Asuma the Smart One

"That's not right. Even if you didn't give me the money, it was still our family's money. How could that count as earning it?" Asuma sorted out his thoughts before rebutting him.

"Then you really are a genius," Mu Yue praised with a smile.

Although he had been praised, Asuma felt an indescribable sense of weirdness.

"Anyway, go quit with the Old Man. I don't need a tutor." Asuma leaned back against the tree and simply gave up.

"Since you don't want me teaching you, why not just stop following me around or tell Lord Third and the others directly?" Mu Yue suggested.

"You think I'm stupid? If I did that, wouldn't all the responsibility fall on me?" Asuma said proudly, lifting his chin slightly.

Lord Third was one thing, but Asuma was more afraid of making his mother, Biwako, angry.

Mu Yue nodded to himself. He really was rather dim. As long as Mu Yue resigned on the grounds that Asuma would not cooperate, wouldn't Asuma still have to take the blame?

Of course, Mu Yue had no reason to do that. After all, handling a Nine-Year-Old Brat like Asuma was far too easy.

"Why are you so resistant to having a tutor?" Rather than rushing Asuma into training, Mu Yue continued chatting with him.

"You wouldn't understand even if I told you." Asuma shook his head, wearing an expression that said, You won't understand until you're my age.

"Why wouldn't I understand? It's nothing more than you disliking your father's arrangements," Mu Yue said bluntly.

Based on Asuma's status and personality, it was easy to deduce why he had become rebellious.

Asuma was talented. Leaving aside those freaks with unfair advantages, he counted as a genius. He probably had not slacked off in his training either; Mu Yue could tell that his fundamentals were solid.

But because he was the Son of the Third, all his efforts might ultimately be reduced to one casual remark: Just as expected of Lord Third Hokage's child.

His hard work would be seen as a matter of course, while any lack of effort would draw criticism from countless people.

If things continued like that, there was no way Asuma and Lord Third could have a good Father-Son Relationship.

After graduating and becoming a ninja, Asuma had thought he was grown up. Yet Lord Third had actually hired him a tutor. Naturally, that made Asuma feel thoroughly underestimated.

"You can only see something that superficial." Asuma still wore that same you-wouldn't-understand expression, until Mu Yue said his next sentence.

"Isn't it because you train so hard, only to end up hearing, 'Just as expected of Lord Third Hokage's child'?" Mu Yue asked with a smile.

Asuma's expression changed instantly. He looked at Mu Yue with a hint of fear. He had never told anyone about this, yet Mu Yue had suddenly laid it bare, making him feel as if his flesh had been forcibly torn open and his heart exposed.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Asuma still tried to act tough.

But his restless little hands had already exposed the panic in his heart.

"If you want to prove yourself, then you should accept a tutor, strengthen yourself, and use your power to prove it," Mu Yue continued.

"After all, the current you can hardly be called outstanding." Mu Yue directly denied Asuma's strength.

First his inner thoughts had been exposed, then his entire person had been denied. Asuma immediately became anxious and argued:

"I was often first in my grade at the Ninja Academy. How could I not be outstanding?"

Mu Yue smiled. "Believe it or not, I could find any student who just entered the Ninja Academy, and you still wouldn't be their match."

Asuma was so angry that he laughed. If Mu Yue had found a graduate, that would have been one thing, but a student who had just entered the Ninja Academy? He would not even fear Kakashi when Kakashi had first entered the Ninja Academy.

"If you have the guts, go find one. If I lose, I'll listen to whatever you say from now on," Asuma declared fiercely.

"Of course, if I win, you quit," Asuma added.

"Then it's a deal." Mu Yue smiled.

Mu Yue then sent out a Shadow Clone to bring Shisui over.

Asuma sized Shisui up a few times and felt that Mu Yue probably had not lied. He really did look like a child who had just entered the Ninja Academy.

"His name is Shisui Uchiha. He's a student in my class, six years old, and he just entered First Grade this year."

"His name is Sarutobi Asuma. He's a genin who graduated this year."

Mu Yue introduced them to each other.

"You're Shisui Uchiha, right? Let me tell you now: if you can't handle it later, surrender quickly so you don't get hurt. I won't hold back," Asuma said.

"I'll be careful, Senior Sarutobi," Shisui replied seriously.

"Begin!" Mu Yue did not waste time. Once the two had taken their stances, he immediately announced the start.

The moment Mu Yue finished speaking, Asuma shot forward and rapidly swung his fists at Shisui.

Shisui calmly met his charge, and the two began fighting at close range.

They traded blows continuously, yet despite his larger build, Asuma failed to gain any advantage.

Asuma's expression changed. After only a couple of exchanges, he realized that Shisui was not simple, but he had not expected him to be so difficult to deal with.

Not only had he failed to gain the upper hand, but his impatience to seize an advantage gave Shisui an opening. A Konoha Hurricane sent him staggering back three meters.

However, Shisui did not press his advantage, because Mu Yue had told him to defeat Asuma as comprehensively as possible when he brought him here.

A genin who had already graduated being kicked back three meters in a taijutsu battle by a student who had just entered the Ninja Academy—despite Mu Yue being the only spectator, Asuma still could not bear the humiliation. His face flushed red.

He had no time to think about why Shisui had not followed up. At that moment, Asuma had only one thought: defeat Shisui, regain his dignity, and prove himself.

Fire Release: Great Flame Technique! Asuma rapidly formed hand seals. Chakra erupted as he spewed out a massive blaze.

Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique! Shisui formed hand seals as well, gathering a large amount of Chakra in his mouth before exhaling it all at once and transforming it into flames.

The two Fire Release techniques collided. Shisui's flames, greater in both volume and intensity, quickly overwhelmed Asuma's Fire Release and continued surging toward him.

Asuma was dumbfounded by the clash of Ninjutsu. He stood frozen as the fireball rushed closer and closer, unable to move.

He was thinking, Why? Why had he lost to a student who had only just entered the Ninja Academy? And lost so miserably at that?

In their taijutsu exchange, he had been kicked back three meters. In their Ninjutsu clash, he had been completely suppressed.

Was he truly worthless aside from being the Son of the Third? Asuma began to deeply doubt himself.

As the fireball drew closer and he felt the heat radiating from the flames, Asuma finally snapped out of it and moved to dodge. But at his speed, he could not avoid being caught by the fireball's reach.

That was when Mu Yue acted. Chakra burst forth as he rapidly formed hand seals.

Water Release: Water Formation Wall!

A thick wall of water appeared before Asuma, blocking the massive incoming fireball.

"Teacher..."

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