Chapter 84: Kasumi Doesn't Trust Kabuto… and Neither Do I

"Is this the Hidden Sand Village?" Kasumi asked in a low voice as she gazed at the desert town ahead.

Garou opened his mouth to respond, but another voice cut in before he could. "Of course not."

Tenten turned to the side. It was Kabuto Yakushi, the same bespectacled ninja they'd briefly spoken with earlier.

The girls greeted him politely. "Yakushi-senpai, you know where we are?"

"Ahem, just call me Kabuto. I'm a genin like you, after all," he replied with a modest smile. "Though with talents like yours, you'll probably be chunin by the time this is over."

He chuckled at his own joke, then composed himself.

"This is a forward outpost near the Hidden Sand. Technically, it's a town, but most of the residents are shinobi."

"A military camp?" Tenten mused.

It didn't look like a regular village. More like a fortified settlement built from a long-term military encampment, stone and sand hardened by time and tension.

Garou smiled silently at her insight.

Kabuto nodded. "Exactly."

"Wow, you know a lot, Kabuto-senpai!" Tenten said with admiration.

She often wished she were more well-read, but aside from ninja tools, space-time theory, and sealing techniques, her aptitude with books was… average at best.

"Ha ha, it just comes with being a genin for a long time," Kabuto said self-deprecatingly. "Besides, Garou probably knows this too, right?"

"I read about it in a book once," Garou replied mildly.

Kabuto's eyes glinted. "There you go, knowledge. For someone like me who can't master many jutsu, this is the only area where I can improve."

"That's still a talent in itself," Tenten replied quickly. "I get a headache just looking at books I'm not interested in."

Partly to comfort him, but also an honest confession.

Kasumi, meanwhile, remained silent, simply observing Kabuto with her usual detachment.

He tried engaging her a few times, but each attempt ended in curt responses and awkward pauses. Eventually, Kabuto gave up trying.

Garou, watching from the side, couldn't help but feel a little amused.

—

That evening, Garou was assigned to share a room with Neji and Rock Lee. Tenten and Kasumi bunked with Nami. The teams rotated freely, so they often visited each other's rooms during rest hours.

"Kasumi," Tenten asked while folding her gear, "you seem a little… distant with Kabuto-senpai."

"He's strange," Kasumi said plainly.

"Strange?"

"He and his teammates look at Garou in a weird way," she replied softly, her eyes turning toward Garou.

Garou blinked, surprised by her observation.

But thinking deeper, he understood.

Kabuto's acting was flawless. But his teammates weren't nearly as subtle.

Their eyes likely revealed a little too much.

And Kasumi had been honing her observational skills for some time now. She had a natural gift for reading people.

"They probably admire him," Tenten offered.

"Garou's ration pill formula helps low-level genin save money. For those with limited income, it's a big deal."

Garou nodded. "That's been my goal from the start, to help where I can."

—

Meanwhile, in a separate part of the outpost, Kabuto met with one of the escorting chunin.

"A boy driven by ideals? Hmph… how pure," the chunin sneered quietly.

"Purity is just another word for naivety," Kabuto replied respectfully.

"He doesn't know the shadows beneath Konoha's surface. That's the only reason he can still believe in those ideals."

The chunin, cloaked in a travel-stained robe, licked his lips before speaking again in a hoarse voice.

"We don't have to become people like him… but don't mock his path outright."

"Yes, of course," Kabuto bowed low.

The chunin's eyes gleamed with a dangerous light. "In fact, he's becoming quite intriguing."

"Do you intend to alter the plan?"

"Of course not. If he can't even overcome minor obstacles, then he's not worth our interest anyway."

Kabuto nodded. "Understood."

The chunin, who in truth was none other than Orochimaru in disguise, stood up and walked away, blending into the shadows.

Just then, Yoroi and Misumi returned from a supply run, bags slung over their shoulders.

At the same time, Kakashi stepped out of a nearby room.

Orochimaru, fully composed in his disguise, even greeted him with a nod.

"Kakashi-senpai. Your team will rest here for the night. I'll escort you to the Hidden Sand tomorrow."

"Understood. Thank you," Kakashi replied with a slight nod of his own.

Orochimaru gave a polite bow and turned away, heading back to his room. He watched Kakashi disappear back into the quarters before letting a cold smile spread across his face.

Konoha was being cautious, first Kakashi at the front, then Might Guy trailing behind.

No chance for ambushes.

Not that Rasa, the Fourth Kazekage, would dare attack anyway. If he had that kind of courage, he wouldn't be scouring the desert for gold all day.

The man's desperation to fund his village had become almost comical.

Orochimaru scoffed quietly to himself.

Frankly, Konoha's child prodigy would make a better Kazekage than Rasa ever could.

That wasn't sarcasm.

In his mind, Garou Zenin was the type of genius who could elevate a village far beyond its limits.

He chuckled under his breath.

—

The next day, under the guidance of a Sand shinobi, the Konoha genin were led to the exam site.

Kakashi didn't walk at the front this time; instead, he kept pace with the group.

That gave Garou a perfect opportunity to strike up a quiet conversation.

"Kakashi-sensei," he asked, "do you have any guess where the exams will be held?"

"That information is tightly controlled," Kakashi replied. "But if they choose the Demon Desert, you'll need to be extremely cautious."

"The ruins?" Garou asked.

Kakashi nodded.

The Devil's Desert was once home to a bustling city in the Land of Wind. Now it was a sea of sand, with buried ruins lying beneath. No one could predict what dangers were hidden, ancient traps, wild creatures, or worse.

The risk level was comparable to the Forest of Death.

Garou fell into thought.

If Rasa really did choose that site, it meant the Sand Village would have plenty of chances to manipulate the playing field.

Dangerous, certainly.

But perhaps… also an opportunity.

Because just last night, after saying goodnight to Tenten and Kasumi, Garou had experienced a new evolution from the Bodhi Seed.

A pattern had emerged from his parasite-based jutsu, giving rise to a new ability.

Communication.

Through observation and a few cautious experiments, Garou had determined that the pattern enhanced a specific kind of interaction: mental synchronization with natural energy.

So far, he could only communicate with small animals, insects, birds, lizards. But he was confident that further development of this ability would yield even more powerful applications.

Especially when paired with his chakra-sensing abilities.

In a desert like the Demon Desert, where few life forms existed, even the smallest bugs could be his scouts.

He glanced toward Kakashi and whispered, "Sensei, I've recently been working with the Aburame Clan."

"I may have discovered a way to use spiritual focus and natural energy to communicate with insects."

"...!" Kakashi's visible eye widened in disbelief.

'Another breakthrough? Seriously?'

He opened his mouth to respond, then closed it again.

'...Thank god for the mask.'

Without it, his stunned expression would've been completely exposed.

After a moment of silence, he finally spoke. "That ability could be very useful. Keep it secret for now. We'll talk more after the exams."

"Yes, sir."

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