Kunai came flying through the trees from every direction.
The three Mist hunter-nin drew their weapons, knocking the blades aside in a rapid clash of steel. They immediately closed ranks, each watching a different stretch of forest.
"We're surrounded!"
"Who's attacking us?"
"Leaf shinobi?"
As they searched the trees for their attackers, none of them paid any attention to the kunai scattered at their feet.
Every one bore a special technique formula, marked with the character for "flight."
A decade earlier, during the war, leaving those weapons within reach would have been unthinkable.
But the Yellow Flash had become a legend.
They remembered him too late.
A figure appeared beside the first hunter-nin.
Steel flashed across his throat.
Before his body could fall, Naruto vanished.
The second man barely had time to turn before the blade swept through his neck.
"Yellow—"
The third hunter-nin never finished the word.
Naruto appeared behind him, and his sword struck once more.
Three bodies collapsed to the ground.
Still bound, Haku lay nearby and watched Naruto in silence.
After a moment, he spoke.
"I remember you. You were there in the Land of Waves… when Zabuza died."
Naruto flicked the blood from the Sky Thunder Sword and looked down at him.
"You need someone to give you a reason to keep living. Become my follower."
Haku said nothing.
His gaze moved from the scattered kunai to the severed heads. A bitter smile touched his lips.
"So you were the one who killed Zabuza. The same sudden attack… the same way of finishing him."
He looked up again.
"I didn't realize you were that strong."
Naruto frowned.
"Do you want revenge?"
"No."
The faint smile disappeared from Haku's face.
"There's no point anymore. Death is a shinobi's fate."
"Fate?" Naruto sneered. "You decide your own fate. Surrendering to it is what cowards do."
"You…"
"Don't start." Naruto cut him off impatiently. "Just because you look like a girl doesn't mean you have to act so helpless."
He bent down and gripped Haku's shoulder.
"I'll send you somewhere. There's another coward like you there. Maybe the two of you will find something to talk about."
An instant later, they vanished.
…
Less than thirty seconds after Naruto's shadow clone excused himself to relieve himself, the real Naruto returned to Kurenai's group.
Hinata settled onto his back again.
A faint smell of blood reached her nose. Her eyes grew troubled, but she said nothing.
At the front of the group, Akamaru poked his head out of Kiba's jacket and gave two quiet barks.
Kiba frowned.
He almost glanced back, then stopped himself.
He remembered the bikōchū mission—and what Naruto had done to the three enemy shinobi they had encountered.
Without a word, he kept running.
Three more hours passed before Sakura's scent began growing noticeably stronger.
They were getting close.
Then Kiba's expression changed.
"Kurenai-sensei. Sakura isn't alone. There are two unfamiliar shinobi with her. They seem strong."
Kurenai's eyes narrowed.
"Hinata."
"Right."
Hinata activated her Byakugan and looked ahead.
"He's right, Kurenai-sensei. Two shinobi are with Sakura. Both have strong chakra."
They had followed the correct trail.
That also meant they might soon have a difficult fight on their hands.
Neither Akamaru's senses nor Hinata's Byakugan could tell them exactly how skilled those two shinobi were. Strong chakra alone wasn't enough to judge what they could do.
"They're probably working for Orochimaru," Kurenai said. "We have to stop them before they take Sakura away."
She turned to Kiba.
"Follow Kakashi's team's scent and tell them what we've found."
"Understood!"
They had already agreed on what to do if this happened. Kiba changed direction immediately and disappeared into the trees.
Kurenai took a small vial from her pouch.
Two insects waited inside.
She carefully released one. It circled her head once, then flew off in another direction.
Shino had provided them before the teams separated. The released insect would return to him, alerting Asuma's group, while the one remaining with Kurenai would allow them to locate her.
Even the vial had been specially prepared. Small vents allowed the insect's pheromones to escape continuously, leaving a scent Shino could follow.
Once the insect was gone, Kurenai turned to Naruto and Hinata.
"Hinata, you'll go after Sakura while we deal with the other two. Try to convince her to come back. If she refuses, knock her unconscious and take her straight to the village."
"Yes, sensei."
Hinata slipped down from Naruto's back.
Having rested throughout the journey, she still had all her strength.
Kurenai met her eyes.
"Your part of the mission is the most important. Whatever happens to us, keep going. Bring Sakura back to Konoha."
Hinata glanced anxiously at Naruto.
He answered with an encouraging smile.
She drew a breath and nodded firmly.
…
Farther ahead, Sakura stood between two masked shinobi.
Both wore gray Sound uniforms, their faces and heads covered. One blocked the path in front of her; the other stood behind her.
"Sakura. We need your help."
The voice was cold and expressionless.
"What?"
Sakura tightened her grip on her kunai.
She had already secured the bikōchū inside its small container. Now she watched the two strangers, every muscle tense.
"Are you Orochimaru's men? Can you take me to him? No… to Sasuke?"
"We'll escort you safely to Orochimaru," the shinobi continued, seemingly unmoved by her questions. "In return, you'll pass information about him to us."
Sakura stared at him.
"Information…?"
Her eyes shifted toward the other man.
"Then you're not Sound shinobi? You aren't working for Orochimaru?"
She adjusted her footing, searching for an opening to escape.
"Who we are doesn't concern you. You only need to agree."
The man stepped forward to seize her.
"No!"
Sakura spun around and ran.
She barely made it a step.
The other shinobi moved into her path and drove a fist into her, knocking her to the ground.
Pain tore through her body.
She tried to push herself up, but her arms buckled.
The second man approached, his hands moving through a series of seals.
He was about to place a curse mark on her when a hurricane suddenly descended from above.
Both shinobi reacted at once. Grabbing Sakura, they leaped clear of the roaring wind.
But the moment they landed, their bodies froze.
Neither could move.
They looked down.
Two trees had wound themselves around them, binding their bodies tightly.