"Oww, that hurts!"
Shikamaru yelped as a sharp pain shot through his hands. He glared at Kamizuki Hikari, his lips twitching. "Hikari-senpai, couldnât you be a little gentler?"
"Shikamaru, youâre a man. How can you not handle a little pain?" Hikari scoffed, looking down at him with disdain.
He had been kind enough to clean Shikamaruâs wounds, yet this guy had the nerve to complain.
Fine thenâheâd remember this for the next training session.
Shikamaru, still wincing in pain, suddenly shuddered.
âWhy does it feel like someone is plotting against me?â
Beside him, Ino glanced at Shikamaru, her eyes red and watery, as if she were about to cry.
âShikamaru, you idiot, do you think the same medicine doesnât hurt when applied to my wounds?!â
Shikamaru caught her gaze.
âWait... is Ino secretly blaming me?â
Hikari remained blissfully unaware that Ino had unintentionally taken the heat for himânot that he would care even if he knew.
As if Shikamaru would dare to fight him.
And even if he did, could he possibly win?
"A real man has to learn to endure hardship, got it?" Hikari finished wrapping Shikamaruâs hands with a bandage and nodded in satisfaction at his handiwork. "Not bad, Iâm improving!"
"Definitely better. When you bandaged ChÅji, it looked ten times worse!" Tenten teased, glancing over.
Ino looked at her own neatly wrapped hands, then at Shikamaruâs messy ones, and burst into laughter.
Good thing Tenten had helped her. If it was Hikari, sheâd probably be crying for real.
The three of them were in high spiritsâonly Shikamaru was miserable.
Shikamaru: Life is just too cruel to me.
"Shikamaru, after training this afternoon, go home and prepare some healing ointment with bone-strengthening properties. Bring some for ChÅji and Ino too. Youâll need to endure it for the next few days."
"Hikari-senpai!" Shikamaruâs eyes lit up as if he had deciphered the hidden meaning in Hikariâs words. "Are you saying that after these few days, we wonât have to suffer like this anymore?"
Hikari grinned. "Of course not. I meant that after these few days, youâll just get used to it!"
Shikamaru: ???
Shikamaru: (â_â)
âCouldnât you have just said that from the start?!â
âDo you have any idea how much emotional damage that gives me?!â
"Wait, isnât that Tsunade-sama?" Shikamaru, surprised, tried to stand and greet her but stumbled and fell flat. Instinctively, he tried to brace himself with his hands, but Hikari grabbed them and yanked him forward. Shikamaru faceplanted, getting a mouthful of dirt.
"Careful! This medicine is expensive. If you ruin it, Iâll have to reapply it, and thatâs just a hassle!" Hikari lamented, staring mournfully at Shikamaruâs handsâor more accurately, the medicine on them.
Shikamaru: %$#@&!
"Whatâs he saying?" Hikari asked curiously.
Tenten giggled and shook her head, feigning ignorance.
Seeing Shikamaruâs pitiful state, Ino timidly raised her hand. "Um... I think heâs asking you to help him up."
"Oh, is that so?" Hikari nodded sagely before personally hauling Shikamaru to his feet. "Look at you, being so careless!"
Shikamaru was about to spit out the dirt in his mouth when Hikariâs words made him roll his eyes so hard he nearly passed out.
âI want a new teacher. One thatâs pretty, gentle, and treats me nicely... like a big sister!â
"Tsunade-sama!" Ino immediately bowed as Tsunade approached.
Shikamaru hurried to follow suit. "Tsunade-saâpfftâI didnât mean toâ"
Tsunade looked at Shikamaru, then threw Hikari a sharp glare.
âNice work, you idiot. Think I canât see what you did?â
"Shikamaru, Iâve heard that the deer raised by the Nara clan sometimes eat dirt, but I never expected you to share that habit!"
Tears welled up in Shikamaruâs eyes as Tsunade teased him. He felt utterly exhausted.
All he wanted now was to crawl back into his cozy little bed and quietly lick his wounds in peace.
His heart was tired. His love was dead.
"Keep up your training."
"You three work hard. One day, youâll take over your dads jobs and let them finally retire!"
"Good luck!"
With a flick of her sleeve, Tsunade strode away from the training ground.
Shikamaru watched her retreating back in silence.
âTake over my dadâs job? Tsunade-sama, youâre definitely overestimating me. Letâs revisit that when heâs in his seventies or eighties.â
The laziness ingrained in his DNA made Shikamaru deeply uninterested in inheriting Shikakuâs responsibilities.
"Alright, letâs eat. Finish up quickly, then you two will continue with the first stage of training!"
"Wait a sec, Hikari-senpai, why just the two of us?" Shikamaru felt like heâd stumbled upon a critical detail.
Hikari patted ChÅjiâs shoulder. "ChÅji has already completed the first stage. Now, heâs moving on to the second one."
Shikamaru: "WHAT?!"
Ino: "No way!"
Seeing their disbelieving faces, ChÅji grinned happily.
"Itâs all thanks to Hikari-senpaiâs guidance. Iâve passed the first stage."
"Oh no, no. Thatâs your own talent shining through, ChÅji."
"Nah, itâs your teaching, Hikari-senpai!"
"No, no. Your natural talent made it easy!"
"Hikari-senpaiâ"
"You two still want to eat, or should I throw your food away?!" Tenten snapped, finally unable to take it anymore.
Shikamaru & Ino: Tenten is awesome! Go, Tenten!
Though surprised that ChÅji had passed the first phase, the two werenât resentfulâjust a bit envious.
But ignoring them to shower each other with praise? That was a bit much.
As for Tentenâshe had one simple reason to be upset.
It had taken her two days to complete first stage, and Hikari had praised her as a genius back then.
Now, he was saying the same thing to ChÅji?!
He wasnât the same Hikari-senpai she once knew... the one who only had eyes for her.
"Letâs eat!" Hikari quickly distributed the lunch boxesâone for each of them, except ChÅji, who got two.
This wasnât favoritism; the Akimichi clanâs appetite was just naturally larger. Even two portions might not be enough to fill him up.
"Thanks for the meal, Hikari-senpai!" Shikamaru said with rare sincerity.
"No need."
"But reallyâ"
"Actually, itâs not me treating you. Tenten paid for this. Once you finish the first stage, go take missions and pay her back, got it?"
Shikamaru: âWhy did I even open my mouth?â
"Itâs just a meal, no big deal! Besides, Iâm here as a sparring partner for a mission, so Iâm actually earning a bit!" Tenten explained, trying to ease Shikamaruâs suffering.
Shikamaru: âMaybe Hikari-senpai isnât as bad as I thought!â
As if sensing his thoughts, Kamizuki Hikari wagged his finger. "Donât get your hopes up. You also need to pay Tenten back for the medicine and bandages. Plus, the mission posting fee will be deducted from your mission rewards later."
Shikamaru: â...Forget what I said. Hikari-senpai is absolutely the worst.â
-----
Read 40+ advanced Chapters on my P@treon.
[email protected]/KakuzuTL