Control

If anything could still make Sasuke see red, it was the pain of his clan's massacre and his hatred for Itachi Uchiha. With his old wound reopened, Sasuke seethed with rage, but there was nothing he could do against an enemy whose whereabouts he didn't even know. He could only waste his chakra struggling against the genjutsu. Even though his Sharingan could see through it, the real attacks mixed in from time to time forced him to stay on full alert, never daring to let his guard down.

This is really bad. Sasuke was frantic with worry, regretting his overconfident decision to go out alone. Gaara and Rock Lee were formidable, and then there was Neji Hyuga, who was supposedly an even greater genius. Now, just running into some random person had left him in such a sorry state. It seemed he'd still underestimated the Chunin Ninja Exams. There were too many powerful people out here. I hope Sakura and Naruto realize something's wrong and hurry over to help. Right now, my only hope is Sakura's brains and Naruto's monstrous stamina. Relying on his unreliable teammates was the last thing proud Sasuke wanted, but he didn't have any better options.

Behind the scenes, Mizuki's Shadow Clone was also calculating its chakra usage and considering whether to keep Sasuke Uchiha tied up.

I've tested enough. Sasuke's learned his lesson, so he probably won't chase me anymore. Hmm? What's that over there? Mizuki was interrupted by the sudden discovery of another intruder. Those two Grass Ninja? Did they notice the commotion and come over to take advantage of the situation? Perfect. I can keep you here instead of having to set up another opportunity.

Meanwhile, Karin was in grave danger. As an outsider taken in by Kusagakure, she'd never received systematic ninja training. The girl had scraped by on talent alone, and her abilities were truly abysmal. Facing a giant beast in the Forest of Death—the kind even ordinary ninjas gave a wide berth to—her small frame offered almost no ability to fight back. And this time, Sasuke wouldn't be there to play the hero. Mizuki naturally wouldn't pass up such a rare chance to win her favor and draw her in. He didn't expect Karin to fall in love at first sight and give herself to him—he knew he didn't have that kind of charm. He only wanted her not to rush into joining Orochimaru someday, and to give his side a little more consideration when the time came to choose.

So, while Karin was too nervous to do anything but fall over and squeeze her eyes shut, waiting to die, Mizuki appeared. He had plenty of experience dealing with brutes like that; it was practically effortless. The Binding Formation immobilized the beast, an anesthetic knocked it out, and a Sealing Scroll took it away. Whether he'd bring it back as experimental material or butcher it for meat could wait.

After dealing with the beast, Mizuki turned and walked over to Karin. He picked up the glasses from the ground and held them out to her.

"Can you stand?"

"I can." Karin scrambled to her feet, took the glasses from Mizuki, put them on, and looked at him nervously.

"The Earth Scroll? I didn't expect you to be the one carrying it," Mizuki remarked after a glance.

"Examiner, are we going to be kicked out? Have we already lost the right to take the exam?"

"Huh? How did you know I was an examiner and not a student taking the exam?" Mizuki asked, quite surprised.

"Your chakra was exactly the same as the first exam's proctor—the one sitting by the door, watching the exam and being the strictest. So I paid special attention to you. Although you look very different now."

"The strictest?" What did she mean by that? Mizuki was baffled. It seemed Karin's natural talent was already exceptional; she just wasn't much of a fighter.

"You were the only examiner who kept recording the students who cheated from start to finish. Then everyone got kicked out," Karin said cautiously.

Hearing that, Mizuki finally understood. It had all been a misunderstanding. He hadn't realized that he'd accidentally played the villain.

"Then why did you think I was going to kick you out?" Mizuki asked, deeply puzzled.

"Weren't you already here? You'd been watching us the whole time, and now you were going to declare us unqualified, right? In the end, I still wasn't any use." Karin sounded terribly disappointed.

It seemed to be another misunderstanding. Mizuki had no choice but to explain. "First, I'm not here to disqualify you. You don't need to worry about that."

"Really? That's great!" Karin was delighted by the unexpected good news.

"Second, I want you to keep the fact that you saw me a secret. What I'm doing here isn't allowed, so I don't want anyone else to find out."

"Okay. I'll keep it secret."

"Lastly, if you ever leave Kusagakure or find yourself with nowhere to go, I hope you'll come find me. I think highly of your abilities, and I need your help." Mizuki made no attempt to hide his intentions. The girl's chakra perception was astonishing; she could even tell whether someone was lying, so there was no point in disguising the truth.

The unexpected invitation left Karin stunned. She was an orphan taken in by Kusagakure. Though she had a special bloodline ability, her poor combat skills meant she was always treated as a burden and looked down on. She was often treated roughly, too. So Mizuki's undisguised admiration shook her deeply.

"But I'm a ninja of Kusagakure, and the village has raised me all these years, so..." Karin hesitated. "Besides, can I really be of any help?"

"You don't need to doubt that. I wouldn't say so if I hadn't looked into you," Mizuki said with certainty. "And I'm not asking you to decide now. I just hope you'll consider what I said if you get the chance someday. Oh, if you ever decide to come find me, tear this scroll and I'll know." As he spoke, Mizuki handed her a scroll.

Karin took it. "I'll think about it. Sorry for the trouble."

"All right, I've done what I came to do, so I'm leaving." Having achieved his goal, Mizuki prepared to go. "Oh, one last thing. This Chunin Ninja Exam is highly unusual. There are too many powerful people here who are beyond the norm. In previous years, you might have had a chance, but this year... you'd better plan ahead. Also, although you're not supposed to withdraw midway, if you really can't go on, you can open the scroll in your hand and leave the exam."

"I understand. Thank you, Examiner." Karin bowed gratefully.

"My name isn't Examiner. It's Mizuki." As he spoke, the figure before Karin disappeared.

She's nothing like the strong-willed older woman she'll become three years from now. At the moment, she's just a timid girl who gets pushed around wherever she goes. What a difference.

Elsewhere, the Shadow Clone was not only keeping Sasuke at bay with ease, but also had two Grass Ninja trapped in an inescapable snare. Without even showing himself, he'd toyed with all three of them.

Inside the illusion formation, Sasuke continued to struggle, waiting for help that might arrive at any moment—or might not come at all.

"Huh? The genjutsu is weakening. Is the other person running out of chakra? Or has the fighting drawn in another powerful enemy? Either way, it's a good sign." The sudden change put Sasuke on alert. "Is it Naruto and Sakura? It doesn't seem like it. Naruto's not the type to fight this quietly. Damn it, the illusion barrier is blocking my senses. I have no idea what's happening outside."

At the same time, the two Grass Ninja were worn out from the ordeal and soon passed out, one after the other.

"That's about enough. Time to go. Hmm? Someone else is coming, and they're so close? How is that possible? Why didn't the perimeter alert me?" As Mizuki wondered in surprise, countless Shadow Clones burst out and hurled a rain of Kunai, clearing away a wide swath of illusions. The newcomer was Naruto Uzumaki. When Sasuke saw his teammate arrive, he didn't miss the chance.

"Fire Style: Dragon Fire Technique!"

Several streams of fire shot out, clearing a path. Sasuke hurried along the trail of flames, racing to meet up with Naruto.

"Sasuke, what took you so long? Weren't you going to get water? How'd you end up fighting someone without even calling me?" Naruto's booming voice made it clear how unhappy he was that Sasuke had gone off on his own.

"Cut the chatter. We need to leave, now." They were still in danger, and Sasuke couldn't let his guard down. "How did you get here?"

"Sakura led us. The path was so twisty and hard to follow."

"Sasuke-kun, over here!" Sakura Haruno called from nearby.

"Let's go together. We need to get out of here," Sasuke ordered urgently.

"Why are we running?" Naruto asked eagerly. "We finally found an enemy. We might as well take their scroll and see if it's the Heaven Scroll."

"Idiot. Fighting in a trap someone else prepared is stupid. We're retreating. And with this much noise, we'll probably attract more enemies. We don't want to get surrounded."

Naruto was reluctant, but he followed Sasuke as they left. While the Shadow Clones held off their pursuers, Sakura led the way, and Sasuke and Naruto made it away from the battlefield without incident.

"What an astonishing talent. In only a few days, she's already understood barriers and sealing formations to this extent. She can navigate such a complicated situation with ease. Am I just too stupid, or is she ridiculously gifted?" Mizuki couldn't help envying Sakura Haruno's talent. No wonder she's the one who'll inherit Tsunade's legacy. Are all the Konoha 12 geniuses blessed by the will of the world?

Seeing everything settled, Mizuki prepared to leave. But as he turned around, a figure appeared before him, accompanied by a sharp killing intent.

"Who exactly are you?" The person facing him glanced at the Forehead Protector on Mizuki's head. "I don't remember any exam candidate from Kusagakure like you."

Unlucky. It's Orochimaru. I must've made too much of a scene and attracted this dangerous man. Mizuki sighed inwardly.

"No matter who you are, if you lay a hand on prey I've taken an interest in, you'll pay for it."