Yanluo Bridge, Border of Land of Grass / Land of Rain - Mid-November, Konoha Year 60
Conflicts between nations often breed hostility among civilians towards their declared enemies. But here, on the border between the Land of Rain and the Land of Grass, people viewed war differently. To them, war had always been a brutal affair waged between ninja villages, not the distant disputes of Daimyo. The relationship between the hidden villages and their respective Daimyo was one of peers; war was initiated by shinobi, fought by shinobi, and its devastating consequences, the cruelest impacts, were borne by the common people caught in the crossfire. Here, resentment towards shinobi often outweighed any national enmity.
Therefore, Yanluo Bridge was meant to be a symbol of peace and connection between the people of the two bordering lands. But now, the bridge was thick with killing intent. A young girl, kunai held ready, was trapped in the center, surrounded by a group of ninja bearing the headband of Amegakure. Even the dense fog swirling across Yanluo Bridge seemed to hang heavy, flowing sluggishly, affected by the tense atmosphere.
"Looks like you have no intention of letting me leave, Hanzo!" Haruno Sakura assessed her situation, cursing inwardly. If I survive this, I swear I'll never act so impulsively again. Although Hanzo was legendary, his strength immense, she wasn't entirely hopeless. Hanzo's current condition was clearly compromised. His presence was still immense, yes, but his breathing was ragged and uneven, his complexion pale. He must have recently survived a fierce battle.
As a medical-nin, Sakura could read Hanzo's state clearly. This was her opportunity. However, while Hanzo wasn't at his peak, he still had numerous elite guards. These ninja, while individually weaker than Sakura, were dangerous when coordinating. Against one, maybe two, she'd be fine. But counting them now… besides Hanzo, eleven guards remained. Twelve opponents in total, including Hanzo himself.
If she tried to escape, the guards would be the greatest hurdle. She'd need to eliminate at least half of them first just to create an opening. Instantly, Sakura assessed the battlefield, calculating her odds.
Hanzo leveled his distinctive kusarigama, the tip aimed squarely at Sakura. "Whether Danzo sent you or not is irrelevant. Your life ends here today. You have only yourself to blame for your foolish meddling."
With a sharp wave of his hand, Hanzo signaled his guards. The eleven Rain ninja converged on Sakura simultaneously. Reacting instantly, Sakura activated her Lightning Cloak, weaving through the coordinated assault, dodging kunai thrusts and water techniques.
They were Hanzo's elite guards, after all. Although she'd taken one out with a surprise attack in the dim cavern earlier, these eleven were alert and prepared now. Their teamwork was impeccable. While Sakura was individually stronger, faster, facing such a coordinated assault was extremely perilous.
It wasn't that she didn't want to use her Storm Release offensively to counterattack, but she held back. The relentless day-and-night pursuit had already drained much of her energy and focus. Although the brief respite and the soldier pill had helped her regain some chakra, Hanzo himself remained the primary threat, lurking, waiting. She needed to preserve her remaining chakra for the inevitable confrontation with him. Therefore, she had to neutralize the guards with minimal chakra cost. Otherwise, even if she defeated all eleven, she'd have little chance of escaping Hanzo's pursuit.
Dodging another guard's slashing attack, Sakura surged the output of her Lightning Cloak, gritting her teeth against the familiar agony the technique inflicted. Moving twice as fast as before, she delivered a devastating punch towards the attacking ninja.
The guard hastily brought up his weapon – a short sword – horizontally across his chest to block. But Sakura's strike was imbued with her Monster Strength Fist. The sword shattered into dust upon impact. The force of the blow, undiminished, slammed into the Rain ninja's chest. A fine mist of blood sprayed into the air as he was thrown backward violently. Blood poured freely from beneath his mask as he landed brokenly, unmoving. Though his chest still showed the faintest rise and fall, he was grievously wounded; without immediate medical attention, he would certainly perish.
Hanzo watched Sakura's punch, his pupils contracting slightly. In the poor lighting of the cave, he hadn't clearly seen how she'd dispatched the first guard. Now, though the sky was overcast, the visibility here was better. Seeing the sheer destructive power of that punch brought Tsunade vividly to Hanzo's mind.
That battle during the Second Great Shinobi War was still fresh in his memory. Those three young Konoha ninja challenging him… Despite the disparity in power, their coordination allowed them to hold their own against him. In the end, he had granted them the title of Konoha's Legendary Sannin. And later, as expected, all three forged legendary reputations.
Hanzo possessed the strength then to eliminate all three. But killing them would gain Amegakure nothing, only earn them a powerful, vengeful enemy. Amegakure was perpetually a pawn in the Great Nations' power struggles, fundamentally because it lacked leadership strong enough to repel foreign powers. Back then, Hanzo cherished the ambition of saving his homeland, and making powerful enemies was counterproductive to that goal. So he let the three young ninja live, granting them the Sannin title, hoping his own formidable power combined with this display of calculated magnanimity would earn the Land of Rain a measure of influence in the power plays between the Great Nations. To some extent, it worked. His fearsome reputation garnered grudging respect, and the major villages vied for alliances with Amegakure. That had been the zenith of his power and influence.
Thinking back on those days, contrasting it with his current plight, a shadow of weariness and bitterness crossed Hanzo's eyes. Ultimately, one could not withstand the ravages of time. His noble ambition to change the Land of Rain had been eroded, year by year. Power, pragmatism, survival… Hanzo had forsaken his original ideals, replaced now by ruthless self-interest as his only remaining creed. Looking at Sakura ahead, seeing the striking resemblance to a younger Tsunade in her stance and power, Hanzo felt none of his former capacity for strategic mercy. His eyes narrowing, he drew the kusarigama that had served him for many years, its wicked blade gleaming with a chilling, ominous blue sheen – poison. Then, forming a seal with one hand, he disappeared in a flicker of movement.
Sakura, weaving through the attacks of the remaining guards, suddenly felt a prickle of intense danger run down her spine, the hairs on her arms standing on end. Her pupils constricted. An overwhelming sense of crisis washed over her. Instinct screamed: dodge instantly, or die. But attacks were coming from front, back, left, right – dodging in any single direction meant being hit by another.
In that split second of crisis, Sakura had no time to weigh options. She struck out preemptively at the attack coming from the front, leaping backward simultaneously. She heard a sharp tearing sound – Puchi! – as another guard's weapon slashed across her back. A flicker of pain crossed her face, but also a surge of grim relief.
Where she had stood a moment before, the long-haired ninja with the breathing mask – Hanzo – appeared, his kusarigama slicing through empty air. The ominous blue coating on the blade's edge made Sakura break out in a cold sweat.
Poison. Right now, she only possessed a few soldier pills. She hadn't brought any antidotes on this mission, never anticipating needing one. Although the Mystical Palm Technique's extraction ability could neutralize poisons, it demanded time and considerable chakra – luxuries she didn't have mid-battle. A prepared antidote was infinitely preferable.
"Not bad, brat," Hanzo commented, showing no disappointment that his blow had missed. Perhaps, Sakura mused fleetingly, landing the blow so easily would have disappointed him.
"Heheh," Sakura scoffed defiantly, buying precious seconds. "Finally decided to deign to fight yourself? The so-called 'Demigod' of the Shinobi World isn't so impressive after all, using numbers against a single opponent. Truly pathetic!" She knew Hanzo had marked her for death; there was no reason to hold back her scorn now.
Hanzo, a legend for decades, wasn't baited so easily. He regarded her coldly. "That is the way of the samurai. Hasn't your master taught you the way of the ninja?"
"My master is a medic-nin," Sakura retorted, unsure what Hanzo was playing at but glad for the chance to secretly recover a sliver more chakra.
"Just as I thought," Hanzo nodded, his eyes sharp. "Your master is Tsunade, one of Konoha's Legendary Sannin, isn't she." His tone turned colder still. "There's nothing more to say. Since you have seen my face today, your fate is sealed. You must die."
Hanzo was currently being hunted for the consequences of his past actions. He had no patience for games with this Konoha girl, but neither could he afford to let her leave alive. In his old age, Hanzo had developed a paranoid obsession with his own safety, bordering on the pathological. Aside from his most trusted guards, anyone granted an audience had to be disarmed and thoroughly searched. Now, while fleeing for his life, encountering a shinobi from another village – especially Konoha – was a potential threat he would never tolerate.
As the words left his lips, Hanzo lunged forward. His signature kusarigama technique lashed out – the chain whipping first, followed instantly by the deadly scythe blade. The scythe screamed towards Sakura. Her pupils mirrored the reflection of the oncoming blade, growing rapidly larger.
Sakura desperately twisted in an evasive dodge, trying to escape the ghostly fast scythe. But ultimately, she was a fraction too slow. Schlick! The sound of tearing fabric. The scythe grazed her abdomen. Blood instantly blossomed on her clothes, quickly turning an ominous black where it touched the blade's edge.
Sakura's head swam dizzily, her vision starting to blur at the edges. Powerful neurotoxin. She bit down hard on her tongue, fighting desperately to retain consciousness.
No antidote. Only one option remained. The consequences were severe, but she couldn't afford to hesitate now. Her hands flew through seals. The intricate diamond marking on her forehead vanished instantly. Dark, intricate markings snaked out from that point, spreading rapidly across her entire body.
"Yin Seal: Release!"
"Ninja Art: Creation Rebirth!"
Until now, Sakura had only ever used the Yin Seal via the Strength of a Hundred Seal technique, releasing controlled amounts of chakra to augment her own abilities. The times she'd unleashed the seal completely, releasing all stored chakra at once, were extremely rare. The confrontation with Orochimaru during the Chunin Exams in the Forest of Death was one instance. Now was the other.
An overwhelming tide of chakra surged through Sakura's body. The falling rain hissed into steam around her, repelled inches away by the sheer force of her released energy. The poisoned gash on her abdomen sealed instantly, leaving smooth skin behind. Her vision snapped back into sharp focus.
She had used Creation Rebirth's incredible regenerative power to forcefully neutralize the poison's effects – for now. But the inevitable consequences were stark: her lifespan would be significantly shortened, and… the chakra stored in her Yin Seal was now dangerously depleted.
This truly was her last resort. Failure meant death. Sakura had no aces left up her sleeve.
Hanzo watched the sudden eruption of astonishing chakra, the black markings spreading across her skin. He immediately recognized the legendary technique but remained largely unfazed. Ninja are never defined solely by ninjutsu and raw chakra metrics.
Then, Hanzo pulled off his respirator mask. Kusarigama held ready, he moved to attack again. Seeing Hanzo discard his mask, the ten remaining Ame guards immediately fell back, giving their leader clear fighting room.
Though rain continued to fall, the air began to fill with an ominous purple mist, emanating strangely from Hanzo's own unmasked breaths.
Sakura had neutralized the immediate poison threat, and her wound was fully healed. She'd intended to deactivate Creation Rebirth immediately to focus her remaining chakra purely on speed enhancement. But seeing the toxic purple mist emanating from Hanzo's very breath, she recalled Tsunade's briefing: Hanzo's signature weapon was his deadly poison. He wore the respirator constantly because his very breath was toxic; he never removed it except in dire circumstances, to prevent poisoning even his own allies.
No other choice. She couldn't risk deactivating Creation Rebirth now; she'd be poisoned again instantly by the ambient mist. Without hesitation, Sakura narrowly evaded Hanzo's incoming scythe strike, then immediately used escape techniques to flee into the distance.
Releasing the Yin Seal was for survival, not for engaging Hanzo in a potentially fatal battle of attrition. Even if she somehow managed to defeat Hanzo now, she estimated she would be completely exhausted, leaving her vulnerable to the ten remaining guards she certainly couldn't handle in that state.
The immense chakra reserves unlocked by the Yin Seal granted her unprecedented speed, but chakra didn't equate to limitless velocity; her physical limitations were still the ultimate constraint.
Hanzo saw the fleeing ninja but didn't give chase personally. Instead, he bit his thumb and formed seals.
"Summoning Technique!"
Poof! With a huge cloud of smoke, Hanzo's giant salamander summon, Ibuse, materialized beneath his feet. Hanzo commanded the summon to pursue in the direction Sakura had fled.
Feeling the ground tremble with Ibuse's thunderous pursuit, Sakura glanced back and instantly felt her hairs stand on end. Salamander might have 'fish' in the name… but what kind of fish has four legs and runs this fast on land?! Two legs inherently held a speed disadvantage against four, especially considering the colossal size difference. One stride of the giant salamander covered a hundred of hers. Until she reached a level where sheer size truly didn't matter, Sakura had no easy way to counter such massive summons.
Watching Hanzo and Ibuse gaining rapidly behind her, a chilling wave of despair washed over Sakura.
She skidded to a halt, whirling to face her pursuer, a look of grim determination hardening her features. Can't escape. Then fight. Maybe there's still a chance.
"What, giving up on running?" Hanzo regarded her from atop the giant salamander, his expression impassive, cold.
"Heh." A defiant smirk touched Sakura's lips. "Hanzo, you may hold the title of 'Demigod', but don't think you can take me down so easily. Your strength is legendary, I admit; under normal circumstances, I'd stand no chance against you. But..." She formed the Ram seal, meeting his gaze challengingly. "I suspect those injuries you recently sustained aren't fully healed yet, have they?"
"More than enough for you," Hanzo replied flatly, then signaled his summon to attack.
Ibuse opened its massive maw, vomiting forth a dense cloud of suffocating purple poison mist. Watching it billow towards her, Sakura scoffed internally. Even poison gas follows basic physics. She quickly shifted her hand seal from Ram to Serpent.
"Water Style: Water Formation Wall!"
Instantly, a swirling, dome-shaped barrier of water materialized around Sakura, shielding her completely. Mist, by its nature, couldn't permeate a solid water barrier.
Seeing Sakura create the Water Formation Wall, Hanzo gave a slight, almost imperceptible nod. Clever. Resourceful. But while the mist was blocked, she was trapped inside. Still naive.
Hanzo produced several exploding tags, affixing them to kunai tips, then hurled them towards the water barrier. BOOM! BOOM! The water wall shattered violently under the explosions. Sakura was revealed again, now exposed, looking worse for wear.
"Heh. Is that the extent of your tricks?" Hanzo mocked. He leaped down from the salamander, appearing in an instant before Sakura, who was still recovering on one knee. His kusarigama swung down in a deadly arc.
And Sakura seemed frozen in fear, simply watching the blade descend, unmoving. Hanzo looked at her seemingly paralyzed form, and suddenly sensed something was amiss. A clone? But her immense chakra signature couldn't be replicated by a simple clone. No, it's her.
Despite a flicker of doubt, his attack didn't slow. Just as the scythe was about to cleave Sakura in two, the sensation of extreme danger prickled Hanzo's senses again. He twisted violently aside—
"Pfft!"
In his prime, uninjured, Hanzo would have easily evaded the attack. But aged and wounded, he couldn't completely avoid the ambush from behind.
A chakra energy body identical in form to Sakura materialized behind him, its arm reshaped into a sharp blade, lancing directly towards Hanzo's heart. Because of his last-second evasion, it only managed to slice deeply into his arm, leaving a searing wound that emitted the smell of burnt flesh from the intense heat of the chakra blade.
Seeing her ambush had failed to kill, Sakura immediately leaped back, taking position beside her Storm Release clone, facing Hanzo together.
Damn it! Actually, regarding the poison mist earlier, she hadn't strictly needed the Water Formation Wall; Creation Rebirth was actively nullifying poisons. However, seeing the dense purple mist, she'd recognized an opportunity. While water blocked the gas, the gas would obscure vision within the water barrier, creating cover for her clone's stealthy approach. She'd held back her Storm Release until now; since Hanzo knew she was Tsunade's disciple (associated with medical ninjutsu and strength), he wouldn't possibly suspect she also possessed a Kekkei Genkai like Storm Release. She'd hoped to ambush him effectively, potentially end the fight instantly. But alas, she didn't have smoke bombs to create her own cover, so she'd seized upon the poison mist.
Yet still, she'd fallen short agonizingly close to success. No other choice now. The opportunity for a decisive sneak attack was lost. Only a direct confrontation remained. Sakura's eyes hardened with grim determination. She had created some distance earlier; the pervasive poison mist had likely deterred Hanzo's guards from immediate pursuit. And although the ambush hadn't succeeded fully, Hanzo wasn't unscathed. His strength has definitely waned.
Life or death. Sakura braced herself. It all comes down to this.