"Naruto-niisan, we're here!"
From down the path, the Konohamaru Corps approached, accompanied by Sakura, who was still looking a bit frazzled from her earlier bickering with Sasuke.
"Whoa, Kanon-nee is here too!" Konohamaru called out, waving energetically.
"Hey there, Konohamaru. Back to learn more Ninjutsu from Naruto?" Kanon asked, crouching down to his level.
"You bet! Want to learn with us, Kanon-nee?"
"I think I'll pass. You're both chasing the dream of becoming Hokage, so keep encouraging each other." She turned to Naruto and offered a small smile. "Naruto, I'm heading out first."
"Got it! See ya, Kanon!"
Bolstered by Kanon's encouragement, Naruto was bursting with motivation. Seeing Sakura looking dejected, his romantic impulses took over, and he skipped over to pester her, only to be promptly punched into the dirt, leaving him covered in welts. Even Konohamaru, who tried to stand up for him, didn't escape a stern scolding.
In the ensuing chaos, Konohamaru accidentally crashed into a teenage boy dressed in black with purple markings painted across his face. The impact made Kanon, who had already walked a fair distance away, stop in her tracks. She turned back to observe the situation.
"That hurt, kid," Kankuro muttered, looking down at the fallen Konohamaru.
A second later, Kankuro reached down and hoisted the boy up by his collar, dangling him in the air.
"Konohamaru!" Naruto and Sakura cried out, panic rising in their voices.
"That really stung, you little brat." Kankuro's lips curled into a smirk. He was clearly in a foul mood.
His companion, Temari, looked away, scanning their surroundings. "Just drop it already, or you'll get lectured later."
Sakura stepped forward, bowing frantically. "I'm so sorry! It was my fault for fooling around!" She looked at the pair with trepidation, wondering who these mysterious foreigners were.
Naruto, however, wasn't about to play nice. "Hey! I said let him go!"
Kankuro let out a dismissive chuckle, his eyes full of contempt for the Konoha's Genin. "Before the annoying ones show up, maybe I'll play with you losers for a bit."
He tightened his grip on Konohamaru's collar. No matter how the boy squirmed, he couldn't break free. "You've got some spirit, kid. I'll give you that."
Naruto grit his teeth, teetering on the edge of a rage. "You bastard!" He charged forward, pulling back a fist to swing at Kankuro's head.
But Kankuro was no amateur. His eyes tracked Naruto, and his fingers twitched ever so slightly. Naruto suddenly stumbled and face-planted into the dirt, as if tripped by invisible threads.
"What?! What was that?!" Naruto stared up in shock.
"Heh. Konoha Genin are pathetic."
"They're from another village... what are they doing here?" Sakura whispered, her anxiety mounting.
"Konohamaru..." Naruto watched helplessly.
"Listen, I hate brats," Kankuro said, his voice turning cold and murderous. "They're incredibly irritating. So small, yet so cocky. It makes me want to break them."
Temari sighed, making it clear she wasn't going to interfere. "Whatever. Finish with this one so we can deal with the other one."
Kankuro raised a fist, winding up to strike Konohamaru across the face.
Suddenly, a kunai whistled through the air and buried itself deep into the back of his hand.
The blade had curved around Sakura and the others, striking Kankuro's hand with pinpoint accuracy. Blood sprayed from the wound. Kankuro's pupils shrank in shock, and Temari gasped. Two kunai had been thrown; one had deflected off the other mid-air to change its trajectory and pierce Kankuro's hand.
Whoever had thrown them possessed a mastery of shurikenjutsu that was nothing short of extraordinary, a feat requiring perfect timing and elite visual prowess.
Before the Sand siblings could even process the attack, a girl with long black hair and a chillingly calm expression appeared before them.
"Kanon!" Naruto and Sakura breathed, stunned.
Even Sasuke, who was perched in a nearby tree, chose to remain hidden. He watched his sister intently, wanting to see exactly how much her strength had grown.
Kankuro's eyes were bloodshot as he hissed through the pain. "You... you bitch!"
As he moved to retaliate, a hand was placed firmly against his chest. Kanon's face was breathtakingly beautiful, but her expression was one of absolute, frigid shadow. Kankuro froze for a split second; he had never seen a girl so stunning. In that moment of hesitation, Kanon whispered the name of a technique.
"Wind Release: Gale Palm."
BOOM!
The blast erupted against Kankuro's chest, sending him spiraling backward dozens of feet.
But she wasn't finished. She never let anyone go who threatened those she cherished. Her hands moved in a blur of seals.
"Fire Release... die."
She let out a cold, sharp laugh.
"Fireball Jutsu!"
"Look out!" Temari realized the sheer power behind the attack and reached for her giant fan, but she was too late.
A sphere of flame, twice the size of Kanon's own body, roared toward the two Sand ninja. The speed was overwhelming. Kankuro didn't even have time to unwrap the puppet on his back.
Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto watched in awe. Even Konohamaru was paralyzed with fear.
BOOM!
A massive explosion rocked the area. When the smoke cleared, Kankuro was lying at the bottom of a crater, unconscious.
"Naruto, do you have a kunai?" Kanon asked. Her voice was so cold it made Naruto's skin crawl.
"Kanon... what are you going to do?"
"Kill him."
The two words hung in the air, bringing a deathly silence to the clearing. Temari's expression turned grim as she realized Kanon was dead serious.
Sasuke's lip twitched in shock. He could hardly believe his eyes. Kanon's Fireball Jutsu was twice as large as his own. She's my sister... he thought with a mix of pride and wariness. The stronger she is, the better. But... I should probably avoid making her angry from now on.
Realizing the situation was escalating, Sasuke prepared to intervene. Temari drew her giant folding fan, watching Kanon's slow, deliberate approach. Kankuro was her brother; she wouldn't stand by and watch him be executed.
"You're so weak... yet you act so arrogant. Why?"
In a flash, Kanon vanished. Her speed was beyond Temari's ability to track. A slender hand suddenly gripped Temari's collar, the raw strength of the grip lifting her off the ground.
"If you don't have manners, then you'll just have to stay down."
Kanon's voice was like a shinigami's whisper. Temari felt a wave of pure despair. This wasn't the killing intent of a normal ninja; it was the aura of someone who had clawed their way out of darkness and desperation.
"Kanon!" Sasuke shouted.
But Kanon had already moved. She threw a single, powerful punch that sent Temari flying back to land hard on top of the unconscious Kankuro.
"Done." Kanon dusted off her hands, her cold demeanor instantly snapping back into her usual cheerful, lively self.
"Kanon... that was... incredible!" Naruto's eyes were literally sparkling. She had neutralized two foreign Genin in the blink of an eye.
Sasuke jumped down to check if Kanon was hurt. She might be stronger than him now, but she was still his little sister.
"Nii-chan, I'm not hurt, see?"
"Always acting tough," Sasuke muttered, shaking his head and giving her a gentle, protective pat on the back.
The group celebrated for a moment, but when they looked back, Temari and Kankuro were gone. Only a few piles of sand remained on the ground.
Standing in the shadows nearby, a man wrapped in bandages watched the group with a heavy expression, his eyes fixed particularly on the Uchiha prodigy.
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