Chapter 34 (Patreon)

After Orochimaru left, Sakura moved Naruto and Sasuke into the hollow of a tree and tended to both of her unconscious teammates.

Naruto, however, had been carefully studying the Five Elements Seal ever since Orochimaru placed it on him.

It was a sealing technique from the Uzumaki clan, and his aptitude for sealing techniques was already rated [Advanced]. That same talent had once allowed him to take the Flying Thunder God Technique from [Unlearned] to [Intermediate] all at once.

After an hour, he understood how the seal worked and removed it without difficulty.

Then he stopped pretending to be unconscious and opened his eyes.

Sakura was overjoyed.

Night had fallen, making the Forest of Death seem even more frightening. Until now, she had been trembling at the thought of facing whatever danger came next on her own.

With Naruto awake, she finally had someone to rely on. Once she could relax, exhaustion caught up with her, and she soon fell asleep.

Naruto smiled and left a shadow clone to watch over Sakura and Sasuke. His real body slipped out into the night.

As he sensed the forest around him, his smile grew cruel.

While he had been dealing with Orochimaru, his twenty shadow clones had taken the form of masked, red-haired women and spread out through the Forest of Death, hunting down the other candidates.

They had spared the nine genin from Hinata's, Neji's, and Ino–Shika–Chō's teams, along with Karin's, Gaara's, and Kabuto's teams.

With Orochimaru's team and Team 7 also excluded, that left twenty-eight teams.

The clones had finished hunting them down. Eighty-four ninja were dead.

They had taken only the Heaven Scroll Team 7 needed. Every other Heaven and Earth Scroll remained hidden on its owner's corpse.

The few surviving teams soon began coming across the bodies of murdered candidates, puzzled by what had happened.

Nor was Naruto worried about those teams running into Gaara.

Karin could sense chakra, Kabuto was as crafty as a rat, and the Ino–Shika–Chō trio had no intention of risking their lives when they could run instead.

Hinata's and Neji's teams had both spotted something wrong with Gaara through their Byakugan and kept well clear of him.

Of the eighty-four candidates killed, ten had possessed the strength of chūnin.

With Asura Field doubling the rewards, those kills had earned Naruto 348 points. Added to the 600 points from the three jōnin and the 300 he already had, his total now stood at 1,248.

[Ding! Congratulations, Host! Your excellent performance has brought your point total to 1,248.]

[Asura Field has been extended until the end of the third test.]

A plan immediately began taking shape in Naruto's mind.

The second test had already earned him plenty of points. During the third, there would be a great many ninja from Sunagakure and Otogakure present—and Konoha ninja, too.

If he killed them, the rewards could be enormous.

The thought alone was enough to excite him.

How can I kill even more of them?

He studied his status panel, and his eyes lit up.

“System, exchange two Bloodline Upgrade Scrolls. Upgrade Deidara's Explosion Release Kekkei Genkai to Level 4—a God-Level Bloodline!”

[Ding! Upgrade complete.]

[200 points deducted.]

[Congratulations, Host! You have acquired your second God-Level Bloodline: Explosion Release — Explosive Clay Kekkei Genkai.]

With the bloodline now at Level 4, its innate techniques, Clay Animals and Clay Clone, had both reached [Transcendent].

Naruto fed a lump of ordinary earth into the mouth in his right palm.

Moments later, it spat out a small lump of explosive clay. He quickly shaped it into a large white bird, ready to take flight.

He nodded in satisfaction, then looked over his status panel again and considered what his recent battles had taught him.

Orochimaru's killing intent had been enough to dispel his shadow clone. That was a weakness he needed to address.

He intended to cause plenty of trouble in the shinobi world. Whether he stayed in Konoha or traveled outside as the masked woman, he would need a durable, reliable clone.

He couldn't keep rushing back himself whenever one got into trouble.

“System, exchange a Supernatural Ability Synthesis Scroll. Fuse my Transcendent Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu and Clay Clone into one supernatural ability!”

[Ding! Fusion complete.]

[200 points deducted.]

[Congratulations, Host! You have acquired your fourth supernatural ability: True Clone.]

Naruto silently examined the knowledge that appeared in his mind.

Then he formed a simple hand sign.

Earth gathered from the ground, taking shape until an exact copy of him stood beside him.

This was his new True Clone.

It possessed the same bloodlines and skills as his real body. The one exception was the Nine-Tails—it had no tailed beast sealed inside it.

For now, its body was made from ordinary earth. It would need time to gradually convert that earth into white explosive clay. Once the process was complete, its entire body could detonate.

“Use the red-haired woman's disguise.”

At Naruto's command, the clone immediately became the familiar masked woman.

From now on, that identity would let him earn points and stir up trouble throughout the shinobi world.

“You aren't needed for the second test. Go prepare for the third one, according to plan. We'll give Konoha a big surprise!”

Naruto and his clone exchanged a look, both wearing the same cold smile.

Then the clone left, disappearing into the night.

...

Naruto's shadow clones had already killed the three Sound ninja Orochimaru sent into the exam.

The test Orochimaru had intended for Sasuke never took place. No one came to challenge him and see what he could do with the Cursed Seal of Heaven.

The night passed without disturbance.

Across the forest, blood still dripped from the scattered corpses. Even the enormous animals seemed to sense that something was wrong, leaving the woods unusually quiet.

Asura Field had left the already frightening Forest of Death steeped in blood.

Early the next morning, Sasuke's curse mark stirred.

Sinister purple chakra began seeping from his body, and black markings spread across its left half.

His eyes snapped open.

He stood and surveyed his surroundings with a cold gaze. Then he saw Naruto, and the humiliation of his past defeats came rushing back.

“I can feel it... the power just keeps coming. It must be what that man gave me yesterday.”

His voice hardened.

“I'm an avenger. I'll do whatever it takes to gain power, even if I have to hand my body over to the devil.”

Sakura's surprise gave way to confusion.

Sasuke kept his eyes fixed on Naruto.

“Hmph. Then I'll start by beating you, Naruto. Come on. Fight me again!”

Naruto was roasting a wild boar. At Sasuke's challenge, he turned his head and immediately understood what was happening.

“Looks like that power's gone to your head.”

He clapped his hands together, stood, and grinned at Sasuke.

“You really think you can beat me now?”

“Enough talk!”

Sasuke pushed off the ground and lunged at him, kunai in hand.

Naruto laughed to himself.

Perfect. Once I beat him for the seventh time, that long-term mission will be complete. I can't wait to see the mysterious reward!