Three figures raced through the forest, leaving one afterimage after another in their wake.
They were none other than Kakashi, Rin, and Shika.
They had to reach the finish line before anyone else found both the Heaven and Earth Scrolls and made it to the Tower. Then they could lie in wait and stop every other contestant from reaching the finish line.
It was the only way to speedrun the exam.
Shika finally felt a spark of motivation—she could see the light at the end of the tunnel: finishing the exam early and going home to cuddle with Sasori.
Whoosh—
Whoosh, whoosh—
Kakashi suddenly stopped. His face was first puzzled, then grew grave.
Shika, following close behind, tilted her head in confusion.
"Weren't we heading for the finish line? Why'd you stop?"
After Obito's disappearance, the guilt-ridden Minato and his wife had devoted even more care to Kakashi. They had even taught him the Uzumaki Clan's Mind's Eye of the Kagura.
The Mind's Eye of the Kagura was originally a secret ninjutsu of the Uzumaki Clan. It was an extremely wide-range sensory technique, and one of the few techniques whose perception abilities could rival the Byakugan. It was known as an Uzumaki Clan secret because members of the clan were born with exceptionally keen senses. Other ninja could learn it, but its effectiveness would be greatly reduced.
Though the technique was far less effective for him, Kakashi had still keenly sensed something amiss while using the Mind's Eye of the Kagura.
"There are several unusual chakra signatures... They're very close! Too bad I didn't memorize the contestants' individual chakra signatures, so I can't pinpoint who they are."
Hm?
He'd spotted the plot hook.
Were enemies coming?
What a lucky break—enemies were practically delivering themselves to him!
Shika's eyes lit up