Sparring

Toru and Asuma wandered through the forest, patrolling the surroundings while looking for deer.

However, they didn't see a single deer after a full patrol.

Asuma felt puzzled by this, so Toru stepped out to explain, "Deep in the forest, we see deer. These animals are timid and usually live in the depths of the woods to avoid predators."

"We are currently on the edge of the forest, so the probability of encountering deer is quite low. But it doesn't matter; deer will come out to forage at dusk."

"We just need to wait quietly. The water and grass here are lush, so many deer should come over to graze."

As he spoke, Toru jumped onto a tree branch, and Asuma followed suit, leaping up as well.

The two waited on the tree while keeping watch for the appearance of deer.

As the sky grew dark, just as they were waiting, a long, melodic deer call drifted from afar.

Toru and Asuma exchanged a glance, then lowered their figures, trying their best to avoid making noise as they leaped through the trees toward the source of the sound.

Sure enough, they saw a herd ahead. There were six deer in total, all of them stags with large antlers on their heads.

Toru touched the hemp rope behind his waist and whispered to Asuma, "Try to catch them. Catch as many as you can."

The stags below heard some movement and looked around vigilantly, but they didn't look up to see Toru and Asuma.

After confirming there were no predators nearby, the stags lowered their heads again to eat the tender grass and wild fruits from the bushes.

Toru and Asuma waited patiently until the stags completely let down their guard, then leaped down together.

The herd sensed danger and scattered instantly. The stags took off at high speed, moving so fast that an average person would have a hard time keeping up.

Without harming the deer, it was indeed difficult to capture them.

It was no wonder the Nara Clan, who had raised deer for generations, had developed the Shadow Possession Jutsu to catch them.

Asuma chased after one deer and took off running, disappearing into the distance in an instant.

Seeing this, Toru seized the opportunity to form hand seals and cast the Shadow Cursed Technique, using the long, narrow shadows in the woods at dusk to instantly capture the remaining five deer.

Right now, both Toru and the deer were unable to move. However, Toru knew the Shadow Clone Technique, and since he had already pretended to learn it from Fugaku, he could use it openly now.

Toru created a shadow clone, picked up the hemp rope from his main body's waist, and tied up the five deer.

The main body released the Shadow Cursed Technique, took the rope from the shadow clone's hand to string the five deer together, and then led the deer at the front, leisurely guiding the herd to continue grazing.

Seeing that Toru meant them no harm, the deer continued to eat as if nothing had happened; after all, nothing was more important than a full stomach.

By the time Asuma returned, dusty and somewhat disheveled while clutching a deer, the five deer with Toru had already been grazing for quite a while.

Asuma asked in shock, "How did you catch these five deer?!"

Toru said, half-truthfully, "By relying on my shadow clone."

Asuma had no choice but to accept this explanation. He put down the deer in his arms and used a hemp rope to tie it by the neck so he could lead it.

The two led their respective deer and continued to patrol the forest.

However, they hadn't gone far before the six deer seemed unwilling to walk further, resisting the pair's lead.

Toru knew he couldn't force them, or it would be counterproductive, so he and Asuma tied the deer to trees.

The two continued to patrol the forest.

On the way, Asuma suddenly spoke up, "Uchiha Toru, let's have a match."

Toru was a bit surprised, as he hadn't had much interaction with Asuma since entering the Ninja Academy, and he had only felt that Asuma was very repulsed by him at the beginning.

He hadn't expected Asuma to take the initiative to propose a test. Toru looked at Asuma with a puzzled expression.

Asuma immediately explained his intentions, saying, "I've been tossing and turning these past few days, feeling like you're about to become the nightmare of my life."

"Do you know? The first time I felt attracted to a girl was when I saw Kurenai. I had originally intended to pursue her, but you beat me to it."

"After being defeated by you in love, I devoted myself to training, hoping to surpass you in strength. But I discovered that I couldn't even beat you in my profession as a ninja, and even Kakashi, whom I have always wanted to surpass, was defeated by you."

"So, my only wish now is to have a fair match with you. Even if I lose, I can accept it with a clear heart."

In this secluded forest, Asuma opened his heart to Toru, speaking his mind for the first time.

Toru remained silent for a moment, which made Asuma feel a bit nervous.

Fortunately, Toru's subsequent words put Asuma at ease. "Fine, what shall we compete in?"

"We'll have two rounds, with each of us setting the challenge once. If there's no winner by then, we'll go find Kurenai for a third round." Asuma stated his plan very smoothly; it seemed he had rehearsed it in his mind for a long time.

"Fine, then I'll set the first round." After a moment of thought, Toru bent down to pick up a stone from the ground and said, "The first round is throwing stones."

"Throwing stones?" Asuma was a bit confused.

Toru explained, "The stone is one of the earliest weapons used by humans, originally for hunting. However, we're in the Nara Clan's forest, and it's not appropriate to use animals for a hunting competition, so we'll compete to see who can throw further."

"The rule is no chakra or similar means allowed, and we must use the same stone."

Asuma showed an expression of understanding and immediately agreed to the rules.

Toru handed the stone to Asuma, drew a line on the ground with his foot, and said, "This is the starting point. You go first."

Asuma stood behind the starting point, gripped the stone, warmed up slightly, and then threw it with all his might. The stone traced a graceful arc as it flew into the distance.

A dull thud came from afar as the stone landed in the grass.

Toru said, "Go to the stone, throw it back, and then stand there without moving. Let me have a turn."

Asuma did as he was told. Toru picked up the returned stone, stood back by the starting line, assumed a standard throwing posture, and with a whoosh, his sleeve cut through the air as the stone shot out instantly.

The stone whistled past Asuma; he could even feel the gust of wind it stirred up.

In the end, the stone landed dozens of meters ahead of Asuma. Toru had won the first round.

Toru had indeed used no chakra or Cursed Energy this time, relying entirely on the experience and strength from his past life to complete this astonishing feat.

Toru recalled that in his past life, he had once used a stone to kill a large black bear while hunting.

"What's the second round?" Toru asked.

Asuma took out his two Chakra Blades and said, "Throwing blades. We can use chakra this time."