"Alright, let's stay here. Naruto, Sakura, I need some time. You two keep watch outside and don't let any other ninjas in," Natsuro said, looking at the nearest naturally formed cave he had found.
"Got it," Sakura nodded, glancing at Sasuke with some concern. Although Natsuro kept saying it was fine, the situation clearly indicated that Sasuke's injury was unusual.
"Leave it to me; I won't let anyone get in!" Naruto declared.
"Okay." Once Naruto and Sakura stepped outside, Sasuke spoke up.
"Natsuro, is my injury that serious?" Sasuke felt puzzled; after all, it was just a snake bite, right? Was it really that concerning?
"Hmm, if it were an ordinary snake bite, even without medical ninjutsu, your body would recover quickly. But that was Orochimaru's snake, which is not the same as an ordinary snake," Natsuro said, pulling out a scroll and summoning a mirror to throw to Sasuke.
Sasuke looked at the three small black dots on his neck, which resembled tomoes, and he felt dazed. Was this thing what had been tormenting him?
"What is this?"
"A curse mark. The person who bears it can gain powers beyond normal limits, but it also affects the mind, potentially leading to madness and death," Natsuro explained, contemplating how to communicate the normal state of being marked by such a curse. He then looked at Sasuke.
"So, how will you choose? Will you accept this power or give it up? I don't think this curse mark will cost you your life," he said.
"Power…" Sasuke paused before turning his head away and said, "I don't need power from such a dark source. Besides, I don't think this thing can help me defeat that person."
"Have you decided?" Natsuro looked at Sasuke, who had made a decision so quickly, somewhat surprised.
"Humph, is there really any need to think about it?" Sasuke said, already tearing off the blue collar of his clothes, signaling Natsuro to start the process now.
"Sasuke, I'm beginning to believe you can defeat that guy," Natsuro remarked. At this stage, Sasuke seemed even more resolute than in the original story, and he hadn't begun to be affected by the curse mark yet.
Even in the original story, if Sasuke hadn't been influenced by the curse mark for so long, his choices might have been different.
"Of course," Sasuke replied with a slight smirk.
"Then I'll begin." Natsuro observed the curse mark on Sasuke's neck with a serious expression. Even though his sealing techniques were much better than Kakashi's mediocre skills, this curse mark seal was still complicated. He wasn't quite sure of its exact nature; if it were really Senjutsu chakra, then ordinary sealing techniques wouldn't be very effective.
Should he use the Evil Sealing Method? The Five Elements Seal? Or perhaps the Eight Trigrams Seal…
Natsuro pondered which sealing technique would be most suitable. Finally, he thought of the layered sealing technique on Naruto, revealing a smile. He decided on the Eight Trigrams Seal; as long as it was chakra, even if it contained Senjutsu, it couldn't escape.
However, Naruto's Eight Trigrams Seal was used to harness the power of the Nine-Tails. Natsuro planned to reverse it to restrict the curse mark chakra. But just using the Eight Trigrams Seal might lead to problems later, as the accumulated curse mark chakra could become a hassle.
Therefore, he would need to pair it with the Four Symbols Seal. No matter how much curse mark chakra there was, it couldn't break through the Four Symbols Seal; the Nine-Tails had a say in that.
And since they didn't need to seal away something as large as the Nine-Tails, the Four Symbols Seal itself wasn't hard to use. Moreover, Natsuro could use the chakra gathered from the Eight Trigrams Seal to support the Four Symbols Seal, which meant he wouldn't even need to use his own chakra; it would be even simpler.
By using the curse mark chakra collected from the Eight Trigrams Seal to create a chakra mental space for the Four Symbols Seal, it would be similar to where the Nine-Tails resided.
Once he learned Senjutsu, he could come back and resolve the issue all at once. By then, the mental space created by the Four Symbols Seal might still be preserved and could perhaps be useful for Sasuke.
After finishing his thoughts, chakra flared from Natsuro's fingers as he began to imprint the seals on Sasuke.
Just a curse mark. If it knew it was being sealed by such a level of sealing technique, it would probably think it had made it in life.
Natsuro was merely being cautious, after all; it could potentially contain natural energy, so he couldn't let his guard down.
However, both sealing techniques took time to perform.
Meanwhile, outside, Naruto and Sakura were keeping watch in front of the cave.
Sakura's thoughts had drifted elsewhere. She was reflecting on how, once again, she was unable to help in this battle. Even when it came to medical assistance, all she could do was alleviate pain, while Natsuro could directly heal Sasuke's wounds…
If only her medical ninjutsu could improve, maybe she could be of more help to Sasuke and Naruto.
Sakura pondered, thinking about her combat abilities. She remembered the fights between Naruto and Sasuke, which were levels she had never even imagined before, and yet both Naruto and Sasuke had reached that level.
How long would it take her to reach that level? Six months? A year? Even several years?
Sakura's face fell. With things as they were, she felt she wouldn't make it in time; she would inevitably be left far behind. Besides, they couldn't afford to stand still. Perhaps she should decide to learn medical ninjutsu to the level Natsuro possessed; that might be of some use to the team…
On the other hand, Naruto wasn't overthinking things. He was contemplating what to do next, having completed the first step of learning the Wind Release: Gale Palm, as suggested by Natsuro.
Although he had taken a rather silly approach—having some shadow clones learn the normal technique while others learned to wrap around their legs and another group to wrap around their torsos…
Eventually, once they all learned it, he would unify their techniques. While it was cumbersome and forced, Naruto had managed to accomplish it his own way. However, Natsuro then advised him to train it to become instinctual… to keep it active at all times.
How was he supposed to do that? He didn't have enough chakra to keep it active all the time! Forget it; he'd just give it a try.
"It's taking so long! Is Natsuro still not done?" Naruto said, leaning back against a tree with his hands behind his head.
"Be patient, Naruto. Keep watch here; I'll go find some food," Sakura replied.
"Hmm, I'll go instead." After thinking about Natsuro's previous instructions, Naruto made the hand seals and said, "Shadow Clone Technique!"
"Leave the food search to us!" several shadow clones of Naruto grinned at Sakura, showing their big white teeth, before scattering in all directions.
"Shadow Clones are really useful," Sakura remarked as she watched this scene.
"Of course!" The more Naruto used shadow clones, the more he felt this technique was genuinely helpful—not only for group attacks but also for learning. It was no wonder Natsuro had chosen this jutsu for him; it suited him perfectly.
Before long, Naruto's expression suddenly changed. "Sakura, be careful! Someone's coming; my shadow clone was destroyed!"
Immediately, Sakura's expression shifted as well, but she then showed determination and said, "Naruto, we need to hold our ground here. We absolutely can't let anyone in to disturb Natsuro and Sasuke."
"Of course!" Naruto replied with a grin.
"Alright, Naruto, listen to my commands. Set some traps," Sakura said, regaining her confidence. This was something she could still handle.
.....
"Did any other ninjas find us outside?" Sasuke said, hearing the sounds of battle from outside.
"Don't move. Trust Naruto and Sakura," Natsuro replied. He had already noticed the three Sound ninjas; they were regular exam students, so he couldn't just jump in.
However, he believed Naruto could handle this situation since the primary ability of those three was sound-based, while Naruto's element was wind.
Although Naruto didn't yet know how to utilize it, he would eventually discover that the wind from the Wind Release: Gale Palm would counter their abilities effectively.
Natsuro didn't have much faith in Naruto's theory, but he trusted Naruto's instincts in battle.
"Hmph, of course. If that guy loses, I'll be sure to laugh at him in person," Sasuke added.
Natsuro nodded with a smile. Unlike in the original story, Sasuke had recognized Naruto's strengths from the beginning and never saw him as the absolute bottom of the ranks.
So even as Naruto kept up with him, Sasuke didn't feel like he was standing still while Naruto was catching up.
At that moment, Sasuke felt that they were both progressing together, competing against each other, while Natsuro was a goal too far away. Sasuke likely pushed himself to keep from being surpassed by Naruto.
As for Naruto, he didn't let Natsuro and Sasuke down; he was genuinely holding off the Sound trio by himself.
Sakura stood at the entrance of the cave. If the Sound trio crossed Naruto's defenses, they would encounter her. However…
Sakura watched that familiar figure, who was becoming increasingly unfamiliar in her eyes. He was just a classmate who excelled in physical strength but fell short in other areas, never surpassing her in school.
Now, his figure left her feeling like he was out of reach. She had set traps that had hit their targets, but the effects were disappointing…
At that moment, Naruto had sustained some injuries as well. Initially, he was thrown into chaos by their attacks, but he quickly discovered the usefulness of the Gale Palm.
Indeed, a smile appeared at the corner of Naruto's mouth; this technique suited him perfectly.
In the next moment, Naruto began forming hand seals.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Then…
"Wind Release—Gale Palm!"
The Sound trio looked at the shadow clones opposite them, feeling somewhat dazed. Just how much chakra did this guy have? He had used so many shadow clones and was still maintaining that wind technique.
The most ridiculous part was that not only the original Naruto could maintain it, but even the clones could keep it up, making it impossible for them to break through the barrier of wind.
Originally, their goal was to wear Naruto down, but after seeing him summon more shadow clones, their expressions could no longer hold their composure.
Was this guy's chakra… monstrous?!
Breathing heavily but smiling, Naruto revealed a pair of determined eyes and declared, "I told you, I won't let anyone through, and I always keep my word!!"
In the next moment, Naruto charged out again, showing no signs of slowing down in speed or power, with even a hint of red chakra leaking out.
The Sound trio began to consider retreating; at this rate, they felt they wouldn't be able to outlast even one of him!
As for the order to kill Sasuke? Sorry, Lord Orochimaru, they couldn't even get into the cave, let alone kill Sasuke. It was simply impossible!
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Currently on Chapter 178 - Codename: Hawk