Naruto looked into Karin's eyes, still streaked with tears yet gradually kindling with hope. He nodded without saying anything more, formed hand seals, and created a Shadow Clone.
"You take her out of the Forest of Death to somewhere safe. Wait for me to come back," Naruto instructed his Shadow Clone.
Having received the order, the Shadow Clone gestured to Karin. "Follow me."
Before the exam began, Anko had announced the rules of the Forest of Death: all three members of a team had to reach the central tower together with both the Heaven and Earth Scrolls to pass. Naruto had already killed Karin's two Grass ninja "companions," so she naturally could not continue the exam.
Karin cast one last look toward Naruto's original body, as though she wanted to say something. But in the end, she merely pressed her lips together and quickly followed Naruto's Shadow Clone.
After they left, Naruto bent down and picked up the Earth Scroll that the Grass ninja had thrown onto the ground, forcibly stuffing it into his already overflowing ninja tool pouch.
"Looks like I'll need to find a bag for these."
Muttering to himself, Naruto's figure flickered once more and vanished from the spot.
Inside the Forest of Death's central tower.
Anko Mitarashi rushed back to the central tower of the Forest of Death as fast as she could.
Right now, all she wanted was to immediately report Orochimaru's appearance to the Third Hokage, along with the even more unbelievable news that Naruto Uzumaki had defeated Orochimaru.
The moment she charged into the tower's command room, several Chunin examiners responsible for monitoring the test crowded around her.
"Examiner Anko, you came at just the right time! Come look at this!" one of them shouted, pointing at a screen in the middle