"See! I told you we'd get a bunch of them!"
"Grabbing just one Heaven Scroll is no big deal!"
Suigetsu Hozuki was soaking in the river with just his arms resting on the bank, grinning at Haku and Kimimaro.
They had barely even fought seriously, and already had a Heaven Scroll and an Earth Scroll.
Compared to them, the other countries' genin were just not strong enough. That said, they had gotten a bit lucky too.
The two teams they ran into were total pushovers, taken out with no effort.
"Don't get careless. We've got five days. Even if we got the scrolls now, there's no telling who we might run into later."
Haku spoke like someone who had been ambushed before. He never let his guard down until it was really over.
Even though they had the scrolls, they weren't heading to the tower just yet.
"Getting the scrolls is one thing. The interesting people worth watching still haven't shown up."
"This is a team survival test, but we're going to have solo fights later too. We've still got a lot of info to gather."
Kimimaro sat on a rock by the riverbank, resting his cheek on one hand while watching Suigetsu soak in the water.
Getting the scrolls only meant they wouldn't be kicked out and miss the later rounds.
Suigetsu pouted, sinking half his face into the water and blowing a few bubbles.
Sometimes Haku wondered if maybe the three of them were just too strong together, which made Suigetsu overconfident.
Even though both he and Kimimaro wanted him to really see how tough the exam could be.
But for now, it looked like they were sweeping through everyone.
I'll find a chance to properly train that guy later… If Suigetsu keeps this careless attitude, he's going to lose or even die someday because he underestimates his enemies.
Haku put away the Heaven and Earth scrolls, leaving one extra Earth scroll with Kimimaro.
If they get separated or something else happens, that spare scroll can be used to confuse the enemy.
In the end, they only need one complete set anyway.
Buzz～
A low buzzing sound came from nearby. Kimimaro looked up alertly and scanned the area.
It was the bone sensors Kimimaro had buried in the area. Whenever there was a fight or big movement, the ground and plants would carry the vibration to the bones.
These bones would make a special sound only he could feel, helping him keep watch over the surroundings.
The downside was, unless there was a lot of noise or something big approaching, they wouldn't react.
After all, Kimimaro was still young. This was already the best he could do.
"Someone's coming?"
Haku looked slightly toward Kimimaro. Suigetsu popped out of the water, quickly getting dressed.
"They're not heading toward us, but it's really loud."
Kimimaro stood up, looking thoughtful. He had to admit—he was a little curious about who was making all that noise.
Naruto and the others popped into his mind for a second, but even if it were those three, who could they be fighting so hard?
"This is the first time you picked up such a big movement! Let's go see! Let's go!"
Suigetsu got all excited, grabbed his water bottle from his belt, and dragged the other two forward in a flash.
"Haah…"
Haku, who wasn't much of a fighter, let out a sigh but had no choice but to follow the two toward the noise.
A dark shadow flashed through the air. Hatake Satoru landed steadily on the stone Kimimaro had been sitting on, rubbing his chin as he watched the three figures run off.
Three scrolls already? That's insanely fast.
Still, Kimimaro was technically his student. If it's his student, getting this far isn't that strange.
"Well, I guess it just means I'm that good."
Hatake Satoru never missed a chance to praise himself. Then he looked up at the birds flying out of the nearby woods.
The sun was already tilting toward the west. At this hour, Mitarashi Anko should've noticed something was off by now.
…
Kotetsu Hagane and Izumo Kamizuki stood on either side, looking down at the three bodies on the ground.
"That happened fast."
Kotetsu scratched his head, then crouched down to examine the corpses.
No matter how you looked at it, these three weren't from the Hidden Leaf Village.
Foreigners, huh… This is going to be hard to explain.
Izumo glanced around the area. It wasn't exactly remote.
Still, most teachers and students were gathered near Training Ground 44, so these three weren't found right away.
Mitarashi Anko was hurrying over with a jonin.
She had been sitting outside the Forest of Death eating dango, planning to head to the tower and wait for the passing teams once she was done.
But before she could leave, a jonin came to report the incident.
There were drops of blood on a nearby Jizo statue. A faint smell of blood lingered around the bodies.
"According to the records, these three were official participants from the Hidden Grass Village in the Chunin Exams."
"…They have no faces."
Anko frowned deeply as she stared at the bodies in front of her.
The faces of all three were completely gone. It looked like they'd been melted off—flat and smooth, like someone had wiped them clean.
Without realizing it, Anko reached behind her neck.
She recognized this jutsu. She knew this method.
Orochimaru.
But why would he show up at something like the Chunin Exams?
Mitarashi Anko felt a deep sense of trouble. Orochimaru wasn't just here—he had already managed to sneak in.
Those students were in real danger now.
"Here's the file on those three. Their ID photos are at the top."
A nearby jonin flipped through a stack of documents and pulled out the file on the three of them. Anko only glanced at it before her eyes locked onto the top sheet.
That face—there was no doubt about it. It was the one who appeared behind her with a killing aura and handed her the kunai!?
No wonder she felt something was off back then. He was just a genin, but the killing intent he gave off was too real.
"So he had already swapped places back then…"
He'd been right next to her, but Anko hadn't realized it was actually him.
Or maybe, she never even imagined Orochimaru would come to the Chunin Exams—let alone sneak into somewhere like the Forest of Death, where movement was so free.
Two drops of sweat slid down Anko's face.
"Damn it…"
"Report this to Lord Hokage right away! Request two ANBU squads to head into the Forest of Death immediately!"
"I'll go after them now. Got it!?"
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