Here @riojiyo131, your trusted writer.
I just wanted to remind you that there are already 3 early access chapters of Re: Naruto Uzumaki available on my Patreon, and even more will be coming soon. You can also read up to chapter 10 of my other story, Naruto: Satoru Senju.
patreon.com/riojiyo131
-----------------
[Might Duy: That rivalry! THIS IS WHAT I WAS LOOKING FOR! THIS IS THE TRUE MEANING OF YOUTH! They remind me of Sakumo and me when we were kids! Don't you think so, Sakumo?!]
[Sakumo Hatake: Huh? Were you saying something, Puy?]
[Might Duy: HAHAHAHA! YOU NEVER CHANGE, SAKUMO! BUT MY NAME ISN'T PUY, IT'S DUY!]
[Sakumo Hatake: Oh, right, sorry… Chuy.]
[Might Duy: CHUY?! IT'S DUY! Come on, Sakumo, don't mess with me!]
[Sakumo Hatake: I'm bad with names, you know that… Wuy.]
[Might Duy: Now I get it! You're messing with me! Eight Inner Gates! Gate of Death…! OPEN! Get ready, Sakumo, we're spending the rest of the day training!]
[Sakumo Hatake: Huh? No way! Stay away from me, you maniac! You're crazy! Someone save me! Help stop Zhuy!]
[Hizashi Hyūga: Somehow, this is going to affect me too, damn it.]
Back in the battle arena.
Sakura and Ino charged at each other, and the first clash was brutal.
Ino began with a spinning kick that forced Sakura to duck.
Sakura responded with a straight hook, but Ino blocked it with her forearm and countered with an elbow strike.
Sakura veered to the side, spinning to deliver a low kick that made Ino stagger.
Ino stepped back and threw three kunai, but Sakura deflected them all with a swift arm movement and charged again.
Sakura's speed surprised Ino.
Inner Sakura: "Move like Naruto taught you! Fast, precise, without hesitation!"
Sakura unleashed a flurry of short strikes: two punches to the face, an elbow to the neck, a leg sweep...
Ino dodged the two punches, blocked the elbow, but didn't see the sweep coming.
Ino fell on her back to the ground.
She rolled before Sakura could reach her again and threw a smoke bomb.
From inside, quick footsteps were heard.
Sakura stepped back, alert.
Suddenly, Ino emerged from behind, aiming a direct blow to the back of the neck. Sakura ducked just in time and spun with her fist forward.
Impact!
Ino took the hit on her shoulder and was pushed back several steps, panting, exhausted.
"That hurt…" Ino complained, wincing.
"What comes next is going to hurt more." Sakura smiled.
Sakura ran straight in, faked a high kick and, at the last second, dropped her center of gravity and landed a direct punch to Ino's abdomen.
Ino let out a groan and dropped to her knees, but still had strength left.
As she stood up, Ino smirked and, taking advantage of the opening, quickly formed a seal with both hands.
"Genjutsu: Butterfly Needle Fire!"
Sakura was caught in the Genjutsu instantly.
Countless butterflies surrounded her, and her mind felt sluggish, confused.
Normally, with this technique, Ino approaches her opponent and places an Explosive Tag on their face, but since it was Sakura—her rival and best friend—she didn't want to hurt her irreversibly.
So, Ino quickly approached Sakura and landed a punch to her jaw with all her strength.
Sakura, who had broken free from the Genjutsu as fast as she could, found Ino's fist half an inch from her face.
Clearly, Sakura didn't have time to dodge.
Sakura was sent flying a few meters back and hit the ground with a thud.
Inner Sakura: "How dare she touch my face! That's it, I'm killing her!"
Ino's punch had left blood at the corner of Sakura's mouth, and she glared at Ino angrily.
In contrast, Ino smiled.
"I made you bleed," she mocked.
"Good for you," Sakura growled, wiping the blood from her mouth with the back of her hand. "You finally managed to hit me once…" Sakura mocked. "But now it's my turn."
Sakura gathered Chakra in her feet and lunged forward with a flicker movement.
It was the same technique Naruto had taught her: the Body Flicker Technique.
In the blink of an eye, she appeared in front of Ino and surprised her with a series of quick strikes.
Ino was forced to retreat, barely defending.
Sakura hit her with a knee to the chest and a kick to the leg.
Then, she jumped back and smiled, pulling a handful of Shuriken from her pouch.
"Sakura's Shuriken Throw!"
Nine Shuriken flew toward Ino, connected by Chakra-controlled wires. Ino tried to dodge, but one of the wires wrapped around her arm.
Sakura pulled hard, and the movement trapped Ino.
She dragged her closer… and prepared her next technique.
A green glow lit up in her hand.
It was the Chakra Scalpel. A technique Sakura had learned and mastered at Konoha's hospital.
With precision, Sakura delivered a quick slash to Ino's leg.
It didn't draw blood, but the internal muscle was affected. Ino fell with a scream, her leg trembling.
"I didn't injure you severely," said Sakura. "But you can't move like before."
"You haven't won," Ino growled, furious, while forming her special seal.
"Mind Body Switch Technique!"
Sakura didn't have time to move. She felt something cold pierce through her consciousness.
Darkness. Then, another presence.
Inner Sakura: "Get out of here, blonde pig! This is MY head! Get out of my body before you regret it!"
And with a scream, Inner-Sakura expelled Ino as fast as she had entered her territory.
Sakura fell to her knees, breathing heavily.
Ino, a few meters away, lay on the ground pale-faced and trembling. The technique had drained too much energy.
"Not yet…" Ino murmured, trying to stand up.
But Sakura had recovered much faster.
"This is over, Ino," Sakura said seriously.
Inner Sakura: "Time to end this! Joint technique…!"
"Almighty Sakura!!!!" shouted Sakura, launching a punch.
Sakura's punch, enhanced with Chakra—though not as powerful as it would be with Tsunade's Strength Amplification Technique, which Sakura hadn't learned yet—struck the ground near Ino.
The entire combat arena shook from the force of Sakura's punch.
Fragments of rock flew. Ino was thrown back like a rag doll and hit the wall.
The impact left Ino unconscious.
Hayate Gekkō slowly lowered his hand.
"Ino Yamanaka can no longer continue. Sakura Haruno is the winner."
Sakura jumped with joy after winning the match.
Quickly, she looked at Sasuke in the stands and smiled foolishly when she saw him smile back.
In the stands, both Naruto and Sasuke were surprised by that final blow.
"Remind me never to mess with Sakura again…" Naruto said to Sasuke.
Sasuke smiled amused, nodding in agreement: "I thought Sakura was going to lose, honestly. Her only strengths so far, that she's shown, were Medical Ninjutsu and Chakra Control. I'm as surprised as you."
Karin was no exception; she was also surprised to see how powerful Sakura was.
Kakashi, behind them, approached and placed a hand on their shoulders.
"Sakura has been training in secret to surprise you. She asked me to train her when we returned from the escort mission to the Land of Waves."
Naruto was shocked by Kakashi's words.
Not because Sakura asked Kakashi to train her, but because…
"Kakashi-sensei actually acted like a teacher?! Impossible! I must be in a Genjutsu!" Naruto exclaimed, unable to believe it.
Kakashi rolled his eyes and stayed silent.
[Sakumo Hatake: Certainly. Kakashi hasn't taught you anything until now. Finding out he's been training Sakura in secret is a surprise.]
[Might Duy: Looks like Sakumo's son has surprised us all! I thought he wasn't like my son—an exceptional teacher with exquisite fashion taste! BUT I WAS WRONG!]
[Sakumo Hatake: Huh? What were you saying, Muy?]
[Hizashi Hyūga: No! Don't start bothering Duy again! I'm still covered in bruises!]
In the Pure World, Hizashi sat on the ground, exhausted, watching Sakura and Ino's fight, his body covered in bruises and his face swollen from Duy's punches.
If it weren't for the fact that they were already dead, Hizashi figured he'd be dead by now.
[Sakumo Hatake: Anyway, we can't die. Isn't that right, Suy?]
[Might Duy: …]
[Might Duy: Eight Inner Gates! Gate of Death! Open!]
[Hizashi Hyūga: NO! PLEASE! STOP! MY BODY STILL HURTS FROM LAST TIME!]
[Sakumo Hatake: Haha…]