Amid the roaring and hissing of the storm, the intense heat warped the surrounding air.
With a swift kick infused with Armament Haki, Vice Admiral Tsuru unleashed a Tempest Kick blade that slashed toward Sakura Haruno, sending her flying backward.
The raging sea suddenly caved in, splitting open with a violent crack. A black-suited CP6 agent burst through the water, propelled like a dark meteor streaking through the storm, piercing the rain.
"You filthy peasant, how dare you!" the CP6 leader roared, consumed by fury. He unleashed his full strength, using Moonwalk to treat the sea itself as solid ground, charging forward with unstoppable momentum.
His fists, wrapped in Haki, whistled through the air at a speed too fast for the eye to follow, crossing the sea's surface.
Six Powers: Finger Pistol - Yellow Lotus!
"Sauro!" Sakura shouted, steadying herself with Moonwalk.
A massive iron fist, radiating menace, appeared and smashed down toward the CP6 agent. The Giant's raw physical power, mixed with unyielding will, unleashed Haki like a steel star plummeting from the sky.
A gale of wind surged, and a dark, radiant glow illuminated the CP6 agent's eyes, freezing him in shock.
"You damn Giant…" he muttered, his lips trembling as his fierce expression faltered.
The overwhelming force tore through the barrage of Finger Pistol - Yellow Lotus, slamming into the agent's face.
Boom!
A deafening explosion rang out. Amid cascading shockwaves, a figure was sent flying, crashing back into the sea!
"Sauro, you naughty child! Have you really been seduced by pirates?" Vice Admiral Tsuru's voice cut through as her hand suddenly appeared in front of Sauro.
She had seized the moment of Sauro's attack on the CP6 agent to close in on him.
"Not good!" Sakura spun around, darting back through the air like a meteor.
But then, multiple cannon blasts erupted nearby.
A relentless torrent of steel cannonballs wove a fiery net, blocking Sakura's path forward.
Her Observation Haki swept the area, taking in everything within a two-kilometer radius. On a nearby warship, a female officer with a lieutenant commander's insignia slumped wearily against a cannon, spitting toward Sakura. "Don't underestimate our justice, pirate!"
"Damn it!" Sakura cursed, glancing back at Sauro and Vice Admiral Tsuru.
"Come on, Sauro, be a good boy again!" Tsuru said, her hand—infused with the power of the Wash-Wash Fruit—pressing against Sauro's fist. The near-bug-level ability surged into his mind.
Pop! Crack!
Foam spread across Sauro's body, and the massive Giant staggered backward.
"Sauro!" Sakura reached him just in time, using her powers to create a sheet of ice on the sea to catch his falling body.
"Alright, Sauro's down. Now it's your turn, you naughty little monkey!" Tsuru declared, landing on the merchant ship. She transitioned seamlessly from Moonwalk to Shave, kicking off the ship's railing.
With a burst of friction against the air, she became a white crane-like silhouette, swooping toward Sakura.
"Come and try it!" Sakura shot back, her hands flashing through seals to replicate a Water Release technique she'd secretly learned in the Uchiha compound.
Tiger - Rooster - Rabbit
Her fingers danced, forming the seals as wild chakra fluctuations surged, stirring the surrounding seawater. Her body temperature spiked, creating a layer of mist on the ice.
The Great Waterfall Technique lifted the sea into the air, heated by Sakura's ability until it became boiling water.
Combination Technique: Scorching Stream Jutsu!
A torrent of scalding seawater leaped into the sky, raining down blistering heat and steam.
Tsuru, racing along the ship's railing, frowned and used Moonwalk to leap off the merchant ship. She had deliberately drawn the fight to the ship to limit Sakura's untouchable heat.
But she hadn't expected Sakura to go this far, dousing the ship with boiling water.
"To win, you'd even sacrifice your allies? Looks like you need some serious discipline!" Tsuru muttered, only to be interrupted by a warning from her Observation Haki.
The scorching torrent, originally diving toward the ship, made an almost 180-degree turn, surging straight toward Tsuru in midair.
"What?!"
Even as a tactical genius, Tsuru hadn't anticipated that chakra-infused water could be controlled to change its attack trajectory.
Caught off guard, she barely had time to envelop herself in Armament Haki before the boiling water swallowed her.
"Vice Admiral Tsuru!" officers on the nearby navy warship cried out in despair as their commander was engulfed by the enemy's attack.
The scholars on the merchant ship shouted too, their limited combat strength no match for the heat softening even the wooden vessel.
"Sakura, the temperature's too high!" Nico Olvia's voice snapped Sakura's attention back.
She adjusted her hand signs, diverting some chakra to manipulate the ocean currents, pushing the merchant ship out of the danger zone.
"Sakura, what are you doing?!" the scholars yelled in unison.
"Get out of here! Take the news of the government's attack on Ohara back home. I'll stay and hold them off!" Sakura called, her eyes flashing red as she turned her gaze skyward.
Boom!
In that instant, the sea trembled with a massive explosion. The scalding water sprayed in all directions, cooking countless fish in the shallow waters.
Tsuru's figure, like a wisp of willow, darted through the gaps in the boiling rain, lunging straight for Sakura.
Her body bore several burns, and her pristine Justice cloak was riddled with holes from the water's assault.
Tsuru closed in with a precise chokehold, gripping Sakura's neck.
Her Haki- and ability-infused hand clashed fiercely with Sakura's steam armor, inching closer to her skin.
"Ugh, this is never gonna end at this rate," Sakura muttered.
Her wrist twisted, and a black rift appeared in her palm, the handle of the supreme blade Ace emerging.
At the same time, in the water behind her, a shadow—scalded red like a boiled shrimp—silently rose.
Dark, venomous resentment simmered, and in one final burst, the long-hidden CP6 agent unleashed his last reserves of strength.
"Die! Life Return: Finger Pistol - Ten Finger Gun!"
The CP6 agent's ten fingers curled slightly, his palms clapping together before his index fingers shot out, the impact aimed straight at Sakura's head.
But then, the sound of shattering ice rang out, and a colossal force surged once more.
In a fleeting glimpse, the CP6 agent saw a massive fist roaring toward him, unleashing an unimaginable shockwave.
Bang!
"You damn… why is it you again…?"
The agent's eyes widened, veins bulging in rage.
The overwhelming force smashed through him, the sound of splintering bones echoing as he was blasted into the sea for the third time. Spitting a mouthful of blood, he lost consciousness and sank into the depths.
"Sauro!" Sakura's eyes lit up as she shouted with joy.
"Dereshishi, dereshishishi! Bet you didn't see that coming~" Sauro grinned, sticking out his tongue playfully, only to flinch as Sakura's heat singed his hand.
In the distance, Vice Admiral Tsuru's brows furrowed. "Sauro, why?" she demanded, her voice heavy with frustration.
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