The three of them chatted casually on the viewing platform while watching the exam below.
The assessment had already begun, with Hayate Gekkō once again acting as the referee. There was no helping it—Hayate was now a jōnin of the village and, as Kazuyama Gekkō's younger brother, everyone took good care of him.
"Hehehe, wonder who'll be the first to take the stage. Rasa, do you think your daughter and son can stand out?"
The highest platform should've been reserved for only two Kage, yet now there was a third seat. Kazuyama Gekkō sat there confidently.
Of course, the chair was one he created with Crystal Release.
Everyone simply accepted it. What could they do? He'd already sat down.
"Hmph, I don't need you worrying about it. Whether it's my son or my daughter, I have complete confidence in them."
"No… they're also your disciples. If you're not worried, why should I be?"
Kazuyama Gekkō turned his head speechlessly. Too many participants in this Chūnin Exams were connected to him.
Keeping quiet was safer.
"First match: Temari versus Shikamaru Nara."
Oh? No matter how much things changed, these two still ended up against each other.
Too bad for Shikamaru—after Kazuyama's training, Temari was no longer the original Temari. Her overall strength was far beyond this stage.
"Hey, Rasa, look—it's your daughter."
"Get lost! Would it kill you to shut up for once?!"
...
On the battlefield, Shikamaru Nara stood with an expression full of annoyance, while Temari looked genuinely excited.
"The Nara Clan, right? Shadow Imitation Technique, hmm?"
"Come on then, show me!"
Temari opened her Three-Star Fan, her entire presence radiating fierce battle intent.
Ever since training under Kazuyama, she had studied the secret arts of Konoha's clans. Beyond the Nara clan, she had looked into techniques of clans like the Akimichi, Yamanaka, and Aburame.
Konohagakure's heritage was truly terrifying—just a surface-level study was enough to impress her deeply.
"Tch, you've already investigated it?"
"What a drag."
Shikamaru scratched his head. He didn't particularly care that she knew his technique.
They'd both been present in the previous stages—avoiding observation was impossible.
"Not going to attack?"
"Then I'll make the first move!"
"Ninja Art: Kamaitachi Technique!"
In her time training under Kazuyama, the first lesson she learned was that once you commit to fighting—strike first.
Initiative always beats passivity.
Without hesitation, Temari swung her fan.
A powerful gust erupted and swallowed Shikamaru's position.
"Tch!"
"Starting with a direct attack? What a violent woman!"
Before Shikamaru could react, he was engulfed by the storm. Countless wind blades sliced across his skin.
He had no choice but to flee the storm's range.
At the same time, he pulled out two kunai, dodging the winds while throwing them toward Temari.
"That's more like it!"
"Ninja Art: Kamaitachi Technique!"
The kunai didn't force Temari back. She swung the fan again.
The fierce wind returned, blasting away the kunai and swallowing Shikamaru once more.
"Hey, hey, hey!"
"She's really using this much chakra?!"
Shikamaru had barely escaped the first gust when another engulfed him again.
Such an explosive start to the exam sent the spectators into an uproar.
"Hey! Does she not use chakra when casting?"
"She's spamming it nonstop!"
"Shikamaru! Pull yourself together!!!"
In the stands, Yamanaka Ino stared in disbelief at Shikamaru being tossed around, quickly shouting encouragement.
Beside her, Haruno Sakura cheered while Chōji Akimichi munched away at his snacks.
"Oh no… looks like Shikamaru's losing this one."
"His opponent's really strong—and long-range attacks are exactly what he hates."
Chōji finished a bag of chips and sighed.
Hearing that, Ino's irritation flared—she wanted to refute him but couldn't find a rebuttal.
There was no helping it. Shikamaru held zero advantage here.
After using all his strength, Shikamaru finally escaped the storm again. He looked absolutely miserable, his clothes in tatters.
"God, she's violent. Totally violent."
"I can't let her keep attacking."
Shikamaru's expression turned serious. He immediately pulled out several kunai and explosive tags, then hurled them toward Temari.
If kunai alone didn't work, he'd add explosive tags.
Just as Temari closed her fan, Shikamaru's attack arrived.
"You still have strength to counter?"
"I do."
"Ninja Art: Weasel Technique!"
She once again responded with pure offense. Even explosive tags couldn't overpower her winds.
BOOM!
The explosive tags detonated mid-air when the wind blades struck them.
And at that moment, a black shadow stretched rapidly along the ground, rushing toward Temari's feet.
The thrown weapons had only been a distraction—Shikamaru's real attack was still his clan's secret technique.
Crouched low, he formed hand seals as his shadow extended wildly.
"Shadow Imitation Technique!"
The sequence of attacks happened quickly.
Temari noticed it instantly. Without hesitation, she folded her fan and darted backward.
"Such a troublesome technique."
"If you get caught, you lose the ability to resist."
"Can't slow down!"
Temari knew exactly how dangerous his jutsu was. She kept dodging while also observing his condition.
Shikamaru watched Temari's agile movements—his shadow couldn't catch her.
He sighed helplessly.
"Can't reach her?"
"This is troublesome…"
The explosion's smoke above had dispersed. Without it to expand the shadow's coverage, his shadow quickly reached its maximum range.
Seeing this, Temari smiled lightly.
"So this is your shadow's limit?"
"You could only reach me earlier because of the smoke."
"Next, I'm ending this in one strike."
Chakra surged as Temari gripped her Three-Star Fan.
She was clearly preparing her strongest attack.
Facing such a Temari, Shikamaru had no options left.
"Wait!"
"Hm?"
"I surrender!"
Shikamaru chose the most straightforward solution—he forfeited.
Hearing his declaration, Temari withdrew her chakra and folded her fan.
"You made the right choice."