The Anaconda Attacks

Sakura raised her eyebrow as she looked at the Grass(Kusagakure) ninja.

The battle in the Land of Waves had been too brief. While it had taught Naruto the essence of combat, it hadn't conveyed what being a ninja truly meant.

A ninja, by definition, is someone who achieves their goals by any means necessary.

In this regard, Sasuke was clearly more adept than Naruto.

Seeing Naruto standing there like an idiot, Sasuke's body instantly sparked with faint traces of electricity as he charged at the enemy at high speed.

In just a moment, Sasuke delivered a powerful kick, sending the Grass ninja flying!

The Grass ninja tumbled through the air and crashed into a nearby tree with a loud thud.

Crack.

Sakura's eyebrows furrowed slightly at the sound. As a medical ninja, she was all too familiar with it.

His neck was broken.

Human beings are fragile like that. With the right angle, even a small stone can end a life.

Sasuke turned to look at the Grass ninja's limp body lying on the ground, his head bent at an odd angle. Then, he glanced at Naruto, who seemed dazed.

"Yo, you alright, dead last?"

Naruto seemed to snap out of it, his face immediately turning red with frustration. He then spotted another Grass ninja, the one the red-haired girl had thrown aside in an attempt to sneak away.

Swish!

A spinning shuriken flew from Sakura's hand, slicing through the Grass ninja's leg tendon and leaving a trail of blood.

"Ahhh!"

The Grass ninja fell to the ground, clutching his leg and howling in pain.

Sakura and Sasuke exchanged a glance. Sasuke nodded before walking toward Naruto.

No words were necessary between them.

Sakura turned to the red-haired girl, who had been frozen in place all this time.

"I keep my promises," Sakura said with a light smile.

The red-haired girl, Karin, responded with a muffled "Mm," her emotions conflicted.

Her turmoil wasn't because of her two "teammates" but rather the uncertainty and fear of the new life that awaited her.

At this moment, Sakura, who had taken it upon herself to bring her along, was the only person Karin could trust.

She wasn't stupid. Even before the exam, she had known her Grass ninja team would pass the first test and enter through Corridor A4. Those two details alone were enough for her to realize that this pretty, pink-haired girl wasn't an ordinary Leaf ninja.

"Naruto."

Sasuke stood beside Naruto, staring at the Grass ninja on the ground.

"Kill him."

He pulled out a kunai that gleamed coldly in the light and placed it in Naruto's hand.

"!!"

Naruto stared at Sasuke in disbelief.

What met his gaze, however, was an unfamiliar glint in Sasuke's dark eyes.

Sasuke calmly looked at Naruto.

He had realized it back in the Land of Waves when he killed the man who had sworn to protect Zabuza to the death.

The existence of a ninja... was ultimately about silent submission to the inevitable.

Night

Sakura leaned against the trunk of a tree, silently watching Naruto in the distance. He remained quiet, lost in thought. She didn't say a word.

Some things had to be resolved internally.

Suddenly, Sakura's ear itched.

Her emerald eyes shifted to the red-haired girl sleeping soundly beside her, clutching her arm.

The strands of red hair swayed with the night breeze, occasionally tickling Sakura's ear.

This girl had such a deep lack of security.

Even in her sleep, she clung to Sakura like a lifeline.

Naruto and Sasuke had briefly inquired about Karin's presence, but Sakura brushed them off with a vague explanation about encountering her during a mission. While both boys found it odd, they didn't press further.

They trusted Sakura.

The night faded, and the first rays of dawn illuminated the Forest of Death.

The sunlight, piercing and bright, caused the pink-haired girl's eyelids to twitch slightly.

When Sakura finally opened her bleary eyes, the first thing she saw was a head of messy blonde hair right in front of her.

"Sakura, you're awake!"

"Eek!!"

Instinctively, Sakura kicked out.

Bang!

Naruto crashed to the ground face-first.

"Ugh... Sakura's... strength..." Naruto muttered weakly, lying there with his eyes rolling back.

"You idiot! Who do you think you're scaring first thing in the morning?!"

Sakura glared at him, fuming.

"I just wanted to see how you look when you're sleeping," Naruto said innocently, rubbing his face as he got up.

Karin, awakened by their commotion, instinctively tightened her hold on Sakura's arm. She looked at Naruto with disdain.

Her expression seemed to say, What a creep.

"Where's Sasuke?" Sakura asked, freeing her numb arm from Karin's grip and shaking it out.

"He went to get water. He should be back soon," Naruto replied, scratching his head and reverting to his usual cheerful self.

Karin pursed her lips as she observed the sunny blonde boy.

How could someone so weird radiate such a warm, sunlit chakra?

"Alright, once Sasuke gets back, we'll set off again," Sakura said, standing up and stretching.

Karin opened her mouth as if to say something, but then froze.

Suddenly, the red-haired girl tackled Sakura to the ground!

Caught off guard, Sakura found herself pinned beneath Karin.

Sakura's expression grew serious as she looked at the girl.

Besides her physical healing ability, Karin also possessed a sensory bloodline limit called Kagura's Mind Eye.

It allowed her to detect movements within a radius of dozens of kilometers—an ability even superior to the Byakugan.

In terms of sensory skills, Kagura's Mind Eye was unrivaled in the ninja world.

Karin's face was filled with fear, her red eyes trembling slightly. She had sensed something.

Evil, terrifying, bloody...

It felt like being submerged in a swamp of writhing snakes, their slick, venomous bodies coiling around her. Her scalp tingled, and a chill ran down her spine.

The malicious chakra she had detected was unlike anything she had ever encountered.

It was beyond words.

At the spot where Sakura had just been standing, a puddle of sludge rose and slowly took the shape of a person.

"Interesting..."

The figure had long black hair, a sound village headband, a dull yellow outfit, and a thick purple rope tied around their waist.

Exuding the deadly aura of a venomous snake, they scanned the group with their golden, slit-like pupils—Naruto, Sasuke, and Karin, who was trembling violently.

Then their gaze settled on Sakura.

"The descendant of the Uzumaki clan..."

Their eyes moved to Sasuke, who stood on high alert.

"The last of the Uchiha..."

Finally, they looked at the pink-haired girl.

"The favored student of the master..."

The man, whose true identity was Orochimaru, smirked as he stared at her.

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