Sakumo vs. Chiyo

In the blink of an eye, the night had passed, and they returned to the combat platform.

Uchiha Yato was once again serving as the dazzling referee and commentator.

Uchiha Yato said directly, "Following yesterday's discussion, there will be no card-drawing segment today."

"Today, Konoha's White Fang will face Chiyo."

Though this had been discussed beforehand, hearing it announced aloud was still rather shocking.

In the hearts of some civilians, Konoha's White Fang was a hero who had protected the village. They viewed him through an extremely flattering lens.

Hiruzen Sarutobi had far fewer smiles on his face than he had yesterday.

As the Hokage, he could have selfish motives, but there were times when he had no choice.

That so-called secret order from Danzo Shimura had actually been issued by Hiruzen Sarutobi himself.

The reason was, of course, that Hiruzen Sarutobi had also sensed how Sakumo Hatake's reputation threatened him.

Danzo Shimura knew Sand Shinobi's stance, so his plan today was simple: sit back and watch the tigers fight.

As Sakumo Hatake and Chiyo entered the arena, the atmosphere around the combat platform reached its peak.

Countless spectators and members of the exchange delegation shouted and cheered, while only a small number of Sand Shinobi higher-ups remained nervous.

Earlier, Chiyo had already explained matters to everyone as though she were arranging her final affairs.

There was no helping it. Pakura, another female ninja, had privately tried to persuade her many times, but Chiyo's attitude was resolute.

It could only be said that this battle had drawn the attention of many powerful figures. In a sense, it was a different kind of contest—not only to determine the victor, but also life and death.

Neither of them chose to say much. At this point, any words they exchanged would have been pale and meaningless.

Chiyo made the first move, immediately deploying the Chikamatsu Ten Puppets she was most proud of.

Without any flashy tricks, she directly controlled four puppets and sent them attacking Sakumo Hatake.

Sakumo Hatake also showed Chiyo the respect she deserved, gripping his short blade and charging straight at the three puppets rushing toward him.

Chakra coated the short blade, making its edge even sharper.

Sakumo Hatake could also channel chakra through the blade and swing out fierce arcs of sword energy.

In close combat, he could wrap this white sword energy around the blade, increasing both its sharpness and its reach.

When he needed ranged attacks, he only had to release the sword energy from the blade to strike from afar.

Faced with the four puppets that had immediately moved in to harass him, Sakumo Hatake easily dealt with them through his footwork and by extending the length and sharpness of his short blade.

But Chiyo had far more than just that up her sleeve. Before long, she combined three puppets once more.

Then she called out the name of her technique—Three Treasures Suction Crushing.

A massive tornado generated by the three distant puppets continuously assailed Sakumo Hatake, constantly disrupting his movement.

Sakumo Hatake truly lived up to his Kage-level strength. The instant he reacted, he immediately withdrew and used ranged sword energy to intercept it.

He also widened the distance between them to avoid being sucked into the tornado by the three puppets.

There were ten puppets on the field in total. Four were fighting at close range to interfere with Sakumo Hatake, while three were using tornadoes from afar to draw him in.

Another two puppets stood beside Chiyo, protecting her from any underhanded moves Sakumo Hatake might attempt.

After confirming the number of puppets, Sakumo Hatake realized that one puppet was missing.

Chiyo gave Sakumo Hatake no time to think. The final hidden puppet had been lurking in the shadows, waiting for an opportunity to assassinate him.

Chiyo seized the instant Sakumo Hatake was distracted and immediately fired two poisoned shuriken at him.

Sakumo Hatake escaped that dangerous situation by sacrificing a Substitute.

Sakumo Hatake did not hold back either. After once again coating his blade with Lightning Release chakra—

the sword energy turned blue, crackling with lightning as it attacked.

Unlike before, when this sword energy struck a puppet, it directly shattered one of the puppet's arms.

It did not merely leave a wound as before; the entire arm was blown apart.

This made Chiyo regard Sakumo Hatake even more seriously. The initial four puppets began taking turns attacking, doing their utmost to disrupt Sakumo Hatake's offense.

The three puppets assigned to ranged attacks also kept closing the distance with Sakumo Hatake.

Sakumo Hatake shouted, "Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall."

Solid earth rose up like the dog-head walls Kakashi made.

And it was not just one wall—it divided the entire combat platform.

Whatever else could be said, such a battle was incredibly satisfying to watch. To genin and some recently promoted chunin, it was even more spectacular.

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed inwardly as well. If Sakumo Hatake had not truly threatened his position as Hokage, he would not have resorted to such a desperate measure.

Just then, a sudden change occurred on the field.

The Chikamatsu Ten Puppets, which had previously been attacking with tremendous ferocity, had already had four puppets shattered by Sakumo Hatake's sword energy.

This also made Chiyo understand why her son's puppetry had been defeated by the White Fang.

At present, Chiyo could only rely on her advantage in puppet numbers to gain the upper hand.

The puppet that had been carrying out assassinations also emerged into the open, using poisoned concealed weapons of various kinds to interfere with him.

Only by fighting so dangerously was she able to maintain the current deadlock.

Of course, Chiyo's advantage was that she could free up more fingers to precisely control the remaining six puppets.

This also slowed Sakumo Hatake's attacks. After all, if those poisoned ninja tools so much as grazed his body, the consequences could be fatal.

Ninjas were all high offense and low defense. No matter how powerful a jonin was, they would still die if their heart was pierced.

In this stalemate, Sakumo Hatake moved first.

The lightning in his hand flowed along the blade and was flung outward.

But this time, it was countless times brighter than before.

Chiyo did not choose to evade. Instead, she brought out a defensive puppet to block the attack, stopping the blow at the cost of destroying that defensive puppet.

Sakumo Hatake's assault did not stop. He switched to thrown ninja tools infused with Lightning Release chakra, trying to destroy every puppet on the field.

The cost of such powerful attacks was a decline in mobility and excessive concentration of attention.

During the next several rounds of attacks, Chiyo's assassination puppet came within a hair's breadth of succeeding each time.

When Sakumo Hatake made a mistake, Chiyo immediately seized the opportunity. Just as she was about to pierce Sakumo Hatake and win the match—

Uchiha Yato said, "Sakumo Hatake wins."

The spear of Chiyo's assassination puppet had been seized by a giant gray skeletal hand and could not advance another inch.

The sight instantly made everyone cry out in shock. Whose was this enormous gray skeleton? Or rather, who was its master?

Uchiha Kei was somewhat surprised. He had not expected Uchiha Yato to expose his Mangekyo Sharingan over such a minor match.

Konoha F4 was also shocked. The two advisers asked in astonishment, "Is that Susanoo?"

"Isn't that an ability only the Mangekyo Sharingan can use?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura did not need to think to know who in the Uchiha Clan was the only possible user.

"Uchiha Yato!"

Chiyo was also well-informed. How could someone who had followed the First Kazekage lack knowledge?

She immediately demanded, "What does this mean? Is Konoha planning to harm an old woman like me here?"

Uchiha Yato said, "Grandma Chiyo, calm down. Look beside the two puppets closest to you."

Hearing Uchiha Yato's reminder, Chiyo looked at the two puppets beside her.

Her pupils immediately contracted. Beside each puppet, Lightning Release kunai had been embedded everywhere.

Most importantly, two of those kunai only needed the slightest extra push to strike Chiyo.

As someone with Kage-level strength herself, Chiyo naturally understood what that meant.

Sakumo Hatake had held back. The reason was easy to guess: he wanted to use his death to ease Chiyo's hatred.

For a moment, Chiyo did not know what to say.

It was impossible for her to forcefully kill Sakumo Hatake. Even if Konoha's higher-ups tacitly allowed it, Uchiha Yato would not give her that chance.

Without saying anything more, Uchiha Yato directly declared Sakumo Hatake the winner.

Under the dual strain on his mind and body, Sakumo Hatake also collapsed unconscious and was sent to Konoha Hospital to rest.

Thus, Konoha's sparring exchange came to a successful conclusion.

Konoha's residents naturally cheered in delight at their village's victory, but not everyone was happy about it.