A Fight to the Death

"The first one..."

Sakura slowly walked out of the house, coldly looking at the fallen Kirigakure missing-nin, and said indifferently. (Top Says)

The feeling of killing for the first time... was cold and numb. There was no uncomfortable feeling, no nausea, no panic. Having lived in the Hokage world for over a decade, Sakura was mentally prepared to be stained with blood. With enemies still lurking nearby, Sakura's entire focus was on the battle, leaving her little time to process the fact that she had already killed someone.

Killing was just a normal occurrence for ninjas.

"Come out! Or... do you want me to force you out?" Unconsciously, Sakura's voice had taken on a murderous aura. It was faint, but it felt unusually cold.

Sakura sensed only one enemy. Was there only one ninja left, or was the second ninja's hiding skills too good? Sakura decided to try to trick the enemy with words.

The experienced Kirigakure missing-nin from Kirigakure, of course, did not reveal themselves because of such a low-level trick; they simply used Ninjutsu in secret.

Water Release: Hidden Mist Technique!

The fog gradually condensed in the air, enveloping the open space outside the house in a white mist.

"You managed to take down Mizuyoshi, so you're not bad, you devil!" A voice, sometimes near, sometimes far, came from the air, elusive and undetectable by the mist.

"However, I'm far superior to Mizuyoshi... Let me show you the power of Silent Killing Technique!"

The sound seemed to be everywhere. A murderous intent permeated the mist, and even the air itself became chilling.

Sakura suddenly laughed. In her opinion, this enemy certainly had a grand entrance, but unfortunately, he had plenty of momentum but lacked the strength. Although the fog was thick and obscured the view, it did not contain Chakra and could not withstand Sakura's perception of Chakra, which greatly reduced the effectiveness of the Silent Killing Technique.

How incredibly foolish. Sakura silently commented. Either don't use the Hidden Mist Technique, or if you're going to use it, invest more, like Zabuza, injecting a large amount of Chakra to completely seal off the enemy's Chakra perception. What's the point of being so hesitant and reluctant to use even half of your Chakra? In fact, Sakura had already clearly sensed the location of the enemy who used the Hidden Mist Technique.

"Eight places..." It was the same old line, but this guy recited it with feigned mystery. "Which one do you want me to attack?"

When combined with Zabuza's murderous aura, these words could send chills down one's spine. But when this guy recited them verbatim, Sakura found it utterly ridiculous.

Sakura scoffed, "This farce should end now. I don't have time to play along with you!"

The enemy didn't move, probably misled by Sakura's fierce swordsmanship, thinking she was Taijutsu -type ninja! Hearing Sakura stay in place, he cleverly assumed she was deliberately bluffing him to move and expose an opening. However, in the ninja world, those who presume to judge their opponents often suffer a crushing defeat, and Sakura is not Taijutsu- type ninja!

Water Release: Super Water Gun Technique!

The mist concealed his location and also Sakura's movements... A thin stream of water shot into the depths of the mist, followed by a short scream. In Sakura's perception, the distant Chakra source shattered like a bubble!

The fog, having lost its Chakra support, quickly dissipated into the sunlight.

"The second one...!"

"Will you come out on your own, or should I ask you to come out...?" Sakura asked, looking at the empty space. However, after waiting for a long time, it seemed that all the enemies had been eliminated, and Sakura received no response.

Could it be that the other vague Chakra source she sensed earlier was just an illusion? Sakura waited silently for a moment, and seeing that no new enemies appeared, she turned around and went back into the house, bringing out Tsunami and Inari.

"It's not safe here anymore. I'll take you to hide first and then go support Kakashi. Don't wander off!" Sakura turned back to Tsunami as they walked out the door and gave her this instruction.

The attack came suddenly the instant Sakura turned around!

A figure covered in bandages suddenly emerged from the puddle in front of Sakura and lunged at her with incredible speed!

Success! The bandaged ninja was confident in his speed; at such close range, no one could possibly dodge his sneak attack! He could almost see the Kunai in his hand piercing the enemy's heart, just like all the enemies he had killed in the past.

"Die!" the bandaged man screamed madly!

No matter how strong a ninja is, no matter how sharp her sword or how powerful her Ninjutsu, once her heart is pierced, she will fall into the abyss of death! Relying on his talent for hiding so that no one can detect him and the super-fast sneak attacks he has learned through countless life-and-death battles, he has already killed many ninjas far stronger than himself. And this girl in front of him, who has mastered powerful swordsmanship and Ninjutsu, will be his next victim!

Thud! That was the dull sound of a sharp blade piercing flesh.

Sizzle! That's the sound of blood gushing wildly from the wound.

A thin water shield blocked the bandaged ninja's seemingly inevitable attack from Sakura's chest. The attacker stared in disbelief as such a swift strike proved utterly ineffective against the pale blue water shield, while the sturdy Kunai snapped in two!

Behind her, Tsunami suddenly transformed back into Sakura. As the attacker appeared, she plunged her sharp ice blade into the bandaged ninja's body. The blade pierced through the chest, and dark red blood gushed out from the shattered artery, staining the crystal-clear ice blade crimson before scattering in all directions. Bloodstains were left on the water shield and splashed into the Water Clone's emotionless, cold eyes!

Blood blossomed in the air. The bandaged ninja's life, at this moment, transformed into a giant crimson rose in the sky!

The bandaged ninja felt his life force and strength rapidly draining from his body along with his blood, his body slowly growing cold and numb. In his final moments, the bandaged ninja felt a deep sense of resentment and confusion! Why had his opponent blocked his attack with just a water shield? Why could the enemy sense his presence? Why were the ice blades so sharp, piercing his body instantly, killing him before he could even react? And why was the enemy's expression so calm?

But he no longer had time to ask.

The world has become so cold.

The bandaged ninja had lost the strength to pull out his ice blade. He laboriously stroked the ice blade that had taken his life, then with his last strength looked up at the enemy who had killed him.

Behind the water shield stained with blood stood the unharmed Sakura herself; the fierce battle had left not a trace of blood or dust on her. She simply stood there calmly, her pink hair and delicate face accentuated by her cold, emerald eyes silently watching him. The faint killing intent in her eyes made him feel as if he had been plunged into an ice cave, experiencing a chill to the bone!

Behind her was her Water Clone wielding a sharp blade. The bloodstains on her face and her stiff features created a grotesque, unpredictable expression. Her emotionless, transparent eyes coldly stared at him as she parted her lips and spoke softly.

"Your stealth skills are excellent, but they're not enough to kill me...!"

The light of life in the bandaged ninja's eyes quickly dimmed. His lips moved slightly, as if he wanted to say something more, but in the end, he only exhaled his last breath, lowered his head, and fell to the ground indifferently.

The third one!

Sensing that the last enemy's life force had been extinguished, the blood-soaked Water Clone scattered into a puddle with a whoosh. The battered ice blade fell to the ground, and without Chakra to maintain its form, the beautiful yet dangerous longsword shattered into countless ice shards.

Looking at the ninjas lying on the ground, Sakura was slightly surprised. It was so easy... With her Water Release and Nintaijutsu, Sakura certainly possessed the strength to overwhelm her opponents, but if this were before the mission to the Land of Waves, she would never have been able to defeat these three rather powerful ninjas so easily.

Having fought Zabuza and others, and undergone special training arranged by Kakashi, Sakura felt her combat power had reached a new level, even though her strength hadn't appeared to have improved much on the surface. Her deeper understanding of Chakra Nature Transformation gave her a wider variety of offensive methods, rather than relying solely on her Water Gun Technique, making her more composed and confident in battle.

After killing her enemy with her own hands, she felt the killing intent emanating from herself for the first time. It wasn't anything mysterious, just a special mental state, a state that was naturally activated under strong stimulation. It wasn't fundamentally different from the state she was in when she was completely focused on playing games in her previous life, except that it could affect the minds of others. Sakura could feel that when she was emitting killing intent, her body was more agile, her senses were sharper, her thinking was calmer and even ruthless, and she was more adapted to combat.

Taking a deep breath, Sakura confirmed that she had eliminated all the enemies. She turned around and saw the real Tsunami and Inari following another clone left behind by Sakura out of the house behind her.

"I have eliminated all the enemies, but just in case, you should still hide with my clone." Sakura said calmly, her killing intent still emanating uncontrollably, making her words cold and unquestionable.

"I left my clone with plenty of Chakra, enough to deal with the enemy, and Gato shouldn't send another wave of people to find you. Stay close to my clone; she'll take care of you."

Sakura gazed towards the bridge, as if she could see Kakashi and his two companions fighting Zabuza. She knew she had been held up by these three ninjas for a long time, and her anxiety grew. To Tsunami, who was standing nearby, Sakura's face, still burning with killing intent, remained indifferent, her eyes coldly fixed on the distance, her body standing straight, unharmed despite the fierce battle.

"Now, I must rush to their aid!"

Sakura glanced back at the two of them one last time, nodded slightly, and then turned and left.

Behind her, the cheers of Tsunami and Inari echoed in the wind. Sakura raised her hand, gave a cool thumbs-up, and then headed towards the bridge without looking back. Her figure blurred into a blur and disappeared from Tsunami and Inari's sight!