Tap tap tap—
Three figures—red, black, and yellow—sprinted out from the forest toward the rocky terrain.
"We've already secured a complete pair of Heaven and Earth scrolls. Why don't we just go camp at the tower and wait for Big Brother Bai Xing's team?"
Akimichi Yumi, the slightly chubby red-haired girl, spoke while running alongside the other two.
Yamanaka Taiji, on her other side, shook his head slightly.
"That's true, but Shinnosuke-sensei gave us this special mission. We should complete it."
"Such a troublesome mission…"
Nara Hane, running in the middle, clicked his tongue. His gaze swept over the flat, sandy ground ahead, and he came to a stop. The other two halted with him.
Yamanaka Taiji scanned the surroundings—it was deathly quiet. Seeing Nara Hane squat down to inspect the sandy ground, he asked in a low voice,
"What is it? Did you find an enemy?"
Nara Hane scooped up a bit of clay that shouldn't have been present in a rocky-sand region, rubbed it between his fingers, and sniffed it.
"In the cave area on the western side of the Simulation Forest, once you exit, you'll encounter soil that contains clay."
"And what does that have to do with tracking Bai Xing's team?"
Akimichi Yumi bent forward, hands on her knees, asking as she looked at Nara Hane's confident expression.
"Everything."
Nara Hane drew a kunai and looked toward the rocky area ahead.
"Don't forget—Shinnosuke-sensei told us that Bai Xing's team entered through Entrance No. 11."
"And I've looked over the rough map of the Simulation Forest. Entrance No. 11 is precisely the western cave zone."
...
The rocky terrain.
The three of them pressed themselves against the edge of the rocks, minimizing how much of their bodies were exposed, while observing the Ino–Shika–Chō trio as they advanced step by step.
"Bai Xing, what do we do? Do we attack?"
Pressed flat against the rock, Shiranui Kumo spoke with some tension in his voice—after all, their opponents were Ino–Shika–Chō, Konoha's ace combination.
"If it were other genin, maybe we could handle them. Why did it have to be this team?"
Yūhi Liuyun clenched her teeth, her expression taut.
Sensing his companions' nervousness, Bai Xing understood just how rare and powerful the Ino–Shika–Chō formation was in Konoha. The three clans needed compatible personalities and close relationships; otherwise, you'd only have a pig, a deer, and a butterfly acting alone—
Like members assigned separately to Root, ANBU, Barrier Teams, Interrogation, Intelligence, or administrative posts.
Only when all three worked in perfect unison could they truly be called Ino–Shika–Chō.
"Don't panic."
Bai Xing said confidently.
"I set up quite a few traps in this area. They'll definitely—"
Shiranui Kumo pointed toward where Nara Hane had crouched down and casually dismantled a pitfall trap with his fingers.
"You mean that pit you said no one would ever find?"
Bai Xing: "..."
"I even reinforced and refurbished it with Earth Release…"
Bai Xing looked dejected on the surface, though inwardly he was perfectly calm. As expected of Ino–Shika–Chō.
Squatting by the pit—about three meters deep—Nara Hane frowned.
"This trap was made with Earth Release."
"It perfectly achieves the effect of being nearly impossible to detect with the naked eye."
"But there's one thing the person who set it up forgot."
Yamanaka Taiji, who couldn't see the issue at all, asked quietly,
"What was it?"
"It's too perfect."
Nara Hane raised his gaze and continued forward.
"It feels slightly out of place compared to the surroundings—as if this patch of ground hasn't been weathered by wind and rain like the rest. The contrast gives it away."
"In a wide-open area like this, where everything is visible at a glance, it's actually very difficult to set traps."
"Come out."
"There's no point hiding anymore. In a place like this, you can't hide."
Clap clap clap—
From behind a tall rock, applause rang out as a cool, calm figure stepped forward.
"As expected of the Nara clan. High IQ, indeed."
"Where are the other two?"
Nara Hane didn't see Bai Xing's teammates. Instantly, Yamanaka Taiji and Akimichi Yumi moved to Nara Hane's left and right, forming a triangular formation—covering a full three hundred and sixty degrees of vision.
"Well…"
After applauding, Bai Xing slid his hands into his pockets, immediately drawing Nara Hane's attention.
Kunai? Shuriken? Smoke bombs…?
The other two also watched him out of the corners of their eyes.
Bai Xing's calm expression suddenly grew lazy.
"They've already run away."
For a split second, the three-man formation looked like they'd just suffered a synchronized anime-style faceplant before scrambling back to their feet.
Yamanaka Taiji gritted his teeth.
"Stop talking nonsense! Your relationship can't be that bad! And besides, without you, they can't possibly pass the second stage of the Chūnin Exams!"
"You're surprisingly well-informed, kid."
Bai Xing's eyes darkened.
"But the reason they could leave without worry is simple—leaving me alone is more than enough to deal with you."
Even Nara Hane—famous for his calm—couldn't help frowning.
"Big words. Let's see if you really have the ability to back them up."
"Execute Plan A."
"Yes!" ×2
The three charged straight at him.
Seeing this, Bai Xing swiftly drew his right hand to the ninja pouch at his waist and flung three shuriken forward.
Calmly analyzing their trajectories, the black-haired Nara youth raised his kunai and knocked them aside one by one.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
"Don't try to fool us with stuff like this."
Nara Hane spoke coolly.
"If Shinnosuke-sensei considers you a worthy opponent, you can't be limited to just this. But if that's all you've got, then obediently get eliminated."
Reaching the optimal distance, Nara Hane put away his kunai and formed hand seals. The black shadow beneath his feet shot forward toward Bai Xing.
"Shadow Possession Jutsu?"
Bai Xing immediately leapt up onto a rock to evade—but to his surprise, Nara Hane borrowed the rock's shadow, and the technique pursued him again.
"Looks like you're fairly familiar with the Nara clan's secret techniques."
Standing still and maintaining his seals, Nara Hane drove the shadow after the dodging Bai Xing.
"But you might be forgetting something—Ino–Shika–Chō is three people."
Bai Xing evaded the shadow, suspended momentarily in midair.
"And I'm here too!"
From the side, Bai Xing heard Akimichi Yumi's voice. Turning his head, he saw the red-haired girl swinging an enormous fist toward him.
"Partial Expansion Jutsu!"
"Pretty capable," Bai Xing commented calmly, the massive fist already inches from his face.
"Using the shadow attack to draw my attention so I wouldn't notice the surroundings—and setting up an ambush from the side early on."
"But your intelligence might be off."
"For example—"
Boom!
A small section of rock Bai Xing had been circling transformed into his likeness. Akimichi Yumi froze, eyes wide, as her punch smashed into the "Bai Xing clone."
"I've been dodging around this rock for a reason."
High above on the rock, the real Bai Xing stood expressionless, his hands rapidly forming seals.
"That's because—"
"A basic Clone Technique can't transmit sound."
Poof! Poof!
Yūhi Liuyun and Shiranui Kumo dispelled their Transformation Techniques, revealing themselves. Yūhi Liuyun immediately leapt out, intercepting Yamanaka Taiji's attempt to use the Mind Body Switch Technique.
Bai Xing finished forming his seals, his eyes locking onto the flustered Akimichi Yumi.
"Demonic Illusion: Binding Technique!"
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