The woman standing before her was stunning. Her golden twin braids didn't make her look rustic or plain—instead, they highlighted her sharp, rebellious features and gave her an aura that could only be described as wild and feline.
A wild cat—that's the word.
Fitting, really. After all, the Two-Tails' Jinchūriki was a cat, wasn't she?
"So, this was all arranged in advance, huh?"
Sakura looked at the woman calmly, pulling off the protective goggles covering her face.
She reached up and tugged at the cord that tied her snow-white cloak across her chest. With a soft whoosh, the cloak fell to the ground, revealing her slim but strong frame clad in a sleek, black ninja outfit.
Her long, beautiful pink hair flowed freely, drawing the feline woman's eyes.
Yugito Nii narrowed her eyes slightly at Sakura, her face relaxed but tinged with playful mischief. A smirk curled on her lips.
"You seem pretty confident in yourself, huh?"
BOOM!
A shadow landed heavily on the ground beside them. The black-haired Uchiha stepped forward, his foot crushing a Cloud headband beneath him, walking silently toward the two women.
Just behind him, Kiba and Shino arrived at Sakura's side, both with grim expressions. They kept their gazes fixed on Yugito.
Yugito ignored them, her eyes only on the dark-haired boy. A flicker of killing intent danced in her gaze.
"The last Uchiha?"
"Seems we've caught more than just the Hokage's disciple. Looks like we've got a fine specimen for breeding purposes."
As soon as her words fell, dozens of Kumogakure shinobi leapt into view, encircling Sakura and the others.
"Whoa, whoa. Now that's something I can't just ignore," came a lazy voice from behind.
A man with dark skin and wild white hair stepped forward, eyes gleaming with easy confidence.
Sakura's heart sank a little as she recognized him.
Darui. One of the Raikage's personal guards, and the man destined to become the Fifth Raikage.
Meeting both him and Yugito here… This was bad.
"Of course," Yugito said casually. "For Samui. And Mabui."
Her tone was light, teasing, and completely inappropriate.
"I bet they'd love this pretty little Uchiha."
Sakura nudged Sasuke with her elbow and said teasingly, "Didn't think you were such a heartthrob, even outside Konoha."
Sasuke's face remained cold and unreadable, offering no reaction at all.
"So, what's it gonna be?" Yugito asked, folding her arms. "Are the four of you planning to surrender quietly, or do I have to beat you into the dirt first?"
"If you fight back, I can't promise you'll leave here in one piece."
She looked them over, her voice laced with amusement, completely ignoring Darui's disapproval.
"Before that, I've got a question," Sakura said, pulling on a pair of black gloves from her ninja pouch.
"Was our spy simply betraying Konoha? Or did he also give up our communication channels and intelligence contacts?"
Yugito tilted her head thoughtfully and replied, "That guy… who knows?"
"Spies rarely benefit much from what they do. Money? Power? None of it really belonged to him."
"All it took was giving him a woman and letting him experience something called 'family'—and he was ready to sell out his village and come running to us."
Sakura's face didn't change as she asked, "And where is he now?"
"Dead."
That single word brought a sigh from Sakura.
"I see."
Yugito studied Sakura intently, a strange glimmer flashing in her eyes.
"So, little girl… what's your choice?"
Sakura looked at the beautiful woman before her, eyes curving into crescents as she smiled sweetly.
"My answer is…"
"Heavenly Foot of Pain!"
BOOM!!!
Sakura stomped down with terrifying force. A monstrous burst of chakra smashed into the ground beneath her!
The earth exploded outward in a shockwave, sending up clouds of debris. The area around her shattered like glass.
"You bitch!"
Yugito, caught completely off guard, dropped into the collapsing earth with a roar of frustration.
"Sasuke!" Sakura shouted.
"That white-haired guy is yours! Hold him off until I can help!"
"Kiba, Shino—destroy the enemy supplies!"
Sakura's orders came out sharp and fast. As the ground gave way, she threw all three of her teammates outward with incredible force.
"You think you can just walk away?!" Yugito snarled.
She dashed across the debris-strewn field with nimble grace, leaping from chunk to chunk of broken rock. Her claws elongated like knives as she closed in on Sakura at frightening speed.
Sakura didn't dare let her guard down. She rushed forward to meet Yugito head-on.
She had the advantage—she knew Yugito's abilities, but Yugito didn't know hers. That was her opening.
Close the distance. End it with one monster-strength punch.
Don't give her the chance to use her Tailed Beast Mode!
But just as Sakura was about to strike, Yugito's lips curled into a twisted smile.
Something was wrong.
Sakura's scalp prickled with a sense of danger.
"Rat Bomb!"
The cry came from above.
Sakura snapped her gaze upward—and saw another Yugito on the second floor of a nearby building.
This one... was the real one?!
The one in front of her... was a clone!
The clone's smirk grew triumphant as it lunged at her.
"Haruno Sakura," the clone murmured mockingly, "disciple of the Hokage, master of monstrous strength, possessor of the Yin Seal, and contracts with the Monkey King and Katsuyu…"
"Not bad, huh?"
!!!
That bastard!!
Orochimaru, I swear to god, I'll f* you up!**
Sakura's mind spun. In just a second, she traced the source of this intelligence leak.
Orochimaru had joined forces with Sunagakure to attack Konoha. Afterward, to escape the village's retaliation, Rasa would've gladly thrown him under the bus.
Kumogakure, also hurt by Sakura's sabotage plan, would've become a natural ally of Sunagakure.
Whether it was them approaching Rasa—or vice versa—the result was the same.
Sakura's full intel had been sold.
Not might have. Definitely had.
Who else knew her deepest secrets besides the old man and Orochimaru?
The old man wouldn't betray her.
So it had to be Orochimaru!
The seeds he planted back then… were now bearing poisonous fruit. And they were slamming her right in the face.
The clone of Yugito exploded with a burst of blue flames, morphing into dozens of burning rats that charged at Sakura like a tide!
Are you freaking serious?!
Of course the cat would summon rats!
Sakura stomped again, this time in a precise motion that turned the ground into a giant see-saw. The floor tilted and lifted up like a massive platform.
Normally, this would've just caused the ground to crack—but this technique defied logic.
It showcased the incredible precision of Sakura's chakra control.
The rat bombs smashed into the rising slab and exploded in a blaze of blue flames.
Meanwhile, behind the platform, Sakura heard the echoing roar of a summoning jutsu—
"Summoning Technique: Monkey King Enma!!"
---
(End of Chapter)