Author's Note: This chapter is based on the ideas of our dear friend, Michael Knutson
*****
The sticky sensation on the back of Naruto's neck wouldn't go away.
He walked between Ino and Sakura, his hands stuffed in the pockets of his orange jacket, listening to their laughter and the debate over whether herbal shampoo was superior to fruit shampoo. However, his mind was three blocks away, trapped in that empty alley.
It wasn't fear. Naruto Uzumaki didn't fear the dark or thugs. This was different. It was an instinctive repulsion, like finding a cockroach in your favorite bowl of ramen, but a hundred times worse. It was the biological certainty of being near a predator.
"Hey, Naruto, are you on this planet?"
Ino's voice broke his bubble of isolation. The blonde was looking at him with one eyebrow raised, a hand on her hip, and that "I am evaluating your mental health" expression that Sakura used to wear.
"Huh? Yeah, sure," Naruto replied, forcing a smile that felt tight on his own face. "I was just thinking about... ramen. And the exam. You know, future Hokage stuff."
Sakura didn't buy it. She knew him too well now. Those days of ignoring him were left behind, replaced by an almost clinical observation of his moods.
"You're lying," Sakura said. She lowered her voice, ignoring the civilians passing around them. "Is it about the alley? Did you really see something?"
Naruto hesitated. He could tell them it was nothing. He could act tough. But rule number one of the "Family" was trust. And that sensation... he needed to get it out of his system before it poisoned him.
"I didn't see anything," he admitted, lowering his tone as well, which made Ino lean toward him instinctively. "But I felt it. There was someone there, Sakura-chan. And it wasn't a normal ninja hiding. It felt... like licking a frozen toad."
Ino wrinkled her nose. "What a gross comparison. But I believe you."
"You believe me?" Naruto blinked, surprised. Ino used to be the first to call him paranoid or an idiot.
"You have that system, right?" Ino lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper, looking sideways to make sure no one was listening. "Your senses are better than ours now. If you say there was something gross in that alley, then there was something gross. The question is: was he following us?"
"He was watching us," Naruto corrected, feeling a chill run down his spine again. "All three of us. Or maybe just me. I don't know. But it felt... strange."
Sakura got serious immediately. Her analytical mind, sharpened by the study sessions with Tsunade, began to work.
"Two days left until the finals," Sakura murmured, biting her lower lip. "The village is full of foreigners. Ninjas from the Rain, the Grass, the Sand... It could be a spy evaluating the competition."
"Or it could be something worse," Naruto added, remembering Temari's warning about Gaara.
"We have to tell Tsunade-sama," Sakura decided firmly. "And Kurenai-sensei. Right now."
Ino nodded. "The meeting is at Training Ground 8, right? Kurenai and Hinata must already be there. If we're going to have a paranoid crisis, better to have it with Jōnin-level backup."
They sped up. The talk about shampoo was forgotten, replaced by a tactical silence. Naruto walked in the middle, his blue eyes scanning every shadow, every window, every roof. He was a ninja who knew he was being hunted.
When they arrived at Training Ground 8, the sun was already kissing the horizon, dyeing the sky a deep violet. Kurenai was sitting on a fallen log, with Hinata beside her practicing chakra control exercises on her palms. The image was of absolute, almost sacred peace, until the trio arrived with their cloud of tension.
Kurenai looked up immediately. Her red eyes, now sharper thanks to the Falna upgrades and her own evolution, caught the stiffness in Naruto's shoulders before he said a word.
"You're late," Kurenai said, but her tone lacked real reproach. "Problems?"
"We need to talk," Naruto said without preamble. "And I think we need Granny Tsunade and Anko too. It's... a hunch. But a bad one."
Kurenai didn't question his judgment. She stood up in a fluid motion.
"Hinata, go find Anko. She's probably at the dango shop or bothering Ibiki at the Interrogation Tower. Sakura, you know where to find Tsunade; she said she was going to be late, but tell her it is urgent she comes now. Bring them here. Now."
"Hai!"
The two girls disappeared in a burst of speed, leaving Naruto and Ino with Kurenai.
"Tell me," Kurenai ordered, crossing her arms.
Naruto sat on the ground, crossing his legs. "We were walking through the commercial district. Near Mrs. Shizuka's tea shop. There's an alley there, one that always smells bad. We passed by it and... I stopped."
"Did you see anyone?"
"No. It was empty. But my hair stood on end," Naruto rubbed his arm, as if he were still cold. "Someone was staring at us very intently, Kurenai."
Ino shivered. "Put like that, it sounds horrible, Naruto."
Kurenai frowned. She trusted Naruto's instincts.
"How strange," Kurenai murmured to herself.
"What?" Ino asked.
"Nothing," Kurenai shook her head. "Let's wait for the others. If there is a predator in the village observing my genin, I want everyone present to hear this."
Twenty minutes later, the improvised "War Council" was gathered. Tsunade arrived with a scowl, possibly torn away from pending paperwork. Anko arrived with a predatory smile and a half-eaten skewer of dango in her hand, followed by a Hinata who looked like she had run a marathon. Sakura closed the circle.
"Alright, brat," Tsunade said, leaning against a tree and crossing her arms over her chest. "Sakura says you had a 'sensory episode'. Speak. And it better be good, I left a budget report halfway done. What is so important that it can't wait?"
Naruto stood up. Having the full attention of three of the Leaf's most dangerous kunoichi (and his three teammates) was intimidating, but it also gave him a strange sense of security.
He repeated the story. He described the alley, the cold, the sensation of a sticky gaze on the back of his neck. He tried to be precise.
"It wasn't just some random thug," Naruto concluded, looking directly at Anko. "It felt... weird. I don't know how to explain it. And there was something... underneath it. Something that made me think of you, Anko-san."
Anko's smile faltered, the dango skewer hovering halfway to her mouth. Her free hand instinctively went to her neck, pressing on the fabric of her trench coat, right where the Curse Mark slept under her skin.
"Me?" Her voice lost its mocking tone, becoming cautious. "You refer to my chakra?"
"Not exactly," Naruto frowned, searching for the right words while gesturing vaguely. "It felt like... like someone had been swimming in the same pond as you, but the water was rotten. I don't know how to explain it, Anko-san, but it reminded me of you in some strange way."
A dense silence fell over the clearing. Even the crickets seemed to have decided to shut up in the face of the sudden tension.
Anko dropped the dango, which hit the ground with a dull thud, and rubbed her neck harder. A grimace of pain crossed her face for a split second.
"Does it hurt?" Tsunade asked, peeling herself off the tree. Her voice no longer held a trace of boredom; now it was that of a medic evaluating a critical symptom.
"They are... stabbing pains," Anko admitted, her tone darkening. "It's been bothering me for a couple of days. I thought it was the stress of the exams or the change in weather. But if the brat felt something that resonates with this..."
Anko didn't finish the sentence, but she didn't need to. Everyone knew where that mark came from.
"Could it be...?" whispered Sakura, not daring to say the traitorous Sannin's name.
"Impossible," Anko cut in, though it sounded more like she was trying to convince herself. "The ANBU haven't reported anything. And if Orochimaru were in the village, my mark wouldn't be stabbing, it would be burning." She looked into the darkness where Naruto had pointed. "But if there is someone out there with a similar chakra... it could be a survivor of his experiments. Or something worse."
"A survivor?" Ino asked, swallowing hard.
"Someone like me," Anko said with a humorless smile that froze the genin's blood. "Someone broken."
Tsunade walked over until she stood in front of Naruto; her presence imposed itself like a protective wall.
"Let's not jump to conclusions, but let's not be stupid either," Tsunade declared, her strategist mind taking control. "We don't know who was in that alley. It could be a spy, a rogue, or just a psychopath with bad chakra. But if it made Naruto and Anko's mark react, it is a threat."
"What do we do then?" Naruto asked, clenching his fists. "Do we go look for him?"
"No," Tsunade ordered sharply. "If it's someone related to Orochimaru, they are not an opponent for genin. Not even for most chūnin. Naruto, you said you felt he was watching you and the girls."
"Yes, right when we passed that alley."
"Then the target is you guys," Tsunade sentenced. "This changes the exam priorities. Forget pride and glory. From now on, the main objective is survival. Someone is hunting you."
Kurenai stepped forward, her face serious under the moonlight. "I suggest increasing vigilance. No one walks alone. Ino, Sakura, Hinata... I want your senses at maximum. If you feel that 'coldness' again, do not investigate. Run. Find a Jōnin. Understood?"
"Hai!" the three responded in unison, the gravity of the situation settling on their shoulders.
"And you, Anko," Tsunade looked at the purple-haired woman. "Those pains are your radar. Don't ignore them. If the pain increases, I want to know immediately. Don't act tough."
Anko nodded, letting go of her neck. "Understood. If that snake, or any of his hatchlings, stick their head out... we'll know."
The night seemed to have grown darker. The "Family" was gathered, but now they knew they weren't alone on the board. There was an invisible piece moving in the shadows.
It was Ino who broke the silence, shaking off the tension with a flip of her long blonde ponytail.
"Well, that's great. A normal week in the life of Naruto Uzumaki, huh?"
Naruto let out a nervous chuckle. "Hey, I don't invite trouble. It finds me. I must be irresistible."
"You're loud, that's what you are," Sakura retorted, but she gave him a friendly shove with her shoulder. "But Ino is right. If they come for us, they're in for a surprise. We aren't the same genin who left the Academy."
"Exactly," Hinata said, and her voice sounded surprisingly fierce. "We have the Falna. We have each other."
Tsunade looked at them, a mixture of pride and concern in her amber eyes. They were kids. They should be worried about dates and D-rank missions, not traitorous Sannin. But the ninja world wasn't kind, and these kids had grown up fast.
"Speaking of growing," Ino said, changing the subject with impressive fluidity, turning to Naruto with a calculating smile. "Naruto, you mentioned you wanted to expand the Family, right? That we needed more firepower."
"Huh? Oh, yeah," Naruto blinked, switching chips from 'mortal danger' to 'team strategy'. "I said we needed weapons. Lots of weapons."
"Well, you're in luck," Ino pulled a kunai from her pouch and spun it on her finger. "Because like I told you when we were with Sasuke, I had a very interesting chat with a certain weapons expert today. And let's just say Tenten is... intrigued."
"Tenten?" Sakura raised an eyebrow.
"The very same," Ino nodded. "I found her at her parents' tool shop. She was... frustrated. It seems she feels she's being left behind in her team. Neji is a genius, Lee is a taijutsu beast... and she feels she just 'throws things'."
Naruto nodded with empathy. He knew that feeling. The fear of being left behind.
"I told her a little about us," Ino continued. "I didn't tell her everything, of course. I'm not stupid. I just told her we're doing special training. That we've found a way to boost our strong points. And that you, Naruto, are the center of that."
"And what did she say?" Hinata asked.
"She said she's been watching you," Ino smiled mischievously. "She says your fight on the bridge... the rumors reached her. I think she wants to see if you're real or just smoke."
"I'm very real!" Naruto protested.
"Then prove it to her," Ino said. "Tomorrow. She trains early at the east forest range. Go there. Talk to her. If Tenten joins... we'll have access to an arsenal and a long-range specialist. Just what we're missing."
Kurenai nodded in approval. "Tenten is a solid kunoichi. Her aim is perfect, and her knowledge of ninja tools is encyclopedic. She would be a good tactical addition."
"Alright," Naruto decided, punching his fist into his open palm. "First thing tomorrow. Operation: Recruit the Weapons Mistress. I'm going to convince her, dattebayo!"
"Just don't be too... you," Sakura advised. "Don't yell in her face or try to invite her for ramen in the first sentence. Be... professional."
"I am professionalism personified!"
"Sure, and I'm the Daimyō of the Fire Country," Anko mocked, recovering a bit of her dark humor. "Alright, puppies. Meeting adjourned. Go home. Sleep with one eye open. And Naruto..."
Anko walked up to him, leaning in until their faces were inches apart.
"If you feel that 'cold' again... don't be a hero. Scream. Scream so loud it wakes the dead."
Naruto swallowed, but nodded. "Understood, Anko-san."
The group dispersed. Tsunade and Anko left together, probably to discuss security countermeasures and drink sake. Kurenai took Hinata.
Naruto, Sakura, and Ino walked together a bit longer. Night had fallen completely over Konoha. The streetlights created islands of safety in the darkness.
"Do you think we'll be ready?" Sakura asked suddenly, looking at her own hands.
Ino draped an arm over her shoulders. "I don't know, Forehead. But look on the bright side: if we die, at least we'll die looking fabulous thanks to the Falna."
Sakura let out a surprised laugh. "You're vain, Ino-pig."
"And you love me like that."
Naruto looked at them and smiled. The fear of the alley was still there, crouching in the back of his mind like a cold shadow. But seeing them, feeling the connection in his head, the fear became smaller.
"Hey!" Naruto said, stopping at an intersection. "Tomorrow, after talking to Tenten... do you want to train? I need to test a new combo with the clones."
Sakura and Ino looked at each other and smiled. A fierce smile, of kunoichi who know war is coming.
"Count on it," Sakura said.
"Bring bandages, Naruto," Ino added. "You're going to need them."
They parted ways. Naruto walked toward his apartment, the silence of the street broken only by his footsteps. Upon reaching his door, he paused and looked back, toward the darkness of the village.
He entered his house and closed the door with a sharp thud. Tomorrow would be another day. Tomorrow there was a Weapons Mistress to recruit and a destiny to forge. And Naruto Uzumaki was ready to start.
*******
Patreon.com/shurazero