"Worried about me?"
Nara Shikamaru forced a smile. "I'm sorry to cause you trouble, Asuma-sensei. I'm fine..."
"You... you're too smart. You're the kind of guy who makes people expect too much."
Asuma, whose savings were already significantly overdrawn, decided to go for broke. He ordered several more servings of barbecue and a small bottle of sake, pouring a drink for himself as he spoke slowly.
"Children who are too rational may look mature, but it's different from the rationality of an adult. The smarter the child, the easier they find shortcuts. When they discover they don't need to work hard to keep up, it becomes difficult for them to appreciate the importance of effort. It's even harder for them to possess the resilience required for success..."
"Effort, resilience!"
Shikimaru sighed, feeling these words were quite distant from him. Although he relied on his intellect to modify his family's Shadow Paralysis Jutsu into the Shadow Imitation Technique which suited him better, and he was meticulous in his daily ninjutsu training, that was just doing what he was supposed to do step-by-step.
Don't even talk about the bitter cultivation of someone like Rock Lee; even a dead last like Uzumaki Naruto put in far more effort than he did.
With Shikamaru's intelligence, did he not know that his current state wasn't good?
But his nature of fearing trouble wasn't something that could be turned around in a moment.
"Having a good brain doesn't mean you can do everything. The smarter you are, the clearer you are about where your limits lie. The efforts of the dull are often seen as overreaching, while the success of the wise is taken for granted..."
Shikamaru spoke leisurely, as if summarizing it for himself. "Everyone always habitually thinks I'll be outstanding at whatever I do, no matter the situation..."
There was no one to confide in about his occasional weakness and insecurity. Worried that his performance wouldn't meet expectations, he would spend too much time and energy analyzing his predicament, unable to extricate himself.
Even if he discussed this with others, he wouldn't be understood; he would likely just be seen as overthinking and borrowing trouble. What benefit was there in confiding in people generally recognized as less smart than himself? Was it just to show off a sense of superiority?
Shikamaru understood the logic, but was it useful?
Rationality and sensibility were two different things. Rather than falling into that troublesome situation, it was better to hide his edge and live passively. A calm life every day would be the best.
"So troublesome! I don't understand a word, Shikamaru!"
Akimichi Choji mumbled while chewing on barbecue. Yamanaka Ino simply gave up discussing such matters with Shikamaru; she couldn't win an argument against him anyway.
"You..."
Sarutobi Asuma patiently listened to Shikamaru's complaints, pondering them carefully. "You're a smart and sensitive guy, and a bit naive and kind too! However..."
The world wasn't just Konoha; nor was it always so stable. Even within the village, there were some unsettling undercurrents.
"I don't know if you've overestimated yourself or underestimated yourself. I originally wanted to advise you, but it seems you already know where the problem lies..."
In Konoha's Team 10, the simple-minded Akimichi Choji was a model of a wise man looking like a fool. He knew his strengths and weaknesses, entrusting the task of thinking to the most suitable person, Shikamaru. He trusted the team leader implicitly and understood his own position.
Yamanaka Ino was also a female ninja with great potential. Aside from her love-struck brain obsessed with Uchiha Sasuke causing her to lose herself occasionally, she had no obvious shortcomings.
As for the well-known "Ino-Shika-Cho" new generation, the undisputed core, Shikamaru, had always lived up to his clever mind. He was reliable at critical moments, serious, and brave. There was only one thing...
"Responsibility and accountability. I... I never thought about these issues before. I'm a ninja now, not a kid anymore..."
So-called leadership charisma wasn't something that could be achieved just by having intelligence.
"Recognizing your own deficiencies and being willing to admit your mistakes—that is growth!" Asuma nodded with gratification.
The Shikamaru of the past, to put it broadly, hadn't found his own Nindo—his Ninja Way. In reality, he just hadn't adapted to the transition from an Academy student to a ninja.
"By comparison, those Sand Ninjas might not be that powerful, but their mentality is more mature than ours. Even that guy Uzumaki Naruto is stronger than us..."
Shikamaru felt some regret. By the time he realized he needed to change, it was already too late. The preliminaries for the third test of the Chunin Exam didn't give him enough time to adjust.
"Anyway, it wasn't in vain that I recommended you all for the Chunin Exam. It's best that you gained something. Actually, if Shikamaru could advance to the third test, the hope of becoming a Chunin would be great..."
"Then... what about that Sand Ninja, Daimaru? He seems very strong, and his brain isn't bad either..."
"That puppeteer..." Sarutobi Asuma pondered for a moment, lit a cigarette, and took a satisfying drag. "If judging solely on performance, he is worthy of the rank of Chunin. But, it's a bit strange..."
"As expected, Asuma-sensei noticed it too!" Shikamaru smiled meaningfully. "Although those petty tricks weren't violations, they didn't fit the Ninja Code. A ninja's primary goal is to complete the mission. As a Chunin squad leader, a leader should be even clearer that ninjas are nominally tools for completing missions. In principle, preventing the enemy from obtaining intelligence isn't included in the objective, unless preventing the enemy from obtaining intelligence is part of the mission..."
Whether it was the written test of the first exam or the field survival competition in the Forest of Death for the second, interfering with the enemy's clearance was just a means, not an end. Even if the performance was stunning, it wouldn't add too many points to the promotion evaluation for this Chunin Exam.
Therefore, in this joint Chunin Exam, that Sand Ninja Daimaru's performance was truly a bit irrational.
"From the intelligence, that Sand Ninja is a four-year Genin. It's impossible for him not to know this common sense, yet he did it without hesitation. That implies..." Asuma blew a smoke ring. "His goal in participating in this joint Chunin Exam isn't to be promoted to Chunin. Or rather, not just for promotion; there must be another purpose for it to make sense! The two times he took action, he must have felt there were things more important than becoming a Chunin..."
"I can't figure it out!" Shikamaru rested his chin in his hand, frowning. "Too little intel."
"Of course, it's also possible we're overthinking it. Maybe he just wanted to show off!"
Although Konoha and Sunagakure had a covenant of more than ten years, the exchanges between the two villages weren't frequent, and the relationship was very ordinary—merely a marriage of convenience for benefits.
So-called allies were just competitors whose relationship hadn't broken down yet.
The human heart is separated by the belly; trying to truly understand what a person is thinking is simply too difficult.
Even with Shikamaru's IQ of over 200, he couldn't figure out why Daimaru would purposefully do things that seemingly offered little benefit.
"Even Asuma-sensei can't see through it?"
"How could it be that easy?" Asuma replied. "The judging panel for this Chunin Exam also has differing opinions on this Sand Ninja, Daimaru..."
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