Chapter 412: Scientific Ninja Tool Puppets Invade the Hidden Leaf Village
Hidden Leaf Village.
Hokage Residence.
Hokage's Office.
"Boruto, none of the ninja sent to investigate the small villages have returned."
Shikamaru came to report to Boruto.
At the same time the smaller ninja villages were wiped out with overwhelming force, the scouts sent by the major villages were also eliminated.
Without a doubt, the next target of Skynet would be the major villages. War could break out at any moment.
"I understand... Uncle Shikamaru, have everyone prepare for battle."
Boruto issued his command as he looked at Shikamaru. No one wants war. If he had a choice, Boruto wouldn't want to give such an order either.
"Boruto!"
Sarada burst into the Hokage's office. Behind her were SpongeBob, Patrick, and Shunhi disguised as a husky.
"S.H.I.E.L.D. agents!"
Shikamaru instantly went on alert, eyeing the members of S.H.I.E.L.D. in front of him.
"Relax, we're here to help. Even if there were a lot of misunderstandings before, now we share a common enemy—Skynet," Shunhi said calmly.
"At the end of the day, wasn't Skynet something you guys created?" Shikamaru snapped.
"Mr. Shikamaru, I hope you understand—this enemy isn't something we can handle alone. Besides... Naruto and Sasuke aren't here."
Even though the title says "Boruto's Story," whether Boruto is truly the protagonist is still up for debate. After all, "Shippuden" ended rather ironically for the supposed main character.
As soon as Shunhi finished speaking, explosions rang out outside.
"What's going on?!" Boruto rushed to the window overlooking the village. "Those are... Scientific Ninja Tool Puppets! They're here already?!"
"Blitzkrieg," Shunhi said, looking at Shikamaru and Boruto.
"What's a blitzkrieg?" Shikamaru frowned. No one present had heard the term before.
"Jet propulsion devices on the puppets' legs give them control of the skies. While airborne units harass from above, ground forces storm the enemy with overwhelming speed. That's blitzkrieg."
Shunhi gave a brief explanation.
"Shikamaru, the husky's right. This isn't an enemy we can take on by ourselves."
The sheer number of small ninja villages—and even a major village like the Hidden Cloud—had been obliterated in just a day. That alone was enough to strike fear into anyone's heart.
"Boruto!"
"In any case, Uncle Shikamaru, please help with evacuating the villagers." Boruto looked to Shikamaru, then turned to the S.H.I.E.L.D. team beside him. "You all, come with me to intercept the Scientific Ninja Tool Puppets. No objections, right?"
"None."
Shunhi responded. After all, it was only about intercepting the puppets. Given that the puppets were programmed not to attack S.H.I.E.L.D. members, there wasn't much to worry about.
Peace had barely lasted a few days before the Hidden Leaf Village was thrown into chaos once again.
Yamato, witnessing the destruction unfolding before him, briefly wondered if he should start a construction company.
"Konohamaru! Yamato! Stop standing around—we need to help with the evacuation!" Shikamaru shouted to the two.
"Yes, sir!"
Konohamaru and Yamato responded in unison.
"Rasengan!"
Dodging a puppet's attack, Boruto struck back with a Rasengan, shattering it. Breathing heavily, he stood on the rooftop to catch his breath.
Even though his chakra reserves remained plentiful, Boruto felt his stamina starting to wear thin. Since the fighting began, he had taken down over a hundred puppets, but compared to the entire army of Scientific Ninja Tool Puppets, it was barely a dent.
"Damn it... there's just too many of them..."
As he tried to catch his breath and restore his focus, the sky above him filled with even more puppets.
"Nine Tails!"
With no other choice, Boruto forced his exhausted body to keep going. Cloaked in the Nine Tails' chakra, he shouted:
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
With the Nine Tails boosting his chakra, over a hundred Boruto clones appeared at once.
"Massive Rasengan Barrage!"
All the clones unleashed Massive Rasengans in unison.
"Our grandson's not bad at all."
Minato smiled as he spoke to Kushina beside him.
Even if the Scientific Ninja Tool Puppets were supposedly programmed not to attack S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, there was always the risk. After all, no one expected Skynet to go rogue and betray S.H.I.E.L.D. in the first place...
...
A dark shadow yanked a puppet out of the sky.
A massive black claw easily twisted off its head.
"Is that... Shikamaru?"
Konohamaru, watching Shikamaru dominate the battlefield, turned to the equally stunned Yamato.
"Uh... looks like it...?"
Yamato replied hesitantly.
Shikamaru hadn't shown this side of himself to the villagers before—his appearance in this form was far too terrifying.
"You two! Snap out of it—get over here and help!"
"Yes!"
Despite their enthusiasm, Konohamaru and Yamato's help was limited at best. It took everything they had just to take down one puppet at a time.
"Fire Style: Majestic Flame Annihilation!"
No hand signs needed—just pop a capsule hidden in the wrist into the mouth, and the jutsu would activate.
Chakra inside the puppet transformed into a massive burst of flame, spewing from its mouth and engulfing Shikamaru, who was entangled by other puppets.
The moment the flames touched him, the Venom symbiote detached from his body and retreated.
Shikamaru collapsed to the ground, barely able to get back on his feet. Reaching out, he called to the symbiote:
"Venom! Come on!"
The Venom symbiote leapt toward Shikamaru, but just before it could reach him, a mechanical hand grabbed it mid-air.
Trapped in the grip of the puppet, Venom writhed and struggled—unable to attach to a non-living host, it was powerless in its current state.
"Damn it! Isn't there any other way...?"
Surrounded by the enemy, Shikamaru looked around. Konohamaru and Yamato were pinned down and couldn't offer any help.
Just when things looked hopeless, the puppet gripping Venom was suddenly blown apart.
"What?!"
Right as Shikamaru was starting to give up hope, a turning point arrived.
A shield crashed into the puppet, destroying it, then returned to Obito's hand.
The Venom symbiote fell to the ground and immediately crawled back to Shikamaru, reattaching itself.
"Captain, thanks!"
Shikamaru's towering figure stood tall as he crushed a puppet with a single blow.
"Let's start the counterattack," Obito said.
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