Chapter 194: The Secret Hideout
Disclaimer:
Naruto and all of its characters belong to Shueisha and Masashi Kishimoto.
I own nothing but the original characters I create.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 194: The Secret Hideout
The three Jonins were traveling through a thick forest when, all of a sudden, Kakashi stopped atop a tree and examined its trunk.
On it, they could all see a distinct mark made with a sharp blade.
"Alright… this is the area marked by our spy. Be on full alert. I'm sure there are traps everywhere," Kakashi whispered.
Yamato scanned the surroundings. It was hard to see anything but branches and leaves. The trees were tightly packed together, and the ground was covered in dense shrubbery.
"It won't be easy to find a secret entrance in all of this. On top of that, we need to worry about traps… this may take us all day," he said, regretting the delay. He was keenly aware of how critical it was to hurry if they hoped to find the Uchiha boy.
Every second spent here, searching for the entrance, would lessen their chances of success.
"I have an idea to solve both of those problems," Naruto said suddenly as he got on his feet on top of the tree branch.
Kakashi glanced at him, concern flashing in his eye. He'd read several of the mission reports from Naruto's time with Jiraiya, most of which ended with massive property damage and casualties.
"Naruto, hold on a m—" Kakashi tried to stop him but it was too late already.
"Let's go." Naruto made a hand sign, and hundreds of clones appeared all around him.
Immediately, the clones began exploring the area with no regard for their safety.
"Wait, but wouldn't this method trigger the tr—" Before Yamato could finish his sentence, a shockwave from a nearby explosion, likely produced by a triggered tag, interrupted him and shook him on his feet.
That explosion was quickly followed by many more. And it wasn't just explosions...pits opened, acid traps sprung, spears, arrows, kunai, and other projectiles launched in all directions, covering the area in fire and steel.
The three stood on their branch, waiting. There wasn't much else they could do at this point.
Two chaotic minutes later, the forest returned to silence, though it now looked a lot less like a forest compared to it's previous appearance.
Naruto stood up. "The area is clear. And I also found the hid—ouch!"
Kakashi smacked him on the head with the back of a kunai.
"Clear?! You triggered every single trap!" Kakashi shouted, clearly exasperated.
"Kakashi, you're being too loud," Yamato chided him, but then paused. "Oh… never mind."
"Yes, I cleared every trap, and now the area is safe to walk around. No one got hurt either. I don't see why you're upset," Naruto said, scratching his head.
"Naruto… you've probably alerted the entire nation of our presence here...and maybe the neighboring ones too," Yamato explained.
"Hmph!" Naruto crossed his arms. "So what? Let our enemies come to us. We'll crush them all together!"
Yamato blinked, taken aback. "But we're ninjas…"
Kakashi glared at his former student. "Have you forgotten everything you learned at the Academy?"
Naruto gave him a deadpan stare. "Yes."
"Oh… right," Kakashi muttered, remembering Naruto's amnesia.
"Okay then," Yamato said, standing up. "I say we take advantage of the situation and rush to the hideout. Did you find the entrance?"
"I did. I was going to say that, before I was interrupted... " Naruto scoffed. "This way." He jumped off the tree.
Yamato and Kakashi followed. With the original plan now discarded, they had no other choice but to hurry up into the hideout and hopefully get something useful.
"We also have a nice clearing for a fight, if we're attacked," Naruto pointed out as they moved.
It was true. In the midst of the dense forest, a large clearing had been created...mostly devoid of trees, plants, or any unfortunate animals caught in the traps.
Before long, they came across a massive metal plate lying horizontally on the ground, with a hatch in the middle.
"There it is," Yamato noted. Without Naruto's clones clearing the area, finding this entrance would have been nearly impossible.
"Be careful. There are probably traps attached to the h—"
"Not anymore," Naruto interrupted Kakashi.
Both turned to look at him.
"Two of my clones got blown up while trying to open it," Naruto added nonchalantly.
"Doesn't it bother you, experiencing so much… destruction through your clones?" Yamato asked hesitantly.
Naruto shrugged in response.
"Fine… let's do this." Kakashi inspected the hatch thoroughly before finally putting his hand on the latch and opening it.
The hatch revealed a set of stone stairs descending deep underground. The darkness beyond the entrance was impenetrable, so Kakashi retrieved a small stick from his tool pouch.
After removing the cap and striking it against the rough surface of the metal hatch, it ignited, providing a steady flame.
"Proceed with caution," Kakashi said, preparing to descend. He stopped and glanced back at Naruto. "And I really mean it. Don't break anything in there!, the whole structure could collapse on our heads."
"How dramatic..." Naruto huffed.
Once down the stairs, the group found themselves in a large, empty stone room.
The only notable items were a desk with papers and writing tools. The papers appeared to be a simple visitor log.
On the far side of the room was an open doorway leading to a dark corridor.
"This place seems abandoned," Yamato said. He found it odd that no one was guarding the entrance and that everything was so quiet.
Naruto extended his senses but felt almost nothing.
This could mean that Orochimaru was extremely good at concealing seals or…that this hideout had already been abandoned before they arrived.
And right now, the second one seems more likely.
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