The journey home

Upon entering the border of the Land of Fire, Tōka and Team Guy encountered a caravan heading to the Land of Fire after completing their mission, and accepted a mission to escort them along the way.

This practice is not allowed openly, but if you don't say anything, and nobody says anything, who will know?

Why not earn some extra money easily and effortlessly!

In the caravan of dozens of people, Kai and his Team Guy sat in the front carriage, while Tōka sat alone in the back carriage.

The constant sound of wheel churning and wheels rolling over the path filled my ears.

Tōka lay on the car roof, resting her head on her arm and gazing at the sky. In early spring, the sky was blue with white clouds, and a gentle breeze caressed her face as the weather warmed up.

The warm air made me drowsy...

Sudden!

A dark shadow fell before my eyes, blocking out the soft, warm light.

Tōka frowned slightly, then slowly opened her eyes. In her line of sight, a girl in a pink Chinese-style cheongsam and a small side-fastening top was looking down at her.

"Tenten? Is something wrong?" Tōka glanced at the two buns on Tenten's head and felt quite fond of this little girl dressed in Chinese style.

When Tenten saw Tōka open his eyes, he quickly took a step back, like a cat caught cheating.

A pair of bright, large eyes blinked as she looked at Tōka, sparkling like jewels with a life of their own.

She pouted, and said in a question-and-answer format, "Teacher Kai said you're very capable?"

"So-so." Tōka squinted again, basking in the sun, and uttered the four words in an extremely perfunctory tone.

Tenten immediately pouted and glared at Tōka, clearly annoyed.

One second...

Two seconds...

Ten seconds passed, Tōka lay motionless on the frame, breathing evenly as if he were asleep, showing no reaction whatsoever.

"Hey, can you teach me?" Tenten approached Tōka and squatted down beside him, asking in a soft, sweet voice.

"Didn't Kai teach you?" Tōka raised her eyelids, neither agreeing nor refusing, but instead asked about Kai.

"Teacher Kai did teach me, but..." Tenten scratched her cheek, unsure where to begin.

Kai's path of Steel Fist training requires years of dedicated practice.

When Tōka first arrived in Konoha, he trained with Kai. It wasn't just hard work; it was practically self-torture!

Team Guy is a member of the Neji Hyuga Clan and practices the Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist and Eight Trigrams Palms, so he doesn't need much instruction from Guy.

Tenten, however, is different; she is skilled with ninja tools, not weapons.

Guy can teach Tenten how to use various ninja tools, but that alone doesn't significantly improve Tenten's skills.

Tōka tilted his head, gazing at the silent, downcast girl, a deep feeling welling up inside him. They were both in the same boat, suffering the same fate! He thought back to when he was cultivating alongside Kai...

Tsk tsk, I don't want to think about it anymore, it's too heartbreaking...

Tōka's voice rang out after he gestured with his lips, and Tenten immediately looked up at him with hopeful eyes.

"I'd rather not teach you." I can barely manage my own apprentices, how could I possibly take on another one?

Upon hearing this, Tenten immediately drooped her head like a wilted eggplant.

Just as she was about to get up and leave, Tōka's voice rang out again, "However, I can give you some advice."

"Reference?" Tenten repeated Tōka's words with a puzzled look.

"You're skilled with ninja tools, right? You can hit your target every time?" Tōka asked, taking a Shuriken out of his Ninja Tool Pouch.

"Yes, I can!" Tenten nodded confidently, very confident in her accuracy when it came to throwing ninja tools.

Tōka but said nothing, and with a flick of his wrist, he shot out the Shuriken he was holding between his fingertips.

With a whoosh, accompanied by a flash of energy, the rapidly spinning Shuriken shot through the air, leaving a dark trail that shot straight into the sky.

Just then, a flock of large birds flying overhead in search of food.

A sharp Shuriken One Flash past among the birds...

The initial surprise in Tenten's eyes gradually faded, then turned into astonishment, and finally into a suppressed desire to laugh but daring not to.

"It's empty, right?" Tōka noticed the smile in Tenten's eyes and raised an eyebrow to ask.

Tōka is not good at Shuriken, not years ago, and not now, but even at her worst, she shouldn't be able to throw Shuriken through a flock of birds.

That's right, Tōka did it on purpose. He probably deliberately shot the Shuriken as it flew through the flock of birds. He was giving Tenten his training advice!

Lesson One: Deadly danger comes from the moment of carelessness after the danger has passed!

With a slight hook in his Shuriken, a barely perceptible Chakra Threads, as fine as a hair, tightened.

The Shuriken shot high into the sky traced a long arc before plummeting straight down with a whoosh.

Puff puff puff!!

The rapidly spinning Shuriken, guided by Chakra Threads, pierced through an entire row of flying birds.

Tenten stared in astonishment at the birds falling headfirst, their blood spurting everywhere. "How... how is this possible? With just one Shuriken?"

A single Shuriken shot down a whole row of more than ten birds!

Shooting down a dozen or so birds is not difficult; Tenten is confident that he can shoot down all the birds in the sky.

But she couldn't be as... elegant as Tōka?

For some reason, the word "elegant" inexplicably popped into Tenten's mind.

"What did you see?" Tōka suddenly asked, startling Tenten out of her reverie.

"It's Chakra Threads!" When he made his move, Tōka probably exposed the Chakra Threads between his fingers, Tenten naturally noticed.

"It's a good thing your family is rich, otherwise, with your fighting style, tsk tsk tsk..." Tōka curled her lips. Tenten's nickname "Little Rich Girl" wasn't given for nothing.

The ninja tools consumed in a single battle are equivalent to those used in a full-scale ninja brawl!

Although being a ninja is an expensive profession, she's not just spending money, she's practically burying her opponents in cash!

"Senior Tōka, are you suggesting I pursue the path of Puppet Master?" Upon seeing Tōka's move, Tenten's manner of addressing him became much more respectful.

"No."

Tōka rolled her eyes at Tenten and uttered two words that made the little girl choke with anger, her face flushing with embarrassment and anger.

"Puppet Master are the Sunagakure's trump card; only the Sunagakure has a systematic training method."

"Then I..." Tenten Tian's mood was like falling from the clouds to the bottom of the valley, and her two big, watery eyes were full of disappointment.

"I wanted you to learn from the Puppet Master's methods of controlling puppets. Chakra Threads can be used not only on puppets but also on ninja tools."

Dong Ge twirled a shuriken through his index finger.

The bloodstains on the blade were glaringly obvious; this Shuriken was the very Tōka had thrown earlier, the one that shot down a swarm of birds.

Watching the Shuriken Tōka's hand, Tenten's eyes gradually brightened from initial confusion to eventual enlightenment.

"Tōka, I understand." She bowed happily to Tōka and then turned and walked away joyfully.

Looking at the bouncy little girl, Tōka wasn't particularly happy.

Tōka believes that true strength lies in Original Body power, and relying on external objects always has limitations.

Mastering ninja tools is not only expensive, but it's also difficult to reach the pinnacle of skill. Throughout the thousand-year history of the Ninja World, no clan has ever reached the top by relying on ninja tools, which is precisely why.