Instead of Sakura being blown away, it was Sasuke's massive Susano'o that reacted as if it had been struck head-on by a falling meteor.
The gigantic construct lurched violently backward. The arm it had casually swept out let out a sharp, overburdened cracking sound!
The enormous chakra avatar was actually knocked off the ground, completely losing balance, and sent flying backward hundreds of meters by the terrifying force contained in that single punch!
"What?!"
Inside the Susano'o, Sasuke was caught completely off guard. The overwhelming inertia nearly threw him off his footing, and his Sharingan filled with disbelief and shock.
How was this possible?!
His Susano'o—though not at its absolute strongest—had been blown away by a single punch?!
And what shook him even more—
Sakura didn't stop.
Her speed surpassed the limits of visual perception. She was already right on top of the flying Susano'o, almost glued to it as she pursued.
"This area won't affect the village anymore."
Sakura's calm voice rang out, steady and unquestionable.
At some point, she had already moved above the Susano'o.
Under the stunned gaze of Sasuke's Sharingan, Sakura raised that seemingly slender fist once more—
And smashed it straight down toward the enormous purple armor below!
BOOOOOM—!!!
This punch felt as if it carried the power to shatter stars.
The towering Susano'o was struck as though by an invisible colossal hammer, hurled irresistibly from midair and slammed into an open area far away from the village!
Amid earth-shaking thunder and a mushrooming cloud of dust, the ground screamed and split apart, forming a massive crater over a hundred meters wide!
The Susano'o that once dominated the shinobi world now lay embedded deep within the pit like a broken toy. Cracks spread across its chakra armor, its glow flickering violently as if on the verge of collapse.
The might of a single punch—terrifying to this extent.
The entire shinobi world fell silent.
Absolute silence.
Not just around the ruins of Konohagakure—everyone across the world watching through the Sky Screen was struck dumb by Sakura's reality-shattering display of power.
What… what had they just seen?
That pink-haired girl—Sakura Haruno—
She had punched Susano'o away.
Not blocked it.
Not held it back.
She had overwhelmed it outright, with nothing but raw, crushing force.
And then the second punch—
She had driven that godlike armor straight into the ground.
"Monstrous… strength?" someone muttered instinctively—only to shake their head in denial.
Tsunade's superhuman strength was fearsome, yes—but when had it ever reached a level that felt capable of breaking mountains, seas, and even the rules of the world itself?
"What… is this power?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen stared at Sakura as she landed steadily on the ground, his eyes flashing violently as his thoughts churned.
"This is absolutely not ordinary taijutsu… nor normal chakra manipulation…"
For the first time, he truly realized that the girl he had once thought of as merely academically gifted had stepped onto a path he could no longer comprehend.
"Cough… cough…"
Loose stones tumbled at the edge of the crater.
Sasuke Uchiha rose somewhat unsteadily from the rubble. Due to the violent impact and chaotic chakra disruption, the Susano'o around him had temporarily dissipated.
His body itself hadn't suffered critical damage thanks to Susano'o's protection—but the shock to his mind dwarfed any physical pain.
He looked up at the pink-haired girl walking toward him, disbelief and astonishment filling his eyes.
"Sakura… you actually…"
You actually possess power like this?
You've become this strong?
Naruto, clutching his chest, staggered over and stopped beside Sakura. Seeing the stunned look on Sasuke's face, he spoke in a complicated tone:
"Sasuke… this is the power Sakura mastered. Divine Technique. Strength that's truly on the level of the gods."
Sakura met Sasuke's gaze directly, her expression sincere and resolute.
"Come back, Sasuke. If there really are injustices and hatred… we'll face them together. I'll help you. I promise."
But the shock in Sasuke's eyes slowly faded, replaced by something colder—deeper—more stubborn.
He wiped a trace of blood from the corner of his mouth, caused by chakra backlash, and let out a low, mocking laugh.
"Help me?"
"You can't help me, Sakura."
"My goal has never changed."
"Revenge."
"I will personally kill every one of the Konoha higher-ups who planned or allowed the Uchiha Clan Massacre, and expose their crimes before the world."
His voice suddenly rose, filled with utter annihilation:
"And then—
I will completely destroy Konoha itself.
The soil that bred darkness.
The place soaked in my clan's blood."
"Only then will the countless Uchiha spirits crying in the dark finally find peace."
His hatred did not weaken in the face of Sakura's overwhelming power.
If anything, being blocked by it only made his resolve sharper—and more extreme.
"Sasuke, you're going too far!" Naruto roared, heart aching as he looked at his friend consumed by hatred.
Sasuke paused—but did not turn back.
He let out a cold scoff.
"Too far? Naruto Uzumaki. If you had lived through what I did—if you had watched your entire clan slaughtered with your own eyes and carried that sea of blood until today—you'd be even more extreme than me."
"You'd probably want to destroy the entire world."
"Naruto wouldn't do that!" Sakura shot back instantly. She would never believe that the boy as bright as sunlight could walk such a path.
Naruto nodded hard, trying to reason with him:
"That's right! There's nothing that can't be talked through! And Sasuke—even if you've suffered unimaginable injustice, why take it out on the village? The civilians don't know anything! They're innocent!"
"Innocent?"
Sasuke sounded as if he'd heard the most laughable joke—but he had completely lost the desire to argue.
He glanced at the Leaf shinobi gathering in the distance, hesitant to approach after witnessing the earlier battle, and knew that today was no longer the time.
Turning away from Naruto and Sakura, he left behind a single, ice-cold statement—like a final ultimatum:
"If you're going to stop me, do it now. Kill me here."
"Otherwise, the next time I come—
I will still destroy Konoha."
With that, his body blurred. In a few swift bounds, he vanished into the boundary between ruins and forest.
Sakura and Naruto remained where they were, ultimately not moving to stop him.
Naruto stared at the direction Sasuke had disappeared, his face full of loss and sorrow.
"Sakura…" he said quietly.
"I really wanted him to stay. I really did."
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