Why are we taking a break every thirty minutes?" Sasuke complained.
"Yea, this is getting crazy, Naruto!" Sakura cut in.
Waving both hands through the air with a nervous twitch, Naruto struggled the hide the sweat on his face as he searched for the right answer.
"I just don't want to spend the night out here." Naruto mumbled.
Dramatically shoving two fingers against Naruto's nose, Sakura scoffed, defined by her emerald green eyes. Creating an awkward staring contest, Naruto groaned under Sakura's gaze.
"Then why keep stopping?" Questioned her teammate, Sakura continued to poke Naruto.
"You've got to know what's going on with your surroundings at least..." Naruto sheepishly said.
Quietly tapping her foot against the forest floor, Sakura crossed both arms in front of her chest and sighed.
"That's a good point but..." Sakura questioned.
"How many clones do you have left Naruto?" Sasuke abruptly cut into the conversation
"About fourteen, give or take." Naruto answered quickly.
Shrugging both shoulders with a care-free tone, Sasuke pulled team 7's unique scroll from his satchel. Admiring this object for several moments, Sasuke pointed towards a distant building, nestled in the forest of death.
"Cool. Let's get to that tower as fast as possible." Sasuke declared.
Meanwhile.
Standing in the center of a leaf-filled grove, Neji's face was illuminated by burning embers from distant flames. Smothering a vast crop inside the forest of death, this fire polluted the skyline with smoke.
A fire? Here? Neji asked himself.
Startled by abrupt rustling from a nearby bush, Neji narrowed each of his lavender-tinted eyes. Glancing over his shoulder, Neji's Byakugan instantly activated, defined by his bulging veins.
"Stop hiding." Snarling his words, Neji glared at the chakra-filled outline of team 10.
"Geez, a troublesome guy found us..." Shikamaru sighed.
"Why does this keep happening to us?" Ino murmured, crouched between her teammates.
"Do you think Naruto will save us again?" Choji questioned, stuffing his mouth with food.
"I'm just glad he didn't take our scroll, no way could we stop him." Shikamaru murmured as he downcast his head and began to rub the back of it.
Briefly distracted by his own thoughts, Shikamaru was hypnotized by the memory of Naruto. Haunted by a vibrant glimpse of Naruto's Rinnegan, these eyes pulsated through Shikamaru's mind.
"Come out or I'll attack." Neji cut in, sliding his feet across the forest floor.
"Okay, okay! Quiet down you two, I have a plan!" Ino exclaimed, holding one finger in the air.
"I don't know... Planning isn't your strong suit." Shikamaru muttered, scratching the bridge of his nose.
Ignoring her teammate, a gleeful Ino leapt out from the bush, confront Neji wide smile. Wiggling her petite butt from side-to-side, Ino giggled like a school girl.
"Oh! I know you! You're the number one rookie from last years class!" Ino chuckled with a seductive voice.
"I see, you don't have my scroll." Neji slurred his words, using his Byakugan to search team 10.
Without another word, Neji turned around before casually walking away, undaunted by Ino's advance. Strolling away without a second thought, Neji scoffed with annoyance.
"Begone, whore." Spitting his words, Neji forced Ino to faceplant to ground.
Gagging on a mouthful of grass and dirt, Ino struggled to breathe for several moments. At the same time, Choji chewed on a handful of potatoe chips, licking his fingers clean.
"Geez, what a drag." Shikamaru mumbled, using one finger to clean his ear.
Glancing up, Shikamaru's fair-skinned face was shrouded by overcast tree branches. Peering at the partially concealed sun, the outline of Naruto's Rinnegan continued to haunt Shikamaru.
Meanwhile.
Bundles of lush leaves came from a thick tree branch, adrift in the forest of death. Rustled by a surging shadow, several leaves fell to the forest floor, jostled by gusts of wind.
Pierced by the distinct sound of footsteps, an array of jumping Naruto's came into view. Rushing through a dense tree-line, this group of Naruto's abruptly froze in front of a wide grove.
Leisurely combing his hair with one hand, Naruto sighed with boredom before sitting down. At the same time, another Naruto scratched his whiskers with confusion.
"I thought you wanted my eyes..." Naruto spoke aloud, surrounded by four clones.
"Five at once? You humble me." Shiore chuckled from the shadows.
"Usually, prey runs." Bubbling out from a hollow log, Shiore's forked tongue could be seen.
So... If my jutsu can't stop him... Naruto pondered, squinted each of his concealed eyes.
Inspired by his thoughts, Naruto fell into a moment of hesitation, weighing his course of options. Giggling without end, Shiore's body fully phased into sight, defined by a snake-like tail instead of feet.
"But, that's all you really do, isn't it? You just run away." Stroking his stomach, Shiore groaned with delight.
"You even ran away from poor Iruka-sensei." Licking his lips, Shiore's snake-like eyes became narrowed.
Yanked from his thoughts by Shiore's voice, Naruto's hands trembled with shock, exposing his clenched teeth. Enthralled by sheer rage, Naruto's Rinnegan writhed with chaotic chakra.
Screeching like a rabid fox, the nearby grove was completely swallowed by fierce shockwave. Uprooting sections of rock, trees and dirt, a massive geyser of debris ruptured towards the sky.
Collapsing under the weight of Naruto's attack, a steer gorge was carved into the earth. Filled with tumbling trees and shattered rock, Shiore fell into this hollow abyss, crushed by debris.
Leaping from tree too tree, Naruto and his clones struggled to stay afloat, obscured by clouds of dirt. Taking several minutes to settle, Naruto landed on a tilted tree-branch, protruding out from the rocky ground.
His chakra... It's all around me... Naruto panicked.
"U-...?!" Gasping with shock, Naruto glanced over his shoulder, exposing a vast horde of sitlhering snakes. Worming out from a scattered terrian of broken rock and trees, these snakes surrounded Naruto on all sides.
Standing back too back with each of his clones, Naruto hastily bit his own lip, racing through thoughts. Twitching under the constant rumble of approaching snakes, Naruto was trapped.
Unhinging each of their jawlines, their rabid snakes expelled a sparkling blade from their mouths. Hissing without pause, this tsunami of snakes bloated out the earth, swarming and slithering.
Moving with the same mannerism, each of Naruto's clones weaved through a vast array of hand seals. Inhaling a staggered breath of air, their whiskered faces were forced to bulge.
"Water Style: Great Waterfall jutsu!" Gagging on a mouthful of water, four Naruto's spoke in unison.
Spewing from Naruto's mouth, this rushing torrent of water swelled into a large wave. Standing atop the swirling surface, Naruto and his clones were soaked by a water-filled breeze.
Pouring across the surrounding countryside, Naruto's volume of dense water collided with Shiore's snakes. Drowning trees, rocks and craters of debris, this water concealed everything from sight.
Meanwhile.
"Did either you fell that earthquake? Just now?!" Sakura cut in, earning a nod of approval from Sasuke.
"It's nothing. Let's just keep moving." Naruto exclaimed.
Situated atop a sunbaked tree branch, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura were partially obscured by foliage. Arguing about their next decision in the forest, Naruto was searching for any excuse.
"Why? What have your clones seen?" Sasuke asked, met a nervous expression from Naruto.
"We need to keep moving." Naruto repeated, scratching his whiskers.
Scoffing in reply, Sasuke crossed both arms against his chest while Sakura was scowling in the background. Strolling forward, Sasuke quickly leapt through an array of tree branches.
"Whatever... But if you're hiding something, I'll find out what." Sasuke declared, shrouded by tree leaves.
Meanwhile.
Popping out from the water's surface, a snow-white snake created a distinct ripple for all too see. Gagging, choking and unhinging its jawline, this snake regurgitated the slime-covered body of Shiore.
Falling to the water with a wet splat, Shiore's snake dissolved into ash, sprinkled across the waves. Afterwards, a chuckling Shiore twisted his head at an unhuman angle, standing up without delay.
"The things this boy can do... He's peaked my interest." Shiore groaned with joy.
Glancing from side-to-side, Shiore observed the water-filled crater that he stood inside. Created from Naruto's combined display of Ninjutsu, this canyon was defined by steep walls.
Tearing Shiore from this train of thought, Naruto's hands pierced the water's surface. Grabbing Shiore's ankles, this shinobi was yanked belowed water, imprisoned by a sphere of water.
Now as Water Style: Water Prison Jutsu, Naruto learned this technique personally from Zabuza. Evident to his skill and growth, Naruto had come a long way since Iruka's death.
Attacking from the water? Shiore slurred, undaunted by Naruto's technique.
Suddenly, Shiore displayed an ear-wide smile across his pale face, exposing his jagged and snake-like teeth. Unleashing a chaotic shockwave of dense chakra, Shiore's mere presence flung four Naruto's through the water.
Erupting from the surface, each of these clones were forced to skid and flip for several seconds. Barely able to regain their composure, the real Naruto hastily regrouped with his clones.
That's not it - there's no why that could have killed him. Naruto concluded, swallowing a wade of spit.
"I shall have you!" Shiore screeched while lunging from the water.
Extending his fingertips forward, Shiore's hand hovered mere inches away from Naruto's Rinnegan. Reaching with these eyes with deep lust, Shiore was abruptly gripped by an unseen force.
Overwhelmed by this gravitational power, Shiore was hurled into a stone cliffside before extreme force. Causing chunks of rock and debris to tumble atop his body, Shiore was briefly concealed from sight.
"Hmmm." Naruto hummed, surrounded by a group of his clones.
"Hmphhmphmph." Shiore chuckled, casually phasing out from the ground.
"You truly have developed into a delicious shinobi." After speaking, Shiore licked with lips.
Barely able to contain his child-like delight, Shiore gazed at Naruto with unblinking eyes. Despite his extended confrontation with Naruto, Shiore didn't have a single scratch on him.
"You move well... You have great timing, and a wide arsenal of Jutsu..." Shiore complimented his prey
"People like you, need to be killed before you become a problem." Snarling this statement, Shiore bared his teeth.
Mutating his own body, Shiore's neck shot out like a rope, allowing his hissing head to surging forward. Maneuvering past each of Naruto's clones, Shiore lunged for the real Naruto.
Retracting his nimble body, Shiore's snake-like limbs easily bisected Naruto's clouds. Obscured by clouds of smoke, Shiore continued to advance, licking his lips with anticipation.
"I'm already a problem." Naruto exclaimed.
Crouching down, Naruto clasped both hands against the water's surface, instantly polluted by foam. As Shiore leapt for Naruto, a massive pincer ruptured into view at the last moment.
Belonging to a massive crab that Naruto summoned, this Rinnegan-eyed beast dwarfed Shiore. Cutting this strange shinobi in half, Shiore's disjointed torso fell to the water.
Brought into an extended silence, Naruto eagerly wait for Shiore to reemerge, but nothing happened. Instead, Naruto heard to the distant sound of retreating birds, fleeing from a forest fire.
Springing from the water below, dozens of white snakes wrapped and contorted themselves around Naruto. Restraining this young shinobi, Shiore laughed while phasing out from the water.
"You see it, don't you child? My power is far greater than you." Shiore groaned before unhinging his mouth.
"Have a taste..." Gargling this declaration, Shiore buried his teeth into Naruto's neck.
After biting his opponent, Shiore's snakes willingly free the injured Naruto, swarming his feet. Clenching the blood-stained wound on his neck.
"AHHHHH" Naruto screamed in agony.
As Shiore continued to smile hearing the sounds of agony coming from the boy, this joy morphed into pure distain after Naruto erupted into a puff of smoke. Nothing more than a shadow clone, the real Naruto had already escaped.
"No....NO!" Screaming with rage, Shiore polluted the air with chakra to an incredible degree.