Training Ground Three was ruined.
Trees surrounding the clearing were cracked and splintered, bark torn apart as if struck repeatedly by blunt force. Thick roots jutted from the earth where the ground had been pulverized, craters of varying sizes scattered across the field like scars left behind by something violent and impatient.
At the center of it all stood Ken.
In his right hand, chakra spun.
The sphere rotated smoothly, dense and compressed, humming faintly as power folded in on itself. Leaves near his feet trembled under the pressure alone.
Ken frowned at it.
Rasengan is finished, he thought. But I can't use it.
He thought bitterly.
Minato should have already created this technique. Or if he hadn't yet, he should be very close. Revealing it now wouldn't bring praise. It would only bring unnecessary problems
Still…
Abandoning it felt like waste.
A little dramatic voice came.
"What happened here?"
The chakra sphere vanished instantly, dispersing as if it had never existed.
Ken didn't turn recognizing the voice. "Nothing, Guy" he replied evenly. "I'm practicing a—"
"So you're Ken. The strongest." A brash voice came.
Ken clicked his tongue softly and finally turned.
It had been three days since his loss to the Uchiha girl. There had been taunts, whispers, exaggerated retellings.
He didn't care. Even if his income had dried up, his body felt lighter. His mind clearer. Calm, like finishing a long-overdue assignment.
Probably, the well known enlightment.
Right now, though, his mood was sour.
He'd grasped his first A-rank technique and couldn't even acknowledge it publicly. And now some brats had wandered in to interrupt him.
Four kids stood near the edge of the clearing. Two boys. Two girls.
Behind them was Guy, scratching the back of his head with a sheepish grin.
"Sorry," Guy said quickly. "I didn't want to bring them here, but… I couldn't stop them."
One of the girls stepped forward and bowed politely, purple markings framing her face."Senior, please don't blame Guy. We followed him."
Ken's irritation ebbed.
Of course he recognized them.
Obito stood there in his ridiculous goggles, barely containing himself. Rin hovered nearby, hands clasped nervously. Kurenai watched quietly, red eyes sharp and observant. And then there was the boy who'd spoken first.
Asuma.
Ken exhaled slowly and forced a small smile.
"No need to worry, Guy," he said. "They're your friends."
Guy visibly relaxed.
Obito opened his mouth, eyes shining—
"I want to fight you."
The same brash voice rang again.
Ken's smile twitched.
Obito immediately leaned forward. "Me too!"
Ken stared at them for a moment, then shook his head.
"If you're here because of the 'strongest genin' nonsense," he said calmly, "you're chasing the wrong person. I've already been defeated. Even before that, there were plenty of genin stronger than me."
He shrugged lightly.
"Someone I beat probably started the rumor to save face. There's no reason to fight."
Obito hesitated.
After all it was an Uchiha who defeated him.
Asuma scoffed.
"Save the excuses," he said. "I know you make money off betting on fights. You're probably worried we don't have any."
He stepped forward slightly, chin raised.
"Don't worry. I'm the Hokage's son."
His eyes flicked briefly toward Kurenai.
Ken understood immediately.
Ah. One of those.
He smiled again.
This time, it didn't reach his eyes.
"Are you sure," Ken asked softly, "that you want to fight?"
Something in his tone shifted.
Guy unconscious took a step back.
Asuma didn't.
"Yes," he said boldly, stepping forward.
Ken's smile widened just a little.
Ken and Asuma moved into position without another word.
The others retreated instinctively, forming a loose ring around the clearing. The ruined ground made distance uneven, but no one complained.
Guy stepped forward, cleared his throat, and raised a hand.
"Begin!"
Asuma moved immediately.
Shuriken flashed from his hands in a sharp, practiced spread as he jumped backward, already forming seals mid-motion. The blades forced space, not meant to kill, but to control.
Fire followed.
A compact fireball burst from his mouth, rolling forward with controlled intensity.
Smooth. Efficient. Rehearsed.
Asuma wasn't reckless. He'd heard from Guy that Ken fought with him regularly. Anyone who could trade blows with a taijutsu specialist like that wasn't someone you rushed.
Distance mattered.
Ken smiled.
He didn't disappear.
A kunai snapped into his hand. The shuriken were deflected cleanly, each strike precise, angles adjusted so none rebounded toward the crowd. His hands flowed into seals as his foot slammed into the ground.
Earth surged upward.
Not a wall.
A series of hardened steps rose at an angle, layered and compact. The fireball slammed into the lower sections, shattering earth into dust and fragments, but the impact bled its force away.
Ken was already moving.
He sprinted up the steps and leapt high, twisting midair.
Asuma tracked him instantly.
Another volley of shuriken tore upward, forcing Ken to adjust. He kicked off a tree trunk instead, changing direction sharply as metal sliced past where his head had been a moment earlier.
Fast,Too fast. Asuma noted
Ken landed behind him.
Asuma spun, kunai flashing as he blocked a strike aimed for his ribs. The impact rattled his arm, heavier than expected.
Ken followed immediately, chaining attacks without pause. A low kick at his thigh followed by a sudden elbow that forced Asuma back a step.
Asuma disengaged, retreating hard and tossing a smoke bomb at his feet.
The field vanished into gray.
Ken didn't stop.
He slammed his foot down.
Earth Ear
Earth rippled outward beneath the smoke, subtle but deliberate. Ken didn't need to see.
A sharp vibration to the right.
He pivoted just as Asuma burst from the smoke, blade aimed for Ken's shoulder. Metal rang as they clashed, sparks flashing briefly before both pulled back.
Asuma slid away, breathing steady but heavier now.
He's reading the ground, Asuma realized belatedly.
Ken inhaled deeply.
As he exhaled, three compact spheres of earth shot forward, each no larger than a tennis ball. Dense. Fast. Low to the ground.
Asuma vaulted over the first two, landing awkwardly as the third clipped the dirt beneath him and exploded upward in debris.
Ken was already moving again.
He came in low, punch aimed for Asuma's centerline. Asuma twisted aside, but the blow still grazed his shoulder, knocking him off balance just enough to matter.
Asuma jumped back hard, creating distance.
His breathing had quickened.
Enough.
He formed seals without hesitation.
"Fire Style—"
The fireball surged forward, larger this time. Hotter. Louder.
Ken saw it coming.
But stood there.
Guy's heart lurched. He stepped forward, ready to intervene—
Then froze.
Ken turned his palm outward.
Chakra flattened, compressed, rotating into a thin, circular disc that hummed sharply as it formed.
Ken swung.
The disc sliced forward just as the fireball reached him.
The impact detonated.
Flames and force exploded outward, the blast tearing through the clearing and igniting nearby trees. Heat washed over everyone watching.
For a heartbeat, no one moved.
Asuma stared, stunned.
He hadn't meant to—
Smoke and dust slowly began to clear.
Ken was still standing.
His clothes smoldered. Small fires clung to the fabric at his sleeves and pant legs. His arms and legs were marked with shallow burns.
He didn't seem to notice.
His gaze was fixed on his heavily burned palm.
A wide grin split his face.