Gaara tells Sasuke " This isnt you Sasuke Sasuke " in a sad way .
Sasuke just coldly said "That wasn't me either "
The moment Sasuke finished speaking, Gaara's eyes hardened.
Without another word, **waves of golden sand surged forward**, twisting like serpents toward Sasuke from all sides. The sand cracked the ground as it moved, enclosing the Uchiha in an instant.
Sasuke's right eye spun—the Mahoraga-style adaptation was already working. His body shifted, and with a burst of movement, he weaved between the sand attacks, avoiding them by inches.
"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"
Sasuke launched a rapid volley of fireballs to scatter Gaara's advancing sand. The heat dried it out mid-air, turning portions into crumbling glass—but Gaara countered instantly, reshaping the sand behind the fire and slamming it down like a hammer.
Sasuke jumped, flipping through the air, and swung his Chidori-charged blade downward, slicing the sand in half with crackling precision.
Gaara raised his hand, and a **sand spear shot upward from beneath Sasuke**, nearly piercing him mid-air—but Sasuke twisted, used Uchiha agility mid-spin, and landed upside down on the spear's tip for a second before launching off of it.
Their eyes met midair—Sasuke's Mangekyō glowing, Gaara's expression focused.
"Lightning Style: Thunder Snake."
From his blade, Sasuke unleashed a forked, serpentine lightning strike that sped along the sand toward Gaara like a viper.
Gaara calmly raised a shield of sand—but the lightning arced around it, aiming for his blind spot.
Boom!The attack collided with a dome of sand Gaara created just in time.
As the smoke cleared, **Gaara reemerged riding a sand platform**, arms crossed, calm as ever.
Sasuke dropped low, dragging his sword against the ground, building up chakra—sparks began to run along his cloak. With no warning, he burst forward at full speed, kicking up a shockwave as he appeared in front of Gaara midair.
Clang! Gaara created a sand shield just in time to catch Sasuke's strike, but the impact shook the air, shattering the top layer.
Sasuke flipped back, hands forming seals in an instant.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
The massive flame roared forward, consuming the battlefield. Gaara's sand rushed upward, forming a spinning spiral to contain the blast—but this time, Sasuke's real attack came from behind the flame.
He appeared behind Gaara mid-jump, blade coated in lightning once more
"This is it,"Sasuke muttered.
But Gaara's instincts flared—sand exploded upward from below, throwing him backward just in time to evade the deadly arc of Sasuke's sword.
Both landed several feet apart, breathing lightly, neither with a scratch—but the terrain between them was torn, scorched, and cracked.
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