Uchiha Clan Training Grounds.
Yamato stood casually across from Sasuke, resting a spiked club on her shoulder.
Sasuke's eyes glowed a deep crimson as he stared at her and said,
"I'm coming!"
Yamato lowered the club with a grin.
"Bring it on!"
Before her words even finished echoing, Sasuke used Body Flicker to appear right in front of her. But in front of a physical powerhouse like Yamato, his speed was nothing impressive.
Yamato didn't even bother to use her club—she simply smacked Sasuke across the face with her bare hand.
No matter how frantically his Sharingan spun, he couldn't dodge that simple, unadorned slap.
Smack!
From a distance, it looked like Sasuke had been swatted away like an insect, crashing hard into the stone wall of the training field.
And that was Yamato holding back. If she had used her full strength, Sasuke might have turned into a fine red mist right there on the spot.
Even so, it took him quite some time to crawl back out of the wall, staggering, clearly badly hurt.
Just then, Naruto and Black Zetsu arrived.
Seeing Sasuke's miserable state, Naruto immediately shouted in alarm,
"Sasuke!"
But Sasuke didn't even respond—he was still in shock.
Yamato's speed and raw power were beyond ridiculous. For a moment, Sasuke even wondered if she had learned Tsunade's monstrous strength.
Of course, even if Tsunade herself were here, she'd still get sent flying by Yamato's slap.
From that brief exchange, Sasuke already understood that in terms of taijutsu, he was completely outclassed. So, he gave up on physical attacks and started forming hand seals.
Yamato tilted her head curiously, watching him weave signs furiously—until he exhaled a massive fireball.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
"Oh? You can use flame techniques? But… isn't that fireball a bit small?"
Still standing in the same spot, Yamato took a deep breath and blew it out—snuffing the fireball in midair as if it were a candle flame.
Sasuke's jaw almost hit the ground.
A few wisps of fire still flickered around his lips as he stared blankly at her and muttered,
"You… you're a monster, aren't you?"
That comment clearly annoyed Yamato.
"Hey! That's rude! Watch your mouth!" she barked.
Gulp.
Sasuke swallowed hard—and so did Naruto on the sidelines.
Both of them were utterly stunned by Yamato's display of power.
Naruto muttered under his breath,
"She's insanely strong… just pure taijutsu was enough to beat Sasuke this bad. I can't even imagine what her ninjutsu would be like."
Watching Yamato dominate the field, Black Zetsu beamed proudly and said smugly,
"Well, of course. Do you even know whose student she is? I told you—if you don't keep an eye on them, Yamato could easily kill Sasuke by accident!"
Naruto stiffly nodded.
Given that kind of raw strength, even if he went full Tailed Beast Mode, taking one of her hits would still knock the wind out of him.
On the field, Sasuke glared fiercely at Yamato and activated a genjutsu.
But Yamato only looked momentarily dazed before brushing it off entirely.
The illusion had no effect.
Sasuke froze, completely dumbfounded.
Why hadn't it worked?
The reason was simple—Yamato didn't have even a trace of chakra in her body.
Even Itachi, the master of illusions, would have been helpless against her.
When the genjutsu failed, Sasuke suddenly ripped open his shirt, revealing his pale chest.
Yamato frowned slightly, unimpressed.
In her eyes, Sasuke was nothing more than a "skinny pup." Unlike the squealing girls of Konoha, she wasn't the least bit dazzled by the sight.
Instead, her thoughts drifted elsewhere—If Kaito did something like this…
Her lips unconsciously curved up, and a few beads of drool glistened at the corner of her mouth.
Sasuke, of course, had no idea that her mind had completely wandered off.
He'd only unbuttoned his shirt to activate his Cursed Seal.
Now that Orochimaru had "reformed," the mark had become a useful power-up for Sasuke—no need for Itachi's Totsuka Blade anymore.
Shrrk!
Two massive, bat-like wings sprouted from his back as his skin turned ashen gray.
Yamato blinked, thinking,
"Huh? Is he a Devil Fruit user? Looks like some kind of mythical Zoan type…"
With the Cursed Seal active, Sasuke's power skyrocketed. Confidence returned to his eyes as his wings flared.
He lunged forward again, lightning crackling from his palm—gray and sharp.
"Chidori!"
Yamato frowned. The sound was gratingly loud to her ears.
"Chidori!" Sasuke shouted again, thrusting his hand straight for her abdomen.
Yamato snorted and raised a hand.
Smack!
Bzzzzt!
The crackling of lightning echoed across the training ground, followed by Sasuke's cry:
"What!? How is this possible!?"
Yamato had simply grabbed Sasuke's wrist mid-attack—holding the Chidori in place—and then, with a flick of her arm, tossed him aside like a toy.
He flew straight toward Naruto.
Naruto managed to catch him, but Yamato's throw had too much force.
Even though he caught Sasuke, the impact sent both of them tumbling backward.
Still, thanks to Naruto's body cushioning the fall, Sasuke wasn't as badly hurt this time.
He pushed himself off Naruto and locked eyes with him for a moment—then flew right back toward Yamato.
Naruto got up, brushing the dust off his pants.
"What's with that look? It's not like I wasn't supposed to catch you," he muttered.
Yamato yawned lazily and waved a hand.
"That's enough for today. I'm getting sleepy. Zetsu, let's go."
Her attitude hit Sasuke like a dagger to the heart.
He was the one who had issued the challenge, and yet he hadn't even managed to touch the hem of her clothes.
As Yamato turned to leave with Black Zetsu, Sasuke shouted desperately,
"Don't go! The fight's not over yet!"
Yamato glanced back at him curiously.
"Huh? Do you really think there's any point in continuing?"
She wasn't mocking him on purpose—Yamato was just naturally blunt.
Aside from when she was around Kaito, she didn't hold back her words for anyone.
To her, Sasuke's strength simply wasn't on the same level.
Continuing the fight was pointless—she'd have to keep pulling her punches, or else, with that frail body of his, one serious blow might actually shatter him.
Yes, one punch.
After their first exchange, she hadn't even considered using her spiked club again.