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Naruto: The Art of Deception 07
🕑 Added 2025-03-04 11:58:25 +0000 UTCChapter 07: Silent Trail
A week had passed since the fight with Kakashi.
Naruto now stood in the Hokage’s office, summoned without explanation.
Tsunade didn’t waste time.
“You’re going on a solo mission.”
She slid a scroll across the desk. Naruto took it without a word.
“Team Asuma was ambushed near the Land of Rivers. Shikamaru, Chōji, and Asuma were taken. Ino got away and sent for help.”
She leaned back in her chair, watching him.
“We don’t know who’s behind it yet. Ino has the details.”
Naruto tucked the scroll into his belt.
Tsunade exhaled. “Head out immediately. Don’t get caught.”
Naruto ran.
Not at full speed, that would burn too much energy. He kept a steady pace, breath even, feet landing light against the branches.
The Land of Rivers wasn’t far. A three-day trip if he moved carefully. He planned to be there in two.
The air smelled different the farther he got from Konoha. Less smoke, more water. The rivers running through the valley below stretched out like veins, twisting through the land. Good for tracking. Bad for covering your own tracks.
According to the scroll Baa-chan gave him, Ino was holed up in a cave near the village. She had covered her tracks well, but her supplies were running low. If he didn’t get there soon, that would be a problem.
Naruto had already gone through the scroll twice, memorizing every key detail. Routes, terrain, enemy patrol patterns anything Tsunade’s intel team managed to gather. But intel only got you so far. The rest, you had to see for yourself.
The sun had shifted, dipping lower in the sky. Late afternoon. He adjusted his course, keeping to the shadows where the light wouldn’t catch him. The cave wasn’t far.
Now he just had to find it.
Naruto slowed as he neared the outskirts of the village. Smoke from cooking fires drifted through the trees, mixing with the scent of damp earth. He could hear voices two, maybe three coming from the clearing up ahead.
Naruto crouched low, hidden in the thick underbrush near the outskirts of the village. The voices carried through the trees three men, standing near a supply cart, speaking in low, casual tones.
He stilled, focusing. Listening.
“…can’t believe they’re actually going through with it during the festival.”
The second man snorted. “Best time to do it. No one’s paying attention. Too many people coming in and out.”
“Yeah, but it’s risky,” the first argued. “If something goes wrong..”
“It won’t,” the third cut in, voice sharper. Authority. A higher rank, maybe. “The boss planned this for months. The festival is just a distraction.”
The first man hesitated. “Still don’t like it. Feels… off.”
A short silence. Then the second man chuckled. “You’re thinking too much. All we gotta do is hold our post, make sure nothing slips through.”
The third man clicked his tongue. “That includes whoever got away.”
“Think she made it to Konoha?”
“Doesn’t matter,” the leader said. “Even if she did, by the time anyone gets here, it’ll be too late.”
A dry laugh. “Wonder what they’ll do with the prisoners after?”
The first man hesitated again. “You think they’ll..”
Then, his head lifted. Eyes narrowing.
Naruto didn’t move. Not yet.
“…wait,” the man muttered, voice shifting. “Did you hear that?”
The other two turned, scanning the trees.
Naruto exhaled silently. Tch.
No choice now. He moved. Fast.
The katana whispered free from its sheath.
A blur of motion. Naruto crossed the distance in a heartbeat. The first man barely had time to register the flash of steel before the blade sliced clean through his neck. A single, perfect cut.
Before his body even hit the ground, Naruto was already on the second.
The man staggered back, hands fumbling for a weapon. Too slow. Naruto’s katana slid across his chest, opening him from shoulder to ribs in one smooth arc. Blood sprayed, and he collapsed in a gasping heap.
The third was fast. He jumped back, hands flying into a seal..
Naruto jumped forward, grabbing his wrist before the jutsu could form. He twisted hard, pulling the man off balance, and in the same motion drove the katana straight through his gut.
The shinobi gasped. Eyes wide.
Naruto yanked the blade free. The man crumpled.
Naruto stood still for a second, katana dripping red. Then, with a flick of his wrist, he sent the blood flying off the blade before sliding it back into the sheath.
The festival. A distraction for something bigger.
But what?
He turned back to the bodies.
Three shinobi. Not high-ranked, but not amateurs either. Their gear was practical. light armor, reinforced gloves, standard kunai and short blades. No village headbands. They weren’t official forces. Mercenaries.
He crouched, checking the first one. No identifying tattoos, no clan markings. Just worn leathers and blood-stained wrappings. A pouch strapped to his hip.
Naruto opened it. Rations, a small vial of something dark. Poison, most likely and a folded scrap of paper.
Unfolding it, his eyes scanned the rough handwriting.
“Festival starts at sundown. No interference. Orders stand.”
No names. No signatures.
Naruto moved to the second body. A more reinforced vest. His pockets carried the usual, smoke bombs, wire, extra kunai but tucked into his belt was a carved wooden token, worn smooth from handling.
A symbol etched into the surface.
A wolf.
Naruto frowned slightly. Clan insignia? Or something else? He pocketed it.
The third man had nothing but standard weapons and a coin pouch. No documents, no maps, no extra clues.
Naruto stood, scanning the small camp.
A supply cart. Not heavily loaded. Just food, water, and some crates. Not a full supply shipment. More like a forward post.
A worn-out blanket was draped over a few logs, forming a makeshift resting area.
They had been here for a while. But not long enough to settle in.
Naruto looked at the scrap of paper.
No interference. Orders stand.
Something was happening tonight.
Naruto exhaled through his nose, folding the note and tucking it away before stepping back into the trees. Looks like he arrived just in time.
The scroll said Ino was in a cave near the village, but locations were never exact. A map gave you general direction. Experience told you where to look.
First, the terrain.
The Land of Rivers was full of cliffs, caves, and dense undergrowth. Too many places to hide. If Ino was smart and she was, she wouldn’t pick a cave that was too deep. Too many unknowns. No clear exit.
That meant a shallow cave, near water but not too close to it. Somewhere with good sightlines. Somewhere that let her see threats coming before they saw her.
Second, the tracks.
Naruto crouched, fingers brushing against the dirt. No fresh footprints. Good. She was covering herself well. But nobody moved without leaving a trace.
He examined the nearby bushes the leaves on one side were dusted with faint specks of dried mud. Wind wouldn’t do that.
She passed through here.
He moved forward, checking the tree bark next. Scratches small ones, almost invisible. A kunai had grazed it. Not an accident. A marker.
Ino was leaving signs. Subtle ones, meant for someone who knew how to look.
Smart.
Naruto followed the faint trail, moving fast but careful not to disturb anything. The signs led him higher toward the ridgeline, where the caves were. Good choice.
A footprint half-covered, like she had doubled back to erase it. Slightly deeper in the front. She’d been carrying something heavy. Supplies? Or was she injured?
Hmmm.. Naruto exhaled, deep in thought.
He lowered his eyes, scanning the ridge and then he saw it.
A scratch against the bark of a nearby tree. Three vertical lines. Almost invisible unless you knew what to look for.
An arrow, faintly carved into the wood, pointing left-east.
Konoha standard.
He moved instantly. His body shot forward, a burst of motion so sharp it barely rustled the leaves behind him. The forest blurred past him, feet barely touching the ground as he cut through the terrain.
Two minutes. That’s all it took.
The cave entrance was hidden perfectly against the rock face, vines draping over the opening like nature itself was trying to conceal it. He stepped inside.
She was pressed against the far wall, knees drawn up, kunai gripped tightly in her trembling hand. Her whole body was shaking, shoulders heaving with uneven breaths. Her eyes wide, unfocused locked onto the cave entrance. Naruto took a step forward.
“Ino.”
Her eyes snapped to him. For a split second, her body stayed tense, frozen in the instinct to fight, to survive. Recognition settled in and her shoulders slumped. The breath she had been holding finally escaped.
The kunai slipped from her fingers, clattering softly against the stone floor. Her hands, empty now, curled weakly against her lap.
She exhaled slowly, eyes fluttering shut for just a moment, just letting herself breathe.
Then, quietly, she whispered, “…Thank you.”
