Ino immediately nodded. Of course, she would not pass up any chance to see Sasuke.
"Sure, sure! I wonder how Sasuke and the others are doing!" But Ino's expression soon turned worried again. "And Naruto and Karin... I hope those rumors haven't affected them..."
Shikamaru shoved his hands into his pockets and let out a lazy sigh. "Sigh, it's troublesome, but we can't just ignore it. My father told me it's complicated, but they're our friends from the same class, after all."
"I believe in Naruto and Karin." Choji continued eating his chips, his stance unwavering.
At the training ground, everyone who had just finished training was taking a break.
Karin ran excitedly up to Naruto, her face flushed with happy color. "Naruto! I think... I think I really mastered the Mind's Eye of the Kagura! I can sense Chakra over a huge area around us now!"
Her face was full of dependence and joy as she looked at Naruto. The closeness she inadvertently revealed made Hinata lower her head slightly.
She had noticed Karin's undisguised reliance on and admiration for Naruto, and it stirred an indescribable ripple in the introverted Hinata's heart.
Karin noticed Hinata's unusual behavior as well, but she did not know the exact relationship between the Hyuga Clan's eldest daughter and Naruto. She only vaguely felt that the way this girl looked at Naruto was somewhat special.
"Oh? That's great." Naruto smiled encouragingly. "Try to see how far you can sense."
Karin nodded vigorously, closed her eyes, and focused as she activated her sensory technique.
However, the excitement on her face was instantly replaced by terror the next second. She snapped her eyes open and stammered, "Naruto! I... I found... a lot of unfamiliar and incredibly powerful Chakra suddenly appeared nearby! They're all... carrying intense killing