The battle between Asuma and Ino ended swiftly. With her head down and rushing along the road—and most of her ninja tools confiscated by Shikamaru—Ino didn't even have the qualifications to delay Asuma. From start to finish, Asuma used only a single genjutsu—and that was after the battle ended. Once she was caught in the illusion, Ino unconsciously handed over the fake cigarette hidden in her forehead protector to Asuma.
"Hiding the real cigarette with Chōji, the one least likely to be suspected?" Asuma examined the small twig in his hand. "Not a bad idea, but the plan is still far too crude."
Even now, barely twenty minutes had passed. Asuma still had plenty of time to catch up to Chōji—hence his assessment.
Tossing the twig aside, Asuma left Ino, knowing she would soon regain consciousness. He followed Chōji's tracks and resumed the chase!
Chōji, carrying the hopes of his teammates, ran with all his might. Suddenly, he felt a chill—he heard footsteps behind him, faint but distinct. Turning back in panic, he saw Asuma approaching rapidly, not bothering to conceal his presence at all.
Flustered, Chōji desperately tried to increase his speed, but soon realized it was pointless. Recalling Shikamaru and Ino's trust in him, Chōji's expression turned solemn. He stopped. "Come on!" he shouted with a heavy breath and charged at Asuma.
…
Asuma studied the small twig in his hand, supposedly the "cigarette" Chōji carried.
"Could it be the real one wasn't in the forehead protector at all?" Asuma wasn't sure. With his extensive combat experience, it was obvious that both Ino and Chōji had subconsciously protected their forehead protectors during the battle.
He looked at the mess of snacks and tools spilled from Chōji's bag. Asuma doubted Chōji had the cunning or experience for such deception. He stepped forward, helped the unconscious Chōji up, dispelled the genjutsu on him, and then immediately cast another illusion as Chōji opened his eyes, dazed.
"Where's the real cigarette?" Asuma asked, forming a single-hand seal, his voice calm.
"In my forehead protector," Chōji murmured, still under the illusion.
"So it was switched?" Asuma frowned. Suddenly, he seemed to realize something. "Don't tell me... this plan wasn't something you three came up with together!?"
"No, it was Shikamaru's plan," Chōji replied.
"So that's how it is…" Asuma raised an eyebrow in surprise. Neither Ino nor Chōji were in on the full plan. Neither had the cigarette. "Or… perhaps the cigarette is hidden on one of them?"
"What did Shikamaru say when explaining the plan to you both?" Asuma pressed.
Chōji repeated Shikamaru's instructions in the forest calmly.
Asuma's eyes narrowed when he heard the part where Shikamaru instructed Ino to return to Konoha after she broke free from his binding. "Did Shikamaru interact with Ino at the beginning? Did he touch her ninja tool pouch?" Asuma asked sharply. It might have been enough to convince them both, but with his experience, Asuma easily sensed something was off. If he'd already left, why would Shikamaru need to return to Ino again? Just to "check"? The odds of Asuma becoming suspicious, as Shikamaru claimed, were more than "slim." Most telling of all—the cigarette handed to Chōji was fake.
"…No major contact," Chōji muttered, thinking hard. "But Shikamaru said he needed to make a trap, so he asked Ino for her ninja tool pouch. She gave it to him."
…
Leaping swiftly through the trees, Asuma sighed. He had once tried to use genjutsu on Shikamaru after subduing him, hoping to learn which teammate held the real cigarette.
But he found that Shikamaru's will was incredibly firm. Simple illusions didn't work on him at all.
Aside from secret techniques and Kekkei Genkai, genjutsu generally relied on the user's chakra to interfere with the target's chakra, disrupting their senses and thoughts. The core mechanism tapped into the victim's spiritual energy. If the target had a pure, strong will, genjutsu's effects could be significantly diminished. Mental exhaustion or fear could weaken one's resistance, which was why torture was often used in enemy interrogations. But since this was just a training exercise, Asuma had refrained.
Moreover, Asuma hadn't expected that the entire plan was solely crafted by Shikamaru, excluding Ino and Chōji entirely. What shocked him even more was that neither of them had objected or shown resentment.
When it comes to decisions involving one's own interests, people rarely yield control without voicing their own will. Like those childish stories where a little kid acts all deep and everyone just blindly obeys—ridiculous. Even ordering peers your own age—who would listen? Why should they?
Shikamaru earned Ino and Chōji's trust not just through friendship, but through subtle and consistent influence.
From the beginning, no matter the situation, Shikamaru always offered his opinions. Whether they were accepted didn't matter. Over time, they noticed that following his advice usually led to benefits, and ignoring him led to losses. People naturally seek gain and avoid loss. Once that became a pattern, trust and authority naturally followed. Those who think they can gain leadership by bluffing are fools—if every decision damages the group, who would trust them?
Shikamaru never treated others like NPCs, assuming they'd always follow his script. Only fools think that way—and to others, they look just as foolish.
Asuma had known the trio were close, and that Shikamaru was vaguely their leader. But until hearing Chōji's account, he never realized Shikamaru truly led them. Despite knowing Shikamaru had always ranked first at the Academy in both academics and skill, Asuma, a jōnin, understood just how rare it was to command a team to such a degree. On reflection, Asuma found it almost unbelievable. Putting aside combat strength, this kind of leadership… already resembled a proper chūnin.
…
Ino continued to race toward Konoha, just as Shikamaru had instructed. At first, she noticed that Asuma didn't pursue her, which made her hesitate. But she realized, just as Shikamaru said, even if she turned back, she wouldn't catch up in time. So she kept running.
Before long, her "wish" came true. She spotted Asuma not far behind. Unaware of the situation, she was briefly relieved—and sprinted at full speed. But the gap between a jōnin and herself wasn't something sheer will could overcome. The distance rapidly closed.
…
Regaining consciousness, Chōji blinked blankly at his surroundings. The thick foliage overhead blocked the sunlight, distorting his sense of time. He slowly stood and glanced down—the forest floor was littered with snacks and tools. Then he looked up—and saw his forehead protector hanging on a branch, gleaming faintly in the light. In that moment, all hope was shattered. It felt like all his weapons had been stripped away. Dejected, he slumped to the ground, eyes red, struggling to hold back tears. He reached for the snack pile, grabbed an unopened chocolate stick, and began chewing bitterly.
He had failed his best friend's trust.
…
Though relieved, Asuma still acted quickly. He subdued Ino and seized her ninja tool pouch. He took out a few senbon and examined them closely. "You didn't use any senbon during your run?"
"No," Ino replied under genjutsu.
"No, huh…" Asuma checked all the senbon in Ino's pouch. After a moment, he smiled faintly—an expression with unclear meaning. Suddenly, he flung them all into a tree. Each senbon pierced through the bark and embedded deep into the trunk. Not a single one fell.
Clearly, Asuma wasn't just showing off his throwing skills.
"Interesting," he laughed, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it. All the senbon in Ino's pouch had been real.
Though genjutsu wasn't Asuma's specialty, Ino—who wasn't even yet a proper genin—couldn't possibly deceive him while under its influence. Everything she said had to be true. But that meant… the clues had reached a dead end.
And time, meanwhile, had slipped away during the entire pursuit.