The mission from the previous night had ended hours ago. Ash's boots still carried the dust of the forest trail leading back to the academy, and the moonlit drive had been quiet, tense. At dawn, he stepped through the academy gates, mission completed: the caravan safe, no casualties, and whispers of his name already spreading among the guards.
He walked through the courtyard toward the training grounds, his mind replaying the outcome how the mercenaries fell one by one under his precision, how the Sharingan flared at midnight, how his Actions had stirred fear in eyes far larger than his own.
He paused outside the north training courtyard, a secluded clearing ringed by ancient pines. The grass beneath was wet with morning dew. Claire arrived moments later, dressed in her black training attire, posture poised and expression unreadable. The air between them was quiet, weighted with unspoken respect and anticipation.
A breeze rustled the leaves, and then Blair appeared, walking in confidently. Blair, elite Class S cadet friend of Claire, hair blonde like spun gold, eyes violet-purple crystal-clear yet impossibly deep. She carried the aura of aristocratic grace, often called the most beautiful girl in the academy.
"No judge showed up," Claire said, her voice steady. "So Blair will preside."
Blair inclined her head with a faint smile. "I'll be impartial." But her gaze flicked toward Ash, curiosity undeniable.
Ash inclined his head in greeting. Claire moved into position. Blair stepped back, observing as the match began.
Claire attacked first, moving silently through the misty grass. She used shadows to hide her approach, striking with kunai aimed for Ash's midsection. He sidestepped, eyes cold and composed.
He activated his Sharingan briefly, noticing exactly where her momentum shifted, where she inhaled before launching the kunai. With precision, he pulled a shuriken from his belt and threw not to hit Claire directly, but to intercept with another shuriken in mid-air, redirecting its arc just enough to plant it squarely in the fence behind her.
*Clack* metal on wood.
Claire flicked her wrist, sending the shuriken spiraling away. She nodded in appreciation. Blair's breath caught. "That was… exquisite."
They bowed, reset.
Claire sheathed her kunai and drew a short tanto. She dashed forward, drawing on illusions to mask her real path. Ash's foot shifted the Sharingan flared fully and he moved almost before she started. He disengaged, responding with a wooden blade maneuver he had copied from a recorded sword manual, slicing upward in a fluid arc.
Clack air parted, Claire spun out of range.
They circled each other; bushes whispered. Blair observed the distance, noting timing and stance. Ash responded with footwork learned from his previous Konoha-days training, blending sword with shuriken in alternating precision.
Claire closed distance again, this time weaving low to the ground, nearly silent. Ash activated Sharingan fully. He detected the shift in her breathing before she pivoted into a spinning slash. He countered, stepping into the strike and redirecting her energy, flipping the knife from her hand with a blade tip.
Ash inserted the knife between his fingers and tossed it like a boomerang knuckle—weaving a shuriken into its path. The blade flew past Claire and returned with a perfect curve, stopping inches under Blair's nostril.
Blair gasped. "That was… artistry and violence combined."
Ash deactivated his eye calmly, face expressionless.
Claire extended her hand. Ash took it, helping her up with steady grace.
Blair approached. She balanced a tablet in her hand, her purple eyes wide with revelation.
"Ash Aragon," she said, voice firm but soft, "your style is beyond mere technique. It's adaptation, anticipation… evolutive. You don't just copy moves you refine them, make them your own."
Ash nodded once. Claire smiled faintly.
Blair leaned toward him, just slightly closer than duty required. "I want to watch more. Maybe spar together someday."
Ash tilted his head. "If you seek to test, I don't refuse."
Claire observed the exchange with thoughtful reserve. Blair thanked them and retreated.
Ash watched her hair fade into the morning light. Something had changed.
Later, Ash cleaned his weapons in the courtyard, mind reviewing each moment. His stamina had held well through three rounds, the Sharingan activation cost measurable, but performance intact. He knew he had two paths: continue pushing sharingan-dependent speed or cultivate raw strength to preserve his energy.
Claire arrived silently.
"You did well," she said. "You don't owe me victory."
He nodded. "Neither do you owe me concern."
She closed her eyes. "But I'm curious. About why you fight like that." Her gaze drifted to the horizon.
Ash felt something passing between them not rivalry, but alignment. Two shadows shaped by different histories, meeting in conscious purpose.