After entering the Forest of Death, Sasuke pulled Shinju and Naruto aside to discuss their battle plan.
"We've got the Earth Scroll. All we need to do is find a team holding the Heaven Scroll, take theirs, and then head to the central tower to hand in the mission. That way, we'll pass the exam without a hitch."
Sasuke laid out his analysis.
At this crucial moment, Naruto stood up looking a little embarrassed.
"You guys keep talking. I need to take a leak."
Shinju saw Naruto heading toward the bushes and called out,
"Just go right there. We're all guys here."
At times like this, to prevent teammates from being replaced by someone using the Transformation Jutsu, it was best not to let them out of your sight.
"No need to be that cautious, Shinju. I can't go if you're staring at me… 눈_눈"
Naruto finished, then walked into the bushes, tugging at his pants.
Half a minute later, Naruto came back out with a look of satisfaction.
"Ah… much better."
Seeing this, Shinju gave a cold smirk, pulled a kunai from his tool pouch, and hurled it at Naruto!
Swish!!
The kunai whizzed past Naruto's cheek, leaving a bloody gash on the right side of his face.
"What the hell are you doing?!"
Naruto's eyes widened in shock as he furiously demanded an explanation.
Sasuke's expression turned thoughtful.
Two seconds later, he also caught on. He pulled out a shuriken from his pouch and flung it straight at Naruto.
"Tell us—where are you hiding the real Naruto?!"
"What are you two so worked up about? I am Naruto!"
The fake Naruto still refused to give up the act.
Shinju couldn't be bothered with more words. The kunai in his hand shot forward again!
He was so certain this wasn't the real Naruto because the real Naruto usually wore his tool pouch on his right hip but this 'Naruto' had it on his left.
Swish!
The fake Naruto dodged Shinju's kunai with quick footwork.
But then—his expression froze.
Because Shinju, who had been right in front of him, had suddenly vanished.
He instantly sensed a fierce wind rushing from behind!
The fake Naruto started to turn around—
Whoosh!!
Using the Flying Thunder God Technique, Shinju teleported to the location of his kunai, formed a Rasengan with one hand, and slammed it into the fake Naruto's back!!
Boom!!
The ground cracked into a deep pit.
The fake Naruto was blasted back to his true form—a ninja wearing a Rain Village forehead protector!
Shinju grinned.
This was one of the guys from that Rain ninja team earlier—the same ones who refused to pay the cheating fee.
"I'll deal with you later."
He signaled to Sasuke with his eyes to keep an eye on the Rain ninja.
Then, using the Flying Thunder God Technique again, he teleported straight to Naruto.
When Shinju found him, Naruto was bound head to toe and gagged with a rag.
Standing beside him were the two teammates of that Rain ninja.
Shinju activated the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique and, in less than thirty seconds, had both of them captured.
Soon, Naruto and Shinju returned to Sasuke's location—dragging along the two tightly bound Rain ninjas.
With that, the Rain ninja team was completely wiped out.
Sasuke was stunned.
It had been less than a minute since Shinju left!
Not only had he rescued Naruto so quickly—he even brought back two extra enemy ninjas?
This kind of participant in the Chūnin Exams was basically a walking nightmare for every other contestant!
Casting a glance at the three captured ninjas, Shinju stepped in front of Rain Ninja A—the one who had impersonated Naruto—and gave his face a light pat, wearing a mocking smile.
"Alright… can you pay up now?"
Seeing both his teammates tied up, the Rain ninja immediately caved, bowing his head.
"Yes! We'll pay right now! Sorry! We went back on our word! I'll pay the one thousand ryo!"
"Who said it's still one thousand?" Shinju said matter-of-factly. "Since you broke your word and attacked me, the price has gone up—to ten thousand."
"Tss~"
Naruto and Sasuke both sucked in a sharp breath.
That was a tenfold increase—just like that!
With negotiation skills like Shinju's, even capitalists would have to bow and call him their founder.
Seeing the Rain ninja hesitate, Shinju's gaze turned cold. He twirled the kunai in his hand, making the threat crystal clear.
"What? You don't think that's a lot, do you?"
Rain Ninja:
From the look on his face, if he dared say "too much," he'd die on the spot.
"N-not at all! It's not much at all!" Rain Ninja A blurted.
"Yeah! Not even close to too much!" Rain Ninja B quickly added.
"Shinju-san is so magnanimous—after what we did, you're only asking for this much? It's really not a lot!" Rain Ninja C chimed in.
After hearing that, Shinju put on a thoughtful expression.
"Hmm… since you all feel that way, maybe I am charging too little."
"Here's what we'll do."
He put on a look of 'I'm doing this for your own good' and continued,
"Since you think my price is low, it'll be fifteen thousand each. Oh, and hand over your scroll."
The three Rain ninjas: (༎ຶ-༎ຶ)
Damn it! We were just being polite—why'd you take it seriously…
They were bitter inside, but none of them dared show it.
Their lives were in his hands, and if this devil slipped up, he might just kill all three on the spot…
And so, with forty-five thousand ryo in hand—and another Earth Scroll—Shinju's team made a tidy profit.
After collecting payment, the three Rain ninjas saw that Shinju still had no intention of untying them and panicked.
"Boss Shinju, can you untie us now?"
Shinju refused outright.
"Nope."
"You broke your word—what if I untie you and you attack us? ┐(´-｀)┌"
The three Rain ninjas were on the verge of tears.
(｡ﾟ⊿ 」∠)
After witnessing Shinju's overwhelming strength, all they wanted was to get as far away from him as possible—resistance was the last thing on their minds.
No matter how much they begged, Shinju never loosened the ropes.
In the end, Shinju led his team away, leaving the three Rain ninjas standing in the wind, utterly defeated…
...
Elsewhere in the dense forest.
Since the start of the exam, the Sound Village trio had been moving with a clear purpose, darting through the trees as if searching for something.
"The time has come to fulfill our mission."
...
Shinju's team moved swiftly through the forest.
Naruto looked a little regretful.
"Too bad that Rain team also had an Earth Scroll. If it'd been a Heaven Scroll, we could've gone straight to the tower to hand in our mission."
"What's the rush? The whole Forest of Death is full of people who still owe me money," Shinju said with a cheerful grin.
Hearing that, both Naruto and Sasuke felt a cold sweat run down their backs.
From the sound of it, Shinju intended to see this 'debt collection' through to the very end.
...
Outside Training Ground 44.
In a corner of Konoha, ANBU had discovered three corpses.
"They look like participants in the Chūnin Exams," one ANBU said.
"This is bad!! Someone's targeting the candidates! Hurry—notify the Hokage!"
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