Karin's clothes and forehead protector, along with the bodies of those two Grass Ninjas, were fed to the beasts; this way, even if a master detective investigated, there would be no evidence.
Along the way, Kano collected quite a few shadows. Since they were all Genin, they didn't have much combat power.
Kano didn't immediately use these shadows as upgrade materials, but kept them to help with chores. Thirteen Shadow Ninjas busied themselves and, under Kano's command, built a roofed carriage.
However, it was just a deer pulling the carriage.
The carriage was finished, and it didn't even need a driver; the thing could be auto-piloted by the Shadow Deer. Kano and Karin sat inside the deer carriage.
"Listen up, before we reach the finish line, you have to transform into a black mass to disguise yourself as my Shadow Ninja. That way, they won't suspect you, and you can leave with me openly. Also, after becoming a Shadow Ninja, you can't speak and must follow my orders."
"I understand."
Kano could finally relax now. She took off her shoes and prepared to lie down in the carriage for a rest. Anyway, she had already ordered Shadow Haku to find Sasuke, and the Shadow Deer's order was to find Shadow Haku.
This way, they could steadily make their way towards Sasuke.
As for Naruto, he would always find a way to get here; she believed in him.
Meanwhile, on Sasuke's side, earlier...
"There's been no movement for so long; they must have gone after Kano."
Then, a piercing song rang out from the distance. It was Kano's Requiem. Sasuke had the privilege of hearing it back at the Great Bridge, and it was not a pleasant experience.
"Has that snake spirit already caught up with Kano?!"
Sasuke was still hesitating whether to support Kano. He knew how terrifying the enemy was; if Kano was alone, she would surely face certain death!
But running in separate directions was originally meant to minimize casualties. If he and Kano ran together, they would both die.
While Sasuke was still hesitating, the Requiem sounded again.
Then, the shadow clone Kano had left by Sasuke's side disappeared.
This gave Sasuke a bad premonition.
Generally, with this kind of long-range Ninjutsu, it's either released by the user themselves or automatically dispels when the person dies.
Sasuke desperately hoped it was the former, but that hope was slim. There was no reason for Kano to proactively release this shadow clone; it would only cause her to lose track of Sasuke.
Sasuke couldn't believe this fact and stood there in a daze.
"Sasuke!"
Someone's call woke the dazed Sasuke.
A disheveled Naruto had just escaped the giant snake and immediately came back to find Kano and Sasuke.
"Sasuke, what's wrong with you? Why do you look so listless? By the way, where's Kano-chan?"
Sasuke didn't dare answer Naruto's question. He knew Naruto liked Kano and how important she was to him.
"Hey, Sasuke, say something!"
Naruto also sensed something was wrong and jumped to Sasuke's side, but the other boy just kept his head down in silence.
"Is Kano-chan in that direction? I heard the Requiem Music Score she played. If you won't talk, I'll go find her myself!"
"Naruto, don't go over there!"
Sasuke grabbed Naruto's hand.
"What do you mean?"
"There's an extremely dangerous enemy over there, one we can't handle."
Hearing this, Naruto's head buzzed. His eyebrows shot up, and his eyes widened.
"Are you saying you encountered a powerful enemy and then just left Kano-chan behind and ran away yourself?!"
"We ran in separate directions; it was to increase the survival rate..."
"Bastard!" Naruto knocked Sasuke down with a punch. "So you just watched her face the enemy alone? You coward! You weakling! Sasuke, I misjudged you!"
"Naruto!"
Naruto left Sasuke behind and ran toward the direction of the Requiem, while Sasuke chased after him, shouting for him to stop.
Sasuke didn't know how to argue back; he really had done a terrible job this time.
An eerie voice came through.
"Found you."
The person who arrived wasn't Kano, but Orochimaru.
The cold voice stimulated Sasuke, making his hair stand on end.
"Naruto, this guy is dangerous! Run! This is the enemy who attacked me and Kano!"
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