Standing in a poor, darkened part of village, Boruto glanced up at the top of the village wall looming overhead. Coming this far was a bit of a detour, but he assumed there would be fewer Jonin guarding this portion of the wall. He took a quick survey of the area around him. Not seeing anyone, he decided he had no time to waste.
He formed the seal to infused chakra to the soles of his feet and quickly ran up the side of the wall.
Sorry, Dad.
Boruto clenched his jaw and leaped over the edge and into the darkness before him. He deftly maneuvered his body into position as he approached the boughs of a nearby tree. His palms landed on one of the limbs, and he flipped his body over, swinging to the next tree. His shoes landed with a tak on the limb, the chakra in his feet keeping him steady.
He continued on in this way as he schooled his senses into submission. Kawaki was deep into the forest, that much he could tell, but there seemed to be no sign that whatever was allowing Boruto to sense Kawaki was going to stop functioning. Aside from his own movements through the trees, Boruto couldn't see or hear anyone apart from himself. He was no sensory shinobi, however, apart from sensing Kawaki it seems, so he would have to keep his guard on high alert.
Boruto was glad he had the forethought to grab his ninja gear before he left the house. He reached behind him to pat the pouch at his back, as if to assure it was still there. Firmly attached. Good.
Mid-air, Boruto realized that Kawaki was moving. He hadn't been moving for some time. What was he doing? He furrowed his brow. This was beyond reckless. Boruto also knew he shouldn't be leaving the village, but maybe nobody would ever find out if he could get to Kawaki in time and bring him back.
He launched from another limb.
Boruto recalled the cool demeanor of the shadow clone at the house. He didn't think Kawaki was trying to abandon Konoha in some self-sacrificial attempt to free his Dad from the burden of protecting one of Code's targets. No, it wasn't like Kawaki was the only Kara target in Konoha now. It wasn't like Kawaki not being there would suddenly make Konoha safer. The opposite in fact.
His thoughts wandered back to the shadow clones in his dad's office and wondered how the two of them were getting along. He smirked, a small laugh escaping his lips as his open palms connected the boughs of another tree. He threw his body spread eagle into the air, his limbs moving again into position as he landed momentarily into a crouch in the next tree. He effortlessly pushed off, his body once more in the air.
His clone hadn't dispelled, that much he knew. Still, he hoped both of their clones were smart enough to realized how stupid it would be to get into a fight right now. If either of them dispelled, they'd have everyone searching for them in no time. The last thing either of them needed was tighter security if they were found out. Boruto already hated how much they were being watched these days. He hated it almost more than he hated being taken off missions. But what he hated most was being a liability to the village.
He frowned, feeling guilty. Helpless.
Thinking back to when Kawaki first came to Konoha, Boruto wondered how he dealt with being watched twenty-four seven. It was an invasion of privacy that Boruto couldn't really adjust to, but at least those ninja weren't following him around inside his own home like his dad had done to Kawaki. Boruto felt a bit sorry for Kawaki. During that time, his dad had barely ever been more than a room away from raven-haired boy. Boruto wasn't exactly sure what Kawaki's living situation had been like at Kara's base, but he imagined Kawaki was monitored pretty closely there. To have escaped that situation only to end up under the watchful eye of the Hokage, no less, must have felt like moving from one prison to another.
He was glad it wasn't like that anymore, though. More people trusted the newcomer now. Kawaki had proven himself, something Boruto now wished the teen hadn't been required to do, but understood why it was necessary for the safety of the village. Boruto took a deep breath and exhaled.
Kawaki was moving further into the forest, Boruto could suddenly sense.
"Come on," he groaned. "Give me a break!" He threw himself harder into his practiced movements, wind whipping through his hair.
He pushed himself faster through the trees. He had to catch up.
-¤-
"Where's Kawaki and Boruto?" Shikamaru asked, his expression dark.
"What?" Naruto asked, confused.
Naruto looked at Hinata, recalling she had checked on the kids earlier with her Byakugan.
"They're upstairs..." Hinata responded, eyebrow raised.
"You sure about that?" Shikamaru sounded doubtful.
"What's this all about, Shikamaru?" Naruto warned. He knew his advisor had been overly cautious the past few months ever since Kara became a threat, but Naruto wouldn't stand for unnecessary doubt to be cast upon his children. It was one thing to have to have his sons monitored day and night from a distance. It was another thing to come barging into his house. "Why's there a barrier?" His voice was louder than he would have liked.
At that moment, Hinata grabbed for his shoulder and squeezed reassuringly.
"We're checking on those two first, and then we'll talk," Shikamaru maintained. He made a move to enter the house, motioning Naruto and Hinata to lead the way. "Sorry for the intrusion," Shikamaru said. Naruto felt sure he wasn't sorry.
Naruto narrowed his eyes, but he also knew his advisor rarely made uninformed decisions.
The trio made their way upstairs, and Naruto opened the door to his office where he knew at least Kawaki was likely to be. Upon entering, he found Kawaki perched on the couch while Boruto was sitting with legs crossed upon Naruto's bed. The two boys looked at him, eyes owlish. The air felt a bit heavy.
"Uh... what's up, Dad?" Boruto stuttered.
Naruto turned to his advisor. "See?" Naruto said. "Looks like they're all here."
Shikamaru stared at the two teens in the room, wary. Kawaki relaxed back into the couch.
Hinata spoke up. "Shikamaru... perhaps there is some misunderstanding?" Leave it to Hinata to try to smooth things over, Naruto thought.
Naruto watched his advisor carefully. Shikamaru hadn't taken his eyes off the boys. "And you guys have been here all night?" Shikamaru grilled.
"Yeah, what of it?" Kawaki replied, nonchalant.
Naruto had enough of the suspicion. He turned back to his advisor. "I think it's about time you tell me what's going on, Shikamaru," Naruto was annoyed. "And again, what's with the barrier?"
Naruto saw Kawaki and Boruto make eye contact briefly and look away.
Shikamaru sighed. "Sasuke contacted me a little while ago. Code appeared in the forest outside the village," he explained.
"What? And you didn't think to notify me?" Naruto roared. "That seems kind of important, don't cha think?"
The boys straightened their poster, suddenly alert.
Hinata was grasping a tissue in one hand. Had she been holding that this whole time?
"Is he approaching the village?" Hinata asked.
"No," Shikamaru said. "He's pursuing a target west of the village."
"A target?" Naruto asked. "Who?" He felt his eyebrows twitch as they drew closer together. Code was one thing, but as far as he knew, all of Code's targets currently resided inside Konoha's walls.
"Sasuke overheard Code say something about... an Otsutsuki," Shikamaru clarified.
"An Otsuts—but they're all dead!" Naruto was beyond confused, but he couldn't help the worry that crept into the back of his mind.
"Kind of..." Shikamaru said, nodding his head in the direction of the two boys.
Naruto and Hinata both whipped their heads back towards the boys. They had been oddly quiet, Naruto noted.
His eyes narrowed, suspicious. "Do you two know something...?"
Naruto glanced between his sons. They were avoiding eye contact. Kawaki's expression was like a wall of steel Boruto plucked at a thread in his shorts.
"Naruto," Shikamaru interjected. Naruto looked back. "It's Ino. Sasuke has new information." Ino must must have contacted Shikamaru through her telepathy jutsu. "Ino, connect all of us with Sasuke." He paused. "Yes, Naruto, too."
Naruto glared at his advisor. Bastard. He had been purposefully excluding him. They would definitely have a talk about this later.
"Sasuke, you're on." A moment passed before Ino's voice rang through the minds of the five people spread throughout Naruto's small office.
"Naruto, Shikamaru." Sasuke's cool, even voice came through.
"What did you find, Sasuke?" Shikamaru asked.
"Code has changed his course northwest of the village. From what I can tell, his accomplice may have some sensory abilities, but the extent of those abilities is uncertain and inconsistent," Sasuke conveyed.
An accomplice? The unsettled feeling in Naruto's gut only grew, but he wouldn't interrupt Sasuke. He would get the rest of the details from Shikamaru later. He noticed Kawaki and Boruto had barely moved a muscle.
"Have you figured out who he's tailing?" Shikamaru asked.
"Yeah. Probably."
Naruto couldn't help but note Sasuke's tone seemed slightly off. He felt Hinata slip her hand into his own as she stepped closer to his side. He met her lavender gaze, squeezing her hand a little.
The group waited for Sasuke to continue.
"But before that, there's something you should know," Sasuke said.
"What is it?" Naruto asked, voice dark. That sour feeling in his gut multiplied.
"I've got Kawaki with me," Sasuke stated. Hinata let out a small gasp.
Four pairs of eyes were instantly on the raven-haired boy on the couch as he shrank into the cushion, panic evident in his expression.
-¤-
"Huh?" Sarada questioned.
"I said, I think Boruto just ran down that way," Mitsuki said, pointing to the darkened alleyway off the main street they were on. "But I only saw something for a second."
"You sure you're not just manifesting?" Shikadai teased, grinning.
Mitsuki was used to the way their friend group teased him about Boruto. It never bothered him from the beginning.
"I am pretty certain it was him," he said, taking another look down the alleyway. "He's not supposed to be alone, I thought." Mitsuki would send a snake after him if it were fast enough.
"Hmm," Sarada hummed. "You wanna go check it out?" she offered, adjusting her glasses.
Shikadai stopped moving momentarily, staring at nothing. Sarada and Mitsuki just watched him. They had seen that look before. The Yamanaka Clan telepathy jutsu... someone must be talking to him.
"Sorry, guys," Shikadai said, blinking after a few moments. "I'd love to help, but Aunt Ino just said my Dad wants me to go home."
Mitsuki and Sarada looked at each other briefly. "Is everything ok?" Sarada asked.
"Dunno," Shikadai said. "But she said not to worry." He sighed. "Mom's probably just mad because I'm not home yet."
Sarada smirked. "She must be pretty angry if Aunt Ino had to track you down. Try not get in any more trouble, maybe?"
"Yeah, yeah," Shikadai drawled. "Anyway, I guess I'll see you guys later." He waved a hand through the air lazily as he walked away.
Sarada glanced back at Mitsuki who looked a bit concerned.
"You're worried about Boruto?" She asked, grin falling. "This wouldn't be the first time he's gotten into trouble."
"I think we should follow him," he said simply.
Sarada pursed her lips, contemplating. "Well, alright," she conceded. "Let's go, then."
Mitsuki wasted no time before using the nearby building as a springboard up to the roof. He knew he could get a better vantage point from above. Sarada shortly followed suit, and the two ran across the tiles in tandem, chasing the shadow Boruto had left behind.