Asuma's Counterattack

"Uchiha, Uchiha, Uchiha!"

"Third Hokage, Third Hokage, Third Hokage!"

As the match began, cheers instantly erupted throughout the stadium. Everyone's emotions were roused, and the entire arena seemed to be set ablaze by an invisible force. Cheers and shouts rose and fell one after another, deafening everyone present.

"Good, good, good, it's begun!" The Daimyo watched the lively scene with a broad smile. He had already begun imagining the fervent atmosphere of a Daimyo football league.

Watching the enthusiastic scene, the Third Hokage finally gave up completely. It was no longer possible to use public opinion to drive a wedge between the Uchiha Clan and the village. The Uchiha Clan's rise could no longer be stopped. He could only place his hopes on the history textbooks that would be revised next year, hoping that exposing the secret of how the Uchiha Clan awakened the Sharingan would cause the Uchiha Clan to fracture.

Meanwhile, on the field.

"Watch my Tiger-Style Shot!" Asuma kicked with all his strength. With an instant roar, the football transformed into three fierce tigers and charged straight at Uchiha's goalkeeper.

"What?" Everyone was stunned by the sight.

"Did he imbue the football with the Transformation Technique and Clone Technique?"

"You can do that?"

Everyone was dumbfounded. Even Uchiha Chuan marveled at Asuma's ingenious invention. He immediately used the Broadcasting Technique to announce, "Allowed. It isn't a foul."

The referee, who had been about to blow the whistle, immediately stopped upon hearing Uchiha Chuan's words.

"Damn it, don't even think about scoring!" Uchiha's goalkeeper was a substitute who had been eliminated because he was too weak. Now, he did not want to be eliminated again, much less concede a goal so quickly. His resolve hardened, and suddenly, his eyes turned crimson.

"Sharingan! He awakened it!"

"He awakened it just like that?" The Uchiha Clan members were even more shocked. They knew that awakening the Sharingan required stimulation, but they had never expected mere Stilt Football to be enough to trigger it.

The Uchiha Clan had already been enthusiastic about the Stilt Football invented by Uchiha Chuan. Now, they had become utterly fanatical.

"Uchiha, Uchiha, Uchiha!" The thunderous chants instantly exploded across the stadium.

"Those damned Uchiha, he actually awakened it!" Asuma widened his eyes. The clever trick he had worked so hard to devise had actually been ruined by his opponent awakening the Sharingan.

"He awakened it? He actually awakened it just like that?" The Third Hokage shot to his feet, his eyes filled with shock.

Not far away, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu were also dumbstruck. Clearly, they had not anticipated this development.

The Daimyo looked at the Third Hokage's expression, then at the Uchiha below, and a faint smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. As long as Konoha's chaos did not interfere with national defense, the more chaotic it became, the better. And the Uchiha seemed to be the greatest source of that chaos.

"I awakened it! Hahaha, I awakened it!" Uchiha's goalkeeper began laughing wildly, his eyes filled with excitement and pride.

"Damn it, he actually awakened it!" The other young Uchiha were deeply displeased. They had only recently graduated and were Uchiha in their teens, precisely at the most rebellious age.

"Damn it, those little brats who haven't even graduated awakened it before us!" the young Uchiha said indignantly. At their age, they were at their most rebellious, and they were also the ones in the clan who looked down on Uchiha Chuan the most.

Of course, with the Uchiha Clan advancing so rapidly now, no one had the time to bother with them. Their parents had tried talking to them, but the words went in one ear and out the other, leaving their parents helpless.

"Hahaha, Uchiha Chuan didn't lie to us. Stilt Football isn't just fun, it can also be used for training, and now it can even awaken the Sharingan! I want to awaken mine too!"

"Me too!"

The Uchiha kids on the field worshipped Uchiha Chuan even more now, to the point of fanaticism.

"Beep, beep, beep..." If the referee had not blown the whistle to urge the match onward, they might have continued celebrating.

In short, Asuma's Tiger-Style Shot and the Uchiha goalkeeper's awakening immediately pushed the match into a Haku-level fever pitch.

"Match resumes!" the referee shouted, his voice carrying a trace of sternness.

"Hmph, even if you awakened it, you still won't be able to stop me!" Asuma gritted his teeth, his eyes burning with fighting spirit. He quickly adjusted himself and charged toward Uchiha's goal with the ball once more.

"You may apply ninjutsu to the ball, but not to people or yourselves. Ninjutsu applied to the ball must not damage it. Otherwise, the opposing side will receive one point directly." As the match resumed, Uchiha Chuan used the Broadcasting Technique to amend the rules, his voice clearly spreading through the entire stadium.

"Damn it, this is targeting me!" Asuma said unhappily, his eyes filled with unwillingness. He had originally planned to use the Clone Technique.

"This isn't targeting anyone. It's to ensure fairness," Uchiha Chuan replied calmly, his tone leaving no room for doubt.

"Damn it!" Unable to shake off his pursuers, Asuma had no choice but to pass the ball.

With Uchiha Chuan's new rule, the rest of the match became much more normal. After all, few people could use transformation-nature ninjutsu on a football from atop stilts. However, using the Clone Technique while dribbling to confuse others became increasingly common.

With the slightest lapse in attention, the ball would easily get past someone. Of course, there were also frequent cases where one player used clones and another used clones, leaving even the dribbler confused. Thus, the next stretch of the match was filled with hilarious blunders, and the entire audience laughed until their stomachs hurt.

"Yohohoho... As expected, ninja Stilt Football is much more interesting than ordinary people's football, even if these are only Ninja Academy students." The Daimyo exclaimed in amazement, his eyes full of excitement. He wanted a ninja force directly under his command, but there was no way around it; Konoha had already monopolized that.

Through Stilt Football, the Daimyo also came to understand the gap between ordinary people and ninjas. These kids were still standing on stilts, yet their movements were no less fluid than those of football players without stilts. And those football players were all carefully selected samurai. The difference was obvious.

Soon, the first half was about to end. Yet unexpectedly, Asuma received another opportunity.

"If the Tiger-Style Shot can't take you down, then watch my Blazing Fire-Style Shot!" Asuma roared and launched a fierce flying kick.

In an instant, there was a bang, followed by the sound of smoke bursting. Then, three footballs blazing with fierce flames shot out like lightning toward Uchiha's goalkeeper.

"Not happening! Sharingan, activate!" Uchiha's goalkeeper immediately activated his Twin One-Tomoe Sharingan and stared at the incoming footballs.

However, this time, Asuma had increased the chakra and used the method of the Substitution Technique on the ball. With only a One-Tomoe Sharingan, there was no way to tell which ball was real and which was fake.

"If that's the case, then I'll take them all!" Without another word, Uchiha's goalkeeper kicked as the three balls lined up in a straight line. No matter what, he would hit one. Once he did, he could knock the ball away.

Sure enough, the first one burst into Haku-colored smoke with a bang. The second one was the real object, struck with another bang.

"Good!" All the Uchiha shouted in approval.

"Now!" Asuma suddenly yelled.

At once, a figure rushed out and likewise leaped into the air with a powerful kick, right along the path of the ball Uchiha's goalkeeper had kicked away. With a bang, the football flying away from the Uchiha goalkeeper immediately changed direction and flew toward the goal.

"Not good!" All the Uchiha panicked at the sight, but none of them could stop it anymore.

The ball slammed into the net and fell with two muffled thumps.

"It went in!"

"I'm Asuma! I'm Asuma, not the Third Hokage! This is the Sarutobi Team, not the Third Hokage's team!" Asuma then ran toward the crowd and roared, his voice full of pride.

"Asuma, Asuma, Asuma!"

In an instant, cheers surged like a tidal wave.

"Asuma was so cool just now." Rin Nohara was stunned by the sight, her eyes filled with admiration.

"Damn it, that Asuma actually set up the goal." Obito was also stunned, his eyes filled with unwillingness.

"Asuma..." Even Kurenai Yuhi's beautiful eyes rippled slightly. She had not expected Asuma to be so impressive.

"Damn it, we were played!" The Uchiha all gritted their teeth.

"It was my fault. I lost my man," one Uchiha said with intense self-reproach.

"We can't underestimate them anymore. Seven days of grueling training were enough to bring their proficiency up to our level. From here on, it'll be a contest of willpower and strategy." Uchiha Mion spoke with equal seriousness.

"Wonderful, absolutely wonderful! Asuma anticipated the Uchiha goalkeeper's anticipation and had another finisher lying in wait ahead of time. This is perfect teamwork!" Haku Fang of the Leaf shouted excitedly, his tone full of praise.

"Boil over, youth! Boil over, passion! This is a miracle that only the surging passion of youth can create! Cheer!" Might Duy was even more wildly excited, his voice overflowing with fervor.

"Asuma Sarutobi Team, Asuma Sarutobi Team, Asuma Sarutobi Team..." The cheers that rose once more were finally no longer cheering for the Third Hokage.

"Hahaha..." Everyone on the Sarutobi Team was overjoyed, their faces full of pride.

"Beep..." The whistle marking the end of the first half sounded. There would be a fifteen-minute break.

"I told you, we won't lose to you again." Asuma declared proudly, his eyes filled with confidence.

"Don't get cocky. The match isn't over yet." Uchiha Mion replied just as proudly, her tone carrying an unyielding defiance.