Huff—
White mist-like breath drifted out from the black-haired boy's mouth. Sasuke struggled slightly to keep his eyes open, staring at the girl not far ahead. The hand holding his blade trembled faintly, losing its grip from the close-quarters clash they just had.
Sasuke knew he wasn't a match for the girl in front of him. He had always known.
From childhood, Sakura had always been the best among their peers.
Graduating from the ninja academy in just two years—just that alone had placed her far beyond anyone else of her age group.
When she reappeared in his life again, she had already become his teammate.
But how could Sasuke believe that she hadn't improved at all between the ages of eight and twelve?
Until that moment in the Forest of Death—when they encountered that presence named Orochimaru.
It was at that moment that Sasuke understood.
Sakura was clearly placed in Team 7 under some hidden arrangement—likely to protect him, the last remaining Uchiha orphan.
But how could he keep hiding behind a girl forever?
Right now, Sasuke wanted to prove something to Sakura.
That he was strong too!
Blue-white lightning crackled around the blade in his hand, sparking and crackling like thunder.
His sword was forged from the same material as the knuckle blade he had gifted Sakura—both crafted by the Ninja Cats using the metal from the Executioner's Blade fused with Uchiha chakra metal.
The result was a blade with exceptional chakra conductivity.
Sakura, seeing Sasuke getting ready to charge, curled her finger at him, beckoning him to come at her.
The black-haired boy pressed his lips together, his gaze solemn and unwavering.
He wouldn't allow himself to be provoked by her gestures.
From the beginning, Sasuke had kept his emotions in check. One could even say that only in front of Uchiha Itachi would he ever lose control.
The boy moved like a gust of wind—his attacks as fast as lightning, accompanied by the piercing screeches of thunderous chakra. In the blink of an eye, he was already in front of Sakura!
He thrust his blade forward without hesitation, aiming straight at her face.
But just as the strike seemed inevitable, Sasuke instinctively shifted his attack off-center.
Sakura took a slight step back and turned her body to the side, narrowly avoiding the blow. But Sasuke wasn't done—maintaining his speed, he continued his assault.
His electrified blade slashed through the air like a deadly weapon from a storm god, each strike sharper and faster than the last. Yet Sakura dodged every single one with precision.
This moment threw Sasuke into a brief daze.
He felt like… he had experienced this very scene before.
But he shook off the thought, focusing his chakra to maintain his rapid attack pace, gradually pushing Sakura back.
Sakura, evading his strikes, couldn't help but feel a touch of admiration.
Truly the number two male lead. Sasuke is already so strong now.
Before graduating from the ninja academy, he had just been a slightly above-average genin.
But look at him now—in such a short amount of time, he was nearly at the level of a special jōnin.
And now, with the war acting as a whetstone to sharpen him further, Sakura believed he'd only grow even faster.
His current strength wasn't reliant on the Sharingan.
Sure, the Sharingan granted him excellent dynamic visual perception, but that was merely a supplementary tool.
Sasuke's mastery of Lightning Release and kenjutsu alone was enough to defeat most people his age.
Even in the original timeline, despite Sasuke's Taka team getting thoroughly beaten by Killer Bee—at that time, Sasuke was so young. Killer Bee was a seasoned adult.
Put them in the same age bracket, and Sasuke could probably make Bee rap on the ground while eating dirt.
Sakura's back bumped against the hard bark of a tree—she had reached the edge of the clearing.
Seeing this, a smirk curled at the corner of Sasuke's lips. He lunged forward, blade shooting like lightning toward Sakura's shoulder… or more precisely, just above it.
At that exact moment, Sakura, who had been holding back, finally made her move.
Her fair hand shot out like a lightning bolt and grabbed Sasuke's sword-wielding wrist.
Without hesitation, Sasuke's other hand whipped behind Sakura's waist, pulling out a kunai and attempting an upward slash.
But Sakura twisted to the side and bent down, narrowly avoiding the strike. In the same fluid motion, her foot hooked around Sasuke's ankle.
Sasuke's eyes tightened.
He knew from experience the terror of Sakura's monstrous strength.
Almost instinctively, he lifted his foot to avoid having his balance destroyed.
But just then, Sakura smiled in triumph.
Her first sweep wasn't meant to trip him—it was a setup!
Without pausing, she swept her leg toward Sasuke's other foot.
Sasuke's expression twisted into helpless resignation. He could already see where this was going.
Sure enough, Sakura's follow-up sweep knocked his other leg out from under him. With a soft thud, he lost balance and fell awkwardly onto the snowy ground.
At the same time, Sakura flicked her finger against the hand Sasuke had used to snatch the kunai—sending a numbing jolt through his arm. His grip loosened instantly, and the weapon flew from his hand.
With a graceful motion, Sakura caught the kunai mid-air.
Sasuke, still on the ground, was about to rise when he found the very same kunai he had just grabbed pointed right at his face.
"Sorry," Sakura said with a playful raise of her eyebrow and a smile. "I win."
Sasuke sat in the snow, his dark eyes filled with mild frustration as he looked up at the girl before him. His voice was low and calm:
"I lost."
Sakura put away the kunai and extended her hand to help him up.
Sasuke stared at the offered hand for a moment, then a subtle smile touched his lips. He took her hand.
Sakura pulled him to his feet, feeling like the annoyance she had held toward Jiraiya earlier had mostly evaporated. She patted Sasuke's shoulder with genuine praise:
"You're already really strong, Sasuke."
"Even Lee might not be your match now."
"Hmm… maybe it's a fifty-fifty?"
Lee?
Hearing that name, Sasuke immediately thought of that green jumpsuit guy who had confessed to Sakura the first time they met.
That guy ranks so highly in her heart?
Sasuke's expression cooled slightly. With a seemingly casual tone, he asked:
"Is Rock Lee really that strong?"
"To be honest, yeah—he's really strong," Sakura nodded sincerely. "Before you learned the White Fang Sword Technique from Kakashi, even with Chidori, you wouldn't have stood a chance against him."
"…And what about now? Against me?"
Sasuke asked without thinking.
Sakura tilted her head slightly, appearing to ponder seriously before responding hesitantly:
"Forty-sixty, I guess…"
"He's the sixty."
Sasuke's eyes flickered, and he clenched his sword tightly. He spoke after a moment of silence:
"I understand."
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(End of Chapter)