At the Konoha Village tournament grounds, sunlight poured down freely, illuminating every inch of the arena. In the center, pale green light surged like a living thing, swiftly enveloping Anko completely. It flowed like emerald, radiating a mysterious, uncanny aura.
Surrounded by the light, Anko felt a warm yet strange force wildly sucking something from within her, like a surging tide. At first came an indescribable stabbing pain, as though countless tiny needles were darting through her meridians. Every faint tremor struck her nerves like a heavy hammer, bringing unbearable agony.
"Ah!" Anko couldn't help letting out a pained groan. She clenched her teeth as beads of sweat instantly sprang from her forehead and soaked her clothes. The intense pain crashed over her in wave after wave, nearly drowning her consciousness and bringing her to the brink of passing out.
"How is this possible..." Anko summoned all her strength to force out a few words through gritted teeth. Her voice was hoarse and faint, as if every bit of vitality had been drained from her.
Through the torment, she could feel with absolute clarity that the Nuclear Radiation Energy inside her—the very thing that had once made her wish she were dead—was being gradually stripped away by an invisible giant hand. The one doing it was the strange green light Haotian had released.
The method behind this green light was nothing like any Medical Ninjutsu she knew. In all her past understanding of ninjutsu, she had never encountered such a wondrous and powerful force, one capable of dealing with a deadly poison inside the body so precisely and ruthlessly.
The sensation of being devoured was overpowering. Anko felt as though part of her very life force was being mercilessly drained away. Her body grew terribly weak, and emptiness clung to her like a shadow, as if all her strength had been wrung out. At the same time, though, she could truly feel the poison that had clung to her like a bone-deep curse rapidly fading. As it left her, the weakness of someone who had just escaped death slowly washed over her. She felt both relieved and utterly exhausted.
At last, the green light gradually faded like a receding tide. Haotian's expression remained calm as he slowly lowered his hands and looked down at Anko, lying on the ground with only a faint breath. The corners of his mouth lifted slightly, and his tone carried a hint of teasing. "Well, feeling any better? This is my Unique Secret Technique. Not everyone gets to experience it."
Anko struggled to raise her head, her eyes filled with a tangle of emotions. Relief at having survived flickered like a faint glimmer in her eyes, while anger at being toyed with burned like a raging fire in her heart. Deep confusion, too, clouded her thoughts like a veil of mist.
"You... just who are you?" Anko gritted her teeth and used the last of her strength to roar the words. Her voice brimmed with indignation and accusation.
Haotian merely shrugged, ignoring her question. He strolled over to Anko, bent down, and grabbed her by the back of her collar, as casually as if he were picking up a helpless little kitten. Then he dragged her toward the edge of the arena.
"You..." Anko felt she had suffered a grave humiliation, and her anger surged to its peak. But her weakened body wouldn't obey her; she was utterly powerless to resist and could only let Haotian do as he pleased.
She felt herself suddenly lifted by a powerful force. Then a rushing wind howled past her ears, raging like a demon's roar. The next moment, she was hurled away like a kite with its string cut, crashing heavily onto the ground outside the arena.
"All right, you've lost." Haotian brushed off his hands, his expression utterly unruffled, as if everything he had just done had been no more than a trivial matter.
In an instant, silence fell over the spectators. Everyone stood frozen in place, dumbstruck by what had just happened. Their eyes filled with shock and confusion. They simply couldn't understand how Haotian, who moments ago had been completely unable to fight back under Anko's control, had suddenly unleashed such immense power. Nor could they imagine how he had managed to cure Anko's poison in such an inconceivable way.
Obito stood among the crowd, his eyes wide with shock and indignation. His hands clenched into fists, his knuckles turning white with the force of his grip. "How is this possible? How could that guy beat Anko-senpai!" His voice was full of disbelief, as if the whole thing were some absurd nightmare.
In stark contrast to Obito, Guy leaped into the air, waving his arms with all his might as he shouted in admiration, "As expected of my opponent! You actually managed to do something like that! That was amazing!" Guy's face shone with excitement, his eyes brimming with admiration and praise for Haotian.
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