Chapter 5: Silent Strike
Mizuki was completely overwhelmed by the icy voice and the surreal reality of his situation.
He had never dreamed this could happen. This scene was beyond anything he had imagined.
The speed Naruto had just displayed shattered his understanding. He was a Chūnin, yet he hadn't even glimpsed Naruto's movement. There had been no chance to react, no opportunity to counter.
And now, held aloft by a single hand clamped around his throat, he found his body locked, his chakra suppressed. He couldn't move, couldn't struggle. It was a power so far beyond his own it was humiliating—like an eagle snatching up a helpless chick.
Panic, cold and sharp, stabbed through Mizuki's heart as he stared into Naruto's indifferent eyes. He wasn't looking at the village idiot anymore. He was looking at Death itself.
This… this is the dead-last? The failure who can't even perform a basic Clone Technique? The boy we watch day and night? The Naruto before him now was alien, terrifying.
"Y-you… who are you?" Mizuki choked out, fighting against the pressure on his windpipe. "How… how can you have this kind of power?!"
"Pathetic," Naruto sneered, the sound devoid of any warmth. "To be so utterly played for a fool."
"Wh-what are you talking about?" Mizuki gasped, genuine confusion mixing with his terror.
Naruto looked at him with something akin to dark amusement. He nodded toward the discarded scroll on the forest floor. "Did you truly believe a man of your… caliber would be privy to the real hiding place of the Scroll of Seals?"
The words sank in slowly. Mizuki's body went stiff in Naruto's grip. His eyes widened in dawning, horrific comprehension. "You… you mean the scroll I got you to take… was a fake?"
Naruto merely offered a contemptuous snort in reply. It seemed Mizuki wasn't completely brainless.
He understood now. He had been outmaneuvered from the very beginning. The Third Hokage had known his intentions. He, Mizuki, had been used as a tool to lead Naruto to a decoy. And worse, Naruto himself had been using him. All this time, he'd thought himself the clever puppet-master. Instead, he'd been the clown, dancing for someone else's amusement.
"It can't be!" Mizuki blurted out, denial warring with the crushing evidence. "I overheard that location! I managed it myself! How could it be a decoy?!"
Naruto didn't waste breath explaining the obvious. He had no interest in a traitor's last-minute revelations.
Seeing the finality settle into Naruto's cold expression, Mizuki's fear surged into a frantic, begging panic. He shook his head as much as the iron grip allowed. "N-no! Let me go! Please! I don't know anything! I won't tell anyone!"
Naruto's eyes narrowed to dangerous slits. His voice dropped to a lethal whisper. "There is one thing I hate more than anything in this world… being called 'Demon Fox.'"
"No, wait—!"
Crack.
The sharp, dry sound cut off Mizuki's plea mid-syllable. The life fled from his eyes, leaving only a frozen mask of terror and utter disbelief. In his final moment, he still couldn't reconcile the image of the helpless failure with the being who had ended his life with such casual, terrifying power.
Dropping the lifeless body, Naruto ensured the Third Hokage's crystal ball hadn't yet focused on this part of the forest. He shouldered the useless fake scroll and, after confirming the area was clear, vanished from the clearing. He would let Iruka "find" him somewhere else.
He had no worries about repercussions for Mizuki's death. No one would suspect him—the weak, talentless outcast. And the village leadership already knew Mizuki was a traitor who had stolen a forgery. His end would be just another footnote in a failed betrayal.
…
A short while later, Iruka did find Naruto, sitting alone under a different tree. The instructor's initial anger at the "theft" quickly turned to shocked understanding as Naruto, playing his part, revealed Mizuki's manipulation.
After reclaiming the scroll and sending a subdued Naruto home, Iruka began searching for his fellow instructor. He found Mizuki's body in the first clearing.
The sight gave him pause. The expression of abject, soul-deep horror frozen on Mizuki's face was unsettling. Iruka stared, a cold prickle running down his spine.
What in the world did he see before he died?
——————————
Returning to his apartment, Naruto pushed the night's events from his mind. He rested, preparing for the performance still to come.
…
The next day, the Ninja Academy gates were a chaotic swirl of people. Anxious students mingled with proud or nervous parents, the air thick with hope and tension. The graduation exam was a pivotal moment, a doorway to their future.
Naruto moved through the crowd like a ghost, his small, solitary figure starkly out of place amidst the family units. He slipped into the classroom without a word.
Most of his classmates were already there, buzzing with nervous energy. Soon, Iruka entered. His eyes, shadowed from the previous night's events, immediately found Naruto's with a mix of concern and pity. With Mizuki gone, another teacher had been hastily assigned as co-proctor.
"The graduation exam will now begin!" Iruka announced, bringing a tense silence to the room. "All candidates will remain seated until called!"
One by one, names were called. Successes were met with relieved smiles; failures with tears or grim acceptance. Finally, the name everyone was waiting for echoed in the room.
"Uchiha Sasuke."
A wave of excited squeals erupted from his fan club. "Sasuke, you can do it!" "We believe in you, Sasuke-kun!"
The other students watched intently, eager to witness the prowess of the acclaimed Uchiha genius.
Sasuke rose with an air of cool confidence. He stepped forward, formed a single cross-shaped seal with his hands, and focused.
Poof. Poof. Poof.
Three perfect, solid clones of Sasuke materialized in the classroom, each one indistinguishable from the original.
The fan club erupted. "I knew it!" "Amazing, Sasuke!"
Iruka examined the clones, nodded in clear approval, and made a mark on his clipboard. "Uchiha Sasuke… passes!"
Another cheer filled the room. Sasuke allowed himself a small, superior smirk as he dispelled the clones. As he turned to walk back to his seat, a few jealous mutters could be heard from some of the boys—"What's the big deal?"—but Sasuke ignored them.
He was almost at his desk when a quiet, almost thoughtful voice murmured from the back corner of the room, so soft it was barely audible, yet it cut through the fading chatter with surprising clarity.
"Only three…"
The classroom fell into a sudden, profound silence. Every head, including Sasuke's, snapped toward the source of the comment.
All eyes landed on Uzumaki Naruto, who blinked, seeming to realize he'd spoken his thought aloud. He looked around at the stares fixed on him, his expression one of mild, feigned surprise.