(Yao's internal dialogue continues as they move)
I'm certain I've caught Orochimaru's eye now. Sharingan potential plus Wood Style—I'm undoubtedly a much more perfect vessel for him than Sasuke. As my value rises, his desire for my brother will naturally decrease.
Yao teased again, "But really, if you ever feel like running off to join his 'Snake Club' for power, don't say I didn't give you my blessing!"
Sasuke fumed, "I said I won't go near that creep!" His rejection was firm. Indeed, his outlook was being reshaped. If he needed power, he now had a much closer "monster" to look up to than a defeated rogue ninja.
But that guy Orochimaru, one of the Sannin, had repeatedly suffered setbacks in front of Yao. Though he hadn't been killed, he was clearly at a disadvantage and looked utterly pathetic. Why would anyone in their right mind seek power from a loser who couldn't even beat Yao?
Watching the anger and disdain in Sasuke's eyes, Yao raised an eyebrow. Has this foolish little brother already changed his mind? I just hope that next time he meets Itachi and gets "schooled," he can maintain this current attitude.
"Alright, let's not waste time. Hurry up and find an Earth Scroll so we can get out of here!" Yao said.
The team continued their trek. Although Karin lacked combat strength, her sensory abilities were terrifying. Suddenly, she came to a halt.
"Someone! Behind us!" Karin's footsteps stopped abruptly. "There are three ninjas in total, and they are approaching fast!"
"What?" Naruto and Sasuke stopped simultaneously, turning quickly to look back. But the dense forest interfered with their detection; aside from the rustling of leaves in the wind, they could see nothing.
"Are you sure?" Sasuke activated his Sharingan.
"I'm sure!" Karin nodded vigorously. "They are moving very fast, carrying clear hostility, and they're getting closer by the second!"
"Then let's wait for them," Yao looked at Sasuke and said nonchalantly. "Foolish little brother, as you wished, I won't interfere this time. Karin, come with me!" After speaking, Yao led Karin into the nearby bushes to hide.
Naruto and Sasuke exchanged a look and tacitly remained in the clearing. Sasuke's eyes were ice-cold. He had accumulated a great deal of anger and frustration from the encounter with Orochimaru, and he desperately needed an outlet to vent. Naruto also dropped into a combat stance, his eyes burning with fighting spirit.
Before long, three figures darted out from the trees and landed opposite them. They wore Hidden Sound headbands—Orochimaru's subordinates: Zaku, Dosu, and Kin! As soon as they appeared, their gazes locked onto Sasuke with undisguised hostility and scrutiny. This look made Sasuke extremely irritated, and fury boiled within him.
"Heh, if it isn't the Uchiha brat from Konoha," Zaku tilted his head, letting out a contemptuous laugh. "What? Are you all alone? Or were you abandoned by your teammates?" His gaze swept over Naruto, turning even more disdainful. "Oh, and a blonde dead-weight too!"
Dosu said in a muffled voice, "Sasuke Uchiha, it seems Lord Orochimaru is quite interested in you!" Kin said nothing, but she gripped several senbon needles, her gaze cold.
"Shut up!" Sasuke was already in a foul mood; being mocked by these "small fry" ignited his temper instantly. His hands blurred into seals: "Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!" A searing orb of flame roared toward the Sound trio.
"Hmph, cheap tricks!" Zaku aimed both palms forward. "Decapitating Air Wave!" A blast of highly compressed air shot out, colliding with the fireball in an explosion of scattered flames.
Under the cover of the smoke, Kin moved like a phantom, raining senbon down on Sasuke. They were fast and aimed at tricky angles!
"Sasuke, look out!" Naruto shouted, quickly summoning two shadow clones to deflect the flying needles with their kunai.
"Out of the way!" Dosu crouched low, aiming the device on his right arm at Naruto and his clones. "Resonating Echo Drill!" An invisible blast of high-frequency sound waves erupted. Naruto's clones were instantly dispelled, and Naruto himself was sent stumbling back, his head spinning from the sonic shock.
"Naruto!" Sasuke's eyes sharpened. His Sharingan spun rapidly, catching the brief moment of stiffness after Dosu released his jutsu. With a burst of chakra at his feet, he accelerated instantly, lunging at Dosu with a kunai aimed at his throat.
"Too slow!" Zaku struck again, firing an air wave from the side, forcing Sasuke to abandon the attack and dodge. Kin found another opening, throwing more senbon from a different angle to cut off Sasuke's retreat.
The battle instantly reached a fever pitch. The Sound trio coordinated perfectly: Zaku suppressed them with long-range air blasts, Kin provided distraction with projectiles, and Dosu's sonic attacks were wide-range and difficult to defend against.
For a moment, Sasuke and Naruto were locked in a bitter struggle. Sasuke relied on his Sharingan's insight and high speed to weave through the attacks, retaliating with shuriken. However, facing a three-way pincer, he looked a bit overstretched, and several small wounds soon appeared on his body. Naruto looked even more disheveled; his clones were constantly destroyed, and his main body took several hits. But his tenacity was incredible—cursing all the while, he stayed glued to Kin and Zaku to divert pressure away from Sasuke.
"Naruto! On your right!" Sasuke barked.
"Got it!" Naruto lunged at Kin regardless of his own safety, using his wildly swinging kunai to force her to stop her senbon fire.
Now! Sasuke slammed his hands onto the ground: "Fire Style: Dragon Fire Technique!" A linear stream of intense fire shot precisely toward Zaku, who was temporarily immobile after firing his air blast. Zaku's face paled as he scrambled to dodge; the fire grazed his body and ignited his sleeve, leaving him in a panic.
Simultaneously with the Dragon Fire, Sasuke lunged at Dosu, who had just finished his sonic attack. His Sharingan predicted Dosu's instinctive retreat path. "Die!" Sasuke's kunai, infused with Lightning Style chakra, gave off a faint chirp as it lunged for Dosu's heart.
"Damn it!" A flash of panic finally crossed Dosu's eyes. In his haste, he could only raise the device on his arm to block.
Clang! Pfft! The kunai pierced through the peculiar device but was deflected slightly, sinking deep into Dosu's shoulder instead. Dosu cried out in pain, stumbling back.
"Dosu!" Kin cried out in alarm. Naruto seized the moment, his shadow clones swarming her and pinning her down to restrict her movements. Zaku wanted to help, but Sasuke locked onto him immediately and began forming seals again. At the same time, Naruto's original body broke free, glaring at Zaku alongside his clones.
One of the Sound trio was heavily injured, and another was pinned down; Zaku was left alone. He gritted his teeth, leaped back to support the wounded Dosu, and shouted, "Kin! Retreat!" Kin fought her way free from the clones, gave Naruto and Sasuke a venomous glare, and retreated to Zaku's side.
The three didn't dare stay any longer. Carrying eyes filled with resentment and malice, they plunged into the forest to escape.
Just then...