Tsunade Can Hear My Inner Voice novel Chapter 68

Chapter 68 - 68 – Ino's Complaints

Soon, the three of them left Training Ground 10 and rushed toward the dense forest where "Fat Tiger" had fled.

As one of Konoha's most notorious cats, Fat Tiger's frequent escapes had become a rite of passage for many genin.

Shikamaru had already completed this mission once before, so he was familiar with Fat Tiger's habits. As long as they got there, catching it wouldn't be a problem.

"Shikamaru, this Hikari-senpai doesn't feel very reliable!" Ino commented as they ran.

Just thinking about how he had messed up her hair made her dislike him even more.

What kind of teacher just casually plays with a student's hair like that?

Total playboy.

Hmph!

"Hikari-senpai was personally chosen by my old man to lead us. You really think he would waste time on something pointless?" Shikamaru countered.

Ino fell silent.

In the Ino-Shika-Chō trio, the Nara clan are the wise deer, the Akimichi clan are the perceptive butterflies, and only the Yamanaka clan are the pigs.

A name can be given wrongly, but a nickname is never mistaken. How smart could the Yamanaka clan really be, if they're nicknamed "pigs"?

Still, the Yamanaka had one redeeming quality: self-awareness. Knowing they weren't the brightest, they relied on those who were. That, in a way, was its own kind of brilliance.

Nara Shikaku's intellect was renowned throughout the shinobi world. Even if Ino had her doubts about Kamizuki Hikari, she wouldn't dare question his judgment.

Even if she messed up ten thousand times, Nara Shikaku wouldn't be wrong even once.

"Actually... I also feel like Hikari-senpai isn't very reliable." Shikamaru muttered quietly.

Ino's face instantly brightened.

See? Maybe her intelligence wasn't so far off from Shikamaru's after all.

Shikamaru thought Hikari-senpai was unreliable. She also thought Hikari-senpai was unreliable. Therefore—

Shikamaru = Ino.

Chōji panted heavily as he ran behind them, watching the two chat happily. He only had one thing to say.

"Shikamaru... I'm hungry!"

Shikamaru facepalmed. He turned to look at Chōji. "You were just eating! How are you hungry again already?!"

"I dunno either! It feels like this run is burning way more energy than usual!" Chōji wiped sweat from his face, his round cheeks full of confusion.

Shikamaru frowned. Something felt off.

He focused on his own body, and sure enough — he was burning through chakra and stamina at more than three times the usual rate.

"Ino, how are you feeling?"

"I'm okay, but my stamina is draining way too fast. At this rate, we won't make it back by noon."

"So it's not just me. Try disrupting your chakra flow—see if we're under a genjutsu." Shikamaru's eyes gleamed with suspicion. He was starting to find Kamizuki Hikari very interesting.

"Genjutsu: Release!"

Chakra is a mix of spiritual and physical energy. If they were trapped in a genjutsu, disrupting their chakra flow would break it.

But...

Nothing happened.

Their stamina continued to drain at a rapid pace. Just running through the forest had already drained most of their energy. The worst part was, the rate of energy loss kept increasing.

Now all three were so exhausted they could barely catch Fat Tiger.

By the time they finally caught it, they were drenched in sweat and completely out of breath.

"I can't... take this anymore!" Ino threw her arm over Chōji's shoulder, soaked in sweat.

"I'm tired too!" Chōji grumbled, looking at Shikamaru. As the heaviest of the three, he was suffering the most.

Shikamaru sat on the ground, holding Fat Tiger while gasping for air.

"It's been twenty minutes. We need to get moving and turn in this mission. Let's split up — one person goes to the village gate to deliver the box to Tenten, one buys yakiniku, and one turns in the mission."

Ino rolled her eyes. "If you had this idea, why didn't you say it earlier?"

"I thought this was a test. I wanted us to work together to complete it. But now, that's clearly not happening. So we'll have to cut corners."

"Alright, who's going to the gate?"

"I'll go!" Ino volunteered immediately.

"Who's buying the yakiniku?"

"I will!" Chōji chimed in. The moment he said that, Ino and Shikamaru both gave him very skeptical looks.