Shikamaru narrowed his eyes. "Naruto, where's Gaara?"
"They're fighting," Naruto said, pointing past the stone wall. Gaara was locked in combat with who looked like Uchiha Izumi.
"Izumi? Why would she fight her own ally?" Ino asked in confusion.
"No idea. He said Izumi had one of the pass tokens and went straight at her," Naruto replied, troubled.
"There are ten tokens. Why steal from one of us?" Ino muttered angrily. Growing up with the Ino–Shika–Chō trio had taught her the importance of teamwork.
"No… that's not Izumi," Shikamaru suddenly said, shaking his head as he stared in Gaara's direction.
The others followed his gaze. Standing opposite Gaara was someone with long black hair and glowing red eyes. Three tomoe spun in their Sharingan, copying Gaara's jutsu as streams of sand clashed midair.
Gaara's face was blank, the heavy black circles around his eyes making him look even more menacing. The "Ai" symbol on his forehead gleamed under the light.
The "Izumi" before him swayed unnaturally, her mouth twisting into a smile while the rest of her face remained stiff, almost puppet-like.
Naruto finally noticed the oddity. She didn't look alive—more like a doll.
Then Shikamaru spotted it. Fine threads of chakra extended from her body, nearly invisible.
"She's a puppet!" Shikamaru shouted.
Gaara immediately leapt aside. Kunai struck the ground where he had stood an instant before.
The puppet's disguise collapsed. Her skin aged in moments, wrinkling into something grotesque, her hair turning brittle like straw. Her body bristled with jagged spikes, and worst of all—her eyes.
Real Sharingan. Three-tomoe eyes embedded in a puppet's skull.
The sight stunned everyone. A puppet equipped with Sharingan—an abomination few could have imagined.
Sand gathered around Gaara, coiling protectively. The arena grew eerily silent. The puppet, now exposed, radiated even greater menace than before.
From its mouth, countless chakra threads spewed forth, lashing toward Gaara. His automatic defense repelled them with ease. At first glance, the attack seemed useless—until another puppet suddenly appeared at Gaara's flank.
The spikes on its head, arms, and torso extended in a blur, faster than Gaara's sand could react. Just two seconds slower than usual—but those two seconds mattered.
The endless barrage of threads had forced Gaara's sand into overwork. A flaw opened.
The puppet's spikes drove in, skewering Gaara's body in an instant.
But his form crumbled into sand, revealing his true self safely behind the puppet. With a surge, colossal sand hands erupted from the earth, seizing the puppet and crushing it to shards.
For a heartbeat, it seemed over.
But the fragments unraveled into chakra threads, surging at Gaara once more.
He leapt back to safety, regaining distance.
Shikamaru's brows knit tightly. "Unless we find the puppeteer, Gaara will stay at a disadvantage."
"Shouldn't we help him?" Ino asked worriedly.
"No need," Naruto grinned, baring his teeth. "He's got this."
(End of Chapter)
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