"All right." In the end, Shikadai—the one person on the team who most needed to keep a clear head—was the first to break the dead silence.
He rubbed his face hard, trying to keep his voice steady.
"Grief and guilt won't help us now. Besides, things might not turn out as badly for Yeto as we fear. Right, Shinki?"
"Sunagakure must have medical measures for someone in Yeto's condition, doesn't it?"
Shinki froze for a moment, then slowly nodded. "Besides standard hospital treatment, Sasori's laboratory has a backup system specifically for consciousness and Memory Data."
"To guard against problems with Yeto's abilities or seal, Father asked Sasori to perform regular Consciousness Scans and Memory Backups on her."
"If it's only memory loss, Data Restoration could theoretically bring some of it back."
A glimmer of hope returned to Shikadai's eyes. "See? There's still hope!"
"So we can't let Yeto's sacrifice be for nothing, and we can't let Child Emperor's sacrifice be for nothing either! We have to pull ourselves together and finish our mission!"
"Only then will we have a chance to return to reality and save Yeto—save everyone!"
His words struck Boruto and Shinki like a shot of adrenaline, reaching hearts almost crushed by grief.
Boruto wiped his eyes hard and lifted his head. They were still red, but determination had returned to his gaze. He looked at Shinki.
Shinki slowly let out a heavy breath. A fiercer resolve replaced the pain in his eyes. He looked at Shikadai and nodded.
"Shikadai's right." Boruto stood, his voice hoarse but firm. "We can't stop now."
"Come on! First, we find somewhere safer to hide and recover, away from Uncle Gaara's search. Then we'll find another route into the Land of Wind!"
"Right!" Shinki stood as well.
At Shikadai's direction, the four