108: Chapter 108 Bloodshed! An Unexpected OutcomeSakura's heart skipped a beat.Looking at Sasuke's apologetic and awkward expression, all the grievances and sadness buried in her heart vanished instantly, replaced by a warm, bittersweet feeling.
She quickly waved her hand, a genuine smile on her face: "Oh.no.it's nothing!Sasuke-kun!I didn't even think about it!"
She thought to herself, 'Isn't Sasuke always like this at school?'
Proud, independent, unwilling to accept help.
Rather, it's precisely this awkward yet earnest Sasuke who's most handsome!
Then, Sasuke paused, seemingly engaged in a more intense internal struggle.
He gritted his teeth, and finally, with an extremely stiff voice, as if squeezed out from between his teeth, he spoke with difficulty:
"Then.could you.tell me.again the techniques for climbing trees?"
"That would be great!"
Sakura immediately responded excitedly, her eyes sparkling as if she had been given a sacred mission.
She tried to calm herself down and carefully recalled Kakashi's teachings and her own insights:
"Gibberish."
That's about it!
Upon hearing Sakura's words, Sasuke was stunned, a flash of understanding crossing his eyes.
"Don't be too tense.don't push yourself too hard."
He repeated it in a low voice, as if he had grasped something crucial, "I see.I see!"
He had been too tense and exerted too much force, which caused his mental energy to fluctuate violently, leading to his chakra going out of control!
He raised his head and looked at Sakura again.The confusion and gloom in his dark eyes were gone, replaced by a clear gratitude and determination.
"Thank you, Sakura."
"No.it's nothing!"
Sakura scratched the back of her head sheepishly, a genuine smile spreading across her face."We're partners!Helping each other is only right!"
"partner..."
Sasuke chewed on the word again, and this time, it no longer seemed to instinctively repel him as it had before.
He forced a smile, giving Sakura a stiff but incredibly sincere one.
Seeing Sasuke smile at her, Sakura's heart exploded with joy:
"Fantastic!I knew it!Being in the right place at the right time gives you an advantage!Now let's see what that 'boar-nosed' Ino has to say!"
I'm the one closest to Sasuke!
Sakura was basking in what she perceived as an ambiguous atmosphere, her heart pounding.She was just about to muster her courage and, while the iron was hot, strike a chord with someone more "in-depth".
For example, "Sasuke-kun, are you hungry?Let me get you something to eat."
Sasuke suddenly frowned, as if he had remembered something important, and abruptly asked:
"By the way, Sakura, where's Naruto?Didn't he come back with you?Where did he go?"
Sakura: "."
The fireworks that had just bloomed in her heart were instantly extinguished by a bucket of ice water; her smile froze on her face, and a silent, indignant roar erupted from within:
'You're ruining the atmosphere, Sasuke-kun!You big blockhead!'
However, faced with Sasuke's purely questioning gaze, Sakura could only suppress the grief and indignation in her heart and force out an extremely "bright" but insincere smile:
"Naruto.Naruto.him?"
Hehe.he must have gone somewhere to have fun, right?
That idiot is always causing trouble!Never mind him!Let's continue our conversation." She tried to steer the conversation back on track.
To everyone's surprise, Sasuke shook his head with a serious expression and said righteously:
"No!Naruto is our comrade too!"
Although he can be.well.impulsive sometimes, it's too dangerous to leave him out alone!We should go find him!
After saying that, Sasuke turned around and walked out of the house before Sakura could react, as if he was ready to set off immediately to find Naruto.
Sakura watched Sasuke's resolute and selfless back as his "brilliant" smile completely vanished, replaced by a heart-wrenching lament, leaving her utterly speechless with despair.
'Naruto, you idiot!Why did you have to disappear at a time like this?'
Driven by Sasuke's unquestionable sense of "comradeship," Sakura, filled with sorrow and a hint of worry that Naruto might really disappear, followed Sasuke into the forest behind the mountain shrouded in the night mist.
They hadn't gone far when an overwhelming, pungent smell of blood assaulted their nostrils, mingled with the stench of wild animals and the dampness of the forest.
"not good!"
Sasuke's expression changed drastically, his eyes instantly sharpening like an eagle's!He immediately thought of the worst-case scenario—Naruto had been attacked by Gato's men, or.even worse!
He suddenly accelerated, rushing towards the direction with the strongest smell of blood!
Sakura instantly banished all distracting thoughts and nervously followed Sasuke, instinctively pulling out a kunai.
The two pushed aside the dense bushes, and the sudden open view before them completely stunned them!
The expected brutal battle scene did not materialize.
What came into view was a mountain of wild animal carcasses piled up in a small clearing in the forest!
Wild boars, deer, badgers, rabbits.and even a few rather large fish were left aside.
The ground was soaked with blood, which emitted a strong odor.
Around the prey, dozens of Naruto's shadow clones were busy—some were cleaning the area, some were tidying up and binding the prey, and a few were vigilantly patrolling the surroundings.
"Naruto?" Sakura exclaimed in surprise.
Naruto, who was directing his shadow clones, heard the sound and turned around.
His face was covered in mud and blood, his clothes were torn in several places, and his forehead was covered in sweat, but his blue eyes lit up when he saw Sasuke and Sakura, with a hint of surprise in them:
"Eh""Sasuke?Sakura?How did you two find your way here?"
Sasuke strode up to Naruto, his eyes wide with astonishment at the bloody and spectacular scene before him.
"You.did you get all of this?What are you doing with so much prey?" He simply couldn't understand Naruto's unusual behavior.
Upon hearing this, Naruto scratched the back of his head somewhat embarrassedly, his face showing a mixture of excitement and seriousness.
He quickly described to Sasuke the scene he had witnessed in town that afternoon: emaciated children begging numbly for food, desperate adults, Uncle Tazuna's account of Gato's atrocities.and the look in the eyes of the little boy who reached out to Sakura for food.
"So.I thought."
Naruto pointed at the mountain of wild beast corpses, "Since the people in town have nothing to eat, and there are so many wild beasts in the forest, why don't I get some to take back and share with everyone?At least.at least the children can have a full meal!"
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