"Kill them," a voice came from the end of the corridor, "It's the only mercy."
Everyone turned around and saw a young warrior standing in the shadows. He was wearing damaged armor, holding a broken knife in his hand, his eyes were empty and desperate.
"Who are you?" Mifune frowned.
"Okita," the young warrior said, "A former member of the Border Patrol. Three days ago, my captain began to mutate. I... ended him with my own hands. Then I discovered that I was also in the early stage."
He stretched out his left hand, and black veins could be faintly seen squirming under his skin.
"Why can you still stay sane?" Boruto asked, Qiao was quickly analyzing this special case.
"Because I cut off my Qi pulse before the mutation started." Okita said calmly, "Now I am a useless person, but at least I am still a human being."
"Self-cutting your meridians?" Mifune was shocked, "That's a suicidal behavior!"
"It's better than becoming a monster." Okita looked at the cells with deep sadness in his eyes, "My captain... He is the strongest warrior, General Mifune. He taught me the true meaning of 'qi' and told me that the soul of a warrior lies in protection. But now, his soul is imprisoned in that body, and even death has become a luxury."
Boruto walked towards him and stopped three steps away. The bridge was scanning with all its strength, trying to understand the special characteristics of Okita.
"There is some kind of antibody in your body," Boruto said in surprise, "It's not against mutation, but... coexistence. Those black energies are not engulfing you, but adapting to you."
"What does this mean?" Okita looked up, a glimmer of hope flashing in his eyes.
"It means there may be a third option." Boruto said, "It's not evolution, not extinction, but...Symbiosis. Like me and Qiao."
This proposal silenced everyone. Naruto's expression became complicated. He remembered how his son coexisted with Momoshiki and how he established a connection with the bridge. That road was full of dangers, but it also brought power beyond ordinary people.
"How to do it?" Okita asked.
"I need time to study," Boruto said, "And this requires you to trust me completely. When my consciousness enters your Mental Space, you cannot resist."
Okita looked at Boruto, at this ninja who was much younger than himself. He saw the fatigue in Boruto's eyes, and also saw the determination behind that fatigue. That was the look of someone who had experienced true despair.
"I trust you," he said, "Because I have nothing to lose."
The purification process is more complicated than Boruto expected. Okita's Mental Space is completely different from ordinary people - there is no castle, no garden, only an endless snowfield, symbolizing the purity and cruelty of Bushido. In the center of the snowfield, there is an ice sculpture, which is the captain of Okita, maintaining a posture of wielding a sword.
"That's my fear," Okita's consciousness sounded in the wind and snow, "I'm afraid that I won't be able to reach his height, and I'm afraid of living up to his expectations. This fear... is something that mutation cannot swallow."
"No," Qiao said, "On the contrary. This kind of strong emotion is the target of mutation. Otsutsuki's technology requires fuel, and emotions-especially pain, fear, and obsession-are the best fuels."
"Then what should we do?"
"Transformation." The bridge's Light Spot lights up on the snowy field, "It's not about eliminating emotion, but about changing its nature. Transforming fear into alertness, and obsession into determination. This is not suppression, but sublimation."
Boruto guided the power of the bridge and touched the ice sculpture carefully. He did not try to melt it, but injected his own memories into it - about Shi's sacrifice, about the birth of the bridge, and about those he could not save. He made Okita see that even the deepest pain can become the nutrient for growth.
The ice sculpture began to change. Cracks appeared on its surface, but it was not a sign of collapse, but a sign of some kind of Newborn. From the cracks, green buds grew out, growing tenaciously in the ice and snow.
"This is..." Okita was shocked.
"Hope," Boruto said, "Hope that can grow even in the most desperate circumstances."
When the process was over, Okita opened his eyes. The black lines under his skin did not disappear, but their nature changed - no longer chaotic creeping, but an orderly flow, like some kind of tattoo, or like a channel of energy.
"I feel..." Okita moved his arms, "The power is back. But it's not 'qi', it's something more primitive."
"Chakra," Boruto said, "The energy common to all life on this planet. Your current state is between a samurai and a ninja, between a human and... some new existence."
"Is this evolution?"
"It's adaptation," Qiao said in Boruto's consciousness, "Evolution is too grand, and this is just a tiny, individual adaptation. But perhaps, it is these tiny adaptations that will eventually accumulate into real evolution."
The news quickly spread throughout Land of Iron. Those warriors in the early stages requested the same treatment, but Boruto had to refuse - not every Mental Space could withstand this transformation, and not everyone had Okita's obsession that could serve as an anchor. Forcing it would only lead to a mental breakdown.
"We can only save some people," Boruto said to Mifune, "And even if we succeed, they are no longer pure warriors. This is a road of no return."
Mifune has been silent for a long time. As a general, he has protected the tradition of Land of Iron for decades. But now, tradition is becoming a shackles.
"Let them choose," he finally said, "The soul of a warrior lies in autonomy. Even if they are faced with destruction, they have the right to choose how to face it."
This decision triggered a fierce debate in Land of Iron. Most of the young warriors were willing to try, while the older ones insisted on traditional dignity. The differences spread across the snowfield, like an invisible crack.
And behind all this, Boruto felt that something larger was watching. Not the bridge, not any consciousness he knew, but something older and grander - the planet itself, or some kind of force that weaves the destiny of this planet.
"Great Selection" was accelerating, and he had just touched its edge.
The news returned faster than Boruto. While they were still trudging in the wind and snow of Land of Iron, rumors about the "third option" had spread throughout Five Great Nations. Some called it salvation, some called it a curse, and some saw it as the erosion of the samurai tradition in the ninja world - a political storm was forming, and Boruto was at the center of the storm.
"You should not make decisions without authorization." Tsunade said sternly in Hokage's Office. Although this Fifth Hokage has abdicated, his majesty remains unchanged. "The agreement with Land of Iron involves the balance of the entire Shinobi World, and it is not something you can bear alone."
"I have no choice," Boruto responded calmly, "If I don't act, Okita will turn into a monster, and more mutations will occur. The consequences will be ten times more serious than they are now."