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Lee's POV (Eastern Forest of Irminsul - Terra)
The strike was vicious; Choji spat up blood and flew back, smashing through a tree as the bandages finally let him go. Lee stared at the downed Choji, but other than twitching, it seemed the man was done.
Hinata suddenly raced next to Lee. "You didn't kill him, did you!" She asked aggressively as she shook Lee. "You don't use leth-"
"Fret not~! I merely disabled him with a chest strike. Gai Sensei has taught me both lethal and nonlethal versions of that technique. I, of course, used the less lethal option. No need to harm our friend; I would not even think of such fair maiden!" Lee informed her with a gleaming smile and thumbs up.
Hinata sighed in relief and released him, immediately dropping into a bow. "Sorry for assuming the worst. The two of you began fighting before I could intervene or explain. Also," Hinata paused with a slight blush. "Please don't refer to me so…"
"It is merely the youthful truth!" Lee assured with a nice guy pose. Before he stopped, he looked at Choji, who seemed to be attempting to crawl away to the tree line. Not sure why Choji was acting this way, Lee slowly followed, untying his bandages and intending to use them to detain Choji. "Why did he seem so keen on killing you anyway? I have fought with Choji in combat before. He was not nearly so bloodthirsty last time. In fact, he was a most youthful soul…"
"I cannot be certain of the full details. But from what Sakura says, he was captured and somehow brainwashed by, or with the help of, a clan of sentient wolves." Hinata explained. "There is some odd chakra mixed in with his own; it seems to be controlling and empowering him."
"So his actions are not his own," Lee concluded with a small smile. "Most excellent! I was concerned my initial impressions had been off!" However, when he drew close, a massive wolf ripped through the trees before them. As it destructively charged through the forest, it stepped over Choji and attempted to swallow Lee whole.
Lee was stunned, such a large object closing in so quickly out of no where simply wasn't something Lee ever would've guessed would come.
Lee barely managed to kick back its tongue and catch its jaws before it closed, his feet for the lower jaw and his hands with the upper. It took every ounce of strength he had to keep them from closing.
"It was wise of the masters to send me to check on you. As demeaning as it is for a boss like myself to be utilized for a fetch quest like this, it's now proven to be the best choice." The wolf struggled to say as it stared down Hinata and struggled to kill Lee. "You cannot have this slave now; we have plans for them. The rest of you, too… I'll eat this one and bring you two other humans back. The masters would be most pleased." It concluded.
Lee groaned as muscles seemed to spasm, nearly forgoing his grip and flexing. However, with his iron willpower, he did not allow a single muscle to fail. But he would not last long like this; even with his considerable strength and the added strength of the Gates and Ninshu, no normal-sized human could hope to out-strength a massive being like this for long. Lee also did not enjoy the morbid viewing of red flaps of flesh, the feel of saliva soaking his clothes, and the indescribable smell of the inside of a wolf.
However, to his joy, Lee heard several cries of "Air Palms!". The wolf cried out in pain, and Lee could feel its biting force reduce. Hinata was trying to fight it off! But Lee could not escape yet, and the beast stubbornly renewed its bite force. Determined to ignore the first human and kill the first.
The air palms continued to reign with her matching calls. The flinching provided Lee with reprieves, but he was sure Hinata had already reached the same conclusion as him. He would not last much longer; soon, the wolf's jaw would slam shut, crushing and shredding him in its teeth. Or worse yet, swallowing him alive, leaving him to drown, suffocate, or dissolve in stomach acid. Lee did not allow fear to take him…
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Sakura's POV (Eastern Forest of Irminsul - Terra)
Sakura was exhausted. Surviving in this strange new place was difficult enough, especially at night. But she had been attacked by wolves, had to try to save Choji, failed to do so, and finally fought some strange and powerful wasp man. The experience was humbling, crushing, and seemingly never-ending. She had to quickly adapt to survive, adapt she had! Her medical Ninjutsu training, which she had been studying as a hobby, had proven invaluable in keeping herself healthy and even giving her a brand-new weapon for combat.
Despite this, however, she and Shino did not need to discuss their next move. The two worn-out shinobi immediately raced back to Hinata's position to ensure she was okay, though she was certain they both expected the Hyuga would be fine. Choji would surely struggle to fight off the spirited Hyuga.
It was to both of their shock that when they arrived at the scene, they did the following:
Choji was face down and seemingly unconscious. A massive gray wolf, easily the size of a building, was now present in the clearing. It seemed keen on eating Lee and Hinata below the giant, was sending volleys of long-range gentle fists, attempting to stop it seemingly for naught.
"This situation is grim; we are all worn out. We now have an injured comrade to look over, and what seems to be a clan boss is present. Even if we can beat it, it has our friends. Any destructive enough techniques would risk catching Lee in the crossfire…" Shino summarized as they raced closer. His mind was racing; he even sent out several clouds of his infamous Pikachu. But from the furrowed face he displayed, it was clear he did not see a solution. Sakura was unsurprised, a massive creature like this would be difficult to harm in any substantial way.
Sakura, however, was focused, racking her mind for anything she knew that may be able to change the tide. She needed to get Lee out of the clutches of the wolf and potentially disable it…
"Shino, can you throw me at it!" Sakura snapped as an idea filled her mind.
"Why do you ask?"
"No time! Can you or can you not!" Sakura snapped again. Shino stopped and, without hesitation, snapped her legs out from under her. She could feel chakra in the air as Shino offered a rare yell as he twirled her. 'He doesn't understand my reasoning, but trust me to have a plan. He instantly found a way to do his part, likely using an absurd chakra level to enhance his muscles. A shinobi like himself trusted her… this would work! Sakura wouldn't fail anymore!' "Aim for it's midsection!"
Shino launched Sakura through the air with a quiet grunt, collapsing as he did. Sakura flew towards the wolf headfirst, her mind whirling. 'I need a decisive strike but lack the power, but if I attack it from the inside, its massive size would ensure it wouldn't matter. But her chakra scalpel wouldn't cut it; she needed to use it to attack from within while simultaneously using chakra and good old kinetic force to increase her punch. Something she wasn't sure was possible, but she had to try! She wouldn't allow her teammate to die!'
She saw the beast tense, perhaps prepared to finally overwhelm Lee, but Sakura flew in, rearing back a fist as she did. She finally collided with the beast, landing her punch as she had done. To the shock of Sakura, the beast cried out and fell over from the blow. It fall sending them all flying back including Lee who flew from its mouth from the impact, seemingly tired and soaked but okay. Sakura smiled as she fainted; she had finally been useful…