"Let me... enjoy this a little more!" Gaara raised his hand, and a large amount of sand erupted from the gourd.
In an instant, the ground for dozens of meters around turned into a sea of sand. The swirling sand waves rushed forward like a tsunami, pushing toward Uchiha Sasuke!
The towering waves of sand pressed forward, and Sasuke's eyes narrowed as she immediately felt an overwhelming sense of pressure.
Just as she formed hand seals, intending to use Body Flicker Technique to escape, she noticed a pair of civilians nearby out of the corner of her eye, and she was immediately alarmed.
"Not good, there are civilians here!"
In a panic, without any hesitation, she used the Body Flicker Technique to appear in front of the two civilians.
With her hands flying through the seals, chakra was quickly condensed to her chest as she took a deep breath. "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
A massive fireball, several meters in diameter, shot out with blazing heat and crashed into the towering wall of sand.
Boom!
A violent explosion erupted, sending waves of air crashing in all directions!
The sand, several feet high, was shattered by the fireball, and the air was filled with intense heat, carrying with it tiny grains of sand that shot through the air like hidden weapons. A thick cloud of dust rose several feet into the air.
As Uchiha Sasuke adjusted her breathing, the scattered sand quietly wrapped around her ankle.
"Not good!"
Uchiha Sasuke's eyes narrowed. She quickly reacted, swinging a kunai to try and cut through the sand wrapped around her ankle.
But Gaara's speed was even faster. He manipulated the sand, directly throwing Uchiha Sasuke through the air, slamming her hard into the ground.
Boom!
Uchiha Sasuke was slammed into the ground, her body embedded in the hard cement.
It was as if she had been dropped from several dozen meters in the air, the intense impact making it feel like her organs had shifted. Blood surged up her throat and spilled out.
Gaara's fingers spread wide, and a cruel expression filled his eyes. "Got you, Uchiha Sasuke!"
The sand wrapped around her ankle quickly spread up her body, soon enveloping her completely.
An intense feeling of death gripped her, like needles piercing her nerves. Her instincts screamed that this was dangerous!
But just as she tried to break free, a massive force from all directions began to squeeze inward, making her bones and muscles cry out in agony under the pressure!
"Sand Burial!"
Gaara's pupils constricted, and his fingers clenched tightly.
The pressure suddenly doubled. Just as Uchiha Sasuke was about to be crushed into nothing, a red-haired girl in a shrine maiden outfit, who had never left her spot, opened her mouth slightly. Her silent command seemed to call upon the thick elements in the air.
Word Soul: Judgment!
"Slash!"
The girl held her fingers like a sword and gently swung them.
In the next moment, an invisible blade, like a streak of light, cut across the long street!
It was as if a god wielded the blade, cutting through with supreme will, severing everything in its path, even the very air itself!
The sand coffin was shattered in one strike, and the space itself split, revealing a visible "fracture"—like the Red Sea parting, an ancient abyss that seemed impossible to cross, standing between them!
"???"
Gaara was stunned, his pupils contracting, the brutal look on his face fading away.
Inside him, the tailed beast seemed to sense the intense aura of death, becoming completely still and silent.
"Shit?!"
"Shit!"
Kankuro and Temari were so shocked, their jaws could have dropped and swallowed a watermelon!
Eri turned her head shyly, like a child caught doing something wrong, and cautiously said, "I didn't mean to... I just couldn't hold back."
Uchiha Sogetsu smiled and patted her head, saying, "It's okay. If you want to make a move, just do it. If there's any problem, I'll cover you."
With Sogetsu's permission, Eri's eyes sparkled with golden light. "Really?"
"Yeah, really."
Sogetsu nodded with a smile.
Then, Eri turned towards the sand ninjas, her eyes cold as frost: "So, what will it be? You walk away on your own, or should I send you off?"
Don't let her usual docile appearance in front of Sogetsu fool you—she wasn't someone easy to deal with, especially when it came to people with malicious intentions.
Gaara's face twisted in anger as he gritted his teeth, desperately calling for Shukaku in his mind.
However, Shukaku had backed down!
Gaara was left dumbfounded. No matter how much he called, Shukaku inside him refused to respond, acting as if it were dead, not daring to show itself.
"One."
Erii's face was like ice, her invisible presence forming into a palpable pressure, and the temperature around her suddenly dropped.
Stimulated into awareness by the killing intent, Gaara realized that the girl in front of him was strange.
Between continuing to provoke and being crushed or temporarily giving in to fight another day, he decisively chose the latter.
It's fine.
The seal on Shukaku must be the problem!
He comforted himself like that, coldly glancing at the girl and Uchiha Sasuke, licking his lips as he turned to leave, "Let's go!"
Kankuro and Temari breathed a sigh of relief. If it weren't for fearing Gaara's wrath, they would've run away long ago.
The Sand Ninja trio, defeated, left in disgrace.
Having resolved the small conflict, Erii clapped her hands in satisfaction and turned to Uchiha Sasuke, "Little sister?"
However, the saved Uchiha Sasuke was still in shock and couldn't snap out of it.
It wasn't until Erii slowly walked over, waved her delicate hand in front of his face, and tilted her head, saying, "Little sister, are you okay?"
Coming to her senses, Sasuke gaped at the girl in front of her, who had an almost ethereal beauty and an air of grace.
Stammering, she asked, "You're... that powerful? Then... why... did you need me to save you just now?!"
She really gave up.
In the end, she had only interfered when it wasn't necessary!
If she hadn't appeared earlier, the Sand Ninja trio would likely be lying down by now... Or perhaps they'd be taken back in boxes.
Erii sweetly smiled, tilting her head again, "No, I'm actually really weak."
"..."
Sasuke opened her mouth, unsure of what to say.
Looking at the silent Uchiha Sasuke, Erii kindly asked, "Are you alright? I saw you get hurt earlier."
"No, I'm fine."
Uchiha Sasuke brushed aside the strands of hair that had fallen, forcing a smile as she said, "This kind of injury? I've gotten used to it. A trip to the hospital should be fine."
"Oh, oh~"
Erii breathed a sigh of relief, politely twisting the corner of her skirt and thanking her, "Thank you for saving us earlier, even though it wasn't really necessary, I still appreciate it."
Pfft!
Uchiha Sasuke's lips twitched as if she had been stabbed by a knife.
After a while, she finally spoke with difficulty, "No, no. It's just me sticking my nose into things."
"By the way, are you here for the Chunin Exams?"
Seeing how skilled she was, Uchiha Sasuke grew curious, "Which ninja village are you from? Why aren't you wearing a headband?"
The Chunin Exams seemed interesting.
Erii suddenly became very interested and turned to look at Uchiha Sogetsu, her eyes sparkling with anticipation.
Uchiha Sogetsu glanced at her and immediately guessed what was on her mind.
Oh well, it's just a trip to relax, so why not let Erii have some fun?
Thinking this, he stepped forward and smiled, "We're from Yugakure. This time we received an invitation from the Third Hokage, so we decided to bring her here to broaden her horizons."
As for whether the Hokage actually invited them—does it matter?
If he says they were invited, then they were invited!
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