Zabuza smirked, though his eyes remained serious. He had figured it out—none of these kids today were simple opponents. No wonder Kakashi hadn't seemed worried earlier.
"Overpraised," Sasuke Uchiha said flatly, sheathing his tanto behind his back once more. Although he hadn't started learning sword techniques for very long, perhaps due to natural talent, in just over a month his skills had already improved dramatically.
"Naruto Uzumaki, create some Shadow Clones to protect our client. Today, we'll test our strength properly!"
"Understood!"
At Sakura Haruno's words, Naruto Uzumaki gave a quick reply. Three Shadow Clones took their places beside Tazuna while the real three moved forward to face Zabuza.
"Konoha genin: Sakura Haruno, Naruto Uzumaki, and Sasuke Uchiha, present for battle!"
Sakura Haruno tightly gripped Starlit Night, Sasuke Uchiha wielded the tanto named White Fang by Kakashi, and Naruto Uzumaki held two trident-shaped kunai in his hands. Faintly engraved on the handles was the inscription "Blade of Ninja Love."
Chapter 136: White Fang vs. Motoi (Continued)
"These three whelps do have some guts!" Zabuza remarked—it was rare for three mere genin to stay calm facing him.
"Your praise honors us," Sakura Haruno lightly replied. As soon as the last syllable left her lips, she charged forward. Starlit Night slashed upward from below, but Zabuza easily dodged aside.
"Though your courage impresses me, you still won't be leaving here alive," Zabuza sneered, his Cleaver Sword clashing against Sasuke Uchiha's White Fang tanto. "Or...you can betray the village, become rogue ninja, and work under me—I might spare your lives then."
"Don't talk so tough!" Naruto Uzumaki rushed forward, launching a Leaf Whirlwind kick. However, Zabuza simply adjusted his sword's angle, letting the blade slice across Naruto Uzumaki's chest.
"Poof!"
The Naruto Uzumaki struck by the blade dispersed into smoke—he was merely a Shadow Clone used for reconnaissance. Years of training with Kakashi hadn't been wasted; Naruto Uzumaki had long abandoned the foolish tactics shown in his early days, knowing better than to charge head-on without testing first.
In the ninja world, battles usually unfolded this way—first testing with clones, then finishing with kunai, shuriken, or close combat. At times, techniques like [Tailed Beast Ball], [Tailed Beast Rasengan], [Indra's Arrow], [Enhanced Shinra Tensei], [Complete Tailed Beast Transformation], or even [Susanoo] might also come into play—and overall, that was about standard.
"Shadow Clone? A pretty common tactic!" Zabuza chuckled lightly. He'd seen countless such probing moves during battles, so nothing surprising or strange occurred to him now.
"If it works, who cares if it's common?"
Sakura formed a few simple hand seals with her left hand, and a layer of water-element chakra instantly covered Starlit Night's blade.
"Watch out!"
She called out to Zabuza verbally, but without hesitation, swung the sword downward. Feeling danger, Zabuza immediately stepped back. The edge of Starlit Night's blade sliced through the air, grazing his clothes and tearing off a piece of the hem.
"This is… Chakra Nature Transformation?"
Zabuza's eyes narrowed in disbelief. The way Sakura was manipulating chakra was almost unfathomable—he thought only Jonin-level ninja could pull off Chakra Nature Transformation!
"That's right," Sakura explained calmly. "Water-element Chakra Nature Transformation. I've focused my water chakra onto the blade and made it spin rapidly along its edge. This high-speed rotation greatly boosts its cutting power. And because the chakra rotates so fast, contact with anything creates a tearing effect similar to a typhoon. Though honestly, this technique would probably be more effective with a staff than a sword—but as long as there's enough chakra, it still works."
She gave a brief explanation. Although water chakra wasn't the best fit for weapon-based nature transformation, she didn't have much of a choice at the moment. She hadn't unlocked her innate wind-natured chakra yet, so she had to make do with what she had.
"To master Nature Transformation at your age? That's seriously impressive!" Zabuza couldn't help but admire both Sakura's skill and raw potential. For someone who'd just graduated from the academy to reach this level? Truly amazing.
"You flatter me," Sakura said with a modest smile. Truthfully, though, reaching this level wouldn't have been possible without the Power Stone—the effect of its flawless energy control was simply terrifying.
"Won't you reconsider my earlier offer?" Zabuza pressed again. "With your talents, you won't grow further in a peaceful place like Konoha. Only by following me can you develop faster and avoid wasting your precious gifts."
"I'm afraid we'll have to disappoint you, bandage-guy," Sakura shrugged lightly. "We have no intention of becoming rogue ninjas." There was no way she wanted to live like a drifter, constantly on the run. Why on earth would she defect and follow Zabuza when Konoha had never wronged her?
"Are you worried about that guy Kakashi Hatake trying to stop you?"
Even while fending off Sakura and her teammates' attacks, Zabuza still found time to speak. "As long as you're willing to defect with me, together we can ensure he stays down permanently. Then, once we stage the scene, we'll help you vanish completely—no one will ever know you used to be Konoha ninjas."
"Although Kakashi-sensei is a loafing-around guy who's always reading questionable novels in front of his students and never arrives on time," Sakura's words made Kakashi break out in cold sweat. Luckily for him, though, she suddenly shifted tone at this point and continued, "But honestly, I think Kakashi-sensei is actually pretty great. He's never done anything to betray us, and we've long since come to regard him as family. You should forget about that little offer of yours!"
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