Chapter 16
"Sakura, you—"
At this critical moment, Naruto grabbed Sakura's wrist, stopping the impending tragedy.
Yes—tragedy.
Given Sakura's personality, if she discovered "Sasuke" was actually Sakyo, she'd definitely scream at the top of her lungs. Then everyone would know Sasuke was a girl.
At that point, Naruto would gain millions of love rivals.
So how could he let Sakura succeed?
"Ow~ Uzumaki Naruto, what are you doing? You're hurting me~"
Sakura jumped in fright and tried to yank free, but after flailing for a while, she couldn't budge.
Naruto released her wrist and saw faint red marks on her fair skin.
"Uh… sorry about that. I got too worked up."
Naruto quickly apologized. He couldn't handle it if a girl like her went full berserk.
But Sakura just gave him a wronged look before huffing, "Fine! You actually used real strength on me."
"Watch out, or I'll… wah~?"
Before she could finish her threat, Naruto clamped a hand over her mouth and said earnestly, "Sakura, you know me—I didn't mean it."
"I only lose control like that when I'm in a panic."
Sakura struggled furiously. "Mmmph!! Mrrph mrrph!!!!"
Naruto: "Sakura? What'd you say?"
Ino, watching the two mess around, couldn't help twitching at the corner of her eye.
She poked Naruto's shoulder and reminded him, "Sakura's about to suffocate."
Naruto: "Oh crap!! Are you part dog or something?!"
Sakura's mouth opened, revealing two rows of pearly teeth as she chomped down hard on Naruto's finger.
Naruto yanked his hand back. When he pulled it free, there was even a trace of blood—Sakura had bitten with everything she had.
Luckily, Naruto's recovery was insane, especially now with his Uzumaki bloodline fully activated. The wound healed in seconds.
After breaking free, Sakura stumbled back in panic. Ino quickly caught and hugged her…
Sakura looked at Naruto with confusion and fear before finally asking, puzzled, "Naruto, are you picking a fight?"
Naruto was just as speechless. With his newly boosted strength and the urgency of the moment, he couldn't control his grip.
As a result… delicate little Sakura got hurt from even a light touch.
Naruto apologized sincerely, "Sorry, Sakura. It's my fault."
Sakura couldn't stay mad. She couldn't blame him over something so trivial—especially since he was apologizing so earnestly. She wasn't about to ruin years of friendship over this.
Unless said friend tried to steal her boyfriend! (Ino: "?")
"Fine. Why did you stop me?"
Sakura was curious why Naruto interfered.
Could it be…
"Is Sasuke-kun… actually a girl?"
Sakura stared in horror at Sakyo lying on the ground. That delicate face, slightly furrowed brows—even prettier than her own.
If it weren't for the flat chest, Sakura would be 100% certain Sakyo was female.
Naruto was thinking about how to explain it to her, and Sakura's attention was fully on him.
So…
Unable to resist her curiosity, Ino quietly reached out toward Sakyo~
Slap~
Just as Ino's heart raced with anticipation, Sakyo's eyes snapped open. Without thinking, she swung a palm straight at Ino's face.
The crisp slap echoed through the air. Ino froze, completely stunned—especially with five red finger marks blooming on her cheek…
Naruto and Sakura turned at the noise, looking toward Sakyo and Ino.
Sakyo looked icy as usual—no issue there. But Ino now sported a clear handprint.
Ino clutched her cheek, pouting at Sakyo with teary eyes.
She'd only tried to do what Sakura wanted but couldn't—and got slapped for it.
Even though it was her beloved Sasuke, Ino still felt wronged.
Waaah~ I wanna cry!
After realizing what happened, Sakyo calmly apologized, "Sorry. Didn't see clearly—I thought you were Naruto."
Naruto: "?"
"Why is it okay to slap me?!"
Ino grumbled, "Zero sincerity!"
Sakura's lips curved into a smile. "Good hit!"
Ino: "???"
"Sakura, what did you say?"
Sakura: "Uh…"
…
After some time to cool down, the atmosphere between them eased up.
Ino and Sakura, both girls going through an existential crisis, squatted on the ground drawing circles and muttering things Naruto couldn't hear.
Looked like today had been quite the rollercoaster for them.
Especially Ino—the handprint on her fair cheek wouldn't fade for a while.
When she got home tonight, her parents would definitely ask where it came from.
That was going to be a headache for her.
Meanwhile, Sakyo was seriously reviewing the fight.
At the start, she'd seen Naruto looking down, as if guilty for facing her, and felt a bit better.
Then he suddenly exploded with chakra she'd never seen before, appearing behind her and landing a heavy blow.
Even now, her head was still spinning.
So…
Sakyo looked at Naruto—who was trying to butter her up with an apologetic face—and parted her thin lips. "Since when did you learn Body Flicker?"
Naruto shook his head. "I don't know Body Flicker!"
Sakyo's face chilled. "Hmph! Still denying it?"
By definition, Body Flicker is any technique that boosts a ninja's speed beyond what the naked eye can track.
The most common in Konoha is the Leaf-style Body Flicker, which uses substitution for the effect.
During the fight, Naruto's speed had clearly surpassed standard Body Flicker levels.
Remember—she'd had her two-tomoe Sharingan active and still couldn't track him.
If that wasn't Body Flicker, what was it?
Naruto scratched his head and explained, "Seriously—I just reinforced my body with chakra."
Sakyo knew Naruto's personality well.
Unless it was a special situation, he didn't lie.
So… he was telling the truth?
Half-convinced, Sakyo hesitated before asking, "Then… could you…"
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