Uchiha Compound
Sakura watched, dumbfounded, as the handsome young man before her transformed into a tailed monster.
"So this is the power of the curse mark..." she marveled, sensing Kimimaro's rapidly escalating chakra.
"Cough... I'm gravely ill. I don't have long to live. It's my greatest regret that I can't become Orochimaru-sama's vessel. Now, the only thing I can do for Orochimaru-sama is to reduce the number of his enemies," Kimimaro said with devout fervor.
Hearing Kimimaro's words, Sakura lost any desire to reason with him. This kid was completely brainwashed by Orochimaru, the kind that couldn't be saved even if you dragged him back from the brink of death.
Kimimaro finished speaking, and bones erupted from his body, covering him completely. It was clearly a defense against Sakura's Storm Release.
Seeing this, Sakura raised her hand and fired a Storm Release laser beam at Kimimaro. He didn't even bother to dodge; he simply charged straight at Sakura.
The Storm Release struck Kimimaro, but it no longer dealt significant damage, merely leaving dents in his bone armor.
Sakura was slightly disappointed by the damage output. Storm Release shouldn't be this weak. Although Kimimaro's bone density was higher in Curse Mark Level Two, as fellow bloodline limits, the difference shouldn't be this significant.
However, Sakura didn't have time to dwell on it. Kimimaro had already reached her. His right arm was encased in bone, transformed into a spear-like shape.
Sakura dodged Kimimaro's thrusting spear with a sideways flip, landing on the ground. Kimimaro, having missed his target, plunged his spear into the swamp.
"Hehe..." Sakura chuckled inwardly. She immediately manipulated the swamp with the Earth Release-infused chakra in her feet, seizing Kimimaro's spear and dragging it downwards.
Kimimaro was momentarily stuck, his right arm's spear trapped by the swamp, rendering him immobile.
Without hesitation, Sakura rushed forward, clenching her right hand into a fist and throwing a monstrous-strength punch.
It was the perfect example of "forgetting the pain once the wound heals," as Sakura was now wincing in agony.
Just as Sakura's fist connected with Kimimaro's body, rows of small bone spikes erupted from his bone armor.
Although Sakura was injured by Kimimaro's bones, she also sent him flying with her punch.
Watching Kimimaro land, Sakura quickly controlled the swamp to make him sink further, until only his head remained above the surface. Only then did Sakura approach him.
"It's over. In my domain, you have no chance of winning," Sakura said, looking at Kimimaro, who was submerged up to his neck.
She extended a finger, and a Storm Release laser fired. This time, Sakura aimed for Kimimaro's eye. She refused to believe he could grow bones over his eyes. If she pierced his brain through his eye, Kimimaro was finished, no matter how strong he was.
Kimimaro looked up at Sakura coldly, not moving. Sakura's Storm Release laser entered through his eye and exited through the back of his head. Kimimaro's head slumped forward.
Seeing Kimimaro, now devoid of life, Sakura shook her head and prepared to leave. She had wasted so much time with him; she didn't know if Sasuke had been found yet.
"Dance of the Seedling Fern!"
Just then, a muffled voice came from underground. A bone spike erupted from the earth, thrusting towards Sakura. She quickly rolled to the side, but she was a step too late. The spike grazed her left calf, causing blood to flow freely from Sakura's fair skin.
But Sakura couldn't afford to tend to her wounds; more bone spikes were erupting from the ground, one after another.
Activating Lightning Release Chakra Mode, Sakura's speed increased instantly. She hurriedly moved towards the edge of the swamp.
But unexpectedly, as soon as Sakura tried to move outward, the bone spikes followed her like a shadow, blocking her path. She had no choice but to try another direction, but she was still blocked by the bone spikes.
The tables had turned. Sakura now understood the helplessness Kimimaro had felt when she forced him to "dance."
She dodged continuously within the forest of bones Kimimaro had created, but against the incredibly fast bone spikes that could attack from any angle, mistakes were inevitable.
A large bone spike that had emerged from the ground had a slender bone spear protrude from its surface while Sakura was positioned with her back against it, piercing Sakura straight through from behind.
"Damn it all to hell, stabbing me in the back!" Sakura cursed inwardly, but her hands didn't slow down.
"Ninja Art: Creation Rebirth!"
Sakura gripped the bone spear and snapped it with a forceful twist. Then, enduring the pain, she pulled her body free from the spear.
In the end, Sakura still disobeyed her master's orders, increasing the output of her Lightning Release Chakra Mode. She suddenly felt that her body didn't ache as much as the first time she had used it at this intensity. Was she gradually adapting...?
Then, Sakura dashed through the bone forest. The suddenly appearing bone spikes could no longer harm her. Perhaps Kimimaro had realized the spikes were no longer effective, or perhaps his battlefield was fully formed; the bone forest stopped expanding.
However, the bone forest now completely covered the swamp. The ground Sakura stepped on was a mixture of swamp and bone. Sakura's expression darkened as she looked at the completely transformed environment.
From the sky, the Uchiha compound had become a dense forest of white bones, particularly eerie under the moonlight.
Sakura surveyed the bone forest, but Kimimaro was nowhere to be seen. The forest was silent, save for the occasional whistling sound of wind passing through the bones, making the environment even more sinister.
Sakura tried cutting the bones with Storm Release, finding that the quality of this bone forest was average; it wasn't the density-enhanced type.
After destroying a portion of the bone forest with Storm Release, Kimimaro still didn't appear.
"Huh, no way. Did he disappear after using a big move?" Sakura was still in Lightning Release Chakra Mode, and she didn't dare deactivate it casually without seeing Kimimaro.
After wandering around for a while longer, still without seeing Kimimaro, Sakura decided to stop waiting. She would leave this bone forest. If Kimimaro still didn't intercept her, she would leave directly.
Looking at the outermost bones of the forest, Sakura couldn't help but be moved. The towering bones reached towards the sky, densely packed along the perimeter of Sakura's Swamp of the Underworld.
Sakura fired her Storm Release laser at the outermost bones, finding them exceptionally sturdy. She immediately understood; Kimimaro was trying to trap her, a battle of attrition. But since he wasn't showing himself, she didn't know what he was waiting for.
First, she needed to open a way out. Sakura increased her chakra output, testing if her Storm Release could pierce these bones.
The white laser struck the bone, and with the increased chakra output, the Storm Release soon pierced through.
This gave Sakura a deeper understanding of the law of conservation of energy from her past life.
When she had opened an exit large enough for one person, Kimimaro's form was still nowhere to be seen.
Stepping out of the bone forest, Sakura discovered numerous ninja outside. Tsunade-sensei, Kakashi-sensei, and many other unfamiliar ninja were there. Sakura finally relaxed, deactivating her Lightning Release Chakra Mode and Creation Rebirth.
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