427. Provocation

Upon hearing Shimura Kabuto's plan, even Chino, who was always the most unruly, was momentarily stunned.

"Is Second Brother really this radical?" she wondered.

She looked at Kabuto, who was gently adjusting his glasses, and for a moment, she seemed to see a reflection of their teacher in him.

However, it didn’t take long for excitement to spread across Chino’s face.

"As expected of Second Brother! You actually came up with such a brilliant idea!"

Chino gave Kabuto’s plan a thumbs-up, showing her full support.

Then, the two of them turned their gazes toward Uchiha Itachi, who was standing nearby.

Seeing this, Itachi could only helplessly rub his temples and say, "Although this plan is a bit too flashy, since both of you agree..."

"Let’s make a big scene and show the entire ninja world the strength of Konoha."

By the time he finished speaking, the frustration on Itachi’s face had completely disappeared.

In its place was an overwhelming aura and the innate arrogance of the Uchiha clan!

Without further delay, the three of them, having made their decision, stopped tracking the Iwa-nin team and instead burst forth at top speed toward their destination.

——————

"Is this the chimera created by the research institute?"

On the other side of the Forest of Death, Kimimaro looked at the monstrous creature in front of him and slowly pulled out a blood-soaked bone spike from its body.

The creature was a giant rhinoceros beetle-like monster. Its black exoskeleton made it look like a heavy armored vehicle, and just its appearance alone was enough to exert a tremendous sense of pressure.

However, its body was now covered in a thick layer of frost, firmly freezing it to the ground.

In addition, there was a huge dent on its back, as if it had been struck by some powerful attack. Haku stood nearby, and the frost covering the beetle had spread from his feet.

"These guys are terrifying. I really don’t know what’s going on in the minds of those people at the research institute," Haku murmured softly as he looked at the chimera’s corpse.

Since entering the Forest of Death, this was the third time they had encountered such a monster.

Even though their strength was more than enough to deal with these chimeras, Kimimaro and his team couldn’t help but marvel at them.

If a war were to break out one day and thousands of these giant chimeras suddenly appeared on the battlefield, they wondered how the enemy would react.

Hearing Haku’s statement, Jugo, who was standing nearby, suddenly scratched his head and said, "I heard from Teacher Danzo that the research institute is planning to infuse natural energy into these chimeras next. If that happens, they might become even stronger."

As the source of the "Cursed Seal," Jugo was naturally of great interest to Danzo.

Not long after Jugo arrived in Konoha, Danzo had collected some of his blood and cells for research.

On one hand, Danzo hoped to find a way to control Jugo’s dual personality.

On the other hand, he wanted to replicate Orochimaru’s work from the original timeline and develop a Cursed Seal capable of absorbing natural energy.

Hearing this, Haku gulped.

The current chimeras already possessed the combat strength of a Chunin.

If they were to gain control over natural energy, what kind of monstrous war machines would they become?

"Regardless, the advancement of biotechnology is ultimately more beneficial than harmful to the Land of Fire," Kimimaro said, clapping his hands to signal that his team should get back to their mission.

Just as they were about to move out, a terrifying explosion sounded in the distance.

Following that, they saw a massive column of black smoke rising into the sky, so conspicuous that it could likely be seen from anywhere in the Forest of Death.

Not only that, but within the black smoke, faint traces of fire could be seen swirling, forming a pattern that was unmistakably the symbol of Konoha!

"Is that... Brother Kabuto and Brother Itachi’s signal?" Haku asked, his mouth agape in disbelief.

Although they had agreed before the exam started to use marks or conspicuous methods to signal their locations, wasn’t this method of summoning allies a bit too brazen?

Although he was surprised, Kimimaro seemed to realize something as he looked at the symbol and recalled the constant announcements they had been hearing.

"They’re probably in trouble. Let’s hurry over to support them," Kimimaro said.

Without wasting another moment, Kimimaro’s team set off at full speed toward the direction of the rising black smoke.

As Haku had said, the scale of this man-made black smoke was such that it could be seen from anywhere in the Forest of Death.

Therefore, not only had Kimimaro’s team noticed it, but other teams from across the ninja world had also taken notice.

"What is Konoha planning?" Temari, who was carrying a giant fan on her back, looked at the billowing smoke in the distance with a puzzled expression.

"Maybe they’re provoked by that Iwa-nin kid," an older Suna-nin beside her chuckled lightly.

Temari, being the daughter of the Kazekage, simply glanced at him and didn’t respond.

On the other side, Kumo-nin’s top contenders—Shinkai and Dozei—were also observing the massive fire.

In their eyes, the Konoha team’s blatant exposure of their location was itself a form of disregard and provocation toward the other participants!

And this was something that the hot-tempered Kumo-nin couldn’t tolerate.

"I’ll show those Konoha brats what they’re really made of!" Shinkai, a dark-skinned, muscular youth, was unable to suppress his anger after seeing Konoha’s provocation and was ready to charge straight into a fight with them.

Fortunately, his teammate Dozei managed to calm him down.

Unlike the typical people of the Land of Lightning, Dozei had fair skin.

Her light blue hair, paired with her well-proportioned figure, gave her a unique charm.

At this moment, she calmly analyzed, "Konoha’s provocation this time is definitely aimed at that Iwa-nin kid who eliminated so many Konoha teams."

"Rather than fighting Konoha head-on, it’s better to wait and see how Iwa reacts."

Under Dozei’s persuasion, Shinkai finally calmed down, but he still insisted on heading to the destination to play the role of the "predator waiting to strike."

In fact, Dozei’s analysis wasn’t wrong.

Because as soon as Deidara saw the towering column of smoke with the Konoha symbol flickering within it, he almost couldn’t contain himself.

"Are they trying to lure me over?" he muttered, standing on the back of his white bird as the high-altitude winds blew his golden hair wildly.

"If that’s the case, then I’ll let them experience the true art of explosion!"

After replenishing the clay needed for his jutsu, Deidara lightly licked his lips and revealed a cruel smile. Then, he swiftly steered his white bird toward the destination.