Saving... Who Was It Again?

BOOM!

Another explosion erupted from up ahead.

Guy's expression tightened, and he surged forward with even greater speed.

Explosive tags.

It had to be a person.

If it was a person, there was a high chance it was a classmate.

He didn't have time to wonder who.

Obito? Ebisu? Or Gekko Hayate?

Whoever it was, he had to be fast!

Anko shouted something behind him, but he didn't catch it.

He didn't have time to listen, either.

The forest blurred past on both sides, branches whipping against his face with stinging force, but he didn't bother to dodge.

Another muffled thud, accompanied by a wolf's howl.

They were still fighting!

Guy gritted his teeth and pushed his speed even higher.

The moment he burst out of the woods, he saw it.

A clearing under the moonlight.

A charred crater was still smoking, with several wolf carcasses lying near the edge.

On the other side of the crater, over a dozen grey-black wolves were frantically swarming and biting at a figure.

The person was backed against a tree, covered in a dense mass of black insects, struggling desperately to hold them off.

Insects surged out continuously, only to be swatted away by wolf claws.

But there were too many wolves.

Wave after wave.

The person already had several bloody gashes, and their clothes were torn in multiple places.

Guy's gaze swept over that face.

It looked familiar.

The kind of... familiar where you feel like you've seen them somewhere, but can't for the life of you remember where.

Forget it.

As long as they were a classmate, that was enough!

"Move!"

His broadsword cleared its sheath.

The blade's light carved an arc through the moonlight; the lead wolf didn't even have time to react before its head went flying.

Blood sprayed three feet high.

The remaining wolves turned in unison.

Over a dozen glowing green eyes locked onto this uninvited guest who had suddenly charged into the fray.

Guy grinned.

"Come."

The first one lunged.

A flash of the blade.

Split in two.

The second one pounced from the side.

He side-stepped and raised his leg.

"BANG!"

Vajra Leg.

The wolf flew off like a rubber ball, slammed into a tree, slid down, and stopped moving.

The third and fourth lunged simultaneously.

The blade swept horizontally, his leg followed through.

Two heads flew, one spine snapped.

The remaining wolves were finally afraid.

They circled him, growling low, but dared not lunge again.

Guy couldn't be bothered to waste time on them.

He charged into the pack.

Like slicing melons and chopping vegetables.

It was truly like slicing melons and chopping vegetables.

Wherever the blade flashed, wolf carcasses went flying.

Wherever the shadows of his legs struck, bones shattered.

In less than twenty seconds.

A dozen wolves lay scattered across the ground.

The last one tried to flee, but Guy caught up and pinned its head with one foot.

"Crack."

The world went quiet.

Guy sheathed his blade and caught his breath.

Not bad, he'd loosened up his joints.

He turned back to look at the person leaning against the tree.

Anko finally burst out from the woods, clutching her knees and panting heavily.

"You... you ran so fast... are you trying to kill me?"

Then she looked up, saw the wolf corpses littering the ground, and froze.

"You... you finished them all?"

Guy nodded.

"Yeah."

Anko walked over and nudged the nearest one with her foot.

It was plump and lean, its fur oily and bright.

She frowned.

"What a waste, wolf meat doesn't taste good."

Guy looked at her, speechless.

So that's why you were frowning, you were thinking about that?

Ignoring Anko, he walked over to the person leaning against the tree.

The man was still gasping for air, the insects on his body slowly crawling back into his clothes.

He revealed his face.

It was very ordinary.

His face was smeared with blood and dust, but he didn't seem to have any fatal wounds.

Guy reached out and helped him up.

"You alright?"

The man looked up at him.

His gaze was somewhat complex.

After two seconds, he spoke.

His voice was hoarse, tinged with the relief of having survived a disaster.

"I'm not dead."

"Thank you."

He paused.

"You saved me again."

Guy blinked, stunned.

Again?

He looked at that face, trying hard to recall.

But his mind was a blank slate.

Who is this guy?

When did he ever save him?

The man watched his expression, and the relief on his face slowly stiffened.

"You..."

He spoke tentatively.

"You haven't forgotten me, have you?"

Guy blinked.

Then, a look of embarrassment surfaced on his face.

That expression said it all.

The man's face visibly slumped.

He looked a bit aggrieved.

He looked a bit hurt.

And there was a sense of resignation, as if to say, "I knew it would be like this."

Anko, standing to the side, couldn't bear to watch any longer.

She walked over and waved at the man.

"Student Aburame, hello."

The man nodded.

"Student Anko."

Anko turned her head to look at Guy.

"Aburame Shikuroo. The one from the bandit den last time, the one who almost died."

Guy finally remembered.

Right!

The one lying in a pool of blood half a year ago!

The one who had been slashed across the back and rushed to the hospital by Ikkaku Umino!

He slapped his thigh hard.

"I remember now, I remember! It's you!"

Shikuroo looked at him, his expression complex.

"Yeah, it's me."

Guy scratched his head and gave a sheepish laugh.

"About that... sorry, my memory isn't exactly great..."

Shikuroo was silent for two seconds.

"It's fine."

He was already used to it.

Truly used to it.

Guy coughed twice, hurriedly changing the subject.

"Right, what was that explosion just now? Did you use explosive tags?"

Shikuroo shook his head.

"Not explosive tags."

He raised his hand.

A black bug crawled out from his sleeve and rested in his palm.

"It's an Explosive Bug."

Guy leaned in to look.

The bug was tiny, barely larger than a grain of rice, pitch-black, and sat there motionless.

But looking closely, one could see a faint red glow emanating from its abdomen, like a piece of burning charcoal.

"I raised them," Shikuroo said. "They usually absorb my chakra to store it, and at critical moments, I can make them self-destruct."

He paused, looking down at his own body.

Those black bugs were still slowly wriggling.

But their movements were noticeably slower, and some were even just lying there, unmoving.

"There were too many wolves just now, so I released the rest of them."

He raised his hand, and the Explosive Bug slowly crawled back into his sleeve.

"My chakra is drained; if you guys hadn't come..."

He didn't finish.

But the meaning was already very clear.

Guy nodded.

So that's how it is.

He glanced at the insects, then back at Aburame Shikuroo.

This guy really had almost died again.

Two missions, two brushes with death.

His luck was truly one of a kind.

Guy patted him on the shoulder. "Alright, come with us from here on out."

Aburame Shikuroo was stunned.

"Together?"

"Yeah." Guy pointed at Anko. "The two of us are a team. If you keep going alone, there's no guarantee someone will be there to save you next time."

Aburame Shikuroo was silent for two seconds.

Then he nodded.

"Fine."

He propped himself up and brushed the dust off his clothes.

The insects followed his movements, slowly crawling back into his garments.

Guy watched him finish packing up, then asked, "By the way, have you seen anyone else?"

Aburame Shikuroo shook his head.

"No."

"I've been heading east ever since I came in, but I think I went off course. You're the first people I've encountered."

Guy nodded.

Fair enough.

At least he knew the direction was likely correct.

Besides, since everyone was moving toward this location, it should be easier to run into others later on.

Guy turned and walked toward the forest.

"Let's go."

Anko followed.

Aburame Shikuroo followed as well.

After a few steps, he suddenly spoke up.

"Um..."

Guy turned back.

"Yeah?"

Aburame Shikuroo looked at him.

Under the moonlight, his plain face wore a serious expression.

"Thank you."

Just two words.

But the tone was sincere.

Guy grinned.

He gave a thumbs up.

His teeth flashed in the moonlight.

"What's there to thank? We're all classmates."

Aburame Shikuroo looked at that hand.

Then he looked at that face.

He froze for two seconds.

Then he lowered his head.

"Yeah."

Anko watched from the side and couldn't help but laugh.

"Let's go, let's go. If we keep dawdling, it'll be dawn."

Three figures vanished into the night.

The fourth day in the Forest of Death.

The team had become three.