"Eh?"
Sakura, who had been feeling extremely frightened just moments ago, froze when she heard those words. She couldn't help but wonder—how did this woman, who was slightly older than her, know Naruto and Sasuke?
Seeing the look on Sakura's face, Haku smiled and said:
"Don't worry. Kimimaro and I can at least be considered their seniors. Leave the rest to us, alright? Isn't that right, Kimimaro?"
Compared to Haku's angelic appearance, Kimimaro looked far more intimidating. He silently nodded at Sakura, then stepped past her and suddenly slammed a fist into the ice coffin Haku had formed.
At the moment his fist struck the ice, something resembling a bone-like vent opened at Kimimaro's elbow.
As he threw the punch, a visibly dense stream of chakra burst out from the vent.
Empowered by the chakra-driven recoil, the force of Kimimaro's blow increased severalfold. With a single punch, he completely shattered the massive ice coffin.
This was the Explosive Fist, a technique Hoshiyomi had helped Kimimaro develop based on a fighting style from another world.
With this move, even without superhuman strength techniques, Kimimaro could unleash terrifying blows comparable to monstrous strength, drastically increasing his combat power.
Watching the enormous ice coffin get obliterated by a single punch, Sakura was so shocked that she dropped her kunai without even noticing, her mind filled with a single thought:
Is he even human?
With the ice coffin destroyed, Naruto and Sasuke finally regained their freedom. This time, however, they had no energy left to keep fighting. Both dropped to one knee, shivering violently from the cold.
Haku pulled Naruto and Sasuke over, one in each hand, and lightly knocked their heads with her fist:
"So, what exactly happened to make you two end up like this? Honestly… this is the Chūnin Exams. If we hadn't arrived in time, did you two even plan on surviving?"
The two, who had been at each other's throats just moments ago, suddenly found themselves unable to continue their quarrel with Kimimaro and Haku present. After exchanging a glance, they both turned their heads away in mutual annoyance and muttered:
"Nothing."
Even Haku looked helpless at that, pressing down on their heads with a sigh:
"I'll report this whole incident truthfully to Lord Hoshiyomi when we get back, you know. You two can just wait to get beaten."
Despite the threat, a glow of medical ninjutsu appeared in Haku's hands as he began treating their injuries, one on each side.
The scene was rather peaceful—but to Sakura, it looked utterly terrifying.
From Sakura's perspective, this beautiful, flat-chested older sister was practically "holding" Naruto and Sasuke in her arms, whispering softly to them while healing their wounds.
Seeing this, Sakura felt like she had just taken 999 points of true damage.
Watching Sasuke standing there with a red face (actually from embarrassment), Sakura's mind screamed internally:
What the hell?!
So flat-chested, black-haired, long-haired older sisters are Sasuke's type?!
No—Sasuke liking this kind of woman at least makes some sense, but Naruto, what's going on with you?! Don't you already have Hinata?!
Could it be that—
Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god…
Is this angel-like big sister in front of me the legendary female heartbreaker?!
So this is how you casually achieve the dream of every girl in the Ninja Academy?!
All I can say is—big sister, please take me as your disciple.
Noticing Sakura's increasingly strange gaze, Haku seemed to realize what she was thinking and suddenly smiled…
"Don't misunderstand—I'm a boy."
A boy…? A BOY?!
Seeing the delicate-looking Haku claim to be male, Sakura's first reaction was disbelief. But almost immediately after, her expression became even more complicated.
So that means Naruto and Sasuke were actually… surrounded by men?!
For some reason, Sakura felt that she would rather see the two of them keep fighting than witness the scene in front of her.
That said, knowing that Naruto and Sasuke were finally not going to continue fighting still brought her a sense of relief.
Just then, Shin—who had barely made his presence felt until now—suddenly spoke up:
"Even though things look pretty good at the moment, I still feel it's necessary to remind you that this is the Forest of Death, and someone is approaching rapidly. Things are about to get interesting."
Hearing this, the previously awkward Naruto and Sasuke instantly tensed up. They jumped to their feet, but when their eyes met, an inexplicable hint of discomfort flashed between them again.
Seeing their expressions, Haku suddenly smiled:
"I know it won't be easy for you two to completely make up so quickly, but a fight is about to start. If you keep acting petty, you're not going to have a good time."
As he was speaking, a desperate shout suddenly echoed from afar, drawing closer by the second:
"Is anyone there?! I don't care which village you're from—I'm begging you, please save me!"
Hearing this, hesitation flashed across Haku's eyes. He was about to get up to help, when a piercing scream rang out. After that scream, everything went silent.
Seeing this, not only Haku but also Kimimaro and Shin frowned. They were curious—just which village's shinobi could be so brutal?
The other side clearly noticed the commotion as well. Before long, Naruto and the others heard rustling sounds coming from the forest ahead.
Then three figures emerged from the trees. When both sides saw who the other was, they froze.
Because the ones who appeared were none other than Gaara, Temari, and Kankurō.
Gaara visibly froze when he saw Naruto and Sasuke, then suddenly broke into a cruel smile:
"This really exceeds my expectations. I was prepared to run into you during the exams, but I didn't think it would happen on the very first day.
I'm actually quite curious—what does your blood taste like?"
As he spoke, large amounts of sand slowly began to spill out from the gourd on Gaara's back. Seeing the sand floating into the air, Naruto and the others' expressions changed, because they could clearly see the deep red stains mixed in with the grains.
On the other side, Kimimaro's group glanced at Gaara's team, then turned back to Naruto and Sasuke. After a moment of silence, Shin spoke:
"Hmm, the ones who showed up are a bit unexpected. Judging by overall strength, the three of you would have a hard time dealing with them. Since that's the case, we'll lend you a hand.
We'll help you hold back the face-painted one and the guy carrying the fan. But the most dangerous one—the sand user—we won't handle for you. You'll have to take care of him yourselves."
...
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