"The high-ranking members of the Jashin Cult were sacrificed by a single individual?"
Minato examined the intelligence report just received from Hotspring Hidden Village. The disturbance caused by the Jashin Cult in the Land of Hot Springs had been quelled before the Hotspring Hidden Village ninjas could even execute their planned siege operation.
Yugimoto Yama had discovered the bodies of all the cult's senior members at their gathering place. The causes of death were strikingly similar, and all the corpses had been arranged in a specific pattern outlined in blood—the ceremonial sacrifice ritual of the Jashin Cult.
"It seems someone has completed the immortality ritual, just as Kuriyama Shinzo did years ago," Jiraiya observed with a frown. "Though this individual appears even more ruthless than Kuriyama Shinzo was."
After discovering the cultists' bodies, the Hotspring Hidden Village ninjas had immediately sealed their borders and deployed every resource to locate the person who had stolen the Blood March Scythe. Despite several days of intensive searching, the Hot Springs ninjas had found no trace of the perpetrator within their territory.
This failure had prompted them to send a formal request for assistance to Konoha.
"I'm not certain what we're dealing with, but this warrants investigation," Minato decided.
He summoned an ANBU ninja, who appeared instantly before him.
"Bring me Aburame Shibi."
With a nod, the ANBU vanished. Minato rose from his seat and sighed. "We have little choice but to send him to the Land of Hot Springs."
"Indeed, no one is better suited for this task," Jiraiya agreed with a knowing smile.
Minato didn't consider the matter particularly urgent. After all, the joint Chunin Exam between the Land of Wind and the Land of Fire was currently underway, requiring his full attention.
Rasa, the Fourth Kazekage—who had faced Minato numerous times on the battlefield—was expected to arrive in Konoha shortly.
Deep within the Land of Sound, ripples slowly formed on the wall of Orochimaru's hidden cave. From the distortion emerged a massive pitcher plant.
"So you've managed to locate this place," Orochimaru remarked, casting a sidelong glance at Black and White Zetsu.
As the Akatsuki's intelligence specialist, Zetsu's information-gathering capabilities surpassed even the sophisticated networks of the Five Great Nations, despite apparently operating alone.
"Heh heh."
Zetsu merely smiled without elaborating. After a moment's consideration, Orochimaru continued, "That rogue ninja from Hotspring Hidden Village who slaughtered the Jashin Cult's leadership—he was recruited by you, wasn't he?"
"You're well-informed," Zetsu acknowledged calmly, making no attempt to deny it.
"The Hot Springs ninjas sealed their borders immediately after the incident, and Konoha has dispatched Aburame Shibi," Orochimaru reasoned with a chuckle. "If you hadn't intervened, how could both the Hot Springs ninjas and Konoha have come away empty-handed, especially given that man's eccentric methods?"
"Where is this individual now?" Orochimaru inquired.
"Interested in experimenting on him?" Zetsu laughed. "He's formed a two-man team with Kakuzu. If you're curious, you're welcome to engage them."
Zetsu remained unconcerned. Though the Akatsuki recruited various wanted criminals like Sasori, Deidara, and Kakuzu, they typically operated in pairs with considerable autonomy.
The organization's leader maintained a policy of non-intervention should members come under attack. If they lacked the strength to defend themselves and perished, they were deemed unworthy of membership.
"Perhaps another time," Orochimaru smiled. He studied Zetsu carefully. "You've come to inquire about the progress of 'that plan,' haven't you?"
"Konoha and the Sand Village have only just initiated their joint Chunin Exam this year. The coordination between them remains too rigorous. We should wait a while longer."
The joint Chunin Examination between Konoha and the Sand Village had proceeded relatively smoothly and was now nearing its conclusion.
That evening, in the front yard of the Namikaze residence, Naruto formed a series of hand seals in rapid succession.
"Clone Jutsu!" he called out, his voice determined but hushed.
Pop! Pop!
With a soft sound, a clone with identical appearance to Naruto materialized beside him. The clone maintained its form for several seconds before dissipating with a faint noise.
Naruto wiped the sweat from his brow, then formed the hand seal for the Clone Technique once more.
"Is your brother still practicing?"
Having finished cleaning the kitchen, Kushina approached the entrance. Chiharu was partially hidden behind the door, peering through a narrow opening to observe her brother in the yard.
"Yes," Chiharu confirmed, turning to her mother.
Kushina moved closer and said, "No wonder he's so concerned. He still has a year before facing the graduation exam."
"With my brother's current abilities, he'll absolutely pass the graduation requirements," Chiharu asserted.
Though Naruto's theoretical knowledge and chakra control lagged somewhat behind his classmates, the gap wasn't insurmountable. In taijutsu and shuriken techniques, Naruto consistently ranked among the top students.
"But you know he'll inevitably compete with Sasuke when the time comes," Chiharu added with a helpless sigh.
Even she couldn't reconcile the intense rivalry between Naruto and Sasuke. Both Sasuke and Chiharu regularly achieved perfect scores in all subjects, though Sasuke's shuriken skills were marginally superior. Consequently, he was widely regarded as the top student in their class.
Emotion flickered in Kushina's eyes. Naruto was her and Minato's son. In terms of raw talent, he was no less gifted than Sasuke. However, the Nine-Tails sealed within him made chakra control and ninjutsu far more challenging for him than for ordinary students.
Kushina herself had never excelled at theoretical subjects, so she couldn't assist Naruto in that area. But when it came to ninjutsu, she could certainly offer guidance.
Without hesitation, Kushina opened the door and stepped into the courtyard.
Pop!
The clone that Naruto had struggled to maintain vanished once again after its brief existence.
"Mom," Naruto acknowledged, noticing Kushina's approach.
"Training not going well?" she asked, a slight frown of concern creasing her brow.
"It's fine. It's always like this—I'm used to it. Besides, the Clone Technique is my weakest jutsu," Naruto replied with a broad, forced grin.
"Not good at clones?" Kushina murmured thoughtfully.
She smiled and shook her head. "No, you're my child. The Clone Technique should be the easiest jutsu for you to master."
Naruto was surprised by this unexpected statement. His eyes dimmed slightly as he began, "I'm sorry—"
Before he could complete his apology, Kushina placed her palm on his shoulder, giving him a conspiratorial wink. "Today, Mom will teach you a ninjutsu that you'll definitely learn quickly."
"A ninjutsu?" Naruto responded skeptically. He clearly hadn't even mastered the basic Academy Three techniques.
However, as he voiced his doubt, Kushina took two steps backward and formed a distinctive cross-shaped hand seal.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Poof! Poof! Poof!
The courtyard filled with puffs of smoke accompanied by soft popping sounds. In an instant, Kushina had created dozens of shadow clones surrounding them.
Naruto and Chiharu's eyes widened in astonishment.
"Amazing!" they exclaimed in unison.