"I see."
Heavy words rumbled from the mouth of Enma, the Monkey King.
Sakura wasted no time with idle talk.
"Monkey King Enma: Adamantine Staff!"
As her words fell, a familiar golden staff materialized in Sakura's hand.
Uchiha Itachi had no intention of entangling himself with Sakura. At the sight of this, he turned to leave, but not before calling out to the Scorpion of the Red Sand, "Split up and run."
If Itachi wanted to take down Sakura, he'd have no chance without using Susano'o. Having already been outmaneuvered by Uchiha Hikari, it was questionable whether he could even summon Susano'o in his current state. And even if he could, he wouldn't go all out against the disciple of Hiruzen Sarutobi.
So, his decision was straightforward.
Run.
Scorpion was about to curse at Itachi. Even if this Sakura Haruno was formidable, the two of them together might still have a shot at taking her down. But when he turned, Itachi had already vanished into the night.
And at that moment, Sakura charged forward!
Scorpion let out a cold snort and immediately manipulated his puppets to control iron sand.
"Magnet Release: Iron Sand World Method!"
With Scorpion's furious shout, a mass of black iron sand coalesced, transforming into countless spiked branches that rapidly spread outward!
Sakura faced the onslaught without a hint of fear. Wielding the Adamantine Staff with ferocious grace, she swung it with such force that it shattered the iron sand branches reaching toward her, as if they were nothing!
Trying to clash head-on with the Adamantine Staff, transformed from Enma himself?
You'd need Orochimaru's Kusanagi Sword for that!
And trying to overpower Sakura in taijutsu while she wielded the Adamantine Staff?
You'd need Shigenobu Hatake to learn Tsunade's monstrous strength and wield Orochimaru's Kusanagi Sword!
With a fierce cry, Sakura brought the staff down, and countless black iron branches shattered instantly!
Leaping forward, Sakura swung the Adamantine Staff, smashing through one iron branch after another as she charged toward Scorpion!
Scorpion's lips pressed into a thin line, silent. This pink-haired menace, with her taijutsu, medical ninjutsu, monstrous strength, and indestructible Adamantine Staff, was practically his perfect counter.
With Itachi gone, Scorpion stood no chance alone.
His art…
Watching Sakura charge toward him like an unstoppable force, Scorpion, despite his resentment, could only face one reality.
His art was no match for this pink-haired girl!
With that thought, Scorpion tore off his black-and-red cloud cloak, revealing his puppet-modified body! Save for his left chest, his form was almost entirely devoid of flesh, his abdomen replaced by coiled steel cables, four scrolls strapped to his back, and two folded blades at his waist!
Getting serious now?
Sakura's eyes sharpened, undaunted, her speed unwavering as she closed in on Scorpion!
Scorpion raised both hands, aiming at Sakura. Gun barrels emerged from his palms!
Inferno Barrage!
A torrent of flames erupted from the barrels, the searing heat so intense that the surrounding grass withered and yellowed almost instantly!
Sakura swiftly formed hand seals.
Earth Release: Mud Wall!
Trained by Hiruzen Sarutobi, this Mud Wall was nothing like the dog-carved wall of Kakashi's. A towering barrier, nearly three stories high, rose from the ground in an instant!
Scorpion's expression tightened. This Mud Wall…
Truly worthy of the Third Hokage's disciple.
The white-hot flames slammed into the massive wall, but even a barrier of this caliber began to show signs of melting under the relentless assault of Scorpion's Inferno Barrage!
Then, from behind the wall, a dragon's roar echoed!
Using the Mud Wall as cover, Sakura unleashed the only Water Release technique she knew!
Water Release: Water Dragon Jutsu!
A colossal water dragon, dozens of meters tall, surged into the sky, its roar shaking the heavens!
Scorpion's heart sank. Before he could react, the water dragon lunged toward him!
Sakura leaped, landing atop the dragon's head!
Blue-pink chakra flames cloaked the Adamantine Staff, accompanied by the faint roar of a tiger!
Dragon roars and tiger howls merged, the sheer momentum terrifying!
Scorpion aimed his gun barrels at Sakura, who rode the water dragon toward him!
But with a flick of its tail, the dragon blocked the scorching flames!
Fire met water, and a cloud of steam enveloped the battlefield!
Activating the Heavenly Canopy Array, Sakura saw through the steam as if it were nothing. She swung the Adamantine Staff down at Scorpion!
At this critical moment, Scorpion's heart raced. In a desperate reflex, he opened the hatch on his right chest!
Secret Red Technique: Performance of a Hundred Puppets!
But even this technique couldn't stop Sakura's iron staff!
A single swing shattered Scorpion's body into pieces!
Yet the technique didn't end. Countless black shadows scattered in all directions!
Hm?!
Was his real body hidden in one of those puppets?
Realizing this, Sakura acted decisively. She planted the Adamantine Staff into the ground, and eight shuriken appeared in her hands!
With a twist of her body, she hurled them in all directions!
This wasn't the half-hearted attack she'd used against Sasuke. This was a full-force, all-encompassing assault!
Ninja Art: Shuriken Giantification Technique!
Ninja Art: Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique!
The shuriken, propelled by her monstrous strength, transformed from small blades into massive Fuma shuriken. The eight Fuma shuriken then multiplied into a sky-darkening storm, radiating outward from Sakura!
Trees were sliced apart, and boulders on the ground were smashed to dust!
Countless puppets were torn to shreds, reduced to broken parts scattered across the ground!
When the chaos settled, Sakura surveyed the wreckage, frowning.
Under the Heavenly Canopy Array, nothing living remained except her and the Adamantine Staff.
Clearly, Scorpion had escaped using his hundred puppets.
She was still too weak.
She needed to increase her strength.
The stronger she became, the faster her shuriken would fly. Then, even if someone escaped, they wouldn't outrun her blades.
The commotion had been massive, and soon a squad of ANBU arrived.
"Lady Sakura, are you alright?"
"What happened here?"
The ANBU captain surveyed the devastation with lingering unease.
"Nothing much. Just had a little run-in with two rats that snuck into Konoha."
Sakura walked over to the Kazekage puppet, which Scorpion hadn't had time to retrieve in his haste to flee. She picked it up and tossed it to the ANBU.
"This thing can use Magnet Release. Take it to the old man."
"And clean up the battlefield."
"Enma, go report to the old man. I've got things to do."
Without waiting for the ANBU or Enma, who had reverted to his original form, to respond, Sakura hurried toward the death row prison.
Enma watched her pink figure disappear, pursing his lips.
She used to call him "Lord Monkey King." Now it's just "Enma."
Would she start calling him "Old Monkey" next?
The ANBU gazed at the molten rock from the Mud Wall, the plowed earth, the barren forest, and the countless puppet parts, their hearts filled with awe.
Truly, the Sakura who killed the Fourth Raikage head-on…
Three minutes earlier
"Cough, cough…"
Itachi gently exhaled, dispelling the gloom in his chest. Hearing the distant dragon roars and tiger howls, he quietly made his way toward the Sarutobi residence.
Running into Sakura Haruno wasn't ideal, but it had given him the chance to shake off Scorpion.
Now he had an opportunity to rendezvous with Hiruzen Sarutobi.
With Sakura's abilities, there was no way she'd lose to Scorpion.
As for Scorpion?
At this point, he'd have to fend for himself.
The commotion was so loud that even if White Zetsu came to investigate, Pain wouldn't have much to say.
They were just unlucky, running into a pink-haired girl who wasn't asleep in the middle of the night.
With that thought, Itachi slowly walked away.
But a figure blocked his path.
Seeing who it was, Itachi's composure wavered.
This woman again?!
He'd barely escaped her, and now, because of the battle's commotion, she'd caught up to him?
"Heh, I thought it was some stray rat."
"Didn't expect it to be Uchiha Itachi, the one who slaughtered the Uchiha clan years ago~~~"
"You slipped away earlier, but it won't be so easy this time~~~"
Mizukage Mei Terumi leaned against a tree, arms crossed, sizing up the man before her with interest.
Itachi sighed inwardly.
Did he forget to check the almanac before leaving?
Was today an unlucky day to go out?
Before he could think further, Mei made her move!
"Boil Release: Skilled Mist Technique!"
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