Boom! Boom!
Sakura darted forward and landed several heavy punches on the Azure Statue.
By the time the statue recovered from its stunned state, its HP had already dropped to two-thirds. Then, with a massive swing of its stone fist, it struck Sakura square in the chest, knocking her HP down by two whole bars—putting her below 50%.
"RRAAAGH!"
The Blue Buff statue roared again and raised its fist to strike.
Sakura, completely unfazed, launched a powerful kick against the Blue Buff's body. Boom! A yellow glow fell from the sky—that was her Smite ability activating. It not only damaged the Blue Buff but also restored some of her health, bringing her back above half HP.
But the statue struck again, and just like that, she was back down to 50%.
Sakura didn't miss a beat and followed up with another Poison Kunai, bringing the Blue Buff's health down to nearly one-third.
"Hummmm—"
Chakra surged into her fist. She was getting ready to unleash her third ability, Cherry Blossom Charge, planning to combo it with a basic attack and the lingering poison for a clean finish on the Blue Buff.
But just as her Cherry Blossom Charge was about to connect—
Boom!
A yellow beam of light struck down.
The Blue Buff vanished—killed before her eyes.
Yet her Cherry Blossom Charge had already launched… into thin air.
Sakura froze.
"Leaf Gale!"
A fierce shout rang out from the nearby bushes. Hayashi Ren, now Level 3 and holding both Red and Blue Buffs, spun out of cover like a whirlwind and smashed a kick right into Sakura's side. The blow instantly reduced her HP to one-third.
Panic surged in Sakura's heart.
Thankfully, her Sleep Bomb ability had just come off cooldown. She prepared to use it to stun Ren and escape. But then, Ren suddenly smiled.
There was something about that smile that chilled her blood.
Before she could even throw the bomb, Ren shot forward again, shouting:
"Shadow Leaf Dance!"
His foot connected with her stomach, launching her into the air and rendering her unable to move.
"No… I'm done for!"
Sakura's heart filled with dread.
"Leaf Whirlwind!"
Ren's body spun upward in a rapid kick. It connected cleanly—and hard.
Sakura's health dropped to single digits, barely hanging on. One more hit and she was finished. But Ren suddenly stopped attacking and turned away, as if ready to leave.
Sakura's eyes lit up. She had fallen back to the ground, no longer airborne. Maybe… maybe she still had a chance!
She raised her hand to throw the Sleep Bomb.
But before she could act, her HP hit zero.
She collapsed to the ground, eyes wide with confusion and disbelief, watching as Hayashi Ren walked away.
First Blood!
Hayashi Ren has slain Sakura Haruno.
"What just happened?"
Back at the fountain, Sakura had respawned and was staring at the screen, confused.
She couldn't understand it at all—Ren had clearly stopped attacking. So why did she still die?
"Red Buff."
A message from Hayashi Ren appeared in the lower-left corner of her screen.
In this MOBA-style battle system, players could speak in two ways: through open broadcast (visible to all), or direct speech to teammates.
Sakura, when muttering in the fountain, hadn't selected either privacy option—so her question went straight into the open chat.
Hayashi Ren saw it and responded casually.
At the same time, he finished off the Shadow Wolf in Sakura's jungle and began making his way toward the Swamp Toad.
He wasn't nervous at all.
Sakura had just respawned and was still too distracted to check her jungle. The top, mid, and bottom lanes were still actively trading and no one had time to scout the jungle.
Ren felt free to roam at will in Sakura's side of the map.
"Ohhh… I get it now."
By the time Sakura reached the Shadow Wolf camp, she found it empty.
The wolves were already gone.
She let out a long, frustrated sigh.
"This guy… Not only did he steal my Blue Buff, he killed my wolves too. He's too much."
Her heart filled with a quiet anger.