"Well done, Naruto!" Yelled Sakura.
"We're not strong enough to fight him, Naruto! Stop trying to look cool by coming to save us—we have to run!" Yelled Sasuke.
"Well done, Naruto, you managed to defeat my big reptile..." Said the creepy tongue-woman-thing, still rolled around like a snake on the tree branch.
"The playtime is over! I won't let you bully my friends anymore!" Answered Naruto heroically.
"Is it our scroll you want? Here it is. In exchange, leave us alone without hurting us." Said Sasuke, activating his Sharingan.
"Are you insane, Sasuke?! Why would you give our scroll to the enemy?!" Said Naruto with indignation, pointing his finger at his teammate.
"Your instinct is correct," said the creepy tongue-woman-thing, "the prey could only hope for the predator to leave after obtaining what he wanted."
"Catch it!" said Sasuke, throwing the scroll to their adversary.
But Naruto was faster and caught it as soon as it left its previous owner's hand.
"You moron! Don't meddle in it! You don't know the danger we are in!" Yelled Sasuke angrily, and his anger was answered by an Uzumakidetroitcity Punch right on his left cheek!
"What's wrong with you?!" Asked Sasuke after jumping to another branch.
"As I forgot that stupid password, I cannot confirm it, but I am sure that you are not the real Sasuke!" declared Naruto. "The Sasuke I know is not a loser that would freak out for only this much! It is true that I don't know how strong this guy is, but one thing is certain: nothing says he would leave us alone after taking our scroll!"
"Hahaha! You saw through me, Naruto..." said the creepy tongue-woman-thing with crazed eyes, licking her face using that very long ugly tongue. "You are perfectly right. I will take the scroll after killing you."
As she said it, the creepy ninja bit through her finger and used the blood on a seal she had on her left wrist.
"In your dreams!" Yelled Naruto, charging furiously at the creepy ninja!
While Sasuke was trying to ask Naruto to stop, the creepy tongue-woman-thing announced:
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" and with a massive puff of smoke, appeared a giant snake, towering over the forest trees, with white scales and yellow eyes!
Its killing intent and momentum sent the jumping Naruto away and at the same time attempted to slam him with its tail! Unfortunately for it, as soon as it was about to touch the young ninja, he used the third move of Gessō Garu: Kōkyaku Da! Using both of his legs to kick the incoming tail, the fervent fan of Kaguya used the momentum of what would have otherwise been an overwhelming impact to jump high, and followed with Sukage Hō to zigzag through the trees and accelerate even more. His afterimages made him look like an orange flash!
The Kusagakure ninja looked very surprised by this unexpected turn of events, but unfortunately for her, not for too long. The orange flash disappeared, leaving only silence as Naruto used the first power boost level of Gessō Garu: Chōjitae.
The creepy ninja felt something coming from her right, but it was already too late! The deceitful Ken Chōgeki was used by the orange-haired ninja, using his elbow, he hit hard into the creepy tongue-woman-thing's face, sending her like a cannonball far through branches and tree trunks!
Without losing momentum, Naruto chained with Kōkyaku Da, slamming into the giant snake's head and sending it crashing down like a defeated behemoth. At same time he used the force of his attack to propel himself upward once more, using Ken Chōgeki again to close in on the opponent Sasuke had feared.
Naruto's speed was incredible—but his power boost made him as silent as a stalking rabbit. Seeing the Kusagakure ninja about to collide with another tree, Naruto unleashed the fifth move of Gessō Garu: Getsuga Chō, a brutal rising knee strike from below that sent the enemy hurtling upward, her back twisted unnaturally!
Before the foe could fall, Naruto came down from above and delivered another devastating Kōkyaku Da, packed with accumulated momentum—death came from above!
The body fell like a shattered doll, leaking blood from every broken joint and bone. It smashed into the forest floor with a massive "BAM!", creating a crater. Bones, organs—everything exposed and broken. Blood rained from above on a corpse that, by some miracle, kept its humanoid appearance.
Naruto stood atop a branch, breathing heavily. It was the first time he had used so many techniques in such rapid succession. He looked down, horrified by what he'd done—never before had he seen such a gruesome sight.
Then, the broken body twitchedand something crawled out of its now-shattered jaw.
A new figure emerged—different. His face was long, narrow, and angular, almost unnaturally thin. His eyes were golden and slitted, like a snake's. He looked inhuman. Cold. Terrifying.
"Naruto..." he hissed, his voice now male, smooth but menacing.
"I'll remember this. We'll meet again." Then he flickered away and disappeared. Alas, Naruto was still under the effect of Chōjitae, and he did not want to give his enemy any chance to escape!
He used the second power boost move of Gessō Garu: Gessō Kodō. Now he was able to follow the sinister shinobi without having to channel Sukage Hō continuously! Very soon, he spotted the still-running ninja, and after using Sukage Hō again for further speed and power boost, he unleashed Gessō Garu: Kūga Raku! The poor pale-skinned ninja got neck-locked out of nowhere, without any warning, and was slammed into the ground! Bone-breaking was heard, and a trench ending in another crater scarred the earth!
Naruto ended up sliding safely a bit farther away than his foe, but this time he didn't let his guard down. He created a high-ground advantage again and observed the gore he had caused. The creepy ninja's neck was snapped and bent at a weird angle, and a bewildered expression still haunted those menacing yellow eyes. But just like before, the body started twitching—and the same man crawled out, now panting heavily, clearly exhausted.
The light began to dim gradually, and stars became more and more visible. The creepy man stood on guard with a serious expression and hatred in his snake-like eyes, looking at the tired Naruto perched on a tree branch. He too was watching, observing, but too tired and tense to say anything.
Then the pale man moved—not to attack, but to parry incoming knife-like projectiles. Naruto didn't wait either. Somehow, he knew reinforcements had arrived! Sukage Hō! Then Kōkyaku Da! But now, his enemy was aware of his moves—the danger he represented—and his body bent unbelievably, in a way it shouldn't. A hand transformed into snakes tried to grab Naruto but barely missed!
"Sen'ei Jashū!" Anko suddenly appeared behind the bending man and cast a jutsu that wrapped around her prey's head, immobilizing it. Unfortunately for her, the body melted down into a pile of snakes.
A hand appeared from the ground, trying to grab Naruto's ankle—but his boosted speed and perception were the key factor here. He jumped up, adding to his already astonishing speed with Sukage Hō, rebounded off a tree trunk, and launched Kōkyaku Da, double-kicking the ground where the hand had appeared into a landstorm! Dust and earth flew everywhere, and after two long minutes, the now no-man's-land terrain was finally visible—but the enemy was nowhere to be seen.
Anko, her expression serious, approached Naruto just as three ANBU shinobi arrived at the scene.
"He got away," said Anko, her eyes showing regret. "Report to Lord Hokage: Orochimaru is still here. We need to reinforce our security."
The ANBU members disappeared, and only the proctor and the examinee remained standing. Naruto was full of dust and sweat. Anko looked at him with difficult emotions, then threw him a scroll:
"Here. A reward for your good deeds. Go back to your team. Best of luck with the exams!"
Exhausted, Naruto slowly made his way back through the branches to find his teammates, who had been left far behind—defeated.
But he had saved them.And for the first time in his life, he felt something luminous in his chest.