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Chapter 381 - Anko

It wasn't long until the group moved through the streets and found themselves at the girls' apartment. There, they all sat down to hear what Margaret had to address.

"Listen," she began, "I think we should just go take out Orochimaru ourselves."

"We're not gonna let you go alone," William instantly said, standing up.

"That's why I said, 'we,'" she shot back. "Duh."

The suggestion was tempting. Each of them had enough skills and power to stand against a Sannin. Such as the time William and Margaret managed to fend off not just a Sannin, but also the reanimated versions of the first and second Hokage.

Everyone began considering this bold idea of confronting Orochimaru directly. They honestly didn't need to wait for things like reinforcements or more intel, and they all knew it.

"We could also rescue Sasuke," Jada informed. "If we find him and get him out, it could help in a lot of other things we can prevent."

"Yeah," Margaret agreed. "And if we take out Kabuto, we can stop the war before Shippuden even begins."

The group's consensus was clear. They wanted to intervene and cut the head off the snake before it grew larger.

Alice looked thoughtful as she asked, "But, Marge, don't you still need some kind of material to track him?"

Margaret's eyes shifted toward the corner. When she looked at Alex, her face jumped as she said, "I can use your curse mark!"

"Sorry," he said, "but I've already reverse-engineered it."

"Care to explain?" Alice asked with a skeptical tone.

"Sure," Alex began, "It means that Orochimaru's influence and chakra aren't inside my curse mark anymore since I've removed that part."

"Darn it!" William muttered. Then a thought struck him. "Wait. If Jiraiya's with Orochimaru, then maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea to find him first. I mean, he'd lead us straight to Orochimaru, right?"

Margaret's eyes lit up as she said, "Great idea, Will." Without notice, she placed an open palm in front of him, expecting him to give her the material she needed to track Jiraiya. But surprisingly, he didn't have anything!

"You hang out with a Sannin and don't have anything from him?" Jasper taunted, crossing his arms.

"Do you ever shut up?!" William shot back.

"Why don't we use Anko?" Alex suddenly suggested before the two started their argument.

The group looked at him, surprised.

"How?" Jada asked.

"Instead of relying on my curse mark," Alex explained, "we can use hers."

Many of them believed that Anko Mitarashi was a bit of a missed opportunity in the Naruto world. She was deeply hated by Orochimaru, and everyone knew she despised him with every ounce of her being.

Yet, despite her feelings, she never outright rebelled or turned her back on everything she'd learned from him. Instead, she kept his teachings close, almost as if she was using them against him.

Some of the players, specifically William, had secretly wanted Naruto and him to learn from her because she was once Orochimaru's prized apprentice. It's easy to imagine she was incredibly smart and knowledgeable in all sorts of fields—way beyond just ninja skills.

Since her curse mark and her background made her suspicious in the eyes of others, she might have used multiple identities to protect herself, such as pretending to be some quirky, bubbly girl rather than revealing her more serious side.

Looking back, the players had hardly interacted with her since they were still Genin at the time. While most showed the aptitude to be stronger than her, they thought her character would have faded after they dealt with Orochimaru at some point in time.

"Then it's decided," Margaret declared. "Let's go find Anko so she can lead us to Orochimaru."

"Promise you won't fly away this time?" Alice wondered.

"Yeah," Jada pouted, crossing her arms. "You had me worried last time."

"Really?" Margaret asked in surprise. She couldn't hide her blush. "You cared that much?"

"Of course," Jada answered. "We're friends, aren't we?"

Margaret couldn't help but feel as if this was a line from the Naruto story. The main difference was that Jada's relationship with her was healthy and open—something Margaret began to deeply value.

Meanwhile, Jasper was already moving toward the door with a neutral expression.

"Looks like I won't be needed," he said, about to step out.

But before he could make his exit, Alice's voice stopped him cold.

"Not so fast!" she sharply said. "You're coming with us. Whether you like it or not."

Hearing that, Jasper turned around with a look of surprise and confusion clear on his face.

"Huh?!"

He looked around the room as his eyes darted from her to the others. Only two players—excluding Arthur—knew what he had done to Sakura.

Jada squinted at him. She didn't trust him at all, and her wariness was clear in her expression. Alex, meanwhile, looked elsewhere with a smile, avoiding eye contact, as if he wanted to distance himself from whatever might happen.

"Fine," he surrendered. "I've been looking for a strong-enough opponent anyway, so let's just make it quick. Like, now, quick."

Their venture hadn't taken long once they exited the apartment.

Alice knew the village well enough to find people quickly, so the group moved through the streets until they eventually spotted Anko at her usual spot, the Dango Shop.

It was a small place on the edge of the market district where she often relaxed. Anko herself was munching on sweets with a relaxed expression. She looked up as they approached.

"What trouble are you guys getting into this time?" she asked with a smile.

"No trouble at all, Anko-sensei," laughed William.

Now, Anko wasn't actually anyone's sensei, but she knew that it was out of respect. "I know. I was mainly talking about Jasper."

Jasper looked away. He knew his reputation was low, and he didn't bother denying it.

"We need your help with something," Jada said, stepping forward.

"My help?" Anko wondered. "Sure. What is it?"

Before diving into details, the group decided to find a more private place. They all disappeared from the street and eventually reappeared at a craggy spot outside the village. The terrain was filled with. But more importantly, no one was around for miles.

Anko looked around and asked, "So, what's this about?"

"We're planning to hunt down Orochimaru," Alice answered.

The words hit Anko quiet for a moment. She stared at them in disbelief. Then she asked, "You're serious?!"

"We are," Margaret answered. "We also believe it's the only way to stop whatever's coming."

Anko looked at each of them. Here were these young ninjas, who recently took her Chūnin Exams about a year ago, trying to take down her most hated ninja.

Anybody else that dared confront her about this might have been quickly rebuked. But these lot seemed determined, and she remembered what they'd already accomplished. They weren't just kids playing ninja; they had the skills to even take her down.

Still, the idea of going after Orochimaru was dangerous.

"What exactly do you want from me?" she asked.

Jada explained, "We want to use your curse mark to track him. But first, we need to remove it."

"Y… You're serious!" Anko replied with wide eyes. "I… I didn't even know that was possible."

"It is," William confirmed, looking toward Alex.

"He's right," Alex agreed. "Maybe you didn't hear, but I've reverse-engineered my curse mark, and it was a success. I can't do the same for yours since your chakra is foreign. But I can completely remove it."

"Impressive," Anko praised. "I thought that was rumour at first."

William leaned in, eager to add, "Anyone could remove it if they do the hand signs back—"

Before he could finish, Margaret quickly covered his mouth with her hand and whispered, "Stop blurting out those secrets!"

This shut William up; he had forgotten that Anko wouldn't have had her curse mark removed by Sasuke for another two and a half years during the war.

"Trust us," Jada said. "We know what we're doing."

Anko took a moment to consider things. These players were indeed unique, more unique than anyone she'd had the pleasure of encountering.

There was Jada, who'd contributed so much to the village that Anko honestly thought she was about to quitthe job. Many male ninjas adored her, but she always stayed true to the village without letting anyone obstruct her beliefs.

Then there was William, who had proven himself many times over. While yes, he did lose to Sasuke in the preliminary rounds of the exams, William still had this going for him: he saved Hiruzen from Orochimaru and made it to the final rounds of the tournament held in the Land of Waves.

Alice was overwhelmingly intelligent for her age. Her knowledge of being a ninja went far beyond what those in her age group should know. Had it not been for age restrictions, she would have easily qualified to be a member of the Anbu Black Ops.

Margaret outperformed almost everyone with her healing abilities. On top of that, she was related to the fifth Hokage and had inherited the first Hokage's Kekkei Genkai.

While Anko had not quite liked Jasper due to his rebellious nature, she couldn't deny that he was a capable shinobi.

Lastly was Alexander, whom the whole village regarded as a prodigy among prodigies. Even his clan had the gall to step down and have Alex lead at such a young age.

Recalling all this, Anko slowly turned around and pulled back her meshed shirt. "Alright, I'll give it a try."

Alex stepped forward and looked at the curse mark on her neck. It was the same one as Sasuke's.

"Evil release jutsu…"

After performing the hand signs backwards, he placed his palm exactly where the seal was. Then, a dark chakra erupted from the seal that swirled and billowed out!

Anko suddenly shrieked as her body tensed and the malicious chakra surged. The others quickly leapt back, not having expected this.

"What happened?!" Jada asked in a worried tone.

Alex kept his eyes focused, answering, "There was a safety measure in place. Looks like the seal had a failsafe."

"You're not wrong!" Alice said, forced to raise her voice over the wind. "I can sense some disturbing chakra taking over her body."

The wind picked up even more and rushed past the group. Anko's curse mark activated on its own, and her sclera turned completely black.

William covered his head, shouting, "Yep! That's definitely Orochimaru's chakra!"

"Anko!" Margaret yelled. "Don't let the curse mark take you!"

But Anko's body trembled as the curse mark flared. Then she hovered in the air as if possessed. Her body was taut, limbs stiff, and she screamed a scream that pierced their ears.

Without warning, she suddenly lunged at William. His eyes widened as he reflexively twisted to dodge her attack just in time. Her body flipped midair, and she let out another scream.

"Any ideas?" Jasper asked the group.

Just then, he heard a mental message from Alice.

'I've connected us all,' she relayed. 'Jada, try and restrain her with your Susanoo. Alex and Marge will be the backup. I'll slow her down with my ability. William and Jasper, you two block any attacks she throws.'

The plan was clear, and everyone seemed to agree with this plan. But as Jasper listened, he couldn't help but scoff internally.

"Puh-lease!" he said aloud.

Seeing him move, Margaret yelled, "What are you doing?!"

Without waiting for anyone and with a confident grin, Jasper's body soared upward at Anko like an arrow. His flight speed was unnatural, threatening Anko's instincts.

"Striking shadow snake!"

Her arm shot out, summoning several serpents that hissed and writhed toward Jasper. But he was faster.

"Furious smelting!"

With two fingers, he manifested a series of ethereal needles that quickly sliced through the snakes with ease and caused them to dissolve into the air. Then, in a blur, he zoomed past Anko, causing her body to spin in the air.

"Jasper, stop!" William screamed.

"Lightning style: purple lightning strike!"

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