"There." Kiyomi's voice trembled, ""Heart"... beating there."
"It seems the target is very clear." Kawaki lifted his backpack, "Go in directly?"
"No." Sasuke pressed Kawaki's shoulders, "Look below."
Following Sasuke's line of sight, several huge puppets were patrolling at the entrance to the city. They were not ordinary puppets, but semi-mechanical products with cables connected to their bodies and eyes flashing red.
"That's the guard modified by Scientific Ninja Tool." Mitsuki released a small white snake, which slid down the rock wall. After a while, the information was sent back, "They have thermal imaging and Chakra sensing radar. If you break in forcefully, the alarm will sound throughout the entire country."
"Then take the sewer." Boruto pointed at the huge drains, "I am a sewer expert... uh, I mean, I have experience."
Sasuke glanced at the dark hole. Although he didn't want to admit it, this was indeed the best plan.
"Let's go." Sasuke jumped in first, "Welcome to hell."
Amegakure's sewers aren't much cleaner than the ones above, but at least there aren't those annoying patrol planes.
The interior of the huge pipe was covered with moss and unknown luminous fungi, and the air was filled with the mixed smell of Machine Oil, rust and rot. The water flow was fast, and occasionally some scrapped mechanical parts could be seen flowing down the river, hitting the pipe wall with a dull sound.
"I said..." Boruto pinched his nose and said in a muffled voice, "The smell here is ten times worse than Leaf's sewer. Did that guy Amado build a septic tank and an arsenal together?"
"Quiet." Sasuke walked in front, and the Chakra under his feet allowed him to step firmly on the slippery water. "The sound spreads far in the pipe."
Kiyomi was caught in the middle of the team, and Kawaki walked behind her. She kept her head down, staring at the black water under her feet, and her body would occasionally twitch involuntarily.
"Cold?" Kawaki asked.
Kiyomi shook his head and nodded again.
Kawaki sighed, pulled out the spare blanket from the backpack, and wrapped it roughly around her. "This is what I have to pay back."
"There is something ahead." Mitsuki suddenly stopped and put his finger on his lips.
Everyone held their breath for a moment and clung to the shadows on both sides of the tube wall.
A few seconds later, there was a buzzing sound. Three large mosquito-like drones flew past with flashing blue lights. They had syringe-like probes hanging on their bottoms and pierced into the water from time to time, as if they were testing the water quality.
"It's the sampling machine." Sarada whispered, "They are monitoring the Chakra residue in the water."
"It seems that the owner of this place is very cautious." Sasuke watched the drone go away, "Boruto, use your eraser Rasengan to kill the camera in front. Don't make any noise."
Boruto nodded, and condensed a Rasengan that was only the size of a billiard ball in his hand, flicking it casually. Rasengan disappeared during the flight, and the next second, a surveillance probe dozens of meters away silently shattered into powder.
"Nice job."
The team continues to move forward.
As we go deeper, the pipeline becomes more and more complex, like a mess. Some strange graffiti begins to appear on the wall, which was left by the Amegakure survivors.
"God is dead".
"Angel Broken Wings".
"Only machines can live forever".
Looking at these graffiti, Sarada felt a little heavy. "What have the people here... experienced?"
"Faith collapsed." Sasuke said lightly, "After Nagato died, this place lost its shelter. After Konan died, this place lost hope. Then Kara Organization came and gave them a new "god" - technology."
"But the price is too high." Sarada looked at a huddled skeleton in the corner. The arm of the skeleton had been replaced by a rusty mechanical arm. "For the sake of strength, do you even give up your body?"
"For people who are about to starve to death, the power of getting bread is a miracle." Kawaki interjected coldly, "You young masters and ladies who live in peaceful villages don't understand this kind of despair at all."
Boruto opened his mouth to refute, but saw Kawaki's gloomy side face and swallowed it back.
"We're here." Kiyomi suddenly stopped.
There was a thick metal wall in front of him, blocking the way. There were no door handles on the wall, only a complicated electronic keyboard.
"A dead end?" Boruto knocked on the wall, "With this thickness, if you blow it hard, it will definitely trigger the alarm."
"Get out of the way." Sasuke stepped forward and pulled out Kusanagi Sword. Lightning Release Chakra vibrated at high frequency on the blade, making a harsh sound like a bird's song.
"Wait, Master." Mitsuki stopped him, "This is a pressure sensing door. Once the force is uneven, poisonous gas will be released inside. Let me do it."
Mitsuki stretched out his hand, and his fingers turned into countless tiny white snakes and got into the gaps on the keyboard.
"This is Amado's old-fashioned encryption method." Mitsuki closed his eyes, as if he was solving a complex mathematical problem, "The underlying logic is... Snake?"
"Huh?" Boruto was stunned.
"The combination lock is a small game." Mitsuki's fingers jumped quickly, "As long as you clear the level, you can Gate of Opening. It seems that the person who designed this door has a bad taste."
There was only a "click" sound, and the heavy metal door slowly slid open.
The scene behind the door made everyone take a breath.
This is not a room, but a huge vertical cavity. Countless transparent Culture Tank are embedded in the surrounding walls like a honeycomb, extending into the invisible depths of darkness.
There is a person in every Culture Tank. In other words, there was a person in the past.
Most of their bodies have been replaced by machines, with tubes inserted into the back of their heads and their eyes closed. There are bubbles in the green Nutrient Solution.
"This is..." Sarada covered her mouth, her stomach churning.
"Living server." Sasuke's face was terrifyingly gloomy, "That guy Amado, the so-called "host" is a network composed of these human brains?"
"Not exactly." Kiyomi walked into this scary space, and her expression calmed down. She walked to the nearest Culture Tank and put her hand against the glass.
The "person" inside suddenly opened his eyes. Those were not human eyes, but electronic eyes flashing with data.
"They are voluntary." Kiyomi said softly, "In order to no longer be hungry, in order to no longer suffer, they dedicated themselves to the "New God"."
"What kind of god is this!" Boruto punched the railing angrily, "This is simply hell!"
"Welcome to my sanctuary."
A synthesized electronic sound echoed in the void, and the sound seemed to come from all directions.
"Leaf's guests, and... my cute escaped white mouse."
The surrounding lights suddenly turned red.