Chapter 496: Show of Strength
"Today, I have something to explain to you."
Haruno Sakura stood on the stage and said solemnly.
"Presumably you are already very clear about the risks of this trip. In the previous gatherings, you also did many drills to deal with Cloud Ninja turning hostile or other unexpected situations." Haruno Sakura nodded and continued, "But I think there is one kind of drill you definitely haven't rehearsed yet."
The girl paused, her gaze sweeping across the faces of everyone below the stage one by one.
"What drill is it, Haruno Sakura-sama?" Someone asked.
Haruno Sakura smiled slightly.
"It's a drill of facing a 'Kage' level ninja directly." She said slowly.
The ninja below the stage revealed confused looks, and even a member of the combat group showed disapproval on his face without leaving a trace.
The village wouldn't send too many elites for this kind of mission, but the people below the stage were also battle-hardened ninja who had experienced life and death hardships.
Although they hadn't faced Kage-level ninja directly before, they didn't think they would drop the ball when facing those strong people.
Haven't eaten pork, haven't seen a pig run?
Similarly having two eyes and a mouth, Kage-level ninja are nothing more than one level stronger than elite Jonin...
Fight how one should fight.
Everyone thought so in their hearts.
Haruno Sakura could see that these ninja were somewhat unconvinced by her words.
After all, Sakura rose too fast, shining suddenly like a comet in the village in just one or two years.
For Tokubetsu Jonin outside the Jonin circle, especially those outside the Anbu circle and elite Jonin circle, because their authority was too low to access the girl's data, the name Haruno Sakura was still too distant.
It was inevitable that some people still retained old impressions in their hearts. Although not suspecting her combat power, seeing her slender, delicate, and immature appearance, they felt that Haruno Sakura was still a fledgling little girl and couldn't feel the weight of her words.
Especially those few young faces.
Haruno Sakura saw it in her eyes.
"We still have time, just right to rehearse..." She didn't explain much, just smiled mysteriously, "Hope you won't be scared stiff."
Someone in the combat group below the stage curled his lips covertly.
Haruno Sakura jumped off the wooden platform, the smile on her face becoming more brilliant.
"So today I'll let you feel what it's like to face a 'Kage' level directly..."
Sai, who looked calm on the surface, tightened his body secretly upon hearing this, his heart tightening, warning bells ringing loudly.
Then, in the next moment, a surge of majestic chakra suddenly erupted from the girl's body!
"Hah!"
Terrifying momentum accompanied by amazing chakra volume poured out. At this moment, Haruno Sakura seemed to suddenly transform into a prehistoric giant beast swallowing the sky and sun!
The condensed killing intent seemed to freeze the air. The few ninja standing at the very front felt they suddenly couldn't breathe. Haruno Sakura's figure rose infinitely in their vision, turning into a high wall, shrouding down covering the sky and sun.
Thud! Two civilian ninja who had been out of battle for a long time turned pale and fell to the ground in horror.
The few ninja of the combat group were not much better; Haruno Sakura deliberately took care of them. For a moment, the few ninja were really oppressed by that overwhelming momentum and couldn't move!
—If this was in battle, just based on this moment of distraction, they would be dead!
"Hmph."
The girl snorted lightly, her figure suddenly disappearing from the spot.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh—
Everyone only felt a blur of afterimage in front of their eyes, then a chill on the back of their necks. Before they could react, or even before the trembling of being suddenly attacked could emerge, they saw Haruno Sakura holding an ice kunai, reappearing on the wooden platform with a smile.
"Those touched by me on the back of the neck," the girl shook the crystal kunai in her hand and laughed, "You are already dead."
The ninja below the stage looked at each other, speechless.
The battle... ended just as it began?
However, the slight cool touch on the back of the neck reminded them realistically that if a battle really happened just now... then their heads would have been long gone.
This drill, which lasted less than ten seconds, left a deep impression on everyone.
"Is it that Ice Body Flicker again..."
Sai was very calm. He knew from the last battle that he couldn't dodge this move at all, so there was nothing to be surprised about.
Other ninja, however, couldn't suppress the shock in their hearts, whispering to each other with lingering fear.
"Could this be... the Fourth Hokage-sama's Body Flicker Assassination Technique back then?" "I didn't even move..." "I didn't even see the shadow!" "At least I saw the afterimage..."...
Haruno Sakura clapped her hands.
The ninja below immediately stopped talking, raising their heads to look at her, with respect in their eyes.
The show of strength seemed to have a good effect?
The girl smiled faintly on her face.
"What I demonstrated to you just now was the Fourth Raikage A's fighting style..."
"According to existing intelligence, the Fourth Raikage's fighting style inherited the Third Raikage's style, using Lightning Release Nintaijutsu as the main means of attack. After entering Lightning Release Chakra Mode, A's strength and speed will be greatly enhanced, known as the man whose speed is second only to the Fourth Hokage."
"The speed I showed just now is roughly the level the Raikage can reach, his Body Flicker Technique is even superior..."
Speaking of this, Haruno Sakura paused, looked at everyone's faces below, put away her smile, and said seriously: "So, do you understand? This is the feeling of fighting the Raikage..."
Even Tokubetsu Jonin level ninja had no room for resistance in front of this speed and power. The only result of confronting head-on was being slaughtered by the Raikage like chickens and dogs.
The ninja below fell silent.
No matter how much the data emphasized, it was not as convincing as a drill where they were miserably defeated by Haruno Sakura without any resistance.
The gap between Kage and Tokubetsu Jonin was thus nakedly demonstrated.
The so-called "Kage" level... is definitely more than just "stronger than elite Jonin."
When the gap reaches a certain level, it cannot be made up by courage. Facing the Raikage, whether they resist or not, the process and result will not change... Their only choice is to separate and avoid battle, scatter and flee, waiting for Haruno Sakura's support.
"Besides Raikage A, you also have to be careful of another person," Haruno Sakura continued to explain, "Cloud Ninja's Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, Killer B."
Cloud Ninja Village has a unique custom. Figures ranked at the core of power or combat power must all discard their original names and use letters ABCD etc. as titles, where A represents the Raikage, B is the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, C is the Cloud Ninja chief strategist, status comparable to Konoha's two Hokage advisors...
And so on.
However, the ones Haruno Sakura particularly cared about, besides the Raikage and the two Jinchuriki, were no one else.
The Jinchuriki's fighting style is roughly the terrifying destructive power formed by the huge body and Tailed Beast Ball after Tailed Beast transformation.
Killer B is known as the perfect Jinchuriki, his own combat power is also very impressive, only below Raikage A; besides this rough fighting style, presumably he has more and cleverer means. But this part of intelligence belongs to Cloud Ninja's top secret data, Konoha doesn't know for now...
Haruno Sakura didn't demonstrate the Eight-Tails' fighting style on the village training ground... unless she wanted to blast the village flat.
And to be honest, the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki's chakra volume is very huge. Even Haruno Sakura with the Yin Seal would find it quite strenuous to imitate.
"Of course, Killer B presumably wouldn't enter Tailed Beast Mode in Cloud Ninja Village, letting us perish together with his village." Haruno Sakura recalled the limited intelligence and explained as much as possible, "In normal state, his taijutsu is very strong, good at using swords, also an expert you cannot match in strength."
"Cloud Ninja Village only has these two experts outside the specifications. Encountering them, you don't need to consider anything, just flee directly."
"Apart from these, for others, you can try to resist a bit using the means rehearsed before."
Mixed with a violent demonstration, the explanation had quite good results. Everyone was convinced by her, nodding in agreement.
The next day, the delegation walked out of the Konoha gate and embarked on the journey.
On the same day, thousands of miles away, in a hidden secret base.
Pitcher plant vegetable man White Zetsu emerged from the ground.
"Konoha's delegation to Cloud Ninja has already set off!" White Zetsu winked at the man in front of him and said, "Obito, guess who leads the team?"
Obito stood up, swept White Zetsu with indifferent eyes, and said: "Stop keeping me in suspense... say it, which acquaintance showed up again?"
He put on the Akatsuki uniform, adjusted his mask, thought for a moment, and said: "Could it be, Haruno Sakura?"
White Zetsu snapped his fingers: "Guessed right! It's that thorn in the eye Miss who repeatedly opposed our Akatsuki."
"That's really a coincidence." Obito revealed a sneer under the mask, "Two things just happened to collide..."
A few months ago, he happened to discuss with Pain about finding a way to get rid of Haruno Sakura and disrupting the ninja village alliance matters.
"Let's go." He walked slowly out of the secret base and said to White Zetsu behind him, "I'll go deal with her... and by the way, burst the bubble of alliance between ninja villages, lest they unite too early!"
"Eh?"
White Zetsu stopped in place without moving, instead asking: "Intercept and kill her on the way? I think better call Pain along... heard Haruno Sakura is very strong."
"Dealing with a mere Ice Release ninja." The masked man turned his head, his cold gaze falling on White Zetsu's head, saying coldly.
"Besides, I have a better way..."
Under the mask, the tomoe in that scarlet Sharingan swam slowly, wondering what thoughts were turning.
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