A World Where Only Sasuke Is Injured

Sakura fell to the ground, still conscious, though it seemed her injuries weren't light.

At this moment, Sasuke had been bitten on the neck, showing a painful expression. Orochimaru, noticing Naruto's appearance, quickly retracted his long, snake-like neck.

This round was essentially a trade-off, with each side hitting the other.

"Naruto! Be careful! Sasuke is..." Sakura also noticed Naruto's return and shouted for him to be careful.

At this point, Sasuke, still clutching his neck where a small strawberry-shaped mark was, collapsed. The only people remaining on the scene were Orochimaru, disguised as a test participant, and Naruto.

"Sakura, calm down. Sasuke is fine," Naruto reassured her, then turned his gaze to Orochimaru. "I've gathered intel. This guy isn't a test participant; he's one of the Legendary Three, Orochimaru."

"What?" Sakura was completely confused.

Kakashi's generation was more familiar with the Legendary Three of Konoha, but by the time it reached Sakura and Naruto's generation, certain taboo topics about the Three were kept secret, and Sakura only knew that Orochimaru was one of them.

How does it feel when a name from the books suddenly appears and attacks you?

Sakura was stunned, and Sasuke, still in pain, was equally confused.

Orochimaru looked at Naruto with interest, flicking out his tongue like a snake's, his skin beginning to peel away slightly, revealing skin whiter than that of a woman.

"Naruto? Are you the village's Jinchuriki?"

"That's right," Naruto replied confidently, "Anything else? If not, hurry up and leave, Uncle, your body is falling apart."

Looking at Orochimaru, whose power had decreased to less than a tenth of its peak, Naruto showed no fear at all.

He also knew that Orochimaru was a scientist who did things with absolute precision. Since Orochimaru's goal was Sasuke, it made no sense for him to interfere any further.

As expected, Orochimaru didn't get angry at Naruto's words; instead, he gave a sinister smile.

"Naruto, we will meet again."

With that, Orochimaru turned and left.

Naruto didn't move, just kept his eyes on Orochimaru's retreating figure, staying alert. It wasn't until a few minutes later, when Orochimaru's presence vanished from the forest, that Naruto fully relaxed and turned to walk towards the two.

"Sasuke, how are you?"

Naruto asked as he crouched down to check on Sakura first, ensuring none of her parts were missing before breathing a sigh of relief.

As for Sasuke, he wasn't worried. Orochimaru cared more for his body than Sasuke himself did.

"Don't worry about me," Sakura said with some difficulty, "Sasuke's injuries are serious."

"Alright," Naruto agreed and stood up, walking over to the unconscious Sasuke.

After inspecting Sasuke's neck, he indeed saw the black curse mark. It was a mark made of three small commas, each about the size of a pinky, spinning together. Activating the curse mark would immediately grant the power boost it provided.

"He's fine, just unconscious," Naruto gave Sakura an OK gesture.

After a bit of effort, Naruto placed Sasuke on a large tree trunk. He then picked up the exhausted Sakura and nimbly climbed up the tree.

"Naruto, thank you," Sakura whispered, "If you hadn't arrived in time, Sasuke might..."

Sakura also realized that Orochimaru's true target was Sasuke. However, Naruto knew Orochimaru's intentions, while Sakura thought Orochimaru planned to slowly kill Sasuke.

"This... we're comrades, this is what I should do," Naruto scratched his head and then asked, "Sakura, do you have any food?"

Sakura reached behind her waist but found nothing, then shook her head.

"No, during the fight, the soldier pills must have fallen somewhere."

Just as this happened, Naruto's stomach growled, making the situation a bit awkward. Sakura lowered her head, softly apologizing.

"It's fine, you should rest for a bit," Naruto stood on the tree trunk. "I'll go check the situation."

With that, Naruto swiftly climbed to the treetop. He stood lightly on a thin branch the size of a finger, slightly swaying, looking off into the distance as if searching for something.

"Naruto, it's dangerous up there! Be careful!" Sakura called out worriedly, looking up at him.

"Got it!" Naruto responded, glancing down at Sakura, "There's a river to the west. It should run through the center of the Death Forest. If we head west, we'll get there quickly!"

"A river?" Sakura didn't understand Naruto's meaning, "What do we need to go to the river for?"

"To find food," Naruto jumped down from the treetop and smiled, "Fishing."

"Fishing?"

"Yes, as long as we get to the river, we'll have food," Naruto reassured her. "Sakura, can you stand up now?"

Sakura tried, but failed.

"I'll carry you there," Naruto suggested.

"But what about Sasuke? It's unsafe to leave him alone here," Sakura was worried.

"I'll carry him," Naruto sighed, "Sasuke's a lucky guy."

Sakura was first amused by Naruto's words, but then she asked with concern.

"Naruto, this will be heavy, can you handle it?"

Since the question was already asked, how could Naruto say he couldn't? Besides, there was no better choice now. The three of them were meant to progress together, so they couldn't leave Sasuke behind. Naruto was very practical, except for his initial choice to confront the Sound Ninja trio at the start of the exam.

He did that because he believed Sasuke would eventually go to Orochimaru anyway, so instead of staying behind and clashing with Orochimaru, it was better to take out the Sound Ninjas at the start of the exam. That way, he could save some trouble.

As expected, both Naruto and Orochimaru achieved what they wanted. A world where only Sasuke and the Sound Ninjas were injured.

"No problem."

Naruto said with a smile, then crouched down to pick up Sakura. He easily carried her and quickly went to pick up the unconscious Sasuke and leave.

Sakura was surprised by how strong Naruto had become. It seemed like he had gotten stronger without her realizing it.

"Naruto, are you okay?" Sakura asked, lying on Naruto's back.

The small lump on his back felt soft and somewhat strange. Naruto stayed calm and replied calmly.

"I'm fine, we're almost there."

The diameter of the entire Death Forest was 10 km, and the distance to the river was only about one kilometer. Naruto didn't take long to reach the riverbank. After setting both Sakura and Sasuke down, he went to a nearby bamboo forest and picked out a suitable bamboo pole.

Seeing Naruto prepare to fish, Sakura, now somewhat recovered, volunteered to gather some branches for fuel.

Returning with wood from the nearby forest, Sakura was still a little worried, mumbling to herself.

"Do you really think we can catch fish this way?"

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