"This… what kind of Ninjutsu is this?!"
The Kirigakure Ninja, pinned tightly to the ground, twisted his head with difficulty, his face filled with shock and disbelief. Instantaneous movement? He had never seen or even heard of such a bizarre technique!
"Answer my question," Naruto's kunai, pressed against the opponent's neck, drew a fraction closer, "Is your team's scroll on you?"
"…"
Seeing the opponent's face instantly turn pale and break out in a cold sweat, Naruto understood—this guy didn't have the scroll on him at all; he was just a pawn sent out to test the waters.
At this moment, the fear of death had completely seized him, rendering him unable to utter a complete sentence.
Hoping for his comrades to save him? The Hidden Mist had not yet completely shaken off the vestiges of the 'Village of the Bloody Mist' policy. Although Obito was gone, that cruel tradition of infighting wasn't so easy to eliminate. In an environment where even graduation exams required killing one's comrades, how could one expect teammates to risk their lives for a rescue?
Just then, Satsuki slowly stepped forward, her expression terribly grim. The kunai in her hand was already raised, her eyes swirling with icy killing intent—this reckless guy actually dared to ambush Naruto, and even almost injured him! For Satsuki, this alone meant he was already a dead man.
However, just as Satsuki's kunai was about to fall, Naruto reached out and stopped her.
"Naruto…?"
Satsuki looked at him in confusion, her eyes questioning. Naruto didn't explain, but merely lowered his voice and spoke quickly.
"Satsuki, Sakura, get ready immediately, someone's coming."
"People? Are they enemies?" Sakura nervously looked around.
"Yes," Naruto responded curtly, his tone grave, "Protect yourselves."
No sooner had he finished speaking—
"Boom—!!!"
A tremendous roar suddenly exploded! Violent air currents, carrying dust and shattered leaves, swept over like a storm, causing Sakura and Satsuki's expressions to change drastically. Sakura, in particular, was inwardly groaning.
How could their team be so unlucky?! They had just entered the exam venue and already faced two consecutive attacks? And the commotion from this attack… it was far too great!
Naruto instantly judged that this violent air current was a powerful Wind Release Ninjutsu! Its impact even left clear furrows on the ground.
Naruto immediately flung the subdued Kirigakure Ninja aside, simultaneously pulling out a Flying Thunder God kunai from his Ninja pouch and throwing it to the side, quickly placing his hands on Satsuki and Sakura's shoulders.
"Whoosh!"
The Flying Thunder God Technique was activated again. The three figures vanished instantly as if erased by an eraser, appearing the next moment behind a hidden bush in the distance, with the Kirigakure Ninja also thrown over.
Satsuki felt the experience, almost like a spatial jump, and was deeply shaken. What kind of Ninjutsu was this? To be able to teleport multiple people instantly, it was too powerful!
"Since you don't have the scroll on you, then leave here immediately," Naruto said to the still-shaken Kirigakure Ninja, "You probably don't want to get caught up in the upcoming battle."
"You… you won't kill me?" The Kirigakure Ninja looked up in disbelief.
"No," Naruto replied calmly, "But if your initial goal wasn't to take me hostage, but to go straight for the kill, the outcome might have been completely different."
The reason he let the opponent go was simple: this Kirigakure Ninja clearly held back during the ambush, aiming only to subdue, not to kill. Naruto was not bloodthirsty; this was just a Chunin Exams. If he were to eliminate all competitors, what difference would Konoha have from the bloody "Village of the Bloody Mist"?
The Kirigakure Ninja fell silent, looking deeply at Naruto—in a way, this Konoha youth had just saved his life. He said no more, quickly turned, and disappeared into the depths of the dense forest.
"Ugh… bleh…"
Just as the Kirigakure Ninja fled, a suppressed retching sound suddenly came from behind. Naruto sharply turned his head, only to see Sakura's face ashen as paper, her entire body slumped to the ground, trembling violently and uncontrollably.
This was…? Seeing her display symptoms similar to severe motion sickness, Naruto was first astonished. Was it a side effect of the Flying Thunder God Technique's spatial movement?
But then he rejected the idea. No, such a side effect might occur if a novice who had just mastered space-time Ninjutsu were to use it, but if someone like himself, who had completely mastered Flying Thunder God, were to use it, transporting people would not cause such severe physiological discomfort.
At the same time, Satsuki, beside him, also began to sweat profusely, her body uncontrollably weakening slightly, kneeling on one knee. She gritted her teeth, trying to stand up, but felt her limbs incredibly heavy.
Naruto didn't know that in that instant, Satsuki and Sakura were invisibly forced to experience an extremely real "death illusion"—it wasn't a physical attack, but pure mental pressure caused by a massive killing intent, making them momentarily "experience" the terrifying feeling of being brutally killed at a subconscious level.
And what created all of this was merely the opponent's released killing intent, condensed as if tangible.
"Heh heh… what a peculiar brat indeed." A hoarse voice with a playful tone came from above, "Could it be… you've already grown accustomed to slaughter?"
Naruto looked up, only to see the culprit had appeared—a disguised Orochimaru, standing atop a giant snake, looking down at the three of them. A hint of surprise flashed in his snake-like eyes; he clearly hadn't expected this blonde Genin to be completely immune to his killing intent.
"As prey, when facing a predator, shouldn't you show the appropriate panic and fear?"
Orochimaru's hoarse, magnetic voice echoed through the forest, imbued with mental pressure. However, what responded to him was not trembling or retreating, but the crisp and swift sound of hand seals!
"Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Naruto's hand seals were completed in an instant.
"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"
A continuous burst of white smoke explosions sounded like a sudden downpour! The next moment, the surrounding forest, open spaces, and even between the branches, were instantly filled with hundreds of Naruto Shadow Clones, the dense golden figures surrounding Orochimaru.
This was not all! All the Shadow Clones moved in perfect unison, simultaneously forming hand seals again, and the Chakra fluctuations surged violently like before a tsunami!
"Hundred Shadows Chaotic Dance · Sea Dragon Raging Waves Heavenly Weeping Water Annihilation Formation!"
With a clear shout from Naruto's main body, every Shadow Clone released Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Jutsu! In an instant, hundreds of ferocious water dragons roared into form from all directions, tearing through the air, raising a sky full of water vapor. The immense volume of water almost drained the humidity from the surrounding environment! Countless water dragons intertwined and coiled, forming a inescapable net of death that covered the sky!
Watching this joint Water Release, which overshadowed the sky and contained astonishing Chakra and destructive power, Orochimaru's playful expression instantly froze… Wait a minute, something isn't right, wasn't he fighting a Genin?
Just as the sky-high water dragons were about to engulf him, a voice pierced through the deafening roar of the water, reaching his ears.
"You seem to have misunderstood something, you are the challenger!"
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