Naruto Was Surprisingly Easy to Fool, Just as Innocent as Expected

"Naruto won!" Kabuto Yakushi, who had been hiding in the bushes and observing the situation, had been paying particular attention to Naruto's performance. It had far exceeded his expectations. "Naruto is strong. Looks like I need to update his intelligence file."

As the Earth Scroll unfurled, black curse markings appeared across it. One look at those obscure markings told them something was terribly wrong.

Kankuro and Temari were horrified, because Gaara was closest to the Earth Scroll and would be the first one affected.

The sand automatically rose in defense, forming a round sphere that wrapped Gaara inside. The sand ball was completely airtight, sealing him tightly within.

Kankuro broke out in a cold sweat as he controlled his puppet to charge at the Earth Scroll. The puppet grabbed the Earth Scroll and swiftly moved away from Gaara.

"Gaara's fine!" Temari was overjoyed. When she saw Kankuro's puppet take away the Earth Scroll, the weight in her heart finally lifted.

"Hehe." Naruto wore an equally confident smile.

At that moment, the sand ball surrounding Gaara began to crumble. The sand could no longer hold together and scattered across the ground.

"Ah—" Gaara's eyes rolled back, his face filled with terror, as though he had suffered some tremendous fright. Then he collapsed and did not move.

"What?!" Kankuro was shocked. His puppet had clearly taken away the Earth Scroll, so why had something still happened to Gaara?

Kankuro looked closely and discovered that the Earth Scroll taken by the puppet had become a blank scroll. Every black curse marking drawn on it had vanished.

"The Earth Scroll wasn't going to explode. It contained a genjutsu!" Temari realized. No wonder Gaara's sand could not defend against it. The moment the Earth Scroll was opened, the genjutsu recorded on it had already activated, and Gaara, being the closest, was the first to be affected.

"Damn it! Sickle Weasel!" Temari swung her enormous iron fan fiercely toward Naruto's group. A violent gust of wind erupted from the ground and swept toward them.

Naruto picked up Hinata and ran, abandoning Shino and Kiba Inuzuka, who were sent flying by the sudden gale.

Kankuro appeared in a flash beside the unconscious Gaara, hoisted him over his shoulder, and fled.

Temari had no intention of fighting Naruto. She merely frantically swung her iron fan several times, forcing Naruto and the others back so Kankuro could escape first with Gaara.

Once Naruto saw that Temari and Kankuro had fled with the unconscious Gaara, he carried Hinata back.

Naruto set Hinata down from his arms. Her face was crimson, and she stood to the side so shy that she did not know what to say.

Kiba Inuzuka, who had been blown into several rolls across the ground by the gale, climbed to his feet and said, "Naruto, if you were going to run, you could've at least told us!"

Naruto wore an unconcerned expression. "You two are tough as nails. A little wind like that couldn't hurt you. Consider it training."

Kiba Inuzuka demanded angrily, "Then why did you only take Hinata with you?"

"..." Naruto looked at him as if he were an idiot. "I can't be bothered to explain. Ask Shino. He knows."

Shino glanced at the uneasy Hinata and the excited Naruto, instantly guessing what kind of relationship the two had.

"Shino!" Kiba Inuzuka asked, "Naruto said you know. What do you know?"

Shino turned his face away. "Don't ask me. I don't want to say."

"Huh?" Kiba Inuzuka spoke to the puppy perched on his head. "Akamaru, do you know?"

Akamaru was only a puppy. He understood nothing, and the little dog wore a troubled expression.

"Hehehe..." Kabuto Yakushi, hidden in the bushes, felt as though he had watched quite a show. He had gathered plenty of information about Naruto, and he even felt a little pleased. After all, Kabuto Yakushi's greatest interest was collecting intelligence.

Having dealt with Gaara's three-man team, Naruto knew there was still a major problem hiding in the shadows: Kabuto Yakushi.

Naruto asked Hinata with concern, "Have you collected both the Heaven Scroll and the Earth Scroll?"

"On the first day after entering the Forest of Death, we used an ambush to collect both the Heaven Scroll and the Earth Scroll," Hinata answered softly.

"Hinata, you're amazing! You finished on the first day." Naruto praised her. "My team still needs three more days. And Gaara's team too—judging by how they looked, they probably still hadn't found both scrolls by today. Hahahaha."

"Not really..." Hinata said bashfully. "I actually didn't help at all."

Naruto said, "In my eyes, you're the best."

Kiba Inuzuka was immediately unconvinced and interrupted, "Shino did the most work. He knew the insects in the Forest of Death and used the insects here to set traps, which was how we ambushed the enemy."

The smile vanished from Naruto's face. He turned and looked at Kiba Inuzuka like he was an idiot, his expression seeming to say: Could you stop interrupting us?

"Shut up." Shino walked over, grabbed Kiba Inuzuka by the collar, and dragged him away.

"Naruto, we're going to the tower," Hinata said. "When will you come over?"

"Soon." Naruto smiled. "Once I take care of one last little problem, I'll come find you. Hurry to the tower. It'll be safe there."

Watching Hinata, Shino, and Kiba Inuzuka leave, Naruto released an intense killing intent that even startled Kabuto Yakushi, who was hiding in the shadows.

Naruto moved quickly, racing through the forest. This time, Kabuto Yakushi followed behind him.

Kabuto Yakushi thought, Naruto is moving so fast. He's probably going to find Sasuke. Maybe if I follow Naruto, I can find Sasuke.

Naruto suddenly stopped and hid in a patch of grass. Kabuto Yakushi was deeply puzzled by Naruto's actions. From the look of it, Naruto seemed to be preparing to ambush someone.

Kabuto Yakushi hurriedly looked farther ahead and unexpectedly saw Temari and Kankuro, along with the unconscious Gaara.

Temari and Kankuro had brought the unconscious Gaara to a concealed spot and hidden there. Naruto, meanwhile, seemed to be planning an ambush. Did Naruto want to kill those three? He was completely crazy.

Naruto took out a kunai. Just as he was about to rush out, Kabuto Yakushi flashed over and pressed a hand onto Naruto's kunai, seemingly stopping him from doing something reckless.

Kabuto Yakushi wore a forehead protector bearing the Konoha symbol and black-rimmed glasses. He looked honest and reliable.

"Naruto, don't do anything foolish," Kabuto Yakushi advised. "Gaara may have lost his fighting strength, but the other two are still quite capable. You can't possibly defeat them alone." After saying that, Kabuto Yakushi offered a friendly smile, making it clear that he had come to help Naruto.

Looking at Kabuto Yakushi's appearance as a warm and hospitable senior from Konoha Village, Naruto asked, "Who are you?"

"My name is Kabuto." Kabuto Yakushi said, "I've taken the Chunin Ninja Exams for several years and failed midway every time. As someone who's been through it, I advise you not to create unnecessary trouble. There's no point in defeating them. Stop while you can."

"Thank you. You must be a good person," Naruto said with a grin.

Kabuto Yakushi breathed a sigh of relief inwardly. Naruto was surprisingly easy to fool. Just as innocent as expected.

"The Fourth Kazekage, Lord Rasa, has been murdered!" Temari suddenly revealed a shocking piece of news.

Upon hearing those words, Kabuto Yakushi's mind went blank. He wondered whether he had misheard. He simply could not believe it.