"I'll handle this!" Chōji Akimichi shouted, charging to the front and throwing a punch at the incoming sand.
"Don't—!" Shikamaru cried out in alarm.
The sand shattered on impact—
but in the next instant it reformed, wrapping tightly around Chōji's fist and racing up his arm.
"Hmph."
Gaara extended his right hand and clenched it.
"Sand Coffin!"
"Expansion Jutsu!"
Chōji's sand-bound arm suddenly swelled in size, forcefully resisting the crushing grip. Then he leapt high into the air, curling into a ball.
"Human Bullet Tank!"
His spinning body hurtled straight toward Gaara.
Kankurō quickly began unwrapping the bandages from his puppet Crow, preparing to assist Gaara—
but Temari stopped him.
"Big sis!" Kankurō said, confused.
"We cannot become enemies with them!" Temari snapped immediately.
"They have the Hokage Advisor's fiancée and brother-in-law among them. If they die here, it will cause enormous trouble!
And look at Gaara—we need to help them escape!"
Kankurō froze.
When he looked at Gaara again, his heart jolted.
Gaara's face was twisted with bloodthirsty madness.
Shikamaru realized at that moment that fighting was unavoidable.
He quickly formed hand seals.
His shadow stretched rapidly across the ground.
That motion signaled the true beginning of the battle.
"Ino!" he called.
Ino immediately extended her hands toward Gaara.
"Mind Transfer Jutsu!"
"I'll back you up!" Kiba roared, charging forward with Akamaru.
One on the left, one on the right—
both spinning rapidly through the air.
"Fang Over Fang!"
Just as Hinata prepared to move forward, Ino suddenly cried out in agony.
Her face turned pale.
Her body convulsed violently as she clutched her head and collapsed to her knees.
"Ino, what's wrong?!" Hinata asked anxiously, supporting her.
Ino stared at the ground in terror.
"He… he has a monster inside him! A monster!"
Confused, Hinata immediately activated her Byakugan.
The moment she looked—
she saw it.
Inside Gaara's abdomen was a grotesque raccoon-like face.
And the chakra emanating from it was terrifyingly evil.
"Come back!" Hinata's voice trembled with urgency as she held Ino tightly.
But by then—
Chōji, Kiba, and Akamaru had already reached Gaara.
Sand instantly surged around Gaara's body, forming a shield.
The Shield of Sand solidified, protecting him at the center.
Chōji's attack—
Kiba and Akamaru's spinning assault—
were violently repelled.
Shikamaru's Shadow Possession Jutsu had only just touched Gaara's shadow—
when it snapped apart instantly.
Shikamaru's pupils shrank.
Cold sweat slid down his forehead.
He had never seen chakra so violent that it could crush his technique so effortlessly.
Gaara's eyes filled with bloodshot veins.
A twisted smile spread across his lips.
"Finally…
I can kill."
A massive wave of sand suddenly surged upward like a roaring storm.
Shino's expression changed.
He raised both hands, releasing countless insects from his body to form a temporary barrier against the incoming sand.
But the swarm was instantly crushed, bursting apart with rapid popping sounds.
Shino staggered backward several steps, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth.
The sand wave continued forward without slowing—
charging straight toward Shikamaru and the others.
They stared at the overwhelming wall of sand, their pupils shrinking.
There was no way to dodge.
Suddenly—
a figure appeared in front of them.
It was someone none of them expected.
Hinata stared in shock.
It was Temari.
Holding her giant iron fan, she snapped it open, revealing the three-star pattern painted across its surface.
"Three Stars!"
She took a deep breath and swung the fan with all her strength.
"Wind Release: Dragon Tornado!"
Wind chakra burst outward instantly.
Several tornadoes rose from the ground, colliding with the oncoming sand wave.
Violent wind pressure and flying sand clashed fiercely in midair, producing a deafening roar.
Temari gritted her teeth, veins bulging at her temples as she struggled to hold her ground.
But the tornadoes were quickly devoured and crushed by the sand.
Gaara had completely lost control.
He pressed one hand against his forehead, glaring at Temari with savage fury.
"If you help them…
then you die too!"
With a feral scream, sand surged like a raging storm, condensing into several enormous spikes aimed directly at her.
Temari's pupils trembled.
She pushed off the ground to retreat, raising her fan to block—
but the residual force of the sand wave struck her full-on.
She spat out a mouthful of blood and was blasted backward.
"Big sis!" Kankurō shouted in panic.
He rushed forward and caught her, his arms going numb from the impact.
When they landed—
they found themselves standing beside Hinata and the others.
Above them, the sand wave began to descend.
"It's over…" Shikamaru whispered, his body trembling as despair washed over him.
In the monitoring room, when Wen Lan saw the sand wave crashing toward Hinata and the others, he let out a cold laugh and turned to Rasa, the Kazekage.
"Lord Kazekage is quite bold—
sending a Jinchūriki into the exam."
Rasa smirked but said nothing.
Raikage A burst into laughter.
"Well now, I just heard that little brat say those people include your brother-in-law and your fiancée.
The Chūnin Exams rely on one's own strength—life and death are fate.
Looks like they won't survive today."
He grinned.
"Surely the Hokage Advisor wouldn't hold a grudge over something so small, right?"
Nearby, Shikaku's face turned extremely grim.
His own son was down there.
Yet Wen Lan remained completely calm.
His gaze was steady as still water.
A faint smile appeared on his lips—
as if everything were already under control.
"It's not over yet."
"Ice Release: Twin Dragon Blizzard!"
Two enormous black ice dragons erupted from the ground with thunderous roars.
They spiraled through the air, intertwining into a massive vortex that smashed into the falling sand wave.
The collision was explosive.
Freezing air spread instantly, turning huge portions of sand into solid ice.
Fragments shattered and scattered like crystal.
The sand wave was forcibly torn apart—
and frozen in place.
Then it collapsed into countless glittering shards.
Everyone present was stunned.
Even Gaara.
A figure landed in front of Hinata and the others.
Hinata's face lit up with relief.
"Brother Haku!"
Haku turned and gave her a gentle smile.
His gaze was warm, but he said nothing.
Shikamaru and the others finally exhaled in relief.
Their tightly wound nerves relaxed.
Kankurō and Temari stared at Haku in shock.
They had never imagined that among the genin—
there would be someone this powerful.
Haku slowly raised his hand.
Ice crystals rotated calmly at his fingertips, cold mist swirling around him and outlining his composed profile.
"Good… good… GOOD!"
Gaara clutched his forehead and burst into manic laughter.
"That makes it interesting to kill!"
The moment his words fell, a violent sandstorm exploded around him.
His chakra surged wildly.
Haku's expression turned cold.
He formed hand seals rapidly.
Mirrors of ice appeared all around Gaara, forming a translucent prison that sealed him inside.
"Secret Technique: Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals!"
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