章 40: Chapter 39
Chapter 39
"Did you hear that?" Kiba asked, throwing the unconscious bodies of shinobi from Village Hidden in the Rain on the ground.
"It is from the same direction where we heard the explosion," Hinata added, looking around them to ensure no one was trying to ambush them.
Shino, with his other two teammates, looked in the direction where they heard the ear-piercing roar. Shino looked at the heaven scroll they got from the team under their feet. They needed an earth scroll, and now they have two heaven scrolls. Shino had to decide on what they should do. A lot was weighing on him.
That roar was animalistic but still sounded human. So, it could be two teams fighting each other, giving them a bigger chance of getting earth scroll. On the other hand, if the worst comes true, they might have to fight two teams at once, or other teams could take notice of it too, and it would be a difficult situation he has put his team in.
"We might not have other opportunities," Kiba said, seeing that Shino struggled to decide. "Kaen-sensei has said that luck is part of the test. We might be unlucky to find any earth scrolls later on."
"Hinata," Shino addressed the sole girl of the team. "Don't join the fight if it is not necessary, but keep your Byukugan activated at all times. We can't let to be ambushed by others."
"I understand," Hinata nodded.
"Kiba, you and Akamaru will lead," Shino ordered as they started to run.
Kiba had better senses than Hinata or Shino, so he was best to lead, as without her byukugan activated, Hinata wouldn't be able to notice anyone setting an ambush on us. Shino knew he couldn't let Hinata have her byukugan activated constantly, as it drained her chakra and mental strength. It was best to use it when needed.
It didn't take long to arrive at the scene, where they heard the explosion and a roar. It was a patch of woods near a small river. They didn't expect to see team seven fighting against another team. What shocked them most was Sasuke lying by the tree, probably injured from his irregular breathing. Sakura was barely standing in the river with nasty bruises around her.
The surprises didn't end there. As Shino and his team looked at Naruto, he stood above a girl with one foot on her face. On Naruto was a cloak of red chakra with one tail seemingly coming from behind. Even his physical appearance was different. He looked more animalistic than Kiba did.
"He's dangerous," Kiba said as he couldn't help but step back, and Akamura hid behind him.
"We shall not interfere for now," Shino said. "Hinata, watch out for others."
"But Naruto," Hinata didn't know what to say, looking at the blond boy.
"Naruto is fine," Shino stated. "I don't know what kind of jutsu he is using, and it would only put more danger to him and us if we interfered recklessly. If you want to help them, then watch for other teams."
"Yes, I understand," Hinata activated her byukugan and let out a startled sound. "It's not Naruto's chakra."
"What do you mean?" Shino asked.
"It is coming from inside Naruto, but it is different. It's foreign chakra that I have never seen before."
Before Shino could ask for more, the fight continued. A boy with bandages covering his face and long sleeves ordered another boy to attack. The boy with the spotted scarf nodded and moved, extending his arms and letting out some shockwave. Shino wanted to ask Hinata what kind of attack that was, but Naruto let out another roar that created an even bigger shockwave before he could. Naruto's shockwave obliterated the spotted scarf boy's shockwave.
After that, it was a brutal beatdown as Naruto got close to the boy before he could regain his footing from the surprise attack. Naruto rushed at the boy punching his stomach numerous times. The first punch made the boy leave the ground and rise into the air, and with each punch, he got higher. Then Naruto grabbed the boy's legs and slammed him into the ground creating a small crater.
"Ugh," Hinata didn't look comfortable, and she explained why when her teammates turned to look at her. "His spine is cracked. I don't think he will ever be able to continue to be a shinobi after this."
Shino was shocked to see such brutality coming from Naruto. He knew the blond boy liked to fight dirty and rough, but this was beyond anything he had imagined. Shino has never seen something like this. And he knew he would be as defenseless as the boy in the spotted scarf if he had to fight Naruto right now. He had no insects or seals that could stop Naruto in that state.
"Kiba, what do you think?" Shino asked.
"Even though he looks more animalistic, his taijutsu form is still quite good," Kiba informed. "He hasn't lost control of himself yet."
"Yet he could?" Shino looked surprised at Kiba's explanation.
"Look at Naruto's eyes," Shino did as Kiba had said and saw red eyes instead of blue with slits rather than irises. "He is furious, more so than I ever seen him to be. And he doesn't look at his opponents as enemies, but prey."
"Shino, I can see a team of three approaching," Hinata informed them. "They are trying to hide themselves and likely are there to observe, not interfere."
"Good job, Hinata," Shino nodded in understanding. "Keep looking at them and watch for other teams."
"Understood."
Shino and Kiba focused back on Naruto as he faced the boy covered in bandages. Shino noticed the boy doing something with his arms under his long sleeves. Kiba frowned and said that his hearing picked up some unpleasant sounds but couldn't elaborate further. Whatever he did make Naruto lose his balance and unable to dodge a kick to his chest.
Yet Shino observed that Naruto was almost unstoppable when covered in a chakra cloak. It enchanted his physical strength, and his healing capabilities became more substantial from the looks of it. The speed and destructive prowess were beyond anything a normal genin should be able to achieve. It was disconcerting to Shino to know his team couldn't defeat Naruto in that state.
In retaliation to the previous attack, Naruto charged forward with incredible speed, landing powerful blows on the boy with bandages covering his face with a combination of taijutsu and what Shino could discern as chakra-infused attacks. Each strike sent shockwaves through the woods, and Shino could see the water from the river start to ripple.
"The man with long sleeves uses sound attacks," Hinata informed them. "Yet it almost does not affect Naruto as his chakra cloak seems to protect him."
The fight was over before they realized it. Naruto's foe couldn't keep up with the speed and power Naruto possessed. At was battered and soon lost consciousness. Yet Naruto didn't care for or didn't know it as he kicked him through trees. Shino knew it best not to interfere and wait until Naruto had calmed down, but it looked like he wasn't done with his foes yet as he started to walk toward the girl lying on the ground.
"Naruto!" Sakura's shout seemed to make Naruto snap him out of his state.
Shino saw the red chakra cloak recede, and Naruto's appearance changed back to normal. Shino was interested in what kind of jutsu Naruto used, or was it his bloodline limit? Shino had heard of the Uzumaki clan, but it was gone for years, so any knowledge of their bloodline limit might have been lost, or people have forgotten it.
"We should help them," Hinata said.
"Let's do so," Shino agreed. "They might have an earth scroll they want to trade with our heaven's one. But first, we need to take care of the observers. Kiba."
"On it," Kiba replied, walking out first and waving to Sakura and Naruto and then turning in the direction where Hinata saw another team hiding. "Hey, you three hiding! Come out. We know you there."
"We have been found out," Shikamaru answered, and his team came out from hiding too. "We don't want to fight."
"Neither do we," Shino revealed himself and replied.
"Hey, you guys!" Naruto yelled at them. "Have you been hiding all this time?"
"When we arrived, you were already handling yourself quite well," Kiba answered. "Shikamaru came not long after."
"Oh, that's good. For a second, I thought you guys were assholes for not helping us out," Hinata blushed a bit at Naruto's vulgar words. "Well, then, I have nothing to worry about. Goodnight."
And with that, Naruto passed out. Hinata quickly went to check on him, but from her relieved expression, Shino concluded that he was fine. Sakura was busy patching up Sasuke when Hinata looked like she wanted to help. Shino shook his head. It didn't look like a life-threatening injury, and they needed to reserve their strength, as it was still the first day of the test, and who knows what kind of enemies they would face later on.
"How is Sasuke-kun?" Ino walked next to Sakura. "What happened to you guys, and how did Sasuke get beaten up by the guys Naruto crushed?"
"Kiba, check their bodies for the scroll," Shino said before deciding to listen to what Sakura had to say.
"Naruto and Sasuke were already tired from the fight previously," Sakura explained.
"So, you faced another team already?" Shikamaru asked.
"No, it was only one man," Sakura corrected.
"One?" Ino was surprised. "Sasuke is one of the best, and we saw how Naruto beat down these guys. Is there genin even stronger than these two?"
"Sasuke said he wasn't a genin," That got attention from everybody. "He was too powerful, and it took all they got to run away."
"Someone had infiltrated the exams," Shikamaru concluded.
"Hey, Shino!" Kiba yelled out. "I found an earth scroll."
"Are you trying to steal it from us?" Sakura asked.
"Do you need earth scroll or heaven?" Shino asked.
"Heaven," Sakura answered.
"We have one extra," Shino said. "Would you like to trade it with us?"
"Oh, sure, thanks," Sakura replied.
"We should get going," Shikamaru suddenly said. "Other teams will have noticed the fight too, and soon they might wonder why it is so quiet. They will think that there is someone for easy picking."
Shino had to agree. The fight was loud enough that at least this half of the forest knew of it by now. And seeing how Naruto and Sasuke couldn't fight, Sakura would be easy pickings for someone. Shino turned to look at the team that was fighting Naruto. Seeing that they won't be getting up for a while, it was better to leave them. His mission was accomplished.
"Well, you now have the scrolls. You can leave at any time," Kiba said to Sakura.
"I would advise against it," Shikamaru responded. "The closer we get to the tower, the more teams will await an ambush. With how your team is now, you won't make it."
"Thank you," Sakura replied with a soft smile. "You guys better keep going, I will find a place to hide for a few days, so Sasuke and Naruto can rest."
Shino nodded and motioned his team to follow him out. It was true that the closer they got to the tower, the more danger there would be for them. But Shikamaru failed to mention that the more days passed, the more desperate others would become. Kaen-sensei have warned them to be extremely careful when faced with desperate people. A rat will bite the cat if pushed to the corner.
With both scrolls in their hands, they had no reason to stay here anymore. So, Shino ordered Kiba to lead them and Hinata to watch their back. They didn't know what kind of test they had to face next, so it was better to finish this task sooner than later and prepare themselves for the next test. They cannot fail. Failure meant something far worse than death.
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