This Was Their Resolve

Besides, their bonds hadn't reached that point yet.

The same was true of Naruto.

But this involved their closest friends.

It wasn't just Ino.

Choji also cherished the bonds between Naruto and Sasuke.

As they spent time together,

they had gradually formed bonds with Kiba, Shino, Lee, Tenten, Sakura, Hinata, and the others. Now that something like this had happened, Shikamaru, given his personality, could hardly stand by and do nothing. His laziness only applied to things that didn't matter. When something this important was at stake, there was no way he'd sit idly by. Besides, as Shikamaru himself would put it, if he didn't keep these "idiots" in check, who knew what impulsive thing they might do? This was the sort of situation where one action could set off a chain reaction. If Sakura and Hinata acted rashly, would Ino, Kiba, and the others just sit back?

And if Choji and Shino joined in too,

could he really sit back and watch?

Clearly, he couldn't.

So if he was going to get involved anyway,

he might as well take the initiative. That way, he could keep this bunch of idiot friends, who were more than likely to act on impulse, under control.

Naturally, at today's gathering,

Shikamaru wore an expression more solemn than ever before.

Before they even got started, he had asked this extremely important question. They shouldn't think he was just going through the motions.

This was about something crucial: friends laying their feelings bare to one another.

Only after they had been honest with each other

could they establish the basic principles for what they would do next.

What was their main objective?

What did each of them need to do?

And how would things ultimately unfold?

They all needed to reach some kind of understanding