One-Sided Fight

"Follow me!" Her apathetic voice echoed before she turned to leave.

"Wh-What?..." Naruto clicked his tongue. He had absolutely no idea what was happening to him. Why on earth was he joining the ANBU? "As far as I know, the ANBU is under the Hokage's command… does that mean Mami Tsunade is really involved in this?"

An unreadable expression formed on his face as he opened the door to follow the mysterious woman. "When did things go so wrong?" he cursed, Sakura's face flashing in his mind. "Damn bitch! You'll pay for this..."

They soon arrived in a room much more spacious than the previous one. The wooden training dummies scattered around made it clear that this was a training hall.

"Uh… why did you bring me here…?" Naruto scratched his head as he observed his surroundings. His eyes had long since adapted to the darkness, allowing him to see the various bloodstains splattered across the walls.

This looked more like a torture chamber than a training room.

"You talk too much..." she said, tying her white hair into a ponytail. "You just need to know that from now on, you are part of the ANBU—whether you like it or not. And you will address me as your sensei. Any disrespect will have consequences."

"What kind of weird fantasy is this... I have to call her sensei..." She was brief but serious, sending a cold shiver down Naruto's spine. This woman was... dangerous.

[Shunshin no Jutsu] she murmured before vanishing, leaving only a trail of dust behind.

Naruto barely had time to react before a direct kick slammed into his solar plexus, sending him crashing into the wall behind him.

"Gh…!"

Pain radiated through his torso. He curled up, his mind struggling to process what had just happened. But before he could catch his breath, another kick flew toward his face.

"Shit..." He hurriedly raised his arms to block the attack, but the impact was so strong that his head smacked against the same wall.

This woman's beauty was only matched by her brutality. Her movements were fluid, calculated, and left her opponent with no room to breathe. Her fighting style had one purpose—elimination.

"Is that all you're capable of?" Standing before him, she looked down at him pitifully as he sat slumped against the wall. "Pathetic..."

Naruto opened his eyes and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. He might not be at her level, but that wasn't a reason to give up and let himself be insulted.

With a surge of chakra in his legs, he launched himself at her, his fist aiming straight for her face, hoping to take her by surprise.

Whoosh

She dodged with a simple tilt of her head. Naruto felt nothing but air where he expected resistance. Before he could follow up, a hand gripped his wrist, and a knee exploded into his stomach.

"Gh…!"

Struck twice in the same spot, and unable to defend himself, the sensation was unbearable.

[Shadow Clone Jutsu]

In a desperate attempt, he summoned two clones to attack her simultaneously—one targeting her head, the other her ribs.

"I got you…" Naruto thought for a split second, but his expression twisted just as quickly. The attack he thought had landed on his opponent had instead struck a mere training dummy.

Naruto quickly scanned the room, searching for her current position—but… she was nowhere to be found. It was as if she had never been there.

"Damn it… where did she go?" Sweat trickled down his forehead as he tried to steady his ragged breathing.

[Shunshin no Jutsu]

A chill ran down Naruto's spine. He instinctively knew the violence that would follow these words and braced himself.

"Too slow, Naruto."

The voice came from behind him.

A black blur flashed in his vision, and before he could react, a kick crashed into his ribs. The air was knocked out of his lungs with a pained gasp as his body was sent flying several meters before slamming into the ground.

His clones attacked, but she moved like a shadow. Every strike they threw hit nothing but empty space. In the blink of an eye, the two clones were obliterated, vanishing into clouds of smoke.

The pain grew more unbearable by the second. As far back as he could remember, he had never suffered this much in a fight. The worst part? He hadn't even landed a single hit yet.

Fueled by adrenaline, he groaned as he wiped the blood dripping into his eyes.

"I'll get you eventually..."

Gathering chakra in his hand, he dashed toward his opponent.

[Rasengan]

Since his eyes had adjusted to the darkness of this place, he had deliberately avoided using this technique, fearing it would backfire. But now, he had no choice—or rather, he had nothing left to lose.

"Not bad... but too bad."

Naruto's heart trembled at those words. He didn't need long to understand their meaning. She grabbed his wrist and delivered a crushing blow to his ribs, sending him flying.

Boom!

The ground shook from the impact. Naruto coughed, the air forced from his lungs. His body screamed to stay down, but he rolled to the side just in time to avoid a heel drop that could have shattered his ribs.

He staggered to his feet, his gaze sharpening.

He lunged again, this time throwing faster, more unpredictable strikes. His foot sliced through the air in a roundhouse kick, but she blocked it with her elbow. A straight punch—deflected. An uppercut—dodged.

Then she counterattacked.

A backhand slammed into his cheek like a hammer. Before he could stumble, she crouched and swept his legs out from under him.

Back on the ground.

"Still so predictable, Naruto."

He gritted his teeth. His muscles burned, but he refused to stay down. He flipped backward, landing on his feet just in time to see his sensei vanish.

His instincts screamed.

Behind!

He ducked, narrowly avoiding a kick aimed at his temple. He countered with a backward elbow, but she pivoted, caught his arm, and yanked him toward her before driving a palm strike into his solar plexus.

The impact shook his entire being. In that moment, he knew—this was the end. Being struck repeatedly in the same spot had consequences.

Naruto staggered back, gasping for breath. His legs wobbled. His vision blurred.

Then he felt a hand on his shoulder.

He didn't have time to react.

A final knee strike smashed into his chin.

His body lifted slightly off the ground before crashing back down.

Silence fell over the room.

He had lost consciousness.

Despite training for so long, not only had he been completely overpowered, but he hadn't even had the chance to use his ultimate technique—Sage Mode. The preparation time was too long, and in this fight, he never had the luxury of that moment.