Naruto: Reborn as Neji Hyuga After Dying in One Piece-Chapter 84. Gaara vs Sasuke -1

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The arena fell silent as Sasuke locked eyes with Gaara.

On one side stood the refined prodigy of the Uchiha clan, Sasuke, with sleek raven hair falling to her waist and an aura of cold elegance wrapped in lethal precision.

On the other Gaara, the Sand Demon himself, a figure as emotionless as death. With the kanji for "love" etched on his forehead and dark-rimmed eyes full of eerie calm, he radiated one thing:

Murder.

Genma Shiranui raised a hand, senbon glinting in his mouth.

"Begin!"

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Round One: The Test

Sand surged forward alive, relentless.

Sasuke sprang back in a blur, evading the tendrils of sharpened grit that snapped like vipers.

'That's the stuff Kakashi warned me about...'

But just as she analyzed her opponent's tactics, Gaara suddenly clutched his head, hissing through his teeth.

"...Don't be mad."

"...Mother..."

His voice was a whisper, like a child talking to ghosts.

Sasuke's brows furrowed.

He's... talking to the sand?

Gaara's breathing deepened.

"Sorry about the bad blood earlier... but this one... this one's going to taste delicious."

Sand coiled around him like a beast. He was muttering to it, with it.

Up in the stands, Kankuro and Temari paled.

"He's already talking to her?" Kankuro whispered.

Temari nodded grimly. "That girl... riled him up before the match even started. I've never seen him like this."

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Round Two: The Gauntlet

Gaara's pained whispers stopped. He raised his eyes.

The killing intent flooded the arena.

"Come," he said.

Sasuke smirked.

From her pouch two shuriken.

Whoosh!

Gaara's sand wall rose instantly. The blades are embedded into it with a metallic clang.

Then—movement.

The wall morphed.

A hand. Then a face. Then an entire sand clone emerged from the shield.

Kankuro flinched. "His Sand Shield just became a clone..."

The clone countered with the same shuriken, but Sasuke dodged easily.

When the clone's torso bulged, ready to explode with sand spikes Sasuke leaped.

Flash step.

Feint.

Spin.

Her movements drew immediate recognition. Up in the stands, Lee's eyes widened.

That's—my form?!

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Round Three: Copycat Combat

A flying kick shattered the clone's guard. A spinning follow-up punch burst through its chest.

Gaara flinched for the first time.

His sand tried to trap Sasuke's hand mid-strike but her other hand was already moving.

BOOM!

The clone exploded into dust.

Neji observed from above, smiling faintly.

She integrated my technique well. Not bad.

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Sasuke pressed the advantage.

Another strike. Then a pivot.

She circled behind Gaara in a heartbeat his sand rising too late.

WHAM!

A clean punch to the jaw sent Gaara flying.

Neji shook his head. Sloppy. He underestimated her despite knowing better.

Still... his sand control? Definitely not on Crocodile's level.

That guy could drown a nation. Then they went off to play the Hero in Alabasta like some washed-up movie star...

At least Luffy knocked sense into him.

"Sand Armor, huh?"

Sasuke watched Gaara's cracked cheek.

She tilted her head mockingly.

"Come on, then."

Same words. Different roles.

This time she was the predator.

She gestured for him to come at her.

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Round Four: The Peel

"You're not attacking?"

Her tone chilled.

"Fine. I'll go first."

She vanished again blurring behind Gaara like a wraith.

Kick.

Flip.

Strike.

His sand tried to block too slowly.

Every hit shaved off layers of the hardened armor on his skin.

Kakashi's eyes tracked every movement. He muttered to Guy beside him.

"I had Sasuke analyze Neji. But he couldn't replicate the precision of [Gentle Fist]... so I told him to copy Lee's taijutsu instead."

Guy nodded, arms crossed. "He's gotten fast. Almost as fast as Lee... without weights."

Lee beamed in pride nearby.

Neji, arms folded, chuckled to himself.

'He tried to copy me? Tch... good luck.'

'I've got [Life Return] to manipulate internal energy, micro-muscle control, and two lifetimes of chakra finesse.'

The kid probably spent weeks just learning to breathe right.

Still... he had to admit:

Sasuke had talent.

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Round Five: The Shred

Blow by blow, Sasuke peeled Gaara's armor apart like a crumbling wall.

A punch. A kick. A flash. A backflip.

Sand shattered in every direction.

The crowd couldn't even track her anymore.

Only the sharpest eyes, Neji, Kakashi, and Guy, could follow the tempo.

Kakashi narrowed his gaze.

"...She's almost ready."

Guy nodded solemnly. "If she pushes much further, he'll snap."

Down below, Gaara's breathing turned ragged.

Inside, the voice whispered again.

> "Kill her..."

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