Naruto: Different Path

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Since he had already been discovered, Naruto didn't waste any words. 

He launched a barrage of shuriken toward Orochimaru, quickly forming hand seals to summon over a hundred shadow clones, each throwing even more shuriken. 

However, Orochimaru easily dodged the attacks and summoned a giant snake. 

The sheer size of the snake made Sasuke tremble, and Sakura nearly fainted at the sight. 

Even Naruto, seeing it for the first time, was awed by Orochimaru's powerful summoning.

Naruto formed hand seals again, combining with his shadow clones to perform the Wind and Fire Combo Jutsu. 

A massive blast of flames sped toward Orochimaru, the scale and power of the technique exceeding even Orochimaru's expectations. 

As he retreated rapidly, shock filled his eyes, and he thought, "I never imagined Konoha would produce such a genius." 

"He might even surpass Itachi from back then. This level of jutsu is far beyond what ordinary Jonin can do." 

"Looks like there's more to gain here than just Sasuke."

Although taken off guard, Orochimaru, a genius known as one of the legendary Sannin, quickly summoned the Rashomon gate to block Naruto's overwhelming attack. 

The giant snake, meanwhile, vanished in the flames, likely retreating to the summoning realm at that very moment. 

Orochimaru habitually licked his face with his long tongue and sneered, "I didn't expect there to be a somewhat capable genin among you."

"Things are getting interesting." With that, Orochimaru suddenly disappeared. 

Naruto immediately activated his chakra when he vanished, summoning his Lightning Style: Raijin Armor. 

Lightning chakra quickly enveloped Naruto's body and head. 

In the next instant, a kunai was within ten centimetres of Naruto, forcing him to retreat while barely deflecting it. 

Despite his best efforts, the force behind the kunai increased Naruto's backward momentum. 

After several exchanges, Naruto was struggling to keep up.

Orochimaru unleashed a powerful kick, cloaked in chakra, aimed directly at Naruto. 

Unable to dodge in time, Naruto was struck in the abdomen. 

Despite his Raijin Armor providing some protection, the force of the blow sent Naruto flying nearly thirty feet and left him with internal injuries. 

On the other hand, Orochimaru only suffered minor damage to his foot, which didn't affect his mobility much. 

Even so, Orochimaru found this remarkable, realizing that he had underestimated Naruto's strength.

Orochimaru examined his foot and remarked, "So, it seems you've mastered both shape and nature transformations." 

"Though it's not perfect, I should be more cautious." He then charged at Naruto again, this time drawing his Kusanagi Sword. 

Seeing this, Naruto panicked internally, thinking, "There's no way I can block the Kusanagi Sword, even with the Raijin Armor. Our power gap is too great."

As Orochimaru advanced, Naruto desperately summoned more shadow clones to stall him, but none could land a single hit. 

Realizing the situation, Naruto quickly marked the ground, preparing to escape using the Flying Thunder God technique. 

Orochimaru dispatched the clones and charged at Naruto's real body at high speed. 

Naruto swiftly formed hand seals, unleashing Lightning Style: Thunder Step, combining it with his clones to hit Orochimaru with a lightning attack, followed by the Wind and Fire Combo Jutsu.

As the powerful jutsu ended, the smoke cleared to reveal that Orochimaru had used a Substitution Jutsu with an earth clone. 

Sensing danger, Naruto immediately used the Substitution Jutsl, narrowly avoiding Orochimaru's Kusanagi Sword, which sliced through the wooden substitute. 

Orochimaru then closed in again. Naruto barely dodged the sword but was struck by Orochimaru's kick, sending him tumbling into the bushes. 

Seizing the opportunity, Naruto quickly used the Flying Thunder God technique to teleport back home.

Once home, Naruto reflected on Orochimaru's terrifying power and realized his inadequate abilities. 

Although he hadn't suffered any major external injuries, the relentless attacks from Orochimaru had left him with significant internal damage. 

Drained from the battle, Naruto collapsed onto his bed to rest. 

Thanks to his unique chakra and the healing properties of the Nine-Tails, his internal injuries began to heal rapidly, though he would still need some time to recover.

Meanwhile, Orochimaru noticed that Naruto's presence had vanished after he fell into the bushes. 

When he rushed over, Naruto was nowhere to be found. 

Orochimaru smirked and thought, "So he managed to escape from me?It's impressivee for a kid. But no matter, my main goal is still the Uchiha."

At this time, Sasuke and Sakura believed that Orochimaru had killed Naruto. 

Sakura cried out in shock, tears streaming down her face before she fainted. 

Sasuke, though devastated, felt a growing brotherly bond with Naruto, and his sorrow fueled his anger. 

As he turned to face Orochimaru, he overcame his fear and felt only the burning desire to tear Orochimaru apart.

Activating his Sharingan, Sasuke recklessly charged at Orochimaru. 

With the Sharingan, he could track Orochimaru's movements and respond accordingly. Inspired by Naruto's bravery, Sasuke unleashed fire-style jutsu and enhanced his taijutsu far beyond his usual capabilities. 

However, to Orochimaru, these efforts were like a child playing games, ultimately ineffective.

Sakura, watching helplessly, realized how powerless she was and deeply felt her lack of strength. 

Fortunately for them, Orochimaru had only come to test Sasuke's abilities. If he had been serious, their lives would have been forfeit. 

After a brief struggle, Orochimaru bit Sasuke on the neck, implanting the Heavenly Curse Mark. 

The mark immediately rendered Sasuke unconscious, and a satisfied Orochimaru left the scene.

In the aftermath, with no other options, Sakura carried Sasuke to a nearby cave, setting up a simple trap at the entrance for protection. 

After some recovery, Naruto's injuries healed enough for him to use the Flying Thunder God technique to return to the original battlefield. 

He quickly traced the trail left by Sasuke and Sakura and found them not too far away.

At this moment, the scene was lively, with Sakura and Sasuke present and the Sound Ninja Trio, Lee, Neji, Tenten, Shikamaru, Choji, Ino, and others. 

Sakura appeared to be injured, and her hair had been cut shorter. 

Naruto arrived just in time to witness Sasuke using the power of the Curse Mark to fight the Sound Ninja Trio. 

The Curse Mark had indeed increased Sasuke's strength, but that power came with risks. 

With just one move, Sasuke took down one of the Sound Ninjas. 

Shocked by such powerful and sinister energy, Sakura intervened in time to stop Sasuke from continuing his killing spree, or else the Sound Ninja Trio would have been completely wiped out. 

Defeated and scared, the trio left behind the Earth Scroll and retreated with their wounded comrades.

Seeing the moment was right, Naruto jumped out from behind a tree and called, "Sakura, Sasuke, are you okay?" 

Upon seeing Naruto, both Sakura and Sasuke were overjoyed. They shouted in unison, "Naruto, you're alive! That's great!" 

Sakura ran over and hugged Naruto tightly, tears streaming down her face. "I'm so glad you're alive, Naruto! I thought that monster had killed you."

Naruto gently touched Sakura's now-shortened hair, feeling guilty that someone like her had to suffer. 

But the ninja world, especially in Konoha, was where only the strong survived, and such hardships were inevitable for everyone's growth. 

All he could do was offer her some comforting words. 

After exchanging gratitude, the Konoha ninjas went their separate ways to find their opponents and complete the exam. 

Since both Sasuke and Sakura were injured and needed time to recover, they had to delay their journey for two more days.

In truth, the main reason for the delay was that Naruto didn't want to rush to the tower too quickly. 

His relationship with Sakura was developing nicely, and he didn't want to waste this precious time.

During these two days, Naruto and Sakura gathered food, cooked, and even slept close to each other, whether intentionally or not. 

In modern terms, it was almost like a romantic camping trip. 

After two days, Sasuke and Sakura had mostly recovered, and they were ready to continue heading toward the tower to complete the exam. 

Normally, a team with both scrolls should be cautious and move stealthily toward the tower, but Naruto had no interest in sneaking around in front of Sakura.

Instead, they boldly formed a straight line with Naruto in the lead, Sakura in the middle, and Sasuke at the rear, marching confidently toward the tower. 

Along the way, they even talked loudly. As expected, a group of reckless ninjas appeared when they got closer to the tower. 

Naruto activated his Raijin Armor with lightning-fast speed and instantly took down two of them. 

He let the third one go so they could spread the word to the other ninjas in their village, saving him the trouble of more battles.

But not long after, they encountered a group of Rain Ninjas who tried to use a clone technique. 

To Naruto, it was nothing more than child's play. He easily wiped them out with a large-scale combination jutsu. 

Against such overwhelming power, their tricks were useless. 

The sheer strength of Naruto's jutsu was felt by all the surrounding enemies, and even a few hidden teams witnessed it firsthand. 

His intimidating presence was on par with Gaara's.

After dealing with these enemies, no one else dared to challenge them. 

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura strutted into the tower with Sakura holding onto Naruto's arm. 

Seeing Naruto's strength, Sasuke felt an even stronger desire for power. 

They opened the Heaven and Earth Scrolls inside the tower, and Iruka appeared to announce that they had successfully passed the exam. 

But that wasn't all—there would be a third round of the exam. Unlike the previous rounds, this one would have many spectators, including dignitaries and the Hokage. 

It would be a one-on-one tournament, showcasing the true strength of the participants.

Most of the ninjas were eager for this challenge, though many couldn't help but glance at Naruto, the opponent they most wanted to avoid. 

As the random matchups appeared on the screen, the first match was between Sasuke, who was not in his best condition. 

Fortunately, by mimicking Lee's taijutsu, he managed to pull off a victory with the Lion Combo. 

The matches continued one after another, but Naruto wasn't too interested in most of them. 

The strange Gaara and the highly intelligent Shikamaru were the only opponents worth attention.

Gaara's opponent was the hardworking Rock Lee. Lee's taijutsu gave Gaara a tough time, but the gap in their strength meant that Lee couldn't win. 

Even after opening five of the Eight Gates, Lee only managed to injure Gaara while severely wounding himself in the process. 

Although Naruto believed hard work was effective, he acknowledged that geniuses existed. 

No matter how hard you worked, strength was strength. If Lee could open the sixth gate, Gaara might have been the one to lose.

On the other hand, Shikamaru didn't have a particularly powerful ninjutsu or a large chakra reserve, but his intelligence gave him a significant edge. 

Through precise calculations and flawless strategies, he could defeat even stronger opponents.

Naruto's opponent in the third exam was Kiba, a fellow Konoha ninja. Knowing how powerful Naruto was, Kiba couldn't help but curse his bad luck. 

However, Kiba wasn't one to give up easily. Aware of Naruto's strength, Kiba immediately used his strongest technique, Fang Over Fang, a high-speed spinning taijutsu attack. 

This technique wasn't bad—it spun at high speeds, making it difficult for enemies to evade, and Kiba could use his enhanced sense of smell to track his target's location. 

If only the attack were stronger, it would be perfect. 

As Kiba and Akamaru spun toward Naruto, Naruto quickly gathered lightning chakra in his hands, combining shape transformation with nature transformation and aimed at their heads. 

As Kiba approached Naruto, he sensed danger and swiftly changed direction, attacking Naruto's back instead.

Naruto smiled slightly, impressed that Kiba could change direction so nimbly. But the moment Kiba's attack landed on Naruto, something felt off...

In that instant, Naruto activated the Raijin Armor. 

The powerful lightning blocked Kiba and Akamaru's combined attack and shocked them. 

Naruto quickly increased his chakra flow, and the strong lightning immediately turned Kiba and Akamaru charred black, their hair standing on end. 

They were nearly knocked out, completely losing their ability to continue fighting. 

Throughout the entire battle, Naruto didn't move a single step. With just one move, he defeated his opponent, leaving the other ninja in the stands in deep fear and awe.

Kiba couldn't believe it. The gap in their strength was far more significant than he had imagined. 

If Kiba had known Naruto's true power, he might have been even more shocked. 

Although the battle ended instantly, the crowd in the stands erupted in exclamations of surprise. Even many of the Jonin were left astonished. 

The Jutsu Naruto used was one that even many elite Jonin found difficult to master.

Meanwhile, Danzo's Root, observing from the shadows, quickly reported this crucial information back to Danzo. 

Upon receiving the news, Danzo immediately began to take Naruto more seriously. 

Even though Naruto was the Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails, such innate talent was rare, making him a true genius.

The following matches, naturally, didn't have the same excitement, but the other ninjas, inspired by Naruto, were determined to give it their all and showcase their strongest techniques. 

After all, no one wanted to be labelled as the eternal underdog. 

However, the differences in strength were inevitable, and as the matches progressed, those who were meant to be eliminated were, and the remaining qualified ninjas moved on to the next round of the tournament.

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