Hinata, Use the Byakugan

"It's Naruto Uzumaki!" Kabuto Yakushi hid nearby and watched, thinking, Why was Naruto here? Where was Sasuke? They should have been together.

Gaara advanced step by step, killing intent radiating from his entire body and putting Shino, Kiba Inuzuka, and Hinata on edge.

Gaara's teammate, Temari, hurriedly tried to persuade them. "If you have the Heaven Scroll, hand it over now. I'll spare you."

"No." Gaara's face remained stern. "All of you have to die!" Clearly, he did not agree with Temari's suggestion.

Looks like I'll have to step in. Kabuto Yakushi thought, I need Naruto's trust if I'm going to find Sasuke.

"Want the Heaven Scroll?" Naruto held a steel wire in his hand. "Then come and get it."

Gaara noticed the wire in Naruto's hand. His gaze swept around before he finally discovered that it was connected to the Earth Scroll.

"What? Could Naruto be planning to..." Kabuto Yakushi, hidden in the bushes, looked shocked.

"What are you trying to do?" Gaara saw the Earth Scroll only a few steps away. The wire in Naruto's hand was connected to it, and it seemed that if Naruto pulled the wire, the Earth Scroll would be opened.

"That's..." Kankuro remembered. That Earth Scroll had belonged to Genin from Takigakure. After Gaara slaughtered them all, Kankuro had found the Earth Scroll amid a pile of bloodstained sand.

But Gaara's team had already obtained an Earth Scroll. They only lacked a Heaven Scroll, so Kankuro had casually tossed the Earth Scroll aside like garbage.

"Looks like Naruto won." Kabuto Yakushi, hidden in the bushes, analyzed the situation. "The Heaven and Earth Scrolls distributed by Konoha's examiners are actually covered in hypnotic Genjutsu. Once opened, the Genjutsu will render everyone present unconscious until the exam ends."

"But how did Naruto know? This was his first time taking the Chunin Ninja Exams. He shouldn't have known."

At that moment, Gaara was doubtful. This was his first time taking the Chunin Ninja Exams, and he had no idea what would happen if the Earth Scroll was opened. Yet Naruto looked utterly confident, and Gaara truly did not dare act rashly.

"Hmph, bluffing." Gaara spoke coolly. "You think one scroll is enough to keep you alive?"

"If you've got the guts, try it." Naruto threatened. "The moment I pull this wire, the Earth Scroll will open. You're the closest one to it, so you'll be blown to pieces."

"..." Kabuto Yakushi, hidden in the bushes, smiled. From Naruto's words, he realized Naruto did not know what was inside the Earth Scroll either. However, Naruto was good at using unknown factors to intimidate his opponents.

"Naruto's got some tricks up his sleeve. He doesn't know what the Earth Scroll contains, but he knows they don't either, so he's using that to scare them off." Kabuto Yakushi smiled. "Looks like I need to update my information on Naruto. I always thought he was reckless, but he's actually quite shrewd."

Naruto secretly glanced toward Kabuto Yakushi's hiding place. He had long known Kabuto Yakushi was nearby and had been observing them from the shadows.

Naruto thought, The Heaven and Earth Scrolls Mitaraishi Anko handed out are actually hypnotic Genjutsu. Anyone who opens one will fall unconscious. But I can't say that, or Kabuto Yakushi will become suspicious of me.

Naruto was secretly sparring with Kabuto Yakushi. Unaware of this, Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro all changed expressions as well.

Kankuro hurriedly said, "How do you know the Earth Scroll will explode when it opens? You must be talking nonsense!"

"I already told you, this is Konoha, and I'm Konoha's future Hokage. There's nothing about Konoha that I don't know." Naruto continued, "This is Konoha's home turf. Opposing me here is extremely unwise. If you turn around and leave now, I can forgive you."

Hinata thought, Ha... Naruto-kun really is so powerful.

Cold sweat broke out on Kiba Inuzuka's forehead. He lowered his voice and said, "Naruto, saying things like that at the Ninja Academy is one thing, but how could it possibly scare them in a situation like this?"

"An explosion?" Gaara said confidently. "Even if the Earth Scroll really does explode, so what?"

The huge gourd on Gaara's back contained special sand that was not controlled by his will. Whenever Gaara was in danger, the sand would automatically protect him. It could be called an Absolute Defense.

Just as Gaara was about to make his move, Kankuro shouted, "Gaara! Stop!"

Kankuro had already noticed something was wrong. These Heaven and Earth Scrolls had all been distributed by Konoha's examiners. Opening one casually would definitely bring punishment, but what would that punishment be? Could it really be nothing more than an ordinary explosion? An ordinary explosion could not even harm a hair on Gaara's head.

"We're leaving." Kankuro said, "Gaara, Temari, let's go."

Gaara flew into a rage and snarled, "Who do you think you are? What gives you the right to order me around? If you dare stop me, I'll kill you too."

"Tch." Kankuro was deeply dissatisfied. I hate this brat. Just because he has a little strength, he never listens to anyone... He doesn't understand what I really mean either...

At that moment, Kankuro was slowly approaching the Earth Scroll.

Naruto was startled. Kankuro was saying all the right things, but he was actually drawing closer and closer to the Earth Scroll. Did he have some ulterior motive?

"Hinata, use the Byakugan!" Naruto shouted.

Hinata understood immediately and gave a soft cry. "Byakugan!" As she activated the Byakugan, veins bulged at the corners of her eyes. The Byakugan's power swept across the field, revealing chakra pathways in everyone's bodies—except Kankuro, who had none at all.

The Byakugan was the Hyuga Clan's Kekkei Genkai, and Hinata had inherited it as well. It could use X-Ray Vision to see the chakra pathways through which chakra flowed within the human body, as well as the chakra points that released chakra.

"That person is strange." Hinata hurriedly said, "He has no chakra pathways."

"Courting death! You dare play tricks in front of me?" Naruto was furious. The instant he heard Hinata's words, he understood. The Kankuro before them was merely a wooden puppet, but it had been crafted to look exactly like a real person. It was impossible to distinguish with the naked eye. Without Hinata's Byakugan, ordinary people truly would not have been able to tell.

Kankuro, hidden in the shadows, was controlling the puppet. He did not actually know what would happen when the Earth Scroll was opened, but it never hurt to be cautious.

Kankuro had intended to pretend to surrender in order to deceive Naruto and the others, then control the puppet into approaching the Earth Scroll and use it to eliminate the unknown threat posed by the scroll.

But Naruto had already seen through Kankuro's underhanded scheme. Without hesitation, he yanked the steel wire in his hand. As the wire was pulled, the Earth Scroll connected to its other end was torn open as well. The wire pulled the Earth Scroll apart, and the Earth Scroll unfurled.