Time seemed to stretch within the small grove. Each second lengthened, heavy with the sea breeze that continued to whisper through the leaves. Sunlight still filtered through the branches, painting patches of golden light across the ground.
Elian kept his arm raised, the kunai clenched in his palm. His wrist trembled slightly, but the warmth of chakra, guided by Shikamaru's calm words, had spread up to his shoulder. It flowed gently, stabilizing his movement.
The scarred captain took another step forward. Five meters. Four. His cruel smile widened.
"Come on, pretty boy. Put that toy down before you hurt yourself. Come with us."
Elian took a deep breath. The salt-filled air filled his lungs. The small ember of chakra responded, traveling down his arm to his fingertips. He aimed at the captain's right shoulder, where Shikamaru had told him to.
His arm relaxed. The kunai left his hand in a smooth motion, spinning with unexpected precision. The blade flew straight and buried itself deep into the scarred man's shoulder, just below the collarbone.
A harsh cry rang out. The captain staggered back violently, clutching the wound. Blood began to run down his arm, staining his faded red coat. The pain made him grimace, but more than that, it humiliated him.
"You little bastard!" he shouted, his voice twisted with rage and surprise.
Elian froze for a moment, his arm still extended. He had hit. Really hit. A wave of shock mixed with pride ran through him, but it was quickly swept away by reality. The three other pirates reacted immediately. The man with the pistol raised his weapon and aimed. The other two drew their knives and charged forward, moving around the trees to flank Elian.
Elian's heart pounded. His hand darted toward his pocket to grab a second kunai, but his fingers were trembling too much. He stepped back, then another, stumbling over a root. The pirates were too fast, too many. He didn't have time to aim again. The fear came back, sharper, drowning the small flame of chakra that was already beginning to flicker under the strain.
"Shikamaru…" he murmured, his voice tight.
Shikamaru, still leaning against the same tree, let out a long sigh. His hands finally came out of his pockets, but slowly, almost lazily. His expression remained calm, almost bored, yet a quiet confidence shone in his half-lidded eyes.
"Troublesome… You did well on the first one. Hit the shoulder—nice precision for a beginner. But the others are too much for you alone. You've used up your chakra on that throw. That's normal."
He took a step forward, casually. At the same moment, his shadow stretched across the ground, dark and sharp under the afternoon light. It slid between the trees like a living thing, silent and fast.
The two pirates charging at Elian stopped dead, their bodies frozen in ridiculous positions: one with his arm raised holding a knife, the other mid-stride. Their shadows, stuck to the ground, were now connected to Shikamaru's. They couldn't move anymore.
The man with the pistol, still a bit farther back, tried to fire. His finger pulled the trigger, but his arm suddenly froze, perfectly mirroring Shikamaru's slow, controlled motion as he raised his hand, palm open.
"Calm down," Shikamaru said in a drawn-out, almost tired voice. "No need to waste more energy. You're already immobilized."
The scarred captain, one hand pressed against his bleeding shoulder, staggered back. He stared at Shikamaru with a mix of pain and disbelief.
"What the… what kind of sorcery is this?!"
Shikamaru shrugged slightly, never leaving his relaxed posture.
"It's not sorcery. It's just a technique a bit more advanced than what I planned to show today. Elian needed to make his first throw on his own. He did. Now it's my turn to finish the job… in the least tiring way possible."
He turned his head slightly toward Elian, who was still breathing fast, the second kunai halfway out of his pocket.
"Breathe. Your chakra is almost empty, but it'll come back. You did the most important part: you acted. You hit a real enemy. The rest… is just cleanup."
The three pirates immobilized by the shadow grunted, trying to struggle, but their bodies refused to obey. Their awkward movements perfectly mirrored Shikamaru's slow, measured gestures, making the scene almost comical despite the tension.
The captain, the only one still free, clenched his teeth and took another step back, his rusted saber trembling in his good hand.
The wind continued to blow softly through the leaves, now carrying the metallic scent of blood and the sudden silence that had fallen over the grove.
Shikamaru stood still, his shadow stretched out like an invisible net, calmly awaiting what would come next with that quiet confidence that never left him.
The captain, the only one still free, clenched his teeth and took another step back, his rusted saber trembling in his good hand.
The wind continued to blow softly through the leaves, now carrying the metallic scent of blood and the sudden silence that had fallen over the grove.
Shikamaru remained standing, his shadow stretched out like an invisible net, calmly awaiting what would come next with that quiet confidence that never left him.
The three other pirates remained perfectly frozen in their grotesque positions, their shadows firmly bound to Shikamaru's. Only their eyes moved, filled with growing terror.
Elian, the second kunai still halfway out of his pocket, felt his legs trembling. The fatigue was heavy, almost crushing. The chakra he had mobilized for his first throw had nearly completely dissipated, leaving only a dull emptiness in his chest and a slight dizziness. He stepped back half a pace, stumbling slightly over a root.
Shikamaru observed the scarred man for a long moment in silence. His half-lidded gaze revealed a calm, almost detached reflection. Then he let out a long, slow, resigned sigh.
"…Really troublesome," he finally murmured in a low, drawn-out voice. "If I let him go, he'll come back with others. Or he'll talk about the island. A kid with purple hair throwing kunai, a shinobi who controls shadows… that attracts attention. And attention always means more trouble later."
He took a slow step forward. His shadow slid silently across the ground and reached the captain's feet. The man tried to step back again, but his body suddenly stiffened. His saber remained pointed into the air, his good hand unable to move.
Shikamaru kept walking slowly between the trees, his hands tucked into his pockets. His voice remained calm, almost instructional.
"I'm a shinobi, Elian. Not a protector who lets enemies walk away hoping they'll never return. In my world, a threat left alive becomes a future problem. And future problems… are troublesome."
Elian swallowed. His throat was dry. He looked at the four men, now all immobilized. There was something unreal about the slowness of the scene.
Shikamaru stopped a few meters from the captain and looked him straight in the eyes.
"You came to the wrong place."
With an almost lazy motion, he tightened his control. The shadow slowly climbed up their bodies to their necks. The four pirates began to suffocate, their hands mimicking the constricting motion despite themselves. The process was slow, almost silent. The wind continued to blow through the leaves, carrying away the faint sounds of struggle. One by one, the bodies collapsed onto the leaf-covered ground.
The silence that followed was deep.
Shikamaru remained still for a long moment, then approached the bodies without haste. He searched their pockets, gathering leather pouches, a few worthless trinkets, a small bundle of crumpled Berries, and the items they had stolen from the villagers earlier that day. He slipped everything into a bag and handed it to Elian.
Elian took the bag hesitantly. He opened it slowly and looked inside. There were about two hundred and fifty Berries in total, along with a few personal items the pirates had taken from the villagers.
He remained silent for a long moment, his eyes fixed on the contents of the bag. Then he spoke in a low voice, still slightly out of breath, but firm:
"…I'm going to return everything that was stolen to the people of the island. It's their money, their belongings. They need it more than we do. As for the rest… I'll take half of the Berries for the system. For the Shop, so I can buy things and improve. The other half… we'll keep for our future adventures."
Shikamaru nodded slightly, unsurprised.
"Good decision. Returning what isn't ours is the least troublesome way to live here without creating new problems with the villagers. Half for your Shop, the other half for what comes next. It keeps things balanced."
Elian carefully divided the Berries into two equal parts. He set aside everything that had clearly been stolen (a few pieces of jewelry, a small watch, some tools) to return to the villagers. Then he slipped the first half of the Berries into his pocket—the portion meant for the system. The other half, he placed back into the bag, which he closed carefully.
Shikamaru wiped his hands on his pants, as if he had simply finished an ordinary task.
"Don't dwell too much on what just happened. They came to steal and hurt people. Mercy would have been a luxury we can't afford yet."
He looked up at the sky, which was beginning to turn pink as evening approached.
"Go home. Get some rest. Your chakra is almost depleted. I'll take care of moving the bodies deeper into the grove before the villagers find them. We'll talk later, when you've regained your strength."
Elian nodded slowly. He put the second kunai back into his pocket, tucked the bag containing his half of the Berries under his arm, and started toward his small house. Each step was heavy, but he now felt a different kind of weight in his pocket: the half of the money meant for the system. The other half, held close to him, was reserved for their future adventures. As for the stolen goods, he would quietly return them to the villagers as soon as he had the strength.
Behind him, Shikamaru began dragging the bodies one by one between the trees, sighing as usual.
"…Really troublesome."
The wind continued to blow softly, carrying away the scent of blood and the traces of a day that would never be the same again on Crystal Island.