Precious Treasure

After some preparation, the treasure-hunting team was finally ready to embark on their journey to find the treasure. They hid at the entrance of Konoha, each carrying a pack filled with various supplies, their faces a mix of excitement and nervousness.

"Follow the plan. I'll slip out first, then I'll use the Flying Thunder God to bring you all out," Menma said, looking at the group.

After the others nodded, Menma handed a Flying Thunder God Kunai to Naruto, then vanished instantly using the Flying Thunder God.

There was already a Flying Thunder God Mark left outside Konoha, which Menma had specifically placed during a previous secret excursion.

Menma arrived at the location of the Flying Thunder God Mark, scanned the area to ensure no one was around, and activated the technique.

With a "whoosh," the others appeared instantly before Menma. Once they confirmed everyone was present, they quickly displayed the supplies they had brought along.

Kuaiyu took out the treasure map again, studying the patterns and markings carefully, attempting to determine their first destination.

"Based on this mark, I think we should head toward the forest on the east side of the village first," Kuaiyu said, pointing to a tree-like pattern on the treasure map.

Naruto rubbed his hands together excitedly. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!" With that, he took the lead and ran toward the east.

Menma shook his head with a smile and followed, with the others trailing close behind.

Upon entering the forest, they found it to be even more eerie than they had imagined. The towering trees blocked out the sky, allowing sunlight to cast only mottled shadows through the gaps in the leaves. A faint mist permeated the surroundings, significantly reducing visibility.

Shikamaru frowned, observing his surroundings vigilantly. "Everyone, be careful. Something feels off here." He recalled the time they had snuck out to play with Yota, which made him even more cautious.

No sooner had he spoken than several small ninja beasts darted out from the nearby bushes. These beasts had blood-red eyes and bared sharp claws as they lunged toward them.

"It's a Red-Eyed Wolverine! Everyone, watch out!" Hinata warned loudly.

Naruto immediately charged forward. "Shadow Clone!" In an instant, over a dozen Naruto clones rushed toward the wolverines.

Menma was not to be outdone; he formed hand seals. "Fire Style! Great Fireball Technique!"

A massive fireball erupted from Menma's mouth, the scorching flames instantly incinerating most of the wolverines.

Kuaiyu focused his energy, attempting to cast a genjutsu on the remaining wolverines.

His eyes began to flicker with a strange light, but because the chakra in the forest was quite chaotic, the effectiveness of his genjutsu was greatly diminished.

Just then, Shikamaru calmly directed the group: "Hinata, use your Byakugan to scan the surroundings and see if there are any more wolverines. Menma, Kuaiyu, the three of us will handle these ones in front. Naruto, Kiba, find an opportunity to attack from the flanks. Choji, protect Hinata!"

Following Shikamaru's instructions, everyone moved quickly. Hinata activated her Byakugan, carefully searching for any movement nearby.

Menma, Kuaiyu, and Shikamaru coordinated with each other, skillfully dodging the attacks of the remaining wolverines while looking for chances to counterattack.

Naruto and Kiba quietly circled to the side of the wolverines, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

Suddenly, Naruto seized the opportunity and shouted, "Rasengan!" A blue sphere of chakra formed rapidly in his hand, and he charged toward the pack of wolverines.

Seeing this, Kiba unleashed his ancestral Passing Fang and charged out as well.

The wolverines were scattered by Naruto's sudden attack, and the few remaining ones, sensing defeat, quickly fled deep into the forest.

The group breathed a slight sigh of relief, but Shikamaru remained frowning. "The dangers in this forest seem to be more numerous than we imagined. Everyone, don't let your guard down."

As they ventured deeper into the forest, the dangers they encountered became increasingly bizarre. Sometimes it was a suddenly triggered trap, other times it was giant vines descending from the sky, attempting to ensnare them. Each time a danger appeared, it felt as if it had been meticulously planned.

In the shadows, the mysterious figure in the black cloak had been silently observing their every move. From time to time, he would cast ninjutsu to create various obstacles, yet he skillfully maintained a balance, ensuring they would not suffer any fatal injuries.

Kuaiyu always had a strange feeling; he felt that there was some hidden meaning behind these dangers, as if someone was secretly testing them. But he couldn't figure out who would do such a thing; after all, this was a treasure-hunting journey full of unknown perils.

They continued forward until they reached a turbulent river. The water was surging, and hidden undercurrents seemed to lurk within the flow; one wrong step could result in being dragged to the bottom.

"How are we going to get across?" Choji asked, looking at the river with concern.

Menma observed the surrounding environment and noticed some stones with large gaps between them. "We can jump across these stones, but we must be very careful."

Naruto was the first to step up. "I'll try first." He took a deep breath and jumped toward the first stone. However, when he reached the third stone, a powerful undercurrent suddenly surged, nearly knocking him over.

"Naruto, watch out!" Shikamaru shouted. He quickly used the Shadow Possession Jutsu, controlling Naruto's body at the last possible second.

Naruto gave Shikamaru a grateful look and then continued to jump toward the opposite bank with extreme caution. With everyone helping each other, despite a few close calls, they all successfully crossed the river.

However, the mysterious person's tests continued. Shortly after crossing the river, they walked into an area filled with dense fog. In the mist, their vision was severely restricted, and their sense of direction became blurred.

"Everyone, stay close. Don't get separated," Shikamaru said.

Yet, despite their extreme caution, someone ran into trouble. Hinata suddenly felt a powerful suction force, and her body began to drift uncontrollably in one direction.

"Hinata!" Everyone shouted her name in succession.

Menma quickly focused his chakra, attempting to use Wind Style to disperse the fog and find Hinata. Naruto rushed toward the direction where Hinata had disappeared.

Just as Hinata was about to be sucked into a mysterious black hole, Menma arrived in time. He grabbed Hinata's hand firmly and swung her away with all his might, and Naruto caught her steadily.

"Earth Style! Earth Style: Earth Wall!" At that moment, a massive earthen wall appeared in front of Menma, and the moment the wall appeared, the suction of the black hole vanished.

"Fire Style! Majestic Destroyer Flame!" Menma jumped up and spewed a massive torrent of flames toward the black hole. The moment the scorching fire touched the black hole, it shattered directly, and the suction force disappeared along with it.

"Thank you," Hinata said, still shaken.

After this series of tests, the doubts in Kuaiyu's heart grew deeper. He always felt that the mysterious person who kept causing trouble in the shadows seemed very familiar with them—familiar enough to know each of their abilities and weaknesses.

Furthermore, he discovered that many of the traps were genjutsu, which meant they didn't know when they had fallen into a massive genjutsu, and this massive genjutsu was very similar to the genjutsu of his own Kurama Clan.

This made Kuaiyu even more convinced that this was definitely the correct path to the treasure. He shared this thought with Menma and the others, and everyone nodded, indicating that they felt the same way.

Just as the group continued to move forward, Naruto, who was running in the lead, triggered some kind of mechanism, and a giant rock formation trapped them all inside.

"Naruto! Look at the mess you've made. I told you to watch your step," Shikamaru complained to Naruto.

"Sorry, sorry," Naruto quickly apologized to everyone.

"Earth Style! Dodai Technique!" At this moment, Menma slammed his hands onto the ground, and a massive block of earth rose up from the floor.

The group thought they could escape on the earth block, but they didn't expect several rocks to fly up and block their path.

The group was startled; if they didn't do something, they would surely be crushed into pulp. Realizing this, Menma couldn't sit still and immediately began weaving hand signs.

"Fire Style! Great Fireball Technique!" A massive fireball appeared and smashed toward the rocks, but the moment it touched them, it vanished, as if the stones had absorbed the fireball's chakra.

The group was shocked, and Menma reacted quickly. "Jump down, or we'll be flattened into pancakes!" Menma shouted.

They responded quickly and jumped down. Fortunately, it wasn't too high, and Menma wove signs to use Earth Style to catch them.

Afterward, the group attacked the rocks with ninjutsu, but the rocks remained unmoved, absorbing the chakra directly. Just like that, they were trapped inside.

Kuaiyu decided not to sit and wait for death. He began to carefully sense the surrounding chakra fluctuations, attempting to pinpoint the mysterious person's location.

Just as Kuaiyu was about to lock onto the mysterious person's position, the figure suddenly appeared before them. He was still wearing a black cloak that obscured his face.

"You brats have quite a bit of skill." The mysterious person's voice was low and raspy.

"Who are you? Why do you keep stopping us from finding the treasure?" Kuaiyu asked angrily.

"You aren't worthy of knowing!" After saying this, the man slammed both hands onto the ground.

Suddenly, massive rocks rushed toward the group. Startled, they dodged in every direction. The giant rocks moved rapidly around them, and soon, everyone began to feel the strain.

"Damn it! If this keeps up, we'll run out of energy sooner or later!" Shikamaru shouted.

Hearing this, Menma felt that continuing this way was indeed dire, so he decisively activated the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode.

Dark golden chakra enveloped his entire body, and dark golden chakra arms extended from his back, grabbing hold of everyone.

Subsequently, one of the dark golden chakra arms burrowed into the ground. A moment later, a dark golden chakra arm suddenly shot out from beneath the mysterious person's feet, grabbing him tightly.

The moment the mysterious person was captured, the massive rock formation collapsed on its own and vanished before them.

Seeing this, Menma set everyone down. He pulled the mysterious person closer and removed his cloak and mask.

As the cloak and mask were removed, a familiar face was revealed. The group was astonished to discover that this mysterious person was actually Kuaiyu's father, Kurama Duanyu.

"Father, why is it you?" Kuaiyu asked, his eyes wide with disbelief.

Kurama Duanyu looked at Kuaiyu and his companions, his eyes filled with gratification.

"My purpose in doing this was to train you. While the treasure is important, the growth and experience you gained during the treasure hunt are even more precious."

The group finally realized that all the dangers along the way were tests carefully arranged by Kuaiyu's father.

Although they knew the truth, Kuaiyu still felt some resentment. "Father, you were too dangerous. We were almost in mortal peril."

Kurama Duanyu walked over to Kuaiyu and patted his shoulder. "Son, I was protecting you from the shadows the whole time. Besides, I had already spoken with the Hokage, and there were Anbu nearby."

Kurama Duanyu looked around and continued speaking to the group: "I know your abilities well enough; I wouldn't let you come to any real harm. Moreover, your performance today makes me very proud! Let's go! Let's head back to the village!"

Kurama Duanyu prepared to lead them back, but then Naruto realized something.

"Uncle, Uncle, what about the treasure?" Naruto ran anxiously to Kurama Duanyu and asked.

The others also looked at Kurama Duanyu with expectant eyes, while Menma smiled; he knew what the treasure was.

"Haven't you already obtained the treasure? It is the spirit of never abandoning or giving up on your companions, and never giving up in the face of difficult challenges," Kurama Duanyu said to them.

They finally understood. "It seems this treasure is indeed very precious," Shikamaru said.

And so, they set off on the road back to the village, laughing and talking together.