Chapter 247: Bug Bites, Part 1
December 25, morning.
"This is a bad time to start trying to develop a sense of humor, Shika."
"...What?"
"You're my team leader. You're expected to be loyal and supportive to me and Chōji, not go around telling us we suck. Right, Chōji?"
"Leave me out of this, Ino," the larger boy said, taking another bite of his fruit compote. His teammates were still working on their noodles and fish, but the heir of the Akimichi had already demolished those courses with casual efficiency.
"Traitor."
"Not a traitor, Eeny. I just don't think Shika's wrong. Shino is a terrible matchup for you and this is a game, not a real fight. There's things you could do on a real battlefield that might let you win, but you can't do them here because they would either kill Shino or breach OPSEC on Leaf secrets. Gōketsu already took enough of a risk with his 'fireball' seals, we don't need to add to the problem." He took another bite of the compote and then grinned. "Although, that was utterly hilarious. Worth the risk, if you ask me. The expression on that Hot Springs kid...."
"So what, I'm just supposed to lie down and
quit?!"
"No. You are supposed to do your absolute best, as all three of us know you will. I simply wish you to prepare yourself for the fact that the odds are strongly against you. None of us are confident of
Chōji's chances against Shino under these conditions, and Chōji has a much better matchup with him than you do. You asked for my assessment; I am giving it to you."
"I asked for your
help! Advice, tactics, something!"
Shikamaru sighed, blowing out his cheeks in tired frustration. "During my fight, I seeded the arena with a large number of objects, explosives, and storage seals containing useful items. The intent was that you use these for cover or for surprise attack—"
"I
know that, Shika. I helped come up with those plans. Don't you do your idiot-speak lectures on me. I know how to make Rock Lee do anything I want, including showing up at your house at three in the morning to demand you youthfully train with him."
Shikamaru paled. "I am fully cognizant of your intelligence and intended no slight against it. I was simply framing my thoughts."
"Uh-huh."
"What I was going to say was that those tools are no longer available to you. Mist cleared the arena after my battle, and they were annoyingly thorough about it. Although I doubt they got every single scrap of seal-laden confetti or piece of flatware, it is unlikely that anything remains that will be of use." He looked down at his hands. "I am sorry, Ino. I simply do not see how to help you this time."
"What? C'mon, you're never out of ideas. Stop joking around. What about all my Steel techniques?"
"They will not be efficacious this time. The"—he paused, a sneer of disgust creeping onto his face—"'Rain of Stabby Things' takes too much time, is useless as an attack jutsu, and Shino fights at range so area denial is irrelevant. You have not had enough practice with the Steel Bullet to successfully hit a mobile target who has not been stupid enough to leave himself on a predictable ballistic trajectory. Which Shino will not, as he is not an idiot. The Shields of Steel will not avail you either, as you will not be able to open an attack port without the insects pouring in. All it would do is render you immobile and helpless."
"What if I don't open a port? If I do nothing, Shino has to come open it himself and at that range I can snag him before he can react."
Shikamaru shook his head. "The ground is stony; the Shield will not lie perfectly flat, so there will be gaps along the bottom that the insects can come through. Even if it did not leave gaps, Shino would simply stand back and throw explosives until the dome cracked, letting his insects in. After the Gōketsu so thoroughly demonstrated the utility of enormous numbers of explosives, we are all walking around with sufficient numbers of them to be certain he can crack the dome. That situation would actually be more dangerous than not using the Shields. Recall the spalling we observed during testing."
Ino winced. "We could try the beekeeper suit...."
"Its success during testing was limited at best."
"Yeah, but those weren't Aburame bugs. Kikaichu are way smaller and weaker than those dragonflies that tore the mesh."
"I will not physically stop you from attempting it, but I strongly recommend against it. Beekeepers are widespread, meaning that all nations have been exposed to them. On the other hand, they are rare, secretive, and typically considered just a curiosity instead of an object of study. The other nations may or may not have realized that beekeeper suits would be an effective anti-Aburame technique, decided that it was a sufficient priority to warrant dedicating resources, stolen the secrets of their manufacture, and experimented until they found an effective version. I will note, however, that Leaf has seen no evidence of such techniques in the field, so it's possible that no one else has discovered it yet. In that case, it could be argued that putting other nations' thinking onto those lines would constitute a major OPSEC breach. The Hyūga, Inuzuka, and Kurusu would all use that as leverage against your clan."
"But that's bullshit! I have to lose the
Chūnin Exams tournament just because maybe possibly everyone else in the world has been too stupid to figure out that wearing something that keeps bugs off you is a good way to fight bug users?"
"Yes, Ino. That is precisely what it means. Stop being a child—your duty as a Leaf ninja supercedes your need for self-aggrandizement and you know it."
She tried to outglare his calm equanimity but couldn't; after a moment she dropped her eyes. "Yeah, I do. And it probably wouldn't work anyway. Like you said during testing, 'The probability that a device originally built by civilians could keep out specially-bred combat bugs with an intelligence directing them is too small for meaningful calculation.'"
"I do not sound like that."
Chōji laughed. "You totally do. It was spooky."
Shikamaru glared, then made a very visible effort to set the annoyance aside. "Ino, there are only two tactics I can find that match your abilities, are within the rules, do not violate OPSEC, and have even a plausible hope of succes. Neither of them has good odds."
Ino perked up. "Right now I'll take anything. Hit me."
"The first is to hide and use Mind Body Transmission from concealment. Although possible in theory, I am confident that this tactic will not work, as Shino will not be cooperative enough to stand still in the open when he cannot identify your location. The second tactic is to charge him, grapple, and take over his body at touch range. Your taijutsu skills are...." He paused and eyed her warily for a moment. "...not something you have treated as a primary focus of training. On the other hand, I have seen Shino fight hand-to-hand and he is very weak at it. If you successfully land the grapple and manage to do so in a way that your hands are free to make seals then you can possess him. If so, it is possible that you will be able to command his insects to stand down, but I find it unlikely. If you cannot figure it out instantly then it is critical you not waste time grandstanding the way you did with Kiba. Have Shino immediately shout his surrender, then release him so that he can call the insects off. If you cannot land the grapple before the insects reach you, you need to surrender. Immediately, without further struggle."
He paused, his facial control insufficient to hide a shadow of fear. "His insects are dangerous, Ino. I do not know their exact parameters or precisely how well he can control them, but they attack by draining the victim's chakra. The difference between 'exhausted' and 'dead' is razor thin. If the insects do not stop feeding when you pass out then you will die. I do not want that."
"Awwww. See, I knew you loved me. Under that troublesome exterior, you're just a big ball of mush, aren't you?"
Shikamaru glared at her, then threw down his chopsticks and stood up. "If you intend to continue being insulting, I shall take my leave." He turned and stomped out of their room.
o-o-o-o
It was a good day for Abe Shinichi, owner of Abe's Awesome Ice Cream and Hot Chocolate Emporium. Twenty quarts of ice cream plus his entire stock of hot chocolate (two gallons of it!!!), gone in one purchase without any haggling? It was worth taking the day off. At least in part because, no matter how good the money was, he didn't want to have to be around the Leaf girl with the half angry, half about to cry face. Everyone knew those people were killers and thieves; he was just lucky they had actually paid for the things instead of simply taking them and leaving him bleeding to death.
XP AWARD: Will be awarded next chapter
@Velorien will be writing the plan. There will be no voting.
A/N: This chapter takes place at the same time as
Chapter 242: Ami and is followed by the second fight from
Chapter 245: The Tournament, Round Two, Fights 1-2.
