Episode 16: What Was That? You Had A Sugar Rush? Or Was Your Testosterone Too High?
Under the thick tress of the Forest of Death, where the trees seemed to stretch endlessly into the sky, Team Seven had set up a makeshift camp. The air was heavy with the scent of damp earth and the faint rustle of leaves in the wind. It was an eerie place, with the darkness of the night only slightly pierced by the flickering light of their small campfire. The shadows danced around them as if the forest itself was alive, watching their every move.
Sasuke lay on a bed of leaves and grass, shivering with a high fever. His face was pale, and beads of sweat clung to his brow as he tossed and turned, clearly in pain. Sakura sat beside him, her expression one of deep concern. She gently dabbed at his forehead with a damp cloth, hoping to bring some relief to her teammate.
Naruto, on the other hand, sat cross-legged on the other side of the fire, her white hair glowing faintly in the firelight, her sapphire eyes reflecting the flames like twin jewels. She was wearing her usual outfit—a frilly black dress that somehow seemed both out of place and perfectly suited for her. Her black long gloves covered her arms up to the elbows, and her black high heels dug slightly into the soft earth beneath her.
Karin, sitting a little distance away from the fire, watched Naruto with a curious frown. The contrast between them was striking—Karin with her wild red hair, crimson eyes, and red glasses, and Naruto with her ethereal, almost otherworldly appearance. There was something unsettling about how different Naruto looked from the Uzumaki she knew herself to be.
"Hey, Naruto," Karin began, her voice cutting through the quiet of the night, "you don't look anything like an Uzumaki."
Naruto glanced at her, then returned her gaze to the fire. "It's… something unnatural, dattebayo," she said in her usual robotic tone, as if that was explanation enough.
Karin's frown deepened. That was hardly satisfying. She had so many questions, and she needed more than just a vague response. "Unnatural? What do you mean? Who are your parents?"
For a moment, Naruto was silent. Her glowing eyes seemed to dim slightly as she thought. Then, she shrugged. "The old man… the Sandaime Hokage, he gave me the Uzumaki name. He said one of my parents was an Uzumaki."
Karin stared at her, processing the information. It didn't make sense—no Uzumaki she had ever heard of looked like Naruto. And yet, there was no denying the feeling of kinship she felt, however small, with this strange girl.
Before Karin could press further, the sound of footsteps and rustling leaves caught their attention. Three figures emerged from the darkness, stepping into the circle of light cast by the campfire. They were unmistakably shinobi from the Sound Village, each wearing the distinct sound headband with the musical note symbol.
"Where's Sasuke Uchiha?" one of them demanded, his voice harsh and impatient.
Sakura froze, her eyes widening in fear. She instinctively moved closer to Sasuke, her hand hovering protectively over his feverish form. The atmosphere around the camp shifted, the air becoming tense and charged with the threat of violence.
Naruto stood up slowly, her movements deliberate and almost mechanical. She pointed at the sleeping Sasuke, her face expressionless. "He is asleep," she said, her tone flat. "Dattebayo."
The leader of the Sound Genin sneered, his eyes narrowing at Naruto. "We're here to fight him. We won't leave without a fight. And if you don't hand him over…" His gaze swept over the group, lingering on each of them. "We'll kill you all."
Naruto tilted her head to the side, her expression blank, but there was a flicker of something dangerous in her glowing eyes. How dare they come here and demand to fight Sasuke? How dare they ignore her? It was an affront to her pride, to her very existence. Did they not know who she was?
Her lips curved into a small, almost imperceptible smile. "You want to fight him," she said softly, her voice carrying a note of arrogance. "But I'm right here. How about you try me instead?"
The Sound Genin exchanged glances, clearly not taking her seriously. After all, she looked more like a doll dressed up for a tea party than a shinobi ready for battle. But they were about to learn a very harsh lesson.
"Fine," the leader said, cracking his knuckles. "We'll deal with you first, then finish off Uchiha."
Naruto's smiled as she took a step forward. "Dattebayo," she murmured, and in the blink of an eye, she was gone.
The leader barely had time to react before Naruto appeared right in front of him, her speed almost too fast to track. Her fist collided with his stomach, sending him flying backward into a tree with a sickening thud. He gasped for air, the wind knocked out of him, as he crumpled to the ground.
The second Sound Genin, a girl with short hair, launched a flurry of needles at Naruto, hoping to catch her off guard. But Naruto merely sidestepped them with ease, her movements fluid and precise. The needles sailed past her harmlessly, embedding themselves in the ground behind her.
"Is that all you've got?" Naruto asked, her tone almost bored.
Enraged, the girl formed a series of hand signs and unleashed her signature attack, Sound Wave. A high-pitched screech filled the air, distorting the very ground around them. The sound waves were powerful enough to shatter rocks and disorient enemies, but Naruto merely blinked, unfazed by the attack.
"Annoying," she muttered, before dashing towards the girl. In one swift motion, she delivered a spinning kick to the girl's side, sending her crashing into the campfire. The flames roared up as the girl screamed in pain, trying to scramble away from the heat.
The third Genin, a tall boy with bandages wrapped around his arms, hesitated. He had witnessed his teammates being taken down effortlessly and knew that he stood no chance. But his pride wouldn't let him back down.
With a roar, he charged at Naruto, his fists wrapped in chakra, intending to pummel her into submission. Naruto simply watched him approach, her expression unchanged. At the last moment, she sidestepped his punch, grabbed his arm, and flipped him over her shoulder with a surprising amount of strength, slamming him into the ground.
The boy groaned, trying to get up, but Naruto placed her heel on his back, pinning him down. "Give up," she said, her voice cold. "You're not worth my time."
Finally, the leader of the Sound Genin, still struggling to breathe, raised a hand in surrender. "We… we just want to fight him," he wheezed, his pride shattered. "Please… stop."
Naruto released the boy beneath her heel and stepped back, striking a cool pose as she looked down at the defeated Genin. "Dattebayo," she declared, her voice dripping with self-satisfaction.
An ominous, suffocating aura of killing intent suddenly enveloped the camp like a dark, heavy fog. It was as if the very air around them had thickened, turning icy and unwelcoming. Karin, who was sensitive to chakra in ways that others couldn't fathom, screamed in terror, clutching her head as if trying to block out the overwhelming sensation. Her face twisted in pain, eyes wide with fear, while she trembled uncontrollably.
Sakura, frozen in shock, could hardly believe what she was feeling. It was a pressure so intense, so vile, that it almost seemed to be choking the life out of her. Her hands instinctively clenched the fabric of her skirt, her heart pounding in her chest.
Naruto blinked, her glowing sapphire eyes narrowing slightly as she slowly turned around. The firelight danced eerily on her pale skin, casting flickering shadows across her face. There, standing just outside the tent, was Sasuke—though he looked nothing like the Sasuke she knew.
Sasuke's body was radiating a vile, disgusting chakra that twisted and curled around him like a living thing, almost as if the darkness itself was trying to consume him. His skin had taken on a sickly, grayish hue, and black markings—an intricate sealing array—crawled up from the base of his neck, spreading like wildfire across his face and down his arms. His eyes, once sharp and focused, were now wild and filled with a predatory hunger, his pupils dilated and feral.
"Bastard?" Naruto's voice, though robotic as ever, had a tinge of genuine confusion. "When did you get that new tattoo? Looks ugly. Dattebayo."
Sasuke ignored her, his gaze fixated on the Sound Genin who were now trembling, their earlier bravado shattered by the overwhelming power radiating from him. He stepped outside the tent, the black marks on his body pulsing like living veins of poison.
"Who are they?" Sasuke's voice was low, menacing—completely devoid of the usual arrogance, replaced with something much darker, much more dangerous.
Naruto tilted her head, her white hair shifting slightly. "Oh, they want to fight you," she replied casually, as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world.
"Ho?" Sasuke smirked, a twisted, unsettling expression that made even Naruto blink in unease.
Without another word, Sasuke vanished, his speed almost inhuman as he appeared right in front of the leader of the Sound Genin. There was a brief, horrified expression on the Sound ninja's face before Sasuke's fist drove into his gut with such force that the sound of bones cracking filled the air. The boy crumpled to the ground, gasping for air, his eyes bulging in shock.
The other two barely had time to react before Sasuke was upon them, his movements a blur of violence. He grabbed the girl by the throat, lifting her effortlessly off the ground, and then slammed her into a nearby tree with a sickening crunch. The third tried to escape, fear evident in his eyes, but Sasuke caught him by the arm, twisting it with brutal force until the boy screamed in agony. With a savage grin, Sasuke kicked him in the chest, sending him flying across the clearing, his body tumbling lifelessly across the dirt.
Naruto stood still, watching with an unnerving calm as Sasuke ruthlessly dismantled the Sound Genin. She couldn't help but feel unnerved—something about this wasn't right. Sasuke had always been strong, but this was something else entirely. This wasn't strength; this was pure, unbridled savagery. Karin, on the other hand, was downright trembling in fear, her eyes wide and tearful as she watched Sasuke transform into something monstrous.
"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura's voice rang out, high-pitched and desperate as she ran toward him. Her arms wrapped around his torso from behind, her small frame clinging to him as if trying to anchor him back to reality. "Please, stop!"
For a moment, Sasuke froze, his body tense and shaking as the cursed seal fought against him. The black marks on his skin pulsed, the dark chakra flickering like a dying flame. Slowly, agonizingly, the cursed seal began to retract, the markings retreating back to his neck as if being sucked into the seal itself. His skin regained its natural color, his eyes losing that feral gleam. The cruel smile faded from his lips as he finally returned to his senses, his breath coming out in ragged gasps.
The Sound Genin, bruised, battered, and barely conscious, huddled together in a pathetic heap. The leader, his face swollen and bloodied, held up a trembling hand in surrender. "You… you can have our scroll… please, just leave us…"
Naruto walked over, her heels clicking softly against the dirt as she picked up the scroll they offered. "Thanks," she said simply, her tone devoid of any emotion as she watched the Sound Team limp away, their pride shattered.
Then, she turned her attention back to Sasuke, who was still breathing heavily, trying to steady himself. His face was pale, his eyes distant as if he was lost in his own thoughts.
"Hey, Bastard," Naruto called out, her voice breaking through the heavy silence. Sasuke looked up, his expression unreadable. "What was that? You had a sugar rush or something? Or was your testosterone too high?" She paused for a beat, then flinched robotically, her head jerking slightly to the side. "Ew, Sakura-chan, Karin, please stay away from him. He's aggressive towards women."
Sakura glared at her, tears still streaming down her face. "Naruto…!"
Naruto raised her hands in a mock gesture of surrender. "I'm just stating facts. Dattebayo."
TBC
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