Victory Was Only to Be Expected (3.1k)

Deep in a remote primeval forest, a gigantic waterfall plunged like a silver ribbon from the heavens, crashing into the deep green pool below and raising a veil of mist.

The deafening roar of the water served as a natural barrier, masking every faint sound.

Kalifa slipped through a gap in the curtain of water. The rushing falls didn't cling to the cliff face; instead, they left a narrow opening between the water and rock. It wasn't large, but there was enough room for a person.

The instant she stepped into the gap, Kalifa's tense body relaxed by the slightest degree. She leaned against the cold rock wall and let out a long, silent breath.

After only a few seconds of rest, she swiftly regained an agent's vigilance, her sharp gaze sweeping over every corner of the cave.

Once she'd confirmed that the subtle arrangements she'd made were still undisturbed and no one had been here, she went to a corner and dug out a small, well-sealed metal box with her bare hands.

Her fingers quickly and precisely pressed several times on an inconspicuous indentation on the side of the box. With a click, the lid sprang open.

Inside were basic emergency supplies: a set of dry clothes, a few compressed biscuits, several small packets of water-purification tablets, a short roll of waterproof bandages, a small bottle of disinfectant, and a little plastic bag holding five pills of different colors.

She first took out a packet of water-purification tablets, went to the cave entrance, and used the box to collect a little water from the falls. She poured in the tablets. According to the World Government's Inter-world Operation Memorandum, the bacterial and viral profiles of different worlds varied, so raw water should be avoided whenever possible.

While she waited for the water to be purified, she took a red painkiller and a blue anti-inflammatory pill, swallowed them dry, then tore open a packet of compressed biscuits and stuffed them into her mouth almost ravenously.

The dry, coarse crumbs made for an extremely undignified way to eat, but she didn't care. She urgently needed the energy to replenish her strength.

After finishing the biscuits, she drank the purified water, then used the bandages and disinfectant to give her injured finger a quick treatment and dressing.

When she was done, a thought that left her somewhat conflicted surfaced in her mind.

Should I take a bath while I'm at it?

She was soaked from head to toe. Her usually immaculate blond hair was tangled against her cheeks and neck, and her clothes were no longer neat, covered in mud and scratches.

Worse still, sweat clung to her skin after all that strenuous activity. The noticeable smell was torture for someone with her meticulous sense of cleanliness.

"Forget it." Kalifa shook her head and sternly admonished herself, I'm an agent. How could I do something so unprofessional?

Forcibly suppressing the thought, she neatly closed the supply box and prepared to leave.

Five minutes later.

Fine, cool droplets splashed against her skin, bringing a shiver of refreshing relief.

Standing inside the gap near the curtain of water, Kalifa carefully washed herself beneath the spray. She'd already removed all of her damaged, filthy clothes.

There was no comfortable bathtub here, so she had to make do with this primitive standing shower. Still, the clean feeling of the water rinsing away sweat and grime lifted her spirits despite herself.

With a slight shift of her thoughts, her skin began secreting a fine layer of foam that covered her whole body, cleansing her more thoroughly and bringing an indescribable sense of comfort. The foam slid over her fair skin, making it seem even smoother.

This is her Devil Fruit ability. Having eaten the Bubble-Bubble Fruit, she could produce foam at will. It was incredibly convenient for washing herself.

"This isn't unprofessional," she silently told herself, though she wasn't sure who she was explaining it to. "Carefully checking my body for any tracking devices is also a necessary part of an agent's work. Washing myself is just a side benefit."

The waterfall roared outside, but its constant natural sound had somehow become a soothing lullaby, allowing her taut nerves to relax for a rare moment.

Kalifa's thoughts drifted back to that morning.

Even now, she still couldn't figure out where she'd slipped up and been discovered by that blond brat...

Then, as if in a hallucination, at the edge of her mist-shrouded vision, she suddenly saw that blond brat emerge from between her legs without warning...

...?!

Earth Release: Headhunter Jutsu.

Naruto burst up from the ground but made no aggressive move. His hands swept over Kalifa's water-beaded, slippery calves with the speed and gentleness of a lover's caress.

Then Naruto's head was kicked apart.

The Shadow Clone dissolved into a burst of white smoke, reflected in Kalifa's pupils as they contracted with utter shock. At the same time, an incongruous sizzling sound cut through the waterfall's roar.

Two yellow slips of paper, clinging to the outer side of Kalifa's smooth calves like they were fused to her bones, glowed red and sizzled.

Explosive Tags.

"Damn it...!"

BOOM—!!

Time seemed to freeze. In the next instant, the deafening explosion echoed again and again through the narrow cave. Savage flames and shock waves rampaged through the confined space like a beast out of control!

Blinding firelight swallowed Kalifa's figure. A blast of scorching air, carrying shattered rock and boiling droplets, burst in every direction. Through the thick smoke, a figure wrapped in foam staggered out of the waterfall.

"You damn brat!"

Kalifa gritted her teeth, her voice trembling slightly with pain and anger. Her entire body was now wrapped in white foam. It barely covered her private parts, and did nothing to hide her pale face or the charred wounds on the outsides of her legs.

Blood trickled from her injuries. She'd immediately used her Devil Fruit ability at full power to block the heat with foam and make her skin as slippery as possible, hoping to shake off the Explosive Tags stuck to her. But Naruto's sudden appearance had been so terrifying that even though she'd reacted well enough, some damage had been unavoidable.

Kalifa seethed inwardly.

As an agent, she instantly understood the key point:

Her opponent's successful ambush was, in truth, a reflection of the gap in their intelligence.

The blond brat knew she had ways of detecting people and had a way to evade them. But she'd had no idea that a Ninja could infiltrate underground. Her world simply had no such method of subterranean assault, so she'd never been vigilant about it.

"Lucci was right... The Ninjas in this world use far too many bizarre and unpredictable methods!"

In truth, CP9 had been infiltrating this Ninja world for only a short time. They still knew far too little about the Ninjas' wide variety of techniques.

Kalifa immediately spread her Observation Haki to its full extent. She needed to gather more information and assess the enemy so she could decide which direction to flee.

But as her Observation Haki spread, her face grew paler and paler.

East, south, west, north.

One hundred, two hundred... three thousand, four thousand...

No matter which direction she looked, her senses were filled with countless blond brats closing in on her from all sides!

Her Observation Haki radar was crowded with figures as far as she could sense, leaving her no gaps. And she could tell that every figure was solid. That had to be the Shadow Clone Technique mentioned in the intelligence...

The blond brat had used the simplest, most brutal method imaginable to block off every escape route!

"...Heh. I really did underestimate him."

A bitter smile appeared on Kalifa's face. She hadn't given up, but faced with this absurd scene, she couldn't help feeling objectively powerless.

Besides, her legs—the most important thing for escaping—had been injured by the explosion.

Weren't the Ninjas of this world supposed to be frail, crumbling at the slightest touch? So why was this brat... so absurdly powerful?

Could every Ninja learn this Shadow Clone Technique? Could they all make this many clones once they'd learned it?

The World Government had underestimated this world.

The Ninjas weren't helpless in a fight.

She only hoped she could survive and pass this intelligence on.

Kalifa stepped into the Cold Pool and picked up her weapon, the Thorn Whip.

One golden-haired head after another began emerging from the ground around her.

The shadows among the trees gradually filled with layer upon layer of figures.

Beneath the blood-red light of the setting sun, even Kalifa—a CP9 agent who carried out the World Government's darkest missions—couldn't help feeling a bone-deep chill, as though she'd seen a ghost.

"Impertinent brat."

Watching the Narutos slowly close in on her like a tide, Kalifa flicked her whip. The air cracked sharply. She adjusted her glasses, their lenses now cracked, and a blood-chilling smile blossomed on her pale face.

"What you did was... extremely serious sexual harassment."

As soon as she finished speaking, the Narutos swarmed her.

A kilometer away.

Naruto lay on the ground, panting heavily.

He'd used the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique continuously for over half an hour. Even with his monstrous chakra reserves, he couldn't help feeling exhausted.

As for the Earth Release his Shadow Clones had used, he'd picked it up from the Third Hokage.

His reason for wanting to learn Earth Release in the first place had been simple. Now that he had Wind Release as an offensive option, he naturally needed a defensive ninjutsu too. Earth Release happened to be one of the Third Hokage's strongest nature transformations, so Naruto learned whatever the Third Hokage taught him. If he didn't understand something, he could just ask.

"Thanks, Kurama."

Naruto murmured inwardly. He could feel that while he'd been gathering chakra, the Nine-Tails had secretly been supplying him with chakra to speed up his recovery.

[Thanks for what? That's disgusting!]

The Nine-Tails was a little embarrassed at being found out. [I was just curious what information that otherworldly woman could provide! I wasn't helping you!]

"Sure, sure..."

Naruto smiled helplessly, got to his feet, and headed toward where Kalifa was.

"Come on. Let's go ask her what we can find out..."

[It's over? That fast?] Kurama was a little surprised. That morning, Naruto had been beaten into a sorry state by Kalifa.

"Of course. A real fight isn't a tournament... The gap between our abilities wasn't that big to begin with. Add in the fact that I knew her while she didn't know me, and I had the advantage of striking with foreknowledge. My victory was only to be expected."

Naruto's gaze was calm.

"You have to understand, this time... I made a full eight thousand Shadow Clones, while ensuring that each one had at least a tenth of my chakra. And I paid a huge price: two Explosive Tags worth five thousand ryō each."