A bag of chips

Since they didn't know that Orochimaru was involved, it made sense for Tsunade to only request Chunin-level help. Then again, I knew exactly what the result of these actions would be.

"You have thirty minutes to prepare accordingly. Head out as soon as possible. Dismissed!"

With a serious face, Rasa ordered us to leave. Nodding the three of us walked out of the room and prepared accordingly. After a while, we met up at the gate.

"Heh, those Konoha guys are so weak that they need us to babysit them."

"Shut up, Kankuro. You almost lost to one of them, remember?"

"Tch…"

"You two, stop arguing. Let's go."

Nodding, they followed me as we flickered away, running at top speed.

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As Gaara and his siblings made their way to the scene, the battle had already started.

Jirobo held Choji by the neck, pressing him against the ground. Picking up the Genin's bag of chips, he smirked in contempt.

"What… Is this your last bite?"

Opening his mouth, he shook the bag and a single chip fell out, landing on his tongue. Ingesting it, his expression became vicious.

"You're just a pawn… A throw-away piece of thrash… But don't you worry… I'll make short work of those idiots you came with!"

"You worthless fat-ass… DIE!"

Choji's life flashed before his eyes. He saw his younger self, surrounded by other kids.

"You can't play ninja with us! Whatever team you end up on is sure to lose, 'cus you're so fat and slow!"

Next to him, Shikamaru looked annoyed.

"But we have odd numbers… Even in games like shogi, its only fun when we play with an equal amount of pieces!"

Hearing his words, Choji's eyes lit up as he smiled happily.

"But… Having a useless piece is worse than having none…!"

Hearing these words, Choji turned around and left, depressed. Walking up to his usual rooftop, his dad sat next to him.

"They say that the Akimichi clan only has dumb fat-asses… Everyone says that…"

"Hmm… I see… but Choji, you've got a kinder heart than anyone I know. There will be someone who will see that in you, and become your friend… If you meet him, treat him as your best friend, and become comrades who will trust each other more than anything else."

Hearing his father's words, Choji's expression became blissful, as if he had heard the words he was longing to hear.

"Hey, you!"

Suddenly, Shikamaru walked up the stairs, reaching the rooftop.

"You're…"

"I'm Shikamaru, from the Nara clan. Oh, and you're on my reserved seat."

"Reserved seat?"

"Yeah, I love to lay down over there and watch the clouds…"

Smiling, Shikamaru pointed at the sky. Following him, Choji looked up in confusion.

"You came to stare at the clouds…? What about the ninja game?"

"Heh, I got tired of it so I ditched them. What's your name?"

"CHOJI!"

Snapping back into reality, Choji stared at Jirobo, who raised his and for a punch. Narrowing his eyes, a small tear fell down from the corner of his eye as he reached into his pocket.

'Sorry, Shikamaru… I guess I won't make it… I'll defeat this guy… Even if it costs me my life!'

Placing a red pill in his mouth, he bit into it with a smile.

"TOO LATE!"

Jirobo slammed down his arm, and the ground quaked as rocks flew everywhere. Looking down, he noticed that Choji was no longer there.

Confused, he raised his head and saw him standing in front of him, skinnier than ever before. Behind his back, two butterfly wings extended towards the sky.

In a split second, he flickered and reappeared behind Jirobo.

'Transfer all of my chakra… To my left hand!'

Suddenly, a mass of energy surrounded his hand, pulsing with menace. Feeling threatened, Jirobo turned around and threw a punch his way.

"Gangeki!" (Boulder Strike!)

To his surprise, Choji blocked his punch with one hand, without even looking at him. With a furious face, Choji spoke in a cold tone.

"Useless… I'm a hundred times stronger than before!"

Choji then smacked hi with his elbow sending Jirobo flying a few meters away.

'H-how! How can he produce this much chakra!'

Not waiting for him to stand up, Choji reappeared on top of Jirobo, staring at him with anger.

"You… Have you ever heard of the phrase: A grudge over food is deeper than the ocean?"

"That strike… Was for eating my last snack! As for this one…!"

'N-Not good!'

Jirobo felt danger, as a chill ran down his spine.

"It will be even heavier! I can't forgive you… For calling me a useless fatass…"

Recalling how Jirobo berated Shikamaru a while ago, he descended into madness. His face contorted ina anger as he screamed so loud all the birds in the vicinity flew away in fear.

"But more importantly… Not just for stealing my gourmet snack...Or calling me a fatass… Most importantly… I won't forgive anyone who insults my best friend!"

With a loud shout, Choji gathered all of his strength in one fist and landed it squarely on Jitrobo's stomach, destroying the ground underneath and causing a small earthquake.

Because of the powerful strike, Jirobo's curse mark slowly faded away as his life got extinguished.

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AN: Ok, so this marks a big turning point in this story. I'm going to write all chapters in third-person from now on.

I KNOW, I know its a pretty massive change, but hear me out. I have a few valid reasons.

1. So I can deliver a better story, from multiple points of view

2. So that I don't get confused with my other book

3. Because I prefer it