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Haruto's chakra-enhanced strides gouged craters into the sand as he tore across the desert, each impact like a cannon blast against the dunes. Every breath was raw and ragged, scorching his throat, as though the very air fought him. The pressure from Velan, the relentless Sand jonin, bore down on him like an unyielding storm, closing in, ready to strike. This wasn't a chase—it was a brutal test of wits, a game played with deadly precision. Every move was a calculated risk, every decision one that could mean his survival or a brutal end.

Haruto's mind divided, one part singularly focused on his movements, controlling each step with surgical precision. Every flex, every shift, was measured to maximize speed without squandering his remaining energy. The other half of his mind was laser-focused on laying traps, his hands flicking with practiced ease to set directional explosive tags just outside Velan's immediate line of sight. To an outsider, they'd appear random, but each tag was a piece in a deadly game of "chess," each one carefully positioned to buy him precious seconds.

As Velan crossed into the first trap's radius, the desert erupted. A thunderous explosion tore through the air, hurling sand and rock skyward in a fiery plume. Velan instinctively veered sideways, his reflexes razor-sharp as he avoided the core of the blast, yet the shockwave struck him, forcing him to slow and regain his footing. Haruto didn't look back; he could sense Velan's frustration, a tension that flared like sparks in the sandstorm left by the explosion. It was enough time for Haruto to push ahead, carving more distance between them.

Velan's sharp gaze narrowed as he saw Haruto slip further away, anger glinting in his eyes. He adjusted quickly, his movements now tighter, more anticipatory, each step aligned to react to more traps. Watching Velan adapt, Haruto realized that the simplicity of his traps wouldn't be enough for long.

In response, Haruto began weaving corrosive seals into his array of explosives. When Velan dodged the next trap, it erupted not with heat, but with a cloud of toxic mist. The acid hissed on impact, bubbling as it ate through the sand, melting the earth itself into a steaming, sizzling morass. Velan's step faltered as he took in the bubbling ground, registering the corrosive danger. Forced to adjust his route, he swerved wide, his patience visibly thinning with every second.

Velan's lips curled into a snarl, frustration simmering beneath his focus. "This kid has an endless supply of tricks," he muttered, voice low and laced with irritation. Each detour and dodge was another grain of sand slipping through his grasp, a reminder that he was being outmaneuvered in a game he was determined to win. His fingers twitched around his kunai, his mind focused on one thought: "If I can just get close enough…"

Sensing Velan's quickening adaptations, Haruto switched tactics, releasing a shadow clone to dart eastward, mirroring his every movement with perfect precision. Velan's gaze flicked to the decoy, suspicion tightening his expression. His salamander hissed, its tongue flicking out, confirming Haruto's real location. Velan's focus snapped back to Haruto, his smirk cold as he veered back, ready to close the gap. But as he closed in, another directional tag erupted at his feet, an explosion that tore through the ground, scattering sand and jagged stone.

Velan staggered back, his patience fraying as the hot gust of debris grazed his face, a fresh cut opening across his cheek. His blood mingled with sweat, each pulse a reminder of the unending, brutal pursuit. The frustration emanating from Velan was like a palpable aura, his chakra spiking with raw irritation as he weaved around yet another explosion, his irritation now a dark cloud tainting his focus. Haruto could feel the shift, the slow but sure unraveling of his pursuer's patience, like an opponent finally caught in a carefully laid trap.

But Velan wasn't finished. Haruto sensed his resolve harden, saw the flash of cold intent in Velan's eyes as the jonin's patience finally snapped. Enough was enough.

After two grueling hours of relentless pursuit, Velan's determination crystallized. In a sudden, cold fury, he activated his trump card—a high-speed jutsu, amplified by wind chakra, propelling him forward with a velocity that shattered the calm desert air. Haruto felt the shift immediately, his senses screaming as Velan's chakra surged with deadly intent, hurtling toward him like a missile. Valen knew It would only last for ten seconds, but in those seconds, Velan would be unstoppable.

1 second…

In a flash, Velan was beside Haruto, his presence like a crushing weight, radiating lethal focus. Haruto's instincts screamed, every nerve on fire as Velan's predatory aura bore down. Acting in a heartbeat, Haruto created a shadow clone, rigged with directional explosive tags, shoving it forward between them like a barrier.

2 seconds…

The clone detonated in a blinding, scorching burst, the explosion tearing through the air with deafening force. Velan twisted midair, narrowly avoiding the center of the blast, though the shockwave seared across his cheek, leaving a thin line of blood in its wake. His focus never wavered, fury simmering in his eyes as he drove toward Haruto, his movement seamless and uninterrupted.

4 seconds…

Velan's kunai whipped through the air with a predatory gleam, a blur of steel aimed at Haruto's throat. Haruto twisted, narrowly avoiding the blade, feeling the gust of wind from its lethal arc. Without hesitating, he retaliated, his right leg snapping out in a chakra-enhanced kick. The impact landed solidly against Velan's side, sending a jarring shock through his own muscles as if he'd kicked solid iron. Velan was knocked back ten feet landed on his feet…

6 seconds…

Velan's expression hardened as he conjured two stone bullets, their surfaces glinting as he packed them with wind chakra. With a fierce snarl, he launched them, the bullets hissing through the air with terrifying speed. Haruto's vision blurred as he swapped places with a rock substitution, shattering the decoy under the impact of the stone bullets, fragments spraying outward like shards of glass. Velan cursed, his patience fraying with every dodge as he pressed forward again, unyielding.

8 seconds…

Velan materialized at Haruto's side once more, his breathing labored, his chest rising and falling rapidly. Haruto's hand surged with lightning chakra, the energy coalescing into the deadly Thunder Scalpel whip. He swung, the electrified whip of chakra and lightning extended from his hand arcing toward Velan's chest the thunder scalped a few feet in a crackling sweep of blue light. Velan's instincts flared as he twisted out of reach, the blade narrowly missing its target. The scalpel grazed his side, sizzling as it cut through flesh, leaving a thin line of searing blood that smoked and hissed upon contact with the open air.

10 seconds…

Velan's speed technique finally faltered, his chakra utterly drained, his breaths heavy and shallow as he gasped for air. His last desperate surge had left his body trembling, every muscle straining under the weight of exhaustion. Sweat poured down his face, but he wasn't done yet—not until Haruto lay defeated. Gritting his teeth, Velan unleashed his trump card: a rain of hundreds of stone bullets, each charged with wind-enhanced chakra, streaking toward Haruto in three relentless waves.

Haruto's eyes widened as he saw the oncoming storm, a hail of death closing in on him with terrifying speed. Without a second's hesitation, he summoned a shadow clone, rigging it with directional tags. The clone charged forward into the path of the bullets, meeting the first wave head-on. The directional tags exploded in a fiery burst, throwing up sand and debris, deflecting the bullets momentarily. But before the smoke could clear, the second wave was already upon him.

Electric chakra flared in Haruto's hands as he activated Lightning Arc, wielding two lightning whips one in each hand extending down to his arms, his arms moving in a desperate, whirling motion. He spun the staggardly one lightning arc in front of the other. Sparks crackled outward, forming an impromptu barrier of lightning as he spun, deflecting most of the second wave in scattered arcs. Every rotation sent shocks of pain through his overtaxed muscles, only because of his insane lightning affinity improved by the system was he able to do this, but even this came at a cost, he feel his hands and arms burning up to the elbows, but he kept going, his determination unbreakable. A few stones managed to pierce his defense, glancing off with shallow cuts, deflected by his lightning arcs, but one got through, searing into his shoulder with a hot, agonizing burn that sent pain shooting down his arm.

He gritted his teeth against the pain, blood seeping through the torn fabric of his sleeve, but he forced himself to stay upright. Across from him, Velan staggered, his chest heaving as his once-dominant aura flickered weakly, he has used most of his chakra.

Haruto's own injuries throbbed, but he saw his chance, his hands and arms were blackened and burned from his use of lightning arc, could see the skins starting to rise as the burns set, his hands and arms were basically covered in 2nd and 3rd degree burns.

But the Sand Jonin was running on empty and his movement technique clearly left him exhausted.

Haruto looked at Valen with the eye of the tiger, only one of them was leaving alive.

With a fierce, final surge, he charged forward, his Thunder Scalpel crackling to life. The lightning blade whipped from his hand, arcs of deadly energy extending as he swung, pushing Velan back with each swipe. Velan's movements grew sluggish, his body swaying under the weight of fatigue, yet he raised his kunai to meet each swing, barely deflecting Haruto's strikes. Each clash sparked with raw chakra, the air between them thick with tension and the smell of ozone.

Velan staggered, dodging each swing with his kunai in his right hand. His breath was ragged, every dodge draining more of his energy as Haruto's relentless attacks pressed him further back. The air between them sizzled with chakra, filled with the searing glow of the Thunder Scalpel Whip as it slashed through the air, illuminating Velan's sweat-drenched face and the intense concentration in Haruto's eyes.

As the two circled each other, their movements were sharp and desperate, like animals trapped in a life-or-death struggle. Velan's mind raced, watching for an opening, but the whip's shifting length made it impossible to predict the next attack. One moment, it was a close-range threat; the next, it extended out, forcing him to leap back to avoid a blow aimed at his torso. Each time he thought he had anticipated Haruto's reach, the whip adjusted, keeping him off balance.

"How…?" Velan panted, the disbelief mingling with frustration as his body trembled from the effort of keeping up. "How is he moving like this?"

Every dodge, every evasion—Haruto's actions felt as if they were split into two different strategies, woven seamlessly together. He was attacking and defending with a rhythm that defied Velan's training, his body moving as though he could see the fight from multiple angles, meshing offense and evasion into a single fluid motion.

The Thunder Scalpel Whip extended again, snapping out with lethal intent. Velan twisted his body, narrowly avoiding a strike to his side, feeling the heat of the electricified chakra as it grazed past him. His kunai darted forward in retaliation, but Haruto was already moving, sidestepping with the whip retracting back, ready to strike again. In that moment, Velan realized he was being forced into a rhythm not his own, one dictated by the whip's relentless pace.

Velan fired a final volley of stone bullets, aiming low. The projectiles whistled through the air, striking with the speed of wind-enhanced chakra. Haruto deflected most with the whip's arcs, but one stone embedded itself in his leg, sending a sharp wave of pain up his body. Blood trickled down, his leg shaking as he fought to stay upright, but his focus remained unbreakable.

Sensing Velan's chakra weakening, Haruto knew this was his chance. Summoning every last bit of his strength, he hurled a directional explosive tag between them. As it detonated, Velan anticipated the move, dodging with a log substitution. He reappeared directly behind Haruto, kunai in hand, eyes blazing with deadly intent.

Instinct took over. Haruto twisted, launching himself into a backflip as the kunai narrowly missed, grazing his side. Velan cursed, his footing unsteady, staggering forward from the missed strike, his grip on his kunai slipping. Their eyes met for a heartbeat, the intensity of the fight clear in their locked gaze.

In one calculated move, Haruto sidestepped, baiting Velan into overextending with a wild, desperate swing.

As Haruto swung his Thunder Scalpel Whip with his right hand, Velan dodged, thinking he'd finally evaded the deadly arc of lightning. Calculating that Haruto's left hand was empty, Velan moved into range, ready to accept a blow and retaliate with his kunai ending the fight. But Haruto had been waiting for this exact moment.

With a fierce, concentrated burst of chakra, he activated the Thunder Scalpel in his left hand. The second whip snapped to life, lightning crackling as it extended in a blinding arc. Velan's eyes widened, his realization dawning just a moment too late. Haruto struck, the left-hand Thunder Scalpel whip extended out cleaving cleanly through Velan's torso in one swift, devastating motion.

Blood sprayed through the air, scattering in crimson arcs as Velan staggered, his body splitting at the wound. His gaze locked onto Haruto who face, shock and disbelief etched into his face, as his strength finally gave out, and his upper body slid, collapsing onto the sand. The once-unrelenting presence of the Sand jonin flickered out, leaving only silence and the fading hum of electric chakra in the desert air.