Main World.
Autumn, Konoha Year 18.
New Capital, British Continent.
Training Ground, Imperial Palace.
The autumn sunlight was no longer scorching, but gentle and bright, spilling over the bluestone slabs of the Training Ground with a faint golden sheen. Sakura Haruno stood in the center, wearing a dark gray training outfit, her long pink hair tied in a high ponytail. She was like an unsheathed blade.
Opposite her stood a row of granite pillars half a person's height, each so thick it would take two people to encircle it with their arms.
She took a deep breath and clenched her fist.
Then she punched.
No hand seals, no gathering strength, no elaborate preparations. Just a punch, an utterly ordinary punch.
Boom!
The first pillar instantly turned to powder.
It did not shatter; it turned to powder. Fine dust filled the air like an autumn morning mist.
Boom!
The second.
Boom!
The third.
Three punches, three pillars, three clouds of powder.
Sakura Haruno withdrew her fist and looked at her hand, a faint smile slowly curling her lips.
"After these past few months, I feel... I've grown strong enough to kill the me from a few months ago with one punch."
"You've already reached the Peak Kage level as I've defined it."
Toyotomi Yinglang's voice came from the edge of the Training Ground. He leaned against a pillar with his arms folded, his moon-white Kariginu fluttering gently in the autumn breeze.
"Peak Kage level?"
Sakura Haruno turned to look at him.
"Yes. Peak Kage level." Toyotomi Yinglang nodded. "You could put it this way: you could now kill Hiruzen Sarutobi, the so-called strongest Hokage of later years, with one punch. You could-treat Kage like pigs and dogs."
Sakura Haruno's pupils contracted slightly.
"Treat Kage like pigs and dogs..."
"Yes. Treat Kage