Testing the Waters

After leaving Sakura Haruno, Shino and Yugao set off as quickly as possible in the direction Sakura had indicated to support Sasuke.

Is it really a good idea for us to leave the kite there?

Throughout the journey, this question kept popping into Shino's mind.

Years of experience in the Anbu taught him one thing well: once a decision is made, don't easily go back on your word, because sometimes the price of going back on your word can be so heavy that it's unacceptable.

If you regret it now and have to turn back, it's better not to have left in the first place.

That's absolutely the worst choice.

However, there was one thing that really bothered him. Perhaps Yugao, who was charging at the forefront, didn't notice, but Shino glanced at the runes spreading across his enemy's body as he left. They exuded an evil aura, and were probably the enemy's Secret Technique.

He wasn't surprised that Orochimaru's subordinates possessed some mysterious Ninjutsu; his only concern was whether Sakura Haruno could handle them.

Admittedly, he initially trusted the girl completely. With her strength, dealing with those ninjas, whose highest rank was Special Jonin Grade, would be no problem for her, provided that the opponents did not have Secret Technique.

Dealing with enemies who possess Secret Technique is always one of the most troublesome things for ninjas.

The Shinobi World is vast and full of wonders. Some ninjas possess powerful Secret Technique or have bizarre effects, making it easy for even stronger enemies to be caught off guard and suffer unexpected defeats.

In fact, he didn't know that Sakura initially wanted them to stay there to hold off the enemy so she could go and support Sasuke. However, because she was worried that they didn't understand the Sound Four's Secret Technique, she changed her mind and stayed behind to let them support Sasuke.

However, now that things have come to this, Shino can no longer turn back. He can only choose to trust Sakura Haruno.

Having been teammates with this girl for two or three months, both Yugao and Shino saw things very clearly.

The team has been working on their synergy, and the coordination between Yugao and Shino has been deteriorating. However, Sakura is still only playing a ranged damage role and cannot fully utilize her abilities, and there are reasons for this.

This girl's entire Ninjutsu tactical system is designed around her individual combat. Using it in teamwork just looks awkward!

When working in a team, her combat power is barely even one-third of what it should be. Given the way the kite fights, if the two of them were still there, they would only be a hindrance.

"At least there's one piece of good news: Sakura is a well-rounded ninja," Shino consoled himself.

Shino and Sakura are both well-rounded ninjas. Such ninjas generally have few major weaknesses and are very well-suited for solo combat. Secret Technique are far more effective for them than for ninjas with unbalanced development. The most typical example of an unbalanced ninja is the Ino-Shika-Cho trio. They are incredibly powerful when combined, but each has fatal flaws when fighting alone.

However, Sakura's balance is far from Shino's.

Shino wasn't joking when he boasted about being an all-rounder in ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu.

Whether it's using Ninjutsu to suppress enemies in ranged attacks, using Taijutsu to fight opponents in close combat, or using Genjutsu to interfere with enemies and support teammates when they are entangled with them, he can do it all with ease.

They also possess remarkable stealth abilities.

Therefore, on the battlefield, he can not only attack and break through enemy lines, but also organize defenses, assist his teammates in killing enemies from time to time, and even has a knack for assassination and sneak attacks.

In terms of balance, Sakura is indeed far inferior to him.

As for Genjutsu alone, she has never studied it in depth.

In fact, Sakura does possess considerable talent for Genjutsu —both the Sakura of the original work and the Sakura here. The latter, due to her powerful mental strength, has an even stronger talent for Genjutsu magic than the one in the original work.

She didn't study Genjutsu much, partly because she was busy developing her Water Release and Ice Release and didn't have the time.

Secondly, there is a lack of renowned teachers.

You might not believe it, but an Elite Jonin with Three-Tomoe Sharingan almost never uses Genjutsu when fighting... That's right, Sakura wants her team leader, Kakashi Hatake!

This guy, in the original story, at least used Genjutsu when fighting Zabuza. But after she transmigrated to the Hokage world, something must have happened—she spent a whole year in Team Kakashi and never actually saw him use Genjutsu...

She specifically asked Kakashi about this, and the white-haired delinquent replied that he wasn't very good at Genjutsu!

Hmm~ After hearing this answer, Sakura Haruno stroked her chin and pondered for a long time.

Is this guy trying to scam his students again?

Kakashi certainly wouldn't stump his student on such a matter. It's just that the Hatake Clan is proficient in all Ninjutsu Taijutsu, but lacks expertise in Genjutsu.

Therefore, even though he possessed the Sharingan, he rarely used his Genjutsu abilities.

If the upper beam is crooked, the lower beam will be crooked too!

As Kakashi's student, Sakura has never received Kakashi's training in Genjutsu, so until now she only has the talent but not strong Genjutsu abilities.

Of course, if she wanted to learn Genjutsu techniques again now, it wouldn't be difficult. Her Chakra manipulation and strong mental power are both prerequisites for casting Genjutsu techniques.

However, at this point, Sakura has absolutely no interest in going through with this kind of thing anymore.

She already has her own combat system; adding a Genjutsu to it would only be icing on the cake.

However, considering the efficiency of time spent improving combat power, learning Genjutsu at this point is not a cost- Genjutsu option. She would rather spend her time developing her core Ninjutsu to stage two and three as soon as possible.

Of course, like most ninjas, they may not be proficient in Genjutsu, but they are very good at dispelling Genjutsu. Sakura is also very good at dispelling Genjutsu, thanks to her strong mental strength which gives her extremely high resistance to Genjutsu. At least in Team 7's sparring, Sasuke's Mitsudomoe Genjutsu had no effect on her.

Although Sakura didn't know that Sasuke's Genjutsu talent wasn't actually that high, using him as a benchmark wasn't really appropriate...

Overall, Sakura Haruno's resistance to Genjutsu is very high.

On Sakura Haruno's side of the battlefield.

The enemy has already concealed themselves, while she remains in the center of the battlefield, putting us at a disadvantage as the enemy is in the dark.

--At least that's what the Sound Ninja think.

"Our opponent is incredibly strong in both Ninjutsu and Taijutsu, so we must be extremely cautious and absolutely cannot show ourselves easily... I doubt any of you can withstand her Water Release or Taijutsu!"

In a secluded corner deep in the woods, Kidomaru whispered.

"We'll proceed according to the plan we used against Kimimaro. I'll probe, Tayuya, and Sakon will be the main attacker... As for you, Fatty, just watch from the sidelines according to the supplementary plan and don't cause any trouble."

"Although her Ninjutsu and Taijutsu are strong, we are currently in a favorable position and have the advantage! So, should we summon the giant spider?... No, the giant spider is too large a target and could easily be instantly killed by her Ninjutsu. Let's use this move to test the waters first!"

Believing he had the upper hand, Kidomaru launched his first attack:

"Secret Technique: Spider Sticky Gold!"

The metallic spider silk hardened in the wind, transforming into hundreds of sharp Kunai, which were shot out one after another by Kidomaru's six arms, creating a brief rain of Kunai in the air.

In the original story, this complex and continuous attack caused Neji a great deal of trouble, but in Sakura Haruno's current view—

"A boring trick."

She said coldly.

He did not use his usual Ice Release: Absolute Defense, nor did he employ any defensive Ninjutsu.

Simply by creating a layer of crystal-clear ice, it easily blocked all the incoming Kunai.

"She easily blocked the enemy's Secret Technique by only slightly using the power of her Kekkei Genkai..." This result not only surprised the Sound Ninja, but even Sakura herself was a little surprised. She originally just wanted to use the ice to block one wave of attacks, but judging from the unmoving ice surface, it seemed that it could withstand several more waves of attacks!

This is completely different from the original work, where Neji was beaten up after several waves of attacks! It's not that Neji weak, but rather that Taijutsu- type ninjas often face the predicament of being pinned to the ground and beaten up when they don't get effective cover or can't get close to the enemy.

No wonder ninjas are so enamored with the power of Kekkei Genkai... In that instant, she understood the thoughts of other ninjas and realized why the outside world's evaluation of her suddenly took a 180-degree turn after she mastered Ice Release.

However, in the heat of battle, she didn't have time to think about this topic in depth.

Instead, they focused their attention on the Sound Ninja's next wave of attacks.

The Sound Ninja seemed completely unconcerned about whether Kidomaru's harassment had any effect.

Following closely behind Kidomaru Kunai, five humanoid unidentified creatures, each Tayuya meters tall, appeared before Sakura.

It didn't look like a living thing; it seemed to be a summon made from a corpse. Its eyes and mouth were sewn shut, making it look quite disgusting.

From them, Sakura sensed a Chakra texture similar to that of Shikamaru's Secret Technique.

"It's a rudimentary application of Yin-Yang Release."

She discovered this from the mixed, murky Chakra sensed in her summoned creatures. The Yin-Yang Release technique is mysterious and powerful, and many Secret Technique —such as the family Ninjutsu of the Ino-Shika-Cho clans, and especially the Nara Clan's Shadow Possession Jutsu —bear some resemblance to Yin-Yang Release.

Because she has recently been learning a branch of Yang Release: Medical Ninjutsu, Sakura Haruno knows a little about Yin-Yang Release. She can roughly guess that these summoned creatures probably have some kind of special ability.

Judging from the texture of the Chakra, the effect wouldn't be very significant. It's clear that Tayuya's research on Yin-Yang Release is not thorough enough, wasting her Yin-Yang Release talent.

These incredibly strong, unidentified creatures, accompanied by Tayuya's flute music, leaped and swung their enormous spiked clubs as they charged towards the cat-faced ninja.

Like a signal, in Sakura's Chakra perception, another Sound Ninja was beginning to stir.

This time, it wasn't summoned creatures or Kunai that were deployed, but the real body... The cat-faced girl was informed of this by her keen Chakra senses.

"Oh, so you've finally decided to show yourselves, you mice..."

The girl, who had activated Cherry Blossom Impact, easily dodged the attacks of the summoned creatures and Kidomaru's arrow sneak attack, while sneering.

A mocking smile curled at the corners of her lips.

(A long chapter of 1000 words. ~Please recommend, comment, and add more chapters!~~)

(On Sunday, there was a recommendation on Sanjiang and the homepage, plus two recommendations in the anime/manga/game category. Four recommendations all at once, I'm so nervous... My usual Sunday bonus update.)