The stall owner's "suggestion" seemed kind-hearted, but in reality, it was meant to interrupt Ino's shuriken throwing. If the ten shuriken weren't all thrown, there naturally wouldn't be a prize... At this point, switching to Senbon seemed like offering more gifts, but the probability of actually winning those gifts was extremely low—
Throwing Senbon is much harder than shuriken. These half-foot-long thin iron needles are light as feathers and extremely difficult to control; getting them to stick into a wooden post is even harder.
Senbon are usually used for precision work, like piercing acupuncture points or blocking Chakra flow; very few Ninjas use them!
"Sure..."
Ino agreed casually. She didn't really care about the stall owner's little schemes or the gifts; she just thought it was quite fun.
Senbon were indeed more challenging than shuriken—
The crowd watched as Ino picked up a Senbon in a very peculiar way—she was actually holding it horizontally!
Poof!
The moment the Senbon left her hand, it instantly embedded itself into the wooden post, sinking nearly a centimeter deep, with the exposed part vibrating.
Ino held up three fingers to the stall owner: "We agreed on three gifts... then I'll take my pick." Ino looked around and chose three plushies. She gave Nana and Kana each a little pig, while she chose a small fat green snake for herself and hung it around her neck. Mrs. Nara was astonished by Ino's shuriken throwing—no, it should be called pure throwing.
"Ino, your throwing technique... doesn't look like a Ninja's at all. Did you practice it yourself?"
But she hadn't heard of Ino practicing such things—usually when the ladies gathered to gossip, the most frequent thing they heard was that Ino didn't like physical activities or going out. She was either reading, playing the zither, or admiring flowers. She was the perfect image of a young lady raised in a secluded boudoir. Who would have thought her throwing skill would be so startling?
The throwing power of an adult Ninja was only at this level!
Ino said casually, "Um... it's my first time trying it too. It's actually not hard—just analysis and targeted practice."
"The power is really immense!"
"I can even stick poker cards into it!" Ino didn't mind sharing this small "talent," as it wasn't some secret technique or Ninjutsu. "I can throw anything! I can even kick them or flick them with my fingers... I have plenty of tricks..."
In her "previous life," she had learned quite a few skills from the Chief Eunuch. Although her cultivation in the Sunflower Manual wasn't as deep as the Chief's, it wasn't too far off—
The difference wasn't in power, but in accuracy and speed.
"Really?"
"Of course!"
On the roof of a three-story building facing the square, a black-haired Uchiha and a member of the Yamanaka Clan stood together. From their high vantage point, they had watched the entire performances of Sasuke, Shikamaru, and Ino. The Uchiha was amazed. "Is this the little princess of your clan? Such incredible throwing talent... and her technique seems to be original!"
The Yamanaka man's face was filled with pride. To be praised and marveled at by an Uchiha, who excelled in shuriken throwing, meant Princess Ino was simply too amazing.
The Yamanaka said, "Princess Ino rarely practices these things. we often see her playing the zither, and it sounds very beautiful, though I can't quite describe it..."
The Uchiha said, "Truly incredible..."
"Your Clan Leader's child is quite good too!"
..."No, compared to your little princess, he's far behind..."
The Uchiha wasn't blind; he could see Ino's throwing technique and strength clearly. In comparison, his clan's young master was lagging far behind—and the two were the same age! Moreover, Sasuke was a boy who had been undergoing Ninja training since he was three, excelling in all aspects.
When it came to his own children, Uchiha Fugaku was definitely ruthless—his eldest son could be taken to the battlefield at four, so his younger son naturally started Ninja training at three.
Not only that!
At only 5 years old, Sasuke had already learned his first clan Fire Release Ninjutsu, capable of spitting out a fireball about one zhang in diameter.
His use of Ninja tools was also decent, showing the potential of a "genius" in every detail.
But the little princess of the Yamanaka Clan was clearly different—if it were clan education, her throwing technique would be the traditional Ninja style, not an unconventional one like Ino's. That meant she must have figured it out herself.
That was remarkable!
...This Uchiha casually took a shuriken, decomposing the details of Ino's throwing motion frame-by-frame in his mind. He imitated the exertion, and with a "thud," a shuriken embedded itself into the reinforced concrete. Despite the resistance of the cement, it sank two-thirds of the way in, leaving only half a blade exposed... The Uchiha marveled, "What an extraordinary throwing method—this kind of power is already comparable to some Ninjutsu."
"Hey, hey... this is a method of our Yamanaka Clan. Is it appropriate for you to copy it like that?" The Yamanaka beside him made an exaggerated expression and teased him sourly—though he wasn't being very serious, since the Uchiha had learned it through his own ability to "cheat." The Yamanaka said, "At the very least, it should be recorded as the Yamanaka Clan's throwing technique, right?"
The Uchiha said, "Of course—this is Princess Ino's throwing technique, and it must be called the Yamanaka Ino Style Throwing Technique!"
The Uchiha Clan was upright and wouldn't take such an advantage; the proper credit must be given. This was the integrity a clan should have.
"That's more like it..."
..."Inoichi's daughter... this throwing method is very powerful!" The Sandaime, mingling in the crowd, naturally focused on Ino from a distance from time to time. He saw her Ninja tool throwing—that power also made the Sandaime marvel.
Ninja tools: shuriken, Kunai, and Senbon. The manipulation of these conventional weapons could be said to be an extremely important lesson for a Ninja.
On the battlefield, to conserve Chakra and gain longer endurance, these Ninja tools became more fundamental and more important than Ninjutsu.
Konoha's White Fang was the most outstanding among them—one man, with a single short sword and a near-artistic mastery of its use, forged the ferocious title of "Konoha's White Fang."
If only Konoha's White Fang hadn't died... Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn't help but reminisce, but this regret was now unavoidable. He only thought of the future—
Would the future Yamanaka Clan also produce a "White Fang," a genius who didn't use a short sword but whose mastery of Ninja tools reached a level near the Dao... Beside the Ninja game stall, little Sasuke's cute big eyes were full of admiration as he looked at Ino. "You're so amazing—you're almost as amazing as my brother. I'm Sasuke, what's your name?"
...
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