The tired sighs of Team 11 could be heard as they returned to their temporary base.
Ino grabbed her head and screamed.
"What the hell was that?!"
"For someone to have that kind of jutsu..."
Hinata was still unable to process what had happened. Although she had tried not to look, her curiosity got the better of her, and she turned her gaze toward the lifeless bodies covered in sand. It was horrible...
'Going there wasn't a good decision, but now I know what kind of abilities Gaara has. You could say Gaara is comparable to Yamato-sensei, since they both possess inexplicable jutsu—or at least, I can't understand them...'
Toru took a breath, leaning his back against a tree. When he saw Gaara kill so ruthlessly, all he could do was grab his teammates' hands and run away. It was obvious that if they had stayed there and Gaara's team had discovered them, they would have been killed within seconds.
"We need to stay hidden. If we run into them, we won't be going home ever again..." Toru said.
That decision was like a bucket of cold water for the team, but Toru was being realistic. Staying hidden for the time being would be their best option. They could wait for Gaara to finish the test first and then move after him to stay away from any conflict.
This time, Ino was understanding and nodded without complaining, although she was still disturbed by the sight of Gaara's Sabaku Kyū.
"Yeah... I think that's the best thing we can do," Ino agreed.
With a defeated expression on her face, Hinata climbed to the top of a tree and stayed there, using her eyes to make sure no one was approaching. Meanwhile, Ino had been staring at Toru. He seemed especially deep in thought at that moment.
Unconsciously, Toru had established himself as the leader of the team. He was the one who thought quickly, the one who knew how to use his teammates' abilities to their advantage. It made sense for him to lead the team, but that thought quickly left Ino's mind.
Climbing onto the tree where Toru was, she sat on the branch and stared at the dark horizon beside him. He didn't say anything, since four eyes were better than two. In any case, everyone was far too quiet to start acting friendly or getting embarrassed like the kids they were.
Suddenly, Hinata found something.
"Toru-kun, there's a team nearby. They don't seem to be coming toward us, but..."
Ino felt strangely disappointed by the sudden information, but this wasn't the time to think about pointless things. She could stare into nothing alongside Toru another time.
'Seriously, there are things I don't understand about myself... or about this idiot...' Ino thought, looking at Toru one last time before Hinata spoke again.
"It looks like they're approaching another team, but for some reason, they're way too close to our base."
Toru sighed tiredly.
"I see. I think if we stay here, there's a good chance another team will attack us, but we could also hide and use the traps I set up earlier. Either way, we can't just sit around doing nothing. Eventually, we'll have to get another scroll, and we'll probably have to put ourselves in danger to do that."
"I think the same thing, but there's also the possibility of running into a team that's stronger than us."
Hinata was right. There were many teams that greatly surpassed Team 11's abilities. Depending on the situation, that could be both good and bad.
'This is difficult. The exam itself forces us to go out and search for the scroll. Sure, hiding is an option, but it brings more disadvantages than advantages. If we don't make a decision quickly, it could affect us in the long run. Although, I still have my ninjutsu... I could use it if necessary.'
Narrowing his eyes, Toru focused his attention on the traps.
"We'll use the wires I set up. They'll protect us from enemies moving below the trees. Hinata, use your eyes for ten seconds every ten minutes. That way, you can conserve your chakra and check if there are enemies nearby."
"I think I can do that..."
"Then at night, we'll take turns keeping watch."
"Yeah..." Hinata and Ino replied seriously.
"We'll also need supplies, but we can get those in the morning."
"Okay?"
While Toru kept talking without knowing whether they were even listening to him, Hinata felt a little overwhelmed, but also happy. It was like seeing the Toru from so many years ago again—the boy who, whenever he started talking about something he liked, had trouble stopping.
'Whenever he explained something, he could get just as intense...'
At the same time, Ino crossed her arms.
'What a leader,' Ino thought sarcastically. Still, she wasn't going to deny Toru's leadership skills. 'I guess he's actually good at it...'
She stared into the distance, lost in thought. Then, she remembered that time she had gone to Toru's house. All that mess, the feeling of loneliness surrounding the entire building.
'How painful must it be to live alone after your entire family was murdered?' she thought. Everyone knew what had happened to the Uchiha and Asahi clans that night.
Both clans had been allies, almost like one. The Uchiha possessed power—the strength of the Sharingan and their ninjutsu within the village police—while the weaker Asahi had scientific minds and bodies built for blacksmithing. Together, they were unstoppable, but perhaps that was what led to their inevitable downfall.
There were many theories about what had happened that night, but the truth was that both Sasuke and Toru had the good or bad fortune of not being there.
After a long time lost in thought, Ino sighed. Her stomach growled.
"Hey, I'm hungry. Let's get something to eat."
"I was just talking about that," Toru said. "There seem to be different kinds of mushrooms, fruits, and wild animals we can hunt and eat..."
Toru pointed at a mushroom growing from the ground.
"That one over there is a matsutake. If you cook it, it's perfectly edible. Berries and other fruits should be nearby too. You two watch the base, and I'll take care of gathering supplies. Hinata, you know what to do."
"Yeah. Ten seconds every ten minutes."
Toru nodded and left the base.
—A Few Hours Later—
Toru had returned carrying a large amount of fruit and mushrooms in his arms. The girls were surprised. Well, it seemed like the place they had chosen wasn't so bad after all.
"I think you brought too much," Ino said.
"Well, we're going to have to eat a lot. We're shinobi, after all," Toru replied.
Ino walked over to the supplies and picked up one of the sweet berries.
"It's like the ones they sell in the village..."
"I know. I made sure to choose carefully because there was also a poisonous version. Both kinds of berries grow close to each other, but they're easy to tell apart."
"That's amazing, Toru-kun. You know so many things."
"I don't really know that much. I only know what I know..."
After that, Toru tied the food to a tree branch. Then, he gathered rocks and dry branches and placed them in the middle of their base.
"Are you going to make a campfire?" Ino asked.
Toru looked her in the eyes because the answer was obvious. He replied sarcastically:
"No. I'm playing rock, paper, scissors, but without the paper or the scissors."
Ino froze for a second. She hadn't expected an answer like that.
"That's why you don't have any friends," she said, sitting down on a rock.
"Ouch. I guess."
Hinata approached after Ino with something in her hand.
"If you're planning to make a campfire, I think you could use my lighter."
"No need, Hinata. You remember who I am, right?"
"Oh... You're right," she said.
Toru brought his hands together and looked at the branches.
"Shakuton..."
A small cloud of smoke began to rise from the branches, and a second later, flames started burning. Ino jumped up from her seat in surprise.
"What was that?! How did you do it?!"
"Fire and Wind natures combined. Even though it's mediocre, it's my ninjutsu."
"Ninjutsu... But you're an Asahi, aren't you? How can you...?" Ino asked.
Toru replied:
"Even though my mother was an Asahi, my father wasn't. I inherited some of his talent for ninjutsu. Although, he wasn't particularly talented at it either..."
He stared silently at the flame. This was what he had been hiding—his secret weapon. Looking into the light, he imagined himself using his ninjutsu in battle, but suddenly, amid the campfire's glow, a blue flash struck him. A headache overwhelmed him, causing him to fall onto his back.
"Toru-kun!"
"Toru!"
Hinata quickly rushed over to Toru. Ino quickly followed.
'The same thing again...' he thought, staring at the campfire. 'Was that... a blue and red sun?'
He was bewildered, once again unable to understand what these visions were. Finally, he sighed and sat on the ground.
"Are you okay?" Hinata asked, but Toru didn't answer.
Ino crouched beside Toru, examining him with her eyes.
"Maybe he's tired. Tell me, Toru, how many hours do you sleep at night?"
Toru placed a hand on his forehead and replied:
"Sometimes five, three, or two hours. It depends on what tasks I still have to do."
Ino was so disappointed to hear that.
"I knew you were being way too sensible, but you're still an idiot. If you have a brain, you should know that sleep is extremely important for our physical and mental health. Hmph! You should be grateful that I'm forced to waste my knowledge on you."
Getting up, Ino took some of the herbs Toru had brought earlier, picked a nearby flower, and mixed them together in a bowl. Then, she pulled out a small pot from a scroll and filled it with water from the canteen. She placed the herbs inside and let them heat over the flames of Toru's campfire.
"What you're doing is..."
"Just watch and learn, Hinata. This is always useful," Ino said.
After a while, she took the water infused with the herbs and filled the canteen with it. Then, she walked over to Toru.
"Drink some of this every two hours and make sure you get some proper sleep when it's your turn."
Toru stared at Ino in confusion, making her frown.
"What are you waiting for? A kiss? Hurry up and drink it," she insisted.
Because of that, Toru had no choice but to push the vision aside and drink from the canteen.
'I didn't know Ino had knowledge of medicine...'
However, he made a disgusted face after tasting the liquid.
"Even if you make faces, you'll have to keep drinking it. Medicine that works doesn't taste good," Ino said. She crossed her arms and looked away with an expression of superiority. She was the divine doctor!
"Thanks for worrying about me," Toru said.
Ino felt embarrassed, but surprisingly, she didn't become aggressive.
"Of course I'm worried. If you die first, what are we supposed to do? At least with you, we have a better chance of surviving. Besides..." She stood in front of him and looked him seriously in the eyes. "Along with Hinata, you're the one who knows the most about fighting here."
"I see. That's pretty sensible of you," Toru said. He raised his thumb in approval. "Good job."
Ino ignored that, but Hinata took her hand.
"You're amazing, Ino. You know a lot about plants."
"Well, it's not that big of a deal. I only know because my mom knows a lot about flowers and small plants."
"But it's still impressive."
"I don't think it's that big of a deal."
Ino seemed very happy to receive Hinata's praise, but suddenly, a chill ran down Toru's spine. He jumped up from the ground and shouted:
"Ino!"
Immediately, he threw himself on top of her just as a kunai buried itself in the ground.
"That was impressive, Toru. You're just like your mother," said the shinobi hidden in the shadows.