other two, picking up the "trash," Naruto had also reaped considerable rewards. Each shinobi village's ninjutsu research had its own focus and unique characteristics. Sunagakure focused on Wind Release and related Kekkei Genkai research, such as Scorch Release, a combination of wind and fire. Iwagakure, on the other hand, focused on Earth Release. Regrettably, he hadn't found any research on Dust Release in this lab, but he did find other gains, an Iwagakure specialty—Explosion Release.
Thinking of this, he greatly anticipated Code's trip to Kumogakure.
As for whether Code would go to Kumogakure? There was absolutely no doubt. The reason Code chose the major shinobi villages as his battlegrounds, increasing the pressure on himself, was likely with the intention of ruthlessly devastating the other four great shinobi villages besides Konoha, thereby pressuring them to exert pressure on Konoha, pushing for, and even instigating, a Fifth Great Shinobi War.
Code's idea, at first glance, seemed somewhat fantastical, but upon closer reflection, it indeed had some merit. One should never place too much faith in the friendship between shinobi villages, especially in a peace established under the pressure of a shinobi world hero—Konoha's Seventh Hokage. With the strength of the other four great shinobi villages damaged, while Konoha remained aloof, even continuously growing stronger, no one could guarantee that the other four villages would willingly watch Konoha develop. Not long after the end of the Fourth Great Shinobi War, Kumogakure had unveiled a chakra cannon capable of shattering the moon. The friendship among the Five Great Shinobi Villages was evident from this.
Outside Kumogakure Village.
From a crevice in the rocks, Code emerged. Gazing at the village built among the hills in the distance, he charged in without the slightest hesitation.
This was the final battlefield. After wreaking havoc here, he should find a place to hide and recuperate. Kirigakure Village was not part of his plan. Firstly, it was too weak; secondly, it was far overseas, too distant; thirdly, among the four great shinobi villages, the ones with the most warmongers and the greatest strength were Iwagakure and Kumogakure. As long as these two villages were provoked, Kirigakure would be forced to fight, even if it didn't want to. As for Sunagakure... who asked it to be so close to the dimensional node where the Ten-Tails was imprisoned?
Two minutes later.
ROAR!!!
The Eight-Tails Gyūki's massive form suddenly appeared within Kumogakure, countless thick bolts of lightning churning around its body. Amidst the mountains and clouds, massive white figures, some large, some small, could be vaguely seen. But wherever they passed, blood spurted, and corpses littered the ground. In the blink of an eye, the originally peaceful Kumogakure had transformed into a living hell.
"As expected of the second largest shinobi village after Konoha. The pressure it puts on me is on a completely different level compared to Sunagakure." Surveying his surroundings, looking at the several muscular giants encircling him, Code thought to himself. Positively correlated with the muscles of these giants was their terrifying speed and strength. Especially the giant directly in front of him. Code's eyes flickered; he sensed the aura of an Otsutsuki. "An artificial human?"
To be honest, this was the strongest human he had encountered since removing his limiter. On the basis of being human, implanted with Otsutsuki components, they could still barely be considered human. As for Boruto, Kawaki, and even Uzumaki Naruto from the other world, they were no longer human, but Otsutsuki.
"Ichi! Attack!"
The man to his left, the 'slimmest' of the muscular figures, shouted. Among the few of them who had volunteered for technological modification, Ichi's modification was the most successful and the most powerful. If subsequent experiments went smoothly, Ichi would become the most powerful 'A' in history. Surpassing Konoha to become the number one village in the shinobi world would not be impossible either.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The two sides instantly clashed.
"Bee, be careful you don't play with fire and get burned," the Eight-Tails Gyūki couldn't help but say, feeling the terrifying aftershocks from behind. Compared to those artificial humans, the Eight-Tails' massive body was not suited for battling a highly mobile ninja like Code. Therefore.
Shwoop!
An octopus tail swept past, and several puppets were smashed into white sludge. Their mission was—to clear out the small fry.
"My brother and I are both getting old. Darui's strength is still a bit lacking." Touching upon sensitive village matters, Killer Bee no longer spoke in his usual rap cadence. "We might have to trouble you again, Eight-Tails, to continue protecting Kumogakure." Killer Bee didn't dwell further on this heavy topic.
"Heh heh..."
"The muscular uncles from Kumogakure are this terrifyingly strong?" Boruto, who had arrived, watched the muscular giant fighting evenly with Code, his mouth agape in astonishment.
"Are you blind? Code is just playing around. He hasn't even used his spatial abilities; he's purely using taijutsu to fight that person," Kawaki said irritably.