Chapter 42: Snake in the Forest
Forest of Death
"Wait, please don't. I surrender!"
"Sand Burial"
Temari looked away from the brutal sight. Though nothing could stop the screams from reaching her ears. Thankfully, it ended quickly, just like all the others. Temari did not know if that was a blessing or not.
Next to her, she saw her brother Kankuro trying to keep an even expression on his face, but he failed to stop the fear from showing. "That's the third team," he said just above a whisper. "Poor saps."
Temari sighed and walked up to what remained of the Ame team. By now, she was used to the sights Gaara often left behind. She didn't know if she should consider that a blessing or a curse.
"Got it," she said, pulling out a blood-soaked scroll. She found the kanji labeled on it. "It's an Earth scroll," she said. "Just what we were looking for."
Kankuro nodded while Gaara remained impassive. "Then we can get going," the former said. He looked at Gaara almost pleadingly. "We can go straight to the tower. Right?"
Gaara was silent for a second. Then, he started walking forward in the direction of the tower. Both Temari and Kankuro exchanged looks and sighed. "Come on," Kankuro walking up to their shared younger brother. "You know how he gets if we leave him for too long."
Temari nodded and took a step beside his brother. She hoped that no one else would be foolish enough to attack them. Or unlucky enough to cross Gaara's path.
A short distance away, the members of team-10 were shaking. "I think it might best we avoid that team," Shikamaru said.
"He can't be human," Ino said, looking pale. "No human being would do something like that. He can't be like Naruto. He can't be."
Choji, by far, looked the worst of the trio. His bag of chips had long since fallen to the ground, as his hand was over his mouth. The poor boy looked like he was about to hurl.
Shikamaru took a deep breath and let it out. "Come on," he said. "Let's set up camp somewhere and take a moment to recover."
None of his teammates argue against that.
Across the Forest of Death, many different scenes played out. Within the first few hours, the forest started to live up to its name. While some teams would quickly come across their fellow competitors, others would get a taste of the forest's wildlife. One unlucky team fell victim to slugs the size of dogs. The creatures would suck away their chakra first, rendering them helpless, then suck out their blood.
Another team would cross paths with a mutated bear and nearly were ripped apart. The screams that were heard coming from the forest were like a serenade to Anko.
Anko took a bit from her dango, as she had a vicious smile. "Ahh, don't you just enjoy the screams of fresh genin in the morning?" She said.
"It's the afternoon," a nearby chunin commented to her. "And you are one sadist bitch."
Anko snorted and carried on with eating her dango. "In other words, the sky is blue, the water is wet, and what else did you expect from me," he said. A particularly loud and shrill scream pierced the air. "Ohh, sounds like someone is having a bad day."
"People are dying in there," the Chunin said.
Anko shrugged. "Comes with the territory of being a shinobi," she said. "Death is always around the corner for us. Besides, they're still safer in there than they would have been with a normal mission. Last I checked, most Chunin didn't have ANBU as a backup."
Despite the claims that the chunin exams were dangerous, life-threatening even. Most villages made some effort to make sure the competitors didn't die while taking the exam. At least Konoha did. Anko didn't know what it was like with the other villages, which was why each team had a pair of ANBU watching them. Mostly, their job was to observe and only bail them out if the team got into serious trouble. Granted, it wasn't a foolproof system. Genin still lost their lives. But it keeps the casualties low.
"Speaking of," Anko said. "How are the betting pools going? Any favorites so far?"
"The team under Might Guy seems to be the crowd favorite," another chunin said.
"Followed by team-17 and a Kumo team."
Anko nodded. She could see Guy's team being the favorite but didn't care much about the other two teams. "What about our rookie teams?" She asked. "Any bets on them?"
"Not that many, sir," the Chunin answered. "The general consciousness is that none of the rookie teams will make it through the forest of death."
Anko's smile grew. She pulled out another stick of dango. "Good," she said. "All the more for me when team-11 passes." She munched on her favorite food.
Naruto shuddered as he watched the gruesome scene from Gaara play out. Hinata and Sasuke looked at him with concern. "Naruto-Kun, are you okay?" She asked. "Did something happen?"
Naruto nodded. "Y-yeah," he said. It was hard not to feel queasy after seeing what he saw.
"What happened?" Sasuke asked. The team was keeping pace through the forest.
Naruto didn't want to burden his friends with what he saw. "Let's just say I'm glad we're avoiding the Suna team," he said.
"I told you Shukaku's container would be unstable," Kurama said. "He was never what we would call sane and easily the most bloodthirsty of the nine."
Naruto nodded. "I'm starting to see that," he responded to the fox.
"Let's take a moment to rest," Sasuke said. "We can try to figure out what we'll do from there."
Naruto appreciated the offer. "No can do," he said. "We got a team up ahead of us. Kusa, by the looks of it."
"Can you tell what they're doing?" Sasuke asked.
"Making camp, I think," Naruto said. "Looks like one of them got hurt from the wildlife." It was not a surprise, from what Naruto had seen of the place, that the wildlife would be nasty to work with. Some of them had even destroyed his eyes, causing him to lose track of other teams, including the Kusa team. "We can ambush them and take their scroll."
"Could it be a trick?" Hinata suggested. "They could be trying to lure teams in and take them by surprise."
That thought had crossed Naruto's mind. "I'll keep an eye on them as we get closer," he said. The young Uzumaki was already sending in a couple more eyes to scout the area around the Kusa team. Even if it wasn't a trick, they were likely to have set up traps.
In the front, Sasuke nodded. "Hinata, I want you to activate your Byakugan once we're close enough," he said. "Naruto."
"Already on it," Naruto said before Sasuke could finish. Then he made a handsign. In a puff of smoke, three clones of Naruto appeared.
Sasuke nodded. "Good," he said. "Anything you can us about the Kusa team? Are they carrying any weapons? Any unusual characteristics?"
Naruto got a closer look at the Kusa team. At the speed team-11 was going to be on top of them in a couple of minutes. "All three are male, about two or three years older than us. I don't see any weapons on them, and I don't see anything unusual about them. They look like just your run-of-the-mill genin."
"You sure?" Sasuke asked.
Naruto nodded. "I'm sure," he said. "Not everyone has got to have kekkei genkai to be Shinobi, Sasuke. Do I have to remind you that you still haven't unlocked your Sharingan yet?"
Sasuke shot him a heated glare, getting a smile from Naruto. "Just running through the list," he said evenly. "You can never know what the enemy is hiding."
Naruto nodded. "I know that," he said. "But I think we can take them, surprise or no."
Sasuke smiled at him. "Then we agree on something," he said, then looked forward.
Hinata had a pensive look, but she was determined to prove herself.
The trio arrived at the Kusa team's location, stopping out of sight. Naruto pointed to one of the boys. He had short brown hair. "I think that is the leader," he said. "He's been giving orders since I spotted them, and the other two have followed them."
Sasuke nodded. "Then I take him on," he said. "By the looks, he could be a taijutsu specialist. Hinata and I would be the best choice to take him."
Naruto and Hinata nodded. "What the other two?" Naruto asked.
"Hinata, you think you can take the guy to the left?" Sasuke asked. "The one with the vest?"
Hinata nodded. "Hai." She said.
"Witch leaves me with the injured one," Naruto said, looking at his would-be opponent. A young man with messy black hair. His right leg had a nasty-looking cut across it. "Why'd you give the easy pickings?"
Sasuke smirked at him. "Thought you would need the handy cap," he said.
Naruto glares at his teammate and friend. "Teme," he said.
Sasuke snorted and turned his attention back to the Kusa team. "We try to make this quick," he said. "We jump in, knock them out, and take their scroll. Then we get out and hope they don't follow us. Clear?"
Hinata and Naruto nodded. "Hai!" They said together.
Sasuke didn't say a word. He just jumped. His teammates followed him half a second later. The ensuing fight was a short one, almost leaving Naruto disappointed.
Naruto made the first move as several pairs of eyes flew over the Kusa team and started to rain down bolts of chakra on them. Before that happened, Naruto's chosen target had turned his head to where team-11 was coming from and had opened his mouth to get a warning out.
A sensor type, Naruto concluded. Thankfully, the boy's warning had come a little too late as a bolt of chakra slammed into his shoulder. The other two reacted quickly as the bolts rained down on them.
The three Kusa scrambled to avoid the sudden and intense attack. Shouts and curses filled the air as the Kusa team tried to figure out the source of the attack. The intensity of the attack from the eyes decreased as team-11 jumped into the fray.
Naruto kept two pairs of eyes on his teammates to watch and support them. Each had a clone with them. The boy with the injured leg started to do ninjutsu. However, Naruto was on top of him before he could finish it.
Naruto swung his fist out while a shadow clone appeared behind the boy, swinging their own fist out. The boy was quick to dodge Naruto's attack but not fast enough to avoid the attack from behind. The clone's fist slammed into the back of the boy's head, causing him to stagger.
Naruto followed the attack with another punch that connected with the boy's jaw. He was down on the ground within a second.
Suddenly, a new set of memories rushed into Naruto's mind. The clone with Hinata had been taken out by the boy with the vest as he buried a kunai into its chest. However, the boy had left himself open to attack the clone. Hinata did not hesitate to exploit the opening. A dozen or so palm strikes later, the boy in the vest was crumbling to the ground. He is still conscious but unable to access his chakra.
Which only left Sasuke and his opponent. That fight didn't last any longer than the others. Sasuke spun around behind the brown-haired boy. The Kusa genin was about to turn around when three bolts of chakra slammed into his chest, stunning him.
Sasuke finished the boy off by grabbing the back of his head and slamming it down into the ground. For several seconds, the members of team-11 waited for something to happen. But no trap was triggered. None of the Kusa-nin made moves against them. With a satisfied nod, Naruto knew they had won.
"Good job, guys," Naruto said with a wide smile. "We kicked their asses."
"Screw you," the only conscious Kusa genin said. He was on his knees, glaring at his attackers. "You tree huggers had to sneak up on us like that and when one of us was already down."
Sasuke shrugged. "Shinobi," he said. "You would have done the same in our position."
The silence from the kusa-nin only confirmed Sasuke's statement. Dispelling his remaining clones, Naruto walked up to the boy. "All right, you know how this game goes," he said. "You either give us the scroll or tell us who has it."
"I'm not telling you anything," the boy said. "So just fuck off."
Naruto grinned at the kusa genin. "Now, no need to be rude," Naruto said. "I'm just trying to make this easier for both our teams. One way or another, we're getting your scroll. Even if it means we must do a strip search on you guys." Okay, they weren't going to go that far. He had Hinata's dignity to think about. Even now, the poor girl was turning red. But Naruto knew the threat would loosen the boy's lips. "So, let's try to make this a little less embarrassing."
The kusa genin glared at him for another second or two. Then he looked away and tsked. "Fine," he said. "Then you have to leave us alone, deal?"
Naruto smiled. "Deal," he said. "On my honor as a shinobi." Looking at the boy's expression, Naruto could tell he found little comfort in that statement. "Haruka had the scroll on him." He gestured to the boy Naruto had fought. "It should be in the pocket on his left leg."
"Lucky me," Naruto said. "I got to fight the guy with the scroll on him. Hinata?"
Hinata was already searching for the boy. "On it," she said. After a second, she held a scroll.
"Is it real?" Sasuke asked. "He could be tricking us." The kusa genin in question glared at Sasuke.
Hinata activated her Byakugan and examined the scroll for several seconds. Then she switched it off. She nodded. "It's the real scroll," she said.
Sasuke nodded. "Then we can be on our way," he said. He looked at the kusa genin and smirked. "Better luck next time." As the three vanished from sight, a string of curses followed them through the forest.
"You think they'll try to come after us?" Naruto asked.
Sasuke shook his head. "I doubt it," he said. "Not after the beating we gave them. They'll probably just try to go after another team or give up."
Naruto nodded and turned his head to look at Hinata. "Speaking of," he said. "Hinata, what scroll did we get? Is it the one we need?"
Hinata shook her head. "No, it's an earth scroll like the one we have," she said. She pulled the scroll out to show the earth kanji on it."
"Dang it," Naruto said. "I was hoping our luck would hold out." Hinat pocketed the scroll.
"Still a good result for us," Sasuke said. "We've knocked out a team from the exam and have an extra earth scroll."
It took a second for Naruto to realize what Sasuke was thinking. "Oh, that's a good idea," he said. "That way, if we get into a tight jam, we can offer that one."
"And we would still have a scroll on us," Sasuke said. "Hinata, you think you can hang onto that scroll while Naruto keeps the other?"
Hinata nodded. "I'll keep it safe," she said.
"Then let's keep moving," Sasuke said. "Once we got some distance between the Kusa team and us, we can stop somewhere to rest. There are some things I think we need to discuss."
Naruto and Hinata nodded. "And if we come across another team on our way?" Naruto asked.
"Then we deal with them if we can," Sasuke said. "The more scrolls we have, the better our chances of getting through the exam."
The good news was team-11 hadn't come across anyone else. The few teams Naruto still had eyes on were all a good distance away from them. The trio had found a good spot hidden in the thick undergrowth.
"Alright," Sasuke said, looking between his two teammates. "We're already doing good here. The first day is ending, and we already have two earth scrolls on us." High above them, the sky had started to take on a twilight hue.
Naruto had his hands on the back of his head. "I don't what else to say," he said. "I expected a tougher challenge, but so far, we've been doing pretty good. If this keeps up, we got the chunin exams in the bag."
Sasuke nodded. "Let's try not to get ahead of ourselves," he said. "We've only just gotten past the first part of the exam."
"And the first day of the second part," Naruto pointed. "We're doing great, Sasuke. Try not to be a sourpuss."
Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Sasuke's right," Hinata said. "We shouldn't get full of ourselves. Even if we get past this part, we still have the third and final part."
"Oh, we're getting past this part," Sasuke said. "But things are going to get tougher from here on out. The first part already weeded out most of the trash, and this forest will wilt the numbers down more. Only the best and strongest teams will be left by the third or fourth day. I think it will be in our best interest to have gotten to the tower by then with a complete set of scrolls."
Naruto was not going to disagree with that. "Naruto, can you see any teams with the heaven scroll we need?" Hinata asked. "It would be easier to know who to go after."
Naruto nodded. "I got eyes on what teams I can. But I've lost a few. The wildlife here isn't too friendly."
Sasuke nodded. "I guess they don't call this place the forest of death for nothing. So, about the heaven scroll?"
"There are few teams with a heaven scroll. I don't know what the other have just yet. Most other teams have been smart enough to keep their scrolls hidden and did it quickly.
"Any of them close?" Sasuke asked.
Naruto shook his head. "They're all a fair distance away," he explained. But if everyone keeps moving to the tower, they'll be easier to hunt down."
"It would be easier to find someone else," Hinata said. "There have to be teams in our area. One of them must have the scroll we need."
Naruto and Sasuke nodded. "Still, it might be a good idea to hunt one of the teams we know has a heaven scroll," the letter said. "At least we come across another team that does. Either way, we're in for a hunt."
"And let's not forget we're being hunted as well," Naruto said.
Sasuke snorted. "They'll have a hard time sneaking up on us. Let's not forget we have the Byakugan with us. Not to mention your eyes. But we will have to be careful. Aside from the Suna team, we don't know who or what we'll be up against in this forest."
"Speaking of," Hinata said. "What about the others? Sakura, Shikamaru, Yakumo, and the others? Can you see them?"
Naruto nodded. "They're all doing okay. Shika and his team had a close run-in with the Suna team." A flash of worry appeared on Hinata's face. "Don't worry about them. They stayed out of sight of Gaara and went in the opposite direction."
Hinata looked relieved. "Any of them got their scrolls yet?" Sasuke asked.
Naruto shook his head. "They've had about as much as we've had," he explained. "Yakumo's team has already fought another team and got their scroll, but not the one they wanted. Sakura's team looks like they might be hunting another team but can't tell who they are."
"What about Neji's team?" Hinata asked. "Is he doing well?"
Naruto shrugged. "Can't say, I lost the eyes watching them." And not to any of the wildlife. Neji had spotted the eyes watching him and his team. A second after that, the girl threw some kunai, but then there was nothing.
Hinata nodded, but the look of concern was clear. "I hope he's doing well."
Naruto wasn't going to comment on that. "Sasuke, you said you wanted to talk about some things. I'm guessing this wasn't it?"
Sasuke nodded. "No," he replied. "This exam is going to be hard. Even if we've had some good luck so far, at some point, that will run out if it hasn't already."
Naruto and Hinata nodded. "Okay, we know that," Naruto said. "What are you getting at?"
"I'm saying that we need to be careful," Sasuke said. "And one of the things we do is come up with a passcode."
"A passcode?" Naruto asked. "Like a password or something? What would we need that for?"
"Say one of us gets separated from the group for a moment," Sasuke started. "Then comes back, but it's not them. They're an enemy shinobi disguised as our teammate. How could we tell?"
"But we have Hinata for that," Naruto pointed out. "A genjutsu won't be able to get past her."
"What if she's the imposter?"
"Oh, good point."
"And not all disguises have to be genjutsu," Hinata said. "Sasuke is right. We need a way for us to tell if others are real."
Naruto nodded. "What do you have in mind, Sasuke."
Sasuke leaned in close to his teammates. "Listen closely. I'm only going to say this once."
In the grass, a snake hissed and slithered away.
The next day
"The creep still following us?" Sasuke asked, looking over his shoulder at Naruto. The trio had been jumping from tree to tree. They had decided to go after a waterfall that Naruto had eyes on. They were one of the teams that had a heaven scroll in their position.
They were the closest team the Konoha-nin could get to. "She's right behind us," Naruto said. Then Naruto caught sight of a lone Kusa-nin following them. A woman, which ruled out the team they had ambushed yesterday.
Naruto had sent his eyes out to look for her teammates, but no one else was behind her or in the area. A lone Kusa kunoichi had decided to come after them on her own. Sasuke did not like that one bit.
Something is up, Sasuke thought to himself. Why would a lone Kusa-nin come after them? Where is her team? How was she tracking them?"
"Should we turn around and fight her?" Hinata asked. "If she is all alone, we could take her."
Sasuke had thought about that. But questions had lingered. Sure, the three of them outnumbered the kunoichi, but numbers didn't always mean something. For all they knew, the kunoichi was good enough to take on a whole team of genin by themselves, or more. She could have ways of separating them and picking them off one by one.
Sasuke shook his head. "No, we keep moving and hope to lose her," he said.
"I could," Naruto started to suggest. Then, a confused look crossed his face, quickly followed by a panic-stricken one. "Guys, watch out. She's."
But it was too late. A powerful gust of wind slammed into the members of team-11, sending them flying. In that moment, Sasuke tried to reach out to his teammates. He only managed to grab Hinata by the arm. Naruto, however, was blown away.
Sasuke and Hinata were blown through the forest, almost crashing into several trees. Then, the wind tunnel started to die down, and the pair finally gained control of their fall.
Sasuke and Hinata landed on the forest floor, not as smoothly as either of them would have liked, but for the most part, they were okay. Sasuke looked to his team to see if she was okay. "Hinata, you all, right?"
Hinata gave him a shaky nod. "I-I am," she said. "You?"
Sasuke nodded and started to look around the forest. "Just what was that? And where are we?"
"And what about Naruto?" Hinata asked. She looked around with a worried expression. "I only saw him briefly before that wind blew us apart."
"I don't know," Sasuke answered honestly. "I tried to reach for him, but."
"Hey guys!"
Hinata and Sasuke turned to the source of the voice. Neither of them could hide the surprise on their faces as they saw Naruto emerge from the undergrowth. He was waving his hands at them, smiling at them.
"Naruto!" Hinata said, about to run toward the blindfolded boy. Sasuke laid his hand on her shoulder to stop her. She looked at him in confusion before it dawned on her.
Sasuke's eyes were narrowed at Naruto. The boy stopped in front of the pair. "Man, that was some powerful wind," he said. "That proctor should have warned us about that. Uhh? Why are you two looking at me like that?" Strike number one.
Sasuke pulled a kunai out and pointed it at Naruto. "The passphrase, now!"
Naruto took a step back and held his hands up defensively. "Hey, now you don't have to do that. It's me, Naruto, your teammate." Strike number two.
"Passphrase, now. Or this kunai goes into your brain." Sasuke warned Naruto.
"Sasuke," Hinata said, trying to stop him. But Sasuke wouldn't hear it.
Naruto sighed, looking at Sasuke with an annoyed look. "Fine, have it your way," he said. He repeated the code word from word. "There happy?" Strike number three, and he was out.
Sasuke smirked. "Very." Then he flicked his wrist, and the kunai sailed into the faker's chest. A look of shock spread across the fake's face. "But why? I said the phrase word from word." The fake stumbled back, holding onto the kunai that had buried itself into his chest.
"Exactly," Sasuke answered. "The real Naruto would never be able to remember something like that quickly." Not without some help, anyway. "I knew someone was watching us. So, I made that thing up just to find you."
The fake looked at Sasuke with surprise. "But how did you know I would be him?" He asked. "I could have been the girl or you even."
Sasuke's smirk grew. "Because out of the three of us, Naruto would look like the weak link to the likes of you," he explained. "Unfortunately for you, that was the first mistake you made."
Next to Sasuke, Hinata had activated her Byakugan and assumed the stance of her clan's fighting style. "Who are you, and what have you done to Naruto?"
The fake smiled. "Kukuku, my, how impressive Sasuke-Kun," he said, his voice shifting to that of a woman's. The image of Naruto shifted and twisted until a woman stood before the pair. She then leaped up to a tree branch. "It seems the Uchiha clan has no shortage of talent. Especially from Fakagu's sons."
Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the woman. "You didn't answer the question. Where is Naruto?"
"Kukuku, oh, I'm sure he's somewhere around," the kusa-nin said. "Though for how long that stays true remains to be seen. But I wouldn't be worried about him. No, the ones you should be worried about are yourselves!" The woman's arm shot, stretching into impossible lengths.
Naruto didn't know how long he had been blown about when the wind died. He landed on a tree branch, his momentum almost having him tumbling down to the forest floor.
"Okay, just what was that?" Naruto asked no one.
"A wind ninjutsu," a certain fox replied to the boy. "And a strong one at that. Great Breakthrough, perhaps?"
Naruto nodded. "Yeah, something like that. Whatever that Kusa-nin hit us with, it did its job." Naruto looked around, seeing none of his teammates. He looked through his other eyes, hoping to find Hinata and Sasuke. But the winds had scattered them as well.
Naruto cursed under his breath as he held an arm out. He channeled his chakra through the seals, summoning more of his eyes. With a mental command, he searched through the forest.
However, before Naruto could do anything else, he got his next big surprise. His eyes caught sight of it a second before a giant snake exploded from the forest and flew right for Naruto.
"The hell?" Naruto said before he was swallowed whole. The snake landed on the ground, hissing with a content sound. The snake stayed where it was ready to digest its meal. Then, a couple of seconds later, the snake looked up, confused. Then, its head twists around to look at its body.
That was when it started to convulse as its body began to expand. The snake let out a pained hiss as its body rapidly stretched beyond what should have been possible. Several large lumps started to form along the snake's long body, expanding out and going back many times. Like something was trying to break out.
Or rather several things, as the snake soon learned. Soon after, a tearing sound could be heard, and a second later, the snake's body exploded as several orange-clad figures tore through its skin.
Naruto and his clones emerged from the snake's body, landing on the ground. They were all covered in stuff that Naruto would rather not think about. Dispelling his clones, Naruto twisted around on his heel and pointed a finger at the dying snake.
"Take that, you overgrown lizard," he shouted at the thing. "That'll teach you to make a snack out of me." The wildlife really was dangerous.
That was when the snake vanished in a cloud of smoke. Naruto looked at the spot where the snake had been in confusion. "Wait, what just happened?"
"That was a summoning animal kit," Kurama answered for the boy. Naruto immediately noticed the edge in the Biju's voice.
"A summoning animal?" Naruto said aloud. "Why does that sound familiar?" And what was he getting an icy feeling in his blood? "Oh, right, those things you can summon. Shisui-sensei was telling us about them."
Naruto recalled the explanation from his sensei. The way Naruto understood, with just a small amount of blood and the right set of handsigns, he could summon a creature from part of the world or even another dimension. These creatures could then help shinobi in various ways, from fighting alongside them to reconnaissance.
It all sounded so cool to Naruto that he asked for the handsigns, eager to try it out. Shisui had quickly shot that idea down, telling him and his teammates it was dangerous to try a summoning without a contract.
"Hang on, doesn't Ba-Chan have her own summons?" Naruto asked. "Slugs, was it? So that snake was kind of like that?"
"Exactly," Kurama answered. "But we are dealing with something far more dangerous than some slugs. There are only two people that I know who can summon snakes. One of them Is the proctor of this exam."
"Anko?" Naruto said. "Oh, guess that explains where she gets all her snakes. So, this was one of her snakes. That sadist asshole. Isn't this forest dangerous enough?"
"Except I don't think this was one of her summons," Kurama replied. "Naruto, you need to hurry to your teammates. I fear that the other summoner of the snakes may be in this forest."
"Who is that?"
The answer Naruto got had him bolting through the forest. "Orochimaru."
Outside the Forest of Death
Anko was enjoying another of her dango when one of the underlings appeared beside her. "What is it now?" She asked the little Chunin. "Can't you see I'm busy?" She holds out a particular orange book.
Whatever this Chunin had to report had better be important. She was just getting to one of the juicy parts of the book. Honestly, I don't see why Kurenai hates these books so much. Sure, it was smut, but it was very good smut. Plus, the plot was really good, too.
"Ma'am, we found something," the Chunin said. While Anko had taken her eyes off her book, she was focused on what the man was saying. The small little shake in his voice had her full focus. "You might want to have a look."
Anko let out a sigh and closed the book. Well, it looks like Itsuki and Yuma would have to wait. "Alright, let's see what got you so ruffled up. But I swear it's nothing, I'm shoving a kunai up your ass."
The man paled but shook his head. "Right this way, Ma'am," he said.
A good distance from the forest of death, Anko was standing over a ridge. She was looking down at a trio of very dead bodies. Her eyes narrowed at seeing they were a Kusa-nin. "How long have they been here?" She asked.
This was serious. Deaths inside of the chunin exams were nothing new, even expected. No matter what precautions they took, somebody always ended up as a corpse by the end of the exams.
But if a death were to happen outside of an exam. Anko rubbed her forehead, already feeling the onset of a headache. "A couple of days, Ma'am."
"Shit," Anko muttered. "The Sandaime is going to want to hear about this. You," she pointed to another chunin looking over the area. "Inform the Hokage of what we found here, and tell him we are investing."
The Chunin nodded and vanished. Then she turned her attention to the corpses. A pair of Chunin were checking the bodies over. "Anything come up yet?" The Tokubetsu Jōnin's mind was already wandering off to the paperwork she would have to do.
What she learned next would have her mind snapping back to sharp focus. "We had an Inuzuka and his ninken sniff around the area," the Chunin said. "He reported nothing unusual. Except for one thing. The bodies smelled of snakes."
For a second time froze around Anko. "Snakes," she muttered under her breath. Then, her mind and body went into action. She grabbed the Chunin by his vest. "Report to the Hokage now. Tell him that the snake is back in Konoha."
Before she could get a reply, Anko vanished into the forest of death.
Forest of Death
Sasuke dodged another arm strike from the kunoichi and landed down on a tree branch. He quickly glanced at Hinata. "Hinata, watch out!"
His warning had reached his teammate just in time. The young Hyūga heiress jumped out of a mud spike that would have impaled her through the shoulder. Then she twists around, sending a gentle fist strike out, destroying another mud spike, then a third and fourth.
Sasuke felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. His body moved on its own, narrowly avoiding a trio of kunai.
"Kukuku, I wouldn't be so concerned about your teammate, Sasuke-Kun," the kunoichi said with an impossibly wide smile. It was like her whole face was stretching to make the expression. Just what kind of freak was he and Hinata fighting? "Not when you should be worried about yourself."
The woman lunched at him. Sasuke jumped back from his tree branch to avoid the attack. But the kunoichi was quick and jumped off from Sasuke, which had been a second ago.
Sasuke's eyes widened as his opponent was now on top of him. "Now, let's see what you can really do."
The kunoichi began to attack Sasuke, engaging in a taijutsu form he did not recognize. Sasuke was hard-pressed to defend himself as the woman's body twisted and contorted in ways that should have been impossible for the human body. This allowed her to attack the young Uchiha from angles he could not predict.
A disappointed look flashed across the woman's face. "Where is that vaunted Sharingan your clan boasts so much about?" she asked. "Are you not a Uchiha?"
Sasuke clenched his teeth. "I don't need it against the likes of you," he growled at the woman. He dodged a hand strike aimed at his back and twisted in the air to parry another attack from the kunoichi. Then he smirked. "Plus, my eyes aren't the only ones you should be worried about."
The kunoichi looked at him confusedly. Sasuke threw himself back as he saw two flashes of light. Bolts of chakra surged for the Kusa-nin. Her head twisted around. "What?" Even though she had been caught by surprise, the kunoichi still managed to avoid the attack from behind and continued to evade more of the attacks from the floating eyeballs.
"Leave my friends alone, you snake freak," Naruto shouted as he emerged from the forest. He threw several kunai at the kusa-nin. All of which had paper bombs attached to them. In addition, more chakra beams were raining on the kunoichi from all directions, forcing her to stay in the same general area.
Then the kunai with the paper bombs reached her and exploded. For a second, it looked like the explosions might have gotten to the kusa-nin, possibly taking her out of the fight. However, Sasuke knew better than to get his hopes up. He was proven right a moment later as a figure leaped up from the cloud of smoke left by the explosions.
Sasuke leaped over her, preparing a jutsu. The kunoichi looked up at him with a smile. "Hoping to get me from above?" She said, turning her body in midair to face Sasuke. "But you're nowhere near fast enough to get me with something like that."
Sasuke smirked as he went through the final hand signs. "I don't have to," he said. "They just need to hold you long enough for me to finish."
The Kusa-nin's eyes widened as she looked around. A ring of eyes was now floating around her, all ready to fire beams of chakra. But they were not the real threat, just a means of cutting off her escape. The real danger appeared right below the woman.
The Kusa-nin turned her head to see Hinata had appeared right behind, Byakugan activated. She only had enough time for her eyes to widen before Hinata attacked.
"Eight Trigrams: thirty-two palms."
"Two palms." Hinata's attack came out quickly and ferociously.
"Four palms."
"Eight palms."
"Sixteen palms."
"Thirty-two palms."
By the time Hinata finished her attack, Sasuke was ready for this. He nodded at Hinata, signaling that she should move. Hinata nodded back and vanished. "Kanton: Great Fireball jutsu!" Sasuke breathed in, molding his chakra. Then he breathed out a stream of fire, then shaped itself into a massive fireball about the size of his body.
The fireball flew right for the Kusa-nin, still fueled by the flames being breathed out by Sasuke. The fireball slammed right into the woman. She screamed as the fire consumed her body, and it dropped down to the forest floor. The flames fueling the fireball stopped as Sasuke ended the jutsu.
He looked down at the burning body of the Kusa-nin. Next to him, Hinata and Naruto appeared. Sasuke nodded to each of them. "Nice save there, Naruto. You too, Hinata."
Naruto grinned. "What can I say?" He said. "We heroes always show up fashionably late to save the day. Right, Hinata?"
Hinata nodded. "Ri-right."
Sasuke snorted. "Good to see you're okay, Naruto. I thought that Kusa-nin would have something for you, Naruto."
Naruto frowned, and his whole expression took a serious tone, enough to set off all sorts of alarm bells in Sasuke's mind. "She did, or rather he did. Sasuke, Hinata, we need to get out of here now."
It was rare for Sasuke and Hinata to see Naruto acting so seriously. "Naruto, what's going on here?" the former asked. "And he?"
"I know we're up against," Naruto said. "Old fuzz-but confirmed it, and we are by no means ready for that kind of fight." Sasuke did not like that sound of that.
Hinata looked scared when she spoke. "Naruto, who are we fighting?"
Naruto had a flat expression on his face when he tried to answer. "We're up against."
"Kukukuku, why not leave the introductions to me, little Jinchūriki," the woman's voice sounds through the forest. The trio of genin looked to the source, seeing the Kusa emerging from a tree branch. Seeing a human body coming out from a tree was an odd sight.
When she fully emerged from the tree, the Kusa-nin looked nothing worse for wear. Sasuke looked down at where her burnt body should have been, only to see a burnt-out husk.
Sasuke looked back at the Kusa-nin; if she was that, Sasuke was getting the suspicion they were not dealing with an actual genin here. "But I suppose it was rude not to introduce myself properly. Please allow me to rectify that." Then, the kunoichi did the most disturbing thing Sasuke had seen that day.
She reached her hand up to her face and started to tear it off. Sasuke got into a fighting stance reflexively. He heard a surprised gasp from Hinata, while from the corner of his eyes, he saw Naruto taking a small step back.
The woman's face tore away, revealing another face under it. A man's face pale with purple marks and golden snake-like eyes. "I am Orochimaru of the Sannin, and you, Sasuke Uchiha, interest me."
It only took Sasuke a second to realize who Orochimaru was and how much danger he and his team were in. "You creep, stay away from my teammate," Naruto shouted at the Sanin.
Sasuke grabbed his teammates by the arm and dragged them away as he jumped from the tree branch to the next. Then to the next and the next. "We need to go now," Sasuke said.
Naruto nodded. "Right."
"Hai," Hinata muttered.
Sasuke let go of his teammates, knowing they would follow him. "What is the Snake Sannin doing in the Forest of Death? And why is he after us?" The young Uchiha asked.
"Sounds more like he's after you, Sasuke," Naruto replied. "And is this really the time for questions? That creep is going to be close behind us."
"Closer than you think," Orochimaru said, appearing beside Naruto. Sasuke's teammate barely had enough to react before the snake Sannin swung his leg down on him. Naruto was sent shooting down into the ground.
"Naruto!" Hinata shouted, turning to help her teammate. Only to be grabbed by the back of her neck by Orochimaru and tossed into a nearby tree. Hinata's back slammed into the tree with an audible thud.
Sasuke had enough self-control not to wince at the sound. But he did turn to face the snake Sannin, hoping to help his teammates somehow. Orochimaru had summoned two snakes to attack Hinata. "That should keep you busy."
Then, the snake Sannin turned to face Sasuke. Then, in a blur of movement quicker than Sasuke could see, he blocked the kunai strike aimed at his chest. "Nice try, little Uchiha. But you will have to do better than that if you hope to survive."
"Then what about this?" Beams of chakra shot from the forest floor. Orochimaru tsked and dodged the blue beams.
Sasuke landed on a tree branch. Glancing down, he saw Naruto standing on the forest floor with an angry expression. Aside from the dirt all over him and some bruises, the blonde-haired boy was okay.
Sasuke turned his attention back to Orochimaru, seeing that a swarm of eyes surrounded him. Beams of chakra fired out from several of the eyes. Orochimaru had an expression that looked to be a cross between annoyance and interest as he dodged through the storm of chakra beams and used a kunai to parry some of the attacks.
"My, my," Orochimaru said. He stretched his arm out, grabbed a pair of eyes, and pulled them towards him. He examined them. "So, this is the new kekkei genkai my former home has gained. I believe you call it the Futogan."
The look of surprise on Sasuke's face mirrored the one on Naruto's. "How did you?" Naruto shouted.
"About your little ability?" Orochimaru interrupted. "Kukuku, my allegiance may not be to this village anymore. But I do keep an eye on it. You never know what interesting things you may hear about it." Orochimaru held the eyes up to examine them better. "I think once my interest in the Uchiha has run its course, I'll examine you next."
Then, in a swift motion, the snake sannin crushed the eyes in the palm of his hands. "So, try not to die until then." A ring of eyes floated around Orochimaru and fired their beams. The beams connected with Orochimaru's body.
Or they would have had he not exploded into a cloud of anger, hissing snakes. The snakes lunged at the eyes, devouring them, and then they fell on Naruto. Sasuke moved to help his teammate.
However, he jumped back, narrowly avoiding a snake from biting into his neck. The snake pulled back. Sasuke looked over and saw that the snake was not a snake. But Orochimaru's outstretched arm transformed into a snake. Orochimaru then threw his other arm out. It stretched out through the air, morphing into a snake as it reached Sasuke.
Sasuke avoided the attack and the next that came for him. He landed on a tree branch, glaring at the snake sannin.
"Now, Sasuke Uchiha," Orochimaru said with a wide smile. A long tongue sticking out from his mouth. "Show me those eyes your clan is so famous for." The snake sannin lunged at Sasuke.
Sasuke had the distinct feeling that he would hate snakes by the end of the day.
Naruto hissed as more of his eyes were eaten by the swarm of snakes. "Just what the hell is up with this guy and snakes?"
"Well, he is known as the Snake Sannin," Kurama quipped. "You don't get a name like that for liking cats or something."
Naruto repressed that growl in his throat. "Real helpful, you furry bastard," Naruto said, using a kunai to cut a snake that had gotten too close to him. "Anything helpful to add?"
"Other than staying alive? No." Kurama replied. "But you do need to get away from that man and with the rest of your team. You're lucky he hasn't killed you yet."
Naruto didn't think it had anything to do with luck. As much as he liked to boast about his team's skill, he knew the three were still small fish in a large ocean. Orochimaru was not an opponent one could get lucky with and survive.
If he wanted to, Naruto knew that man could kill the three of them without effort. He could have killed them without any of them knowing it had been him or he had been there in the first place.
For whatever reason, Naruto and his team were still alive. It had nothing to do with luck or skill. Orochimaru wanted them alive, or at the least, he wanted Sasuke alive.
Naruto watched the fight between his team and the snake sannin, and even he could tell the latter was toying with the former. He saw Hinata fighting against the two snake summons from other sets of eyes.
Sasuke himself was struggling to survive an onslaught from the snake freak himself. Naruto dodged past a group of snakes that threw themselves at him. He summoned a cluster of clones to help him fight off the little monsters.
"We're going to need a miracle if we're going to get away from that freak," Naruto said to the fox. Most of the snakes had been defeated now, allowing Naruto some breathing room. He sent off his clones to help his teammates. That was when an idea occurred to him. "Or an ace we haven't played yet."
"Naruto, what are you planning?"
"Kurama, how ready do you think I am?"
From within the seal, Kurama quirked an eyebrow. "How ready you are?" Then he realized what Naruto was asking. "I see. It's a risky move, kit. You do realize that?"
Naruto nodded. "It might be our best bet against this guy," he explained. He continued to watch the fight between Sasuke and Orochimaru, if it could even be called a fight. "So, how ready am I?"
"Ready enough to handle one tails worth of power, maybe two if you have to. But I wouldn't try three. Your mind would be overwhelmed if you did."
Naruto nodded, appreciative of the worry. "Then it's time to show the snake freak what a jinichiki can do."
From within the seal, Kurama smiled. A part of him was looking forward to this. "Be careful, kit. Even with my power, Orochimaru will still be a formidable opponent. You might have him outmatched in raw power, but he is still the more experienced fighter."
"Got it," Naruto said. Then he tapped into Kurama's chakra. "Here goes nothing."
Orochimaru was growing bored with playing with his food. Certainly, the youngest son of Fugaku was skilled and had some potential. But he was no match for the skill of a Sanin. Nor was he Itachi.
Orochimaru hid his disappointment. He had hoped there would be more to the boy. At the very least, he should have caught sight of the Sharingan by now, which was his ultimate prize. But it would seem what he had heard was true.
Young Sasuke Uchiha had yet to awaken his Sharingan. A disappointment, but perhaps not to be expected. Most Uchiha did not unlock their Sharingan until later in their lives, if ever, usually in their genin years or Chunin.
Itachi had been a special case, having awakened his eyes at six years of age. Truly a prodigy, unlike anything the world had seen since the time of Hashirama and Madara. If Orochimaru had his way, Itachi would be his.
But Itachi was beyond his grasp, so he had to settle for the next best thing, his brother. But now he feared that the child would not live up to his expectations. He supposed asking for a second Itachi in the making was too much.
Orochimaru shot his hand out at the boy's neck. If he really wanted to, he could have easily grabbed his throat and crushed it until his bones turned to powder. Or transformed his arm into a snake and bit the Uchiha, injecting any number of the deadly venoms that he had into the boy's blood.
Sasuke dodges the attack by craning his neck away, only taking a glancing blow to his shoulder. By this point, the young Uchiha was bruised and battered from his fight with the snake sannin.
Orochimaru followed up the attack with a kick to the Sasuke's gut. The attack connected, sending the boy flying into a nearby tree, knocking his breath out. Orochimaru followed with a ninjutsu.
Or would he have had he not been interrupted by a pair of clones from the Jinchūriki. Orochimaru twisted around, cutting through the three shadow clones with his hand. All three popped out of existence.
Orochimaru would have rolled his eyes at the feeble attempt to distract him. That was when he felt the spike in chakra.
Surprised, Orochimaru looked down to see the Uzumaki boy engulfed by a red chakra. Well, now things just got interesting.
Power. That was what Naruto felt right now. Pure, raw power.
Tapping into Kurama's chakra was always an experience for Naruto. Every time he did, he felt like his body had been set on fire. Every nerve in his body flared to life as the familiar red chakra poured out from every inch of skin.
Naruto took a deep breath to dull out the burning sensation he felt across his body. He reigned in the feelings he felt as the power of the Kyūbi came over him. The feelings of bloodlust and the overwhelming desire to simply run wild.
At times like this, Naruto understood why so many feared the power of a Jinchūriki and the biju they contained. "And to think this only a fraction of Kurama's power. If even that." He often wonders how the fox could control himself with all that power.
"Sometimes I can't," Kurama said. "While many stories of my rampages have been exaggerated. A few have not."
Naruto didn't respond to the comment. Instead, he looked up at Orochimaru. The snake sannin had turned his attention to Naruto, having felt the chakra coming off him. By this point Naruto would not be surprised if everyone and everything in the forest felt it.
In the blink of an eye, Naruto shot up from the ground, sending a fist right from the snake freak's face. Orochimaru avoids the attack by stretching his neck and twisting around the fist.
Naruto then attempted to swing his now-clawed hand at the man's neck, hoping to tear it into his flesh. Again, the sannin twisted his neck around to avoid the attack.
From the corner of his eyes, Naruto saw the attack coming. Naruto dodged the attack, a snake head that would have bitten into his arm. The snake pulled back into Orochimaru's arm, morphing into a hand.
Naruto lunged at the sannin, swiping his claws at him. Orochimaru dodged each attack that came at him and, from time to time, threw out his own attack. If Naruto came from the sides, Orochimaru would go up or below. If Naruto came from below or from the top, the snake would go in the opposite direction and attack from the sides.
Naruto gritted his teeth as the sannin twisted his body around to avoid being hit. Then, twist back around the attack to strike Naruto. Seriously, did this guy even have bones in his body?
Orochimaru jumped back through the air towards a tree branch. He flipped around it, grabbed it with one hand, and swung out from under it. Then he shot his free hand out. It stretched out towards Naruto.
Naruto readied himself for the oncoming attack. In his mind, he hoped to grab the arm and pull the snake bastard towards him. But the sannin's arm instead morphed into the heads of several snakes. The snakes flew right for Naruto, their bodies detaching from the arm they had spawned from.
Naruto swiped at the snakes, cutting into the flesh of a couple, killing them while he avoided the rest. Naruto winced when he felt a sharp set of teeth biting into his right arm. Naruto pulled the offending snake off his arm and snapped its neck.
But the momentary distraction had cost Naruto. Even with his eyes watching Orochimaru, the man had vanished from Naruto's sight for a split second. Then he reappeared right next to Naruto.
Naruto tried to turn to face the snake sannin. But then the man shot his arm out, grabbing the top of Naruto's head. Then, before he could react, he felt himself pulled off the tree and swung through the air.
It was kind of a funny thing being able to see himself like that. Then, promptly thrown towards another tree. Most people would have to turn their heads around to see what was coming for them. Luckily for him, he could see all around himself and then some. He still turned his head on instinct.
Naruto braced himself for the incoming impact. Which never came as Orochimaru appeared again behind him. He had a twisted smile as he clasped his arms and hands together.
His arms twist around each other like two reeds being intertwined with each other. Then, they started merging, morphing to form a mass snake head. With a hiss, the snake head opened its mouth.
"Oh, no, not again," Naruto said. He tried to maneuver his body away from the snake's mouth. But his body was flying through the air too fast for him to do anything. Naruto flew right into the mouth of the snake, and before he could do anything, its jaw clamped down around him.
Orochimaru had a satisfied smirk as he allowed the snake to chew on its food. Only for that smirk to twist into a frown. There was a sudden burning sensation in the mouth of the snake, which spread out into his arms.
That was when a clawed hand shot out from the top of the snake's head, followed by a second hand. A moment later, Naruto's upper body tore through the opening he had made. Naruto ignored the wince of pain on the snake freak's face as he pulled himself out from the head.
He landed on top of the snake just a little bit away from the hole he had. Baring his teeth at Orochimaru, Naruto charged at the man. "You bastard, what is with your snakes eating me?" He shouted.
Running up the body of the snake's body, Naruto shot his arm forward, aiming for the chest of his opponent. Orochimaru dispelled his jutsu, splitting the head of the snake back into his hands and pulling his arms apart. But by then, Naruto had already leaped off the snake's body and went straight for the real snake.
Naruto's clawed hand tore right into Orochimaru's chest before he had a chance to do anything about it. The snake screamed out in pain as Naruto's hand went into his chest and then out his back.
His body slammed into the tree behind him. Then Naruto swung the other arm up, his claws burying themselves into the jaw of the snake sannin.
Naruto huffed, looking at what should have been Orochimaru's dying body. However, even without Kurama's warning, he knew killing the snake bastard would not be that easy.
He was proven right when the body started to chuckle. "Impressive," Orochimaru said. "Not many can land a blow like that on me. I suppose I underestimated Konoha's Jinchūriki. But you are centuries away from ever being able to finish me off."
Orochimaru's mouth stretched wide open to lengths that should have been impossible for a normal human being. Then Naruto saw one of the weirdest things he had seen all day, possibly in his life. A second Orochimaru erupted from the mouth, a twisted smirk on his face as he came out of his own body.
"The hell?" That was all Naruto could get out before the snake slammed his fist into Naruto's head. Naruto was flying, crashing through several trees before he slammed into a final tree, leaving a large dent in the bark.
Naruto fell forward, almost landing on a tree branch below him. But Orochimaru grabbed him at the last second, holding him by the head. "Now, I'm quite as good as my idiot of a teammate, but I believe this should keep you from being a nuisance for a while," he said. He held his hand over Naruto's gut, each finger lit with a purple flame.
"Gogyo Fuin!"
Orochimaru slammed his hand into Naruto's gut. Seeing through his other eyes, Naruto saw a seal forming over the seal that kept Kurama inside of him. Naruto felt a sensation of falling and a voice calling out to him.
"Naruto!"
Then darkness came.
Sasuke had watched the battle between Orochimaru and Naruto with no less amazement. When he felt that overpowering, almost oppressive chakra, Sasuke knew Naruto had tapped into the Kyūbi's power.
What followed was a display of power and ferocity Sasuke had never seen before. Sasuke could barely keep up with what was happening. But despite the boost in power Naruto and the way he seemingly had the Sannin on the backpedal, it was clear Orochimaru was still toying around with his opponent.
"You think he can win this?" Hinata asked him. "Can he beat someone like Orochimaru?"
Sasuke shook his head. "No, not even close," he said. "Even with that kind of power, the snake sannin still plays around with him. But he doesn't need to beat the guy. Just buy enough time for us to get away."
"But what about Naruto?" asked Hinata.
"He'll find a way to get away," Sasuke said confidently. "We both Naruto can get out of any tight spot. We need to get out of here and to safety. That he can focus on getting away from the snake."
Hinata still looked hesitant, but she nodded her head. "Alright," she said. The two leaped from the tree branch and sped off into the forest.
In the distance, Sasuke could still hear the sound of the battle raging. Naruto, please be okay, Sasuke thought.
Sasuke did not know how long Hinata, and he had been speeding through the forest when a red blur shot past them. Sasuke's attention snapped to focus as the red blur smashed through several trees before coming to a stop and crashing into a final tree.
The blur was revealed to be Naruto.
"Naruto," Sasuke shouted.
"Naruto." Hinata echoed beside him.
Naruto fell from the tree and landed on a branch below him. But before he could land, Orochimaru appeared in front of him and grabbed him by the top of his head.
Instinct took over for Sasuke and Hinata as they altered their course to move towards their teammate. Orochimaru pulled his free arm back and slammed his hand into Naruto's gut. An action that seemed to knock him out. Then Orochimaru dropped him.
"Naruto!" Sasuke shouted, pulling ahead of Hinata. He had to reach him before Orochimaru could do anything else. The snaked sannin turned to face Sasuke as he flew towards Naruto.
A twisted smile formed on the man's face.
Orochimaru smiled at seeing the desperate look on Sasuke's face as he raced towards his falling teammate. Then, his smile twisted as an idea formed in his head. "I think I know exactly how to bring those eyes out."
Orochimaru reached for a hidden pouch and pulled out a handful of kunai and shuriken. With his other hand, he formed a quick series of handsigns.
Then, in a singular blur, he threw his weapons and shot his other hand out to create a barrage of shadow snakes. All of them aimed at the falling Jinchūriki. Then, using a shunshin, he appeared on a branch below the boy and repeated his attack. Followed by a third time on another branch.
Orochimaru appeared back on the first branch to watch the show unfold. He would not be disappointed.
Sasuke watched in abject horror as kunai, shuriken, and snakes flew for the unconscious Naruto from three different directions.
"Naruto!" Sasuke shouted, willing himself to move faster. But the projectiles and snakes were moving too fast for Sasuke to see, let alone stop. The world around him slowed down.
He remembered the first time he had met the blindfolded boy. That bright smile he had as he introduced himself. He remembered how quickly the two had become friends, followed by Hinata.
He remembered when his father had revealed the clan's plot to take over the village and how Naruto and Hinata had been there for him. So many more memories flooded into Sasuke's mind. The world slew down.
Saving Yakumo. How the team was formed. Their test with Shisui-sensei. All the time they spent together as a team. The missions they had taken together. The first C-Rank the team had. How they had comforted each other following their first kills on that mission. And everything in between. The good moments, the bad moments, and the moments that were just there. The world slew down.
Naruto and Hinata were two of the most important people in Sasuke's life. They were his best friends, and they were his teammates. And now one of them, Naruto, was in danger of being lost to him forever. Sasuke gritted his teeth, and his eyes flared. He refused to allow that to happen. He never allows that to happen.
His heart pounded, blood flowed through his body, and the world moved past him slowly. With that observation, Sasuke noticed that everything around him was moving in slow motion. Naruto falling, the projectiles and snakes reaching for him. Even the falling leaves around Sasuke were moving slowly. Like time had slowed down. Or.
Sasuke felt his eyes widen. Or his perception of everything had slowed down. If Sasuke were to look in a mirror now, he would see his eyes had changed. No longer were they the familiar onyx color he had inherited from his family. But a deep red iris dominated the center of his eyes, with a single black toma spinning around in them. Uchiha Sasuke had unlocked his Sharingan.
At any other moment, Sasuke would be celebrating this moment, the first thing on his mind being to show it to Itachi and his teammates. But right now, Sasuke has more pressing concerns, such as saving his best friend and teammate.
Now that his Sharingan had been activated, hope started to well up in Sasuke as he now had a chance to save Naruto. With a burst of speed, Sasuke rushed toward Naruto.
He reached his hands out, grabbed the blonde by the back of his suit, and pulled him out of the way. He landed on a tree branch, and a second later, the hail of projectiles and snakes collided.
Sasuke placed Naruto's body on the branch, propping him against the tree trunk. Hinata appeared beside Sasuke. He hadn't even noticed her moving. She had a disheveled but relieved expression on her face.
She knelt in front of Naruto, placing a hand on his head. "He's okay," Hinata said after a moment to examine him. "He's just unconscious."
Sasuke nodded. "Watch him," he said. Then, he turned his attention to Orochimaru. "I'll handle the snake freak. What is it you want?" He asked the Sanin.
A smile crept onto the man's face. "What makes you think I want anything from you, Sasuke-Kun," he replied to Sasuke. "I am one of the legendary Sannin. What could I want from a lowly genin like yourself?"
Sasuke repressed the growling crawling up his throat. "Stop playing and tell me what you want," Sasuke said. He pulled out the Heaven scroll he had taken off Naruto. "If you want our scroll, here have it." He tossed the scroll towards the snake sannin. He ignored Hinata's shout of surprise.
Orochimaru grabbed the scroll and examined it for a second. Then the thing lit on fire as Orochimaru held it out for Sasuke to see. "My dear Sasuke, if I wanted your scroll, I would have taken it already." The heaven scroll turned to ash in Orochimaru's hand. "Along with the second one you have on you."
Sasuke gritted his teeth. "I have already gotten what I wanted from you, Sasuke," Orochimaru said. "Those beautiful eyes of yours. Sharingan, oh, how I have longed to acquire them for myself. With them, I could learn all the jutsu in the world. Not to mention the many secrets those blood-red eyes hide."
"Secrets?" Sasuke asked. "What secrets?"
The sannin's smile grew. "I'll leave that for you to find out," he said. "But I will give you this. Try asking your brother about the Mangekyo and observe how he reacts. Those eyes of yours they hunger for power."
Tired and frustrated, Sasuke leaped off the tree branch and threw himself at Orochimaru. "I don't care what you know," he shouted at the man. "You'll get these eyes."
Landing in front of Orochimaru, Sasuke pulled a kunai out and stabbed the man in the chest. Sasuke's eyes widen as the man does nothing to stop the attack. "What?" Then, a moment later, the man's body began to crumble away, revealing it as a mud clone.
From the corner of his eyes, Sasuke saw movement. Sasuke turned around, but it was too late to stop Orochimaru's outstretched head from biting into his shoulder. A sharp, searing pain flashed across Sasuke's shoulder and spread out across his whole body. Sasuke opened his mouth to scream, but no noise came out.
Watching from the corner of his eye, he saw Orochimaru pulling his head away. A sinister smile was placed across his face as he whispered into Sasuke's ear. "A little parting gift from me to you. For impressing me, Sasuke-Kun. A little taste of the power I can offer you." Then his head pulled back. The world faded away from Sasuke as he fell over.
Hinata leaped into action when she saw Sasuke fall over from the tree branch. Leaping through the air, she caught her teammate and landed on another tree branch. With her Byakugan activated, she saw what had occurred when Orochimaru bit Sasuke in the shoulder.
An icky purple chakra had been injected into Sasuke's body, disrupting his natural chakra flow. Then she saw that seal forming on his shoulder as Orochimaru. Looking at that seal with her Bykugan, Hinata could see the purple chakra coming off the thing.
She checked over Sasuke to see if he was all right and was relieved that he was only unconscious.
"What did you do to him?" Hinata said, standing up and facing the sannin. She assumed a fighting stance, knowing full well her chances.
Orochimaru smiled at her. "Just a little parting gift," he said as a swirl of leaves surrounded his body. The leaves were blown away with a gust of wind, and the Sannin vanished. But his voice could still be heard all around Hinata. "You won't have to worry about him. He and your Jinchūriki friend will be fine. But I would suggest that you get them somewhere safe. You'll never know what kind of characters would take advantage of their current state."
Hinata was met with silence for a long while. She knew that the man was gone, leaving her with unconscious teammates. Hinata fell to her knees, letting out a breath she had not known she was holding.
What was she going to do now?
Orochimaru had a broad smile as he leaped through the forest of death. Now, he would see if Sasuke would live up to his expectations. "Let's see how far you will go, Sasuke-Kun. I hope you don't disappoint me."
And even if he did. Orochimaru had other options. He would have his Sharingan and all its secrets.
Then his smile grew as he felt a familiar presence racing towards him. "Little Anko, still resenting me after all of these years." He muttered. "I suppose it is time for a little reunion."