No one knew how much time had passed before the deafening roar of the heavens and earth finally settled. The morning sun had already risen, casting a golden glow over the endless snowfield. The pure white landscape shimmered faintly under the morning light, reflecting a soft golden hue.
Suddenly, the snowfield trembled.
A black-blue feline head cautiously peeked out from beneath the thick snow, its eyes scanning for that damned pink insect.
Yugito Nii's Tailed Beast, Matatabi, could finally sense that the sticky presence of that troublesome pink insect was no longer clinging to her.
Her large feline head looked around in every direction, and once she confirmed that the pink nuisance was nowhere in sight, she climbed out from under the snow. Her massive paws pressed into the snow with a crunching sound as she shook the snowflakes off her body.
Matatabi gave her stiff body a full-body stretch, her rear arching high into the air, loosening the soreness in her joints.
But in that instant, a shadow loomed over her.
Instinctively, Matatabi looked up into the sky.
A massive slug was descending from above.
Along with it came an angry shout:
"Summoning Jutsu: Slug Yatai Kuzushi no Jutsu!"
Crap!
It was that damned pink insect again!
"Sakura! Next time, can you summon me properly?!
And I hate cold places like this!"
The Slug Sage shouted in exasperation.
The freezing air high above made her whole body tremble uncontrollably.
"Next time for sure, Lady Slug! Please bear with me this time!" Sakura responded quickly.
Having leapt several hundred meters into the sky, she swiftly spotted the massive Matatabi charging in their direction with full force.
Without hesitation, she performed another summoning.
"Summoning Jutsu: King of the Monkey Spirits!"
Matatabi, seeing the gigantic slug descending from the sky, turned and attempted to flee in horror. But while the Slug Sage grumbled and complained about Sakura, her inherently gentle nature meant she would never ignore a request from her.
Not to mention, a single Slug Sage could rival the Great Toad Sages of Mount Myoboku or the Snake Sages of Ryuchi Cave!
Once she had locked onto Matatabi, there was almost no way for the beast to escape.
"Meowww!"
BOOM!!!
The Slug landed squarely on Matatabi with pinpoint precision, causing the ground to quake slightly. A flurry of snow and countless miniature slugs scattered in every direction.
"Monkey King's Adamantine Staff—ENLARGE!"
Sakura, still freefalling in mid-air, gave the command decisively.
"Roger!"
Without a second thought, the Monkey King transformed into a long golden staff, growing thicker and longer with lightning speed. In an instant, a colossal iron pillar dozens of meters long materialized in the sky.
Sakura landed lightly on the enormous staff and sprinted to its far end. With a shout—
"Heavenly Foot of Pain!"
She kicked the end of the staff with all her might.
The staff erupted with explosive force and velocity, slamming directly into the disoriented Matatabi, who had just staggered back onto her paws.
BOOM!
In that instant, Matatabi felt as if lightning had struck her. Her massive feline eyes rolled back into her skull, and her consciousness was wiped out instantly.
Her black-blue body began to fade, transforming into a spiritual form that swiftly returned to her Jinchuriki—Yugito Nii—whose unconscious form lay crumpled in the snow.
The Monkey King didn't spare a glance at the now-unconscious Yugito Nii. His focus was on catching Sakura, who was rapidly descending from above.
THUD!
Sakura crashed to the ground right in front of the Monkey King, sending snow flying in all directions.
"Er… heh heh…"
The Monkey King scratched his head awkwardly.
Crawling out of the snow, Sakura shot him a glare.
Then she quickly rushed to Yugito's side to check on her condition.
Still alive. As expected of a Jinchuriki, even after that brutal beating, she hadn't died.
Sakura pulled out some wire from her ninja pouch and swiftly bound Yugito with expert precision. The Monkey King casually picked up the unconscious Jinchuriki and slung her over his shoulder.
Sakura took a final glance at the vast snowfield behind her.
Destroying enemy supplies was probably a lost cause now—everything had been buried under heavy snow. And this location was deep within Kumogakure's territory. If a large enemy force came through, even someone like her would have to retreat.
Worse, if word spread that Yugito Nii had been captured, Killer Bee or even the Raikage himself might personally come to hunt her down.
And it wouldn't take long for the news to leak. Before their battle began, Darui had already led the main Kumogakure forces away, waiting to support Yugito if needed.
"Let's move, Lord Monkey King. Take me to find Sasuke."
Sakura's voice was calm and composed.
…
Under the Monkey King's lead, Sakura soon found Shino and the others.
They were currently at the base of a mountain, anxiously waiting for her return.
"Sakura!"
Seeing the familiar pink figure, Kiba's eyes lit up. He instinctively raised his hand to greet her, but quickly remembered the danger they were still in.
Sakura ignored both Kiba and Shino. She rushed straight to Sasuke, who lay motionless on the ground.
Kiba and Shino had done their best to treat Sasuke, but all they managed was some rough bandaging.
There was a massive slash across Sasuke's chest. Blood had already soaked through the cloth and the bandages, staining them a deep red.
Seeing this, Sakura's eyes darkened. She gently began unwrapping his bandages and said without turning her head:
"Boil some hot water. Dissolve a special food pill in it."
As she spoke, her hands lit up with a soft green glow, and she began healing him.
Sasuke was severely injured. Right now, all she could do was stabilize him. A full recovery would require the resources of Konoha's medical team.
All she could do now was keep him alive.
Frankly, with injuries like this, the fact that Sasuke was still breathing was nothing short of a miracle.
Looking at his pale, almost lifeless face, Sakura's heart tightened. Her mind raced, and she blurted out the first thing that came to her:
"Uchiha Itachi."
Suddenly, as if hearing her voice, one of Sasuke's fingers twitched.
It worked!
Just then, Kiba nervously approached with a kettle of warm water, carefully carrying the dissolved food pill solution.
"Give it to him."
Kiba tried to pour it into Sasuke's mouth but no matter what he did, Sasuke wouldn't swallow.
"It won't go in. What should I do?" he asked, panicked.
Sakura shot him a glare.
"Use your damn brain. If he can't swallow, force it down!"
"And if he still can't—drink it yourself and feed it to him mouth-to-mouth!"
Kiba stared at her in horror.
"What? Do you want me to be the one to force it in?"
Kiba looked at her, conflicted. Then he clenched his teeth and pried Sasuke's mouth open, carefully pouring the liquid inside.
Miraculously, as if he had heard everything they said, Sasuke's throat began to move slightly, swallowing bit by bit.
Kiba sighed in relief, wiping the nonexistent sweat from his forehead.
Thank god I didn't have to give my first kiss to a guy.
Seeing that Sasuke had managed to swallow some of the warm solution, and his complexion had regained a faint touch of color, Sakura finally let out a long breath of relief.
(End of Chapter)
---
60 more chapter available in p@tréøñ(Atoki_29)