Chunin Exams (6)

In the Forest of Death.

Team 7 moved through the trees.

Byakugan!

With her Byakugan activated, Hinata followed Naruto and Sasuke while keeping watch over every movement within a one-kilometer radius around them. This exam was clearly a no-holds-barred fight to the death. It would not be surprising for other teams to do anything for the scrolls, so they had to stay on guard.

Traps, ambushes, poison, genjutsu...

A ninja's methods were impossible to guard against.

Naruto easily leaped from one tree to another, his eyes flickering as he watched the distance behind the three of them—

Intense malice, constantly following about 1.5 kilometers behind them... Hmph, so he had figured out the range of Hinata's Byakugan surveillance? What a cunning guy, Orochimaru...

Naruto casually slapped the branch beneath his feet.

Hm? Sasuke noticed the movement beside him. Along the way, Naruto had been occasionally patting branches, tree trunks, and the like...

Flying Thunder God? What was Naruto planning to do...

Before the Chunin Exams, Naruto had displayed the Flying Thunder God Technique before the two of them, which was why Sasuke could infer the meaning behind Naruto's actions.

The Sharingan's exceptional dynamic vision also allowed him to vaguely glimpse the mark appearing beneath Naruto's palm even while they were moving.

It was a nearly imperceptible mark of black foxfire painted onto the rough, dark bark.

Could it be?!

Thinking of the dangerous person Naruto had mentioned sneaking into the Chunin Exams, as well as his warning for them to be especially careful... Could that person already be following them now?

Was Naruto planning to ambush that person?

Though his mind raced, Sasuke's feet did not stop for even a moment.

After a while.

Swish, swish, swish—

As the three passed through an open clearing, countless kunai, shuriken, and senbon suddenly shot out from every direction... There were even kunai with Explosive Tags attached!

Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle...

"What is this?!" The kunai with Explosive Tags beneath Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata's feet lit up with a dazzling glow, followed immediately by a deafening boom as they exploded.

"Success..." A three-man team from some ninja village hidden in the trees sneered.

"But won't the scrolls get damaged if we do this?"

"Who said the scrolls had to be intact to pass the exam?"

Suddenly, Sasuke's voice rang out behind them. "It seems you've misunderstood something." A kunai flashed past, blood sprayed, and one strike slit his throat! The man's body fell limply to the ground, disbelief still lingering in his eyes as they gradually lost focus.

Meanwhile, Team 7 on the ground had already dispersed into smoke. They had merely been Naruto's transformed Shadow Clones.

"At the very least, you should figure out what Konoha's Byakugan can do." Naruto directly seized and restrained another one. When he turned around, Hinata had already used Gentle Fist to seal the third person's chakra pathways, restraining him as well.

"My Chakra... I can't move..." The man's expression became incomparably ugly.

"Your scrolls." Sasuke extended his bloodstained kunai and spoke coldly.

The two did not dare make any reckless moves and obediently handed over their scrolls. By coincidence, they were exactly the Book of Earth Team 7 needed.

"Get lost." Sasuke kicked the two of them down from the tree with two sharp blows, put away the scroll, and did not linger. Together with Naruto and Hinata, he immediately leaped away.

"Our luck is too good, isn't it? We gathered all the scrolls in less than half an hour..." Naruto was speechless. In his memories, they had only managed to obtain the Books of Heaven and Earth with great difficulty on the final fifth day.

Hinata smiled happily as well. Being able to pass the exam so easily was indeed something to be glad about.

However, her Byakugan suddenly spotted something not far away—

"That is..." she whispered in surprise.

Kiba, Shino, and Sakura hid behind the grass, tense beyond measure. For a moment, they did not know whether to move or stay still.

That guy from Sunagakure with the gourd on his back... He's too terrifying... He's simply not human at all... That killing intent...

Akamaru poked his little head out from Kiba's arms and trembled in fear without stopping.

I've never seen Akamaru this scared before... Kiba comfortingly stroked Akamaru's head. The Inuzuka clan selected only exceptionally bred ninja hounds for their children. In battle, they were always fearless, the type to risk their lives to protect their masters.

And now, just the aura of that gourd-carrying guy had frightened Akamaru so badly that he did not dare move at all.

The insects on Shino's body were also deeply uneasy. Sakura nervously clutched her hair, not daring to move either.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the grass...

Gaara held an umbrella, his entire body radiating cold killing intent.

There was not the slightest emotion in the emerald-green pupils within his dark circles. As he looked at the three Rain ninja before him, it was as though he were looking at three piles of dead meat... He slowly raised his right hand.

Sand Binding Coffin!

The sand around him seemed to possess a will of its own as it coiled around the three Rain ninja like snakes. "Please, spare us..." Terror filled their faces. "We'll give you our scrolls. Please let us go!"

The sand had already covered their entire bodies.

Gaara turned a deaf ear. His right hand trembled slightly. He could feel the blood throughout his body boiling, and he could barely restrain the urge to smell the scent of blood...

He clenched his right palm tightly!

"Sand Burial!"

Bang...

A rain of dark-red blood scattered down from the sky.

What an exhilarating scent... Gaara seemed like a poet standing in the rain beneath an umbrella, his eyes closed as he savored this intoxicating moment.

"This guy..." Kankuro and Temari behind him could not help glancing over. Though they had long grown accustomed to Gaara's cruel methods, this was still... far too cruel. Gaara was simply too dangerous.

"You won't even be able to find their scrolls like this..." Temari complained softly.

"It doesn't matter..." Gaara tossed aside the umbrella drenched in blood, his voice eerie. "Aren't there still a few rats over there?" He slowly extended his right hand toward the bushes to one side.

"Rein it in a little, Gaara. Remember the plan..." Kankuro wanted to dissuade his dangerous younger brother. If they attracted too much attention, any changes to their plan for Konoha would be troublesome.

The Fourth Kazekage was personally leading the operation, and they had even brought out the village's precious Jinchuriki. There absolutely could not be any mishaps this time.

"If either of you says one more word... I'll kill you." Gaara's mental state was highly unstable. At times, he remembered that these two were his sister and brother, and ordinarily, he might still listen to them... That was also why Sunagakure had sent Kankuro and Temari to stay by his side.

But once he started killing, once his blood began to boil and the thing inside him began to stir... forget his sister and brother—even if his own father came, he would kill him without hesitation.

I want more blood...

The sand moved toward the bushes.

Hahaha, kill them, kill them! Kill even more people! It would be best if all these boring humans died! Shukaku cheered within Gaara's mind, inciting him, fanning the flames, and constantly influencing Gaara's sanity.

But just then, a hand grabbed Gaara's outstretched right hand.

No one saw how that hand had appeared.

Because its owner was simply too fast.

"You... do you want to be killed by me?" Gaara stared coldly at the person who had suddenly appeared. Remembering their encounter in the corridor earlier, he thought, This person... would be interesting to kill, wouldn't he?

"Try to restrain yourself a little, you bastard..." The Golden flames burning around Naruto's legs gradually faded away. He frowned and met Gaara's cold, merciless eyes head-on.

Is this guy trying to die, getting close to Gaara in this state...? Temari and Kankuro were both dumbfounded. They felt that Gaara was about to lose control.

"Is that Naruto...? That person... even Naruto might not be able to handle him, right?" The three people behind the bushes were utterly stunned.

Sand slowly coiled around the arm Naruto was using to grip Gaara's hand.

Yet Naruto paid it no mind. His eyes remained fixed on Gaara's, while his pupils gradually changed into the Demon Fox's vertical slits...

"Don't go too far, Shukaku..."

Naruto looked at the enormous sand monster before him—the One-Tailed Shukaku.