Chapter 94: Chapter 16:First level!
Team 7 cheered, their spirits high as they sat atop the worm summon's sturdy armor plates. Their eyes were fixed on the entrance of a concealed cave hidden deep underground within the second wolf mountain.
Naruko grinned, pumping her fist in excitement. "We finally found it! This has to be where the scroll vault is!"
Yuto nodded as he dispelled his summon. "Let's not get too relaxed just yet. If they went through the trouble of hiding it underground, it's not going to be easy from here on out."
Hitomi adjusted her gloves and glanced at the dark, foreboding entrance. "Agreed. Stay alert."
The trio carefully entered the cave, their footsteps echoing faintly off the damp stone walls. As they ventured deeper, they came across a large board mounted on the wall. Intrigued, Hitomi stepped forward and squinted at the writing before reading it aloud:
"This cave is called the Wolf Dungeon Cave. It has five levels that the Genin will have to cross before they can get to the scroll vault."
"The Genin cannot use shortcuts like digging directly through the cave walls, as doing so will result in automatic disqualification."
"The first level ahead is the 'Courage of Warriors.'"
"The floor tiles are all laced with traps, with some safe tiles mixed in. The Genin must navigate across without walking on the ceiling. The traps become increasingly dangerous as the Genin advance. Only those with true courage can cross smoothly."
Hitomi lowered the board and turned back to face Yuto and Naruko, a pensive look on her face. "Looks like they're testing our courage first. What do you two think?"
Naruko placed her hands on her hips, puffing up her chest with confidence. "Ha! Courage? This level was made for me! I'll get us through in no time!"
Yuto, however, had a very different reaction. He tilted his head, a single brow raised as a question mark practically appeared over his head. "This… this feels oddly familiar," he muttered under his breath. 'Why does this remind me of one of those over-the-top dungeon adventure cartoons I used to watch in my previous life? What was its name again? Something about a map and booby traps?'
Hitomi sighed. "Yuto, focus. Whatever you're thinking about doesn't matter right now. The traps sound dangerous, so we need to take this seriously."
Yuto shook off his thoughts and smirked. "Fine, fine. Let's see if this dungeon's as cheesy as it sounds. But don't say I didn't warn you if it's a mix of over-complicated nonsense and near-death experiences."
The trio shared a glance before stepping further into the cave, ready to face the first challenge that awaited them.
Team 7 entered a spacious room filled with intricately patterned tiles, each tile bearing an animal design. The air was tense as they scanned the room, trying to decipher the challenge ahead.
Naruko folded her arms. "So, we just have to figure out which tiles are safe to step on? Easy enough."
Yuto glanced around, his analytical mind already working. "It's not going to be that simple. These patterns probably correspond to traps. Let's test it out."
He nodded at Naruko, who formed a shadow clone. The clone hesitated briefly before stepping onto a tile with a lion pattern. The instant its foot touched the tile, ten kunai shot out from the ceiling and walls, striking the clone and dispelling it in an instant.
Naruko blinked, startled. "Okaaay, so lion tiles are a no-go."
Yuto pulled two spray cans from his inventory—one red and one green. He sprayed a bold red mark on the lion tile. "This will mark the trapped tiles. Let's keep testing."
Naruko formed another clone, which stepped onto a zebra tile. Flames erupted around the clone, consuming it in seconds before it disappeared. Yuto sprayed the zebra tile with red paint as well.
When the third clone cautiously stepped onto an elephant tile and nothing happened, Yuto sprayed it green. "Alright, Naruko, you'll keep sending clones. We'll mark the safe tiles with green and the trapped ones with red. Hitomi and I will guide the process from here."
Hitomi frowned as she watched the operation begin. "It's a good strategy, but what about the other teams? If they see the markings, they'll just follow our path and bypass the traps entirely."
Yuto smirked, his eyes gleaming. "This spray paint can be washed off with water. Once we're through, I'll just use a water jutsu to erase all the markings. Problem solved."
The girls exchanged impressed glances before nodding in agreement. "Smart move, Yuto," Hitomi admitted.
For the next 30 minutes, the room echoed with the sounds of Naruko's clones protesting. "Clone rights! This is cruel and unusual punishment!"
"Keep working!" Naruko barked at her clones, rolling her eyes. "You're not real anyway!"
Finally, after thorough testing and marking, Team 7 reached the end of the room. Yuto turned back, forming hand signs as he prepared to clear the way. "Water Style: Water Wave Jutsu!" A powerful surge of water shot from his mouth, sweeping across the tiles and washing away all the paint.
With their path now cleared and their trail erased, Team 7 continued onward to face the next level of the Wolf Dungeon Cave.
While Team 7 ventured deeper into the cave, another group arrived at the entrance of the Wolf Dungeon Cave. Toka, a girl with blonde hair tied in pigtails and sharp yellow eyes framed by glasses, stood at the forefront of her team. She adjusted her specs, observing the hidden entrance with a calculating gaze.
One of her teammates, a boy with dark brown hair, asked, "Toka, are you sure this cave holds the scroll vault?"
Toka nodded, her voice calm but resolute. "It's the most logical place. The clue led us to this mountain, and this cave is too well-hidden to be a coincidence. We should explore it."
The girl teammate, with short black hair, hesitated. "But if it's already been discovered by someone else, wouldn't the traps be disarmed? Worse we could run into that crazy boy who now had a dragon as his pet."
Toka pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose, her yellow eyes gleaming with intelligence. "Perhaps. Or they might have left already and had layed additional traps behind to slow down others. Either way, we need to proceed carefully."
The boy shrugged. "Fine. Lead the way, Toka. You always seem to know what you're doing. So you should have a plan for retreat if we do Encounter that blond boy."
Toka smirked slightly, taking the first step into the cave while holding her Katana. 'This place feels ominous. That boy was definitely here before us and might have a head start, but i will catch up. There's no way I am failing this exam before i fight him!'
(Pls give me some power stones!)
(Find out next time on Naruto:Eye system)