The Puppet: Corpse Crow was a humanoid puppet crafted by Sasori of the Red Sand, once a genius puppet master from Sunagakure.
It had three eyes and four arms. It was not only highly aggressive in battle, but could also swap places with the puppet master's original body, creating a perfect illusion to deceive opponents tactically.
The Corpse Crow was constructed from extremely durable materials, so Kankuro felt confident it could definitely block this incoming punch attack. Then immediately afterward would come his counterattack.
Unfortunately, things didn't turn out the way he'd hoped.
In reality, Kankuro greatly underestimated the power behind Izumi's punch.
Crack.
With a crisp, explosive sound, the Corpse Crow, harder than steel, shattered into pieces under Izumi's iron fist, its head and body flying in different directions.
That wasn't all.
Izumi's punch still carried forward without slowing, heading straight for Kankuro's chest.
Not good.
Kankuro turned pale with shock, but at such close range, there was no way to dodge—he was almost certainly going down with one hit.
At the critical moment, Gaara made his move.
Shhhsh.
With a wave of his right hand, numerous grains of sand appeared before Kankuro, forming a sturdy Air Sand Protective Wall that blocked Izumi's attack.
Bang.
Izumi's punch struck the protective wall with a dull thud but failed to penetrate it.
Izumi wasn't bothered by it though—she hadn't been using her full strength to begin with. She merely intended to teach Kankuro a lesson, not seriously harm him.
Destroying his puppet was already enough.
So, she decided not to push further and started pulling back her fist.
Yet unexpectedly, Gaara seemed unwilling to stop.
Shhhsh.
He flipped his palm, and the sand transformed again, becoming a large ochre net that wrapped completely around Izumi's entire body, binding her tightly.
"Gaara, don't!"
Both Kankuro and Temari cried out simultaneously. Fights usually ended with just a few scrapes or a bit of bloodshed. But Gaara had no sense of restraint—he could actually kill someone.
If they killed these two here, their situation would become extremely complicated, and their subsequent secret operation plan would be ruined.
Unfortunately, Gaara didn't care about that.
He thought Izumi was a decent opponent, so he simply wanted to destroy her body and will with his own hands—and that was all.
[Sand Binding Coffin!]
Gaara lowly shouted, clenching his fist tightly. The sand wrapped around Izumi instantly compressed, squeezing her from every direction with crushing force.
Hmm?
Frowning slightly, Izumi hadn't expected Gaara to go all-out like this.
In that case, she couldn't be blamed for what happened next.
"Hah!"
With a loud shout, she tensed her entire body, and a massive surge of chakra exploded from within her, generating an intense repelling force that instantly shattered the sand covering her body.
The Sand Binding Coffin was undone.
Huh?
Gaara uttered a soft exclamation, finally showing emotion on his face. But before he could make another move, Izumi had already dashed forward using the Body Flicker Technique, throwing another punch.
Still using Monster Strength.
But this time, it wasn't just a minor skirmish—it was true Monster Strength.
Gaara instinctively used his sand to defend, but quickly realized that against Izumi's iron fist, his sand was as fragile as paper.
Boom!
Izumi threw a punch. Her fist tore through the sand floating in front of Gaara like a hot knife through butter, leaving a large hole before brutally smashing into his face.
Whoosh.
Gaara immediately lifted off the ground, flipping backward like a cannonball and crashing heavily into the wall behind him. The entire structure collapsed on impact, burying him beneath the rubble.
What?!
Kankuro and Temari stared at the scene like they had seen a ghost. It was the first time ever that someone had managed to break through Gaara's sand defense with sheer physical force—and actually injure him.
After all, Gaara was no ordinary genin; he was Sunagakure's secret weapon. Even jonins in the village were no match for him.
And yet, this girl—barely twelve or thirteen years old—was stronger than Gaara?
Impossible.
"Gaara!"
Kankuro rushed over immediately, pulling Gaara out from beneath the ruins. He saw deep cracks forming across Gaara's face like fractured clay, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
Temari, meanwhile, pulled her massive war fan from her back, her expression turning serious as she prepared to attack.
"I'd advise you to calm down."
At that moment, Haku finally spoke. With one hand, he swiftly formed several hand seals, then waved his arm. Five sparkling ice spikes shot out from his palm.
Shshshshsh.
The five ice spikes landed at Temari's feet, embedding deeply into the ground, emitting icy vapor that made the area feel like a freezing chamber.
"Ice Release…a Kekkei Genkai?!"
Temari murmured in shock, her fear intensifying.
They had barely begun to grasp the threat posed by a girl wielding monstrous taijutsu strength, when now they were faced with someone who possessed a Kekkei Genkai as well.
Even if the Suna Trio used all their skills together, they probably wouldn't stand a chance.
However, Izumi and Haku had no intention of prolonging the fight with the Sand Trio—they were in a hurry to get home and cook dinner to welcome Heiyan.
Exchanging glances, Izumi stepped forward and warned the three Sand ninja:
"You're just Sunagakure genin, yet you dare act so arrogantly? You have no idea what true power looks like. We still have dinner to prepare tonight, so we'll let you off easy this time—take care."
With these words, Izumi and Haku each picked up a bag full of ingredients and walked away side by side.
Gaara and the others stood in silence, watching the retreating backs of the two until they vanished into the distance. Then they looked at each other, expressions filled with shock and bitterness.
Their sense of superiority lay in pieces around them.
Gaara and his siblings were all children of the Fourth Kazekage Rasa—recognized prodigies in Sunagakure who'd never met an equal among their peers since childhood.
Until today.
"Were those guys ninjas from Konoha? Are they going to participate in this year's Chunin Exams too… If that's the case, we won't stand a snowball's chance in hell."
Kankuro said bitterly.
"I've never heard of such strong genin from Konoha," Temari replied grimly, her eyes clouded with confusion.
Before coming to Konoha, she had done some espionage and gained a general understanding of the main competitors in this Chunin Exam.
However, those two people just now were neither from prestigious clans like Uchiha clan or Hyuga clan, nor seemed to be young talents from other ninja families. They left Temari completely clueless.
As if they had emerged out of nowhere.
At this moment, Gaara got back to his feet.
The cheek that Izumi had punched cracked apart, then slowly reformed as if it had never been damaged.
But failure and humiliation could not be erased or ignored.
Right now, Gaara's heart brimmed with shame, anger, and fury. He was like a volcano about to erupt, radiating an extremely dangerous aura.
Next time he met that woman again, he swore to grind her into pulp with his sand.
"Hey, what are you doing?"
Suddenly, a voice came from not far away—it was several patrolling police force members who rushed over after hearing the commotion.
"Sorry, I accidentally destroyed this wall just now. Please forgive us. We'll definitely compensate for it."
Gaara slowly spoke, staring intently at these Uchiha clan members from the police force.
All of them immediately changed expressions; their back hairs stood on end as if pierced by the gaze of a ferocious beast.
Kankuro and Temari didn't want any extra trouble, so they hastily pulled out some cash and handed it over.
"Fine, just go already. Remember, Konoha isn't your backwater village. Behave yourselves, or you won't get off this easy next time."
One officer took the money, waving them off like shooing away flies, urging the trio to leave.
Gaara silently turned and walked away.
Temari and Kankuro hurriedly followed behind.
...
When Izumi and Haku returned to their home, they were surprised to find a rich aroma coming from the kitchen.
It was Heiyan who was making soup, the aroma coming from the kitchen.
"Oh, you're back."
Heiyan, wearing an apron, came out from the kitchen holding a ladle in one hand and a steaming bowl of soup in the other.
"Teacher, let me help."
Izumi quickly put down her ingredients and ran forward to take the soup bowl from Heiyan.
"I want to help too."
Haku murmured and picked up all the ingredient bags, carrying them into the kitchen where he carefully organized them before placing them inside the fridge.
The master and his two apprentices busied themselves for a while, finally enjoying a hearty dinner together, laughter filling the room.
During the meal, Izumi told Heiyan about their earlier encounter with Gaara's Trio.
"Fascinating."
Heiyan smiled knowingly. That boy Gaara—who was once naturally reserved—probably became even more withdrawn after being disciplined by Izumi.
"I don't know if it's just my imagination, but that guy with dark circles around his eyes carrying a big gourd seems not as simple as he appears."
Izumi sipped her soup, smacking her lips slightly as she spoke.
"You're right. He's Sand Village's One-Tail Jinchuriki—Gaara."
Heiyan answered, clearing Izumi's confusion.
"So that's why."
Izumi nodded with realization but didn't dwell on it much.
After all, if even the Nine-Tails' jinchuriki had been defeated by her, what could the One-Tail's jinchuriki possibly amount to?
"This Chunin Exam should be quite exciting. You two should go watch it live," Heiyan proposed to the two beside him.
"Yep, yep." Both Izumi and Haku nodded in unison upon hearing his words.
Four days later.
The long-awaited Chunin Exams in the Leaf Village finally began.
On the second-floor balcony, Heiyan, Izumi, and Haku leisurely enjoyed breakfast while overlooking Ichiraku Street below, watching as competitors from various ninja villages passed through.
During this time, they spotted Naruto and Sasuke of Team 7, along with other genin from Teams 3, 8, and 10. These young ninjas were full of ambition, ready to prove themselves in the competition.
Overall, as the host village, Konoha fielded the largest number of participants, making them the strongest faction by far.
In contrast, those from minor Hidden Villages seemed rather pitiful.
Take Kusagakure for example.
Among the crowd, Shinrin kept her head bowed low, trailing behind others with a nervous heart.
If she could successfully pass these exams and earn the rank of Chunin, her status within Kusagakure would greatly improve. Perhaps then, she wouldn't have to serve merely as a human medical supply anymore.
Although so far the men from Grass had only used her as a medic without crossing further boundaries, what about the future? Would worse things happen to her?
Thinking about it made Shinrin shudder. She knew that if she kept going down this path, she'd end up dying—a truly gruesome fate.
Yet, she also understood that this exam featured many prodigies. With her current abilities, advancing to become a Chunin felt practically impossible.
Still, at this point, there was nothing left to do but give it her all.
Shinrin, you must believe in yourself! This is your last chance to change your tragic fate.
She silently encouraged herself inwardly, unconsciously tightening her fists.
Suddenly, Shinrin sensed someone observing her.
Even among the Uzumaki clan, she possessed unusually sharp sensory abilities. Despite how subtly hidden the gaze was, she still noticed it.
Instinctively lifting her head, she looked toward the second floor of a nearby inn.
The next moment, Shinrin froze in place because she saw a familiar face smiling gently at her.
It was the white-haired young man.
That day on the street, he had helped her up after she fell, looking at her with such kindness—it had been like a ray of sunshine warming her heart.
Now, standing on the balcony, he appeared alongside two girls about her age, seeming quite close to them.
Seeing this, Shinrin couldn't help but feel a strange sense of longing—and yes, even jealousy—toward the two girls.
Just then—
"Good luck in the exam. I'll be watching closely—and rooting for you every step of the way."
Heiyan's voice suddenly echoed inside Shinrin's mind.
She was instantly startled—for Heiyan's lips hadn't moved at all, and not a soul around her reacted. It seemed like only she had heard his voice.
Shinrin quickly realized this was an advanced technique for manipulating chakra.
Snapping out of her thoughts, she beamed at Heiyan and gave him an eager nod, deeply inspired.
"Hurry up. Don't look around."
A Kusagakure ninja behind her shoved her roughly, urging her to move faster.
"Don't push me!" she snapped, gathering her courage to stand up for herself. She let out a sharp snort at the ninja's shocked look, then turned on her heel and marched forward without hesitation.
At the balcony,
"Teacher, is that red-haired girl someone you know?" Izumi asked, eyes wide with curiosity. Though she hadn't heard Heiyan's whisper transmitted to Shinrin, she'd noticed his gaze. She had also seen those shocking bite marks on Shinrin's body.
Heiyan didn't hide anything. Opening his arms, he embraced his two apprentices' shoulders and said,
"Her name is Uzumaki Shinrin. She's a survivor of the legendary Uzumaki clan—unfortunately, she ended up trapped in Kusagakure, the Hidden Grass Village. I want to rescue her from that cursed place."
"Great!" Hearing that, Izumi's eyes lit up with excitement. From the moment she first saw Shinrin, she had felt sympathy for the girl. Now learning their teacher intended to save her lifted her heart immensely.
Haku also showed visible happiness, eagerly anticipating Shinrin joining them as a new family member.
"Oh no… not those three *again*."
<><><><><><><><>
Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!
<><><><><><><><>
~ 100+ Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon!
~ More *Free* Chapters and Books Available on Patreon!
patreon.com/Tansnovel
<><><><><><><><>