Watching his father's carefree smile and feeling his little sister lean against him, Boruto felt courage and trust well up inside him.
He took a deep breath, held Himawari tight, and shouted, "Here we go!"
He tipped forward and shot down the smooth curve of the Nine-Tails' back!
Wind roared past his ears. He went faster and faster, until everything before him blurred into streaks of light.
The rush of weightlessness was exhilarating. In his arms, Himawari shrieked and laughed, startled and delighted.
Boruto burst out laughing too. The wind seemed to sweep away every worry and every bit of pressure.
Just as they reached the middle of the Nine-Tails' back, their "slide" gave them a gentle upward bounce!
"Whoa!" Boruto and Himawari cried as a nimble tail flicked them lightly, sending them off the Nine-Tails' back and high into the brilliant blue sky!
The endless blue sky and white clouds filled their vision. Flying felt so free.
Boruto held his sister close, full of joy and the absolute sense of safety his father gave him.
He couldn't help shouting down at the shrinking golden beast and the figure in orange. "Dad!"
But the next instant, a fierce, uncontrollable sensation of falling seized him!
The blue sky and white clouds raced away. Below him was no longer his father's waiting embrace, but a bottomless black void!
"Ah!" Boruto cried, jolting upright on his bedding. His heart pounded, cold sweat covered his forehead, and the feeling of falling had yet to fade.
"Did you have a nightmare?" a gentle voice asked beside him, tinged with concern.
Boruto panted and turned his head in a daze. Dawn light filtered through the paper window, softly illuminating the room.
Uchiha Hikari lay on her side on the bedding beside him, her head propped on