章節 68: Sakura's Will of Fire
The darkness pushed in from all sides, a weighty oppression that refused to let her go. In her dream, Sakura was back in the interrogation room. The flickering torchlight cast shadows on the walls, warping the already horrifying scene into a nightmarish distortion.
The spy sat tied to the chair, his face pale, lips cracked, and eyes hollow. The interrogator towered over him, his voice as sharp and unyielding as a kunai. "Who are you working for?" he asked again, his tone cold.
"I… I…" the spy stuttered, but the words dissolved into a scream as the needle pierced his flesh once more.
Sakura wanted to look away, but her body wouldn't obey. Her feet were glued to the ground, her eyes locked on the man's anguish. Her own hands were stained with blood now, though she hadn't touched him. The crimson dripped from her fingers, pooling at her feet and spreading outward, an endless sea of guilt. She made a movement on her chair in fear in turn chair made a small disturbing noise that disturbed the interrogation at the crucial moment.
Ibuki got very angry. "Are you out of your fucking mind? What are you doing?"
Sakura," I'm sorry. I didn't do it on purpose"
Ibuki," It seems you lack discipline! Now I am going to teach you discipline you will never forget!"
Ibuki came near Sakura so that he could use Mental Torture Jutsu on her mind to teach her a lesson she wouldn't forget in the future.
The room began to shrink, the walls closing in as the Ibuki came closer to Sakura. Sakura clutched her head, willing the nightmare to end, but the sound burrowed into her mind, clawing at her sanity.
Then, all at once, she woke up.
Sakura shot upright in bed, gasping for air. Her heart was pounding violently against her ribs, her breath coming in short, ragged bursts. The room was dark, save for the faint moonlight filtering through the thin curtains. She pressed her palms to her face, her skin clammy and cold with sweat.
She told herself, " It's just a dream," but the words felt hollow. The memory of the interrogation was no phantom; it was all too real.
She swung her legs over the side of the bed, planting her feet on the cold wooden floor in an attempt to ground herself. Her hands trembled as she reached for the glass of water on the nightstand, but she knocked it over instead. The glass shattered, scattering shards across the floor.
"Dame it." She grizzled at herself, rubbing her head at the prickling of the tears. She felt she was a weakling for Shinobi to break down at that manner.
The night passed in a haze of fitful dreams and restless wakefulness. By the time dawn broke, Sakura felt more exhausted than she had the night before. She forced herself out of bed and made her way to the training ground. She has been doing some serious training with Asuma Sensei.
It has been a few days since the incident. But the scenes in the torture room keep getting repeated in her head like a whirlwind. what kind of experience is this? Seeing someone getting tortured repeatedly. Even these memories are whirlwinds in her dreams. Echos of the torture from the Ibuki's mental jutsu still ringing her ears again and again. It's been one hell of a week for Sakura.
Asuma was already there, standing with his arms crossed and a determined look on his face.
"You're late," he said, though her tone lacked its usual sharpness.
"Sorry," Sakura muttered, rubbing her eyes.
"Don't apologize. Just listen." Asuma gestured for Sakura to sit on the grass. "The mind is as much a weapon as the body, Sakura. If you let it, it can also be your greatest enemy. What you're feeling right now is normal, but it doesn't have to control you. We're going to work on that".
And now for several more hours, Asuma walked Sakura through a sequence of exercises aimed at clearifying her mind and steadying her emotions.
Asuma asked Sakura to close her eyes and to visualize the same, unchanged image in her mind-a tree, river, anything that brings tranquility ( something that symbolizes calmness).
At first, she cannot. Her mind kept recoiling her own images again and again: the interrogate with the spy's screams pouring from its mouth.
"Stop fighting it," Asuma said. "Acknowledge the memory, then let it go. It's like a leaf on a stream—notice it, then watch it drift away."
Slowly, Sakura's attention came into focus. She pictured a cherry blossom tree with its petals blowing gently in the wind. The screams dissipated as the sounds of the leaves and buzzing of nature replaced them.
For the first time in days, her breathing was steady when she opened her eyes.
Asuma then had Sakura fine-tune her chakra flow while under emotional stress. He created illusions of intense scenarios—a collapsing building, an injured comrade, the interrogation room—to test Sakura's ability to maintain control.
Sakura stumbled at first, her chakra wildly fluctuating as her emotions went into overdrive. However, with each attempt, she grew steadier, her focus sharpening like a blade.
"Good," Asuma said after an hour. "The more control you have over your chakra, the less control your emotions will have over you."
The final exercise was brutal. Asuma pushed Sakura through grueling physical drills, forcing her to channel frustration and fear into strength. Every punch, every kick, was a release, a way to reclaim control over the body and the mind.
Asuma has been teaching Chakra Control for a month. He teaches Sakura how to chara in various forms. Similar to how he uses chakra in his weapon, he teaches Sakura how to use chakra to cover her hands during attacks and cover her areas in defending parts.
At the end of the session, Sakura was drenched in sweat, muscles screaming in protest. For the first time in days, however, she felt a spark of hope.
"You did well today," Asuma said, packing up to leave. "But this is only the start. You're stronger than you think, Sakura. Do not let an experience determine who you are."
Sakura nodded with a sense of renewed determination; she had still a long distance to travel but was ready to tackle the road that lay ahead.
Asuma," As a final part of the training, I have assigned you a solo mission. Come to the training ground tomorrow morning for further details."
Sakura was shocked. She will be her first solo mission!
The sky was a drab gray, clouds threatening rain as Sakura stood before Asuma on the Training Ground. The air felt heavier than usual, though that might have been the weight of the task she was about to undertake.
"You're ready for this," Asuma said, handing her a sealed scroll. His voice carried an edge of finality. "The intel you retrieve could prevent a lot of damage to the outer villages. This is no sparring match, Sakura. You'll be on your own."
Sakura nodded, her hand shaking slightly as she took the scroll. The mission details were brief but alarming. A rogue shinobi had been gathering sensitive information on Konoha's border defenses and selling it to mercenary groups. If these leaks continued, smaller settlements under the village's protection would become easy targets for raids.
"Find him, neutralize the threat, and recover whatever data he's collected. Remember: the success of this mission depends on discretion. No unnecessary risks," Asuma added, his eyes narrowing.
"Yes, Sensei," Sakura replied, bowing before turning to leave.
Stepping out into the cool afternoon, Sakura inhaled a steadying breath. It was her first and only solo mission, her chance to show that the days of hesitations and doubts that had once pursued her were in the past. However, in the back of her mind lingered the memory of the interrogation.
Into the Forest
The hideout of the rogue was said to be in the dense forests close to the Land of Hot Springs; far enough from Konoha not to draw any attention but close to threaten its border. Sakura moved fast with steps light on the forest floor.
As she walked deeper inside, the trees grew taller and thicker, their twisted branches making a canopy that blocked most of the sunlight. The silence was eerie; even the birds seemed reluctant to sing.
Sakura paused and checked her surroundings with her eyes scanning for the chakra signatures. She activated her heightened sensory perception and, like a ripple across the water, sent out a pulse of chakra.
There—a faint trace, she thought, focusing on a faint disturbance about half a kilometer to the east. The rogue was nearby.
She moved cautiously, not wanting to disturb the underbrush. The closer she got, the stronger the signature became. Soon, she spotted the entrance to a cave hidden behind a thicket of vines.
Sakura crept forward into the cave, her heart pounding. All Tsunade's training could not silence the little nagging voice of doubt.
She took a step forward, and a whistling sound sliced the air. Sakura ducked away instinctively. A kunai was embedded in the rock beside her.
"So, they sent a rookie after me," a voice sounded from the darkness.
Sakura rolled to one side, barely dodging another kunai.
"Rookie or not, you've made a mistake coming here," the rogue taunted, stepping into the dim light. He was tall and wiry, his face partially obscured by a hood. His hands glowed faintly with chakra, revealing that he specialized in chakra-enhanced close combat.
Sakura clenched her fists, her chakra flowing into her palms. "We'll see who made the mistake."
The Battle Begins
The rogue lunged, his movements almost too fast to follow. Sakura sidestepped, barely avoiding a strike that left a jagged crack in the stone wall. He's strong, she realized, her mind racing. But his attacks are reckless.
Using her previous pieces of training, she analyzed his movements, searching for weaknesses. His strikes were powerful but imprecise, leaving him vulnerable during recovery.
Sakura feinted to the left, drawing him into overextending. As he swung wide, she ducked under his arm and struck with a chakra-infused punch to his ribs. The impact sent him skidding back, coughing blood.
"You're better than I expected," he admitted, wiping his mouth. "But you're not the only one who can play dirty."
He ordered a series of seals and brought forth a swarm of suspended kunai by the strings of chakra, suspended in the air, and they were sent her way like a poisonous rain.
Sakura moved quickly, dodging the projectiles with precision. She activated her chakra Kunai, slicing through the strings that controlled the kunai.
The rogue snarled and created another seal. This filled the cave with a smokescreen of thick smoke. Sakura's vision began to blur as she was engulfed by the smoke.
This smoke was filled with a toxin to render one disoriented, and then weak. Sakura's knees buckled when dizziness set in.
She reminded herself to stay calm, as taught by Asuma. Closing her eyes, she focused on her chakra and expelled the toxin with a controlled burst.
The rogue used the smokescreen to launch another attack. But Sakura was ready for him. She dodged his strikes with practiced ease, countering with precise blows that targeted his pressure points.
"You think this is over?" he growled, retreating deeper into the cave.
Sakura followed, but her determination was unbroken. The rogue was weakening, but she couldn't afford to relax.
Deep in the cave, the rogue flipped a hidden switch. Scrolls filled a room within, scrolls he claimed were stolen plus a sealing array.
"This is what you're looking for isn't it?" he sneered, his breath disgusted. "Too bad you won't live to report back.
He stretched his palms out on the sealing array and a dark chakra burst erupted all through the chamber. The earth groaned as a monstrous construct of chakra and stone before her rose up, glowing with malevolence.
Sakura's heart skipped a beat, but she never moved to step back. She prepared for the fight of a lifetime by channeling all her chakra into her fists.
The construct lunged, swinging its massive arms with devastating force. Sakura dodged and countered, her punches shattering chunks of stone but leaving her breathless.
Noticing that she could not defeat the construct by brute strength alone, Sakura came up with a plan. She used her agility to lead the rogue into overcharging the construct's attacks, which eventually destabilized.
As the construct crumbled, Sakura drove her mass hammer into its core, pulverizing the thing utterly. The rogue, now defenseless, slid to his knees.
Sakura stood over the defeated rogue, her chest heaving. He glared up at her, defiant even in his injuries.
"Do it," he spat. "Finish me off."
Sakura hesitated, her mind flashing back to the interrogation. She clenched her fists hard, her heart heavy with her decision.
"No," she said decisively. "You are going to answer for your crimes, but I am not going to get down to your level."
She bound him with chakra-infused restraints and brought back the stolen scrolls.
Sakura returned to the village exhausted but triumphant. The scrolls were secured, and the rogue was handed over to the ANBU for interrogation.
Asuma met her with a rare smile. "You did well, Sakura. You proved not only your strength but also your character."
Sakura nodded, her resolve stronger than ever. She had faced her fears, confronted her doubts, and emerged victorious.
She allowed herself a small smile as she walked out.
Shortly after her exit two persons from the shadow emerge.
"Asuma we didn't get to do anything. She did pretty well on her own. She is good to take her Chunin Exams"
"Thank you guys for guarding her throughout the mission"
Yes, they were sent by Asuma sensei to make sure Sakura returned alive during her mission.
[AUTHOUR: Thank you so much guys for your support! I had never seen 40 Power stones in a week in my life. Thank you for this beautiful moment. I like to thank @youdie4544 , @blue_cookie24 , @VanillaExodia , @Alphalevy . I am in debt to you guys! ]
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