"This meeting ends here. If you have no other questions, please adjourn."

In a conference room located in the Hokage Building, the Jounin of Konoha who presided over the process of the Chuunin Exam stood up from his position and glanced at the people present. When he saw that no one proposed, he nodded and held a copy of the card.

Good files left.

There were about a dozen ninjas in the conference room, including men and women, both chunin and jounin.

They are the examiners responsible for the joint chuunin examination of various countries, and they are composed of ninjas from the ninja villages of each country.

Of course, since the Kingdom of Demons did not intervene this time, there was no scene of the ninjas from the Kingdom of Demons participating in the meeting here.

After the Jonin who presided over the meeting left, the rest of the people also left one after another. In the end, only two people stayed and did not follow the others.

It was Shikamaru, and Temari, the Jounin of Sunagakure Village.

As if she could see how worried Shikamaru was, Temari patted him on the shoulder and asked directly: "You were very silent in the meeting today. You don't look like you normally. Did something happen?

"

Temari quite admired Shikamaru, a boy who was slightly younger than herself.

Except for his laziness and fear of women, his other abilities are considered to be among the best among his peers.

But at this moment, the other party frowned tightly, as if there was an unsolvable depression in his heart. Anyone could see that he had something on his mind.

And this phenomenon has been maintained from the beginning of the meeting, and it is still like this until the end of the meeting.

This made Temari curious, but also very worried about the other party's current situation.

I feel that with the other person's mind, he shouldn't fall into a dead end for something.

"Nothing. Since the meeting is over, I should say goodbye."

Shikamaru didn't want to say anything more. Suddenly, the meeting was over. He actually stayed in the meeting for a long time and was about to stand up and leave the meeting room.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he stood up, his sleeve was pulled hard by a hand, making him unable to move.

Shikamaru turned his head and looked at the person holding him with helpless eyes, it was Temari.

The other party's expression suddenly became serious, and there was a look in his eyes, as if he was inquiring about something.

"Um, is something wrong?"

Perhaps due to family factors, he would subconsciously give up on women with strong personalities. Unfortunately, Temari was exactly the kind of strong-willed woman he didn't want to face directly.

Therefore, being stared at by her like this, Shikamaru couldn't help but feel sad.

"My intuition tells me that you have something serious hidden in your heart."

Temari judged this.

In fact, this was not difficult to guess, and Shikamaru was not surprised.

With his appearance, anyone can tell that he has something on his mind.

However, he didn't expect that Temari would be the first to open up to him.

Although he and Temari had gone from strangers to barely friends, Shikamaru felt that his inner concerns were Konoha's business and there was no need to explain them to outsiders.

"Well, this..."

Just as Shikamaru was about to excuse himself, Temari interrupted: "Is it because I'm not a ninja from Konoha, so we can't talk about it?"

His thoughts were seen through.

She is worthy of being the daughter of Feng Ying. Not only is she stronger than her peers, but her eyesight is also extraordinary.

Shikamaru sighed at this.

"Since you know, there's no need to ask."

Shikamaru said with a wry smile.

"No, I think just because I am a ninja from another village, I think I can help you analyze it from an outsider's perspective. Of course, if it involves Konoha's secrets, there is no need to tell me."

Temari said this.

"..."

Hearing what Temari said, Shikamaru had no choice but to sigh and sit down again.

Temari also let go of Shikamaru's sleeves and sat upright.

"Okay, let me talk to you then. In fact, it's not a secret. You should know Uchiha Sasuke."

"Ah, is that a descendant of the Uchiha clan of Konoha? Of course I know that he was very popular in the Chuunin exam of the Demon Country a few years ago. I heard that he became the Chunin of Konoha Village in one fell swoop. It's just that

Later I heard that he defected to Konoha and took refuge with Orochimaru, one of the three ninjas, and a few days ago..."

Temari knew Sasuke's information very well.

"That's right. He used to be a good companion of ours, but now it's different. He killed Orochimaru and defected to the Kingdom of Demons. And I'm 100% sure that he will attack Konoha next."

"so……"

Temari's heart skipped a beat.

Shikamaru's expression was slightly silent, but he continued:

"So, I want to kill him before he launches an offensive against Konoha."

"Since you have such an idea, then just put it into action."

Temari thought for a while and gave Shikamaru support.

Even if they are former friends, if they betray the village, then it is normal for them to turn against each other and fight each other.

"I know this too. However, Hokage-sama vetoed this proposal."

"Eh?"

Temari was slightly startled.

"Because she thinks my motives are impure."

"Is the motive impure?"

Temari became confused instead.

To purge the village of rebellious ninja, how could it be possible that the motive was impure?

"Yes, since I was prepared to bear these 'sins' alone, the Hokage took advantage of this and rejected my proposal."

He didn't want Naruto and Zuosuke to kill each other, nor did he want Zuosuke, a friend, to destroy the peace of the village.

Therefore, in order to prevent Naruto and Zuosuke from fighting and to protect Konoha Village, he must attack first and execute Zuosuke as the biggest threat.

These things will not be made public, nor will they be revealed to anyone. He will bear the sin of killing his friends alone and become an executioner in the dark.

This is his determination as a Konoha ninja.

"Really? Although I don't quite understand the cause and effect, are you really mentally prepared?"

After Temari heard this, she looked at Shikamaru's silent face and saw a trace of coldness on his face.

"Yes, I am ready to kill my friends."

Shikamaru nodded calmly.

He struggled and thought for a long time and thought of hundreds of plans, but in the end he came up with only one answer - kill Zuosuke.

As long as Sasuke dies, the bond between Naruto and Sasuke will be severed, and Naruto will not have to bear the pain of killing his friend. The grudges between Sasuke and Konoha will also be buried in the darkness with the death of Sasuke himself.

Among them, no one cared.

This is something that kills two birds with one stone.

He was the only one who suffered.

But he was fully aware of this and decided to move forward with such pain and darkness.

This was the only thing he could do for Naruto and the village at this time.

Therefore, Zuosuke must die.

Temari looked at Shikamaru quietly, as if she was getting to know him for the first time.

"Uh...is there something on my face?"

Shikamaru was embarrassed by Temari and touched his face.

"No, I just suddenly felt that you seemed quite manly."

Temari praised like this.

"Male...manliness?"

Shikamaru didn't understand why this kind of evaluation.

"Yes, after all, a troublesome person like you can make such a decision. It seems that you have really decided to embark on such a path."

Temari said so.

Shikamaru couldn't deny it.
To be continued...