Naruto: Naruto's Uchiha girlfriend is too arrogant

Chapter 257 Flying Thunder God Technique, Part 2

"Is this the backbone of the Sand Village ninjas? If they can't win, they just hide in the sand like turtles?!"

"Come out here and fight me head-on, you coward!"

Seeing that Gaara had hidden inside the airtight sand sphere, and that even Naruto's tentative throws of shuriken and kunai were precisely blocked by the sand spikes that suddenly protruded from the surface of the sphere, some viewers who were enjoying the show suddenly burst into a noisy outcry of dissatisfaction, angrily denouncing Gaara's "turtle tactic" of avoiding battle.

"strangeness……"

Kakashi frowned slightly, staring at Naruto who remained motionless in the arena. He had personally witnessed Naruto's use of the five elemental jutsu. Although the sand sphere's defense was thick, Naruto should have several ways to forcefully break through it. Why was he hesitating?

Naruto's silence at this moment was not due to a lack of options, but rather because he was thinking. He knew that Gaara hiding in the sand sphere was likely preparing to use the "Feign Sleep Technique" to completely relinquish control of his body to the One-Tailed Shukaku inside him.

However, if Gaara is to be truly defeated, he will have to confront Shukaku, the One-Tailed Beast. Even if Gaara is killed at this moment, Shukaku, which is sealed, will still break free.

In any case, a showdown with this "giant tanuki" seems unavoidable... Thinking of this, Naruto could feel Kurama in his mental world rubbing his hands together, excitedly growling as if he couldn't wait any longer.

However, to avoid harming innocent bystanders, Naruto absolutely cannot allow Gaara to fully unleash Shukaku here. He must break through Shukaku's shell before it fully awakens, throw Gaara off the field, and then continue the fight.

Once he had made up his mind, Naruto quickly formed a hand seal in front of his chest, his chest bulged, and then he suddenly exhaled.

"Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!"

What was once an ordinary B-rank Fire Release ninjutsu suddenly erupted from Naruto's mouth as a raging, scorching sea of ​​fire! The orange-red flames, carrying terrifying heat, instantly engulfed most of the area, engulfing Gaara's sand sphere!

An even more fervent shout erupted from the stands.

"Alright! Let's beat him to death in one go!"

"Let me see how powerful the Konoha ninja are!"

Originally worried that Gaara's loss of control would ruin the plan, Temari's heart nearly leaped out of her chest as she watched her brother's sand ball being completely engulfed by raging flames, and she cried out in shock.

"Gaara?!"

Inside the scorching sand sphere, Gaara was enduring unimaginable torment. The intense heat seeped through the sand, making the air scalding and thin.

"Mom...it's so hot...what's wrong...?"

He curled up in agony, his consciousness gradually blurring under the scorching heat, his hands trembling violently as he formed the hand seals, unable to complete the final step of the [Feigned Sleep Technique].

Anxiety finally broke through the dam of reason, turning into a roar that was completely inhuman, a mixture of madness and despair, which for a moment drowned out the clamor of the entire audience!

"No... I'm sorry... Waaaaaah—!"

Seeing this, Naruto decisively stopped his Fire Release technique. The scorching flames slowly dissipated, revealing a sand shell that had been burned until its surface became glassy, ​​yet still maintained its spherical shape. It seemed the jutsu had been interrupted, so what happened next…?

"Bang--!!!"

However, in the next instant, a sudden change occurred! A huge, ferocious monster claw, made of ominous dark yellow sand and materialized chakra, suddenly burst out from the crack on the surface of the sand sphere!

Immediately afterwards, the entire sand sphere seemed to be burst apart by the force bursting from within, shattering into pieces with a loud bang, sending sand fragments flying everywhere!

"...How could this be? This is too reckless!" Temari recognized the source of the claw in horror—it was the power of the monster inside Gaara! Was it about to emerge ahead of schedule?! But...the signal to launch the attack hadn't been given yet!

She anxiously looked towards the podium, then towards the "Kazekage" seated beside the Third Hokage, only to find her "father" remaining calm and composed, showing no reaction. Temari could only suppress her panic and continue to keep a close eye on the situation on the field.

As the smoke and dust slowly dissipated, Gaara's figure reappeared. But it was no longer in a human form—his right arm, along with the gourd on his back, had completely merged, transforming into that enormous, ominous, dark yellow monster's claw.

Half of his face was also covered with the sandy texture of Shukaku, his pupils became ferocious like a wild beast, and his mouth was stretched open, revealing an inhuman arc.

"I'll kill you..."

A hoarse voice, filled with endless killing intent, squeezed out from his half-human, half-monster throat.

Naruto stared at Gaara's current state and quickly judged in his mind, "This is... a forced half-tailed beast transformation? Or, to be more precise, a [possession body]."

Although it looks terrifying, the chakra fluctuations it emits are probably less than one percent of the power level when Naruto enters Tailed Beast Chakra Mode.

"What...what kind of monster is that?!"

"The people sent by Sunagakure aren't even human!"

Gaara was already in a semi-out-of-control state. His intense, almost tangible killing intent, mixed with the violent aura of the tailed beast, spread outwards like a cold tide, enveloping the entire arena. Some timid spectators, seeing his terrifying half-human, half-beast appearance, began to tremble uncontrollably, and some even wanted to flee their seats.

"Come...use your blood to make me feel my own existence!"

Gaara, his voice sharp and distorted, wielded his enormous, dark yellow claw like a battering ram out of control, sending sand and gravel flying beneath his feet as he launched a ferocious charge toward Naruto!

However, instead of retreating in the face of this sprint, Naruto also took a step forward and charged at it head-on!

What's even more puzzling is that, during his sprint, he seemingly casually flicked his right hand forward, throwing a uniquely shaped triangular kunai. The kunai spun, tracing a trajectory, and flew towards Gaara.

Most of the Konoha ninja in the stands frowned, puzzled by this seemingly ineffective ranged attack. What use was throwing a kunai in a fight of this level?

But at the same time, the "Wind Shadow" sitting on the platform trembled almost imperceptibly the moment he saw the kunai.

He completely ignored the questioning gaze of the Third Hokage beside him, his breathing unconsciously becoming heavy as he stared intently at the scene.

In the blink of an eye, the distance between the two closed rapidly! After throwing the kunai, Naruto's free left hand instantly condensed into a dazzling, high-speed spinning chakra sphere—the Rasengan!

Gaara had gone completely mad, his mind consumed by the thought of tearing the person before him to pieces, utterly disregarding the seemingly harmless kunai.

He didn't even notice that the kunai, which should have been blocked, flew past his massive Shukaku claw without any hindrance and flew behind him.

"I'll kill you..."

He roared, and the enormous claws of Shukaku were about to completely engulf Naruto's figure!

At this critical moment.

"Whoosh!"

Naruto's figure vanished into thin air! Gaara's sure-fire attack completely missed, and the immense inertia caused him to stagger forward.

"boom--!!!"

The next instant, an irresistible and terrifying impact suddenly came from above Gaara's head! Naruto appeared on the specially made kunai that had already flown behind Gaara. He caught the kunai with one hand, and with the Rasengan that was already prepared in his other hand, he ruthlessly pressed it hard against Gaara's unsuspecting back!

The deafening explosion and the roar of chakra echoed throughout the entire arena.