Temari gritted her teeth as she tried to will her vision to stop swimming. She’d likely suffered a concussion just now. She needed rest and recuperation, but she wouldn’t get either if Marunomi wasn’t defeated. For that matter, if she didn’t at least warn the others, Marunomi might well eat them and the village after all, even if they broke the Melting Pot jutsu. Temari swallowed her pride and fired an emergency flare overhead.
Marunomi didn’t even blink at the flare. The other two couldn’t arrive before the Behemoth’s Tongue was ready once more; if she could defeat three of these interlopers together (including their team leader!), she could defeat two; and calling them over now might save her from having to set up the Melting Pot all over again. That said, there was no need to give Temari any other freebies, let alone allow her to regain her bearings. Marunomi cloned herself as a precaution against an effective defense before knocking Temari back to the ground in a choke hold that kept her head pressed against Marunomi’s belly.
“We have a little time. Would you prefer to spend it unconscious, or listening to your friends? If you keep quiet you can hear how they’re waiting for you to join them.” Temari flexed a muscle ever-so-slightly, and Marunomi immediately squeezed in response, shutting off the blood flow to Temari’s brain and knocking her out for a moment. She eased up just enough to allow Temari regain consciousness.
“Just to check, did you mean that to be your final choice?”
