—Minutes After Yamato's Test—
Walking through the streets of Konoha with his hands in his pockets, Toru sighed.
'I'm officially a ninja,' he thought, remembering the details of the test. It had been somewhat complicated because of Ino, but in the end, they had all managed to pass.
Although he had been able to figure out Yamato's plan, Toru hadn't expected his sensei's words at all.
'Never abandon a comrade, huh...'
Toru stopped for a moment and looked up at the sky. The weight of Yamato's words had resonated in his mind, slightly changing the way he thought.
"Oh, if it isn't little Toru."
An elderly man spoke while waving his hand slightly. He was missing some hair on the top of his head, had a few scars on his face, and had a pile of wooden crates beside him.
"Shou-san? Good morning."
Toru gave a brief bow. The old man smiled.
"How have you been, kid? Looks like you've got something interesting tied around your arm," Shou said, looking at the plate tied around Toru's arm.
"Um... Well... I think you should already know."
Shou laughed heartily.
"You're right. I must be getting too old," he replied.
The passage of time could be clearly seen in Shou's appearance. After all, he had also been a ninja from Konohagakure, but now, with the passing of the years, he had become a peaceful baker.
"Well, let's put that aside. I have these fruit crates I ordered. I should carry them myself, but you know I'm too old for that, and my back can't take it anymore. How about you give me a hand? Obviously, you won't be working for free. I'll give you something when you're done."
Toru nodded. The old man said:
"Good. I'll take these crates from here. You can help me with the ones over there."
"Understood. I should leave them where I always do, right?"
"Yes. Make sure you don't hurt yourself."
After that, Toru carried the crates. Although they were somewhat heavy, they were no problem for his shinobi strength.
A few minutes later, he finished the job.
"Thanks, Toru. Wait outside. I'll go get your payment," Shou said as he headed toward the kitchen of his bakery.
While that was happening, Toru headed toward the exit.
After a while, Shou appeared. He had a paper bag in his hand.
"Here you go, young man."
"Thank you."
When he opened the paper bag, he saw various types of bread. Among them was the one he ate most often: fruit-filled bread.
"You don't have to thank me. You helped me, so this is the least I can do."
"I understand. In any case, I should get going. I have something to do."
"Of course, no problem. Have a good day, young man."
—Somewhere in Konohagakure—
Toru's heavy breathing echoed through the area, accompanied by the sound of something being dragged. It was a gigantic rock with ropes tied around it. These ropes allowed Toru to move the rock.
'I think I need to push myself harder this time. I'm no longer just a student.'
Toru released the ropes, letting them fall to the ground. He had been dragging that rock for thirty minutes, which had drained his energy. However, even though his breathing was heavy, he continued dragging the rock.
Another thirty minutes passed, and Toru had fallen to his knees from exhaustion. Sweat ran down his forehead, and dehydration caused his energy to drop even further.
'Now I have to train with my weapons.'
After hydrating himself, Toru quickly returned to training. This time, there were different types of wooden training dummies, each covered in various cut marks.
Toru carefully observed one of the dummies. Seconds later, as if fired like a bullet, a shuriken embedded itself in the dummy's face.
"One..."
Again, carefully observing his target, Toru took a deep breath before releasing the next shuriken.
This time, the shuriken only left a scratch on the dummy's head, causing Toru to throw another one. This time, the shuriken struck the dummy in the chest.
'Two...'
Toru closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
'Three!'
Toru disappeared. Propelling himself between the trees with powerful leaps as if he were a bullet, he fired every shuriken he had on him.
His way of moving was strange in itself, as it was the Taijutsu he always used. With aggressive leaps, fluid movements through the air, and rapid attacks, almost like a dance, Toru had given this fighting style the name: Gyakusatsu no Mai.
Although the name might sound somewhat aggressive, the truth was that Toru had designed this Taijutsu style to kill a large number of people within a few seconds.
'My aim has improved...'
Looking at the dummies, Toru sighed. From a box resting beside the tree, he took out two long daggers.
Toru silently looked at the weapons, as they had belonged to his mother. The daggers were among the few things he had managed to keep from Kyoko's belongings.
Gripping the daggers tightly, Toru took a fighting stance very similar to that of a boxer. His arms were raised slightly higher, as were the daggers in his hands, which pointed downward.
He took another deep breath and then disappeared.
The bright flash of the daggers illuminated the area for a second as Toru began attacking the dummies again and again, leaping at them from every direction.
Striking through the air with the daggers five times in less than a second, Toru spun around while extending his arms, allowing the blades of the daggers to form a circle in the air.
He repeated the same movements tirelessly for another fifteen minutes.
Sitting on the ground, Toru rested in silence. He had used up all his energy, but even so, he stood up once more, this time to practice his Ninjutsu.
—Hours Later—
Lying on the ground, completely exhausted from pushing himself so hard, Toru looked up at the sky.
'I ran out of chakra...'
He was so tired that he couldn't even move, so he remained lying on the ground until his stomach growled.
'What should I do now? Should I go home and make something to eat?'
He was very good at cooking, but for some reason, his food had no flavor no matter how much seasoning he used. Whatever.
'Now that I think about it...'
He had received a paper bag filled with various types of bread.
'I should eat that.'
—Hokage Monument—
Sitting atop the head of the Third Hokage on the monument, Toru calmly ate his dinner.
'This place has always had a good view...'
The relaxing, peaceful night breeze made him think about something.
'It seems those people have stopped spying on me. Now that I've become a Genin, they must have lost interest in me.'
Taking another bite of the bread, Toru sighed. He had gone through many annoying situations because of the spies. Having belonged to one of Konohagakure's largest clans had only made things worse.
But for some reason, after he passed the test to become a Genin, those spies stopped following him, as if they were now focusing on something much bigger.
'I still don't understand why they watched me for so long, but I suppose things will be quieter for me now.'
Toru stood up from his spot, and for a few moments, his eyes glowed strangely...