Gaara's sand surged forward in an instant. Temari and Kankurō reacted immediately, drawing their weapons.
But before they could act, Shigure simply waved his left hand.
Click. Click. Click!
A biting chill shot up from the ground, and both Temari and Kankurō suddenly felt a terrifying cold creeping up from the soles of their feet.
When they looked down—
Their legs were completely frozen solid, ice locking them in place without them even realizing it. And the frost was still creeping upward.
They quickly looked up at Shigure.
Cold air poured from his body, and frost began to form on the ground all around him. Even the hilt of the sword across his back had grown a thin layer of ice.
"You'd better not move," Shigure said calmly.
A bead of sweat rolled down both Temari and Kankurō's foreheads.
"You asked me my name earlier?" Shigure turned his gaze to Gaara, his voice steady.
"Before you ask someone else's name… you should give your own."
"…Gaara," the red-haired boy replied, eyes locked on Shigure. His instincts screamed that if this man chose to attack, even his sand might not be able to block it.
That ice… it wasn't ordinary.
Shigure nodded. "Moonlight Shigure."
Gaara repeated the name in his mind, committing it to memory.
"Good. Now…" Gaara glanced at his teammates. "Can you release the jutsu on them?"
"Of course."
Shigure smiled faintly. Without forming a single hand seal, the ice melted away.
The moment sensation returned to their legs, Temari slipped into a defensive stance while Kankurō leapt back to create distance.
But Shigure had already turned to Sasuke and Naruto. "Let's go."
The two boys exchanged one last look toward Gaara before following. Sakura and Konohamaru moved with them.
Only after the group disappeared did Temari exhale in relief.
"That guy is terrifying… When did he even hit us?"
"Was it when he first appeared?"
Temari replayed the encounter in her mind—it made no sense. She hadn't seen a single hand seal.
Kankurō's face was grim. "Is he also a Konoha genin taking the exam?" He looked toward Gaara. "It's a good thing you didn't order your sand to attack. If Karasu had gone at him, we'd probably both be frozen solid right now."
Gaara's voice was calm. "I didn't control it."
Temari and Kankurō froze.
What did he mean?
Gaara's sand protected him automatically—it didn't require conscious control. Which meant… Shigure had already moved against him without Gaara even noticing.
No wonder they'd been caught without realizing it.
"Ice… Must be a kekkei genkai," Kankurō muttered.
Gaara's gaze sharpened.
"He called himself Moonlight Shigure. Isn't that the Konoha genin we heard about? The one who defeated Momochi Zabuza? The one Zabuza called… a demon."
Temari's words made Gaara's eyes grow colder.
A demon?
Then killing him will only prove my worth further.
Shigure walked with Sasuke and Naruto for a while before glancing at Sakura.
"Sakura, are you participating in the Chūnin Exam?"
She nodded. "Yes. I may be training in medical ninjutsu, but I can fight too. My teacher teamed me up with two other ninja."
Shigure nodded.
Because of him, Sakura had avoided two years of wasted training—but she'd also lost the chance to team with two strong allies, Naruto and Sasuke.
The exam would be difficult for her.
"Join us when the exam starts. You're a medic-nin—these combat trials aren't exactly fair to you."
Sakura blinked. Was he… inviting her? Only an idiot would refuse.
"But I already have teammates. My teacher—"
"Then we move together. You just met Gaara, and I'm sure he'll come after you to get back at us."
Naruto and Sasuke both nodded without objection—Naruto because he wanted to protect Sakura, Sasuke because he didn't want Gaara targeting others over him.
"You've got the exam tomorrow," Shigure told them. "Go home, train, and get your head in the right place."
"Shigure!" Konohamaru piped up. "You're so strong—take me as your little brother!"
Naruto immediately bristled. "Hey! You're saying that in front of your real big brother? You trying to betray me?"
"No, Naruto-sama! I just want to follow your boss too—nothing wrong with that, right?"
"That is betrayal! Just wait until I deal with you!"
Their usual bickering continued. Naruto hadn't changed a bit.
"I'm heading back to train," Shigure said. "Naruto, Sasuke—you'd better not slack off."
He gave Sakura a nod, then vanished in a sudden burst of speed, like a gust of wind.
Sasuke clenched his fists. "That wasn't just shunshin—he mixed in elemental ninjutsu too… This guy's a real monster."
However, at this time, shinobi from other villages began arriving in Konoha one after another.
Information exchanges between teams were inevitable.
Among the chatter, one rumor stood out—
"The Three Monsters of Konoha, without even relying on their jōnin instructor, defeated the Kirigakure missing-nin, Momochi Zabuza!"
"What? I didn't think there'd be someone that strong among the genin!"
"Tch, 'Three Monsters'? Please. They're just three kids. Our squad has completed hundreds of missions—they've only done two! No way they could compare to us."
The story spread quickly, reaching even the ears of Yakushi Kabuto, who was busy gathering intelligence for his own purposes.
He adjusted his glasses, a curious gleam in his eyes.
"Who suddenly started spreading this?"
...
TN:
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