Naruto Immersive Replay, The Curse of the Sharingan

"Oh no... another one! It looks like all the boys in our year are going to be wiped out!"

Nara Shikamaru was leaning against a pillar not far away, but as you passed in front of him, his seemingly casually hanging hand had his fingertips lightly brush against the back of your hand hanging at your side.

The sensation was fleeting, so fast it felt like an illusion.

Your gaze swept over Shikamaru, who had already withdrawn his hand, as if it were just an unintentional mistake. However, the blush rising at the base of his ears did not completely escape your notice.

On the other side, Sasuke Uchiha, who had been resting with his eyes closed, suddenly opened them. His hand, which had been underwater, twitched slightly, but he only let out a cold snort and did not retaliate. However, the air pressure around him was noticeably lower.

Kiba Inuzuka and Shikamaru Inuzuka took action and immediately refused to be outdone.

He pretended to be pushed away by Naruto, staggered towards you, and his arm accidentally swung towards you, almost touching your shoulder—

Just before his fingertips were about to touch your yukata, an arm suddenly reached out from the side and positioned itself perfectly between your teeth and your body.

Aburame Shino had moved nearby at some point, her movements so fast that almost no one could see her clearly.

"Watch out, Kiba." Shino's voice was calm and even as he looked at Kiba through his sunglasses. "The water's slippery, be careful not to fall."

His reasons sounded plausible, but his defensive stance was obvious.

Kiba's arm froze in mid-air. Somewhat embarrassed, he withdrew it, glared at Shino, and muttered, "Mind your own business..."

You lift your chin, your gaze sweeping from Sasuke's tense face, past Shikamaru's slightly red ear tips, over Kiba's expectant eyes, and then over the almost imperceptible swarm of insects.

"So, are you all planning to stand guard in the hot spring?"

Your question momentarily froze the air thick with restlessness and probing.

A clear and steady voice rang out from the other end of the corridor, breaking the deadlock at just the right moment.

"It seems to be quite lively here."

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw that Hyuga Neji had arrived at some point.

He was dressed in a plain white bathrobe, spotless, with the mark of a caged bird on his forehead faintly visible under the lamplight.

Neji glanced at the standoff before him, his Byakugan clearly revealing the undercurrents in the boys' minds.

But his face remained expressionless, as if he completely ignored the eerie atmosphere, and extended an invitation to you.

"Nagi, would you like to discuss ninjutsu with me? I have some new ideas."

This proposal, in stark contrast to the various childish, impulsive, awkward, or subtle actions on the scene, appeared exceptionally serious and... lethal.

Sasuke Uchiha's lips immediately tightened into a cold, hard line.

Neji's appearance, and this invitation that directly targets the core of power, is undoubtedly a more sophisticated provocation.

He knows your obsession with becoming stronger, and this kind of discussion about strength is far more appealing than a water fight.

Nara Shikamaru clicked his tongue inwardly; another troublesome character had been added to his list.

Neji Hyuga usually acts all aloof, but I never expected him to be so direct, hitting the nail on the head.

He glanced at you and noticed a slight softening in your expression, which made him feel that things were getting even more complicated.

Kiba Inuzuka was a little confused. He looked at Neji and then at you, muttering to himself, "Eh? Discussing ninjutsu? Now?"

Shino Aburame pushed up his sunglasses as he quickly analyzed Neji's intentions and chances of success, and whether he could find a similar angle to approach the situation.

"Hey, hey, hey! You guys!" Yamanaka Ino put her hands on her hips, glanced at the group of boys with their own thoughts, and finally rolled her eyes in exasperation.

"Are you treating the hot springs like a training ground? The atmosphere is so menacing! Can't a person even relax in peace?"

She walked confidently to your side and naturally took your arm. You could feel the momentary stiffness of the person holding your arm, but Ino pretended not to notice and instead smiled and said to everyone.

"Since everyone's here and we're all classmates, it's no fun just standing around. Anyway, the water temperature here is just right, how about we play a game together?"

"A game?" Naruto perked up immediately, forgetting what had just happened. "What game?"

Yamanaka Ino's bright eyes lit up, and a brilliant idea popped into her head.

She clapped her hands, drawing everyone's attention, and suggested excitedly, "Just soaking in hot springs is so boring! How about we play underwater hide-and-seek? The rules are simple: one person is 'it' and is blindfolded, trying to catch others in the water. The person caught becomes the next 'it'."

Ino paused, a sly smile appearing on her face, and added an even more exciting rule.

"However, to increase the difficulty and fun, the 'demon' can use simple ninjutsu for perception, such as sound localization or basic chakra sensing, but cannot use any lethal techniques, and those captured cannot leave the area of ​​this hot spring!"

This suggestion immediately sparked different reactions among the teenagers.

"Sounds good!" Kiba Inuzuka was the first to jump up in response; he'd been waiting for a chance to show off in front of you. "Akamaru, let's go! Let's show them what we're made of!"

Uchiha Sasuke glanced at you, wanting to see how you would react to such a childish game.

Nara Shikamaru rubbed the back of his head and let out his signature sigh. However, he did not immediately get up and leave. Instead, he adjusted his posture to make himself more comfortable in the pool.

His subconscious actions revealed his true thoughts; he didn't want to miss this opportunity to interact with you.

Choji Akimichi popped a potato chip into his mouth and looked at his companions, each with their own thoughts, already anticipating the spectacular scene that would unfold in the warm water later.

Sakura Haruno naturally nodded in agreement; she was always enthusiastic about any activity she participated in with you.

Hinata Hyuga, blushing, also agreed to join after being repeatedly urged and encouraged by Tenten.

Just as Ino was about to begin assigning the first oni, a vibrant voice and a lazy voice came from the entrance almost simultaneously.

"How can you play games without me! That's the spirit of youth!"

"Oh? That sounds interesting. Taking me along isn't too many, is it?"

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw that Rock Lee and Kakashi Hatake had also arrived at the hot spring at some point.

Xiao Li, wearing his signature green yukata designed for hot springs, looked excited.

Kakashi, dressed in a gray yukata with a mask covering most of his face, seemed to be questioning Ino, but his gaze was fixed on you, who seemed detached from worldly affairs.

Ino was surprised that even the elite Jonin Kakashi had been invited. She paused for a moment, then quickly nodded, "Of course! Welcome, Kakashi-senpai, and Rock Lee!"

At the same time, she secretly resolved to interrogate Sakura thoroughly after the game ended. What was going on? Why was even Kakashi-sensei looking at her so strangely?

Chapter 344 Summer Festival Dance (18)

As Naruto excitedly blindfolded himself with a thick strip of cloth and turned his back to the crowd, he began loudly counting down, "Ten, nine, eight..."

The atmosphere in the hot spring pool instantly became tense and exciting. People moved about, the water rippled, and everyone scattered quickly and nimbly like a school of startled fish, searching for suitable hiding places.

The surface of the pool quickly returned to calm, with only tiny bubbles occasionally rising to the surface.

You quietly hide in the shadow of the artificial mountain made of natural rocks.

The light here is dim, the water flows gently, and the uneven rocks perfectly conceal one's form, even one's breathing and chakra are suppressed to almost nothingness.

Just as you regain your balance and feel the tranquility enveloped by the water, the current around you stirs up a disturbance that is different from the natural cycle.

You turn your head and look through the shimmering water to see that Nara Shikamaru has somehow managed to sneak behind the artificial hill, right within your reach.

He didn't look at you, but instead imitated you, leaning his head back against the cold rock, closing his eyes, looking completely at ease.

In this small space, his calf inadvertently touched your calf.

The warm pool water enveloped you, but an unusual sensation was clearly transmitted through the water, impossible to ignore.

Your gaze fell on Shikamaru's seemingly lazy and harmless profile.

Shikamaru seemed oblivious, even muttering to himself in a muffled voice that trembled with the sound of water.

"...Tsk, if the Shadow Imitation Technique could be used underwater, that would save a lot of trouble..."

These words seemed to come out of nowhere, as if they were complaining about the limitations of ninjutsu, or regretting a lack of control.

The warmth and friction of skin touching underwater seem to transform into an invisible shadow, silently entangling your senses with a casual yet purposeful probing.

He didn't make any further excessive moves, just stayed close to you, as if he was carefully measuring your tolerance limit, or as if he was enjoying this close contact that no one knew about.

You're not slow-witted; you're just used to observing first and then judging. Was it a simple accident, or was it because you didn't want the hassle of finding another place and squeezed in, or... was it a deliberate act like Nara Shikamaru's?

Just then, Naruto, blindfolded, groped his way over, waving his large hands wildly in the pool, stirring up a chaotic mess of water.

"Where? Where? I can feel it! Someone must be hiding here!" Naruto shouted excitedly, clumsily but instinctively reaching towards the artificial hill, his hands about to touch the edge of the rock.

At the same time, Shikamaru seemed to be startled. Using the water flow stirred up by Naruto, he slid his body lightly to the side a short distance, as if the brief contact between their skin was just an unintentional accident that naturally separated as the water flow changed.

The moment Shikamaru moved away, you also quietly slid to the other side of the artificial hill, the movement silent and perfectly avoiding Naruto's haphazard capture range.

You glanced back at Shikamaru with a hint of doubt.

Shikamaru received the look in his eyes, and through the shimmering water and dim light, a triumphant smile appeared on his face. Although this kind of probing was a bit troublesome... it didn't feel bad.

In the midst of the chaos, Naruto, by sheer luck, managed to grab Kiba Inuzuka, who was trying to move stealthily.

"Haha! Got you! Kiba! It's your turn!" Naruto excitedly ripped off his eyepatch and announced.

Kiba Inuzuka wasn't annoyed at all. Instead, he eagerly took the strip of cloth, deftly blindfolded himself, and grinned with a determined smile, shouting, "Akamaru! It's up to you! We'll track them by scent!"

His tacit understanding with Akamaru was unparalleled, and coupled with the Inuzuka clan's innate and outstanding sense of smell, even in water filled with the smell of sulfur, their sensitivity to the scent of specific people far exceeded that of ordinary people.

"That's not fair, Kiba! How could you get help from Akamaru!" Naruto, who had just been laid off, immediately protested loudly, feeling that this was simply cheating.

Kiba retorted smugly, clearly having come prepared, "The rules don't say you can't summon beasts for help! Ino only said that 'demons' can be sensed using simple ninjutsu, and Akamaru and I using our sense of smell together is our ninjutsu!"

He immediately lowered his head and gave a clear command to Akamaru in the water, "Akamaru, find Nagi first!"

He had clearly been planning this for a long time, with a clear objective, and made no attempt to hide it.

Akamaru, upon receiving the order, nimbly darted through the warm pool, his nose twitching as he tried to catch the unique, cool scent.

You suddenly realize that, against creatures like Kiba and Akamaru who rely on biological instincts for tracking, simply concealing your presence and using visual deception are probably not very effective.

They quickly changed tactics, no longer sticking to one place, and began to use the staggered artificial hills and corridor pillars in the pond as cover to move around erratically, trying to disrupt Akamaru's judgment by creating chaos with the water flow.

With his eyes covered, he listened carefully to Akamaru's whimpers as guidance, and combined this with the direction he sensed through the vibrations of the water, quickly approaching the direction you might be moving in.

As you try to turn to another cover, Kiba pounces on you based on anticipation and Akamaru's immediate feedback.

"Gotcha!" Tooth shouted excitedly, his arms tightly wrapped around the figure in front of him, and he couldn't wait to tear off his blindfold.

What came into his view was not the cold, pale face he had expected.

Instead, it was Shino Aburame who was completely soaked, with water droplets even clinging to her sunglasses.

Shino was held tightly in his arms, looking at him expressionlessly.

"Uh... I'm sorry, Shino." Kiba's smile froze instantly. He awkwardly let go of her hand, scratched his spiky short hair, and his tone was full of confusion and disappointment.

He clearly feels it should be you!

You are standing a few meters away right now. Just now, Shino Aburame cleverly misled Akamaru's sense of smell by using the tiny disturbances and special pheromones created by the insects he controlled underwater.

At the same time, he moved on his own initiative, blocking the path that Ya had predicted, thus staging a substitution.

Shino said nothing, offered no explanation, and didn't even look at you.

Kiba was somewhat annoyed, but mostly resentful of having his idea stolen. "What's going on, Shino..."

This scene caught the attention of Tenten, who couldn't help but nudge Ino beside her with her elbow, lower her voice, and exclaim with an excited sense of knowing everything.

"Wow! I didn't expect Shino, who's usually so quiet, to be so capable in a pinch! Would you call this... a hero saving a damsel in distress?"

Ino didn't immediately join in the teasing as usual. She looked at you, who was attracting everyone's attention, and then at Shino, who was silent but had a clear purpose. For the first time, she no longer felt relaxed like she was watching a show.

In the past, she would have been just as enthusiastic as Tiantian in analyzing the trajectory of this love triangle.

But now... as she looks at you, images involuntarily flash through her mind: Hinata's shyness in your presence, Shikamaru's seemingly troublesome yet genuinely caring gaze, Sasuke's restrained concern, and even... Kakashi's relaxed yet focused expression...

She finally understood why Hinata always lost her composure so easily in front of her. As more and more people were attracted and unique attention was constantly diverted, the desire to occupy a special position became increasingly intense and anxious.

Viya's tarot readings seem to be coming true at an astonishing speed.

Ino took a deep breath, the warm, humid air filling her lungs, yet carrying a strange sense of determination.

Perhaps... she should be more proactive and stop just being a bystander, watching others vie for power around her.

Aburame Shino's way of acting as a 'demon' was indeed unique. He silently took the strip of cloth, covered his eyes, and then stood in the middle of the pool.

Unlike the previous two, he didn't move around much or rely on summoning beasts; instead, he quietly circulated his chakra.

The next moment, countless parasitic insects, centered on him, silently merged into the surrounding waters like spreading sonar ripples.

These insects are not used for attack, but rather they have become part of his extended sensory network, keenly perceiving the most subtle changes in water flow, temperature differences, and vibration frequencies.

This approach is calm, efficient, and has a very wide reach.

You immediately felt that all-pervasive probing sensation; this perceptual network composed of countless tiny life forms was even more difficult to deceive and escape.

You tried to create subtle, false fluctuations with chakra to disrupt the swarm's judgment, but with little effect.