Neji Hyūga narrowed his eyes.
"Still hiding something?" he thought sharply.
He had already been keeping his distance from Shikamaru Nara's shadow clone, and with the Byakugan active, he immediately noticed it—the shadow tendril connected to the clone was stretching again, longer than before. Reacting instantly, Neji leapt backward to evade it.
The clone didn't miss a beat. As Neji moved, the clone whipped out a handful of shuriken and flung them forward. Then it lunged after Neji, pressing the attack.
But Neji wasn't caught off guard.
With a flick of his wrist, he pulled out a kunai and twisted his body midair, deflecting the incoming shuriken one by one. The chakra-forged tools vanished into smoke the moment they collided with his kunai—just clone weapons.
Just as Neji landed, the shadow tendril pursuing his feet slowed and stopped.
"He's at his limit," Neji judged, seeing the shadow halt. "That's as far as his jutsu can stretch."
But before he could breathe easy, the shadow clone had already rushed in.
Then he saw it.
In the clone's open right palm, blue chakra was rapidly condensing into a tight, swirling sphere.
Neji's pupils constricted.
"The Rasengan!?"
The crowd went dead silent.
Shikamaru had been building to this. His previous feints and jutsu had only paved the way for this decisive strike. If it landed, it could turn the match. But if it failed—Shikamaru's chakra reserves were already near empty. Against someone as fresh and dangerous as Neji, there'd be no second chances.
Boom!
A heavy thump echoed across the stadium floor.
But it wasn't the sound of Rasengan hitting its mark.
It was the sound of Neji's palm crashing into the clone's chest with a chakra-loaded Gentle Fist strike. The clone burst apart instantly, dispersing into smoke—along with the swirling Rasengan in its hand.
Even its gear vanished with it. All except one thing.
Kagehide—the short blade Shikamaru had used earlier—fell from the smoke, clattering to the ground.
Right at Neji's feet.
On the observation deck, Kurenai Yuhi sighed softly.
"What a shame. He almost had it."
Clearly, in her mind and the minds of nearly everyone watching—except Asuma, Ino, and Chōji—the match was over.
"Shikamaru's spent. He can't win now."
But Asuma didn't say a word. He exhaled a puff of smoke, the faintest smirk tugging at his lips.
Down in the arena, Neji dismissed his remaining clones.
Across from him, Shikamaru stood tall, no longer using Shadow Possession.
Everyone expected Neji to close in, finish the fight with a final flurry of Gentle Fist strikes.
But he didn't.
He stood frozen. Pale-faced. Still as a statue.
Staring straight at Shikamaru.
His lips parted slightly. A mix of confusion and disbelief spread across his face.
Kakashi Hatake, seeing Neji's odd reaction, frowned. He reached up, lifting his forehead protector and revealing his Sharingan.
His gaze tracked downward.
And then he saw it.
Kagehide was embedded in the shadow at Neji's feet—and its blade shimmered faintly with chakra.
Kakashi's eye widened.
"He… planned this all along."
"This kid... is terrifying."
From a distance, the chakra around Kagehide was nearly invisible. But to the Byakugan—and the Sharingan—it was clear as day: chakra-laced tendrils from the blade were subtly binding Neji in place. Almost like a second version of Shadow Possession.
"Every move up to now… was a setup?" Neji asked, his voice hoarse, disbelief shaking it. "Everything you did—was just bait?"
Shikamaru didn't answer. He kept walking.
Everything—the testing of jutsu range, the clone's Rasengan, the fake opening—all of it had drawn Neji into this precise moment. The moment where he stood, unknowingly tethered by the chakra hidden within the real blade, dropped deliberately by the shadow clone after its destruction.
It was all part of the plan.
And Neji walked right into it.
Even with the Byakugan, he hadn't seen through the misdirection.
Kakashi saw it. That's why he said it:
"He's dangerous."
Shikamaru finally stood before Neji.
"I remember what you said," he said quietly. "You said these eyes of yours—your Byakugan—were your birthright. That meeting you here was fate's way of mocking me."
He pulled a kunai from his pouch.
"Well, I have something to say too…"
He raised the blade—
—and with a single swipe, sliced through the metal band holding Neji's forehead protector in place.
It dropped to the ground with a heavy clink.
"I just proved it," Shikamaru said calmly.
"My background isn't like yours. I don't have a kekkei genkai. But I still beat you."
Neji didn't respond.
He couldn't.
Everyone watching knew what that strike meant. Had it not been a match—had it been real combat—Shikamaru could have easily ended his life.
He didn't have the Hyūga name. He didn't have the Sharingan.
But he just defeated the Hyūga Clan's most gifted prodigy.
From this moment on—Nara Shikamaru was recognized as Konoha's true genius.
Chūnin Exam Preliminaries, Match 8: Winner – Genin Nara Shikamaru.