Outside the tree hollow, the three-person Otogakure team sealed the entrance.
Dosu, hunched over, scanned the inside of the hollow with his single eye, his tone carrying a hint of mockery:
"Is this the level of Konoha's geniuses? Truly disappointing."
Zaku raised his hands, aiming the air holes in his palms at the entrance, and laughed arrogantly:
"Hey, you inside! Hand over the scroll, and maybe we'll leave your corpse intact."
Inside the hollow, Sakura took a deep breath, then pulled an extremely fine Chakra thread.
Buzz.
On the ground surrounding the entrance, the pre-buried talismans instantly lit up.
"Simple Binding Array!"
"What?!"
Zaku, who was about to rush in, paused. Several talismans, acting as if they had suction, firmly fixed him in place.
"Explode!"
Sakura did not hesitate, forming hand signs again.
The Binding Array restricts movement, and the Exploding Tags destroy the enemy—this was the trump card Sakura had recently learned.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The explosion instantly engulfed the three-person Otogakure team, who were caught completely off guard.
Although her Chakra was limited, the Binding Array hadn't restrained him for long.
But even a momentary pause, combined with the close-range explosion of the tags, was enough to severely injure the three Genin.
"Cough, cough... Damn it! One of them knows Sealing Jutsu!"
As the smoke and dust cleared, Zaku desperately used Decapitating Air Waves to blow away the smoke.
His pant legs were blown apart, and his ankles were covered in blood.
Dosu and Kin were also forced to retreat, sustaining injuries and looking quite disheveled.
"Don't underestimate Konoha's Ninja!"
Sakura stood firmly at the entrance.
Although her Chakra consumption was massive, she had successfully held back the three of them by herself.
"Bastard... I'll kill you!"
Zaku was completely enraged.
His eyes were bloodshot, and Chakra fiercely gathered in his palms; he was preparing to unleash a maximum-power Decapitating Air Waves to flatten the entire tree hollow.
However, before he could make a move.
Sasuke, head bowed, slowly walked out of the darkness, stepping past Sakura.
"Well done, Sakura."
Sasuke's voice was low and flat, yet it sent an inexplicable chill down one's spine.
"The rest, leave it to me."
He suddenly lifted his head, and three tomoe spun in his eyes.
"Perfect."
"Right now... I'm furious."
Sasuke looked at the disheveled three Otogakure members before him as if they were three lambs waiting to be slaughtered.
"Sharingan?"
Dosu was startled. He hadn't yet recovered his rhythm after being thrown off by Sakura's trap,
and now facing this kind of pressure, he instinctively felt something was wrong.
"I'll use your blood to wash away my humiliation."
Sasuke's figure instantly vanished from his spot, moving so fast that the three Otogakure Ninja couldn't react at all.
"Zaku! Retreat quickly!"
Dosu shouted.
But it was already too late.
Zaku, already injured in the explosion and struggling to move, had no power to fight back against Sasuke, who was far stronger than him.
"Too slow."
Sasuke coldly spat out two words.
He didn't use any Ninjutsu; his hands, like iron clamps, simply gripped Zaku's proud hands.
"Does all your Ninjutsu rely on these hands?"
Sasuke looked at Zaku's terrified eyes, and Orochimaru's face resurfaced in his mind.
"I couldn't beat that monster... Do you trash even dare to challenge me?"
The accumulated fear, inferiority, and humiliation all transformed into savage destructive intent at this moment.
Crack!
A sickening sound of cracking bone rang out.
"Ahhh!!"
Zaku let out a mournful shriek.
His arms were forcibly broken by Sasuke, twisted at a bizarre angle.
But it wasn't over yet.
Sasuke delivered a heavy kick to Zaku's chin, sending him flying.
His crimson eyes instantly locked onto the other two.
Kin tried to throw her Senbon, but a glare from Sasuke's murderous eyes caused her movements to freeze.
The next moment, Sasuke's fist slammed heavily into her abdomen.
"Ugh!"
Kin spat out a mouthful of bile, her eyes rolled back, and she collapsed unconscious.
Only Dosu remained standing on the field.
"How is this possible..."
Dosu looked at Sasuke, who resembled a demon, his legs turning to jelly.
The scene before him didn't look like a battle; it looked like a slaughter.
"Die!"
Sasuke didn't want to waste any more words. The Kunai in his hand flashed with cold light, thrusting straight toward Dosu's throat.
This time, Sasuke had no hesitation; he was genuinely aiming to take a life.
Moreover, his face faintly held a twisted look of pleasure.
He was currently reveling in the feeling of controlling others' lives and deaths, hoping to fill the void in his heart with slaughter.
Just as the Kunai was about to pierce Dosu's throat.
Snap.
A hand grabbed Sasuke's wrist.
This hand was like an insurmountable wall; no matter how much force Sasuke exerted on his wrist, he couldn't move forward even an inch.
"Let go, Naruto!"
Sasuke suddenly turned his head, his expression ferocious:
"Are you trying to stop me too? Are you also looking down on me?"
"Sasuke, look at yourself right now."
Naruto spoke coldly, "Do you know what you look like?"
"Like a stray dog whose tail has been stepped on, barking wildly at the weak."
"What did you say?"
Sasuke was furious, and his Chakra suddenly erupted as he tried to break free.
But Naruto's hand remained completely still.
"Killing is acceptable."
"For survival, for missions, or even to clear obstacles for ambition—these are all reasonable justifications."
Naruto was not intimidated by Sasuke's aura; instead, he stepped closer.
"But killing is only a means; the key is achieving the corresponding objective."
Naruto pointed at the screaming Zaku on the ground, his tone turning cold:
"And what about you right now? You are enjoying the torment; you are using the blood of the weak to cover up your fear of Orochimaru."
"Do you think this is strength?"
Naruto let go of his hand. "This is cowardice."
"A true hero should dare to face the strong, not arbitrarily swing their blade at the weak."
"If you want to kill them, fine."
"But the reason cannot be simply to vent your anger."
Sasuke froze.
He gasped for breath, and the three tomoe in his eyes slowly stopped spinning, eventually fading away.
"Am I... afraid?"
The hand tightly gripping the Kunai also dropped.
The suffocating aura of savagery dissipated along with it.
In its place was a deep sense of self-doubt and exhaustion.
"...You're right."
Sasuke lowered his head, not sparing a glance for the terrified and weak Dosu.
"Killing this kind of trash only proves that I am useless, venting my anger on even more useless trash."
Naruto looked at Sasuke's back, the coldness in his eyes fading, replaced by a hint of approval.
"You're not beyond saving yet."
Dosu looked at the two figures before him, the fear in his heart reaching its peak.
Are Konoha's Genin... all monsters?
Naruto waved his hand as if shooing away flies:
"Leave the scroll, take the trash."
"And then, get lost."
Dosu felt as if he had been granted a great pardon.
Trembling, he pulled out the Earth Scroll and placed it on the ground, bowing twice to Naruto.
He then lifted the unconscious Kin and the heavily injured Zaku and fled into the depths of the forest without looking back.
Naruto picked up the scroll and glanced at Sakura, who was panting nearby.
"Well done, Sakura."
"Your use of Sealing Jutsu was good. Keep up the hard work."
"R-really?"
Sakura was stunned for a moment, then a flush of excitement spread across her face.
She had been acknowledged!
She was finally no longer a burden!
Naruto put away the scroll and looked toward the tower.
"Next, let's proceed according to the plan."