The blue-white dragon of lightning and water tore savagely through the sand defenses Gaara had hastily raised, like a spear of divine punishment.
Raging lightning coursed through the water, seeping into every gap and breaking down the sand's structure, while the impact of the water completely destabilized the sand shield.
Under the horrified gazes of the surrounding Sand Ninja, the remaining force of the lightning-water dragon slammed into Gaara.
"Splurch-!"
The Sand Armor covering Gaara's body was completely pierced and stripped away.
Then came a teeth-grating crack, like an eggshell striking a hard stone.
Countless fine cracks instantly spread across the skin of Gaara's left cheek, radiating from the point of impact.
No blood flowed from the cracks. Instead, they revealed an eerie, inhuman darkness and texture.
A moment later, the skin on that half of his face crumbled and flaked away like weathered pottery.
"M-monster!"
A young Sand Ninja who witnessed the horrifying sight could no longer suppress his fear and cried out.
"Shut up! Do you want to die?"
An older Sand Ninja beside him blanched and clapped a hand over his mouth, sharply reprimanding him in a low voice, his eyes filled with lingering fear.
Provoking Gaara at a time like this was practically asking to die!
As the skin peeled away, what appeared on the left half of Gaara's face was not human flesh and bone, but a savage, inhuman visage covered in coarse sand, closely resembling a raccoon dog.
At the same time, the pupil of his formerly blue-green left eye suddenly contracted and distorted, becoming a cold, eerie, feral pupil shaped like a copper coin.
That was not all.
"Crack! Pop!"
The sleeve over Gaara's left arm suddenly burst apart as his entire arm rapidly swelled and warped.
His skin split open, exposing dark,