NOVEL WEB Chapter 9: Hinata
Not long after entering the Forest of Death, a few blood curdling screams echoed from one corner of the woods. Ino and Choji flinched at the sound, but Shikamaru merely smiled faintly. Judging by the direction and timing, it was likely Hinata's team that had scored their first win.
"…Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Poof!
In a burst of smoke, Shikamaru created a shadow clone right before the surprised eyes of Ino and Choji. He spoke in a serious tone, "Ino, Choji, stay with my clone. I'm going to check things out, and I'll handle getting the Earth Scroll too."
"No way! If you're going, we're going together!" Choji immediately protested.
Ino quickly chimed in with her own objections. In their eyes, letting Shikamaru go alone was way too dangerous, and besides, with their team short of members, they'd be even more vulnerable. At least, that was what Ino was thinking.
Shikamaru was momentarily moved by the sincerity in Choji's gaze. Whether in the original story or here and now, Choji always treated Shikamaru as his best friend.
"Don't worry. I'm stronger than you think, remember?"
"Yeah! Shikamaru's the best!" Choji replied without hesitation, though he still looked a little concerned. "But…"
"No buts." Shikamaru interrupted, his tone steely. "After today, you'll understand what I'm really capable of."
A sudden surge of killing intent burst from him, pressing down so heavily that both Ino and Choji turned pale. They quickly gave up on trying to change his mind.
Once Shikamaru was out of sight, Ino glanced at the clone ahead of them and whispered to Choji, "Have you noticed? Shikamaru's changed. He used to be so lazy, it was annoying just to look at him…"
Crunch
Choji casually tossed another snack into his mouth and replied, "I don't know. He's always been like that. And he's not lazy, Shikamaru's the hardest worker I've ever met…"
Leaving Ino and Choji in the care of his clone, Shikamaru dashed silently toward the source of the screams. A dangerous light flickered in his eyes. "Gaara, huh? Time to meet face-to-face…"
After spending months training outside the village, Shikamaru had decided: now that he was in the Forest of Death, there was no more need to hide his strength. Not because he wasn't afraid, on the contrary, he was very afraid. Of Orochimaru, of the Akatsuki, of everything yet to come.
That fear was exactly why he had to grow stronger. And the best way to do that… was through combat.
That's why he chose to target Gaara. Sasuke wasn't strong enough yet, and Naruto was still too much of a dumbass. They were all too weak for now. Besides, if he ran into Orochimaru later on, it would be disastrous if he wasn't prepared.
What Shikamaru didn't realize was that as he opened his heart to the thrill of battle, a strange black light flickered in his eyes, whether a blessing or a curse, it was yet unknown…
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"Kiba… someone's coming our way!" Hinata's timid voice called out to Kiba and Shino ahead of her.
"Ruff ruff!"
At the same time, Akamaru barked in alarm from atop Kiba's head.
Shino's sunglasses concealed his expression, making it hard to tell what he was thinking.
"It's… Shikamaru." Hinata's cheeks flushed slightly as she spoke. Shikamaru-kun… are you here to see me? Just the thought made her blush even more.
"Ruff!" Kiba nodded. "Akamaru says it's only Shikamaru. No threat."
Whoosh
Just as Kiba finished speaking, Shikamaru appeared silently before them. His sudden arrival stunned both Kiba and Shino with its speed.
"Yo, Shikamaru! Long time no see!" Kiba greeted him with a grin, while Shino simply gave a nod of acknowledgment.
"U-um… Shikamaru… i-it's been a while…" Hinata stammered shyly, face flushed pink. Shikamaru blinked, momentarily caught off guard.
Huh? Why is Hinata acting like this around me? Wait a sec… is she… crushing on me?
That thought hit Shikamaru like a brick. In the original timeline, this was exactly how Hinata acted around Naruto…
Thinking that made him silently curse Naruto. You idiot… You ignored a gem like Hinata to chase after that violent Sakura? Back when I read the manga, I was dying to yell at you! Hinata's one of my favorite characters!
Now that he was in the world of Naruto himself… well, heh.
"Oh hey, Kiba, Shino… and Hinata! Long time no see. You've gotten even prettier, haven't you?"
"A-ah… th-that's not true…" Hinata's whole face turned red, but the gleam in her eyes revealed her happiness.
"Heh… You're adorable when you blush, Hinata."
Shikamaru chuckled, then quickly changed the topic, any more teasing and Hinata might faint. "So, Kiba, you guys got both the Heaven and Earth scrolls already, right?"
"What, wait, you're not planning to take ours, are you?" Kiba instantly shifted into a guarded stance. His meaning was clear, they had both scrolls.
"Relax. Just curious, that's all. Well, nothing else to say, I'll be heading off. Hinata, do your best. I'll be waiting at the central tower…"
With one last playful wink at Hinata, Shikamaru vanished in a blur, leaving the team in stunned silence.
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A/N: If you're enjoying the story, you can read up to Chapter 39 (28+ chapters ahead of the current one) on my Patreon: patreon.com/vynthor