"So, women are such a pain." Shikamaru stood in front of Neji, his face full of sadness.
Neji stared at him with a gloomy look: "I get what you're thinking, but can you step aside? I still need to train."
Tenten jumped out from the side, looking worried: "No, Neji, you can't understand Shikamaru's feelings! He's single! And from the way he looks, he'll stay single his whole life! You can't get his thoughts at all!"
Neji took a deep breath, faint veins showing on his forehead.
Lee stood nearby, watching them seriously: "Tenten, don't forget you're single too! And in theory, you've been single longer than Shikamaru by a year. If he finds someone this year, then even if you find someone now, he'll beat you to it and stop being single first."
Their class graduated a year earlier than Shikamaru's group, so they were older than him.
Tenten's face darkened: "I'm single because of... uh..."
She wanted to blame Neji, but she couldn't say it out loud.
Lee tilted his head, looking confused: "Did I say something wrong?"
"No, you didn't. Your math is spot on." Neji replied calmly.
Lee's eyes lit up: "That's great! Hahaha! As expected, Teacher Guy was right. A passionate youth doesn't just need exercise; it also needs brainpower. Otherwise, even the hottest youth will fade away!"
After saying that, Lee dropped to the ground, flames burning in his eyes: "I've decided! I'll train my body and use my brain at the same time!"
"Youth never fades!"
Whoa whoa whoa! It's fired up!
The firelight shone on Shikamaru. Neji watched him from the side with an expression that said, "Do you get the pain in my heart?"
Shikamaru felt deep sympathy.
Tenten pulled out a sweet potato and placed it on Lee, roasting it while asking: "By the way, Shikamaru, why did you come to find us?"
"Hiding from someone chasing me." Shikamaru looked at the sky, his tone full of helplessness. "That woman has gone crazy."
"A woman?" Tenten's eyes brightened. "Who is it? Ino? I've always thought you and Ino would be a good match."
Shikamaru: "..."
He thought about that scene.
The two of them walking into marriage hall in wedding clothes. After all the steps, the groom kisses the bride, then he lifts the veil and sees it's Ino...
No way, stop, I'm going to throw up.
Seeing Shikamaru's full face of disgust, Tenten sighed too.
She let out a breath: "Fine, then who is the one chasing you?"
Lee suddenly sat up, full of energy: "Is it an enemy? Do you need us to help take care of it?"
"My sweet potato!" Tenten cried out in pain.
"If it's an enemy, they wouldn't show up inside Konoha village, Lee." Neji leaned against a tree with his arms crossed.
"The sweet potato is gone..." Tenten squatted on the ground, looking very pitiful.
Shikamaru felt his headache getting worse.
"I should go find a more normal place to hide." After saying that, Shikamaru turned and left, his stomach aching.
He really couldn't stand this group anymore. Except for Neji, none of them were normal.
"Oh! Bye, Shikamaru!" Lee waved happily, then dropped back down to do push-ups again.
Tenten picked up the sweet potato that was hanging from the branch and put it back on Lee. Then she showed a happy smile. Neji watched the scene... and calmed himself down.
He really wanted to know why none of his teammates were normal.
Including that teacher! (Grinding his teeth)
The next moment, Neji's face changed. He instinctively activated his Byakugan and stood in front of Tenten and Lee. Lee and Tenten stood up at almost the same time, one on each side of Neji, pulling out their weapons and staying alert.
A gust of wind blew by, and Temari's figure appeared in front of the three.
"It's you." Neji lowered his guard, closing his Byakugan too. "What brings you to Konoha?"
Temari looked at the three of them, then glanced around. She took a deep breath and asked: "Where's that pineapple head?"
"You mean Shikamaru?" Tenten looked a bit puzzled but pointed in the direction he left. "He just said some crazy woman is chasing him, so..."
Tenten covered her mouth, looking shocked: "You?"
Veins bulged on Temari's forehead. She glared in the direction Shikamaru went, grinding her teeth: "Daring to call me a crazy woman... Pineapple head, if I don't kill you, I'll take your last name!"
After saying that, she vanished into the wind again.
...
"Hey, Shikamaru, running for your life?" Kiba greeted the Shikamaru next to him with a big grin.
"Shh!" Shikamaru looked at Kiba with a headache. "Why are you here?"
In the park, the two were hiding in the bushes.
Kiba replied happily: "Akamaru and I are playing a game, hide and seek with the dog. Now it's my turn to hide, and Akamaru's coming to find me."
Shikamaru: "..."
"If I remember right, you're a sensory ninja, and Akamaru is a sensory-type ninken, right?" Shikamaru looked at Kiba with total disbelief.
Kiba tilted his head: "Of course. We can play the game and practice our sensing ninjutsu at the same time. It's killing two birds with one stone."
Shikamaru thought about it, then nodded: "Makes sense."
It really did. They knew each other best, so they knew how to find each other and how to hide. This kind of play that was actually training was perfect for ninjas who worked with ninken.
"Good luck then. I'm off to keep running." Shikamaru stepped out of the bushes, ready to find another spot.
"Oh... wait, you really are running for your life." Kiba looked shocked. "Who's chasing you? Need my help?"
"No need." Shikamaru turned him down. "Anyway, that woman can't know Konoha better than I do. She won't catch me."
Kiba... went quiet.
Watching Shikamaru walk out of the bushes, Kiba thought for a second and said: "Shikamaru, I've got two pieces of bad news."
"Huh? What does that have to do with me?" Shikamaru replied, speechless.
"The first bad news is, Akamaru found me." Kiba laughed.
In the distance, Akamaru ran happily toward them.
"The second bad news is..." Kiba said, smiling and pointing behind Akamaru. "That woman you mentioned chasing you has probably found you already."
Behind Akamaru, Temari stared at Shikamaru with a murderous look.
Shikamaru: "..."
Akamaru ran up to Shikamaru and wagged his tail happily, looking for praise.
Shikamaru stared blankly at Akamaru, his voice shaking as he spoke: "Akamaru... you're amazing."
He really was. To find him in the huge Konoha just by smell—this long-range tracking skill was even better than the Byakugan. Was this the combat sensing ninken that the Inuzuka clan relied on to survive?
Shikamaru had seen it now.
So, what to do next?
Kiba's eyes lit up at the sight. He stopped himself from coming out of the bushes: "Turns out Akamaru didn't find me, he found Shikamaru. So... I haven't lost yet!"
Shikamaru: "..."
Kiba, thank you, because of you, you've warmed all four seasons.
Temari reached for her iron fan, smiling calmly at Shikamaru: "Any last words?"
Yes, can you take out Kiba too?
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