Chapter 180 Eavesdropper

The chakra she exuded was unusually calm, which convinced Neji that she must be meditating, or asleep.

The second light was closer, just a few meters away, on the other side of the room.

Shikamaru's chakra was just as he remembered, deep and elusive, like a piece of black velvet dotted with golden luster. It tightly wrapped around Shikamaru's body, outlining his outline.

He was leaning against the wall, his body slightly turned towards the large window on the other side of the room, outside which was the examination venue.

From Neji's perspective, Shikamaru's posture was very relaxed, with his eyes closed, as if he was resting.

Anger and embarrassment welled up in Neji's heart, caught in his throat, and made him feel irritated.

It was one thing when he fought Naruto, and he lost because he underestimated his opponent, his strength, his intelligence, and his determination.

He lost because Naruto was much stronger than he thought, and no matter how careful and strategic he was, he couldn't make up for the huge gap in strength between them.

But losing to Shikamaru was simply a humiliation for him.

He felt like a mouse being toyed with by a tomcat, being played with and fooled, and what he could not bear the most was that Shikamaru did not even give him a chance to fight seriously, as if he was not worthy of his full effort at all.

It was a naked humiliation, and those words, those damning words, were engraved on his mind like a brand:

"Your narrow vision will kill you sooner or later." Neji clearly remembered that he said these words, his tone was heavy, but with a strange tenderness. "Before others take action, you'd better face the reality first."

Just two simple words, but they came true like a prophecy.

Naruto first, two weeks later.

And then there was Hinata, just last night.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sudden activity of Haruno Sakura's chakra, as she walked down the corridor towards him.

As the distance got closer, her figure became clearer, with a tall figure, broad shoulders, slender arms, and short pink hair tied into a ponytail.

Neji saw Haruno Sakura stop in the corridor, then suddenly speed up and run towards him.

"Shikamaru!" Haruno Sakura shouted loudly, loud enough for everyone upstairs to hear.

She ran behind Shikamaru and threw her arms around his neck.

What happened next surprised Neji, it was completely different from his impression of Shikamaru. He was arrogant, lazy, and always kept his distance from others, but now, he behaved so gently.

Shikamaru swayed only slightly, but despite the suddenness of the girl's hug, he caught her firmly, suggesting that he had not only anticipated her arrival, but that this was a frequent interaction between them.

Shikamaru smiled softly, his eyes still closed, and he stretched out an arm and wrapped it around her waist, hugging her tightly.

"What's wrong, Sakura?" His voice was very soft, with a hint of tenderness and smile, as if it could make the air around him warm. "Did you drive Shandu away?"

The pink-haired girl laughed, her laughter sparkling like the surface of a lake in the summer sun, and she hugged his arms tightly.

"Haha, that's really funny." She said with a smile, but her slightly flushed cheeks and upturned mouth corners revealed her inner joy, as if he had just given her a very high evaluation.

"How was last night?"

Shikamaru hummed, his tone lazy and casual.

"Not bad," he replied nonchalantly. "Did you oversleep?"

Neji's ears moved. Hinata disappeared for a while at midnight last night, but he didn't ask about it. Haruno Sakura just smiled, showing her white teeth. She let go of Shikamaru and rested her elbow on his shoulder instead.

"Of course it went as planned," she said proudly, "thanks to you."

Her tone was full of pride, and Shikamaru's mouth corners slightly raised, revealing a barely perceptible smile.

These two people... are much closer than he thought, and in a few hours, they will face each other on the field.

Neji was surprised to see Shikamaru showing such genuine emotion.

Although he always appears to be cold, his concern for Haruno Sakura is evident.

"So!" Haruno Sakura said happily, her arm still tightly wrapped around Shikamaru's. "What should we do?" Her question confused Neji, who had no idea what she was talking about.

Shikamaru finally opened his eyes, and he turned his head to look at her with a raised eyebrow.

"What do you think I want to do?"

The girl's smile immediately turned into an aggrieved pout.

"But, Shikamaru..."

Shikamaru sighed helplessly. "Don't tell me 'but'. I don't want to be missing any limbs."

"But we never fight!", she complained, craning her neck to get her face right in front of Shikamaru, who rolled his eyes.

"That's why I say you're a troublesome monster." He replied helplessly.

Neji then realized that they were discussing the game.

Haruno Sakura and Shikamaru were discussing plans for the semi-finals of the Chunin Exams as casually as if they were deciding what to have for dinner.

"Please!" Sakura insisted, her tone as if she was debating whether to eat pork cutlet rice or ramen.

Shikamaru snorted incredulously.

"I've seen you show mercy against Zhan Ya, thank you."

Sakura turned sideways and wrapped her arms around Shikamaru's elbows, rather than hugging his entire body like she normally would, and gently, yet firmly, pressed their foreheads together.

"Just promise me?"

"Uh..." Shikamaru complained, but despite his reluctant tone, he did not move his head, allowing Sakura to maintain this position.

He sighed briefly and rubbed his other temple with the heel of his palm.

"Where do you get so much energy?"

This was obviously nonsense, so Sakura just blinked with a pleading look in her eyes.

Shikamaru's dark eyes narrowed, the twitch in the corner of his left eye suggesting that he was calmly assessing her request.

After a long stalemate, Shikamaru finally broke the deadlock by sighing helplessly.

"Four and a half minutes," he finally compromised, "and you prepare the jammer yourself."

"Deal!" the kunoichi cheered and pumped her fists, while Shikamaru muttered under his breath, thankful that Neji couldn't hear her overly excited voice. This was all too unreal.

The Chunin Exams are a brutal competition, a naked display of strength, and a chance for ninjas to prove their worth by any means necessary.

It was supposed to teach these young ninjas the hard truths of combat, to reinforce the idea that was so important to all ninjas - the only person any ninja could truly rely on was themselves.

But Haruno Sakura and Shikamaru completely ignored this principle, and under Neji's gaze, they reached an agreement stealthily as if they were avoiding something.

They wiped out any hostility that should have existed in the exam, as if it was an easy thing to do, a simple choice.

Did the other candidates do the same? Treat the competition as a friendly exchange rather than a desperate struggle for power and recognition? How could they be so confident that they would not be betrayed?

They must have their way, because the thought never even crossed their minds - it was as if the concept was so far-fetched that they simply didn't bother to consider the possibility.

This was strange. The idea itself was childish and unrealistic, something only a fool would believe. And yet, there was something profound and familiar about it, something Neji had seen before.

It's a bit like faith.