Ino! The Girl's Heart

"Alright, let's have a serious match!"

After the group's playful banter and bickering, Asuma reorganized the serious battlefield.

"Although this is a sparring match and we should stop once the point is made, you must still bring out your true abilities. That is the respect you owe your opponent."

As Asuma spoke, Hyuga Neji and Ino returned to their positions.

A look of seriousness appeared in Ino's eyes as well.

"A few days ago, our village's Special Jonin Hayate Gekko, who was the proctor for your third exam, was murdered near the Hokage building. You all should have heard about this by now. Even though we live in an era of peace, you must still strive to strengthen your own power!"

"Face every battle with seriousness."

As Asuma spoke, everyone on the field began to grow solemn.

Hayate Gekko was the examiner who had left such a deep impression on them during the previous exam; they hadn't expected to hear news of his death so soon.

For children living in an era of peace, the impact of such an event was not small.

"Begin. Ino, let us see the results of your latest training! And Neji... I hear all the teachers praising your performance in the last bout, so let me see it for myself as well."

Ino nodded heavily.

Her gaze began to fixate intently on Hyuga Neji, and it was at this moment that she began to treat him as a formal opponent.

That rumored "failure" of a ninja, that "dead last."

After their first exchange, Ino suddenly discovered that the reality of Hyuga Neji, who lived in rumors, did not seem to be the case at all.

The evasive footwork he used from the start, even before activating his Byakugan, was a level of proficiency that must have been gained through thousands of repetitions.

The decisiveness he showed after activating his Byakugan—even when defending, every movement was so crisp and clean. This guy definitely had plenty of real combat experience.

"I'm going to get serious too!"

Ino began to weave hand signs.

"The last sign is... Wind?"

Tenten, sitting not far away to watch the match, asked in a murmur.

"Oh? You can tell even that? Tenten, you're amazing," Choji said while eating potato chips.

Shikamaru tapped him lightly on the head and said, "Idiot, you should read more books in your spare time."

Neji's expression also shifted slightly; the chakra within Ino began to surge continuously.

It formed a whirlwind shape, slowly beginning to wrap around her hands and feet.

At the same time, Shikamaru began to explain.

"Ninjutsu is the art that requires the most chakra to release, and chakra itself is divided into attributes. Aside from the categories of ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu, chakra can also be isolated as a boost to physical performance. But the hardest part of achieving this is that the raw power of chakra itself is very small."

"By concentrating chakra at the soles of your feet, you can walk on water, and there are many similar applications. Chakra itself is merely an energy body that serves as an auxiliary tool."

Choji said, "I know this; I heard it back at the Ninja Academy."

"That lesson was about chakra control. Chakra control requires extreme talent; there are many things that ordinary people cannot achieve no matter how hard they try," Tenten explained.

Shikamaru nodded and continued, "Exactly. But elemental chakra is different. The five most basic attributes—fire, water, earth, wind, and lightning—when condensed within the body, produce different effects. Whether used individually or infused into a technique to amplify its effect, it requires extremely high talent. And Ino just happens to be a genius in this regard! Among the people I have seen, no one controls chakra better than Ino..."

"That's why she was able to learn this!"

Asuma stood to the side, nodding with a faint smile, a half-smoked cigarette dangling from his lips.

"Gale!"

Wind-attribute chakra swirled around her feet and hands.

Ino rushed toward Neji, her movements even more agile!

Neji met the challenge, maintaining his defensive stance. Every one of Ino's attacks was faster and more accurate.

A punch!

"Thud!"

It landed squarely on Neji's arm.

But he couldn't hold his ground, and Neji was sent sliding backward.

"Ugh..."

Neji gritted his teeth, dropping to one knee.

He gripped his left arm tightly. Outside the ring, Tenten stood up in surprise.

"How is that possible?"

Based on the test Tenten had given Neji yesterday, she felt he shouldn't be at this level. Asuma also frowned subtly: "Is this all he's got?"

Ino was also somewhat surprised; the Neji from this moment felt different from before.

"Get serious! I'm not a taijutsu specialist; are you really content losing to me like this?" Ino attempted to use a provocation.

Neji struggled to his feet, a bead of cold sweat on his forehead.

If he attacked in earnest, he could finish the Ino before him in an instant.

However, this degree of control was difficult to grasp.

On the inside of his left arm was the wound left by Baki's Wind Blade during their clash that night; it seemed it wasn't as simple as he had thought.

It resonated with Ino's wind-natured chakra, causing a sharp, unbearable pain.

Neji now seemed to understand the principles of nature transformation for chakra a little better, and he also knew why Hinata's chakra had been able to completely activate the lightning-natured Gentle Fist remaining inside Zaku's body at that time.

"Eight Trigrams Palm, Gentle Fist!"

Neji grew serious, his movements becoming incomparably swift!

"Has it begun?" Asuma watched from the side, his eyes beginning to light up.

Even with her body suffused with wind-natured chakra, Ino's movements still couldn't keep up with Neji at all.

Every time he feinted, Ino's defense failed to cover the gap.

If even one of those attacks had been genuine, Ino would have fallen.

"This..." Asuma's eyes widened, filled with admiration.

He finally understood why Kurenai Yuhi, after watching the match, had spent so long praising Hyuga Neji to him; this child truly possessed a unique strength hidden within.

"Ah!"

Ino felt herself being struck by something, an overwhelming force she couldn't resist, but before she hit the ground, a gentle embrace caught her.

Seeing Neji's indifferent yet handsome face, she was stunned.

She quickly stood up: "Ugh!"

Neji broke into a cold sweat: "This... I really am not that kind of person!"

"Alright, you two take a break. Next group..."

Asuma's simple test continued, but Ino quietly slipped away while watching.

Neji followed her and found Ino sitting alone under a large tree at the other end of the training ground.

"Are you unconvinced?" Neji curled his lips; she had clearly held back.

In terms of strength, Ino didn't even catch his eye.

"It's not that I'm unconvinced, I just didn't expect you to be so strong." Ino glanced at Neji, then looked away.

Neji leaned in, and Ino suddenly blushed.

"Hey, I'm warning you, I really didn't mean it like that!"

Neji was speechless; if Asuma's words spread, the reputation of every man in the Hyuga Clan would likely be ruined.

But Ino just blushed, offering no reply.

She turned her head and sighed.

Struggling to regain her composure, she wasn't sure why, but the recent sparring had led her to discover something.

She had actually developed a certain affection for the boy before her, and it was extremely intense, too hard to resist!

"I really don't understand the hearts of you young girls. If you're unconvinced, then work hard to get stronger and catch up to me, won't you?" Neji wasn't one for preaching, so he spoke bluntly.

He didn't want his unintentional actions to kill a young girl's dream of being a ninja.

"Sakura's class has the genius Sasuke, and Naruto's performance lately should be quite impressive too, right? And look at your own teammates—are you content with losing to Sakura so completely?"

He had expected this sentence to anger Ino.

After all, Ino was supposed to like Sasuke, but the result was beyond Neji's expectations.

Ino just stared blankly at Neji, saying nothing.

The wind blew past, and everything was peaceful.

"What's wrong? Is there something on my face?" Neji frowned.

"It's nothing!" Ino lowered her head and swallowed hard.

Just now, she felt as if she had seen a light!