Lotus Of The Leaf ~Book One~

Chapter 35! Lady Luck Strikes Again

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Shikamaru and Kin are next to battle, and they both enter the arena. Hayate stepped forward. Naruto, Ino, and I started cheering for our lazy friend.

"You got this, Shikamaru! You can win this no problem!" I cheer loudly. Shikamaru just remains in his uncaring position and shakes his head in embarrassment.

"Yeah! Here we go, Shikamaru! Make that little girl cry!" Ino cheers.

"That's a little dark, isn't it?" I mutter, hearing Sakura hum in agreement.

"Ready?" Hayate asks. "Seventh match; Shikamaru and Kin. Begin!" Hayate jumps away.

Shikamaru immediately goes to use his Shadow Possession Jutsu. "It's all I've got." He states.

"You're not trying that stupid shadow thing again, are you?" Kin taunts.

Shikamaru growls. "Shut your mouth!" I flinch backwards. 'When has he ever lost his cool in a split second like that? Shikamaru's a prime example of a leader with a level head.' "Ninja art: Shadow Possession Jutsu." His shadow starts to expand.

"It's that all you know? If that's the only trick you've got, this is going to be easier than I thought." Kin claims, throwing two senbon with little bells attached to the ends of them. Shikamaru ducks and they hit the wall behind him.

He looks over his shoulder. "Bells?" He hums, then scoffs. "Oh, please. Not that old trick. Let me guess; Next, you'll throw senbon with bells and senbon without bells at the same time. I'll react to the bells and while I'm focused on dodging them, I won't notice the silent needles coming at me. Am I right?" He scoffs again. "Good luck."

"You sure talk a lot, don't you?"

"Now, I know to be careful to just all the senbon, not just the ones with the bells." Shikamaru claims, until he hears the gentle jingle of the bells. "Huh?" He turns his head to look at the senbon already lodged in the wall. "Threads?" In that moment, Kin throws two senbon at him. He's hit, and he flies back a bit.

"Shikamaru!" Ino shouts.

"Well ,that didn't take long." Naruto states. I slam my fist onto his cranium. "Ow! What was that for, Ren?" He whines.

"Just watch, moron. He's not done yet." I simple state, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Huh?"

"One inch higher, and that would've been a fatal hit." Shikamaru groans, tugging out the senbon in his arm. He throws them to the ground with a grunt. "Okay, now I get a turn!"

"Sorry, that was your turn." Kin states, tugging on the threads once again.

Shikamaru falters just a bit. "Wh-What the- What's going on?" He stutters. He falls to his knees.

"You see, you don't ever ask for whom the bell tolls, because it tolls for thee." Kin explains with a cocky smirk. "This bell sends off a peculiar sound vibration that travels to the outer and inner ear, then directly to the brain. First comes paralysis, and soon you'll start hallucinating." Shikamaru grunts again and attempts to cover his ears. "It won't work. You can't block the sound out once it's inside your head. It's useless." She pulls out three senbon. "You can't move your arms or legs, and you don't which one of us to throw your shadow at. You're finished. I'm going to cook you nice and slow over a hot fire." Kin taunts.

"You think it's that easy, huh?" Shikamaru retorts. Kin throws her senbon and they hit three points on his arm.

"That was three, next time I'll throw five." Kin keeps taunting. "Each time a couple more until you end up looking like a hedgehog."