[Manga] Chapter 342 Discussion
 

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Naruto 342 - 玉将 (The King)

Summary

In the Nara clan's ancestral forest, everything came back to peace, as Shikamaru walks away from the place that became Hidan's grave, closely followed by a deer. He's holding the box of cigarettes used to bring the final blow.
Sakura and Sai found Shikamaru thanks to Pakkun and land in front of him. Shikamaru asks them if they were his backup and adds they arrived a few minutes too late.
Sakura is surprised and asks if he took out Hidan all by himself while Sai compliments Shikamaru as he's capable than he was told.

While putting the cigarettes away, Shikamaru explains this was something he 'had' to do. Sakura understands and when Shikamaru asks for their friends, she explains they split the group. Sai proposes to get back to the group.

Chouji is supporting Naruto while Ino is performing medical jutsu on him, since he got seriously beaten up during the fight. Ino still can't believe Naruto distracted Kakuzu himself instead of using a bunshin.
Chouji compliments Naruto by saying he's smart too, but not as smart as Shikamaru... Still in pain Naruto jokes he shouldn't compare him with Shikamaru as it's not very fair.
Yamato was impressed that Naruto could use that jutsu three times in a row, while during training could barely perform it two times.

Kakashi's thinking about the fight. Naruto came up with a solution make sure the jutsu would hit after he failed it the first time. And he found out very quickly what to do. Naruto has gotten so strong he surpasses Kakashi now...
Naruto took a jutsu that even The Fourth couldn't complete and brought it to a level Kakashi couldn't even hope for...
He's always present, right in front of him... getting stronger... Sasuke.
Yamato interrupts Kakashi's thoughts saying they should head back to Konoha now.

Kakashi is looking into Kakuzu's direction while Yamato calls the team together to leave. When Ino asks Yamato what Kakashi's gonna do, he answers he's gonna finish off Kakuzu. Kakuzu is unable to move and Kakashi comes close, looking down at him. Kakuzu doesn't get how he got beaten by kids.

Kakashi coldly says it's true the might look like kids for someone who fought with Shodaime, but to them, Kakuzu looks like a old man! It's time for him to die! Kakashi delivers the finishing blow after telling him the next generation always surpasses the previous one. It's the cycle of life.

Back at Konoha, the whole team is standing in front of Tsunade-sama. She congratulates them for their effort, but warns them Akatsuki is not over yet. Nonetheless, she allows them to take a break after this tiresome mission.

At the graveyard, Kurenai is standing in front of Asuma's grave, when Shikamaru walks towards her, asking if she should be out walking around.

Shikamaru carefully poses the cigarettes on Asuma's tomb. Kurenai thinks Shikamaru will be a bit lonely now, since Asuma's gone. Shikamaru was his favourite student and always played Shogi against him.

Asuma thought Shikamaru lots of thing. Very important things for life as well as totally retarded stuff. Shougi was one of it. Being almost a grown-up, Shikamaru cannot cry over Asuma like a kid...

As a kid Shikamaru brused off his reponsabilities as troublesome and Asuma had to protect him quite often as he messed up. Despite that, he looked up to Asuma. Now it's his turn to be like his sensei.

Shikamaru tells Kurenai he'll have to protect her child now, since he has to become a cool adult as well now.

Back at home, Shikamaru is playing Shougi against his fathers. He's a way better player than Asuma was, as Shikamaru sees his pawn getting defeated by his dad's. Shikamaru sees the shinobi of Konoha as Shougi pieces and doesn't want to sacrifice any of them... That's what Asuma told him. He also has to protect the king no matter what.

When his dad asks about the king, Shikamaru says it's the unborn children of Konoha, the new generation.

Shikaku says he understand it well and while saying so, he got to Shikamaru's king: checkmate. Shikaku tells him he still has a lot of work as he's not strong enough to protect the king yet... It's difficult to face that reality for Shikamaru.

Gash!! Sasuke's katana sticks in the ground. He asks if that was all of them.
All the ninjas are laying on the ground, groaning in pain.
Orochimaru isn't impressed. Sasuke didn't kill any of them. He's still too soft on them. Sasuke replies they aren't the ones he wants to kill...

I'll see when I make an illustration. Not that I'll probably won't be able to do this on Thursday anymore as I'll have to prepare my kaiwa's for Friday, unless I can do it earlier. I've gotta make a schedule on how I'm gonna manage my time... The changes messed up my old one ^^'

Finality!
 

I've only seen the Untranslated version so far, but sasuke looks nasty! Too bad I hate him :p

Naruto also didn't seem very impressed with himself. . .

Well it certainly looks like Kakuzu was killed, so I guess I was wrong about that. Highly dissapointing imo, as this probably means we won't get to see any more of Hidan either. Big waste of cool characters, having them go out like that... I wonder if they will be replaced...

Didn't look to carefully (I'm a little drunk :p) but it seems Asuma's "king reference" was the children of Konoha including his and Kurenai's yet unborn child. That's all the confirmation we need about the nature of their relationship I think.

'Just finished skimming through the RAW version of this chapter. And I must say, Sasuke's lookin' like quite the badass on the final two pages. Look at the size of the shinobi's he's sitting on, too! I like how a row of shuriken are lined across his back. hahaha

Shika's dad is badass, too. He's one of the characters I wish would get more air time...

If you felt bad for Kurenai before, you feel even worse after this chapter. A lot of scene changes for one chapter. It looks like there's another arc starting up. And I don't see how Kishi can possibly keep replacing Akatsuki members. At this rate, the manga will never end.

Sasuke looks like Anakin Skywalker now. :D

And uhm.. The king is a reference to.. that unborn child or the Sarutobi bloodline?

'Pretty sure it's the future generations of Konoha...

I think the king is the upcoming generations. The Sarutobi don't have the monopoly of the Hokage function :p
I pity the poor lady... al that's left for her is her baby and her memories of better times with Asuma. It's more tragic for a young person than an older imo.

I can't figure out Naruto quite well this time... is he looking sad/worried because he got hurt or because the outcome of the fight isn't what he expected? I looks like he thinks he's not ready to face Sasuke yet.

The Uchiha boy also scares me... those ninjas weren't the ones he wants to kill!? So he's still convinced to kill Naruto as well. Makes me feel sad at the idea Naruto is doing everything possible for Sasuke while he won't be even grateful for it or at least return some of the affection...

* This definitely sounds like SasuNaru, but you've gotta accept it's a possibility. I've a brother and I can't imagine myself going as far as Naruto for a brother -_- I'm almost ashamed to say so... but I can't help it.

Shikamaru is getting more badass with each chapter . I hope this Asuma incident motivates Kurenai to get stronger .

That lil' speech Kakashi gave Kakuzu was the most fitting thing Kakashi has said in all of part 2.

A deserving ending for Kakuzu. Dying as a tool of the Akatsuki Leader, and consciously feeling his death in the hands of a bunch of kids. He didn't even have time to talk about his last wishes. (And I am dedicating the last (and maybe their most famous) line from the song Maggot Brain to Kakuzu, he can enjoy the song in his afterlife...)

So, it became clear that Sasuke could have really killed Yamato and the others, if he weren't that generous. Still, Kishi trying to make Sasuke look more human is a bit opposite of what we had observed. And, the way it is portrayed is not good.

And, finally, we heard from Kakashi's mouth, that Naruto went above him. Glad to know that. If he continue to train using this method for a few weeks more, the doors to Hokage will surely open for him, and who knows, to our delightful surprise, maybe the next time he meets with Sasuke he will represent Konoha as the 6th Hokage.

Lastly, Shikamaru acting out of ordinary is not really like him. Trying to give the laugh of Naruto does not really fit him and his cool character. At least we know that he is not the only one in his family that has very good IQ and still cannot reach Hokage level. Anyway, being a jounin should be sufficient for Shika to protect Temari's and Kurenai's brats.

LMAO @ the size of the dude Sasuke was sitting on!

Sasuke most likely was referring to killing Itachi not Naruto. Or maybe not, Im not so sure.

About the Chapter Translation

Maybe Sasuke currently knows more about the Uchiha massacre than we know (for instance, a few other people helping Itachi on that day), including another living Uchiha that might have triggered that massacre for instance...

Best chapter I have read in a long time. The bombshell about Kurenai, and revelation of the "KING", and the cycle of life in Kakashi's words. Wow, I haven't so impressed with the message this chapter since Sandaime talked about the fire burning and the leaf dancing and watching Naruto knock Garra on his back. :D

I was thinking also Akatsuki as the others this could be reffering to.

Yea about Kurenai

well in asuma's case it was his unborn child woth kurenai

So I take it we will never find out how Hidan got to be immortal?