#41 Divine Reward System

Looking up at the sky, Sasuke and Naruto were momentarily stunned by the sheer magnitude of the massive, multicolored hammer forming above them.

Hidden beneath the earth, the three Amegakure Genin were in complete shock. None of them had expected a mere Genin to wield such an overwhelming ninjutsu.

"Kagari.. what is he trying to do?" Oboro muttered, his voice laced with unease.

Kagari stared at the glowing hammer and murmured, "He's gonna fucking squash all of our clones, can't you fucking see!?"

Before they could process it further, Mubi’s eyes widened as realization struck.

Panic surged through him. "No! RUN!"

But the warning came too late.

Tatsuya had already swung down the [Thor's Hammer].

WHOOSH! The air compressed under its force, sending sharp shockwaves through the atmosphere.

BOOM!

The impact was deafening. A towering cloud of dust and smoke erupted as the hammer obliterated the dozens of chakra clones without mercy.

Debris shot through the air, trees were uprooted, and rocks shattered under the sheer force of the attack. When the dust finally settled, the battlefield had transformed. A massive crater lay where the clones once stood, and within it—three bodies, half-buried in the dirt, lifeless.

Naruto, still trying to process the devastation, finally found his voice. "Tatsuya, that was insane! That was seriously the coolest jutsu I’ve ever seen!"

Tatsuya smirked. "Yeah, I’d say I’m pretty happy with it myself."

Then he turned serious. "Naruto, go check their scrolls."

Naruto hesitated. "But we already have both types of scrolls."

Tatsuya let out an exasperated sigh. "If you weren’t such an idiot, this wouldn’t need explaining! If we leave their scrolls behind, someone else could come along and take them. If they collect both types, that just means more competition in the next round. Do you really want that?"

Naruto’s face lit up with sudden realization. "Ohhh! That makes sense!"

Wasting no time, he searched the bodies and pulled out two scrolls—both (Scrolls of Earth).

"Man, these guys had the worst luck!" Naruto chuckled. "First, they get taken out, and now they had the same scrolls as us. Guess we’ll have to keep waiting for another team."

"Too bad for them," Sasuke said flatly. "Good for us."

With that, their scroll count rose to six—three [Scrolls of Heaven] and three [Scrolls of Earth].

Naruto’s curiosity got the better of him as he inspected the scrolls. "Tatsuya, what do you think is actually inside these scrolls? And why did Anko-sensei tell us not to open them?"

Tatsuya crossed his arms. "There’s something like [hypnotism] in them."

"Hypnotism?" Naruto echoed, raising an eyebrow.

"Mhm," Tatsuya confirmed. "I did some digging before the exam. Last year, some Genin got curious and opened their scrolls. They ended up knocked out cold for five days straight."

Naruto shuddered. "Five days?! Wouldn’t the exam be over by then?"

"Exactly. That’s why it’s part of the elimination rules. If you’re unlucky, you might just become lunch for one of the creatures roaming this place."

Both Naruto and Sasuke inhaled sharply at that thought.

Naruto gulped. "Man… good thing I didn’t open it."

Tatsuya chuckled. "Yeah. Count yourself lucky."

"Alright, let’s move."

"Right!"

Having taken out the three Yunin, their surroundings were clear for now. Just as they were about to leave, an ear-splitting roar echoed through the forest.

"ROOOAR!"

The trio froze.

"That wasn’t human," Sasuke noted, his Sharingan flashing to life.

"It’s either in danger or it’s found prey," Tatsuya mused.

Naruto grinned. "Either way, let’s check it out!"

With that, they sprinted toward the source of the sound.

When they arrived, they found exactly what Tatsuya had suspected—a massive brown bear. But what caught their attention even more was the terrified scream of a red-haired girl with black-rimmed glasses.

"Aaaah!" she shrieked, stumbling backward as the bear lunged toward her.

Tatsuya’s eyes narrowed. 'Uzumaki Karin?' He recognized her immediately.

Karin braced for the worst, shutting her eyes as the bear’s claws came down—

THWACK!

A shadow dropped from the sky, slamming a powerful kick into the bear’s skull.

BOOM!

The massive beast collapsed into the dirt, motionless. Dust swirled in the air as Karin slowly opened her eyes, stunned to find herself still alive.

The one standing atop the defeated beast was none other than Tatsuya.

Her heart pounded. "He… he saved me."

Tatsuya leapt down and approached her. "You alright?"

Karin’s face turned red. "I—I’m fine…"

She quickly averted her gaze, feeling flustered under his stare.

Two more figures landed beside them.

"Whoa!" Naruto gawked at the bear. "That's some big bear!"

Then he turned to Karin. "Hey, what are you doing out here alone? Where’s your team?"

Karin hesitated before giving them a wary look. "You’re not here to steal my scroll, are you?"

Naruto laughed. "Nah, we’re good."

"Huh?"

Naruto proudly held up their collection of six scrolls, making Karin’s jaw drop.

"You guys already have six?!" she gasped. "Most teams struggle to get just one!"

A thought crossed her mind—if they weren’t after scrolls, maybe they were just eliminating competition by keeping them out of others' hands.

Tatsuya, sensing her suspicion, reassured her. "Relax, we don’t need your scroll. We just saw you in trouble and helped. If there’s nothing else, we’re leaving."

Before she could say anything else, the trio turned and walked away, disappearing into the forest.

Karin watched them go, still processing everything. She bit her lip, feeling regretful. "I didn’t even ask his name…"

She sighed, staring at the direction they left.

As for Tatsuya’s team, they encountered no further obstacles and soon reached the [Central Tower].