A Strategists' Showdown

At the center of the arena, Temari and Shikamaru Nara faced each other.

At that moment, Temari once again recalled what their leader, Baki, had told the three of them before they set out.

"This time, Sunagakure has decided to send the three of you to take the Chunin Exams. But the goal is not for you to pass the exams—it is to crush Konoha in the name of the Chunin Exams!"

"Why? Didn't Konoha and Sunagakure sign an alliance treaty?"

Temari asked in confusion.

"Hmph, the problem lies precisely with that alliance treaty." Baki explained, "As Genin, you may not know this, but taking the treaty as an opportunity, the idiot daimyo of the Wind Country forced Sunagakure to reduce its military strength. Missions that should have been handled by our village were handed over to Konoha instead."

"Furthermore, he drastically cut funding for the shinobi village and greatly reduced the number of shinobi.

"The foolish actions of those above us are paid for by those below. To preserve the village's combat strength, we raised the quality of every shinobi. That was how shinobi like Gaara came to be.

"Now, the Wind Country is in an extremely dangerous state, yet the daimyo and those around him cannot understand that at all!"

Baki slammed his fist viciously into the wall.

"Lord Kazekage sensed the crisis of Sunagakure's declining combat strength, so he joined forces with Otogakure to prepare an assault on Konoha. This is to restore Sunagakure's prestige!

"And to make that foolish daimyo understand the importance of national crisis management!"

"If this continues, Sunagakure will no longer have a place among the Five Great Shinobi Countries!"

"Wouldn't that start another war?" Temari asked. "The alliance treaty bought with enormous sacrifice will be broken again, and many more people will die."

"Temari!" Baki rebuked her sternly. "This is all Lord Kazekage's will! Shinobi are ultimately tools of war. That alliance treaty itself only threatens our existence!"

"Hey, just how long are you planning to lie there?"

The man opposite her was currently sprawled flat on his back.

Unlike her own stylish entrance, this guy had seemed to be debating whether to forfeit before the match. Now, he looked more like he had accidentally slipped and fallen into the arena.

He clearly did not seem injured, but for some reason, he simply refused to get up.

"Damn it, if you don't want to fight, then just surrender!"

Temari urged him.

The clouds were so nice.

That idiot Choji had just shoved him, and now he had to deal with this troublesome fight.

Shikamaru lay there lazily, wanting to enjoy this last bit of leisure.

"Fine, then I'm coming at you!"

As expected, the woman across from him was not going to let him rest for long.

Temari leaped high into the air, gripping her iron fan as she viciously smashed its handle down where Shikamaru had been.

After the dust settled, Shikamaru stood with his hands in his pockets and one foot braced against the wall. In a cool pose, he said:

"Whether I become a Chunin or not doesn't really matter, but a man can't lose to a woman."

Those words thoroughly annoyed Temari. She gathered her strength and swung her fan in a straightforward attack.

However, Shikamaru had been prepared and swiftly vanished without a trace.

"Of course, a man can't hit a woman either. But I don't want to get hit."

Behind the dense branches and leaves of a large tree, Shikamaru crouched low and muttered to himself.

Meanwhile, Temari gradually calmed down and began to analyze the situation.

During the earlier matches, she had already seen that Shikamaru's ability was to manipulate shadows.

Trying to lure me beneath the dense shadows of the trees? Don't think you'll get away with it!

Temari calmly looked around, watching the movements behind the shade with keen eyes.

Ninja Art: Sickle Weasel!

Gales like blades slammed into the tree trunks opposite her, and the entire arena was swept up in the currents generated by the violent wind.

In the stands, Tenten could not help saying, "That's the move."

However, Shikamaru had already hidden in the safest blind spot.

As the gale weakened, he swiftly used his family's secret technique—the Shadow Imitation Technique.

On the other side, Temari saw a black shadow rushing toward her and immediately leaped backward to widen the distance.

Then she saw the shadow suddenly seem to be pulled by something. It ran out of momentum and shrank back.

I see.

A thought flashed through Temari's mind as she used her Three Stars Fan to draw a horizontal line across the ground.

"I've already seen through your ninjutsu!" Temari declared. "No matter how freely a shadow stretches and changes shape, it has a limit. No matter how you alter its form, it is still limited by the shadow's surface area. Am I right?"

"Haha, yeah. You got it right." Shikamaru smiled helplessly, though an imperceptible glint of cunning flashed through his eyes.

Even if he uses the wall's shadow to extend his own, it can only reach this far.

Temari thought.

This is the limit of your attack range, isn't it? Twelve meters and thirty-two centimeters.

Temari stood within the safe zone she had drawn, brimming with confidence.

Compared to close combat, long-range fighting was her specialty. It seemed the outcome of this match had already been decided.

Shikamaru crouched halfway down and looked up at the sky. Then he cupped his hands together, his fingers facing one another and their tips touching, and began to think.

"Quit putting on that act!"

Temari swung her fan again, interrupting Shikamaru's train of thought.

Shikamaru dodged several times, hiding behind the trunk once more, and took off his jacket amid the raging wind.

"Go, Shikamaru!"

In the audience, Ino Yamanaka shouted loudly.

But Choji Akimichi, on the other side, said dismissively, "It's useless. Before long, he'll decide it's too troublesome and give up the match."

"He won't! With that guy's strategic ability..." Ino trailed off, sounding less certain herself.

As the gale eased, Shikamaru fired several kunai.

Temari dodged them easily. Immediately afterward, that ghostly black shadow came rushing from the base of the wall once more.

Useless. As long as I stay behind the safety line...

A mocking smile formed at Temari's lips.

But before her expression could fully settle, the shadow crossed the line she had drawn and extended even farther forward.

Not good!

Temari hurriedly staggered backward. After advancing about fifty centimeters, the shadow once again seemed to reach its limit and stopped extending.

"You saw through it!"

Shikamaru called from afar.

Meanwhile, Temari had only just recovered from the shock, her chest heaving as she panted.

"Were you stalling for time, waiting for the sun to slowly set? As the sun tilts, the wall's shadow grows larger, allowing you to increase the usable area of your shadow."

"As the sun gradually sets, your shadow gets longer, right?"

Temari analyzed as she spoke to Shikamaru.

"Temari! Look up!!"

Kankuro shouted nervously from the stands.

"What?!"

Temari abruptly looked up. Beneath the sun, a parachute made from a ninja jacket was slowly drifting down.