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Sasuke Uchiha’s pupils shrank to pinpoints.
His gaze locked onto the inverted figure standing nearby, that head of short crimson hair looked like it had been soaked in blood, grains of sand drifting in and out of existence around him, ready to become lethal weapons at a moment’s notice.
[This guy…
his speed is on par with Kakashi?]
“You disgrace to the village.
What do you think we came here for?” The red-haired boy’s voice was hoarse and laced with cold.
The “love” character carved into his forehead twisted slightly with his expression.
Kankuro gripped the Crow Puppet so hard his knuckles went white.
Every trace of his earlier arrogance had evaporated.
“L-listen to me, Gaara, it was these guys who started trouble first—”
“Shut up.” Gaara cut him off with a single word.
His killing intent spread out like something solid, pressing down on the air itself.
Kankuro stiffened.
An invisible force seemed to close around his throat, making each breath a struggle.
“Or I’ll kill you.”
Cold sweat broke out across Kankuro’s face, beads of it sliding down his cheeks.
He caved immediately.
“I’m sorry.
I’m really, truly sorry!”
Gaara closed his eyes briefly, and was just about to speak when laughter boomed down the street like a detonation.
“Hahaha!
You little brat, every other word out of your mouth is about killing someone?
Hmm.
Not bad killing intent, though!”
Everyone turned.
From the end of the street, an extraordinarily imposing figure was approaching at an unhurried pace.
His body was corded with muscle like the roots of an ancient tree, gleaming bronze under the sunlight.
Two massive metal bracers on his wrists swayed with each step, impossible to ignore.
“This is…” Gaara narrowed his eyes.
The power of Shukaku inside him stirred restlessly on its own.
He could feel the newcomer’s terror clearly.
That force hidden beneath the surface, like heaven’s own thunder, made his heart miss a full beat.
[So delicious.
So tempting…
but no.
He could kill me without breaking a sweat!]
The current Gaara was violent and bloodthirsty; he wanted to tear apart and destroy anyone interesting he came across.
But he was only a little crazy, not brain-dead.
If he gave in to the urge and made a move, he would end up a corpse on the spot.
As for everyone else, the gap in strength was simply too vast for them to feel it.
All they saw was an absurdly tall and powerfully built man, like a small mountain that had decided to start walking.
A strode forward, his gaze sweeping over the group like a hawk’s before settling on Temari.
Of the two girls present, Sakura Haruno was technically on his list, but she was only twelve, not just too young in multiple respects, but also a bit dim.
Temari, on the other hand, was the eldest of the three Sand siblings, a full three years older than Naruto and the others.
She had already blossomed into something worth noticing, tall and graceful, her features carrying an exotic allure and a sharp, heroic quality to her gaze.
In a few more years, she’d be ripe for the picking.
And most importantly: four little buns tied up on her head.
Twin-tails times two.
Double the joy.
A walked straight up to her and flashed a grin that had no business being that predatory.
He looked every bit like a creepy uncle.
“Oi, little lady.
A beautiful girl like you cooped up in the Hidden Sand Village every day, eating dust and breathing sand, what a waste.
Why not come back to the Hidden Cloud Village with me?
I guarantee you’ll love it there…”
He didn’t even finish the sentence before he pressed his large palm down onto Temari’s head and ruffled it vigorously a few times.
Mm.
Excellent texture.
A flush swept across Temari’s cheeks; whether from embarrassment or fury was hard to say.
She jerked back two steps, voice cutting and cold.
“Bastard.
Show some respect.
I am the Kazekage’s eldest daughter.
Do you want to die?!”
A rubbed his chin, his face shifting into something that looked almost like alarm.
“The Fourth Kazekage’s daughter, Rasa’s daughter?
Kowai ne~”
Seeing his sister humiliated by this dark-skinned muscle freak, Kankuro’s face darkened like a thundercloud.
Chakra surged wildly inside him.
He was going to kill this bastard.
Before he could move, Gaara had already flashed to his side.
“Idiot,” Gaara said quietly.
“Even I wouldn’t dare provoke this man.
Are you looking to die?”
“What?!”
The shock rippled through everyone.
Temari and Kankuro looked like they’d been hit with a jutsu.
This was Gaara.
A monster who killed without blinking, whose power inspired genuine fear.
And he was afraid of this man standing in front of them?
Sasuke’s expression tightened, his eyes sharp with wariness.
Gaara’s killing intent had already been suffocating on its own, thick enough to bury a person.
And yet he was this cautious around one fighter.
Which meant…
“My apologies.
Don’t hold this fool’s behavior against him.
His brain doesn’t work very well.”
He gave a short nod toward Sasuke and the others, acknowledgment enough for Kankuro’s earlier rudeness, then turned to lead them away.
“Wait!” Sakura called out, loud enough to stop all three of them.
She was afraid.
It showed.
But she squared herself up and aimed her question straight at them.
“Why are Hidden Sand shinobi here?
The Land of Fire and the Land of Wind are allied, yes, but the treaty restricts ninja from either side from entering the other’s territory at will.
State your purpose.
Depending on the circumstances, I will—”
“Aha?” Temari turned back around, one corner of her mouth pulling up.
Her smile had an edge to it.
“So this is what they mean by ‘darkest under the lamp.’ You really don’t know anything, do you?”
She reached into her clothes and pulled out a small booklet bearing her photo.
“This is a travel permit.
As you said, we are Genin from the Hidden Sand Village in the Land of Wind.
We came here to participate in the Chunin Selection Exams.”
“What?” Naruto scratched his head, completely baffled.
“Chunin Selection Exams?”
“Ohhh, this new volume is something else.
Five people playing games together?
Sugoi!”
Beneath a shady tree, Kakashi Hatake was deep in concentrated study of the academic masterpiece in his hands, expression thoroughly focused.
An eagle’s SCREECH split the sky, scattering a handful of birds into flight.
“Hm?” Kakashi looked up.
His figure vanished.
…
On a patch of open grassland, Kurenai Yuhi watched Team 8 run their mission, her expression gentle, her agate-dark eyes full of warmth.
[Such adorable kids~]
A SCREECH cut overhead.
“What…” She looked up at the hawk circling overhead, her gaze sharpening.
Across the village, Asuma Sarutobi sat beside the three young members of Team 10.
He heard the cry too.
He took a long, slow drag of his cigarette and let the smoke bleed into the air.
“Tch.
Does it have to be right now?”
Late June, the 60th year of Konoha’s calendar.
As forces from all sides continued to converge, undercurrents were building beneath the surface of this deceptively peaceful village.
The curtain on something far larger had already, quietly, begun to rise.
➤ Next: Countdown, Seven Days
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