Shunren vs. Asuma

"Heh heh~" Faced with Asuma's arrogance, Shunren merely smiled. He felt no anger or anything of the sort, because in his eyes, Asuma was just a little brat, a spoiled kid. What adult would stoop to arguing with a spoiled kid?

Ignoring the varied expressions around him, Shunren calmly stepped onto the practice field.

"..." Shunren's attitude took Asuma slightly by surprise. Though it was a trivial matter, a spoiled kid going through his rebellious phase couldn't tolerate even a grain of sand in his eye!

Asuma pushed off the ground, made a stylish entrance onto the field, and stood before Shunren.

Without even looking him in the eye, Asuma deliberately turned his gaze aside, his mouth curling upward in an exaggerated smirk. "Uchiha Shunren. Oh, I wonder if I can call you by that surname?" he drawled, his voice dripping with contempt.

Shunren's Uchiha blood was not pure, and he currently lived in the Uchiha settlement. In name, he could be counted as a member of the Uchiha Clan, but in reality, the Uchiha did not allow him to use that name.

The people around them exchanged glances. In their eyes, being part of the proud Uchiha Clan yet unable to use the clan's name was an immense disgrace. Asuma bringing it up so bluntly in public went far beyond a joke!

"Huh? What does that mean?" Guy looked utterly bewildered. With his peculiar way of thinking, he hadn't understood the meaning at all.

"That Asuma, his tongue's as venomous as ever," Kurenai said with a frown and a look of disdain.

Obito, meanwhile, was visibly furious. Unlike Shunren, both of Obito's parents had belonged to the Uchiha Clan, and his blood was pure. Even though he was now an orphan, he was well cared for among the Uchiha. Out of kindness, Obito wanted to stand up for Shunren, but this was the one subject on which he could offer no rebuttal. Having received the Uchiha's elite education since childhood, the clan's rigid hierarchy based on blood purity was already deeply ingrained in him. Even Obito subconsciously believed that Shunren couldn't be considered an Uchiha clansman, only a fellow Uchiha.

"Hey! Asuma, we're all classmates. Don't say things that nasty..."

Asuma glanced at him and sneered. "See? You didn't deny what I said."

"You!" Obito was at a loss for words.

Asuma was thoroughly satisfied with Obito's reaction. He turned his gaze back to Shunren and moved his lips, about to say something mocking.

"Teacher Feimu, I'm ready." Shunren wouldn't stoop to arguing with these spoiled kids, but he was getting a little fed up with their dawdling. He called straight to Feimu, asking when they could start fighting.

Feimu was taken aback, then couldn't help shaking his head inwardly. Asuma's arrogant, but he really does have the strength to back it up. You're a Ninjutsu idiot, and you don't have Might Guy's talent for Taijutsu either, so what the hell are you acting arrogant for? In his eyes, the calm and composure Shunren showed, unlike others his age, had to be an act.

"All right, if both sides are ready, then begin."

"Crack~" Just as Feimu announced the start, Asuma cracked his knuckles, producing a series of pops. Without wasting any more words, he glared sideways at Shunren, signaling that he would stand right there and wait for Shunren to attack.

"Whoosh~" Shunren wasted no words either. He gathered Chakra beneath his feet, then pushed off and charged straight at Asuma!

Asuma raised a hand and caught Shunren's incoming straight punch firmly with all five fingers.

"Hmph! Is this all the strength you've got?"

With that, Asuma's eyes widened fiercely. With a smack, he strode forward, right fist leading and left fist behind. The muscles in his arms were already clearly defined despite his young age, and his Taijutsu was a classic example of the Strong Fist style. He struck straight back at Shunren's chest.

Shunren knew that when it came to technique,

he was certainly no match for Asuma, who came from the Sarutobi Clan. So, without a second thought, he copied Asuma's movements stroke for stroke, putting his right fist in front and his left behind as he met the attack head-on. "Bang, bang!" All four fists collided straight on.

This was strength against strength, violence met with violence!

The moment they closed in, a flurry of punches met punches in direct hand-to-hand combat, leaving the spectators somewhat stunned.

Might Guy was the first to cry out, tears streaming down his face. "Youth! This is youth bursting with hot blood! Go, go, go!"

Kurenai also looked at Shunren in mild surprise. He usually kept a very low profile and had never shown anything particularly noteworthy in practical training. "This guy's actually pretty good..."

Obito watched the two on the field intently and said in a low voice, "No, Asuma's strength goes far beyond this." After Kakashi graduated early, Obito and Asuma had become rivals of a sort, and each had won and lost against the other.

Sure enough, after their brief exchange, Asuma gradually began to exert himself.

Asuma landed a heavy punch on Shunren's chest. Shunren grunted, his hands suddenly swelling as he seized Asuma and hurled him behind him with a fierce over-the-shoulder throw!

With a clang, Asuma landed steadily on his feet. He immediately pushed off and lunged, knocking Shunren flying. At the same time, he pressed his advantage, rushing forward and kicking at Shunren's back!

But Shunren's body snapped like a spring. He twisted around sharply in midair, facing the ground, and slammed both hands down, propelling his entire body upward.

Asuma was caught off guard; he hadn't expected Shunren to have a move like that. But he couldn't pull back his flying kick in time, and could only watch as Shunren flew over his head.

"You let your guard down." Shunren seized on Asuma's mistake. As he passed over his head, he swung a spinning kick viciously at it.

"Konoha Whirlwind!"

"Thud~" Asuma was sent flying by the kick.

The lightning-fast Taijutsu battle dazzled the onlookers. The two had started out evenly matched, then Asuma had pressed Shunren hard. But no one had expected Shunren to pull the firewood from under the cauldron at the end, dealing Asuma a crushing blow head-on.

Much of that was because Asuma had underestimated his opponent and made a small mistake at the last moment. Yet for a ninja, a small mistake could very well turn the outcome around.

Having gained the advantage with that counterattack, Shunren didn't let it go to his head. He stayed alert and settled into a fighting stance.

The practice battle wasn't over yet.

Asuma slowly rose to his feet and looked at the large footprint on his shoulder. A vein bulged on his forehead, and he fixed his eyes on Shunren. "I'll make you pay back that kick twice over!"

With that, Asuma fitted the Flying Swallow onto both hands!