Chosuke sat up. "Mind explaining how it works?"
Satoru smirked as he looked over his growing web of chakra strings. "I create a perimeter using these strings and use Lightning Style: Conductivity to make them conduct electricity. Then, I use Arashi-ken to charge them up."
Chosuke's eyes narrowed with interest. "So it's just a fence that zaps people?"
Satoru let out a small chuckle. "Not just that. It acts as a battery and an amplifier. If anyone touches it, they get electrocuted. But I can also store lightning chakra in it for later use or boost my attacks by drawing from it."
"How does it work as a battery?"
Instead of answering, Satoru demonstrated. He raised his sword and fired a small lightning bolt at a kunai stuck in the ground. The kunai heated up, charring the attached paper tag. Then, he connected his sword to the fence using a chakra string and did the same attack. This time, the kunai melted on impact, and the ground beneath it was scorched black.
Chosuke's jaw dropped. "That's insane!"
Satoru, clearly pleased, continued storing chakra into the fence. "It's not perfect yet, but it'll do for now. If anyone tries to sneak up on us, we'll know immediately."
Chosuke was still processing what he had just seen. He had never thought of combining jutsu like this before. "Man… you really do think outside the box, huh?"
Satoru smirked. "Gotta stay one step ahead."
Chosuke finally laid down, though his mind was still buzzing with questions. As his eyes grew heavy, he muttered, "Just don't electrocute yourself in your sleep."
Satoru snorted. "No promises."
With that, Chosuke finally drifted off, while Satoru remained awake.
Satoru watched his creation, scanning the intricate web of chakra strings crackling with stored electricity. His mind raced with possibilities—'what other combinations could I craft using my electric fence? Could I integrate it into more advanced techniques or use it as a trap for enemies?'
As he pondered, a strange noise broke his concentration. It was faint, almost masked by the natural sounds of the night, but distinct enough to catch his attention.
His grip tightened on Arashi-ken as he approached the source, moving cautiously. 'Was it an enemy? Another team looking to steal their hard-earned badges?' He lowered his stance, muscles tensed for a fight, but as he neared the fence, his sharp eyes caught sight of something unexpected—a small, struggling creature caught in one of the traps he had set earlier.
Satoru moved closer, recognizing the trapped animal—a young monkey, Its leg was twisted awkwardly in the snare, and it whimpered softly, barely able to move. Satoru glanced around, ensuring no one was using the monkey as a distraction. He cautiously stepped through the perimeter, weaving through the strings without getting shocked, and carefully lifted the monkey into his arms.
The first thing he needed to confirm was whether this monkey was just an animal or someone transformed as a monkey to catch him off-guard. He cast a weak genjutsu, a simple academy-level technique meant to induce minor confusion.
The monkey showed no sign of resistance, which ruled out a transformed enemy, Most animals panicked when injured, thrashing about and making noise. This one was calmly sitting on the floor, eyes darting at Satoru's actions with curiousity.
Frowning, Satoru crouched and examined its wounded leg. His hands glowed faintly as he channeled yang release, the warm chakra causing the monkey to flinch. "Relax," he murmured, offering it a banana from his pouch. The monkey hesitated, then took the fruit, its tiny hands peeling it with surprising dexterity.
As it ate, Satoru finished the healing, carefully adjusting the bone and reducing the swelling. Within moments, the monkey tested its leg, bouncing slightly before chittering in excitement. It seemed thrilled to be able to move freely again. Satoru took it back outside the perimeter, setting it down gently.
But something about this monkey still felt off. Even after being trapped and injured, it showed no fear of him. It had followed his movements carefully, responding more like a trained animal than a wild one. More importantly, it had reacted subtly when Satoru made hand signs earlier.
His gaze followed the direction the monkey scurried off to, and he narrowed his eyes. Someone was watching.
---
Outside the forest of death, the hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen sat on a portable chair as he smoked from his pipe. He had several monkeys sitting beside him as more monkeys kept coming out of the forest.
"Oh! So they are doing that! I remember the day when me and Danzo did that, if only I didn't have these duties all the time. Hiruzen said while taking another puff of smoke, he looked at a monkey who ran towards him and sat on his lap.
Hiruzen looked at the closed wound on the monkey's leg, he inspected it and saw it was healed using medical ninjutsu. "What happened? Did someone hurt you? Hiruzen asked, his curiosity raised as he heard the monkey speak.
"You got struck by an electric fence...and then fell from the tree into a trap?" Hiruzen asked, the monkey nodded and then continued, "he healed you, huh. It's nice to know that people are considerate for animals they unintentionally harm." Hiruzen took another puff as he saw another monkey approach him.
"So how did it go with you? From what it looks like you enjoyed your time in there!" Hiruzen asked as he looked at the monkey, the monkey was stuffed with food, "T-tatsuo did w-WHAT?!" Of all the things he expected from tatsuo, this wasn't one of them.
Hiruzen looked up at the main tower at the center and saw fireworks come out, "The fireworks only begin when someone breaks the world record for completing the exam, Tatsuo, you scheming brat! Hahahaha!" Hiruzen couldn't stop his laughter after seeing what tatsuo had accomplished.
---
Ichi crouched on a thick branch, his sharp eyes locked onto Satoru's camp in the distance. Beside him, his disguised Root operatives—posing as genin—remained still, blending into the night. The glow of Satoru's electric fence flickered faintly, a subtle but effective defense.
Ichi exhaled through his nose. "We attack tomorrow night," he stated.
One of the Root nin frowned. "Why not tonight? We have the numbers and the element of surprise."
Ichi didn't answer immediately. Instead, he gave a small nod, prompting another operative to weave a few hand signs before pressing his palm to the bark. A sensory pulse rippled through the air. The operative's expression darkened.
"They're awake. All three of them. They're patrolling their perimeter in shifts, actively using sensory jutsu."
The first Root nin was taken aback. "What? An hour ago, Satoru was singing while working on his fence. What changed?"
Ichi smirked. "A nin-beast got caught in one of his traps. It made him suspicious. He thinks he's being watched."
The Root nin scowled. "Then isn't that more reason to strike now? If they're already suspicious, we lose the chance to ambush them later."
Ichi's expression didn't change. "You don't understand strategy. Let them stay up. They're wasting time and energy keeping watch. Tomorrow, they'll work through the day while running on exhaustion. By tomorrow night, they'll be weak."
One of the Root nin's hands clenched. "Do we really need to weaken them that much? You doubt our ability?"
Ichi let out a mocking chuckle. "Your ability? You barely qualify as shinobi. You became chunin through non-combat skills. You're fresh out of training. It would be a miracle if you actually won."
The Root nin fell silent, fists tightening at the insult. Ichi turned away, uninterested in their wounded pride.
The Root nin said nothing, but in their minds, they swore—they would win.
---
In the morning, the team sat around their small campfire, eating breakfast in tired silence. As Ichi had predicted, exhaustion was beginning to creep up on them. Their patrols throughout the night had taken a toll, and now, even simple movements felt sluggish.
Chosuke yawned mid-bite, rubbing his eyes. "Hey, Satoru, why did you give that clown food when he was leaving last night?"
Satoru smirked, finishing his bite before answering. "That food contained a certain chemical that causes aggression in carnivorous animals."
Chosuke blinked, his exhaustion temporarily forgotten. "Wait… what?"
"I wanted the clown to eat it so animals would start tracking him. Best-case scenario, he spends the next five days running for his life. Worst-case? He dies. Either way, nobody else can challenge him peacefully to get his badge."
Kaito raised an eyebrow. "But if the clown does die, what's stopping someone from scavenging the badge afterward?"
Satoru casually gestured with his chopsticks. "I said 'carnivorous' animals, didn't I?" He made air quotes before continuing. "They can try, but they'll have to figure out which animal was responsible, then either wait for it to digest and... dispose of the badge, or take a more extreme approach."
Kaito exhaled, shaking his head. "So either way, it's an impossible task."
Satoru grinned. "That was always the plan."
After finishing their meal, they quickly packed up their camp. Just as they were about to leave, Kaito suddenly stopped. He bent down, picking up a small pouch with a folded note attached.
"Satoru, take a look at this."
Satoru took the note and unfolded it. His eyes widened as he read Tatsuo's familiar handwriting.
"I already finished my exam and made it to the tower. Here are some extra badges in case you need them."
Kaito opened the pouch and let out a low whistle. Inside were three badges. One was identical to the one they already had, but the other two were completely different.
Chosuke peered over their shoulders. "Tatsuo's really generous, huh? But… how did he get these?"
Satoru frowned. "No idea." He closed the pouch and tied it to his belt. "But we still need one more."
Chosuke stretched and grinned. "Today's only the second day. We've got time. Why not take it easy?"
Kaito scoffed. "You saw what Satoru did to that clown. Others could pull the same trick. If we wait too long, the last badge might be impossible to find."
Satoru nodded. "Exactly. Let's move."
With that, the team set off into the dense forest, their exhaustion momentarily forgotten as the real hunt began.
Kaito used his sensory jutsu, his eyes narrowing as he focused. After a moment, he turned to Satoru and Chosuke.
"There's a team of genin nearby," he said. "And they've been following us."
Chosuke frowned. "How long?"
Kaito exhaled. "Last two times I used the jutsu, they were still in range. That means at least twenty minutes."
Satoru's mind worked quickly. That long? They weren't just passing by—they were tracking them. He glanced at his teammates. "Act normal. Let me think."
Kaito and Chosuke nodded, pretending to talk about random things while they kept running. Meanwhile, Satoru formulated a plan.
"Both of you, make a shadow clone and get close to me."
Without hesitation, they followed his instructions. As soon as they moved in, Satoru grabbed them, activating his invisibility technique, making the real team disappear into the nearby foliage. Meanwhile, their clones continued onward, acting as bait.
Hidden within the bushes, Chosuke's eyes widened as he spotted their pursuers. "They're Sand shinobi…"
Kaito nodded. "I sensed large objects with them—probably storage compartments for puppets."
Satoru's lips curled into a smirk. "Then we'll use a pincer strategy. We lure them into an enclosed space, then ambush them from both sides."
The team moved stealthily, tracking the Sand shinobi while their clones continued to 'lead' them deeper into the forest.
Forty-five minutes passed. Frustration started brewing among their pursuers.
"The hell is with these guys?" one of them snapped. "They aren't stopping to rest, and they're too damn cautious."
Their leader didn't reply, but tension was clear in his posture. He knew something was off.
But one of his teammates had already lost his patience. "Screw this—I'm going in!"
Without waiting for permission, he bolted ahead toward the shadow clones.
"Tch," the leader clicked his tongue, running after him but keeping some distance.
Satoru saw his opening. He activated Boogie-Woogie, swapping Chosuke's position with the slowest member of the Sand team. Before the girl even realized what had happened, Chosuke struck, his bo staff colliding with her head in a precise, brutal hit. She collapsed instantly.
Meanwhile, Satoru sprinted forward, catching up to the Sand leader just as he was about to assist his hot-headed teammate.
Then, one of the clones turned to smoke.
The leader's eyes widened in realization. "It's a trap—!"
But before he could react, Satoru unleashed the lightning he had built up using Lightning Step. The crackling energy shot straight into the leader's body, paralyzing him long enough for Satoru to close the distance. With a swift kick, the Sand shinobi was knocked unconscious.
The final enemy destroyed the last remaining clone and turned, only to be blindsided by Kaito's sneak attack. He hit the ground hard, out cold.
The battle ended before it even began.