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 331
Main
MenuCHAPTER 332 - Shikamaru's Battle
Shikamaru concludes his battle plan meeting after giving
Kakashi
his instructions. He hands Kakashi a small capsule and asks
him
to find an opening to use it. Kakashi is impressed because
Shikamaru had reformulated his plans to include him so quickly after he
joined Team 10. Before they set off again, Shikamaru asks
everyone to go through the simulations of the plan in their head at
least three
times. He emphasizes that the success rate of the mission
depends
on it. Shikamaru puts out Asuma’s memento cigarette
as
everyone prepares themselves.A few days have elapsed and Akatsuki have completed their extraction of the Two-Tails beast demon. The Akatsuki leader reminds everyone there are only three more beasts to seal and then dismisses the members. Kakuzu turns to Hidan and tells him they will depart for  Konoha
immediately. Deidara warns them to be careful of the
Jinchuuriki
named Naruto Uzumaki if they run into him. Hidan brags that
he is
not on the same level as Deidara, who needed Kakuzu to stitch his arms
back on. But Kakuzu remarks that it’s still better
than
sewing a head back on, which angers Hidan.Kakuzu and Hidan break their telepathic link and return to their real bodies. Hidan complains about having to sit motionless for six days and says he is going on a rampage next time they fight. He begins to go back in the 
direction of the exchange site, but Kakuzu tells him they’ll
just
stupidly walk into an ambush if they go back there. Their
goal
now is to get the Konoha Jinchuuriki, so they will take a different
route.
But Kakuzu’s plan to evade the Konoha ninja has
already
failed because above in the sky a hawk has spotted them. Ino had used
her Mind Body Switch technique to take over the hawk and use it as an
aerial scout. She releases the jutsu and informs the others
of
their target’s location. Luckily, Hidan and Kakuzu
are only
about ten minutes away.As Hidan and Kakuzu walk through a forest of ancient but long dead trees, a thin strand of shadow creeps up from behind. But Kakuzu has noticed it and Hidan as well. As the shadow reaches closer, both leap out of the way to avoid being caught. 
Immediately, two kunai are launched at them, forcing Hidan to block
with the chain of his scythe and Kakuzu to harden his arm.
But as
the projectiles get closer, they realize too late that the kunai have
explosive tags attached to them. The subsequent explosions
hit
their mark, but Hidan and Kakuzu manage to  use
speed to escape the blasts with minimal damage. Hidan loses
his
scythe when the explosion cut his chain in two, but is forced to
retreat from it as Shikamaru’s shadows continue to advance
forward. Hidan boasts that the same trick isn’t
going to
work again, but Kakuzu quickly warns him to look up.
From the treetops, Shikamaru leaps down and tosses two more
projectiles. Kakuzu notices that they also have explosive
tags
attached and shouts at Hidan to dodge them instead of
blocking.
Both  knives
strike the ground, but no explosions follow. Hidan is
confused,
but Kakuzu realizes that Shikamaru has caught them in his Shadow Bind
already. The knives he tossed were actually Asuma’s
chakra
channeling trench knives. Shikamaru had aimed for their
shadows
and since the blades absorbed his chakra, he can now use them as the
origin for his Shadow Bind jutsu. It was a billiant move and
is
reflective of what Asuma had said about Shikamaru
being similar to a ‘knight’ piece in
chess. Although
it does not have much strength, it can jump over pieces and continue to
move forward, just like the flexible way in which Shikamaru thinks.
Kakuzu sees through Shikamaru’s
strategy. The tags
attached to the trench knives are just fake pieces of paper.
The
purpose of the first explosive tagged kunai was only to make sure that
they would dodge, rather than block, the second set.
Shikamaru
also used his shadow strands to draw their attention to the ground and
only have enough time to dodge when the trench knives were thrown from
above. Shikamaru had planned all of this to precision
accuracy;
Kakuzu realizes this is not a shinobi to be treated lightly.
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Naruto Hurricane - Naruto manga volume 37 chapter 332 |
