"Eh?"
Karin stared blankly at Menma, startled by the sudden gentleness in his expression.
"Heh… I actually had a similar feeling. That's why I didn't attack you," Menma said calmly, his voice softening as his silver-blue eyes steadied on her. "My name is Uzumaki Menma. What about you?"
"K-Karin… My name is Karin," she replied timidly.
The situation shifted drastically in an instant. Karin's thoughts couldn't keep up. She had fully expected the red-haired boy before her to ignore or even kill her outright. After all, this was the shinobi world — strangers from different villages didn't trust each other. Especially not in the Forest of Death, where every word could be a trap.
What she had just told him had no evidence, no backing — it could easily sound like a desperate lie. Any sensible shinobi would have assumed she was deceiving him to save herself.
So when Menma didn't attack her — when he believed her — she was stunned.
Just as she had said before, she had no other choice but to gamble.
Karin knew all too well how her mother had died. Her mother's body had been drained to exhaustion by their fellow Kusagakure shinobi, used again and again for her unique healing chakra until her death. Karin feared the same fate — to be treated as nothing more than a living tool, forced to heal others until her body gave out, perhaps bearing children to continue that cursed bloodline.
That future terrified her.
So she gambled everything on this moment — a one-in-a-thousand chance that this boy would spare her life.
And unbelievably, she'd won.
He believed her.
But the surreal feeling of being trusted — even briefly — left her heart trembling in disbelief.
Menma, seeing Karin's dazed and uncertain eyes, smiled faintly. His expression softened further.
Looking at the timid girl before him, Menma couldn't help recalling a memory buried deep within him — the memory that had haunted him ever since he arrived in this world twelve years ago.
"Menma… I'm sorry for making you shoulder so much. You're the elder brother, so you have to protect your younger brother. Stay with Naruto, eat well, rest well, and don't pick up any bad habits from Jiraiya-sensei. And… I'm sorry, Menma. Naruto… I'm sorry…"
The face of the red-haired woman — Kushina Uzumaki — flashed before his eyes, tears running down her cheeks.
For twelve years, that image had been etched into Menma's memory.
He had never truly seen them — Kushina and Minato — as his real parents, but the truth remained: they had given him this life. That alone was undeniable.
If he claimed he felt nothing… that would make him less than human.
"Father, Mother… there may not be much love between us, but this life you gave me — that, I acknowledge. Still, the path I walk is one that will one day stand against Naruto…"
Menma drew in a quiet breath, his eyes sharpening with resolve.
Almost without thinking, he lifted his right hand and gently patted Karin's head.
Karin stiffened in surprise at the contact and instinctively wanted to pull away — but within a heartbeat, she forced herself to stay still.
Sensing her hesitation, Menma immediately withdrew his hand, his gesture respectful and calm.
"Karin… that's a good name," he said evenly. "So, Karin — what are you planning to do now? You're not thinking of returning to Kusagakure, are you?"
Karin blinked, caught off guard by the question.
"M-Me? I… I don't know," she admitted quietly, lowering her gaze. "I've lived in Kusagakure all my life. My mother's been gone for years now. I don't have anyone left… or anywhere to go."
Her tone carried a deep ache. For a twelve-year-old girl who'd known nothing but cruelty, there was no path forward — only survival.
"Then…" Menma began.
But before he could continue, Karin interrupted, her eyes brightening suddenly with an idea.
"Can I… can I follow you?" she asked earnestly. "If I went with you to Konohagakure — maybe I could join the village. I'm a sensor-type and a medical-nin. If I talk to the right people, they might let me stay. I can be useful!"
Menma paused, slightly surprised by how quickly she'd pieced that together.
This wasn't just trust — this was total surrender. She was placing her fate entirely in his hands.
Her instinct was sharp… or maybe it was pure desperation.
When a person has no options left, they cling to even the faintest light.
But her words made Menma smirk faintly.
"Join the Leaf, huh? That's ironic… I'm planning to leave it soon myself."
He thought quietly for a moment, then said, "You can follow me — of course. But Karin, I have to ask… are you truly willing to trust me?"
Karin blinked, startled by the seriousness in his tone — then nodded without hesitation. "Yes! I believe you!"
Menma's expression eased. "Good. Then come with me. I'll make sure you have a real future — one where you'll never be used again."
Whether it was out of empathy or something more pragmatic, Menma knew this was the right choice.
Karin might one day become invaluable — not just as a medic, but as an Uzumaki with potent chakra and sensory gifts.
Even so, in this moment, it wasn't calculation that guided him. It was something else — something faintly human.
Karin, still confused but strangely comforted, nodded earnestly. "Yeah!"
All hesitation faded from her eyes. She believed him — not because she had proof, but because among the few paths left to her, this was the only one that didn't end in despair.
Menma smiled faintly and extended his right hand.
"Then, let's go."
Karin hesitated only for a moment before taking it firmly.
"Fwoosh!"
With a synchronized leap, the two vanished into the forest canopy — leaving behind the motionless bodies of the two Kusagakure shinobi, their blood soaking into the soil below.
Throughout the Forest of Death, similar scenes were unfolding — traps sprung, teams eliminated, and screams echoing through the treetops.
The Chūnin Exams were never merely a test of skill.
They were a lesson in survival.
And for those who understood the true nature of a shinobi's world… killing was simply part of the art.