"Seriously, this forest is insane. What's with all these beasts and poisonous bugs? They're so annoying!"
Sakura complained as we walked into the tower.
On the way, several beasts attacked them, but Sasuke and Naruto took care of them all.
"What are we supposed to do for five whole days?" Sasuke asked lazily.
None of them liked the idea of spending five full days there, just waiting for the second test to end.
"Sleep?" Naruto asked.
He was already lying on the floor, eyes closed.
"I'm exhausted too." Karin decided to join and sat down beside him.
Sakura and Sasuke sighed and shook their heads at the same time.
"We're not safe yet. We'll have to go out now and then to find food." Sasuke had to resist the urge to kick Naruto.
"No need. I've got food sealed in a scroll."
Sakura's eyes lit up.
"Really? That's awesome! As long as we don't go outside, we'll be safe. Fighting's not allowed in here."
Even so, Sasuke still frowned.
"You... only brought instant ramen, didn't you?"
Naruto opened one eye and looked at Sasuke with a small smile.
"You're joking, right, Naruto?" Sakura asked, hoping he was.
No one wanted to eat instant ramen for five days straight.
Well... except Naruto, of course.
"Well, I brought some jerky too." Naruto dug into his pocket and pulled out two strips of dried meat, swallowing them in one bite. "Nope, now it's just ramen."
Sakura groaned and sat down, leaning against the wall. "You're an idiot..." she muttered.
"Ramen...? What's that?" Karin, still trying to get comfortable, asked, confused.
Sakura and Sasuke both went pale.
"You shouldn't have said that!" Sakura exclaimed.
Karin looked at her, confused.
Naruto's eyes snapped open. For a second, he was completely still, as if he couldn't process what he'd just heard. Then, he sat halfway up, furious, pointing a trembling finger at Karin.
"W-what did you say?! What is that, you said?! WHAT DO YOU MEAN WHAT IS THAT?!"
Naruto jumped to his feet, frowning, with a mix of horror and pity on his face.
"How can you live with yourself not knowing what ramen is?! Ramen is life! It's the sacred food of the gods of empty stomachs! A culinary masterpiece served in bowls filled with love, noodles, and glory!"
He started pacing in circles, talking faster and faster, hands flailing like he was preaching.
"The noodles—long and firm, with the perfect texture only time and skill can craft! And the broth! Oh, the broth, for the love of all that is good in this world! Pork, chicken, miso, soy... each one with such deep flavor it makes you question your life choices! And don't forget the toppings! The naruto—yes, that pink spiral fishcake with my name!—the soft-boiled egg, seaweed, fresh green onion... Ahhh!"
Naruto clutched his chest like he'd just remembered a lost love.
"And the sacred moment when you take that first bite! When your whole body warms up and you feel like you could conquer the world... That's the power of ramen! That's my fuel, my religion, my very essence!"
He turned to Karin with an intensity that made it hard to believe he was just talking about food.
"Karin... when we finish the second part of the Chūnin Exams, in five days, I'm taking you to eat real ramen. Not just any ramen. The best in all of Konoha. Believe it."
"Yes! I want to try it!"
Inside, Karin was genuinely surprised. Not by the promise itself, but by what she had just witnessed in Naruto. This wasn't just food to him. It was something deeper. A part of who he was.
Naruto loved ramen with all his heart! And if it meant that much to him... then she wanted to learn to love it too.
"Can something really mean that much...? Is there really a food that makes you talk like that? Now I want ramen too..."
Karin couldn't wait to try the real ramen Naruto had described.
Naruto beamed, finally calming down a bit, though he still looked visibly excited.
"But in the meantime..."
Naruto pulled a small scroll from his bag and unrolled it with practiced ease. With a small puff of smoke, a sealed instant ramen appeared.
"Emergency Ramen version: activated!"
Naruto showed Karin how to prepare it with hot water while making one for himself and shared it with her.
They sat down to eat on the floor.
Karin took the first bite… and her eyes shot open.
"What is this!? It's amazing!"
She finished her portion in record time and jumped up with the empty plastic bowl in her hands.
"How can something so perfect exist?! It's divine food! And this isn't even the 'real' one and it's already better than anything I've ever eaten!"
Sasuke and Sakura, who had been watching everything silently, exchanged a resigned look.
They both had the same thought.
"They're definitely related."
[Kushina Uzumaki: Karin-chan is right! Ramen is divine food! Especially Teuchi-san's ramen!]
[Mito Uzumaki: I've never had ramen from this Teuchi, but I remember always dragging Hashirama to get ramen. Such a glorious experience. Like you said, Kushina, truly divine food. Fufu~]
[Hashirama Senju: I prefer ribs with barbecue sauce!]
[Kushina Uzumaki: No one asked you!]
[Mito Uzumaki: No one asked you!]
[Madara Uchiha: I like roast chicken.]
[Mito Uzumaki: Say ramen is better or I'll pay you a visit in your sleep and smother you with your pillow! Don't tempt me... You too, Hashirama!]
[Madara Uchiha: ...]
[Hashirama Senju: R-ramen i-is better...]
[Madara Uchiha: R-ramen i-is better...]
[Mito Uzumaki: Mhph.]
[Kushina Uzumaki: Granny Mito is scary...]
Naruto, still smiling after gaining a new follower of the Ramen Faith, was left stunned upon seeing that Mito held complete control over the two most powerful men in the Ninja World.
...
"By the way, what should I do with this...?" Naruto held up another Heaven Scroll.
It was the scroll from Karin's team.
"You have another Heaven Scroll?" Sakura asked, surprised.
Sasuke frowned. "How many people did you fight in the half hour you were gone?"
"A bunch of bastards I wouldn't even call human," Naruto answered coldly.
Karin's teammates were scum. Just insects Naruto refused to recognize as his own kind.
Karin lowered her head at the memory and touched the place where she had been bitten last.
"We should burn it. One less Heaven Scroll means one less team in the next test."
Sasuke immediately suggested.
As expected. Naruto had already figured Sasuke would say that.
The fewer teams left, the fewer enemies in the future.
Naruto didn't hesitate. Seeing everyone agreed, he burned the scroll.
"I've been wondering... what happened to Karin-chan's teammates?"
Karin didn't know—and didn't want to know.
They were probably looking for her, to retrieve their healing tool and the scroll.
"I killed them."
At Naruto's words, Karin looked up at him in surprise.
"What?! Why?!" Sakura jumped up, shocked.
Sakura felt upset. She had become friends with Karin over the past few hours.
She couldn't believe Naruto had taken her teammates' lives.
Karin quickly jumped in to defend him.
"T-they weren't good people. Naruto didn't do anything wrong..." she tried to calm Sakura, who looked at her sadly and finally nodded.
Both Sakura and Sasuke had noticed the marks on Karin's arms.
Seeing their looks, Karin realized they were staring at the bite marks on her body.
She didn't want to talk about it, so she looked at Naruto, silently asking him to explain.
Naruto met her gaze with sadness and nodded.
"Just like me, Karin possesses what's known as the Healing Bite. It's a unique ability of the Uzumaki Clan," he explained seriously. "This technique only manifests in certain Uzumaki, those with highly concentrated chakra full of vitality. It's the result of massive life energy."
He paused, glancing sideways at Karin before continuing.
"The Healing Bite lets you heal severe injuries... even save someone on the brink of death. In Kusagakure, they forced her to use it constantly to heal the wounded. Day after day. With no rest."
Sakura looked at Karin with sympathy and hugged her tightly.
"That's awful..." she said, patting her back.
Karin accepted the hug and returned it.
It felt good to have someone care.
"But that won't happen anymore. Karin's staying with me in Konoha."
Sasuke stayed quiet, staring at Naruto.
More than anyone, Sasuke knew how complicated that would be.
Karin hadn't come alone. She came with a Jōnin-sensei.
And while Sasuke knew Naruto was more than capable of handling a Jōnin, if that ninja died in Konoha, it could start a war with Kusagakure.
He didn't say it aloud. He knew Naruto was aware of that too.
What he didn't know... was that Naruto was ready to wipe Kusagakure and the Land of Grass off the map if it came to that.
After a while, once everyone had rested enough, they decided to open both scrolls.
The Heaven and Earth Scrolls were unrolled, and in a cloud of smoke, Iruka appeared, visibly surprised. Wasting no time, he congratulated them for passing the second test.
At first, Iruka thought they'd opened the scrolls too early, but he soon realized they had already cleared the challenge.
A record-breaking time! The previous record was 92 hours, but Kakashi's Team 7 had completed it in just five!
Finally, Iruka understood what Kakashi meant when he said they were ready for the Chūnin Exams.
When Iruka finished congratulating them, he said goodbye—not without promising Naruto he'd treat him to ramen later.
Naruto, never missing an opportunity, cheekily asked if Karin could come too.
Iruka shook his head, amused, but agreed once he found out her name was Karin Uzumaki.
Before leaving, Iruka decided to inform the Hokage about the situation, knowing it deserved his attention.
After all, Konoha owed a lot to the Uzumaki Clan.