Naruto Primer: Chouji and Shikamaru
I'll Be a Chuunin Too
Chouji was reasonably happy with himself. After a failed attempt at dieting, he realized that that was just who he was and if he didn't accept it then he was doomed. So now, he aims to improve the one thing that truly bothered him; his ninja skills, or lack there of.
Shikamaru never actually went through with anything to change his look. He was still the same ol' Shikamaru and the more he thought about it, the more he realized that he didn't really need a new look. He was only being Shikamaru for himself and anything other than that was just troublesome.
Chouji and Shikamaru were the best of friends for many years so they had a lot of trust in each other. This meant that they weren't afraid to tell each other about their problems or current issues in life. They tried to meet for lunch on a regular basis and tell each other about the things going on and Chouji frequently had questions about what it was like to be a chuunin.
"It's really nothing all that special." Said Shikamaru. "It's just a name."
"But it means that you're above all us genins!" said Chouji. "Isn't that awesome?"
"It's awesome at times, troublesome at others." Shikamaru confessed.
"What I would give to be a chuunin!" said Chouji. "Hey, do you think you could give me a little extra training?"
"I don't know." Said Shikamaru. "I don't even know what I did to make them like me so much to make me a chuunin."
"Then I'll just have to do whatever you do!" Chouji declared. "You have to teach me the Kagemane no Jutsu!"
Shikamaru looked surprised at first. "It's not something you can just LEARN." He said. Secretly, he just thought it was too troublesome to take time out of his life to try and teach someone a difficult technique. Even though it WAS his best friend, it was still…oh so troublesome.
"But YOU did!" Chouji pointed out.
Shikamaru sighed. If he taught the Kagemane no Jutsu to Chouji then what would be left to make Shikamaru special? Then again, if they had Chouji to do the Kagemane no Jutsu then they would never bother to ask Shikamaru for anything else and he could live the rest of his life in peace. But it all comes back to the fact that he'd still have to teach the jutsu to Chouji.
"It would take a lot of work." Said Shikamaru.
"I don't care!" said Chouji. "If I could become a chuunin, it would all be worth it in the end!"
"Chouji, it took me YEARS to learn that technique." Shikamaru said.
"Then I'll have to try harder!" Chouji said, getting even more pumped than before.
Shikamaru really didn't want to have to teach a technique to Chouji, or ANYONE for that matter, that would take years to teach.
Chouji was getting more excited by the minute. If he could do an impressive attack like the Kagemane no Jutsu, perhaps by the next chuunin exam, he could dazzle the judges with his skills and become a chuunin just like Shikamaru did! It would take a lot of work, just like Shikamaru said. But then again, what exactly is 'a lot of work' in Shikamaru's book? 'A lot of work' is picking up a pencil to take a test.
That made Chouji feel like maybe it wouldn't be quite as difficult as his friend Shikamaru was making it out to be. It probably took him years to complete because he just thought it was too troublesome to train on a certain day. Chouji had seen Shikamaru train a lot, and he'd usually give up after about an hour, only after taking a few brakes in between.
Shikamaru could see the excited expression on Chouji's face. Using his ridiculously high IQ, he knew exactly what Chouji was thinking and figured that he just made the training so vigorous and intense that Chouji would just give up.
"Fine." Said Shikamaru. "I'll teach you the Kagemane no Jutsu."
"All right!" cheered Chouji as he jumped up to punch the air. "Let's go!"
Shikamaru paused and looked at Chouji vaguely. "Now?" he asked, sounding somewhat whiny.
"Obviously!" said Chouji. "When else?"
"Um…tomorrow?" Shikamaru suggested.
"Yeah right." Chouji said.
"How about in a few hours?"
"No! Right now! I have to train as much as I can so I'll have the technique down for the next chuunin exam!"
"…How about an hour?"
"NOW!"
"Five minutes…"
"What's the point of only five minutes?!" Chouji demanded.
Shikamaru shrugged. As far as he was concerned, ANY sort of delay was worth it. "This sure is troublesome…" Shikamaru uttered as he stood up, figuring he'd get it over with.
"I have to learn and perfect this technique in time for the next chuunin exam in a few months or else I'll have to wait an entire year until I can take the test again!" Chouji said, trying to motivate Shikamaru.
"Sure." Said Shikamaru with a sigh and a shrug.
The two went to their favorite training area. Shikamaru wasn't exactly excited to teach Chouji his best and only move, but Chouji was more than psyched.
"Okay," said Shikamaru as he sat down on a stump and Chouji sat down on the ground. "If you're going to perfect this technique in a few months like you said, we're going to have to work non-stop, only pausing to sleep."
"And eat." Chouji added.
"No, we'll probably end up having to skip meals." Shikamaru said.
Chouji didn't answer for a minute. "What if I can eat while I train?" he suggested.
"It doesn't work that way, Chouji." Shikamaru said. "If you really want to learn the Kagemane no Jutsu, not only are you going to have to skip meals, but you're going to have to listen to every word I say. Without question."
"I'll try!" said Chouji even though he longed for a snack right about then.
Shikamaru tried to think of the best way to start. He had never taught anyone how to use a technique before and he didn't quite remember how he had been taught. Then again, he didn't really plan to actually teach Chouji the move, so he would probably have to discourage him from the technique. After all, Chouji was willing to skip meals, so Shikamaru had to pull out the heavy artillery. No problem for Shikamaru, though, since he's a super genius.
"In order to perform this technique, the user must be in perfect shape." Shikamaru preached. "So the first thing we have to do is run some laps and do some push-ups and sit-ups and all sorts of other vigorous things."
"But I never see YOU doing that stuff!" Chouji complained.
"That's because it's far too troublesome to do all the time." Shikamaru admitted. "Besides, once you learn the technique, you don't have to be in shape in order to do it. It's really only so it'll be easier the first few times."
"Aw man…" whined Chouji.
"So…let's see…" Shikamaru said, looking around. "How about you run back to the town and back and I'll time you? Hm…I need a way to prove that you actually did the running…"
"What? You're not going to run with me?" Chouji demanded.
"As I've already explained, it's too troublesome." Shikamaru said as if he was speaking to a two year old. Shikamaru figured that if this simple lap to the town and back didn't completely discourage Chouji from learning the technique then nothing would. For Shikamaru knew that if there's one thing Chouji hates more than skipping meals, it's conditioning.
Chouji was now beginning to seriously doubt if he really actually wanted to learn the Kagemane no Jutsu. After all, there's only one thing he hates more than skipping meals. And that's conditioning.
"Okay, I know." Said Shikamaru. "First, empty all your pockets."
"Why?" asked Chouji but, after a little glare from Shikamaru, he quickly emptied all his pockets of their contents.
"Now I'm going to give you the exact amount of money to buy a flower from Ino's flower shop." Said Shikamaru, handing Chouji some money.
"Ino's flower shop is on the way other side of town!" whined Chouji.
"I know." Said Shikamaru. "It's good for you."
"But why'd I have to empty my pockets?" Chouji asked as he put the money in his pocket.
"So I could be sure that you wouldn't buy something to eat while you were in town." Shikamaru said. "Now, I'll give you one hour and if you're not back by then with the flower, then I won't teach you the Kagemane no Jutsu."
"All right!" said Chouji as he took a deep breath, turned around and started jogging.
Shikamaru could still see Chouji when he took his first break. Shikamaru gave a sigh of relief. He was glad that he now had the rest of the day to look at the clouds because a flower at Ino's store cost the same a bag of chips from the store right next store.