The two of them instantly tensed up. Naruto signaled for Sakura to stay silent, then dropped flat on the ground and slowly crawled toward the source of the sound.
There was no moonlight, only the sound of the stream and insects on that summer night. Although the intermittent rustling was faint, it still stood out clearly.
As the sound drew closer, Naruto vaguely made out a dark silhouette. He was about to continue forward when he accidentally pressed down on a thin branch beneath him, producing a crisp snap.
Naruto's eyelid twitched. He immediately stopped moving and held perfectly still, but the shadow seemed to have been startled by him and soon vanished from his sight.
What a shame. My biggest problem right now is that I'm far too lacking in mobility, Naruto lamented inwardly.
Last time, Orochimaru had dodged his sneak attack with Rasengan from behind, and Kin had dodged another one. His strongest offensive move at present could only kill a giant python and provide everyone with a bit of entertainment. On top of that, he had no genjutsu or anything similar that could forcibly restrain an enemy.
This gave Naruto a distinct sense of being a specialist with glaring weaknesses. Perhaps that was enough to clear a solo Naruto instance, but in a "multiplayer mode" like this, his weaknesses in certain areas might well be magnified without limit.
Looks like he would have to learn some new techniques after the second round ended.
Naruto waited silently on the ground for another ten minutes without moving. After making sure the shadow would not return, he slowly crawled forward, gradually rose to his feet, and examined the traces it had left behind.
There were one or two blurry footprints in the grass nearby. They were unmistakably human. Looking more closely, he saw a piece of paper with writing on it lying quietly on the ground.
"Again?" Naruto instantly felt terrible. For the past two days, he had even dreamed about the "insane ramblings" carved into the tree trunks. They were practically becoming a psychological shadow.
Can you at least act like a normal person?
But thinking that the note might contain important information, Naruto considered it for a moment before opening it.
A single line of Japanese had been written on it in delicate handwriting:
[Let's talk and clear up the misunderstanding. Ming]
Naruto's brow furrowed tightly. He had already prepared himself to be disgusted all over again, but the situation before him had clearly exceeded his expectations once more.
Another transmigrator? No. If this was a new transmigrator, why would she use wording like "clear up the misunderstanding"? It sounded more like something said by someone who had already come into contact with them.
Yet the writing carved into the tree trunk earlier had been obviously crooked and awkward, completely different from the handwriting now.
Naruto neither agreed nor disagreed. He brought the note back and shared it with Sakura.
Like Naruto, she had initially assumed it was a newcomer, but she quickly rejected that idea as well.
"What does this 'Ming' mean? Is it her codename?" Sakura asked, her brows knitting slightly.
"I suspect she meant, 'Let's talk tomorrow at XX time in XX place.' I made a little noise just as I was about to reach her, so the shadow ran off. She probably only finished half the note," Naruto said. He glanced around again but found nothing unusual.
"The handwriting changed, her movements are cautious and logical, and her thought process is normal..." Sakura murmured.
"I have a guess," Naruto suddenly said.
"Multiple personalities?"
"Ahem, looks like we were thinking along the same lines." Naruto scratched his head, feeling a little awkward about his abruptly interrupted display of intelligence.
"The look in her eyes when she ran away was full of fear. That reaction was perfectly normal, but it contradicted her previous move of boldly calling herself a 'werewolf,'" Sakura added. "If our deduction is correct, then her insane personality wants our recognition, while her calm personality wants to settle the dispute."
After hearing that, Naruto finally felt a sense of relief.
In terms of strength, he had nothing to fear from Kin and even felt a little like laughing. But if she was insane, that was another matter. Crazy people were impossible to predict and might well do something that made one's Sanity value plummet. That was mental contamination.
"It's fine as long as she's a normal person... Then we just have to keep moving inward normally. She'll come looking for us sooner or later."
"But what if she goes crazy again by then? And even if she's back to normal, are we really not going to eliminate her?"
Naruto said nothing. In truth, he felt somewhat resistant to the idea of "killing a patient." Patients belonged in hospitals, not on the execution ground. Unfortunately, this was the ninja world.
"We only have the option of dealing with her, but we should at least hear what she has to say first. That will make it easier to keep track of her movements," Naruto said.
The two of them discussed several other possibilities. Then Naruto told Sakura to go to sleep while he kept watch. With faint dark circles under his eyes, he took the white snake from his sleeve.
Over the past two days, he had secretly fed the little snake bits of fish from time to time, and it was still in fairly good health.
Naruto studied the little snake for a while. How was this thing supposed to be used again?
After thinking it over, he brought his lips close to the snake. "Hello, hello, is Anko there? If you can hear me, respond."
After a moment, the little snake suddenly stiffened and began speaking in a human voice. "I'm here. What is it?"
"Oh? So it really is a walkie-talkie~"
Naruto organized his wording and said softly, "According to my investigation, Otogakure was founded by Orochimaru. The three Otogakure ninja participating in the Chunin Ninja Exams are Orochimaru's subordinates. They attacked Uchiha Sasuke yesterday, but their purpose is unknown."
Naruto deliberately emphasized "their purpose is unknown," attempting to give Anko the impression that he was not omniscient.
There was a brief silence on the other end. Then the snake continued speaking in a human voice. "Understood. I'll pay special attention to those three, but if necessary, I'll report this to Lord Hokage."
"No need. Two of the three are already dead. Only Kin Hammer is still alive. I need you to track her whereabouts. She's dangerous."
There was another pause on the other end, as if Anko were digesting the massive amount of information. Naruto held the snake in his hand and looked around without hurrying.
"...What is Kin's ability? Why do you say she's dangerous?"
Hey, I can't tell you everything.
Naruto thought for a moment before saying, "She can use bells for offense and confusion, and she knows Shadow Clone. As for why she's dangerous... her mental state is rather unstable."
"Received. I'll contact you again when I have news."
Anko hung up the "call," stuffed the snake into her pocket, thought for a moment, and walked into the monitoring venue for the Chunin Ninja Exams.
It was a modern-looking room filled with surveillance cameras. Several Chunin examiners and members of the Anbu had gathered there to discuss the details of the exam.
For safety's sake, Anko ultimately chose to report Orochimaru's matter to her superiors. However, she concealed the fact that she had come into contact with Orochimaru and Naruto, saying only that her cursed seal had reacted. She also reported the details of the Grass Ninja's death.
At the same time, she looked up Naruto Uzumaki's records and learned that the Nine-Tails was sealed inside him.
"So that's how it is. He must have grown up in misery, which is why he trained himself into possessing such abilities," Anko thought.
But when it came to Kin, Anko had her own opinion.
Before you continue