Chapter 14 - Dangerous desk! Yakushi Kabuto-like impaction

"When..."

Anko whispered. The boy's movements were so silent, whether entering or leaving the arena, that she hadn't even noticed his presence.

"This one is a master," one of the Anbu members said, touching the ground. His tone was solemn, and even through his mask, the tremor in his breathing was noticeable.

"Even the way he landed was planned out. If we hadn't intervened, he and Orochimaru would still be fighting."

"You mean... we interrupted their fight?" another Anbu asked, surprised.

They all understood that if the boy hadn't appeared just now, they would all have fallen.

"Don't dwell on it. We still have an injured comrade lying there," someone pointed out.

The group looked over, and sure enough, one of the fallen Anbu was still unconscious.

"Wait, what!?" they exclaimed in shock, realizing that the injured Anbu's clothes were missing.

"Was it the boy?" Anko wondered. She knew that Orochimaru wouldn't have done something like that.

"Either way, he saved us. My mask was taken too. He's likely trying to conceal his identity while continuing to track Orochimaru," Xi Yan commented, as she helped their unconscious teammate.

"Xi Yan, take the injured back and report to Lord Hokage. The rest of you, follow me to chase Orochimaru. Someone like him... he won't stop until he achieves his goals!"

...

"Ding! Training complete!"

"Gentle Fist: Acupuncture Mastery +4477! Byakugan Mastery +2796!"

Neji, wearing the mask he'd taken, left Anko and the others behind as he checked the results of his training.

"That was intense! Just a few moves with Orochimaru!" he thought, excitement coursing through him.

Despite the danger, the experience he gained from fighting such a powerful opponent far exceeded anything he could simulate through regular training. Though training was crucial, it was clear that Neji needed more of these high-level combat encounters.

Based on Orochimaru's hurried departure, Neji deduced that his enemy hadn't completed his objective yet. He was probably still after Sasuke.

But Neji had no interest in Uchiha family matters and knew he lacked the power to intervene.

"I should use this opportunity to find him for another fight!" Neji muttered, feeling the weight of the Anbu uniform he'd taken. It should be enough to conceal his identity.

However, as he was about to leave, his body felt weak.

"Tsk," Neji clicked his tongue, feeling his knees go soft.

"Was I too tense earlier?"

He chuckled softly to himself. Even though he had everything under control, his body's natural response to stress couldn't be completely suppressed.

Or maybe it was due to Orochimaru's illusion from before. Either way, Neji knew he had fought at his current physical limit.

Turning his attention to his teammates, Neji realized that he should check on Tenten and Lee.

"I wonder if they've run into trouble..."

Neji's concern grew as he neared their rendezvous point. He activated his Byakugan, blue veins bulging around his eyes as his vision expanded.

Two hundred meters away, he spotted Tenten and Lee, but to his dismay, they were being blocked by three opponents!

Neji frowned, coming to a halt.

"They've walked into an ambush."

Without hesitation, he took a ration pill, chewed it, and swallowed. His physical strength slowly started to return, but not fast enough for him to be sure he could handle all three enemies.

Still, he decided to move closer and assess the situation.

Meanwhile, Tenten and Lee were swiftly making their way towards the center point when they triggered a trap. The sound of ropes scraping against trees alerted them both.

"Lee!" Tenten shouted.

"I'm on it!" Lee responded.

They both dove to the sides, narrowly avoiding a massive log that crashed down in the middle, destroying several trees behind them. But as they landed, another trap triggered—a wire net on the ground snapped shut.

"It's a double trap!" Tenten exclaimed, but she reacted quickly, pulling out a scroll.

"Hidden Weapon: Rising Dragon!"

Hundreds of kunai and shuriken flew out, cutting through the wires. The two escaped, but as soon as they landed again, they heard a hissing sound.

At Tenten's feet, a paper bomb was about to detonate!

"Get down!" Lee yelled, pushing Tenten out of the way. They braced for the explosion, but the sound was surprisingly soft.

Opening their eyes, they realized the area was now filled with purple smoke that spread rapidly.

"It's poison!" Tenten gasped, covering her mouth and nose as they both retreated.

Two figures emerged from the smoke.

"There's no point in resisting. The poison's already working," one of them said.

The speaker was none other than Kabuto Yakushi, accompanied by a teammate in red bronze armor.

"This isn't a deadly poison. It's designed to disable ninja by affecting their chakra points and meridians. In three days, you'll recover, but until then, you won't be able to use ninjutsu, and your mental strength will weaken."

Tenten coughed, realizing she could no longer gather chakra.

"Too bad for you—I'm a taijutsu specialist!" Lee declared, stepping forward and preparing to remove the bandages from his wrists.

But Kabuto merely smirked.

"What, are you planning to fight three of us while protecting your weakened friend?"

The armored ninja next to Kabuto had already drawn a kunai, ready to strike.

"Lee..." Tenten hesitated. She couldn't fight, and if Lee went ahead, she would only drag him down.

"I don't want to hurt you," Kabuto said. "I know you have the scrolls. Hand them over, and I'll let you go."

Tenten's eyes widened in shock. "You've been laying this trap from the start?"

Kabuto grinned. "Of course. This isn't my first Chūnin exam. I knew exactly how to catch you rookies."

Lee gritted his teeth. Handing over the scrolls would mean failing the exam.

Just as the tension rose, Kabuto's eyes narrowed, and he hurled a scalpel-like kunai at them. The blade missed entirely, but then ricocheted off a tree and embedded itself into the ground near the group.

"What was that? A feint?" Tenten thought.

Suddenly, a figure appeared, standing on a tree branch above them. Dressed in Anbu attire and wearing a mask, the figure crossed his arms, surveying the scene below.