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Chapter 198: Two Steps Ahead
🕑 Added 2026-01-28 08:50:53 +0000 UTCLeaves drifted down in slow spirals, settling over the cracked earth like quiet snowfall.
Shikamaru stood there with his shoulders slightly raised—like he was bracing against a weight no one else could see.
The forest hadn’t gotten louder… but somehow it felt tighter, like the trees were leaning in to watch.
Chōji was behind him, breathing rough. One arm hung a little lower than it should, fingers trembling whenever he tried to tighten his grip.
Ino crouched near a tree trunk, kunai angled forward, eyes sharp but her tense body showed how nervous she was.
Three Sound ninja.
Three presences, powerful and confident, like they weren’t even trying to hide the fact they were toying with them.
The one in the middle rolled his neck lazily. “So? You brats done pretending you can run?”
Shikamaru didn’t answer.
He stared at them like he was already bored, like this was a waste of time.
But inside, his thoughts were moving fast.
Three against us… and none of them are normal genin.
Chōji’s injured. Ino’s fine, but if she gets hit even once, this turns into a massacre.
He looked over the three of them again, his expression easy and unhurried. But inside, his mind was racing, searching for a breakthrough... any opening, no matter how small.
The left one kept shifting his stance, eager. The right one held back, watching too carefully, like he was waiting for something to go wrong.
And the one in the middle…
That one was the loudest. The most smug.
Also the one whose breathing was just a little heavier than the other two—barely noticeable unless you were Shikamaru.
There… that’s it.
Please... let this be enough.
Now… just take the bait I’m about to throw.
Shikamaru exhaled softly.
If I can take one out, the chances of surviving go from “stupid” to “maybe.”
The Sound ninja in the middle laughed again, stepping forward like he owned the clearing.
“Seriously—Leaf genin are pathetic. Three of you, and you still look like you’re about to cry.”
Shikamaru shrugged his shoulders and replied lazily,
“Well, it can’t be helped… my teammates don’t quite listen to me—unlike you, who can just order yours around.”
He tilted his head slightly, eyes half-lidded.
“Honestly… I’m a bit envious. It seems being the strongest really lets you do whatever you want.”
The Sound ninja in the middle suddenly paused.
Then—without even glancing at the subtle expressions on the faces of the two teammates behind him—he laughed loudly.
“Hahaha! That’s right!” he said confidently. “Although you’re weak, at least you know your place now. Don’t worry—I'll make sure you die without pain.”
What the hell is this bastard talking about?
Is he out of his mind?
The other two Sound ninja thought grimly.
They had never considered this idiot to be their leader—not even once.
“Thanks… I guess?” Shikamaru said casually. “Then how about before killing me, you tell me why you targeted us?”
As he spoke, his fingers shifted ever so slightly.
Ino and Chōji caught it instantly.
Just tiny movements but they didn’t miss a thing.
Ino–Shika–Chō weren’t a joke, even as kids.
“Hoo?” The Sound ninja narrowed his eyes, then sneered. “Go to hell, kid. D’ya think I wouldn’t notice?”
“You’re planning something, aren’t you?” he continued smugly. “But it doesn’t matter anymore.”
And with that, he rushed forward—alone.
The other two Sound ninja, who should have reacted, who should have at least paid attention after what had happened earlier…
Did nothing.
As expected.
They were arrogant to the core.
A kunai suddenly flew in from the side.
The Sound ninja grinned and dodged easily, twisting his body mid-run. He leapt lightly and landed near a bush—
And then...
A shadow surged up from the ground.
It was Shikamaru’s Shadow Possession Jutsu.
“Tch.”
The Sound ninja jumped again, springing up into a tree branch.
“So this is what you were trying, huh?” he sneered. “Too bad—I figured your jutsu out already.”
“It’s some kind of immobilizing technique, right?”
He laughed, confidence overflowing.
“Now die.”
He launched himself straight toward Shikamaru—completely unaware that every step he had taken so far had been guided.
The moment he imagined Shikamaru being crushed beneath him...
His body froze in midair.
“…What?”
“Mind Transfer Jutsu.”
Ino’s voice rang out the instant the target entered range.
The Sound ninja’s eyes widened as control slipped away.
“Huh—?!”
Below him...
“Chōharite!”
Chōji had already moved.
Using the Partial Multi-Size Technique, he expanded his arm, chakra surging into his palm. Strange markings spread across it as he raised his hand high—
And slammed it down.
BOOM!
The impact shook the clearing.
But at the last moment...
“Shit—!”
Ino’s technique broke.
The Sound ninja regained control just in time, twisting his body and barely dodging as he crashed onto the ground, rolling hard.
“Damn it, you fuckers!” he roared, bloodshot eyes blazing. “I’m going to kill you all!”
This time, no more games.
He started forming hand seals, chakra flaring wildly—
Then stopped.
His body stiffened.
Slowly, he looked down.
A black shadow had latched onto his feet.
His eyes widened in horror.
SwoOSH—
A kunai tore through the air—
Straight into his heart.
“Arghhh—!!”
Cough—!
Blood spilled from his mouth as he staggered, eyes shaking with rage and disbelief.
Only now did he understand.
He had been played from the very beginning.
He couldn’t speak.
Couldn’t scream.
He could only glare at Shikamaru—who watched him calmly—as life left his body.
The Sound ninja collapsed, lifeless.
“What the hell?”
The two Sound ninja who had been preparing to back him up froze.
They had seen him effortlessly brush aside their ninjutsu and assumed he could handle the situation but they never expected things to turn out like this.
“…Tch.”
One of them clicked his tongue, slowly straightening his posture. The laziness from earlier was gone, replaced by something dangerous and cold.
“So that’s how it is,” he said quietly. “He really got played.”
The other Sound ninja crouched slightly, fingers flexing as chakra began to rise around him. His gaze never left Shikamaru.
“Don’t lump us in with that idiot,” he muttered.
“We won’t make the same mistake.”
Tch… this is bad.
Shikamaru's breathing was heavier now, chest rising and falling more than he wanted it to. His shadow flickered faintly at his feet, reacting sluggishly.
I pushed it too hard.
Behind him, Chōji swallowed hard. His legs trembled when he tried to adjust his stance.
Ino wiped sweat from her brow, her vision swimming for just a second before she forced herself to focus again.
They’d won one.
But the price was showing.
“What a drag…”
Shikamaru’s mind raced, calculations stacking faster than he could organize them.
Shadow Possession won’t hold.
Ino can’t risk another transfer.
Chōji can’t take a direct hit.
His heart was pounding so fast he was sure the Sound ninja could hear it.
Worst case… I buy time.
He stepped forward, placing himself half a pace ahead of his teammates.
The advancing Sound ninja noticed and smiled faintly.
“How noble,” he said. “Trying to play leader now?”
Ino and Chōji bit their lips hard, helplessness and desperation weighing on their faces.
Now, as they looked at Shikamaru standing tall, they could no longer see even a trace of the lazy boy who spent his weekends lying around.
Shikamaru exhaled slightly, thinking, Is this it for me? Quite pathetic…
Just as he was feeling that it was over, the sound of someone rushing through the forest rang out.
The circling Sound ninja’s eyes flicked sideways.
“…What now?”
Shikamaru’s eyes widened slightly.
That timing…
“HEY!”
A loud, familiar voice ripped through the tension.
“Didn’t anyone ever teach you creeps that picking on people three-on-one is pathetic?!”
A blur crashed down between the Sound ninja and Team Ten.
Dust exploded outward as a figure landed hard, claws dug into the ground.
Kiba straightened, teeth bared in a feral grin.
Akamaru barked sharply from atop his head.
Behind him, insects poured silently from the shadows of the trees, forming a creeping black veil as Shino stepped forward, glasses glinting.
And just behind them...
Airi landed lightly, chest heaving, eyes wide as they locked onto Shikamaru.
“Shikamaru…!”
Relief flashed across her face… only for an instant before she set her stance, kunai already in hand.
The Sound ninja recoiled instinctively, leaping back.
“Tch—reinforcements?!”
Shikamaru exhaled slowly.
At least, for the first time since the fight began…
The odds stopped screaming death.
He allowed himself a thin, tired smirk.
“…What a drag,” he muttered but with a smile this time.
