Chapter 243: Temari
It had been a long time since she had seen this guy.
Because his brain was sharp, and his dad was a Jonin Squad Leader, Shikamaru had been put into important positions as soon as he was promoted to Chunin. Sometimes his days were even busier than Sakura's, who had joined the Anbu.
So she also hadn't seen him for a good two months.
But this person... hadn't changed much from before. He still had that lazy look all over his body, as if everything was a bother.
Walking on the street, his slouching pace, his hands in his pockets, his carefree appearance—he was a completely different type from the energetic and full-of-vim Haruno Sakura.
If he had to say there was any change, would the one-centimeter increase in height count? He was probably also entering the male growth spurt. His height was shooting up quickly, and he was now approaching 160cm. Hn, but Sakura could still see the top of his head.
"Hey, Shikamaru, long time no see!" Sakura said with a smile in greeting, then turned her gaze to the girl beside him.
Hn, it wasn't just Shikamaru. There was also a blonde beauty standing next to him.
Sakura blinked her eyes and looked at the blonde girl's face a few more times. She looked very familiar.
It was Temari.
During the Chunin Exams, her match against Hinata had left a deep impression on Sakura—the giant, three-star fan on her back was an excellent prop for casting powerful wind jutsu.
Unlike Sakura and Hinata, who had to rely on themselves for everything, Temari was a second-generation official, a pay-to-win player!
"Yo, on a date?" Sakura looked at Temari a few times and then teased with a wicked smile, "Shikamaru, you actually managed to hook up with a beauty from another village without a sound!"
Shikamaru pouted and didn't speak.
"Don't talk nonsense... I'm just here in Konoha as a staff member for this Chunin Exam," the blonde beauty Temari glanced at Shikamaru faintly and then explained, "I'm not interested in boys who are younger than me."
No, no, no. Before Temari had said this, Sakura had still believed that their relationship was just official business. But after she said this, she felt that there really was something going on between these two.
The air was filled with the smell of a guilty conscience trying to cover things up!
"I'm just in charge of receiving her. Don't overthink it," Shikamaru said with his hands in his pockets. "Let me introduce you. You should still remember her. This is the star of our class—"
"—Haruno Sakura, right?" Temari cut in, saying. She smiled and extended her right hand. "Of course I remember."
Temari still had a fresh memory of the first match of the Chunin Exams, the duel between Naruto and Sakura.
Especially the few ninjutsu they had used, which were far beyond the Genin level. It was astonishing enough that Naruto had summoned Gamabunta, but for Haruno Sakura to be able to defeat a Naruto who had used such a move was even more amazing. For such a person, it was impossible for Temari not to have a deep impression, especially when the three of them had fled Konoha at that time, it was thanks to Sakura letting them go...
Although half a year had passed, and Sakura had grown a lot taller, her facial features had also matured a lot. But she hadn't gone to Korea for plastic surgery, so she hadn't changed to the point of being unrecognizable.
"I am," Sakura said with a smile and a nod, shaking Temari's hand. "Temari of the Sand Village?"
Temari's hand was not like those of the Konoha girls, not so delicate and soft. It had the typical rough and hard feeling of the Sand ninja, even though she was just a ninjutsu-type ninja.
Haruno Sakura moved her gaze from the blonde girl's hand to her eyes. Temari smiled at her and nodded.
Their two hands clasped lightly and then released. Haruno Sakura said with a smile, "Our Anbu will be going to your village to carry out a protection mission. Please take good care of us."
"You are most welcome."
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Sakura and they parted ways. After all, she was not familiar with Temari. A chance encounter on the street could only lead to an exchange of superficial greetings.
She did have the intention of finding out about Gaara's recent situation, but to rashly show concern for another village's Jinchuriki, no matter how she thought about it, was an extremely inappropriate topic.
After all, the two villages had been in a hostile relationship not long ago. A few months ago, Temari had just fought them to the death. For them to suddenly become friends, even Haruno Sakura found it a bit hard to wrap her mind around. Of course, it wasn't that she hated the Sand ninja or anything, but she just felt it was a bit strange. She had a feeling that anything she said to them could easily cause a misunderstanding.
This kind of sensitive reception work, it was indeed better to leave it to a smart person like Shikamaru to have a headache over.
She could see that Temari also wanted to say something but was holding back, and was very interested in the pink-haired girl in front of her.
Anyone who had experienced that Chunin Exam would not forget Team 7, which had shone so brightly in the exam, right? The strength they had displayed was a level higher than the other squads... And as a girl, Haruno Sakura, who could use Ice Style and was even a cut above the other two boys in Team 7, had naturally attracted a lot of attention.
However, this was, after all, the first time everyone had met after their hostile state had been lifted. To say too much would be counterproductive...
As she was leaving, Sakura winked at Shikamaru, signaling for him to seize the opportunity, which earned her a big eye-roll from the latter, as if he really wasn't interested in Temari.
She doesn't believe it...
Looking at the two of them walking away, talking and laughing, Sakura clearly felt that the two of them would definitely spark something.
However, since Temari was here, it meant... the Chunin Exams were near. What Temari had brought, besides the faint, sour smell of romance, was also the bloody smell of missions.
She had a premonition that her peaceful life was about to end.
The gossip was just an interlude. The main storyline of Sakura's life was still endless missions.
At noon, two days later, on the rooftop of the Hokage Tower.
Sakura and Shino, as well as the Anbu from several other squads, were lined up neatly, standing in front of Tsunade and an Anbu ninja beside her.
"This person beside me is the captain of Squad 2, Hyuga Hotaru," Tsunade introduced faintly. "This mission will be led and commanded by her."
Squad 2? Sakura, with her sharp ears, caught this word. According to the Anbu's ranking rules, an Anbu squad that could be ranked with this number was definitely a veteran Anbu ninja, and their strength was beyond doubt.
You know, the squad Sakura was in was only ranked 14th...
She looked over curiously. The captain of Squad 2 took a step forward, took off her mask, and revealed a young face and the Hyuga clan's iconic white eyes.
The woman swept her sharp Byakugan over the Anbu in front of her and said indifferently, "On this mission, we will be in charge of investigating the security risks on the route to the Sand Village this time. The specific content is written in the mission brief. Each team captain can come up and get the brief later..."
She took out the mission briefs.
"Due to the requirements of the mission, each squad must be equipped with a ninja who is proficient in genjutsu. Now, the genjutsu ninja whose names I call will take a step forward: Hatake Kakashi, Uchiha Sasuke..." she said, lowering her eyelids and reading from the list.
As she read out the names, people from the queue came out one after another and stood in a line in front of Hotaru. The first one to stand was Sakura's team leader, Kakashi.
He also counts as a genjutsu ninja? Sakura felt a little amused. Even with a three-tomoe Sharingan, Kakashi's genjutsu level is just passable... At least it has never worked on her.
However, the names of Yūhi Kurenai, Kurama Yakumo, and others who followed were much more famous. As for Sasuke, he had also specially practiced genjutsu for a period of time during the Land of Snow mission. With his three-tomoe, his genjutsu level was quite good.
—What Sakura meant by "quite good" was that Sasuke's genjutsu could cause her a moment of confusion.
Next, it was time for the Anbu squads to choose their genjutsu ninja to be temporarily assigned to their teams. In order to balance their strength, the Anbu squads with higher numbers would choose first. By the time it was Squad 14's turn to choose, Kakashi, Sasuke, Kurenai, and Yakumo had long since been snatched up.
"Squad 14, come up and get your mission brief and choose your genjutsu ninja," Hyuga Hotaru said faintly.
It was called "choosing," but in fact, at this time, there were only two genjutsu ninja left who had not been chosen.
When Sakura and Shino walked forward, the gaze of the Squad 2 captain, as she looked at Sakura, softened a lot from its coldness. "Terumi Yūzuki is a new recruit, but her strength is not bad. Why don't you team up with her?"
"Yes, Lady Hotaru / Aunt Hotaru," Shino and Sakura said, nodding respectfully.
Calling her "Aunt Hotaru" was not Sakura pulling connections. This powerful female ninja was actually Hinata's aunt and had taken good care of Hinata in the Hyuga family. Sakura had seen her a few times but had never thought that she was actually a senior Anbu ninja.
Squad 2 then took away the last genjutsu ninja.
Hyuga Hotaru looked around. All the Anbu squads were in their positions. She then waved her hand sharply. "Move out!"
❃❃❃
⤑ Show your support with Power Stones!
⤑ Unlock a Bonus Chapter every time we hit 400 Power Stones!
❃❃❃
♕ Get early access to 30+ advanced chapters on Patreon!
🔗 https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Hollowborn
(Just remove the hyphen (-) to open the link!)
💬 Enjoying the story? Drop a review!
Your support really helps the series grow—thank you!