Ways to become a Hokage

~CHAPTER 16: Just another mystery~

A reddish-pink skeleton filled purely out of her chakra burst out. Sarada stared calmly, her eyes spinning uncontrollably until they settled on a sun shape. She folded her arms and waited for the mystery man.

The mystery man spun his black axes in his hands expertly, his eyes flaring with fire alongside his axes. The wind around him pushed back to dust and fire grew on the ground at the power of the radiation.

The audience were shell shocked. No one made a single noise.

One step, two steps, three. The mystery man streaked toward her and Sarada smirked. The moment he attempted to attack her incomplete skeletal Susanoo, she quickly dissipated it. The mystery man struck the ground and his axe got stuck between the ground. Sarada didn't want to think about the damage his strike had caused, it had split the whole ground in half, and the audience was evacuating the area where it had separated.

Sarada spun on her heel and gained the momentum for the punch. Right before her fist made contact with the mystery man, she coated her hand with the Susanoo's chakra. But he caught it. "Don't think I'll play easily with you" he muttered.

She wasn't through yet. Lightning flashed through her body and struck him. He quickly let go of her fist and swung his axe at her head. Sarada's eyes expanded.

The mystery man grinned as her head fell to the ground, detached from the body. He threw his arms in the air as the crowd cheered for him.

"You've already fallen under my Genjutsu" A voice echoed. The mystery man plummeted into a pitch-black abyss. The audience had vanished, there was no sound, no wind, nothing, he was in complete darkness. Falling in the midst of nothingness.

"I've faced tougher opponents." 

Sarada deflected a strike from the mystery man. The man spat something bloody on the ground. 

"I didn't anticipate your Genjutsu to be that powerful; I guess I underestimated you."

Sarada inhaled in disgust as she realized he'd bitten a huge chunk of his arm muscle to get out of her Genjutsu. It regenerated in a few seconds though, Sarada threw her arm out and conjured a Susanoo chakra sword to counter her opponent's axe. He swung at her, but she deflected it and kicked him on the— well, his balls. "Got you!" she sneered but realized the guy might have either not had balls or was wearing a really strong boxer to have not reacted to that powerful kick.

The guy caught her leg and threw her to the side before taking a huge jump and hurling an axe toward her face. Sarada rolled away from the ground and immediately brought out her Susanoo as the mystery man slammed his second axe brimming with fire at her. The force of his fire-enhanced axe broke her skeletal Susanoo like it was a piece of glass.

She flew back, feeling a heavy pull in her abdomen, but she moved swiftly enough to avoid her opponent's kick. Sarada slowed her eyesight, grabbed the mystery man's leg with her arm, and tackled him to the ground by kicking his supporting leg.

"Wind Style: Breeze cutter—" Sarada jumped back and almost finished her Jutsu before the man instantly appeared next to her. Her eyes almost stopped time at the fearful sight. His face was calm, eyes looking ahead. But his hands caught her face and crashed it against the ground. She spat blood as her limbs suddenly lost energy.

The mystery man played football with her. Kneeing her Tenketsu continuously, slamming her face with the behind of his axes several times and throwing her around everywhere he could. Sarada couldn't move, her body was paralysed.

Blood burst out of her lips and her eyes widened as the guy punched her stomach with all the force he'd vented. She streaked back and crashed with the wall, earth-shattering it.

As he walked toward her slowly, Sarada began losing consciousness. Maybe this was where she'd really die...

Her eye shut finally and she woke in a different space. She stared at her hands; they were clean. Her robes were dry and pure. She didn't feel any kind of pain. And it was the second time she asked herself, am I in heaven?

"You're not" a deep voice answered for her. She turned around and was greeted by the sight of a man. A handsome man with raven black eyes and long, pronounced tear-troughs under them. His hair was tied in a low ponytail and his face was framed with centre-parted bangs that extended to his chin. "Hello, Sarada"

Sarada was surprised at his face cut. He looked very, very similar to her dad. "Who—who're you?"

He smiled softly and began to walk away. Sarada reluctantly followed. The man sat on a bench that appeared out of nowhere and motioned for her to join him. She complied.

"That's a long question, Sarada" he replied, sighing like it had been a long day.

"I can listen" Sarada pushed.

The man closed his eyes and smiled once more. "You remind me, again and again, of your father"

"Well, guess what, you do too," Sarada responded, getting irritated at the suspense. "So, who are you?"

"I'm Uchiha Itachi"

"Am I supposed to know you?"

Itachi shook his head, "no, you're not"

"Then—"

"I am your uncle" Itachi faced her, "your dad's older brother"

"Wha—?" Sarada's eye sockets were about to fall off. "That doesn't make sense..."

"Nothing does Sarada, not in this world it doesn't. I don't have much time with you" he said. "Even though I've waited quite a long time to meet you"

Itachi placed a warm hand on her cheek, "You're beautiful, and I'm proud of you. At this moment, time is frozen, your soul is detached from your body. I wish I could explain everything to you... but I don't have the time to"

"I don't understand—"

"Listen Sarada, there is much more mystery in this world than we can imagine. I am confident you can solve the puzzle, if one door is closed, another is always open. You have inherited incomparable strength, the power of the Uchiha rests upon your shoulder, wield it carefully Sarada. Never walk the path of hatred. You will inherit my will, Sarada. I am, and will always be proud of you. Goodbye"

"Wait!"

Sarada's eyes opened just in time to save herself from an axe throw. She put Itachi's confusion aside and concentrated on her opponent ahead. Itachi Uchiha was yet another enigma. She had to concentrate on the unknown stranger who was trying to murder her first. Her competitor thrust his hand forward, and his axe drew back to return to him. But Sarada seized it. It was weighty, yet perfectly balanced.

The mystery man stared in shock. "Impossible..."

Sarada slammed the axe to the ground, transmitting her own fire chakra to the axe, which broke the land to a perfect half. "Try me now, asshole" she muttered. She released his axe and let it return to its owner. She didn't need it to beat him.

As he rose in the air, the man let out a roar and emanated a tremendous force. He drew both of his axes behind him and clasped his hands together. A tremendous fiery ball appeared in front of him, getting larger by the second until it was the size of a big-ball Rasengan. It was a blaze of fire with a black hole in the centre.

Sarada exhaled deeply and sighed. Her now-red Susanoo blossomed into a full-fledged humanoid. She willed the Susanoo to extend its hand, and it did as she wanted. Sarada shut her eyes and concentrated. 

"Tora!"

Collective gasps could be heard as the roof of the stadium burst open and a tiger shaped lightning flashed to the mystery man, who responded by throwing his fiery ball toward the incoming lightning.

Destruction smiled upon the stadium.

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I promise there are only a few more fights to this story. I know the fights make it boring, but what's plotted gotta be written. Pls bear with it.

Hope you enjoyed it anyway...