Purple poisonous smoke spewed from the puppet's mouth, cloaking itself in the cover of night and surging toward Sakura Haruno like an overwhelming tide!
Seeing this, Sakura's expression flickered with intrigue.
Ever since her medical ninjutsu had reached mastery, she hadn't encountered many opponents who wielded poisons. Those who toyed with toxins were simply outclassed in her presence. She didn't even need to activate the Strength of a Hundred Technique; her medical ninjutsu alone was enough to counter the poison effortlessly.
In the ninja world, only two people were renowned for their mastery of poisons: Chiyo of the Sand Village, far off on the battlefield in the Land of Rivers, and the one standing before her now—Scorpion of the Red Sand.
To avoid any unexpected mishaps, Sakura reached into her ninja tool pouch and pulled out a small, dark sphere.
The Haruno Secret Soldier Pill, Version 2.0!
Building on the chakra-restoring foundation of Version 1.0, this upgraded pill boasted new effects. Swallowed whole, it served as an antidote; ground into powder and applied to wounds, it acted as a hemostatic agent. Aside from its persistently awful taste, it was a complete game-changer!
Without hesitation, Sakura popped the pill into her mouth, chewed, and swallowed, then charged straight into the toxic haze!
"Hmph," Scorpion sneered, watching her boldness. "This poison smoke is my exclusive creation. A mere mysterious pill won't neutralize it."
Seeing Sakura's audacity, Scorpion let out a cold laugh and immediately manipulated the Kazekage puppet to unleash Magnet Release, targeting her within the poisonous cloud. Black iron sand gathered swiftly, forming triangular and cubic shapes that hurtled toward Sakura in the haze.
To hasten the poison's effects, Scorpion gave her no room to breathe.
Amid the toxic smoke, Sakura faced the incoming iron blocks and still had the leisure to sniff the air.
Strawberry flavor.
Like mushrooms, the more vibrant the color, the deadlier the poison. Scorpion's smoke was clearly designed to entice opponents to inhale more, crafted with a flavor most would find tolerable.
This scent…
It carried traces of red spider lily, castor bean, aconite… and a heavy dose of dried, crushed strawberry powder.
With a few sniffs, Sakura swiftly analyzed the components of the poison. Mixed together, it would take effect in about three minutes. Her secret soldier pill, however, kicked in at two and a half minutes.
Perfect. The poison smoke was negligible—little more than a smoke bomb.
From a distance, Itachi Uchiha observed the toxic fog enveloping the battlefield. He wanted to step in but was hindered by the poisonous haze, leaving him no opening to approach. Scorpion hadn't accounted for Itachi in this move. Sakura's abilities were nearly an open book after the battle in the Land of Frost. Aside from her monstrous strength, Summoning Technique, and the Yin Seal that made her nearly impervious to injury, there wasn't much intelligence on her medical ninjutsu.
Injury and poisoning, however, were two different beasts.
A massive cubic iron block hurtled toward her. Ignoring the poison smoke, Sakura stomped the ground, leaped upward, and charged forward like a bolt of lightning!
Boom!
A dull thud shattered the silence of the night. A massive black object was blasted out of the toxic haze by Sakura's fist. Her figure followed, bursting through the smoke and speeding toward Scorpion!
!!
Scorpion's eyes narrowed in shock.
The poison smoke was ineffective? What kind of joke was this? This was his meticulously crafted Scorpion Venom 5.0, a high-potency poison!
"Magnet Release: Sand Iron Drizzle!"
Scorpion resorted to his old trick, hoping to slow Sakura's advance and buy time to escape the pink-haired ninja's attack range. A puppeteer's fighting style relied on keeping distance, wearing down enemies through endless skirmishes with puppets, dragging them into a slow death. It was a war of attrition, pitting lifeless constructs against living foes.
Facing the incoming black iron spikes, a flash of impatience crossed Sakura's eyes. With a flick of her wrist, she activated a hidden sealing scroll in her sleeve, equipping a pair of knuckle dusters. Chakra surged through her fists, igniting like sparks on gasoline. Twin tiger heads, formed from blazing chakra, materialized around her fists, roaring fiercely as if real beasts from the mountains had come to life, their roars echoing across the battlefield!
The black iron spikes disintegrated into dust before her blazing tiger fists!
Scorpion, unfazed, curled his lips into a sinister smirk. Ninja tools? Magnet Release was designed to counter ninja tools! He immediately manipulated the puppet's Magnet Release, intending to seize control of Sakura's knuckle dusters and turn them against her.
But under the influence of Magnet Release, Sakura's speed didn't falter. Her knuckle dusters, as if oblivious to the magnetic pull, continued their ferocious chakra-fueled roar as she charged toward Scorpion!
!!!
Seeing Magnet Release fail, Scorpion's expression shifted dramatically.
At this distance, there was no dodging!
"Die!"
Sakura closed in on Scorpion!
Instinctively, Scorpion took a step back as she approached, but at this moment, no action he took could change the outcome. Even with his body transformed into a puppet, he had no means of resistance!
As previously noted, a puppet's limitations defined Scorpion's own.
Roar!!!
The tiger in her fist let out a tangible bellow, its jaws snapping down on Scorpion's head!
!!!
Wood chips scattered!
Under Sakura's punch, Scorpion's head exploded!
Yet, danger struck in an instant!
The headless body didn't collapse. Instead, it swiftly manipulated the Kazekage puppet to charge at Sakura while retreating with agile movements!
No head, and it could still fight?
Even though Sakura had prepared for this, the sight felt surreal. With a palm strike, she deflected a blade from the puppet, then spun, delivering a roundhouse kick that sent the puppet flying.
By now, Scorpion's headless body had regrouped with Itachi. With practiced ease, the headless figure retrieved a spare head from a storage scroll in its sleeve, attached it to its neck, and twisted it a few times, restoring itself as if nothing had happened.
"I forgot to mention," Itachi said calmly, addressing the now-disgruntled Scorpion. "Her ninja tools are crafted by the Ninja Cat Clan. They're made with special materials to resist Magnet Release, the bane of ninja tools."
Scorpion's already sour expression darkened further.
"Why didn't you say so earlier?!"
Itachi remained composed. "With that massive poison cloud you set up, immune to it or not, how was I supposed to tell you?"
Facing the reunited Scorpion and Itachi, Sakura regarded them calmly. This makeshift team was oddly fitting. One was a traitor who slaughtered his entire clan. The other was a demon who wiped out an entire small nation. Both shared a chilling trait: neither spared even infants in swaddling clothes.
Itachi, Sakura might spare for the sake of Hiruzen Sarutobi and Sasuke. But Scorpion…
He would die here today!
With that thought, Sakura wasted no more words. She bit her finger, swiftly formed hand seals, and slammed her palm into the ground. The earth cracked, and black summoning patterns unfurled instantly.
"Summoning Technique: Monkey King!"
A puff of white smoke rose, and a humanoid summoning beast appeared before Itachi and Scorpion. A lethal sense of danger gripped Scorpion's heart!
"Sakura, who's the opponent this time?" the Monkey King asked, arms crossed, his piercing eyes locked onto the two ahead.
"The Akatsuki."
Those three understated words ignited a surge of killing intent in the Monkey King. Whether on the concluded battlefield of the Land of Frost or the ongoing stalemate in the Land of Rivers, every Akatsuki member was on Konoha's kill list.
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