Karin Uzumaki

Naruto and the others signed the death waivers, but being a ninja was truly a high-risk profession.

"Here, you keep the scroll." Sasuke looked at the scroll in his hand, but ultimately handed it to Naruto; he trusted in Naruto's strength.

"Heaven Scroll." Naruto lowered his head, took a glance, and tucked it into his robes.

The Forest of Death had many entrances. Naruto was well aware of his own strength and knew that Orochimaru would inevitably seek out Sasuke, so he didn't bother choosing; he simply entered through the nearest one.

Seeing Naruto's situation from behind, everyone's expressions shifted, lost in thought.

Orochimaru chuckled, finding it somewhat interesting.

Inside the Forest of Death, Naruto and his team walked forward.

"What's the plan now?" Sasuke asked.

"No rush. We have three days; whoever we run into, we take their scroll." Naruto said casually.

Sasuke nodded.

A venomous snake suddenly slithered across the ground, causing Naruto to frown.

"Pay attention, you two. I'm going to release a bit of my presence to drive away the vermin." Naruto glanced at them; in truth, he was worried about Hinata getting bitten.

Both were stunned, not quite understanding, and Naruto offered no explanation.

In an instant, a low-pressure aura radiated from Naruto. Any animal, regardless of whether it possessed intelligence, would feel a sense of terror. The surrounding venomous creatures scattered and fled, while Hinata and Sasuke, standing beside Naruto, felt a chill run down their spines.

Wherever Naruto passed, snakes, insects, rats, and ants fled in droves. Sasuke frowned, unable to comprehend what kind of ability this was, while Hinata looked on, deep in thought.

The Byakugan had similar capabilities, but Hinata could not yet achieve this.

The trio's pace was neither slow nor hurried; they were not in the slightest bit anxious.

"Naruto, for this Chunin Exams, I hope you'll give it your all." Sasuke spoke up.

"Want to spar with me?" Naruto rolled his eyes in silence.

Sasuke was too heavily influenced by Indra, or perhaps he didn't even realize it himself: defeating Naruto brought him more joy than seeking his revenge.

When the Uchiha clan was wiped out, Sasuke awakened the One-Tomoe Sharingan; after being defeated by Naruto, he awakened the Two-Tomoe Sharingan. Naruto found it all quite speechless. He didn't doubt for a second that if Sasuke stabbed himself, he would surely awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan on the spot.

However, Naruto had no intention of helping the other party awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan.

Whenever Sasuke gained a shred of confidence, he wanted to fight Naruto; the two of them were already used to this dynamic.

Time passed quickly. While Naruto's group was in no rush and walked slowly, others had already encountered one another, especially those who had their own methods of reconnaissance to pass the exam.

Most battles were relatively restrained; as long as the opponent handed over the scroll, few would go for the kill. There were exceptions, however, such as Gaara, who treated killing as a form of amusement.

On another path, the Kusagakure team containing Karin Uzumaki had just finished a battle, and both were nursing minor injuries.

"Trash, get over here." A Kusagakure ninja said to Karin Uzumaki.

Karin Uzumaki was terrified. She knew exactly how her mother had died, and she was deathly afraid of meeting the same fate.

Seeing her remain motionless, the man stepped forward and slapped her, grabbed her long red hair, and bit down hard on her shoulder.

"Ah!"

As the wounds on his body healed, his chakra was replenished.

Karin Uzumaki couldn't help but scream, causing the other Kusagakure ninja to frown.

"Don't kill her. It's basically impossible to find another tool as useful as this."

The way the two looked at her, they didn't consider her a teammate in the slightest.

Not far away, Naruto and his team heard the scream.

"Something's happening." Sasuke prepared himself.

Hinata activated her Byakugan.

"There's a squad over there."

Naruto didn't care. They weren't on the same path, and he didn't want to take a detour; his goal was Orochimaru.

However, he still subconsciously used his sensory abilities to check, and his body suddenly paused, his brow furrowing involuntarily.

"What's wrong?" Hinata asked.

"Nothing. Let's continue." Naruto said, his face expressionless.

Both could see that something was bothering Naruto, but it wasn't convenient to ask.

After Naruto walked away, a Shadow Clone appeared in his place.

"Uzumaki Clan." Naruto's expression was somewhat gloomy. He had no emotional attachment to his own kin and was even inclined to ignore them, but if he encountered them... not to mention knowing what they were going through.

If he hadn't run into this, Naruto would have forgotten about this whole affair.

The fate of the Uzumaki clan was rarely good, but the fate of that mother and daughter could be called the most tragic.

After their country was destroyed, they fled to Kusagakure, only to be imprisoned and used as tools—living chakra batteries—until her mother was eventually drained of all chakra and died. Karin Uzumaki had inherited her mother's position; if she hadn't been saved by Sasuke later and taken in by Orochimaru, who knew what would have become of her.

Naruto's figure appeared above the three of them. Karin Uzumaki was the first to sense Naruto's chakra; even for a Shadow Clone, the sheer, terrifying volume of chakra was beyond anything she could have imagined.

"What's with that look? Tired of living?" The Grass ninja couldn't help but curse when he saw her terrified expression.

The other one was a bit sharper; he immediately looked toward where Karin Uzumaki was staring: the sky.

His pupils instantly constricted.

Since when?

Hovering above their heads, a person looked down at the three of them with an expressionless face.

"Enemy!" he shouted immediately.

The two reacted, instantly drawing their weapons to guard against Naruto.

"It's you." The two quickly recognized Naruto.

"Damn bitch, you didn't even warn us about an enemy! We'll deal with you later." The two were furious, already calculating how they would punish her later.

"What do you think you're doing, brat?" The two suddenly puffed themselves up. Although Naruto was standing in mid-air, it didn't scare them; there were too many strange ninjutsu in the Ninja World, and just because they hadn't seen it before didn't mean it was powerful.

Naruto didn't waste words; to deal with scum like this, he struck directly.

His figure vanished and reappeared between the two. Two foxes manifested, swallowing the pair in one gulp. They couldn't even react, and in an instant, they vanished without leaving a trace of ash behind.

"Don't kill me, I'm still useful!" Karin Uzumaki, who had watched the entire scene, retreated in terror. As a Grass ninja, she currently possessed no real strength. Her later prowess was due to Orochimaru's tutelage; though Orochimaru was a piece of work, there was no doubting his ability to train subordinates.

"I'm here to save you. My name is Naruto Uzumaki." After saying this, fearing she wouldn't believe him, Naruto reverted his hair to its natural red.

Seeing Naruto's red hair, Karin Uzumaki relaxed significantly.

"Thank you, my name is Karin Uzumaki." Karin Uzumaki stood up immediately.

Having heard her mother's stories about the Uzumaki Clan when she was young, she was deeply moved to see a fellow clansman now.

"Mn. The Chunin Exams are still ongoing, so I'll send you to a place first. Once I finish the exams, we can discuss your situation." Naruto thought for a moment before speaking; Karin Uzumaki couldn't stay in Konoha, as it wouldn't be good for either her or him.

That old man Danzo was not someone who knew how to sit still.