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The sky was dark and gloomy.

"Tenten?" Naruto sprinted down toward the valley, and finally found the injured Tenten amidst a dense forest. He was stunned when he saw her weakened state.

"How are you holding up?"

"C-Cold." She shivered and barely managed to speak.

"Don't talk for now. I'll get you out of here." Naruto quickly checked her over, and after confirming that she had no broken bones, he deftly scooped her into his arms.

After a swift dash, they reached the top of the mountain, and Naruto scanned the surroundings.

Carefully setting Tenten down on soft soil, he pulled out a tent and blanket from his pack.

Naruto first settled Tenten in the tent, then helped her drink some water and fed her a bit of nutrient solution.

With a snap, he lit a portable stove, and warmth soon filled the tent. Fortunately, the tent was spacious enough for him to stand and open a flap for ventilation, preventing carbon monoxide buildup.

He waited until the temperature in the tent rose before he went out.

Outside, darkness has engulfed everything. Naruto didn't wander far, only gathering dry firewood from nearby. In front of the tent, he built a makeshift fireplace with stones and ignited it with a lighter.

After shaping the fire, he retrieved neatly stacked logs from his sealed space, feeding the blaze.

Inside, Tenten was still unconscious. Taking advantage of this break, Naruto sat by the fire and began to review what had happened in the past two days. However, he found that it was like grasping at mist and nothing made sense at all.

‘First, Pervy Sage disappeared, and Gerotora came back to report the news. Then, I led a search party, venturing into a deep valley and underground river system. The underground river has many branches, and from Neji’s explanation, there seem to be corpses and a door under the water.’

‘What exactly is the door? Was Pervy Sage also sucked in by the door? If so, how many doors are there under the underground river?’

‘But that was the only door that was open, and when I approached it, I was immediately sucked in. I don't know when I lost consciousness, and I don't remember anything at all.’

‘Although the current situation is still confusing, one thing is certain. Pervy Sage is probably not in good condition, otherwise, he can communicate with me through the Mount Myoboku’s toads.

The flame danced in his pupils, and it was until the middle of the night that he heard a noise from the tent.

“Tenten?” Naruto turned his head to look, then stood up and walked over.

"Mmm... Naruto? Is that you? Hiss~!" She inhaled sharply and clutched her back, "What happened to me? It hurts."

"Maybe you fell from a high place and was injured, but no bones were broken." Naruto said, helping her sit up and giving her more water.

"Thanks…"

"Do you remember what happened?" Naruto asked.

"I don't remember clearly what happened, hiss~" Tenten frowned, trying to recall, "The last thing I remember was being on the boat, and then... I think I passed out."

‘Passed out? We all passed out…’ It made Naruto think of Mabui's Heavenly Transfer Technique. This technique that can only deliver express mail claims that it cannot teleport ordinary humans, as ordinary human bodies will explode from the pressure.

Only people with extraordinary endurance can use this technique which can be regarded as a cheating device.

Looking at the entire Shinobi World, apart from the thick-skinned Yondaime Raikage, only Tsunade, the master healer, can handle it.

But now, this wild door that appeared at some unknown time seems to seemed to have a similar teleportation function as the Heavenly Transfer Technique, albeit with an unknown destination.

‘A door beneath the water... a bronze door? No… better not let this turn into a grave-robbing adventure lawsuit.’

Naruto quickly shook his head to get rid of his scattered thoughts. He refocused on Tenten.

"How are you feeling now?" Naruto asked, "Tenten, can you still walk?"

"I... I think so."

Tenten struggled to stand but was gently pushed back down by Naruto. Before she could protest, Naruto spoke first.

"Wait until sunrise. Searching in the dark risks missing things."

Hearing this, Tenten thought about it for a while and finally nodded. Although she was anxious, she could only suppress her impatience and sit down.

She watched Naruto adjusted the gas tank stove, and the tent became warm again.

"Naruto… did you find anyone else?" Tenten huddled by the fire with her eyes downcast.

"No, Neji and Lee... no idea where they ended up." Naruto also sat down next to the stove, looking at the orange glow flicker and shook his head slightly.

The tent fell into a heavy silence. Tenten stared at the stove in a daze as Naruto placed a small pot on it, pouring in drinking water.

Both of them knew how important time was at this moment, but rushing blindly in the dark was pointless. Whether it was Jiraiya, Neji, or Lee, they were all capable Shinobi.

No matter what happens, they at least have the ability to protect themselves. More importantly, Naruto couldn't just abandon Tenten here alone.

"You don't have to stress too much about it. I have already searched most of this island of the Land of Whirlpools carefully before I found you." Naruto comforted, "There is nothing we can do after dark. Let's wait until tomorrow morning."

"If we're lucky, we should be able to search the entire island before sunset tomorrow. If they’re not here... we'll have to figure something else out."

"This is an island?" Tenten was stunned for a while, then looked at Naruto and asked, "The island of the Land of Whirlpools?"

"Um."

"But... we were in the Land of Fields, right? How did we end up on an island thousands of kilometers away?" Tenten’s voice rose with a mix of confusion and alarm, while the water in the small pot beside her gurgled and boiled over.

For any sane Shinobi, even believing they were caught in a Genjutsu seemed easier than accepting this reality. Who would believe that getting pulled underwater could suddenly land them thousands of kilometers away?

"We are indeed on the island of the Land of Whirlpools now. If you listen carefully, you can hear the sound of waves." Naruto said calmly, his eyes fixed on the portable stove’s glow.

"If you still don’t believe me, you can climb to the top when the sun comes up."

"Naruto… could it be that we are under a Genjutsu?" Her voice trembled. "Maybe we’re still under that underground river, just... unaware of."

"Are you hungry?" Naruto asked suddenly.

"What?" Tenten was obviously confused. She didn't understand why Naruto suddenly asked her if she was hungry. She lowered her head and touched her stomach. "...A bit."

"Then it's not a Genjutsu. Genjutsu don’t replicate hunger with that level of complexity." Naruto said matter-of-factly.