Chapter 467 - 467: The Power of Karma

Pfft!

"What just happened?"

Even though Boruto had seen Momoshiki with his own eyes, it felt as though nothing had transpired at all.

Sitting on the ground, he began to recall the events.

Eek!

Suddenly snapped back to reality, he hurriedly inspected his body.

He soon noticed a glowing eye-like pattern stamped onto his palm.

"What is this?"

SWISH!

"That's an Otsutsuki Clan Karma. You're in luck."

Tonbo Tobitake materialized out of thin air, looking down at the Karma on Boruto's hand as he spoke.

"Karma? What's that?" Boruto asked, a hint of nervousness creeping into his voice.

"It's a ritual for reincarnation. Think of it like a compressed zip file on a computer. The Otsutsuki channels their entire essence and power into this file, and as it extracts bit by bit, you'll gain access to the power of the Otsutsuki Clan."

"Huh? So does that mean I'll become super strong in the future?"

Hearing that he could acquire the enemy's power, a flash of excitement lit up Boruto's eyes.

He had witnessed the battle just now—that guy was capable of holding his own against multiple Kage simultaneously. Even if that was mainly due to them ganging up on him, in a one-on-one duel, the outcome might have been unpredictable.

"Hmm... You'd be plenty strong even without him. Besides, this Karma comes with a severe side effect," Tonbo added.

"What side effect?"

"Once the file is completely extracted, your body will belong to the enemy from earlier. His soul will devour yours and take total control of your body."

"WHAT?!"

Boruto was utterly horrified.

Equally horrified was Naruto, who had just rushed over to check on his son.

He stepped forward rapidly, grabbing Boruto's hand to inspect the diamond-shaped marking on his palm.

"Tonbo-san, can you get rid of this thing?!" Naruto asked anxiously.

Seeing his father's deep concern, Boruto felt a warm burst of happiness inside.

Still, if his body was really going to be taken over, then...

Tonbo replied, "I can't remove it myself, but you can overcome it on your own. You possess immense latent potential—especially a very peculiar power. I believe that power will help you resolve this."

Divine techniques of the Otsutsuki Clan could only be truly countered or neutralized by the Otsutsuki themselves.

That was precisely why he had permitted Momoshiki to enter Boruto's body—to serve as a safeguard for the future.

Furthermore, mastering that kind of power was Boruto's true destiny.

It would only make him stronger.

Though, thinking back... Did I overestimate the power of the Otsutsuki a bit?

Tonbo couldn't help but reflect.

Two Otsutsuki had been dealt with in a matter of moments when faced with the combined onslaught of top-tier shinobi.

It seemed his long-term preparations had proven effective after all.

At the very least, standard Otsutsuki were no longer a threat to the Shinobi Alliance.

Now, the only remaining unknown was the legendary Shibai Otsutsuki—the figure foreshown in the Priestess of the Land of Demons' prophecy.

Boruto blinked, confused. "Potential? What potential?"

"You'll figure it out in time. For now, let's wrap up the situation here at the arena."

Tonbo glanced around at the ruined landscape; it was clear today's Chunin Exams couldn't proceed any further.

They would have to reschedule for another day.

The surrounding area was completely wrecked, even though the battle had been brief.

...

Meanwhile, at a distance, a figure emerged from a spatial rift. Watching the scene unfold, his eyes widened in sheer shock.

"Those lower lifeforms... They dispatched Momoshiki and Kinshiki that easily?!"

Urashiki Otsutsuki had witnessed the entire climax.

His expression turned grim.

After separating from Kinshiki and Momoshiki, he had traveled to Kumogakure in search of Tailed Beasts. He never expected that upon arriving in Konoha to seize the Nine-Tails, he would witness such a scene.

Recalling his recent ordeal in Kumogakure, his expression darkened even further.

Expending a massive amount of power against a mere lower lifeform human, he had barely managed to secure a victory—only for the opponent to escape using a trick jutsu.

He had walked away with nothing more than a single Tailed-Beast tail.

No... If this continues, even I'll end up getting wiped out by these lower creatures. I have to find another way.

Urashiki knew he couldn't keep going like this.

These humans were far too strong—he was completely outmatched.

...

"Alright, from here on out, subduing that soul depends on your own strength. Grow stronger, kid."

Inside Boruto's body, Tonbo subtly reinforced his neural networks.

At the same time, he began scanning and extracting data from the Karma implanted within him.

Through years of research, he had finally gained a solid grasp of the Otsutsuki's Karma system.

Simply put, it was a method of high-density information compression.

An elegant, highly practical divine technique.

He had already identified a similar mechanic within Kaguya Otsutsuki: information manipulation.

Kaguya had used the Divine Tree's Fruit to absorb all biological data from the Shinobi World, thereby achieving her own evolution.

Similarly, Momoshiki's Karma operated entirely through information transfer.

The Otsutsuki were a species specialized in the hyper-efficient utilization of information.

Coincidentally, Tonbo's own specialty revolved around memory manipulation—which was also a form of information processing.

As a shinobi, he too was a master at utilizing information.

Slowly and steadily, his neural pathways rooted deep inside Boruto's body.

He began absorbing the compressed Karma data Momoshiki had left behind, refining his own conceptual framework.

He intended to assimilate the Karma mechanism and iterate upon it to develop a brand-new jutsu uniquely suited to himself.

Hearing Tonbo's words, Boruto looked down at the diamond mark on his palm.

His gaze gradually hardened with resolve—he wasn't going to lose.

That guy had merely relied on a sneaky trick to force his energy into his body.

That proved he wasn't invincible.

When faced with Konoha's shinobi, even an alien god had to run for his life.

And he was a shinobi of Konoha.

A man about to become a Chunin.

SWISH!

Right at that moment, a familiar figure materialized before Boruto.

"Master Sasuke, you're here!" Boruto's face broke into a smile upon seeing him.

"Long time no see! You've gotten even handsomer and more manly, haven't you?" Tonbo teased with a grin as he looked at Sasuke.

"It has been a while. Is Boruto alright?" Sasuke nodded, turning to ask.

Tonbo replied, "Of course he's fine. With me around, he might even turn this crisis into a blessing!"

It had to become a blessing—Boruto was his designated fallback plan. If Tonbo couldn't handle Shibai Otsutsuki in the future, Boruto would be the one to step up and finish the job.

"That's good to hear."

"Right, continue his training from here on out. The battles of the future will require his power," Tonbo instructed as a final thought.

Sasuke nodded in understanding.

Orochimaru had already informed him that Boruto possessed immense latent potential—power that would one day surpass even his own.

He was a pivotal figure destined to save the Shinobi World.

Tonbo and Orochimaru needed to focus their efforts on researching countermeasures against future cosmic threats, leaving them with no free time to personally train these young prodigies.

Boruto, on the other hand, stood there feeling completely bewildered.

What do you mean, 'require my power'?

And who are these 'future enemies'? Are there more aliens like the guy who froze time?

SHIBA!

With his instructions delivered, Tonbo's form faded away into nothingness.

Leaving Boruto and Sasuke standing face-to-face.

"Let's go. Time to train. From now on, I won't be letting you grow at your own easy pace. You're going through intensive training."

Sasuke placed a hand on Boruto's shoulder, and in a flash, both of them vanished from the spot.

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