Fractured

Traumas

All around, the air lingered with a variety of odors—the smell of charred wood, the stench of blood and iron, and the pungent odor of seared hair and skin. Kawaki was acutely aware of these things as he took in the scene before him. Boruto's Karma-boosted Vanishing Rasengan had been so powerful that it penetrated into the sub-layers of Code's skin. Possibly even further, he realized, but he didn't care to get close enough to the lethal Kara leader to find out.

Kawaki noticed the sound of water then, after the roar of battle had finally settled, and spotted a small waterfall by the cliffside on the far end of the clearing. His lips cracked, and he noticed for the first time how thirsty he was. He and Boruto had both already lost of lot of fluids from blood loss.

The air was still tingling with chakra following the aftermath of Boruto's takedown of Code. Was this really the same annoying little brother? Kawaki pressed his dry lips together as he watched, unblinking, as Boruto fumed with rage near Code's prone form.

Boruto bared his teeth, patience long gone. "Tell me where he is!" he raged. He pulled a couple of shuriken from his leg holster and infused them with lightning release chakra. The shuriken crackled dangerously in the dark of the forest as Boruto threw them straight at Code's leg, not wanting to risk Code blocking them with his nanotech arm, Kawaki assumed.

Code regained some presence of mind as he moved his leg quickly enough to avoid one of the shuriken. The other landed soundly in his thigh, however, distributing a short but agonizing zing of electricity through his body.

Even from this distance, Kawaki could hear Boruto's quickened breaths. His emotions were catching up. Code coughed a couple of times after the electricity left his body and tried to pull his leg up far enough to rip the offending blade from his thigh.

Just then Kawaki heard some movement in the forest across the clearing. He turned and held his one good hand up in a defensive position.

"Boruto!" a female voice shouted from the trees a ways off from Kawaki.

Sarada, Kawaki realized immediately. A fraction of a second later, a small dog, Sarada, Mitsuki, and Lord Sixth appeared in the far end of the clearing created by Boruto's scuffle with Code. Kawaki didn't have time to contemplate why the other half of Team 7 would be here, much less Lord Sixth.

Boruto turned at the voice, eyes wide as he absorbed the sudden appearance of his teammates.

"Get back—!" Boruto started to warn. Yet in the brief moment he had turned to warn his teammates of the present dangers, Kawaki watched almost slow-motion as Code smirked from his position on the ground.

"Boruto!" Kawaki tried to warn. But Code sprang forward too quickly, claws extended, and raked Boruto across the back and he screamed. Boruto's eyes were wide and glassy as he fell to the ground.

"Boruto!" Sarada screamed.

Lord Sixth reacted the fastest as he raced towards Boruto, but Code made a new claw mark on the ground in front of him and moved to pull Boruto through it. Blood was leaking from Boruto's mouth as he turned to grapple with Code on the ground and, in desperation, attempted to throw a few gale palms at his assailant, yet Boruto was unable to gather enough chakra as his body grew weaker.

Kawaki shook himself from his state of shock and moved towards Boruto when a flash of yellow lightning in the form of a snake flew past him. Mitsuki's Snake Lightning, Kawaki dimly realized as the jutsu landed a direct hit on Code. Code's pained screams filled the air as he released Boruto, his body now temporarily paralyzed from the lightning.

Kawaki had never been more grateful for Lightning Release techniques in his life before tonight. Lord Sixth blitzed passed Boruto and landed a fierce kick to the injured side of Code's neck where Boruto's Rasengan had hit. Code was knocked back several meters, yet he was able to flip his body and land on one knee as he skidded backwards. Kawaki finally reached Boruto at the same time as Sarada and Mitsuki. He realized then that he probably had the same worried look in his eyes as the two teens before him.