Two Ambushers Were About to Cry

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.

Several Shadow Clones flashed away, racing off in every direction to search for various things according to Naruto's orders.

"Naruto, we haven't been traveling for long and you're already hungry? Besides, we brought food with us. Why send out Shadow Clones?" Sakura asked in confusion.

"Of course, to make something delicious."

Naruto reached his right hand into his backpack. When he pulled it back out, he was holding all sorts of seasonings, which he laid out on the grass one by one. With his storage space, he had packed quite thoroughly and lacked nothing.

"Want some Grilled Fish? If you do, you'll have to work for it. Sakura, go fetch water. Sasuke, how about catching fish? The remaining Shadow Clones can handle the rest," Naruto said.

"Catch fish?"

"Fetch water?"

Sakura and Sasuke immediately shook their heads without hesitation. They had brought food with them, so neither wanted to take part in Naruto's cooking.

"That was your own decision. Don't regret it later," Naruto replied, gesturing for Kakashi and old man Tazuna to sit nearby.

"We have food. We won't regret it."

Sasuke spoke with an indifferent, cool expression. Naturally, Sakura followed Sasuke's lead and nodded as well.

Only Kakashi glanced at the small puddle from the corner of his eye, then carefully studied Naruto.

This Naruto... Kakashi muttered inwardly.

He already knew that Naruto had noticed something about the small puddle and knew what was hidden there, but...

Compared to Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura knew nothing. Even from so close, they had failed to notice anything unusual about the puddle.

That difference instantly widened the gap between them, and it also made Kakashi realize just how exceptional Naruto was at sensing.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Three Shadow Clones returned, each carrying firewood and several sharpened wooden sticks.

"Go catch some more fish and fetch some clean water."

Naruto handed his water flask to the Shadow Clones, then arranged the firewood and began forming hand seals.

Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!

Boom!

The firewood instantly caught fire. Naruto nodded in satisfaction at the Ninjutsu he had cast. With precise Chakra control, he had easily ignited the wood without destroying it.

But he had not expected that this casual act of lighting a fire would draw Kakashi's attention once again.

After all, this level of Chakra control was already nearly perfect, several times better than Sasuke's and Sakura's.

To someone as sharp-eyed as Kakashi, Naruto's excellence was obvious at a glance. It also made him sigh inwardly that Sasuke still had a very, very long road ahead of him.

Inside the small puddle.

The two Rogue Ninjas struggled to remain hidden, glaring fiercely at Naruto with furious eyes. They swore that once these people finished eating and turned to leave, they would immediately launch a sneak attack from behind.

And they would definitely kill that brat sitting by the fire, making him understand what a terrible decision it was to light a fire beside a puddle.

But they could not reveal themselves yet. They could only endure the scorching heat and hide with all their strength.

The two Rogue Ninjas kept staring at Naruto, and as time passed, they hated him even more. It could not be helped—they were simply roasting alive.

Time slowly passed, and twenty minutes went by in the blink of an eye.

The area around the small puddle soon filled with the delicious aroma of fish, the scent growing richer and richer.

Crackle!

The burning wood crackled, sending sparks flying.

Naruto sat leisurely on the grass, grilling fish and sprinkling on seasonings from time to time, making the fish even more fragrant and delicious.

When he saw that the fish was done, Naruto nodded in satisfaction. "It's ready. Dig in."

After handing the delicious grilled fish to Kakashi and Tazuna, Naruto picked up a golden-brown fish himself and began devouring it with gusto.

"It tastes great. Kid, you're really good at grilling fish," Tazuna praised as he ate.

"It really is delicious. I didn't expect Naruto to have this skill."

Kakashi was also quite surprised. The moment the grilled fish entered his mouth, his eyes lit up. Thinking back on Naruto's earlier performance, Kakashi raised his assessment of Naruto once more.

Nearby.

Sasuke and Sakura sat there blankly, breathing in the delicious fish aroma and watching Kakashi and the others eat so happily. Sakura and Sasuke regretted it.

If they had known Naruto's cooking would be this delicious, they never would have refused to catch fish and fetch water. Unfortunately, there was no medicine for regret in this world. They could only watch and secretly swallow their drool.

[Experience Points +1]

Compared to Sakura and Sasuke, the two Rogue Ninjas in the small puddle were practically about to cry.

They had endured more than twenty minutes of roasting, and the delicious aroma of grilled fish kept drifting over to them. Under that double torment, they nearly hated Naruto to death.

They even swore that they would kill Naruto first later and vent the hatred in their hearts.

"Burp, I'm full. Naruto, your cooking is excellent," Tazuna praised.

"Of course it is."

Naruto did not act modest at all. Instead, he smugly tossed away a fish bone, which landed in the small puddle with a smack.

[Experience Points +1]

[Experience Points +1]

...

As the Experience Points notifications sounded one after another, Naruto watched the Experience Orbs above the small puddle about to fade away and slowly stood up.

"Full and satisfied. Let's get moving." After saying that, Naruto kicked the campfire away. The blackened logs, still carrying flames, flew directly into the small puddle.

"Naruto, you need to put out a campfire after using it. Otherwise, it could easily start a wildfire, and other ninjas might discover us," Sakura said hurriedly.

"Right."

Sasuke unusually agreed with Sakura. He could not help it—the feeling of being forced to watch others eat while getting none himself was truly unpleasant. Combined with that female Ninjutsu from earlier, Sasuke held a deep grudge against Naruto.

However.

He had barely finished speaking before he could hear Naruto's response.

Two blackened figures suddenly burst out of the small puddle. They blasted away the firewood and charged at Naruto with soot-blackened faces.

"Die!"

"I'll kill you, you bastard! Damn it!"

Whoosh, whoosh!

Cold, sharp chains lashed out. Before Sakura and Tazuna could understand what was happening, the chains shot toward Naruto like lightning and fiercely wrapped around him.

"Watch out!" Sakura shouted urgently, never imagining that enemies would appear here.

Sasuke also hurried to act, but he had been too busy sulking earlier to notice anyone in the small puddle. More importantly, the puddle was too close to Naruto. Sasuke did not even have time to reach for a Kunai.

Because those two soot-black figures had already bound Naruto with their chains and yanked hard.

Boom!

Dust billowed, and the sound of impact echoed from the ground. A figure could vaguely be seen within the dust cloud.

"So weak."

A calm voice came from the dust. When the dust settled, Naruto was standing on top of the two unconscious men, yawning with a sleepy look on his face.

"This..."

Sakura and Tazuna stared blankly at the sight before them. They had never expected Naruto to instantly defeat them both. Even Sasuke looked at everything in shock.

"So... so strong."

Sakura murmured the words. She had not even had time to react, yet Naruto had defeated two enemies in an instant. His speed and strength truly astonished her.

Nearby.

Hearing that, Sasuke clenched his fists as an unwillingness to lose surged within him.

But at that moment, Kakashi suddenly spoke.

"Well done, Naruto. Your plan was very effective."

"A plan?"

Sasuke and Sakura froze, unable to understand why Kakashi would say that.